Happy Birthday Bestie!
This weekend was my best friend’s birthday and it was a great get together for food and drinks. At 32, I think you are kind of over the standard bar/black out/I don’t remember what happened/#hashtag birthday celebrations. Or maybe not. Who knows…
Either way, a group of us went to Urban Rio in Plano for some good Tex-Mex and now I can blog about how much I gorged on food and how happy my belly was. The menu looked really promising and I’ve been on an empanada craze for sometime now.
Since we had such a large party and the restaurant doesn’t take reservations, I expected a long wait. The hostesses weren’t super helpful and we waited over an hour and a half until someone begged them to let us take the empty party room. But all was forgiven when the food arrived. Our waiter on the other hand was fabulous, fun, and very thoughtful. His service was on point.
Picadillo Beef Empanadas
After a round of ritas, I also ordered the picadillo beef empanadas which has ground beef, potatoes, carrots and serrano peppers. Mmmm carbs. In addition to that, I ordered the Shea’s Tamale Pie and I was ready to eat.
The empanadas were tasty but I could’ve done without. It’s not something I’d ever truly crave again. It just tasted like a regular meat pie. Not bad, but at the same time not super fantastic and they were tinyyyy.
The Tamale Pie on the other hand was awesome in the most untraditional Tex Mex way. Served in a cast iron dish, it seemed like Christmas when it was placed in front of me. I was so hungry by then, I was getting dizzy. There was a great amount of flavor and the texture was everything I wanted.
Basically a “tex-mexican pot pie”. With potatoes, corn, peppers and chicken, it was baked in chipotle cream sauce and cheese. I’m happy to say it was a very satisfying dish.
Cake! Cake! Cake!
The end of our meal was complete with two homebaked cakes. I got one slice of each because I’m such a pig. One is a light white cake topped with cream and fruit and a blue velvet cake. There’s always room for dessert.
Successful celebration for sure!
