Jackson Ave., with a couple of notable exceptions, really tests my adventurous-eating mettle. This particular stretch makes Summer feel like Shady Grove to me. I've passed by 7 Mares for years, riveted by the sweet murals with sharks, mermaids, and Mexican dishes painted in the windows, and yet paralyzed by thoughts of a massive language barrier, or a filthy establishment, or something darker - with fear driving my fantasies inevitably to a cartel-style execution awaiting me inside. But I've also imagined it to be the next great Mexican restaurant in town, which I'm on a continual quest to find.
I finally got the nerve to go in today, and I was worried for all the wrong reasons. Make no mistake, this IS a dicey part of town. There is a lot of, uh, colorful foot traffic. (El 7 Mares shares its building with a small corner store.) But 7 Mares is an oasis from the outside. No record scratched when I walked in. It was cheerful (with plenty of Halloween decorations adding spirit) and clean enough upon a cursory inspection. I was greeted warmly in fluent English. Even the TV was airing a program in English. (Red flag?) There were several (diverse!) tables of customers in the small front room, with a few people at the tin-roofed bar. I was very relieved to have my assumptions proved wrong. Sadly, the disappointing part of my experience was the food.
I have to say that I didn't find the next great Memphis Mexican food today. I went with a safe, standard choice for me: enchiladas suizas with a side of guacamole. Chicken was the only option for these enchiladas. 7 Mares provides free chips and salsa. The salsa was average at best, and the guacamole I ordered was subpar. The salsa reminded me of Los Picosos - not bad, but not my type. I can't verbalize the flavor, but I think it's a combination of sweet and tangy. And quite mild.
The guacamole was really creamy, as if it had been mixed with sour cream. Again, edible, just "unnatural" and not very good. I haven't had the processed grocery store guacamole in many years, but this didn't seem too far from what I remember of that stuff. As far as the enchiladas, they were not a good example in my experience. The menu mentioned a tomatillo sauce (that's what defines the dish, right?), but I swear there was nothing but cheese on these. And a ton of it at that. The chicken was good - tender and well seasoned with peppers cooked in. But these weren't the enchiladas suizas I've grown to love. I'll keep going to Playitas when I'm craving those.
I may end up giving 7 Mares another try, but there are a ton of proven restaurants in the vicinity - Macon and Summer to the southeast - that already have my loyalty. Things would have to improve dramatically for me to come back a third time. read more