El Burro

When most South Africans think Mexican food, visions of greasy, cheesy nachos and oil dripping chilli poppers come to mind. Thank goodness, this no longer need be the case with El Burro in town.

A quiet, windless Cape Town evening (impossible, I know!) gave rise to my house mate and I feeling the need to have one last gorgeous week night dinner out before the real work of the year began. I had heard good things about El Burro and seeing as it is only a R14 cab ride from our house, we headed out.

We were lucky enough to get a teeny tiny table to for two on the balcony (so book before if this is where you want to sit!). We really felt like we were at a little Mexican cantina, sitting on a precarious mini-table on the side of the road, but our friendly waitress and beautiful view made up for having to squeeze our food onto the table. The view of the Green Point Stadium and the newly “greened” area around it made for a particularly good Cape Town feel. The decor of El Burro is classic Mexican bits and bobs, without looking kitsch or too trendy. My favourite touch is a “wall” of hanging baskets, wooden hearts and fairy lights that encloses one side of the balcony. So pretty!

The menu which lay before me sparkled with Spanish words which I had to ask the waitress about – she was clearly new and said they were “just fancy words”! The menu has no plain cheese nachos – a sign that this is the real deal (like Italian restaurants that don’t serve pizza!). Enchiladas, soft tacos, salads all with a choice of meat fillings, or fish, or grilled vegetables, made choosing a meal exceptionally difficult. I finally decided on a chicken enchilada and my house mate, staying with chicken (though there are so many options), settled on a chicken soft taco.

The food was quick to arrive and delicious – everything I could have wanted. My enchilada had two tortillas stuffed with chicken, drenched in a tomato/chilli sauce and lots of sour cream – my real weakness! I could only eat one, but what an excellent next day lunch the second one made. And this is what struck me about El Burro – the quality and quantity of food comes at a very decent price. My house mate’s soft tacos were also a hit. A soft taco is what most people call a wrap – all the ingredients come on the side and you are given two tortillas to fill to your heart’s desire. Not enough sauce on your taco or enchilada? El Burro gives each table six little bowls of magic to add a little personal flair to your meal – salsa, chilli, donkey’s revenge (really, really hot chilli!) and sour cream, just to name a few.

All in all my meal was superb and I will definitely be visiting El Burro again. We might have decided another glass of wine was in order to really celebrate the beautiful Cape Town night which lead us to the Slug and Lettuce down the road, but that is another story entirely!

El Burro, 81 Main Road Green Point, 021 433 2364, Mains: R60-R90, Service: friendly, quirky, efficient. Open Monday to Saturday 12:00- 23:30