Taco Rosa April 2009 Specials& Gabbi's Quick Stop #9

Okay, so I'm doing a bit of a mashup here but I've been to Taco Rosa and Gabbi's recently (what else is new?) so thought I'd mention some of their items that may only be available for a limited time.

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Taco Rosa began a monthly specials program in September 2007 and I tried and chronicled pretty much everything they offered, with the vast majority of these items being brand new, while a few may have been briefly offered as daily specials before. When September 2008 came most of the monthly special items had been seen before and I still liked them all but didn't have much reason to mention them again here. Now that April 2009 has come along this is the first month in a while where all their special items are brand new.

Soup

First up is a Mayan white bean soup with spinach, carrot, plantains and potato chunks.

Entrees

For entrees there is an excellent pork chop dish with a cilantro/pepita pesto sauce and roasted cactus strips and a caramelized apple taco (above) and duck enchiladas:

Dessert

For dessert they are offering a spin on churros I'd never seen before. These churros are served with white chocolate mousse, dark chocolate chips and mint leaf shavings. I didn't know what to think about mint on churros but actually quite enjoyed a subtle hint of it.

I should mention that coupons for Taco Rosa have been appearing pretty regularly in The Orange County Register.

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Still no sign at Gabbi's

Earlier tonight I met up with Jenn and Evan Vincent of the OC Arts and Culture website for dinner at Gabbi's. I wanted to talk with Gabbi and Ed (husband and wife co-owners of Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen) and introduce them to Evan and Jenn but found out they are on another one of their trips to Mexico conducting further culinary research. Looking forward to seeing what recipes they bring back.

I did get to try their special Kobe beef dish with amazingly tender meat, served with a side of guacamole, corn, nopales, and onions, along with Gabbi's excellent handmade tortillas:

Jenn and Evan shared the chocolate chili creme brulee which they thoroughly enjoyed:

While I got the capirotada (bread pudding) but had it presented in a way I had never seen before:

The encroaching darkness of the evening reduced the quality of my photos but here's a slideshow of other Gabbi's dishes in better light: