The sign for Granny 's was being placed in the window as we entered the former home of Uncle Billy's Resto-Bar. It was day #2 for the Uncle Billy's/Granny's Burritos collaboration at 653 Congress St.
The black painted tin ceiling, orange sponge painted walls and well worn red cushions remain from Uncle Billy's Resto-Bar. According to the waiter, the taxidermy wall decor that formerly graced the walls of Uncle Billy's was removed to make the restaurant more "vegan friendly."
For loyal Granny's fans, the atmosphere is a step up from the 90's grunge decor of the former Fore Street location. Waitstaff have replaced the self-service order system, unless you're taking food to-go. A much-too-loud eclectic mixture of rock boomed from the speakers as the lone waiter literally ran food from the kitchen to the tables in an effort to quickly serve both sit down and to-go customers at the bar.
We were tempted by the Poutine - a left over from the Uncle Billy's days, but opted to share
a plate of Veggie Nachos instead. Perfectly salted white corn chips were topped with thin slices of fresh jalapeno pepper, finely diced onions and peppers, chunks of tomatoes and melted white cheddar cheese. Unfortunately, the chips were too large to effectively dunk in the small plastic containers of salsa and guacamole (served upon request).
The salsa, which has an abundance of vinegar, reminded me of Margaritas' version
. The ingredients were pureed, and while I prefer chunky salsa, it had an excellent flavor with just the right amount of kick. The guacamole was bland - literally a puree of avocado with a few chunks of tomato. While non-offensive, it could benefit from the addition of cilantro, lime and salt.
We ordered our old Granny's favorites - Burritos. Veggie for me and Jerk Chicken for my husband. The familiar choices of tortilla shells (six flavors) and beans (pinto, black bean or a combination of the two) are still offered. Standard ingredients - cheese, rice, beans, salsa, lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream - filled the tortilla shells. When I asked my husband how the Jerk chicken was in his burrito, he suddenly realized it was absent of any chicken at all - a minor snafu that is completely understandable for opening week.
My favorite part of a Granny's Burrito is how it serves as an effective mechanism for the delivery of the XXX Hot Sauce - kicked up with plenty of vinegar and heat. I douse the burrito with the sauce before each and every bite. My taste buds are zinging for hours after a meal at Granny's.
Granny's is back on my short list of cheap-eats for lunch. Like other new restaurants, they have a few minor kinks to work out. Granny's new location is worth the walk from the Old Port if you're craving the best Burritos in Greater Portland.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Granny's Burritos - Portland, Maine
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15 comments:
Please share with us if any other Uncle Billy's favorites survive (including ribs, mac&cheese and the jukebox)...
This is such a sad day. The demise of Uncle Billy's (yet again) was bad enough. But the resurgence of Granny's is criminal. Hands down, the worst "burrito" I have ever had. I was so happy that this place finally closed up shop, and now this! It feels like Uncle Billy's grave is being urinated on. In short: AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!
I have to add one more thing that is more important than my little rant. Type A points out that she douses her burrito in hot sauce before each and every bite. This is a perfect example of the problem with Granny's. A GOOD burrito WITH FLAVOR doesn't need to be doused in sauce. It might benefit from sauce or salsa, but it doesn't REQUIRE it to be edible. Granny's burritos are poorly constructed lumps of...stuff...that lack flavor unless you bury them in some sort of sauce. Inexcusable! For the record, I have no relationship with anyone at Granny's--I have no personal axes to grind or issues with owners, etc. I am just deeply offended by their products.
"B", I never ate at Uncle Billy's, but the only item I see on the menu that indicates it is a left over from the Uncle Billy's days is the Poutine. Maybe you should make a special request for the return of some of your favorites. It can't hurt!
"Anonymous," you make an excellent point. When I make burritos at home they are abundantly flavorful. I don't douse them in XXX hot sauce - then again, I don't have XXX hot sauce at home. I think adding the hot stuff is half the fun of eating at Granny's...
I agree with the comments above, their burritos are lacking. The beans and rice seem to be totally unseasoned, and those "perfectly salted" chips? They come from a plastic bag. I wouldn't be surprised if the salsa came from a jar. I have yet to find a burrito in Portland (though I've yet to try Herb's Gully) that is better than what I can easily make at home.
Granny's is really not good. I have to agree with anonymous. Bland, underseasoned, tastes like the rice came out of a Kraft packet. Triple hot sauce is necessary just to get it down.
If you're interested in a slightly different style of burrito, anon, try the one at Tu Casa. It's quite tasty, and their beans are very good.
Herb's Gully can be good or not-so-good, depending on who's cooking that day and how much herb they've ingested.
Thank you Marya and everyone else who has commented. Sounds like I need to raise the bar a bit when evaluating “cheap eats,” and in particular, burritos. I’ll give Tu Casa a try and report back.
Oh, I would love a Tu Casa review. Also, have you had La Bodega Latina, another good one for cheap and incredibly good eats.
Yes, I'd love to hear what you think of Tu Casa. I always have a good meal there although it is completely devoid of atmosphere.
La Bodega also has some good takeout, particularly the stews. If you get the fried chicken fresh (they put it under heat lamps) it's phenomenal. There's something about Dominican style fried chicken that is just ridiculously good.
Note: I would never criticize for using hot sauce, as it's one of my passions. But a good burrito's flavor will shine without it. The hot sauce is just a bonus.
Erin I would try Herbs Gully if you have not already, still not the best, but far better than Granny's and they have tons of Captain Mowatt's hot sauce!
I use a lot of hot sauce regardless of how good the food is. If Anonymous or Erin cooked me up the best burrito that they could possibly make, you better believe that I would still douse it with XXX. My eating habits have nothing to do with how good the food is. That being said, Granny's is awesome. For the record, they are nothing near a traditional Mexican burrito, but hey, this is Maine, what do you expect.
I used to feel the same way, about Granny's burritos. They seemed bland, and I ended up dousing them with hot sauce as well. After a while I grew to like the fact that they can be seasoned to taste. There are so many mexican places that go over the top with spices and MOUNDS of salt. I like the fact that I can get a burrito here, that doesn't result in a midnight wake-up, to down 7 glasses of water.
What's wrong with all of you guys? Are you talking about the same Granny's that I remember? They were great. I really miss them.
I have got to disagree with people about Granny's Burritos-- I loved them on Fore Street. But I also never thought they were a traditional burrito. I've had traditional burritos made by Mexican migrant workers and NOTHING in ANY restaurant in Portland is going to be the same. Mexico Tipico in Lewiston is pretty close because it's made my Mexican immigrants. The appeal of Granny's is that you can get a nice little meal that's healthier than McDonald's in a compact package. Where else can you get Mango Chicken as flavour for a burrito? I think it's unfair to rate Granny's from the perspective of a traditional Mexican burrito. And for the record, I put NOTHING on my Mango Chicken burritos from Granny's. They're nice and light tasting without anything else added.
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