When I opened my apartment door on the 3rd floor, the Chilean delivery man Mexican Grill smiled and returned the bag with a spark in my eyes, nodded politely, bowed his hat and turned to leave – that same smile his face.
I felt like I knew something I didn’t know.
I shrugged, took my purse inside and got to work.
One by one, I unpacked the article, as a food critic, my job is to take pictures before I touch even a piece of food. An old friend once told me: the camera eats first.
The first box contained tacos. I admired his golden shells in white and took my picture. Then I gave a bite and felt my own smile spread on my face. The shepherd tender, tasty, beautiful. Small pieces of pineapple intertwined with red meat dice, bringing a colorful acidity to the salted meat.
I put the tacos aside, promising to go back to them when my camera is full.
Then I unsealed the burrito with chillies. For $12. 99, this monstrous burrito can feed 4 kindergarten children or a very hungry JLB. After my first bite, I learned that I was not a monster, it was a situation of “Beauty and the Beast”, that the burrito was attractive and that I was the drooling beast.
A sign of a smart burrito is the amount of cheese stretching incurred from the first hot bite. Reader, I can assure you that the cheese stretch was impeccable. A juicy steak, sautéed peppers, rice and beans all this beauty, to make it delicious.
Chiles Mexican Grill opened June 1 in the plaza at the northwest corner of Collier Boulevard and Pine Ridge Road near Golden Gate Estates in Naples. The dining room is a family circle business run by Claudia Rubio, who also owns the prominent Golden Gate Antojitos y Mas ice cream parlor.
Rubio and his circle of relatives are originally from Colombia and will be offering Colombian specialties in Chile, as well as Caribbean and Central/South American specialties. Think of the tail sancocho, the mondongo soup, the Colombian empanadas with crispy doughnery shells, even Nicaraguan fritangas.
“The inspiration (the restaurant) was that we are a circle of relatives and need to review to have a better future. We’re just going to go out and do it for ourselves,” Rubio told naples Daily News in July.
This circle of love of relatives is evident in the food of Chiles, each dish is ready as homemade food and tastes like grandmother ready in her own kitchen.
The restaurant’s ceviche is a nod to the roots of South America and the Rubio family. In huge, low-cost amounts (only $12. 99), the dish gives corvina, purple onion, coriander and jalapeño perfectly mixed, making it a delicious blend with just the right balance of spices, flavor and cold.
Everything about this place, from the quality of the food to the generosity of the prices, makes visitors feel like members of the family circle. Like loose internal shipping, best for COVID-aware or outdated home-owners. Offers seating for dinner as well as takeout.
I have an idea about that delivery man and his smile. He returned the bag to me with such a sure joy of himself. You must have known then what I know now: Chiles Mexican Grill is something to smile about.
Jean Le Boeuf is the pseudonym used through a local food lover who dines in restaurants anonymously and warns, with food paid for through The News-Press. Follow the review on facebook. com/jeanleboeufswfl or @JeanLeBoeuf on Twitter and Instagram.
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4075 Pine Ridge Road, No. 3, Naples
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