Sunday, January 31, 2010

El Chisme - Des Moines, IA

Recently made a family trek up to Iowa for Christmas and figured I'd hit up the taqueria/pizzeria place that the taco tour had missed in the summer. El Chisme.

I called up good buddy and fellow foodie Cory Mitchell from eatoutdesmoines.com and coryeats.com to meet me there. He said yes without missing a beat and our lunch date was set.

He had been tellin about the Al Pastor pizza and that I needed to try it. Ok, we got one menu item, what else am I going to try? Jesus, the owner of El Chisme joined us and we inquired about his best menu items. We ended up ordering and sharing a Mulita Estilo El Chisme and a torta. Both stuffed with Carne Asada.

Our lunch slate was set.

Mulita Estilo El Chisme - First off, a Mulita is a like a quesadilla but with beans. The Mulita was filled with Carne Asada, beans, and lots of cheese. I love it when cheese items actually have lots of cheese and when the main ingredients are actually present. I also love it when the tortillas are not forgotten. The tortillas were soft but crispy on the quesadillas/Mulita and El Chisme did a great job of combining that texture. This was easily my favorite menu item of the day.

 Torta - Good but I think it could be better with one simple addition, Butter. When we were talking to Jesus about his menu he had told us that he is trying to keep his menu as healthy as possible. Ok, I respect that but I think a simple brush of butter on the bread could make this Torta out of this world. Again, El Chisme didn't skimp on the ingredients, Torta was filled with the Carne Asada and also included lettuce, avocado, and little bit of mayo.

Al Pastor Pizza - To be honest, when I looked at the pizza menu I really wanted to try the El Chisme Pizza #2. It is topped with Pepperoni, Mushrooms, Jalapenos, Red Onions, and chicken... I know, sounds good right? BUT, I was there to try the Al Pastor Pizza and that was what I was going to order... Not bad. Really. Tastes nothing like a pizza but if you fold your slice it becomes an instant Al Pastor taco... which gave me another idea. Why not make this pizza on a big tortilla? The Al Pastor pizza is good but if I had to choose between the Al Pastor pizza and the El Chisme #2, I would probably go with the El Chisme #2, even though I haven’t tasted it. I like my pizza to taste like pizza. But I love the idea of the Mexican/Italian fusion pizza. Sombreros off to Jesus for trying something different.

I can say this. When I am in Des Moines I will stop in again to try the tacos and that damn good looking El Chisme Pizza #2.

Tacoism = 3.5 out of 5


El Chisme - Des Moines, IA from Nelson Flores on Vimeo.

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