Sunday, October 6, 2013

The rarest chilaquiles in all of Austin.

Chilaquiles at Veracruz All Natural. © Ryan Schierling
Elusive. Exclusive. Exquisite

We finally stopped with 50 plates of chilaquiles. This is chilaquiles plate number 51.

Just when I thought Julie and I had closed the book on chilaquiles in Austin, Reyna Vasquez – owner of Veracruz All Natural – dropped a first-class, stunningly-good breakfast beso on us.

We had already tried a few times to get ahold of these rarified chilaquiles. The first Sunday we stopped by, the trailer was closed for repairs. I called the following week to find that the special brunch menu was served only on the first Sunday of each month – essentially making these the most elusive of all chilaquiles in Austin, offered only 12 times a year.

I had a feeling they were going to be pretty good, but I had no idea just how good. At one point, Julie took a perfectly-proportioned bite and simply started laughing. She had no words, only a giddy roll of the eyes and a slight swoon. My reaction was incredulous silence, stunned disbelief, and an immediate clearing of my calendar for all following first Sundays of the month.

Both rojo y verde are offered, plated (yes, actual plates out of a trailer) with your choice of charro, black, or refried black beans, and fried plantains. I ladled out a bit of the spicy green and rich red hot sauces that are so wonderful on the Veracruz All Natural tacos, but the salsas went unused, wholly unnecessary. The chilaquiles verde were as ideal as they get – fresh totopos with perfect tooth under a sauce so natural, bright and right, with just the slightest heat. Under the over-easy eggs were a few slivers of raw white onion and a dusting of hard-grated cheese. The red version was more mild and subtle, a little delicate, but refined and ridicously-satisfying. There were none of the overly-heavy, thickly-spiced, tomato-chile flavors we'd seen on so many plates of chilaquiles rojo before. Refried black beans (flawlessly seasoned) and sweet, crispy-edged, creamy-interior fried plantains finished the plate. 

Texas Coffee Roasters provided the cafĂ© and the sandia agua fresca was amazing. 

Veracruz All Natural is now at the top of our list of the best chilaquiles in Austin. Thank you, Reyna. We'll see you again soon.
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