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| - In previous Yelps, I have mourned that the closest Filiberto's for my chile relleno fix is a goodly 30-40 minute drive from Cave Creek.
I mourn no more.
We discovered Armando's when it was featured in Carefree-Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce newsletter---DH found it and asked if I knew there was a little Mexican place along Carefree Highway? And, you know, it kind of sounded "Filiberto-ish"? Nope, did not. So we had driven up to Cottonwood on an errand and it just so happened we hit 7th and CH right at dinner time and we just wanted some take-home so we could go home and put up our feet and eat and drink wine.
We went inside. Brightly lit---typical "---berto's" decor (you know, Filiberto's, Roberto's, Edberto's, Sueberto's...) with about a half dozen people at the tables. And, just like every "Berto's" I have been in---spotlessly clean! I LOVE that!!!! Just about the same menu too!
So, what do you think I ordered? Yeppers---#11...chile rellenos-no-rice-extra beans-green chile sauce. (Sometimes I am sooo boring!) DH got the carne asada burrito-no rice-extra beans-red sauce. We took them home, and because it's SO CLOSE to our house, our meals were still really warm when we sat down. What can I say---delish. Freshly prepared, nicely fried (no old grease flavor!), filled with gooey cheese and a generous portion. I was in heaven. The green chile sauce really had flavor---it was actually not on par with Filiberto's---it was better! DH really liked his carne asada burrito---he said it was great flavor, tasted very fresh. The beans were good.
So, this is now our go-to Mexican carry-out---I'll probably be in there at least once a week. If DH and I have any caveats, it was that we wish we could get different beans. It would be nice if they offered Borracho beans (I'll give them my recipe!) or black or pinto beans----refried beans are just kind of---refried beans. But very tasty, nonetheless---have you ever had the ones that have that weird lardy-taste? These do not!
And the lady who waited on us---Latina, forty-ish, dark hair pulled back in a knot---is very nice. And someone complained about a wait---I didn't time it, but I can pretty much guarantee we did not wait over 7 minutes for our meals, which I think is acceptable for something that is made-to-order. You want Mexican in three minutes, go to Taco Hell, where everything is pre-prepared and has been sitting on the steam table for six hours. Philistines!
So I am a happy camper. And I can quit sending Filiberto's headquarters emails asking for a store up further north!
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