It is rare to ever find Mexican food that I do not like, but I think there is a big difference between good Mexican food and great Mexican food. I think the main difference for me is the amount of flavors and the way the spices are used — that the flavors don’t all end up tasting the same.
Recently, friends invited us to eat at their favorite Franklin Mexican restaurant, Pueblo Real, and I found a new favorite place for great Mexican food.
Pueblo Real is a medium-sized restaurant near the Williamson County administration building.
Their address is 1340 West Main. They are open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m and Sundays from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Great Service
I have now been twice — once on the weekend and once with our kids on a week night. Although both times the restaurant was busy, we did not wait either time. The service both times was friendly and good.
When we went the first time with friends, we took our kids and our friends had theirs so we had a total of 6 kids ranging from 3 years old to 15. The waiter teased and joked with them and had no problem accommodating requests from chicken tenders to a split order of fajitas.
Pueblo Real has a good children’s menu, with 11 different selections for kids. They are obviously used to a few gringos because they had pizza, grilled cheese, chicken tenders and macaroni and cheese on the menu. Prices of the kids’ meals ranged from $1.70 (grilled cheese) to $4.50 (chicken tenders.)
Check out the menu at Pueblo Real.
Appetizers
Pueblo Real is quick to get chips and salsa on the table, but I definitely recommend ordering guacamole. My friends teased me about wanting to lick the bowl, but it really was that good.
They offer several other appetizers — spicy and mild cheese dip, a variety of nachos and quesadillas, as well as a few others. Prices range from $1.95 (cheese quesadilla) to $8.95 (shrimp cocktail.) At $2.95 the guacamole was a great deal and a good portion.
Lunch and Dinner
The menu is very large, and both times I haven’t varied from my favorite: the chicken chimichanga. Fortunately for me, the chimichanga was fantastic and my husband and friends ordered different items, giving me a range of food to try.
The portions were big on all of our plates — we managed to eat most of our food, but easily could have had leftovers for lunch the next day. The chimichanga had a very good crisp shell and shredded, flavorful tender chicken. I like the white melted cheese on the top.
Other favorites were the enchiladas — which are spicy, but not overly so. My husband ordered the "Special Pueblo," which was a chicken burrito and a beef burrito. They both had a great flavor, although we both agreed that we like burritos better with shredded beef rather than ground beef.
On our first visit, my kids split the chicken fajita plate and loved it. It was plenty for the 2 of them to share and they did take some of theirs home and had it for lunch the next day. At $10.20, this made it a good deal.
All of the prices on the meals are very reasonable. You can get a combination dinner for $6.75, which allows the chance to try a variety of items. Our friend Scott ordered the Number 2 (one enchilada, one taco, and one chile relleno) and pronounced it all "tasty."
All food is fresh and made to order — nothing we tried was too spicy, but they do tell you if you want the food to be spicier to let them know and they will kick up the heat.
Desserts & Fun Stuff
We didn’t try the desserts, but I promised myself that when I go back I will try the banana chimichanga. They also offer sopapillas, flan and fried ice cream. The prices of desserts were very reasonable, ranging from $1.95 to $3.50.
Monday through Saturday the restaurant offers a lunch menu, with smaller portions and reduced prices. The highest priced items on the lunch menu were the shrimp fajitas and the Texanas fajitas, which is a mixture of beef, chicken and shrimp. At $7.75 that was a bargain. Most of their lunch plates ran under $6.00.
Monday nights at Pueblo Real, bottled beers are two for one from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. strawberry and regular Margaritas are two for one. Wednesdays at 7 p.m. there is live trivia and Thursdays from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. there is live music.
If you go, make sure to check out their website where they offer a coupon deal.
I recently moved to the area and am on a fast track to getting to know my way around. I have 4 kids, so I will be writing a lot about family-friendly activities. I also network with several other mothers and am always looking for good ideas.
