Ahhh!  Having left the Land of Enchantment a little over two years ago,  my husband and I and litter of four were in search of the nearest and most authentic mexican restaurant that could match those we frequented in sunny Albuquerque, Rio Rancho and Santa Fe.  Alas, one after another, mediocrity led to major disappointments within a 15 mile radius.  In desperation, any restaurant with the word “el”, “tortilla”, “cantina”, “burrito”, “taqueria”  became our destination.  Finally, this weekend my husband and I en route to Starbucks caught site of a little restaurant called the Red Sombrero sandwiched between your typical strip mall storefronts.  Yes, the Red Sombrero.  We’ve seen it before but nodded it off as just one of those 5 pounder stuffed with rice in thai peanut sauce burrito joints.  But that it is not.  I went for the $2.29 taco with pork, onions and cilantro with lime nicely seasoned.  Perfect.  My husband’s chicken enchilada plate was superb.  Finally. Whew!

And while the kids were off to grandma’s, we took a drive into Philly and visited our old neighborhood at 10th and Locust.  Not much has changed other than a few restaurants down the block.  For lunch we stepped into Kanella, a Greek restaurant that served undeniably delicious, fresh and real food.  They had a great wait staff not shy to have interesting conversations with you and still stay on top of things.  We met the owner who told us about their evening fare. Very nice.  BYOB. Kanella’s is our new favorite Philly place to eat.