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Don Juans Restaurant in Tyler Texas

October 7th, 2010

Don Juan

1313 E. Erwin

Tyler, TX.

(903) 526-0702

www.donjuantyler.com

My wife and I love Don Juan’s Restaurant. I think we will always love it. First of all we have a lot of history there. Don Juan is where we had our first date which both my wife and I were very careful not to call a date at the time. It was not a date. It was just two friends hanging out. Nervous. In love. Later we had our wedding rehearsal dinner at Don Juan.  And we have had several romantic dinners there since then. We are both big fans of the food and the atmosphere.

Don Juans Mexican Restaurant

Don Juans Mexican Restaurant

The food at Don Juan seems very authentically Mexican. I am not an expert but even the menu is in Spanish for Pete’s sake. That said, they know how to take care of their customers. If you have any trouble with their menu or ordering, the servers at Don Juan will be more than happy to help you understand the menu (the difference between a Flauta and Torta for example) without making you feel stupid.

A lot of people like to start their meal with an appetizer or an apertivo as they say at Don Juan’s. The appetizers at Don Juan include: Besitos for $3.25, Choriqueso, DJ’s Queso, or Guacamole for $3.50, Pico de Gallo for $2.50, Don Juan Nachos or Cocktel de Camaron (shrimp cocktail) for $7.50, Super Quesadilla for $6.99, Cincronisaida for $7.25, Ensalada for $5.99, or Carlos Sampler for $10.99.

I am sure the appetizers are very good at Don Juan’s but I’ve never ordered one. I’ve never needed to. They give you free chips and salsa that are so good you probably won’t feel the need for an appetizer unless you just really want to get some guacamole for your chips. The chips at Don Juan are thick and crispy and perfect. They give you two salsas to dip your chips in – the red and the green (verde). I love both. My wife prefers the verde salsa. Both are spicy so if you can’t handle two much heat you should go ahead and get the guacamole which is also very good.

Their are a lot of entree options to choose from at Don Juan. Their “De Mexico para el Mundo” section of the menu includes: original Mexican tacos ($1.45 each), Enchiladas, Enchiladas Verdes, Enmoladas, Tostadas, Sopes, Flautas, or Chile Relleno for $7.25. You can also get Tortas for $3.25, Pechuga Rellena for $7.90, and Milanesa for $7.99.

Don Juan also has combinations such as the Don Juan, Arturos Tacos, or Juanitos for $8.99, the Silvia’s for $9.99, Carlos Samplar for $10.99, Don Alex for $11.99, and Felipes for $20.99.

The Off the Grill section of Don Juan’s menu has some of my favorite food on the menu. They have Fajitas Para Dos for $16.99, Fajitas for $10.99, Carne Asada or Filete Asado for $7.99, and the Tilapia Asado for $9.99. I got the Fajitas for $10.99 and they were wonderful. I got both chicken and beef fajitas. the meat was really good, nicely seasoned and cooked. It filled me up. I was glad I didn’t order the Fajitas Para Dos (fajitas for two). I ended up taking some fajitas back with me to my hotel as it was. Of course I had to finish them later that evening. Yummy! I think I would like to try the Tilapia Asado some day as I am a fan of Tilapia (and Don Juan). The beans and rice at Don Juan which come with most of the meals are also quite tasty.

The Lo Tejano section of the menu offers Enchiladas Tejanas, Burrito, or Chimichanga for $7.25 and the Sopa  de Tortilla for $4.99. My wife and I are huge fans of Chimichangas when they are done right.

Don Juan also has several specials (especiales) on their menu such as the Lunch Fajitas and Mole Grande for $7.25, the Sopa de Mariscos (grande) for $7.99, Guisado de Puerco and Bistek Ranchero for $5.25, Tortas for $2.50, Caldo De Pollo, Menudo, or Pozole (grande) for $5.99, and Don Juan’s Tacos for $1.00 each.

If you are looking to get something a little lighter than an entree or you want to beef up an entree a little bit you can always order off of Don Juan’s a la cart portion of the menu. The A La Carta options include the Super Quesadilla, the Cincronisada Chica, the Burrito, or the Chimichanga for $4.50. None of these come with rice and beans like the entree options of the same. You can also get an extra enchilada or an extra flauta for $1.99. For $1.45 you can get tortillas, frijoles, arroz, or quesos. Crema is $0.50. And Chips and Salsa to go cost $2.50. A twelve oz. container of salsa to go costs $3.99.

If you are in the mood for breakfasty type food just check out the Desayunos section of the menu. For $5.99 you can get Chilaquiles, Huevos Rancheros, Huevos con Chorizo, Migas, Huevos A La Mexicana or Huevos con Jamon O Tosino. For $1.99 you can get an order of Breakfast Tacos.

Don Juan has several drink options (Bebidas) including soft drinks, Iced tea, orange juice, milk, coffee, and Aquas Frescas. I think the Aquas Frescas are like water and fruit juice such as watermelon and cantaloupe. These have always been far to sweet for my taste wherever I have had them. If you have a real sweet tooth for that kind of thing though you will probably enjoy it.

There are only two desserts at Don Juan. They both cost $3.25. You can choose the cheesecake or the Flan Napolitano. I have never cared much for Mexican desserts. I just think they are far better at making other kinds of food. Dessert isn’t one of their gifts though. Flan is alright and cheesecake is not Mexican so it might be worth a shot. But I was far too satisfied with my fajitas to think about dessert.

