My wife and the kids left yesterday for a quick vacation in Florida (I’ll be joining them on friday night). Normally in times of new-found bachelorhood, I set up the tripod and the lights and produce a ton of episodes of Freezerburns. Now that I have no video obligations I decided to meet my friend Josh for dinner and a movie.
Now Josh has been super influential for me this past year. He is the one that put me onto 4-Hour Body and the Slow Carb Diet and as a Triathlete, his advice on my workout routine and pre- and post- run activities have been hugely helpful to me. Well Josh recently has decided to go vegetarian and because I am still pretty much sticking to the Slow Carb diet we decided Tex-Mex would be our best option.
I had never noticed this Lime Fresh Mexican Grill in Brier Creek. Probably because it sits across the intersection from Brasa in the Brier Creek Commons and very little interrupts my attention from meat on swords. Apparently this location opened last summer. It is a good location and option for a night like last night: only half a mall block from the theater with a cupcake shop and ice cream shop right between them. I always like the option to park once and do the dinner and the movie. I know that sounds silly but I consider that good.
I got to the restaurant earlier than Josh and as I waited outside for him I noticed this sign.
I don’t know why companies continue to list Facebook and Twitter logos without telling people your handle or URL. Huge opportunity missed right there as I would have tweeted them publicly how excited I was to try them out. So silly.
Interior at Lime Fresh Mexican Grill
Josh showed up and we entered the restaurant. Lime Fresh Mexican Grill is set up much like some of the other restaurants located in Brier Creek Commons. Like restaurants Noodle & Company and Jason’s Deli, you order and then sit. Immediately I was struck by the interior. Fancier and more upscale than your Qdobas, Chipotle, and Moe’s. When you walk in you get right in line at the register. Not too much space for the line and there isn’t a menu board either. You need to read the menu. As a first-timer it felt uncomfortable as I felt like I needed to make a decision before others queued up behind me. I imagine during busy times that line goes out the door.
Menu at Lime Fresh Mexican Grill
I immediately saw a call-out on the menu for Vegetarian options. That made Josh happy.
I decided on the Nudie Burrito: “Go Tortilla-less! A large bowl filled with your choice of chicken or ground beef, rice, homemade organic refried or black beans, jack and cheddar cheese, sour cream and pico de gallo salsa. 7.99”
I asked for no rice but double beans. The person taking my order asked if I wanted sour cream and cheese. I said no. She then had to verbally tell the person preparing the order my special needs. “Special Needs” sounds like the wrong term as it’s more “Special wants” but you know what I’m talking about. This made me worried for 2 reasons:
Reason #1: If you have to verbally tell the food preparer every time someone has a special order, you’re going to have issues with accuracy and time through the line
Reason #2: I didn’t want sour cream or cheese.
I also decided to order the Classic Guac with “a side of warm homemade bottomless tortilla chips” and an unsweet tea. I was given a large (too large in my opinion) lime number to put on my table and I sat down.
Salsa Bar at Lime Fresh Mexican Grill
As I waited for my order I checked out the salsa bar that everyone seems to talk about in Yelp and Urban Spoon reviews.
The salsa bar was vast. But that doesn’t mean it was good. Frankly, I felt that the salsas were ok (The salsa bar at Salsa Fresh in Morrisville and Chubby’s Tacos in Raleigh are way better) but not distinctive or memorable. That is true for all but 2 of the salsas:
Habanero Salsa from Lime Fresh Mexican Grill is too hot
The habanero salsa was so extra hot that it was painful. So hot that Josh and I wondered how a chain could get away with it without warning people or having waivers signed. Later when we spoke with one of the employees he mentioned that a VP was there yesterday and told him they are reformulating that particular salsa because it was too hot. That’s a good idea.
Pineapple Salsa from Lime Fresh Mexican Grill is awesome
The pineapple salsa is good and should be the one that Lime Fresh Mexican Grill pimps out. It’s unique, tasty, palatable for most people and could be a signature salsa. If you go, seek that one out.
Food at Lime Fresh Mexican Grill
Remember my worries about my special request? Well, here’s what my Nudie Burrito (no sour cream, no cheese) looked like when it came out.
Notice the sour cream and the cheese? I ended up just taking the sour cream off and eating the cheese so it really wasn’t a huge deal for me. But for those with allergies or those who were in a rush to finish lunch during their lunch break, a delay based on this inaccuracy could be an issue.
The quality of the ingredients were good in my Nudie Burrito. The chicken had a nice blackeded taste to it and I like that the chicken breast was actually cut up not pre-cut and taken out of a pan with a spoon. The black beans had a nice flavor to them and the tomatoes tasted very fresh.
Here’s what my Classic Guac looked like.
The guacamole was excellent. Very fresh tasting with nice tomato and cilantro taste. I don’t like the taste of cilantro but i appreciate it’s flavor profile within dishes like this. Unfortunately the “warm homemade bottomless tortilla chips” were room temp sometimes chewy bottomless tortilla chips 🙁
Suggested Areas of Improvement
• Add a sign to make clear where the bathrooms are. They are hidden around a wall with no sign pointing it out.
• Make it clear whether you are suppose to clear your dishes or someone else does. We had someone take some stuff but then when it was time to leave had to seek out a trash bin. The trash bin was blue (which last time I checked was a universal color for recycling) but there was trash inside so we dumped it in there and left.
• Push the pineapple salsa!
Conclusions
I am not sure what type of rating system i should give for restaurants This is a new thing for me after all. What I will say is I would go back. It’s location, the freshness of the ingredients, and the price makes it a great quick option for movie nights and for the whole family.
If you are doing Slow Carb, it is one of the best choices in the Brier Creek Commons shopping center.
Have you been to the new Lime Fresh Mexican Grill in Brier Creek in Raleigh? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
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Gregory Ng
GOAL: Visit 100 National Parks as a family by 2020. Favorite Parks: Zion National Park, Mt Rainier National Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park
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