Eating More Tortas at East Aurora's Tortisimas

While the torta is almost always found on typical taqueria menus around town, Mexico City-style torterias, with their full juice bars, are happily becoming much more common in and around Denver. When travelling in your local Mexican-centric neighborhood, it's hard not to stumble upon one.

There is nothing quite like the yin and yang of an obnoxiously large sandwich of greasy-grilled meats and freshly blended fruit and vegetable drinks. And given the success of Denver's original torta spot, Tortugas, which seems to always have folks lined up by the dozens, it's not a surprise that torteria numbers are on the rise.

My latest stop was Tortisimas, which my wife stumbled across doing God-knows-only-what deep in the heart of Aurora on Chambers and Mississippi. Tortisimas is another virtual copy of Tortugas, with the same logo on the door (a silhouette of Mexico City's El Angel statue) and appropriately naco touches like this:

While I appreciate tasteless decor as much as the next guy, what I was really there for was a sandwich. So were my boys, who, now two, have learned to ask for tortas by name. It brings a tear of joy to my eye to see them tackle with such ferocity a sandwich bigger than their own heads. 

I had a torta with chorizo, chicken and eggs. It was good. It wasn't anything spectacular, but one can't really complain about a big hunk of bread, avocado, cheese and greasy meats--at least until the next day.

My wife's torta was overflowing with cheese, chorizo and mushrooms. The earthy, thick mushrooms cut through the grease of the chorizo very well, making for an excellent and unique combination. Not quite like mushrooms al pastor I was virtually tricked into eating once, though in some ways better because instead of no meat, there was meat.

From my small sample of Tortisimas, I would judge it to be a good torteria and I would be glad to have it in my neighborhood. It isn't exactly destination-torteria worthy, unless you happen to be coming from Kansas and East Aurora is your first contact with civilization. And if East Aurora is your first contact with civilization--well, just be glad you can get a good Mexican sandwich while you're there. But for us locals, the Denver-area has many other options. So what are you waiting for? Go out and support your local torteria now.

Want Some Tacos with Your Torta? Saturday Mornings at Torta Grill

I have become partial to the fine tortas being made and slung by the self-proclaimed guero tortero (and his wife) on 1818 East Colfax Avenue. So much so that I recently procured his catering services for my kids birthday party. The massive pile of foil-wrapped tortas was such a hit that I think some adults even forgot they were at a 2-year-old's birthday party and enjoyed themselves.

Part of my partiality to el guero tortero, who is also known as Steve, is probably his status as a half-Filipino that has come to love and embrace Mexican food. The other part of my partiality is that he makes a mean torta. And his restaurant, instead of trying to make things fancy like so many other non-Mexcians running Mexican food joints, serves a straightforward torta that would rival any on South Federal or East Aurora both in quality and in price. And he's doing it right in the heart of town. So when he asked me to come in and try his newest menu addition before he unleashed it on the public, how could I say no?

Much to my surprise, however, the newest menu addition at Torta Grill is not a torta. It is a taco--three tacos, actually, and they will only be served for breakfast on Saturday mornings. The first two we had were carnitas and carne asada; both served in a single corn tortilla on top of an over-easy egg and drizzled with a bright and spicy green salsa.

It looks simple, and it was. But if you've ever had Steve's carnitas, then you will know you don't necessarily want to have too many other things complicating your lovely little pork chunks. But if you must, the nice green salsa worked well, and so too did the fabulously runny egg. Be prepared for a little bit of a mess with these tacos, but know that it is a mess you won't want to go away.

The steak taco was virtually the same as the carnitas, and although also very good, I much prefer a nice fatty chunk of moist pork over a nub of beef any day, and this was no exception. The last of the trio we tried was in the same format, but instead of meat was a piece of breaded and fried poblano pepper stuffed with queso Oaxaca.

This poblano taco was also rather brilliant. With that fried egg and its velvety warm egg yolk, Steve could put just about anything from his kitchen on these tacos and do pretty well. But choosing this stuffed poblano works especially well I think because of the strong flavors and the different textures. The crisp poblano taste is there, and the egg just adds more richness and depth. OK, I guess I might be getting carried away. Straightforward food deserves straightforward description. Let's just leave it at this: It's a damn good taco. And it's vegetarian if you care about those kinds of things.

