Maximo Cocina Mexicana in North Dallas now open for lunch hours

jtmbls, anonymous:

Mind readers!!! How do you do it?

I have been racking my brain ALL DAY trying to remember the name of this restaurant! If you have not yet tried this place, you must go!

I met a friend there last Thursday for quick drink and was instantly yanked up by my heels and transported to a Mexican heaven!! Now, I am usually not one who gets all excited about food, save a nice 10 pound lobster, but the chicken nachos – Sorry I don’t remember the names of any of the dishes - were more than amazing! Then this wonderful, lightly breaded shrimp thing with some sort of orange sauce stuff, OMG! Then the main course, which I had to take to go, was a yummy chicken breast and gravy??? with rice and little baby tomatoes peeled and…uh, I don’t know…steamed maybe? The best part was the HUGE margarita made with some strange looking fruit that sort of resembled something more like a very large nut. Anyway, everything we tried was so…so…obviously, I don’t even have words…but I can't wait to go back!

Also, the atmosphere was perfect. Nice and cozy and beautifully decorated. Mr. Maguire greeted all of his guests and was as gracious as ever.

I’m probably supposed to post this somewhere in the reviews section but I didn’t want Teresa to feel threatened by my fantastic culinary stylings. Try not to be jealous! ; )

jtmbls, anonymous:

Thoughtcha might be! Not sure this should live on, which is why I will be going back this weekend and even though I can almost fit my whole face in the huge margarita glass, will focus this time and come back with something that sounds slightly more edumacated and post appropriately.

Scott, anonymous:

Having been there twice, I'd say that if you went to Trece (when Mora was there), you've been to Maximo, TG. Not a bad thing, given the mid-range pricing.

SarahB, anonymous:

Hmm...I have to disagree, Scott. Went to Trece both when Mora was there and recently, and I have to say the food at Maximo is tremendously better, as is the ambiance. To me, Maximo feels like a modern Javier's. I went for dinner last weekend and cannot wait to go back. Met a girl friend for drinks and dinner and had the Maximo Heat Margarita...which was AMAZING. We then had the tableside guacamole for a starter - I so love when Mexican restaurants do that - and we both had the enchiladas for dinner. The enchiladas were perfect - not heavy like most Mexican food. We left feeling full but not uncomfortably full. I had the chance to walk around and check out the entire restaurant, and it is absolutely stunning! Can't wait to try lunch!

Scott, anonymous:

I'm not sure what you're disagreeing with, enthusiastically-Maximo-loving, first-time-commenter SarahB. All I said was that the menu and quality are comparable with the early Trece. Why wouldn't that be the case? Same chef. Same price point. Very similar menu style.

I don't understand the enthusiasm for Maximo's $11 "tableside guacamole," since it can be had for less at such quality establishments as El Chico ($7.59) and On the Border ($7.39). (And the guacamole I've had at both Maximo's and Trece, where it also costs $11, wouldn't break into the top tier of guacamoles at restaurants catering primarily to a non-gringo customer base, always for a lower price.)

wino4pinot, anonymous:

Het Scott,

Why do you pick on someone for having a positive comment that happens to very politely disagree with yours? I happen to agree and find it quite unbelievable that you could possibly have been to Maximo and actually compare it to early Trece - price point alone is dramatically lower than Trece has ever been, decor is a totally different style and Trece menu was never as diverse. You made up your mind before the place ever opened and decided that the same chef is not capable of doing something different..seems this is a common theme for you.

Signed: enthusiastically-respectful-of-other-folks-opinions-even-when-they-disagree-with-mine-first-time-commentor wino4pinot

Scott, anonymous:

I haven't "picked on" anyone, first-time-poster-and-resurrector-of-a-dead-thread wino4pinot. I expressed a positive opinion of Maximo. First-time-poster SarahB "disagreed," thinking my positive opinion wasn't positive enough. Now you also chime in to complain that my positive comment wasn't positive enough.

You insist that Maximo is at a "dramatically lower" price point, which is incorrect, as anyone can tell by looking at the posted menus on the respective restaurants web sites. Is Maximo a little lower on some items? Yes. (The range of pricing allows you, if you order frugally, to spend not too much more than you would at, say, Mi Cocina, but for significantly better food.) But it is a mid-range restaurant, as Trece is.

You say that the "decor is a totally different style." First, when did I say otherwise? Second, who cares? I was talking about food at a restaurant--not drapes.

You say the "Trece menu was never as diverse." If, by that, you mean that Maximo has a larger menu than Trece, I agree and have never said otherwise. If you mean that Mora's menu at Maximo represents a departure in culinary style from his menu at Trece, you're simply wrong. If I shuffled items between the two restaurants' menus, no one would notice the difference (unless he worked or was an attentive regular at one of the two).

