Eating out is a special treat for our large family. It isn’t cheap to take 8 people to a restaurant these days, especially since some of our kids (are older than 12 years and) are charged adult prices. We have jumped from paying for 2 adult plates and 6 kid plates when they were younger to paying for 5 adult plates and 3 kid plates today when eating out. That is a huge change.
We have also noticed prices in general increasing over the last several years, from food, fuel, clothing, travel, etc. As costs have gone up, we have become more picky about quality, costs, and the whole experience. We usually combine eating out with something special to enjoy, like a field trip, or a drive to see a new town, or new location to sight see, or a visit to a lake or the ocean, or for special celebrations such as birthdays.
Taxco Mexican Grill
On one of our recent trips we stopped and ate at a wonderful restaurant that serves Mexican food, Taxco Mexican Grill. We found the experience to be pleasant, delicious and well worth it. It is definitely a place we would recommend to other families.
The Taxco Mexican Grill is owned by a family who immigrated to the United States of America from Mexico. They opened their first restaurants in Atlanta Georgia in 1983. They have been very successful and now own a chain of restaurants in several states. The staff was friendly and helpful. Our waiter’s name was Zachariah and is pictured below on the left. He is the nephew of the owner. He did a good job taking care of our table.
We did a little research and found the word Taxco comes from the name of a silver mining and tourist town in Mexico. Taxco sits on the side of the Atatzin Mountain in the state of Guerrero Mexico. The word Taxco has two meanings. Taxco means “place of the ballgame” and the city hosts several sports such as basketball, volleyball, and tennis. Taxco also means “where the Father of the water is” because of the waterfall near the center of the mountain town.
Food:
The food was delicious. Since this was our first time here, and not sure if we would like it, we played it safe and ordered familiar dishes. However, we loved the flavors so much that I am sure the next time we go, we will branch out and try more things we are not as familiar with. Some of the delicious foods we ordered included:
Cheese enchilada with Spanish rice and beans:
Tostada with beens, lettuce, tomato, and guacomole:
Beef burritos with Spanish rice and beans:
Our six year old son ordered beef burritos. These came in pairs of two and without rice or beans. He loved every bite!
From the kids menu, our nine year old boy ordered chicken and fries. He is a picky eater, and most of the time will order something (not spicy, not covered in sauce, not touching other foods, etc) he is familiar with.
However, once he saw his brother’s burritos and asked for a bite, he quickly changed his mind.
He asked us to order him the same burritos too. So we placed another order for two beef burritos and the staff brought it out to us quickly. He loved the burritos and asked for seconds! We could not believe it! This goes to tell you just how good they are, because he has never asked for burritos before.
Steak fajita burrito topped with nacho cheese and served with Spanish rice and beans.
Pico de Gallo and sour cream:
The fresh made salsa is served in large bottles with a basket of crunchy warm tortilia chips. Each person can choose from hot spicy salsa or mild salsa and pour the amount desired into small empty salsa dishes and refill them as needed. We also ordered bowls of cheese dip too.
Some of our kids also enjoy mixing cheese dip and salsa together.
Everyone enjoyed the food. We had nothing left over when they were through.
Costs:
The costs were very affordable and likely one of the cheapest places you might eat out and still enjoy fresh cooked food. Burritos with rice and beans was $6.75 and 2 Beef burritos (no rice or beans) was $5.95. Steak burrito with rice and beans was $12.25 A combo of beef burritos and tostada with rice and beans was $8.75 Kids cheese enchilada with rice and beans was $4.75 Kids chicken and fries was $5.25 I would say out of all the Mexican restraunts we have visited, this one was the best combination of costs, experience, and quality flavors.
Another way we keep costs down is drinking water when we go out. We asked for glasses of ice water with slices of fresh lemon to drink. Water is free, is more healthy compared to sodas, and it helps keep our costs down with our large family. Having a slice of lemon in the water helps kids and adults enjoy the flavor and hides the taste of city tap water that public places serve. Our family much prefers spring water or well water, but that is not usually an option at restaurants so we just order waters with fresh lemon slices. With 8 people in the family, ordering lemon water when dining out is a huge savings on our budget.
Experience:
The restaurant was clean and the atmosphere was comfortable. The room was not crowded as many restaurants are, and there was plenty of space for our large family. Our waiter, Zachariah, was prompt and courteous. I asked his permission for a photo of himself to include in this story and he was happy to let me take it. We enjoyed this experience and his outgoing personality helped make it enjoyable.
After dinner, we took a walk outside to enjoy the scenery. There was a lovely pond with a deck, walking paths, fountains, and geese.
The restaurant actually has outdoor seating if you want to eat outside and enjoy the fountain while you eat. We will have to try doing that next time.
After leaving the restaurant, we enjoyed watching the sunset and scenery at a nearby lake.
We enjoyed this outing. It was a relaxing experience eating some of the flavors of Mexico and visiting the fountains and nearby lake.
I would encourage other families to find ways they can spend quality time together and enjoy life. Spending time together builds relationships and taking time to enjoy nature, mountains, forests, parks, lakes, rivers, oceans, fields, and looking at the sky too, is refreshing to the body. It sort of recharges your batteries so to speak. It improves the quality of one’s life. There is so much beauty to enjoy.
Ecclesiates 5:18
“Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.”