You know, besides the rare media dinners I end up attending from time to time, I normally try to go places without anyone knowing I'm there (not that most would care). It's a way to take some bias out of the biased business that is food blogging. So that is supposed to serve as a disclaimer of sorts. Of course I dined at Torta Grill with some level of bias, being that I was invited and being that I think Steve is a great guy and I want to see him do well. That being said, I don't think I have ever had tacos quite like this. That runny egg and those amazing carnitas have me wishing for next Saturday morning already.

This Saturday morning--March 23--will be the first of many more Saturday mornings when you can get your own breakfast tacos. So when Saturday comes around, whether you are still drunk wandering the back alleys of East Colfax and waiting for the liquor store next door to Torta Grill to open--or just like to eat good food, check it out.

Torta Grill On Not-Too-East Colfax

There are plenty of great tortas to be had around Denver. On the East and West sides of town there is Las Tortugas, the first Mexico City-style torta shop around and now a true Denver institution. There is Teleras up north in Thorton, a Tortugas replica with a few original twists that is worthy in its own right. And just outside of Cherry Creek on lovely Leetsdale is the amazing Guadalajara-style Las Tortas, home to a fine torta ahogada. There was even for a time Leobardo's, who would make the most Mexico City of Mexico City sandwiches, the torta de tamal. Yes, tortas--really good tortas--abound compared to other Mexican dishes in Denver, but like so many other good, inexpensive Mexican fare, one usually has to travel well outside Central Denver to partake.

I never mind driving for good food. Between my wife and I--from Mexico City and Chicago respectively, there is seldom traffic in Denver that we can rightly call traffic (very much part of the reason we love it here), so in one day it would not be rare to find us lunching on North Federal then dining down in Southeast Aurora. That being said, if I don't have to spend time in a car I'd rather not, so when I heard that Torta Grill opened up just 18 short blocks from our state's capitol on Colfax and Williams, I headed over as soon as I could.

As much as I have learned to like the Denver strip mall (for its seemingly limitless number of cheap, culturally diverse eats) I love that Torta Grill is on the curb-- and what's more, on the curb of Colfax next to a liquor store and just a few steps down from the lovely Squire Lounge. It is on the corner with the alley between Williams and High that you will find Torta Grill in a small space sporting five stools inside, and a four-seat plastic table out on the sidewalk. It has little sliding windows that open from the register to the street as well, so that food and cash can be exchanged right from the pavement.

While many tortas in Mexico City are made on carts, the more permanent vendors might operate from a shop not unlike Torta Grill. And without a doubt tortas are best enjoyed sitting on plastic chairs or standing on a busy street with throngs of people walking by. In this sense Torta Grill has chosen the perfect location.

Yes, it seems like a well-conceived plan by the husband and wife team who have opened Torta Grill. The former, Steve, or as he calls himself, "El Guero Tortero", can be found working the line; proudly flipping your torta meats. His wife, Ardeni, a Mexico City native, was also there that day to ring up our order then pass it out the window with a big smile. 

My wife ordered the Jose, which in addition to all the torta basics (avocado, mayo, beans, onion, tomato, etc.) came layered with ham, chorizo, eggs and cheese.

That's a  fine-looking torta

It was an excellent torta made with fresh ingredients all around. Even the beans--smeared across the bottom loaf of bread--stood out. They were creamy and flavorful; and when a seemingly background ingredient stands out, it makes me think that much care and thought has gone into the preparation of not only the sandwich, but the entire restaurant. I could be wrong (I often am), but by the taste of those beans it also seems like the Guero Tortero is not afraid to make use of the lard. Well done.

Inside La Jose

The Arturo is what I ordered: pork, ham, eggs and cheese. It was exactly as delicious as it looks in the photo below, and note those beautiful black beans peeping out on the bottom layer. In my carefree bachelor days that found me more than once at the Squire Lounge just down the street, oh how I wish this sandwich was there as I stumbled home. 

Of course what would a torta shop be without aguas frescas? The question is mostly rhetorical, but for those not familiar with a typical torta-shop set-up, the answer is that it would be hard to even consider that a torteria in a place like Mexico City. The fact is that greasy tortas and fresh-made fruit and vegetable drinks are the yin and yang of Mexico City street food. There are very few things that are likely as unhealthy as bread slathered in butter stuffed with several kinds of greasy, grilled meats, cheese, mayo and all the other sorts of calorie-laden, cholesterol-raising fillings. Therefore it makes sense that a healthy, freshly made jugo like the one I had at Torta Grill-- made with strawberries, apple, pineapple, orange and lemon--are the perfect companion to the torta.

