<p>No, not Chipotle. We have that here. She could not remember the name of it, darnit</p>
<p>My D likes Surin Thai located near the strip. <a href=“http://www.surinofthailand.com/tuscaloosa/[/url]”>http://www.surinofthailand.com/tuscaloosa/</a></p>
<p>I like Cypress Inn.</p>
<p>Neither are Mexican though. :)</p>
<p>El rincon is on the strip.</p>
<p>I’ve mentioned in the past that living in Alabama convinced me that I need to live somewhere with lots of good Mexican restaurants. TX, CA, AZ, NM, WA, and NV seem to be the states which best meet this criteria. Alabama’s Mexican food doesn’t compare and in my experience, the Publix near campus has a larger Jewish food section than it does a Hispanic food section.</p>
<p>I’ve had a lot of good meals at Tut’s, especially the gyros, steak and cheese subs, and white [sauce] pizzas.</p>
<p>El Rincon is okay, though for some reason I’ve never ordered a margarita there. During happy hour, the standard size margarita has a cheaper unit cost than the giant size.</p>
<p>TxNewCollege…</p>
<p>That’s probably El Rincon.</p>
<p>They have a nice happy hour for their margaritas</p>
<p>What about Iguana Grill for mexican? I haven’t been there in quite some time but, it used to be pretty good.
I think the last time I had a margarita, it was at LongHorn Steakhouse and that was very well made.
Full Moon BBQ is a favorite (sweeter sauce) but Dreamland is also very good.</p>
<p>El Rincon…I thought it was horrible. I hear their margaritas are good, though.
Nick’s - you must not have had a Nicodemus to go with your filet. ;-)</p>
<p>Oh, I don’t like Nicks… long wait, too many flies buzzing at you while you wait, wait where? In a parking lot, or in front of the place with no seating, greasy tabletops…mediocre food and a strong drink in a plastic cup…not my kind of place, I just didn’t like it. I went there once and I wouldn’t go back.</p>
<p>We tried Iguana Grill twice. The first time it was OK. The second time, it was horrible, I didn’t even finish my food. I’m not going to try again.</p>
<p>El Rincon is the one ‘Mexican’ place in town my son will eat and says ‘it’s alright’.</p>
<p>Had a horrible experience at Nicks - I paid a decent price for undercooked steaks, served on broken dishes, with dirty silverware, and had horrible service. </p>
<p>I do like Wentzel’s. For those down toward the gulf coast, I’m sure you can get much better seafood, but for those of us in the land-locked midwest it’s better than most of the chains.</p>
<p>My S really likes Baumhower’s and says it’s a good place to watch away games. And of course, Mugshots.</p>
<p>We’ve also been to, I believe, Swen, a couple times. A Chinese place in the area of Publix. It’s good, cheap, college town fare. You get a lot of food for the money there.</p>
<p>Depalma’s is the one place I really want to try that I haven’t been to yet because my son’s not a big fan of Italian and I hate eating without him if I go all the way down there to see him.</p>
<p>We do like DePalmas! </p>
<p>For those who may be wondering…there’s a Jim n Nicks (BBQ) and there’s a Nick’s Filet House (aka Nicks in the Sticks), so it can be confusing. </p>
<p>Jim n Nicks is a lovely location. </p>
<p>Nicks in the Sticks is an institution…Divey for sure, but usually good. Sorry to hear that Jrcs had a bad experience…sounds like the staff were sipping the Nicodemus’s that night (they have a drink there made with Bacardi 151). It can put you under the table. </p>
<p>We also love Bento Japanese (the Bento Chicken is super good and that shrimp sauce…yum! Oh and their Sushi called Sunday Morning Roll is awesome!</p>
<p>I also had a bad experience at Nick’s in the Sticks. Didn’t mind the wait or the parking lot, but the table was sticky, there were flies, the staff wasn’t very friendly, and then I got one of the worst steak’s I have ever had, after ordering the recommendation from the person at the table next to me. Never again for me.</p>
<p>:-O I’m sorry! Usually the staff is friendly. Seems like I remember somebody cleaned the tables with bleach a couple of years ago which ruined the surface, but it is clean. You do stick with the filet at Nick’s…don’t go ordering fish or chicken or even another cut of steak.
Well, there are other good restaurants in Tuscaloosa. I prefer Dreamland in Northport; usually I’m all about the original atmosphere, but original Dreamland was just too crowded for me - not people, just too much stuffed into a tiny room.</p>
<p>Come on Sushi in Alabama…</p>
<p>Yes, I should clarify, I was referencing Nicks in the Sticks. I haven’t had any issues with Iguana Grill, but it has been a while, so things change. I like the steaks at LongHorn but if I am in T-Town then I prefer to try something regional. Dreamland in Northport is the restaurant I go to, not the original location, and that is fine. Wentzels is next door to that location and is also good. I have been to Mugshots and that is just okay…IMHO. I liked Mellow Mushroom but don’t think NY style pizza, it is different but good, I thought the ingredients were nice and fresh.</p>
<p>Since son is a vegan, and everyone else in the family is now vegetarian, we like the vegi-burger at Mugshots, which may be the best I have ever had. Also like the tofu hoagies at Mellow Mushroom and their Muffuletta Cheese Bread, yum.</p>
<p>^^^Wow, I guess that makes eating out difficult, but healthy :)</p>
<p>^The vegetarian thing isn’t nearly as difficult as being a strict vegan like our son. I am glad Tuscaloosa has some good choices for him. His favorite place is Moes Southwest Grill, which actually had his picture up on the bulletin board last week in honor of his 100th visit. He likes to get a cheap taco and unlimited chips and salsa. :-)</p>
<p>Come on Sushi in Alabama…</p>
<p>there is sushi in Alabama. Have you tried any places?</p>
<p>Robotbldmom- Finally someone else. I thought Mugshots was OK, but nothing to go off my diet for. I keep thinking maybe I need to try it again based on all of the people who love it and talk about it on here.</p>
<p>Sniner, you might try the black bean burger. That’s what I feel in love with, though I’m sure the calorie count is higher than I logged for the meal!</p>