Yesterday, Bill asked me if I wanted to go out this weekend.  I was game.  He told me to find a place, so I went to OpenTable.de and noticed a listing for El Mero Mexicano in Fellbach.  I had heard a lot of good things about this place, from both here in the Stuttgart area and back in the States.  A German friend of mine living in North Carolina said she and her husband used to go there whenever they needed a fix.  Although I never have a whole lot of expectations for Mexican food in these parts, I decided to book us a table for 6:30pm.  It’s a good thing I did that, too.  El Mero Mexicano opens at 6:00pm and is open until 11:00pm, but it was already hopping when we arrived about ten minutes before our reservation.

We had to drive quite a way to get to Fellbach.  Then it took some time to find a place to park.  There is a lot of street parking in the area, but there are also one way streets.  If you aren’t familiar with the area, you might want to give yourself some time to find a place.

A shot of the door.  They aren’t kidding when they say the food is authentic.

A nice looking young guy led us to a table for two in the back.  I heard several American accents as Bill and I took our seats and looked at the menu.  English menus are available and we were given them, even though we said it didn’t matter.  Having seen the crowd tonight, I’m guessing they wanted to save the German menus for the locals.

Bill is excited.  He loves Mexican food.

The noise level in the restaurant was very energetic tonight.  I would say it’s a good place to go if you have young children.  They have a play area for kids, stocked with plenty of Legos, as well as a kiddie menu.  I didn’t see anyone chased out of there for bringing a stroller, either.  😉

I kept changing my mind about what I wanted to order, which was a good thing.  The wait staff was a tad weeded tonight, so it took them awhile to get to us.  I had plenty of time to decide if I wanted the steak with tomato sauce or the combo platter.

Bill and I started with a round of beer.  Bill started with a Modelo and I had a Cave Creek Chili Beer.  The Chili Beer was interesting, only because it had a chili pepper in it that gave it a little kick.  The beer had zero head and, had it not been for the chili pepper, would have been pretty uninteresting.  The menu listed other Mexican and German beers, as well as a variety of cocktails and non alcoholic drinks.

Chili Beer… note the little chili pepper floating in it.  It was worth a try, but I think I’ll stick to regular suds from now on.

I finally decided to try the Pozole Rojo, which is a Mexican red corn soup with pork.  I was hungry when we came in and it was a good idea to get something before the main dish for that reason.  However, that particular starter, which is apparently only offered on weekends and perhaps only this month (they have a menu that changes),  is pretty large.  It comes with a small salad and a corn tortilla, along with some excellent guacamole.  I ordered the combination platter for my main dish, realizing that I can get a good steak in a number of places in Stuttgart.  Bill ordered spicy enchiladas for his main dish and helped me with the soup, which we didn’t finish.

The soup was awesome.  I noticed they had a sign on the door confirming they had it tonight.  It had a great kick to it, which Bill especially enjoyed.  I enjoyed the guacamole, which wasn’t overprocessed or slimy green.

Check out the guac!  It’s definitely not snotty.

When the noise level got to be too much for me, I decided to try a margarita.  I asked for one, and they brought me one on the rocks.

I like Bill’s margaritas better, but this was pretty good tonight.  I also got a glass of water to help douse the spices.  I tend to be a wimp when it comes to spicy food.  

In the foreground, you can see my combination platter.  Tonight, it consisted of a potato flauta, a soft taco with chicken and grilled red onions, and a mild enchilada.  The flauta and enchilada were covered with sour cream and cheese.  It also came with rice and a choice of pinto beans or salad.  I chose beans.  My only complaint about this dish was that it didn’t arrive very hot.  I have a feeling that was because they were so busy tonight and it might have sat for a bit.  I should mention that this platter has the potential to change, since the flauta and the taco came from the “weekly menu” (which looked to me more like a monthly menu).  If I went back in a month or two, the choices might be different.

Bill’s spicy enchiladas with green sauce.  They also have a mild version with tomato sauce and will adjust spiciness on request. 

This is one contented man…

I asked Bill if he’d want to drive back to Fellbach from Unterjettingen for more Mexican food and he said, “Absolutely!”  It took well over an hour to get there, but it was worth it.

 

Our bill came to 61 euros before the tip, although we certainly could have gotten away for significantly less if we’d wanted to.  Again, that soup was a meal within itself.  We paid in cash, although I noticed that they take credit cards.  The staff also kindly boxed up our leftovers, so I’ll be enjoying them tomorrow afternoon after we have brunch at another new restaurant.

El Mero Mexicano seems to specialize in tacos and enchiladas.  Don’t go there looking for burritos, fajitas, or chimichangas.  What they do, they seem to do very well.  This was by far my favorite Mexican food experience in Germany; it probably comes as close as we’re going to get to authentic in these parts.  The owners are from Mexico.  Suffice to say, it beats the hell out of Chilli’s, La Cocina Mexicana, and El Chico.  I highly recommend it to those who are missing a taste of home.  Just be sure to book a table.  If you drop in, you may have to wait.