Cantina 1511 CHARLOTTE 74

After a long and lazy labor day weekend the bf and I decided to keep our "mexican food streak" going by trying out Cantina 1511 on East Blvd. It was a good experience, but the food was just okay. There was a 10-15 min wait for a table for two so the bf and I bellied up to the bar to try out a cocktail before dinner. I was a little disappointed with their specialty margaritas. They had an interesting selection, but most seemed fruity and sweet. I must say that their actual tequila selection was off the chain, in fact, it took up a full page on their large cocktail menu. The bf was not feeling tequila shots so I went with a patron cosmo, which was simply perfect. Our table was ready pretty fast, but they wouldn't transfer our drinks to our tab and the bartender was busy so we had to wait to tab out. We made it to our table and our friendly server came to us promptly. We decided to start out with the shrimp and crab ceviche and the top shelf guacamole. The guacamole was made fresh at our table with avocados, salt, and some pico de gallo, and it was my favorite thing ordered. I did not care for the shrimp and crab ceviche... It was served in a small glass with shredded crab and whole shrimp drowned in a sauce that tasted pickle-ish. I hate pickles, and that seemed to be the dominating flavor. For dinner I decided to try out the "Pescado Yucatan"(pictured above), grilled fish of the day (mahi) with spicy habanero pico de gallo, pickled red onions, and black bean and plantain mash, served with corn tortillas. It also came with a corn salsa, and it was pretty much a "build your own taco" set up. The fish was cooked nicely, but there was no "wow" factor. It was good, but not amazing. The bf decided to try out three different tacos; they have seven you can mix and match from. He tried the "al pastor" (slow cooked pork), "guadalajara shrimp", and "carne asada steak". The steak was a little on the greasy side, however the pork and shrimp were pretty good. Nothing was terrible, except for the ceviche but that's my opinion. I would definitely go back and try out some more tacos, but probably wouldn't make this a regular spot. Overall I gave Cantina 1511 a 74.

Cajun Queen CHARLOTTE 78

Last night I was starving and craving some New Orleans style cuisine. The bf and I decided to try out Cajun Queen off of E 7th St. It was pretty good, but not great. We decided to start out with the "Cajun popcorn" (pictured left) which was lightly fried pieces of crawfish tale in a light and tasty sherry remoulade sauce. It was our favorite dish of the night. I was worried that the crawfish would be overly fried and overcooked, but this wasn't the case at all. The lemon wedges that came with the appetizer made it the perfect dish. The bf decided to try the shrimp and crawfish etouffee for his main course, while I opted for the blackened mahi mahi with a crawfish and tasso sauce. The etouffee was definitely the tastier choice, even though the shrimp wasn't seasoned and was pretty bland. The mahi was okay but the mashed potatoes it came with tasted old and dry (reminiscent of fast food KFC mashed potatoes). They had an almost overwhelming cocktail selection, which is cool because it caters to many tastes. I had a cadillac margarita which, if you like grand marnier in your margs, was awesome. I also tried a tornado (rum, banana liquor and OJ) and it was very very sweet. The meal was satisfying for my craving, but I feel as if I could find a better Cajun restaurant. Overall I gave Cajun Queen a 78; I'll go back, but not very often.