I hope Don Juan is around for many more years so I can have a lot more dates with my wife there. Maybe Don Juan will become a special place for you too. Hey, if nothing else you will get some great Mexican food. You can’t complain about that.

Don Juan’s Taqueria in Tyler Texas

January 30th, 2010

El Original

1313 E. Erwin Tyler TX
(903) 526-2999

On the Square

113 E Erwin Tyler TX
(903) 526-0702

One of my favorite restaurants to go to almost every week in Tyler is Don Juan’s. What you get at Don Juan’s that keeps me coming back is consistency and decent service. 

Don Jaun's

Don Jaun's

 The food is always of high quality and I usually get a pretty good waiter or waitress attentive to my food needs. They will almost always bring out some godo quality crunchy chips to your table. These chips aren’t the thin greasy chips you get at most places that people seem to like a lot. Don Juan’s chips are small triangular crunchy goodness. Combined with Don Juan’s extra spicy green and red hot sauce and you get a nice little appetizer prior to your taco’s or quesadilla arriving.

Don Juan's in Tyler Texas

Don Juan's

My favorite item right now at Don Juan’s taqueria are their chicken taco’s on corn tortilla’s. I will usually ask that they include cilantro, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and avacodo. I will usually get the taco’s without avacodo and I will sometimes ask for the waiter to go back and bring me some avacodo but usually I will just eat it however it comes out. Isn’t that what you do at McDonald’s? My order is never right there but I just eat however it comes out because why waist time complaining every visit?

My favorite drink at Don Juan’s is their Cantoulope juice. I would have never thought this flavor of juice would be good but in my mind it doesn’t taste exactly like cantaloupe but more like a refreshing fruit drink without distinct melon flavor. If you doubt my recommendation go ahead and order this drink and see what I mean. This drink is some good stuff! I have recommended the drink to a few of my friends and my wife. All of these people were reluctant at first but went ahead and ordered it. Now all of those friends order nothing else but yes you guessed it, Cantaloupe juice. You can beat this stuff. It is better than Tropicana pure premium orange juice no pulp and for me that is saying a lot.

When at Don Juan’s don’t spend too much time loitering at the entrance. You seat yourself people! See the sign that says “seat yourself”? Ok you have seen it so go ahead and find a table and wait for your server. This is how the machine works at Don Juan’s and we in Tyler like it like this. Why wait for a meaningless hostess to help you find a table when anyone with a brain can locate a clean empty table on their own? We can only hope that other Tyler restaurants learn from this ingenious idea.

Don Juan’s is located at the downtown square on Erwin and they have another location further down on West Erwin in the Mexican area of town near the brookshires dairy processing plant. 

Brookshires Dairy Processing

Brookshires Dairy Processing

 There are some obscure Mexican retail shops nearby with manicans wearing skimpy outfits and a house operating as a second hand used junk store. There is also Sam Hill Ace Hardware and lumber close by the West Erwin Don Juan’s location.

Great Mexican Food At An Affordable Price

January 8th, 2010

With around 1000 Mexican eateries in and around Tyler Texas ranging from the big chains to your little ‘hole in the walls’, Taqueria El Lugar is a Tyler staple. With its five locations Lugar offers everything from beef tacos to chicken burritos. And if you think a quesadilla is a thin tortilla shaped like a triangle you haven’t met Lugar’s #7. The #7 is a super quesadilla stuffed to the gills with your choice of beef, ham or chicken with cilantro, cheese and sliced avocado! Oh!-you’ll need both hands! The Super Quesadilla cost around $3.80 each

A Great Place to Bring “Out of Towners”

You have friends from out of town? You want to show them something a little less tex-mex?

Taqueria El Lugar is more authentic and will not disappoint non Tylerites. Try its newest location in the shopping center just south of The Diner  in Tyler. If you hit ‘Academy Sports’ you’ve gone way too far!

Jalpita Mexican Restaurant

December 21st, 2009
Jalpita Mexican Restaurant

Jalpita Mexican Restaurant

Jalpita Mexican Restaurant and Taqueria

813 Lindsey Lane,
Tyler Texas

(903) 526-7707

When we pulled into the parking lot of Jalpita Mexican restaurant I thought to myself, “No way.” My dad had suggested eating at Jalpita, but this was not what I had in mind. The building was rather rundown and it was not located in the best part of town. I was reluctant to venture in, but dad assured me that he had eaten there several times, and the food was great. So reluctantly I put my trust in him and went inside. At the counter I noticed that the food on the menu was very inexpensive; everything was around three dollars. This turned me off even more with the saying in mind, “You will get what you pay for.” At my father’s suggestion, I ordered a “Super Quesadilla.” From the first bite, I was very surprised and pleased; the food was delicious! Here was some of the best Mexican food I had ever eaten and there was a lot of it for only $3.50.

I eat at Jalpita often now, and I am always surprised at the variety of people who patronize the restaurant. In the parking lot one can see anything from a beat up pickup truck, to a shiny new BMW. Jalpita is located on Lindsey Lane, which is off of Vine Avenue, and there is now a branch on the N, NE Loop 323. Despite its looks, Jalpita offers great food for low prices. It is now my number one choice for Tyler TX Mexican food.