It was another guys’ night out and Dave, Neil and myself were joined by Phil for a chance to get some good food and a drink or two. We weren’t quite sure where to go, but there was some discussion of a place that served Mexican food or Southwestern cuisine. What we didn’t want was one of the standard places we often go to for Mexican food.
After much discussion and a quick web search, I suggested a place a few people had mentioned to me. It was on University Drive in Tempe and was called Mucho Gusto. Since that wasn’t that bad of a drive from East Phoenix, we loaded up into Phil’s SUV and made our way over to the restaurant.
The exterior of the building that houses Mucho Gusto is a light tan and we missed the parking lot entrance on University because of the trees that blocked the visibility of the place when we were traveling east on University. We took the next right and worked our way around. We parked and entered through a courtyard that was empty, save the tables and chairs. Upon entering, we were greeted by a hostess who told us to select a table. We took the four-top right next to the door we entered. I was sort of surprised the place was as empty as it was on a weekend night.
A few moments later, we were given waters and menus. The menu was quite substantial and there were plenty of items that had us salivating.
Our server brought us chips and salsa and took our drink orders. There was one Iced Tea ($2.00) and three Diet Cokes ($2.00 each) and Dave decided to try the Tamarind Margarita ($8.00). Our server said he would get our drinks while we snacked on the chips. The chips were light and crunchy and looked as though they had been every-so-slightly sprinkled with paprika or, perhaps, a finely milled red chile powder (although we couldn’t detect that taste). We liked the chips, but wished they had been a bit warmer in temperature. The salsas (one mild and one spicy) were both flavorful and good, although we liked the spicy one better because it had an overall better taste.
Our server returned with our drinks. Dave immediately took a sip of his Tamarind Margarita and said it was “fantastic.” The exotic flavor of tamarind in a margarita was quite refreshing and delicious. The frozen drink was a hit with everyone at the table because it was such a novel flavoring agent. The whole execution of this drink was right on target.
After taking another minute or two to review the menu, we placed our order. We decided to start off with the Roasted Poblano & Tomatillos Queso Fundido with Chorizo ($9.00). Phil wasn’t exceptionally hungry, so he ordered a bowl of the Green Chile Pozole ($7.00). Dave ordered the Chicken Chimichanga Enchilada Style ($13.00) while Neil went with the Oaxacan Tamales ($13.00). I was tempted by the Colorado Pork Stew ($13.00).
At this point, we were anxious for a great meal, but as time wore on, we were becoming increasingly concerned about the service. Our waiter was attentive at first, but that quickly and suddenly declined as we were lacking refills on beverages and chips and we simply couldn’t find him anywhere to flag him down. I certainly couldn’t understand the inattentiveness because the place wasn’t that busy nor was the place that large.
He did finally return bringing a medium-sized cast iron skillet to our table that was bubbling with our queso fundido. It looked wonderful with its browned top and plenty of cheese. It was also served with a small stack of tortillas. We each dug in and took a scoop of the fundido and put it into the warm tortillas. It was excellent. The flavor combination of the poblano chiles, tomatillos and chorizo was spot on. The addition of a spoonful of the salsa made this appetizer outstanding. I did think that it could have used a bit more spice and the chiles needed to be diced up a bit more, but those wishes were minor.
After devouring the fundido, we were back to our concerns about the service. I finally was able to flag down another server and asked him to have our server drop by our table. Our server did return and only upon asking did he refill our water, sodas and chips.
We waited about 20 minutes before our entrees arrived. The first to get served was Phil. His big bowl of Green Chile Pozole was set in front of him and it looked quite good. He took a bite and I asked him what he thought. He raved about the overall flavor and loved the big chunks of pork that were in the soup. The hominy was tender, but still had some structure, and the addition of poblano chiles added a nice dimension to the soup. I tried it at Phil’s insistence and it was very good. I would have liked to have had the soup a bit hotter in temperature, but it was still a excellent treat.
Neil’s Oaxacan Tamales were two large tamales served in-husk with a side of mole sauce. One tamale was red chile pork and the other was green chile chicken. It was served with rice and beans and also a side salad made with organic greens. Neil found the tamales to be only okay, citing the over abundance of masa. The pork and chicken were both moist and tender and had a good flavor, but he preferred the chicken tamale. He did like the mole sauce, but stated it was rather mild for his tastes. He found the rice and beans rather ordinary, but did like the organic side salad which he found very fresh and crisp and a nice change of pace to go with a hearty Mexican meal.
Dave’s Chicken Chimichanga Enchilada Style was huge. The burro itself took up half the plate and was liberally doused with a crimson red enchilada sauce. Dave was all smiles when he got it, although he did mention that he was less than pleased that they added sour cream on top of the chimi without notifying him as there was no mention of sour cream added to the chimi on the menu and Dave prefers only scant amounts of sour cream. He said the tortilla was fried crisp and the filling was substantial, but he would have liked it to be a bit more on the spicy side. Like Neil, he found the beans and rice to be less than thrilling.
