Word Of Mouth

With the overwhelming number of Mexican restaurants in the Texas Hill Country, it would be impossible to anoint one of them as the best. In the first place, it would be an insurmountable task to visit them all. But even if you could, picking the best one is simply not doable. The choices range from places with fancy atmospheres to small trailers. A common denominator, however, with respect to most, is that the food is very good.

At nearly the same point in time several years ago, both my wife and I got the same recommendation from two very different sources. Her friends, on the one hand, and my friends, on the other, both said that Jardin Corona, in Cedar Park, was the place to go for Mexican food.

Hidden way in the back of a strip mall, which itself is not too visible from the street, is Jardin Corona. But what the restaurant may lack in visibility, it makes up for in tasty food. Noon hour is very busy, not so much that you won’t get served promptly, but you’ll definitely notice the crowd, especially since the place is not all that big. As such, we started going around 3:00 in the afternoon for a really late lunch. That helped a little, but not as much as we expected. Jardin Corona is busy because it is popular, and it is popular, because the food is great.

Unlike a lot of restaurants I frequently visit, Mexican or otherwise, I tend to order the same menu selection, because I am familiar with it, like it, and know I won’t be disappointed. But at Jardin Corona, I order something different every time, because I am that confident that whatever I order, will be outstanding. My random methodology has not yet proven to be a mistake. I must admit though, I am obsessed with the queso at Jardin Corona. And, no matter what I order, you can be sure I’ve got some queso coming with the meal. Usually, I just ask them to dump some queso on whatever I order.

Given what I’ve just said, I can’t recommend a favorite at Jardin Corona, because they are all my favorites. I can tell you, however, what I ate during my last visit a couple of days ago. It was a chimichanga, stuffed with chicken and cheese, and, of course, covered, at my request, with queso.

I’m not saying that Jardin Corona has the best Mexican food in the hill country, or, I’m not saying that it does not. But, what I will tell you is that, in my opinion, it serves really good Mexican food. My opinion is supported by, what I consider to be very reliable source when considering whether to visit any restaurant, and that source is “word of mouth.”