RESTAURANTS: Zapata tempts with upscale Mexican fare
By Jennifer Christman (Contact)
Shrimp, Steak and Chicken Fajitas and Puffed Crispy Tacos (bottom right) at Zapata Grill
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LITTLE ROCK — A quick study of Zapata Grill’s menu tells diners the new North Little Rock eatery is not the typical Mexican restaurant.
It’s not just the more unusual dishes - Crawfish Quesadillas, Mesquite-Grilled Quail and Puffed Crispy Tacos - offered at the Warden road location that last housed Tia’s Tex-Mex. It’s the prices.
Compared with local competitors, Zapata (which refers to a Mexican revolutionary, not a shoe, and, yes, it really has been a while since high school Spanish class) is on the spendy side. There is no a la carte menu, and only a handful of dinner entrees are priced below $10.
Zapata, which also has a branch in Texarkana, is more of an upscale Mexican restaurant. Tables wear white cloths. Friendly, capable servers wear white shirts, black pants, vests and bow ties. (Patrons wear whatever they like - slacks and skirts or tanks, shorts and baseball caps.)
That being said, we were confused when our margaritas (we’ve never had a complaint like this, but they were actually too potent; priced at $5.50-$6.95) and our sangria (fruity and sweet, topped with two citrus slices; priced at $6.95) were served in throw-away Styrofoam cups.
An open interior features gold walls, minimal decoration - mostly in the form of animal heads and lighted beer signs - and windows that overlook busy traffic. Depending on which way dining room patrons are facing, they can also have a view of the bustling kitchen traffic. Seating is also available in the bar area or outside on the partially covered patio. A happy hour with food and drink specials is offered 4:30-6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.
Diners are greeted with a basket of chips, a flask of fresh full-bodied salsa and individual bowls so they can double-dip away. Other appetizer options ($6.75-$12.25) include mostly medium and large sizes of various nachos and quesadillas. The Black Quesadillas ($9.75, $11.75) were tasty tortilla trianglesstuffed with fajita chicken, black beans and spinach, served with sour cream, guacamole, lettuce, tomato and jalapenos.
There is no “cheese dip” on Zapata’s menu. The closestthing they have is much better - Chili Con Queso ($5, $7), a slightly browned, bubbly and subtly spiced cheese mixture. While the casserole dish it came in was very hot, the queso itself was quick to cool.
The rest of the menu is divided into salads and soups, enchiladas, taco plates, combination plates, fajita plates, fish, steaks, lunch specials and desserts.
All of the dinners we received were generously portioned and prettily arranged, and we enjoyed some more than others:
Carne Asada Fajita Plate ($18.50)
The massive marinated and mesquite-grilled steak that could be sliced and enjoyed fajitas-style with tortillas and accompaniments like guacamole, was the most impressive entree we sampled. Did we really need the very cheesy enchilada (and the rice, and the soup ...) that came with it? No. Did we push it away? No.
Crawfish Enchiladas ($10.75, $12.25)
The slightly fishy enchiladas featuring seasoned crawfish tails weren’t our favorite. Neither was the accompanying cup of tortilla soup, which featured a giant piece of floating corn cob.
Puffed Crispy Taco ($9.25 for one, $12.75 for two)
They didn’t look quite like the ones we drooled over on that Bobby Flay Throwdown episode, but they still looked cool: Like miniature edible spaceships. These fork-and-knife tacos of corn shells that were too thin to pick up were overloaded with ground beef (chicken fajita meatwas another option), cheese, lettuce and tomato. They got the attention of fellow diners who gawked and asked us what they were.
Combo Sizzling Fajitas ($18.25)
There was definitely no skimping on the huge planks of chicken (which we requested instead of steak) and the “jumbo” shrimp that lived up to their menu description, served with tomatoes, peppers, onions and a small cup of melted butter(!). As with most fajitas, the meal was served with guacamole, pico de gallo, rice, flour tortillas and soup.
Zapata Fish Taco ($12.50)
The name might suggest that you only get one taco, but the meal comes with two corn tortillas bundling an agreeable mesquite grilled tilapia with a light, creamy sauce, tomatoes, lettuce and red cabbage.
Shrimp Salad ($10.75)
Simple. Satisfying. The big bowl of iceberg lettuce, cheese, tomato, avocado slices and plenty of mesquite-grilled shrimp was a fine light meal. Dressings like the thin, perky vinaigrette, are homemade, but we were happy just using the salsa.
Diners who pace themselves better than we did might try desserts ($5.25-$6.50) like flan, sopapillas, fried cheesecake, Key lime pie and ice cream pie.
Zapata Grill Address: 4305 Warden Road, North Little Rock Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday (longer hours expected in the future, pending Sunday license approval) Cuisine: Mexican Credit cards: AE, D, DC, MC, V Alcohol: Full bar Wheelchair accessible: Yes Reservations: Yes (501) 753-8129
This article was published Friday, May 16, 2008.
Weekend, Pages 76 on 05/16/2008
