Restaurant Chayos, serves Mexican comfort food in San Vicente

Restaurant Chayos is not a small loncheria, taqueria, or taco stand, as it's a full-service restaurant, located a mile or so south of San Vicente, on the east side of Highway 1. It's a real restaurant that features a printed menu, a full menu, and friendly waitresses that seat you, and actually wait on you. If you're looking for night life in San Vicente, this is the only place in town, as their dining room has a corner dedicated to karokee, which happens on weekends, and the occasional small band. Their motto is "Tampico Hermoso," (translated as "Pretty Tampico,") complete with a painted tropical, seaside mural on the wall, which evokes memories of Tampico, or Bagdad Beach, a continent away from Baja California.

Photo: Located just south of San Vicente, Restaurant Chayos is a very attractive place to eat. Note that they're adding a second story to the building, which, according to the waitress, will be where the owner lives.

Restaurant Chayos has a slogan painted on the exterior of the restaurant, which reads "Cocina Familar," which loosely translates into Mexican comfort food, and that's what's on their menu. As I walked into the the dining room, I couldn't help to notice that there was only one other patron beside me, who was a kindly gentleman that seemed to be enjoying menudo from a pot, and I couldn't help to notice that he had a couple of empty cans of Tecate beer on his table, plus a couple of HUGE bottles of Tecate that he was working on... Anyway, I was greeted by friendly waitess Nora, who seated me at a table, and immediately produced a menu.

Photo: This gentleman has two major passions in life: A) Tecate beer, and B) Menudo. It looks like he's really indulging into his favorite passions on this September Sunday morning.

The dining room at Restaurant Chayos is very spacious, with lots of room between tables. Nothing about it is fancy, as it features plain tile floors, walls that are painted a bright, dusty pink, and plain ceilings with naked flourescent light fixtures. As you walk in, the counter and the kitchen is straight ahead, and to your right, tucked into a corner of the large dining room, you'll see the karokee equipment. As I mentioned the wall behind the karokee equipment features a tropical mural, which conjers up visions of margaritas on tropical beaches... According to Nora, the place gets pretty lively on weekend nights, but on this Sunday morning, I had the dining room to myself, with the exception of the kindly beer drinkin', menudo eatin' bearded gentleman, sitting alone at a table, near the door.

Photo: Inside the spacious kitchen at Restaurant Chayos. Note that the kitchen is very clean, and I really like the large sack of white onions on the floor. Nora is doing double-duty as cook, while her helper, the gal in the green to the left of the photo, is barefoot. Barefoot in a restaurant kitchen? Only in Mexico...

From the menu, (of course, menudo is on the menu,) I ordered scrambled eggs, refried beans, salsa, and a stack of corn tortillas, and a Sol beer. Nora asked me if I wanted anything on the side, and I decided to splurge and order a bowl of feta cheese. The menu at Restaurant Chayos is definitely full-service, as it features entrées for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Unlike the majority of the small restaurants in San Vicente, Chayos is not open to the elements, and the restaurant features sit-down dining, and a waitress who actually caters to your every dining need.

Photo: My waitress Nora, who doubles as cook, smiles as she delivers my delicous breakfast.

While my breakfast was being prepared, I couldn't resist visiting the kitchen, just to see what was going on behind the scenes. Restaurant Chayos has a very spacious kitchen, with a large preparation table and a huge, stainelss steel, commercial range. Unlike many kitchens encountered in Baja California restaurants, this Chayos's kitchen is well-lighted, spacious, and very clean. The kitchen is a model in multi-tasking, as the food is prepared in the kitchen, cooked on the range, and the dishes are washed at the neighboring sink. The kitchen is very clean and spacious, and at the time of my visit, was staffed by one gal doing all of the cooking, but my waitress actually spent more time in the kitchen than she did on the floor. I suspect during busier times, they probably will staff the kitchen with several more folks, as to give the wait-staff more time to tend to the needs of the customers.

Photo: Refried beans, scrambled eggs, salsa, feta cheese and corn tortillas, what could be better for breakfast?

My breakfast was simply delicious, as I enjoyed scrambled eggs, delicious refried beans, freshly-made, warm corn tortillas, a bowl of house salsa, and cubed chunks of feta cheese on the side, nursed down by a Sol beer. Restaurant Chayos advertises Mexican comfort food, and they deliver on their promise, as the breakfast that I enjoyed on that September Sunday morning at Chayos, is one of the best breakfasts that I've ever enjoy during my many trips to Mexico. As an aside, including the beer, the price of my breakfast was only MEX $35.00, which is just a little over $3.00 in U.S. funds; quite a bargain by any standard. I tipped my friendly waitress Nora MEX $10.00, which is cheap, cheap, cheap, but is still a 33% tip on the meal. The delicious food, her friendly smile and her positive made the tip very worthwhile. Not to mention that she agreeded to snap a photo of me at the table, doing what I do the best...

Photo: Here I am in all my glory, as I'm about to enjoy one of the most delicious breakfasts that you can imagine.

If you're in the mood for Mexican comfort food, and you're in San Vicente, Baja California, Mexico, stop by at Restaurant Chayos, as you'll enjoy delicious food, rock-bottom prices, and friendly service. Just like me, you'll love the place!

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