Since my last comment, I've been to Maximo again. As in the prior visits, the well-spaced tables were mostly empty. Servers and management seemed very happy to have us there.

Since I assume you're in some way connected with the restaurant, it seems bizarre that you would argue with someone who comes to your restaurant and says positive things about it, simply out of an irrational fear of brand confusion with Trece. Do you think that the Park Cities, Oak Lawn, and M Street crowd that go to Trece are, under any circumstances, going to venture north of 635? Do you think that folks in North Dallas, Addison, Plano, and Richardson, are going to go to Trece (at a greater distance and with limited parking), if they think they can get a meal from Trece's founding chef much closer? Whether you like it or not, Maximo is going to be compared to Trece. Since more people like Trece than not, you're better off embracing the comparison (disclaiming the decline in quality after Mora's departure) than trying to persuade people that Maximo is a radically different kind of restaurant.

adkim, anonymous:

Love the show. Long time reader, first time poster. This question is for wino4pinot:

Is it possible to muddle the tableside guac. in the mocajete myself to save a few bucks? I just can't seem to justify spending $11 on guacamole during this recession. After tax and a 20% tip the price for the most simple and rustic of all dips comes to a staggering $14.28. For guacamole. $14.28!

wino4pinot, anonymous:

Hello adkim

I did a rough calculation & figured out that I could purchase the ingredients to make guacamole at home for about $3.25...I don't have a molcajeta and have no idea how much they cost. I did not calculate any amount in for my time (labor) to roast all the ingredients and put everything together. I don't have a custom cart to roll around my house and serve it to my friends either - and have no idea how much that costs....I also know I can get a VERY good steak from Rudolph's and cook it myself for about $15 bucks - but I still like going to Bob's every now and then even though I pay 3 times that amount for the same steak....and I suppose you could have one of your friends sing a few Britney Spears songs and save several hundred dollars on tickets instead of going to that show next month...I guess in my opinion the overall experience of the Tableside Guacamole is worth it - obviously you may not agree and I guess it would be up to the Maximo folks to find a way to convince you to come back and order the guac!

Scott, anonymous:

A molcajete can be purchased for less than an order of guacamole at Maximo.

wino4pinot, anonymous:

wow - I really thought those things were a lot more expensive..I see the plastic ones in the Mexican markets and even those are $8 - $12 for the larger ones...do you know where I could get a stone one for that price?

Scott, anonymous:

Stopped by El Rancho (Coit & Spring Valley) this evening. Large molcajetes were going for $13.59. They didn't have smaller ones, but I usually see them for $7-10 locally. (A molcajete isn't at all necessary to make guacamole, since no spices or chiles are being ground, but that's neither here nor there.)

By the way, w4p, I'm absolutely certain you read yesterday's DMN profile on Maximo by Kim Harwell. For those who haven't, Maximo co-owner Mark Maguire said, "Really, what we've done is to bring in a little Tex-Mex to a Trece or Javier's."

Strange that Maguire would make the Trece comparison when you and SarahB think that's so off base. You can take that up with Maguire the next time you see him.

wino4pinot, anonymous:

Thanks for the info on the Molajetes - I will absolutely go over to El Rancho!

Well...touche on your comparison - looks like you had some inside info on that :)...but really I was saying that your comment "if you went to Trece (when Mora was there), you've been to Maximo" was kind of insinuating that they are so similar there is no reason to go - and I just don't see THAT much similarity in the details...

Scott, anonymous:

And that wasn't my intent, as hopefully I've made clear. I like Maximo and will continue to go there from time to time. (Maybe you and I will bump into each other there without knowing it!) Though it's a tough time to be opening a restaurant, this is one I would like to succeed.

adkim, anonymous:

Wino4pinot:

I have not yet been to Maximo. I have a friend that is a Tex-Mex fiend and lives close to the restaurant so my visit will be in the very near future. Since we are talking just guac, really no skills needed to mix and mash the veggies, I believe it would be a fair to compare the appetizer between Trece and Maximo. Though I have ordered the tableside guac. once in the few times I did visit Trece, it was not memorable enough for me to order at $11. Maybe if you placed some gold foil specs here and there and made the mound of green show off with some bling, it would be more enticing for me to order. How aesthetically pleasing would that look? Seriously.

SarahB, anonymous:

Wow - I wish I had come back earlier to get up to speed on these comments! I apologize for any arguments I may have caused. Wino4pinoit, thank you for sticking up for me! How nice it is to see. Scott, FYI, I am a long-time reader but have never felt the need to post comments. Apparently that makes me less experienced as you? Interesting. Also, I don't see it necessary to jump all over me for expressing my opinion. I simply disagreed with you and stated why, and I think you could have done the same in a polite manner. We're all adults here.

