Mexican wave

There is much more to Mexican food than nachos. Find out at the promotion in Hard Rock Cafe

Mexican wave

There is much more to Mexican food than nachos. Find out at the promotion in Hard Rock Cafe

Barbeque chicken toastada

Mexican food came much later, with the introduction of multiplexes and the ubiquitous nachos. But Mexican cuisine, as I slowly started to realise once it spread out its wings, has much more to offer. A common misconception about Mexican food is that it is very spicy, to the extent of being hot. However, the cuisine
surpasses the typecast. It uses a lot of herbs and spices like chillies, oregano, cilantro, cinnamon, chipotle. Not
surprising then that last year it was added to Unesco's world's 'intangible cultural heritage' list. Corn and beans are the mainstays of Mexican cuisine. So your tortillas and gorditas have to be made with the dough that has corn.

So when I went to Hard Rock Cafe's Mexican food promotion, my knowledge about the cuisine of the ancient Aztecs (with influences from Spanish now) increased manifold. The cafe has decked itself for the promotion. There are the usual -- flags, service people decked up in ponchos and Mexican hats -- that you will find once you step into the cafe. The music, true to Hard Rock, is good and whiling away time isn't that difficult, even if you are alone.

The menu, however, isn't very extensive. There are as few as seven dishes to choose from -- not great if you are a vegetarian. And only one dessert. If you want to drink, again, your options are limited unless you go through their regular menu. Not really good for a promotion.

I tried out the Bahama Mama Chicken Tender Burrito from the special menu (they are also serving dishes from the regular menu), which was flour tortilla laced with roasted chipotle chilli ranch, topped with smoke infused spicy bakebean and corn ragout, chicken tenders, shredded lettuce, mix cheese and jalapenos and served with fries, guacamole and sour cream.

It was shaped and cut like a pizza, not too spicy and quite filling. This I teamed with a Mango-berry cooler that had a heady mix of mango, pineapple, orange juice, pomegranate syrup and sweet and sour mix topped with lemon lime soda. Tasty and refreshing!

For main course, I tried Texas beef chilli tosatada which had minced beef and a base of beans, corn, lettuce and shredded cabbage. Simply put, tostada (Spanish for 'toasted') is a flat or bowl-shaped tortilla that is toasted or deep fried. It was slightly spicy and tasty. I rounded off the Aztec expedition with Black & White that comprised dark and milk chocolate wafers along with chipotle vanilla with roasted cinnamon and coffee. Basic and good.

At: Hard Rock Cafe, DLF Place, Saket
Till: September 18
Timings: Noon to 1 am
Call: 47158888
Meal for two: Rs 1,500 + taxes

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