Maria's Mexican Kitchen in Odessa, TX, elevated Mexican food with magnificent mole sauce

Maria's Mexican Kitchen only opened in Odessa this summer but it is already a hit judging by the crown at 1pm on a Saturday afternoon. I traveled with my companion to Odessa just to eat at this restaurant as a birthday treat. 

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House-made guacamole

little back story on why I wanted to got to Odessa for lunch...in the past when I would visit San Angelo, Texas, I enjoyed going to a family run Mexican restaurant there called Armenta's. Primarily because they served mole sauce with some of the dishes. The sauce was the matriarch Maria's recipe. It was a rare thing to find mole sauce on the menu of the average Mexican restaurant. The last time I visited, I found out that they no longer serve the sauce as Maria had passed away. When I read that Maria's Kitchen, which is owned by her chef son Felipe Armenta, and was named this one in honor of his mother, I had to eat there and enjoy the delicious mole sauce again. The Odessa location is new and the other location is in Fort Worth. Chef Armenta has several restaurants in Texas. 

Chips and salsa

First off, I recommend making reservations, especially on the weekend. Odessa, much like Abilene, is a town that always wants to try the newest restaurant arrivals to the local scene so that may or may not have contributed to how busy they were on a Saturday at lunchtime. We arrived a little early for our reservation and were seated about 5 minutes after walking in the door. Maria's Kitchen is not an overly expansive restaurant, which is another reason to make reservations. The decor is modern and there are very high ceilings and contemporary style furnishings. The only drawback to the building is that it is quite loud when the tables are all full so keep that in mind if  that is an issue for you when dining. There will eventually be patio seating outside but the summer heat does not make that a pleasant option at the moment.

After we were seated at our table, the server arrived quickly. The service for the entire meal was very attentive and professional. Homemade chips and salsa was placed on the table almost immediately. The flavor of the salsa was very appealing. It had a roasted tomato profile and was served warm. I thought the chips were a bit on the thick side but they certainly did not break when used to scoop up some of the flavorful salsa, which did have a spicy kick to it due to the seeds that were visible. 

Mariposa and Maple Old Fashioned

A minor critique is that the drinks from the bar were a bit slow arriving, I think there was only one bartender working, but that was not a major issue for us and the manager brought our beverages over himself once they were ready. They were perfectly balanced cocktails. 

For an appetizer we ordered the house-made guacamole ($14). It was absolutely fresh tasting and quite delicious. There was a bit of a sweet flavor to it instead of the avocado being overwhelmed with a lemon/lime, onion, or cilantro flavor, as can happen with guacamole at times. It is a guess, but I think it may have had pineapple juice in it. We enjoyed it immensely and it was consumed quickly. 

For my entree, I was torn between getting the chicken in mole sauce or the enchiladas tres colores ($22) which had three different sauces on each enchilada. The enchiladas won because I wanted to try the poblano sauce in addition to the mole sauce. The third enchilada had sour cream sauce on it. For the filling, I got the chicken but picadillo beef was another option. My companion ordered the steak fajitas ($36). 

Tres colores enchiladas

Steak fajitas

My enchiladas came out looking like perfection on a plate. Of course, I had to try the mole one first. It did not disappoint. The sauce is complex and had some heat to it, the bitter chocolate note was there but the underlying flavor was red chili. Sesame seeds were sprinkled on the top. The chicken inside was tasty and tender. It was even better than I remembered it. The poblano sauce was also yummy and almost gave the mole a run for its money. The sour cream sauce was very, very good, no complaints at all. I could not have been happier with my choice. It was well worth the 2.5 hour drive, one way, to Odessa from Abilene.  

My friend's fajitas came out sizzling and the meat was full of flavor and tender. The accompanying flour tortillas were just the right size to make the a "bite-able" fajita taco. They came with the requisite peppers and onions, with a whole grilled jalapeno and grilled pineapple as well,  which as a little surprising but not unwelcome. 

Our dinners came with rice and refried black beans, served family style. Both were non-traditional as the refried beans were made with black beans and the rice used long grain rice, which put a different twist on the staple sides. I am not a huge fan of black beans but the flavor on both was good but to be honest I was too full from the enchiladas to each much of the sides. 