Sipping a giant freshly made jugo after downing a torta is like waking up early to go to the gym after eating a big meal the night before-- but without the waking up early or going to the gym. What could be better than that?

Where does Las Tortas stand among the torta greats of Denver? It is early still, but I was most definitely impressed with what I had, and unless something changes (I'll let you know if it does), it will be on the top of my torta rotation from here on out. Do yourself a favor and get there.

The Torta Grill is calling your name. You can call them at 720.420.0964 for delivery or just go pay a visit at 1818 E. Colfax. 

The Almost Masterful Masterpiece Delicatessen Cuban Sandwich

It is likely that more than enough good has been said about the Masterpiece Delicatessen in the Highlands, and in the grand scheme of things that is the Denver food world, what I am about to write probably matters very little (although that could be said about everything I write). But in revisiting one of my ongoing quests in Denver to find the "best of" certain dishes, I found myself at the Masterpiece Deli one summer afternoon not too long ago-- and in front of me was a Cuban sandwich.

The Cuban sandwich, like the Italian beef, is a minor obsession of mine (my foremost fetish, of course being the taco al pastor). The Cuban, with its succulent layers of ham and pork layered between buttery, grilled-pressed bread is one of the world's finer sandwiches, and done right it is nothing short of, well, a masterpiece.

It was a hot Saturday afternoon at Masterpiece and the place was packed. Even the boiling hot sun-drenched parts of the patio had people chowing down on their breakfast bagels and sandwiches, seemingly undaunted by the intense summer sun. And although half of them were looking thoroughly hungover, they all seemed to manage a smile when their sandwich came-- and continue smiling while eating.

Good sign I noted, not that it would have mattered. My wife's entire family was already inside ordering while I tried to maneuver the stroller onto the patio. It wouldn't fit in any reasonable way, so taking a lesson learned earlier this summer, I parked it out front. But there was no way my babies were going to sit in that hot sun, so I hovered over a table in the shade that seemed like it was finishing up--and the three of us tried not to drool too much over their breakfast (with somewhat limited success).

The Cuban I ordered was stuffed with a thick and tender slow-roasted slice of pork and on that were stacked layers of Black Forest ham. The roasted pork was wonderfully moist and worthy of a proper Cuban. Also in the tradition of the Cuban was the yellow mustard and sliced pickles. Apparently there was also a garlic aioli as well, and although I didn't really notice it, I suppose for that reason it worked. The bread was the only thing holding this Cuban back from being a great:

For an otherwise wonderful sandwich, the thin, airy hamburger-bun-like roll was just not right. Fair enough, as nowhere does Masterpiece purport anything about trying to replicate every last detail of a proper Cuban. At the same time, given how good everything else was that I tried, if they decided to replicate the lard-filled white bread that traditionally adorns a Cuban, I bet they could do it well.

What I also tried included a version of another classic: the Mexican Torta. Served on a baguette (which as far as substitute bread choices go is a good one--even this Mexican place does it), it was stuffed with a carnita-like pork filling and gobs of avocado. It had melted cheese, mayo, tomatoes and all the other usual torta suspects. It was a worthy take on its Mexican counterpart.

Another sandwich worth mentioning from that day was the fantastic Italian stuffed with copious layers of cured and spiced meats (from NYC's famous Salumeria Biellese); zingy, fresh arugula and surrounded on both sides with light, airy ciabatta.

I wasn't looking for an "authentic" Cuban that day (although who even knows what "authentic" means anymore) and I didn't find one-- though I did have a great sandwich. After all, we all know you don't have to be Cuban to make a Cuban sandwich (although being from South Florida certainly helps). I'm not sure where the masterminds behind Masterpiece hail from, but they just about nailed this classic. Almost.

It is always good to see that a place that could easily live on it's reputation and prior accolades--especially one that seems to turn over customers and tables at the rate they do here-- still puts out a bunch of good, well-crafted sandwiches. It took me far too long to get here, and while I might not be back just for the Cuban, I will definitely be back.

Tortas en el Norte: Teleras of Thornton

Friday afternoon is no time to be going to the dentist, but I had been putting off my oral hygiene for far too long. The reality is that while my pearly whites are probably better described as "off-pearly-white", my teeth-- through no fault of my own--are generally healthy. In fact on this fine afternoon I was scheduled to have only my third filling ever, something that I am rather proud of considering my relatively advanced age-- but something that also leaves me very ill-prepared for my infrequent dental visits.

