Don Jose Restaurant

An authentic cantina filled with little touches

by Bill Rodriguez

311 Plainfield St., Providence, 943-5377
Open 10 a.m.-10 p.m., Fri & Sat till 11 p.m. (closed Tues)
Major credit cards
Sidewalk access

Thanks to the national advertising of Taco Bell, most Americans don't picture a little burro when they see the word "burrito," and a taco is no more exotic than a slice of pizza. More and more, Mexican restaurants are opening up and thriving, from fancy faux-Mejicano places to authentico cantinas like Olneyville's Don José.

The advantage to a small, unassuming place like this is that it can't get away with anything. While a fancy downtown restaurant might be able to bluff and ratchet up the pork liver content of the foie gras, a tiny out-of-the-way Mexican restaurant has to attract families and local regulars to survive. It serves tough tripe in its menudo at its peril.

Not to worry at Don José. We were in capable hands on a couple of recent visits. Indeed, the CD jukebox provides Enrique Iglesias as well as Julio, while the service is cheery. Overall, the décor is unassuming, with sombreros of various sizes and a Virgin of Guadeloupe wall hanging.

At Don José, there are no drinks with parasols in them, just wine and your choice of Mexican beers. The complimentary corn chips are homemade rather than out of a bag -- hard but flavorful -- while the accompanying red salsa is quite hot. But ask for the salsa verde, and a mild tomatillo version will be on your table before you can say, "More water!" (Better yet, try a glass of the tart-sweet tamarindo or the sweeter horchata, a rice and condensed-milk drink flavored with cinnamon. Both are $1.25.)

For appetizers, you may choose between tortilla chips and either a guacamole or cheese dip ($2.50-$3). But the must-have is their ceviche ($6.50), which provided each of us with a delicious cup-sized portion. In a soupy red liquid that tasted like a shrimp cocktail sauce thinned out with lime juice, there were not only shrimp but mussels and squid and lots of avocado chunks. All fresh and plenteous.

The first time we were there, I had a marker-board special, lengua guizada ($6.95). The tongue --melt-in-your-mouth tender, pardon the phrase -- was stewed with green peppers and onions and served over yellow rice, with refried beans and a salad's worth of lettuce and tomatoes filling out the plate. Johnnie had the camarones a la tequilla ($9.95). Coming with the above side items, as do all the entrées, the half-dozen fat shrimp were marinated in an orange tequila sauce sweetened with coconut milk. Superb. Extra tortillas, kept hot in a container, were brought unasked.

We enjoyed it all enough to come back the next Saturday for lunch. I couldn't not try a taco ($1.50), and chose roast pork (carnitas) rather than wood-grilled pork (al pastor). Next time, I'll try the heftier flavor of the barbacoa (goat shanks).

The flour tortilla was fresh and delicious, and you can order the handmade variety, if you like. I also had another old standby, a chicken tamale ($2.50). The corn masa, steamed in corn husk, was as moist and flavorful as the meat was tasty and mildly spicy, while Johnnie's chiles rellenos ($5.95) was delicious as well. The batter-fried chili was a big poblano, eggplant-colored, and the mild red sauce didn't overpower the mix of tastes in each bite.

This time, we had flan ($2.50) for dessert. Their tea-cup-sized portion of crème caramel was big enough to share, but too good to do so without a pang.

The namesake of the year-and-a-half-old restaurant, José Garcia, is in Chicago right now, setting up a place to be called Don José Carnitas for his family to run. Co-owner Jaime Gaviria is on hand, though, with his friendly greetings and farewells. He has worked in restaurants in Acapulco and Boston -- at Las Prisas. And the little touches the two friends maintain (hot milk with the coffee, liberal use of cilantro) make for a place you can trust for the big things.