Interior

As you may surmise from the price points that were annotated, Maria's Kitchen is "elevated" Mexican food. The ingredients are high quality, along with the presentation, and the service as you would expect from the prices. The menu is not huge but the choices reflected several seafood options which one would not expect to see in west Texas. My next goal is to try the Fort Worth location which has been in business longer and see if it is just as impressive. 

If you find yourself in the Midland/Odessa area, I recommend you got the Maria's Kitchen for a lovely meal. I know I will again.  

Maria's Mexican Kitchen

7254 TX-191 #200, Odessa, TX 79765

432-282-0240

https://www.mariasmexicankitchen.com/odessa/

Hours

Mon-Thu 11am-1opm

Fri 11am-11pm

Sat 10am-11pm

Sun 10am-9pm

Brunch--Sat & Sun 10am-3pm

Happy hour--Mon-Fri 3pm-6pm

Uncle Julio--I love you! Tex Mex in the Metroplex

There is a chain of Tex-Mex restaurants that is my absolute favorite among all Tex-Mex places in the world...Uncle Julio's. This review is only about the Dallas and Fort Worth locations as they are the only two I have visited. The chain started in Big D in 1986. Most of the time, I go to the Fort Worth location.

Roasted salsa and tortilla chips

Let me get some of the obvious criticisms out of the way. Yes, they get crowded and there can be a long wait. Yes, the service can be "iffy" or slow, particularly when they are slammed. Yes, sometimes it is noisy. But I love U.J. anyway. The roasted salsa and tortilla chips are divine. The fajitas are fabulous, best I have ever eaten. The house-made flour tortillas--yum. This is the standard by which I judge ALL other Tex-Mex restaurants and I have loved it for over two decades.

The challenge every time is not fill up on the chips and salsa. The salsa has a wonderful smokey taste and is spicy enough to please but not so hot that it causes pain. You can see the little bits of veggies and cilantro. The chips are nice and light. Addictive, without question.

Queso

My sister and I stopped for lunch last week in Fort Worth on the way back to Abilene from East Texas. It was a Tuesday at a little around 11:15am and we were seated right away. It was cool enough to sit on the patio but we ended up inside on the other side of the window. The server came by and greeted us about 5 minutes after we were seated which was a bit on the slow side but we were not in a rush. He took our beverage orders. Shortly thereafter chips and salsa arrived. I enjoy that we each get our own salsa cups.

When the server returned with our drinks (another 5-6 minutes later) we put in an order for some queso and my sister asked some questions about the menu. He went to get the queso while we made up our minds.

Mamacita's lunch nachos with beef fajitas

I wasn't hungry enough to go for  the fajitas so I got steak fajita nachos instead ($8.99). My sister went for the chicken honey chipotle fajitas ($14.99). The beef fajitas have a great "crust" on them and are never stringy which can be a problem with skirt steak and why I often don't order beef fajitas anymore because lots of places tend to skimp on the quality of the meat.

The queso was a little disappointing at $5.99 for a cup. It tasted fine but nothing that I can't easily make at home with Velveeta cheese and some pico de gallo. It did function as a nice topping for my nachos after I had eaten the steak off of the tostada though. The nachos also came with sour cream and tasty guacamole, garnished with fresh sliced jalapenos. I asked for some pickled peppers and was accommodated. I would have liked a bit more steak but it turned out I couldn't finish it all anyway.

Honey Chipotle Chicken Fajitas (lunch portion)

My sister enjoyed her fajitas. She describe the sauce as more "bbq-ish" than glaze which she prefers but said some people may not like it. Too sweet for my taste. It was served with the usual fajita fixins', charro beans and rice. She didn't even bother with the rice and beans and went straight for the meat (after picking off the cilantro--she's not a fan of that herb). They were juicy but not overly drippy as many places try to disguise dry chicken with lots of oil.

The food came out pretty quickly and the server checked back a couple of times to refill our drinks and see if we needed anything else. The bill did arrive at the end and we were dismayed to have to drive back to Abilene instead of being able to take an after lunch nap. I can't ever recall not leaving this place satisfied and stuffed. The prices may be on the high side but it is worth it.

My favorite location is at I-30 and Camp Bowie in Fort Worth. Only a 2 hour and 15 minute drive from Abilene! You can us the "find a table" option on their website to reserve a spot during busy times.
 
Uncle Julio's 
5301 Camp Bowie Blvd.
Fort Worth, TX 76107
817.377.2777