Pueblo Amigo and I have been friendly for a while now. It's not an amazing BFF type of friendship or anything, but it's definitely cordial.
Over the last year or so I've been neglecting the northside eatery. Hey, it happens. I'm all about making good, however, so we decided to make the trek there and give Pueblo Amigo some face to face time again.
It has to be said though... I can see why this place isn't in my top 8 on MySpace (isn't that what the kids use?). It's not that it's a bad restaurant -- some of the dishes are downright creative -- it's just... Good. Pure and simple. Good. There's nothing wrong with that, other than De Leon being two minutes down the road. Seeing how De Leon is great, then, well, Pueblo Amigo sort of falls between a rock and a hard place.
Back to the food. This is a bit more Tex-Mex or Cal-Mex or whatever than anything on the traditional side of things. Think large plates with plenty of sour cream and you get the gist of it. What does set Pueblo Amigo apart from similar places around town is that they come up with some fairly interesting takes on the established. I tried what they called a "grilled quesadilla roll" which came stuffed with bacon. Who doesn't like bacon? The communists, that's who.
Other than that, though, there wasn't much to get up on the table and sing about. The beans were dull at best, and I'm guessing they were lard-less. That's fine, if they properly salt them, but alas, they didn't. The rice, too, was forgettable and vaguely flavorless.
Overall the dish wasn't bad per se, just not amazing. I gave the enchiladas a try too, and they didn't seem much different. The salsa verde was OK, but not a crazy flavor rush or anything either. Just good enough.
Pueblo Amigo and I will remain friendly. I don't doubt that. Do I see myself walking hand in hand on the beach with it? No, but I'm sure the cordial friendship will last.