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Comment by valuearb | Hacker News Reader

Agreed. Moved to Phoenix from Portland, Oregon and I love Mexican and Tex-Mex. But all the Mexican I've tried here is just good, not great, family style mexican.

The closest place to great food is the TeePee, which is about as unassuming as a restaurant can get. The fancier places just crank up the spiciness to uncomfortable levels.

The best mexican?/tex-mex? I've ever had is still Chez Jose in Portland, Oregon. I'm really not sure how it's classified, other than awesome. Every trip back we eat there almost every day.

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Or could it be that you just prefer what you got at home?

I grew up in Phoenix and love going back for the amazing Mexican food. From more established places like Los Dos Molinos to the little out of the way dives, there is no way you can convince me that Phoenix doesn't have good Mexican food. Tex-Mex I don't care about but I've spent plenty of time in Mexico too and Phoenix has great Mexican.

Also note that Los Dos bills itself as New Mexican cuisine (meaning from New Mexico, not Neo-Mexican). At least they used to. I haven't been there in years, though I love it.

To be fair, Arizona used to be part of New Mexico

And New Mexico used to be part of Mexico.

And Mexico used to be part of the Spanish Empire, and Spain...

Only for 38 years though.

Mexican independence: 1810

US acquires New Mexico: 1848

Los Dos Molinos just makes their food way too hot, no subtlety to it.

> The closest place to great food is the TeePee, which is about as unassuming as a restaurant can get.

This is a principle that I've often found applicable to Mexican/Mexican-American food: the more impressive the decor, the less impressive the food. The Chicago area has lots of unassuming taquerias that knock the socks off of fancy, nationally-advertised chains.

Also, chains seldom can keep their good quality, there is always someone that starts optimizing profit before quality. The small places lives by their quality and wants to be proud about their food.

Try Restaurant Mexico (Res Mex) in downtown Tempe, on Mill Ave.

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