I would have to agree with the tableside guac - though I love when restaurants do that, it is typically overpriced...and unfortunately so. I still get it because I am a guacamole-lover, but you're right. In my above post, I was simply stating that I think the atmosphere and taste of the food is much different at Maximo compared to Trece. I've only been to Trece three or so times, and never once did I order something I was in love with. And each time I went, I ordered something different, and I never felt the desire to order any of the dishes (that I had tried previously) again. I'm one of those people who falls in love with one or two dishes at a restaurant and likes to order it often. To me, the food on the Trece menu was never worth the cost. Just my opinion! I've been to Maximo two more times now and tried the Fajitas and the Filet, and both were incredible.

The menu may be similar, but I think the tastes and ambiance are better at Maximo!

wino4pinot, anonymous:

OK Scott, I need your help here... I went to El Rancho this afternoon and they looked at me like I was crazy when I told them a friend sent me there to buy a stone Molcajete...they said they did not sell them...I looked throughout the store (I LOVE that place BTW)and could not find anything...could it be your post here started a run on them??just kidding..but seriously I really do want one and knowing that they are out there for under $15, I hate to pay the $40 that I have seen in other places

wino4pinot, anonymous:

hey SarahB,

I think we figured out the miscommunication was that you & I were disagreeing with the statement "if you went to Trece (when Mora was there), you've been to Maximo" meaning that they were so similar...and Scott / TG thought we were disagreeing / complaining that he was saying Maximo was not as GOOD or was not worth visiting...I believe we are all on the same page now

Billusa99, anonymous:

Actually... The "same page" you both are on is registering and vehemently defending a restaurant on the same day you registered. Plus, attacking the Scott post in the process.

Saying that you are a long time lurker means nothing -- the place hasn't been open a long time. There's lots of restaurant people around who read this stuff everyday and never register to post. Do you think that TG dropped out of a tree last week and has nothing they want to read? Puhleeeeeeeeeze... naïveté!

This type of thing happens all the time here and it's easy to spot for anybody who can read 1 inch beyond the pixels. Scott was not obtuse in what he typed, yet you both jumped into the deep end and were over the top effusive, defensive and non-objective. Your personal protests aside, you were disagreeing.

Then, naïveté striked us here again because if you really lurked here all the time, it would be easy for you to figure out who "the guy" is. He didn't push TG out of that tree, either. Thus, case closed that you are not somehow/someway connected to the place or staff or a someone's uncle's dog walker there.

Finally, 11 buck guac is a ripoff at both places.

Je suis finis, as they say en Francais.

Scott, anonymous:

w4p, I'm happy to help. The molcajetes in question are pictured below:

SarahB, anonymous:

BillUSA, we actually figured out the miscommunication here, but thank you for your comments. Just because I've never joined the site until several weeks ago doesn't mean a thing. I'm a long-time lurker of Pegasus News.com because I love food, and I love trying new restaurants. I typically only come on here to read about new restaurants, and when I read several comments about Maximo's similarity to Trece, I felt the need to express my opinion. I won't apologize for that.

However, thank you for attempting to stir the pot!

Scott, those photos are great! I think I'll go purchase one as well. Thanks for the help.

jtmbls, anonymous:

I’m inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt just because the food at this place evoked such a passion in me and I’m not a “foody” at all. I know nothing of Trece, guacamole or these other things you so eloquently speak of. I only know that their chicken and margaritas are divine. So, not only am I not surprised at the random ravings, I expect many more of these.

I haven't made it back to Maximo yet, but it is on my shortlist.

Scott, anonymous:

Went back to El Rancho this morning and both of the molcajetes pictured above were still there. Housewares, Aisle 10, below the brooms and mops, along with the comals and tortilla presses, as one would expect.

The one on the right is no longer there, as I bought it for the price stated above: $13.59 (plus tax). Consider it my gift to you, w4p. I'll find some way of getting it to you.

wino4pinot, anonymous:

well that is bizarre and I feel like a total idiot...I MUST have looked right at them and not even seen them as I walked that entire store - my kids were even playing with a tortilla press....

Well, thank you again - I will go pick one up right now - before SarahB gets it! :)

jtmbls, anonymous:

Wino - Hold on - Did you miss Scott's lovely gesture?

"Consider it my gift to you, w4p. I'll find some way of getting it to you."

Dr_Mxologi, anonymous:

Thank you for loving the cocktails i created for Maximo!

Cheers,

Dr. Mxologi