El Taco Tote

One thing I've discovered since moving to Houston is my deep and abiding love for breakfast tacos. We didn't really have them in NY, and in Waco I was too busy or tired for breakfast most days. My husband and I have tried a few different places for tacos in Houston, and I can easily say that the best, by far, is El Taco Tote.

(Sorry about the music on their website).**

ETT's breakfast tacos are only $1 apiece and are prepared very quickly using fresh, quality ingredients. You have your choice of a wide variety of fillings: potatoes, eggs, chorizo, beans ... you can pretty much name it. I am not a huge fan of eggs, so my favorite is potatoes and chorizo. The chorizo is stand-out; it's not greasy, too spice, or too bland. Perfect for the morning after a rough night (perhaps at Red Lion). So at the end of the day, my review boils down to this: if you're in the mood for breakfast and you have a dollar and a hangover*, definitely try El Taco Tote.

* Note: Hangover not necessary, but helpful.

** Particularly if you have a hangover.

Crescent City Beignets

I have to admit that I don't know much about authentic Cajun food. Etoufee, gumbo, beignets ... all of these things are really more of Ross's territory. But I know what I like. And I like the beignets at Crescent City Beignets.

Crescent City is located at 3260 Westheimer, in a strip mall in the River Oaks section of Houston. The set-up inside isn't really ideal. There is only one place at the counter where food is both ordered and picked up, which leads to back-ups in the line and forces customers to cut into the crowd when their order is up. The entire place has a crowded, rushed feel to it. I recommend either taking your order to go (like we did) or eating outside (although the small sidewalk only lends itself to two little tables).

My husband and I decided to just grab a box of beignets on our way out of town for New Years Eve. Unfortunately, neither one of us knew how big a beignet is. We knew how big the beignet strips served at Crescent City are, as some were displayed behind glass on the counter. Assuming that the beignets were smaller than the strips, because the strips are more expensive, we ordered 12 beignets. Big mistake. We ended up with enough food for four people.



What food though! The beignets are Crescent City are served piping-hot out of the deep frier, sprinkled with powdered sugar that quickly melts and then hardens into a delightful frosting/crust. They somehow were both soft and crispy, with an airy dough center. We immediately scarfed down three apiece, and wished we had room for more (or a means to heat them up for breakfast the next day).

Crescent City has a full menu of Creole and Cajun standards. All of the prices are reasonable, although I question what service is like in a place so small, crowded, and seemingly understaffed. I can't comment on any of that, though, since all we had were the beignets. And they were enough.