Why eat at a chain Wednesday: Isla Cozumel

My Mom made the recommendation to go to Isla Cozumel for dinner after the holidays, which I have to admit is the only reason I even knew where they are located. I don’t say that with any negative connotation included I just truly had never heard of the place before, which I guess that is why businesses advertise.

The dinner was planned because my Godparents were in town and the theme of Isla Cozumel made since because they have go to Cozumel nearly every year. I met the four of them for dinner and was pleased to find the place pretty busy, at least more than I expected for a Sunday night. They were chilling in the back eating salsa and chips when I arrived, which I immediately dug into as well. I was pleased with the quality of the salsa and very pleased with the chips. My Godmother even said the chips were the most like chips in Cozumel that she had ever tried.

I quickly scanned the menu and picked a semi-safe menu item, the Fajita Quesadilla, which included the typical Fajita innards smashed between Tortillas. Unfortunately, when the food came out I got a sizzling traditional Fajita, not the Quesadilla item I ordered. The server owned up to the mistake and quickly got made the correction, yet I have to assume it was not what they intended since it was literally the same items on the Fajita just placed in a Tortilla, with no cheese or anything. I assume they made due with what they had rather than actually taking the time to create the right meal, but I wasn’t doing much complaining because it was still a great meal. Typically I am pretty happy with meat (chicken and beef), onion, green peppers all prepared for a Fajita and I love Tortilla’s so really they couldn’t go wrong, yet I still think it would have been better with cheese!

My parents decided on the Chicken Burrito and the Chimichanga, you can see where I get my risk taking appetite. My Godparents spiced it up a little more by ordering the Pollo Loco and the Burrito. I don’t know what makes the Pollo – Loco, but it must have been the “special marinate” that is included on the chicken breast, because the rest of the meal – lettuce, tomato, onion, cheese sauce, rice, and beans – do not jump out as crazy components.  Since Chicken Burrito’s and Chimichanga’s are pretty self explanatory,  I won’t go into detail to explain what they included. I will say, however, that they were all very pleased with their meals and again my Godparents associated the food as the closest they have had to Cozumel in the states. Most of their explorations have been in Minneapolis, where they are from, but I trust their palates and their ability to compare the food they eat in the traditional sense nearly every year.

I liked Isla Cozumel and wish I had known about it previously. They are located off 86st Street in Urbandale in the old Mama Lacona’s location, not the original location in Clive, the location just South of Taki Steakhouse back behind the Panera Bread.  The funniest thing, to me, is my Godparents were chatting up the owner after our dinner. During that conversation he admitted he had never been to Cozumel himself, but I must say he has done a great job recreating it in suburban Des Moines.

After all, why would you want to eat at a chain when you can eat at Isla Cozumel?