(bluemesagrill.com) – Granite Park in North Plano, Texas

How I heard of this place: Our friends Scott Lohmar and Emily Jackson introduced us to Blue Mesa Grill as it was the restaurant for their pre-wedding rehearsal dinner, and the locale of their first date.

Type of cuisine: Tex-Mex. “The boldness of hand- crafted Southwestern cuisine meets a truly great tequila bar. Join us daily for lunch or dinner, Sunday for brunch, or any time for a custom margarita using one of over 100 tequilas.” Blue Mesa seeks out local farms and producers for their products:”To use the freshest ingredients harvested at their peak of flavor; keeping us connected to the seasons. To support the local economy. It is consistent with our philosophy of building business through building a long term relationship with the community – putting a “face” behind the foods we consume. Buying produce from local growers reduces the environmental impact of transporting products. Here are some examples of how we are achieving these goals: We have found several local farms that supply us with seasonal vegetables. Each season we will feature different fruits and vegetables from these farms. We make our fresh fruit margaritas from locally sourced seasonal fruits. The chicken in our Slow Roasted Natural Chicken is from Buddy’s Natural Chicken in Gonzales. It is a local farm that feeds the chickens natural grains and uses no antibiotics or other chemicals. The flavor of these chickens is fantastic – you can really taste the difference. The cheese in our Goat Cheese Enchiladas is from Mozzarella Company, a cheese manufacturer. These enchiladas have become a very popular item. Our coffee and tea (for our Passion Fruit Iced Tea, too) is produced here in Dallas, Texas. You will see more and more local products on our menu. The sweet potatoes for our chips are purchased from local growers when available. These products tend to cost more money so it is something we are doing selectively. We want to maintain our overall prices and value to our guests.” As part of their commitment to the environment Blue Mesa has taken these steps to make it a more environmentally responsible business:

• recycle our grease for the bio-diesel industry
• recycle cardboard and paper and ink cartridges
• bathrooms are stocked with recycled paper products
• menus and to-go menus are printed on recycled paper
• use of compact fluorescents where possible, and fluorescent lighting in offices and kitchen
• sink faucets have a low-flow aerators reducing water consumption
• discontinued the use of all Styrofoam containers and replaced with recycled paper products
• only buy recycled office supplies, ink cartridges and paper
• buying of locally grown foods (chicken and produce), to help the amount of pollution associated with transportation primarily by fossil fuel

“Blue Mesa Grill offers an experience like no other, mixing the bold and colorful tastes of the Southwest with our own Texas flavor.”

Ambiance: We walked in and were greeted by the host who immediately directed us to the reserved room on the left, I caught only a glimpse of the expansive establishment. On ourside, the high ceilings with dimmed recessed lighting added to the mood of the orange-accented pale-yellow walls. Views of the outdoors, in the dark of winter were minimal through the four-by-four Excel-table framed windows. Tables and tall wooden doors with mini square windows were made of shiny orange-ish wood, as accented by pale green leather cushioned bench seating made the booths at the far left wall more comfortable for family and friends from out of town. Others of us were seated on hard, thin, black, chairs at large tables pressed close together to allow for more familiarity in the cafeteria-style seating. On the walls, black and white artwork sparsely decorated the space, with more matte than art in the thin frames. Along a small shelf between two wooden pillars resembling a space where a fireplace might live, three white vases, one long, one pear-shaped and one small, reflected in the spot-light, creating shadows on the wall behind. At the back of our reserved party room, three large sets of wooden blinds separated us and our buffet tables from the rest of the restaurant/kitchen, letting in just enough light to know something was back there, but not enough to intrude on our party.

What I ordered: Partaking of the pre-ordered buffet made our selection easy as pie. We first enjoyed blue and white tortilla chips, as well as Blue Mesa’s own hand cut sweet potato chips, sweet and crispy with a touch of chile, colorful as the Southwest, complete with three types of salsa (including chipotle, spicy and green) and fresh, large-cut avocado in a creamy and vibrant guacamole. Next, we enjoyed bean taquitos with gooey, melted cojito cheese. As we made our way down the line of appetizers, a woman, shorter than I, offered us a burrito-wrapped quesadilla with our choice of steak fajita (onions and green bell peppers) inside or chicken fajitas (onions and red bell peppers), roasted vegetables (including onion, eggplant, squash, zucchini and bell peppers) or spinach and mushrooms to accompany the grilled flour tortilla and mix of orange and white shredded cheese. I asked for a half-and-half of steak and chicken, in order to sample as much as possible. On the side, I was offered the roasted vegetables and spinach & mushroom combinations. To end our meals, we enjoyed four bite-sized cheesecakes, which we halved in order to maximize sampling enjoyment: raspberry, strawberry, original/plain and turtle cheesecakes over a crumbly graham cracker crust.  

What I loved: Fresh, thick-cut guacamole, where you can see the avocado, and are occasionally pleasantly surprised by a large piece, at least the size of a quarter of a whole avocado!  

Why I loved it: It was a free dinner at an upscale Southwestern establishment in celebration of the union of our two friends and their families.

Cost: Average to high (according to the online menu)