After what seemed like hours squirming in the dental chair, mouth packed with gauze, traumatized by the high-pitched whirring of the drill and listening to my dentist wax on to his assistant about, among other things, his intense loathing of pine nuts (who hates pine nuts this much and why is he jamming a drill down my throat?), he very causally informed me that I would not be able to eat for at least two hours.

Two hours? It was 5:30 pm when I was unshackled from the chair. I had essentially skipped lunch, planning the whole day to gorge my gluttonous appetite at a new torta spot in our fair and kind-of-far-away neighbor up north, Thornton.

One hour and fifty-five arduous minutes later my wife and I were pulling into the parking lot of Teleras Deli Mexicana on 88th and Washington in the Southwest corner of the Rancho Liborio supermercado lot. We had been here a few weeks earlier just after Teleras opened its doors and I was impressed with my torta D.F.: strips of fried steak, chopped carnitas and a fat slice of ham. It was a solid, well-built torta with a ton of flavor.

Teleras Deli Mexicana is around thanks to the passion and hard work of its owner and proprietor JuanCarlos and his family. A native of Mexico, JuanCarlos has always dreamed of opening a place that could serve his take on this Mexican classic, and he has poured countless hours into the place building everything from the functional sneeze guard to the artful wall-hangings.

I was hungry enough when we arrived that I might have dared order what is Teleras' largest creation: La Mamalona. A step up from the Cubana, the Mamalona simply has "TODO", or that is, everything.  You may think I'm exaggerating again, but there it is on the bottom of the chalkboard menu (of which my picture did not come out so well). For double the price of a standard torta, you can enjoy every single food item in this restaurant stuffed and stacked between two slices of buttered and grilled bread. Not a bad deal really. That is, until you eat it and try to walk out the door. This is the kind of sandwich left for TV personalities, hell-bent on making us gawk at their gluttony. When they keel over from a massive coronary infarction, there's plenty more lining up behind them to take their place. Me? I've got a loving wife at home and already endanger my lipid-levels and arterial passageways enough with my food-adventures without daring to eat this thing. Still, I would tune in if it ever makes it on one of those shows.

What I did have in mind for this visit was la Torta Poblana, which features chunks of chicken bathed in a house-made mole. It was absolutely delicious.

It turns out that another side effect of minor dental surgery is a numb mouth. Never mind that it made me sound like a creepy drunk-- that is, as they say, par for the course (which I believe is golf-speak for you must be drunk to enjoy golf). What I did mind was that it makes consuming a sloppy torta de mole even sloppier. That was a minor setback, however. I took big, deliberate bites, sloshing them over to my left cheek to avoid repeatedly biting my right one. It did make me slow down a bit, and in doing so I savored each bite of this wonderful, layered mole.

The toasty pan telera sopped up the mole perfectly, and the fresh tomato, onion and avocado were a bright splash of cool contrast to the dark and rich sauce. The simple queso fresco added some of that "torta" feel without stealing the show like gobs of melted cheese would have. This is in many ways a perfect sandwich. This is not the dental drugs talking: I loved this sandwich.

There are of course other things at Teleras. My wife has ordered elote a couple times. The first time she tried it "en vaso", which means it comes in a cup with the traditional generous portions of mayo, butter, grated queso and powdered chile (piquin). The first batch tasted canned (which has since changed), so my wife tried the elote on the cob the second time around. This has the same basic ingredients only they are lathered on a roasted ear of corn. This indoor version of a traditional Mexican street food was good, but something was still not quite there for us-- I think the corn itself could have been better.

The other tortas we tried were very good as well. The ingredients are fresh and laid on thick. The aguas frescas are good as well. The strawberry was especially refreshing post-dental appointment, and $3 for a huge Styrofoam cup full of freshly blended berries is a screaming deal. Teleras is good, there is no doubt about it.

Thornton, your torteros have arrived, I hope you go take advantage. Denver, I know that leaving our familiar confines can be a little daunting at times, but it is well worth your while to get up the hill and eat this torta poblana and sample the rest of their solid menu. I wish Teleras the best as it sets out on the journey as a new restaurant. I hope it's there the next time I need a fix of that mole.