With some good comments about their meals, I was hoping mine would be just as good if not better. My Colorado Pork stew was a large bowl containing a sauce with a large cut of pork in the center. It was surrounded by bits of corn cob, a potato or two and a half-moon of Navajo fry bread. Visually, I was disappointed. This seemed more like a meat in a sauce puddle with veggies on the side than a stew. I took a bite of the pork and I found the sauce to be excellent and the meat tender and moist. However, the pork didn’t seem to have been “stewed” in the sauce for any substantial period of time and by the time I got to the center of the pork, it tasted like plain pulled pork. I also wasn’t sure what exactly I was supposed to do with the corn cob bits. They were discs of the cob that were about an inch thick and had been sitting in sauce. Was I to pick them up and eat them like a the edge of a cracker? Or, was I to do some sort of surgery to remove the kernels from the cob to enjoy them? I didn’t even bother. I thought it was an exceptionally sloppy preparation. The fry bread was okay, but had been overheated and was rather dry on the edges.
After we finished our meals, we again had to track down our server. We did get refills and a dessert menu. Dave and Neil decided to try the Fresh Berry Flautas served with Cinnamon Ice Cream ($6.00). Phil and I passed on dessert, but said we would try a taste of the flautas.
When the Fresh Berry Flautas arrived at the table, the scent of the berries and the fried tortillas were enough to make us all do our best Pavlovian dog imitation. They smelled wonderful. Dave cut into a piece of the flauta and a bit of the cinnamon ice cream and made a very pronounced yummy sound. We all took a bite and the flautas were the best part of the meal. The berries were rich and tart and the tortillas were crunchy and hot. The ice cream was good, but needed much more cinnamon in the mix. Still, this was a superb dessert.
We got our bill and the total was $82.70, including tax. I felt that was an okay value, but not great. The service was, well, lousy. The place just wasn’t that busy and there was no reason why we had to flag down our server every time we wanted refills on something as basic as water.
Upon return to the car, I asked for impressions. Phil said he really enjoyed his pozole. Dave and Neil said the food was “pretty good” but they wouldn’t go out of their way for a meal at Mucho Gusto. There were things on the menu that looked interesting for my part, but I am still on the fence if they would be enough to lure me back to the restaurant.
Certainly, the service didn’t help.
Mucho Gusto Taqueria and Mexican Bistro
603 West University Drive
Tempe, AZ 85281
Dress: Casual
Hours: Monday through Thursday – 11 AM to 10 PM; Friday and Saturday – 11 AM to 12 Midnight; Sunday – 11 AM to 9 PM
Notes: On the corner of University and Roosevelt.
We’ve been to Mucho Gusto a couple of times now and have had similar experiences to yours. I’m one who is willing to pay for unique and tasty food. But Mucho Gusto’s fare is wanting–the prices they ask are not justified by what you get. Even though we live in Tempe not far from MG, we’d much prefer to drive to Barrio Cafe in Phoenix if we want upscale (and excellent) Mexican food.
Hmm…I’m a little disappointed in the experience you mentioned, honey. Mostly because the food, overall, sounds like it was pretty good, and would definitely be a departure from the ordinary that I’d enjoy experiencing.
However, especially after some of our prior less-than-spectacular outings, I don’t have the patience for inattentive servers anymore.
Like Brett says, I think Barrio Cafe would be a better call if we wanted upscale Mexican. Too bad…like I said, the food sounds really interesting.
We made it out to Mucho Gusto last night and had a largely pleasant experience. The server was very attentive, with the only exception being a brief lull where she forgot about us between checking on our meals and waiting for the check, but there were a steady stream of refills and offers of more chips, and the young lady was very personable as well.
We were lucky in that the outside patio area was deserted due to the sultry summer heat even at 8:30, since we’ve got a very active and vocal toddler who would have disturbed other diners had we been inside. As it was he could wave and babble and sway to the lively jazz music that was playing to his heart’s content without worrying about other people. The dim ambience and secluded patio would have made it a great spot for a romantic date night as well, however.
As for the food, it was a mixed bag. I got the machaca chimichanga which was huge and filling. My stepson got the flautas which were more like enchiladas than the standard deepfried fare you come to expect. The red sauce was the same on both and had just a bit of kick to it, so I don’t know if Dave in the review above has more endurance than me and my family do or if they’ve turned it up a notch since this visit. I loved mine, couldn’t finish it because we had had a late lunch, but it had lots of meat and cheese and had a great flavor to it. My stepson wasn’t as thrilled with his, he likes his food on the bland side, so if you are going here with an unadventurous eater beware.
All in all it was a good if not spectacular meal and I’d go back, but it wouldn’t be at the top of my list.