lupe's tex mex grill

back to our own grazing range, it was time to try the latest mexican restaurant entry in our area. we'd been to the bedford location once last summer, and it was definitely good, but we weren't really wowed by it. and since bedford a bit of a haul for us, and the 183/121 construction is a bit daunting, we just let the restaurant fall through the cracks of the rjg dining agenda. but now they've moved up our way, right near our own ranch land, in nearby keller. the competition is stiff around here, with anamia's (southlake), mi pueblo (nrh), el paseo (keller), fresco's (watauga), and the baja grill mini chain all nearby and all excellent. so how did the new lupe's, opened only a month ago, stack up? quite well actually. very well indeed... as in we need to gobackshortly. the restaurant setting is very nice, featuring a well decorated interior and a full bar. it sits in a newish strip mall on the west side of rufe snow, nearby t

great local place for tex mex. though it is currently surrounded by highway construction and located in an unusual corner of a strip mall, this is a must visit venue. let's start with the salsa and chips. if you stop there, then there is no hope that this great restaurant will survive the airport freeway expansion, but if you order anything with the mole sauce, then you will be hooked. we ordered the shrimp chile rellenos and shrimp enchiladas. we will bebackthere in 4 days and every time that we are in the neighborhood. the service is excellent and prices are reasonable.

surprisingly good!. we went to lupe's on friday night because i'd purchased a groupon. one of my main ways i judge a mexican restaurant is by the margarita. mine rocked! the other is by the chips and salsa. this was ok. the chips were fresh, a bit thick, and the salsa was sort of bland. when i commented on this, our server - who was wonderful - brought out a spicier salsa that was hot!
we also ordered quesio and that was perfect - smooth and creamy.

now on to the main course. we asked our waiter julio what was good and he recommended the seafood. we were skeptical because past experience has taught us that you don't order seafood at a mexican place, but he assured us it was wonderful. he showed us thebackof the menu, which was in spanish, and there were several pescado (fish) entries. he said the fish was tilapia.

my husband ordered pescado with cilantro and lime and i got shrimp fajitas with corn tortillas. i have to say those were the absolute best corn tortillas i have had anywhere. soft and thin and perfect. melted in my mouth.

the shrimp was good but my husband's fish was to die for! it was awesome and i'll be getting it next time we go.

for dessert julio recommended a fried banana dish with ice cream. we tried it and again, were pleasantly surprised. one of the best desserts we've had anywhere.

pricewise, everything was in line with every other mexican place we visited. large margarita $8.75, entries $7.99 to $12.99. our total bill before the groupon was $60. and this was two drinks each, two entries, and dessert.

doing the groupon was a good thing for lupe's to do. getting people in to try them and serving up such great food worked, at least for us. we will be back, even without the groupon.

the salsa was really good, medium in flavor, but not borderline hot. both meals arrived hot and were delicious. the waitstaff was friendly and available. they have a surprisingly large menu, which made it difficult to choose. the interior was brightly decorated, but the entryway felt cramped as we waited. overall it was a better-than-expected experience. i'll likely gobackto try something else.