Welcome back! You’re tuning into the third edition of Tasting With Thomas, where I explore the affordable eats that New York City has to offer. I’m all for the bites that are going to leave my wallet and my tastebuds satisfied, so today my friend Surina and I hopped on over to West Village’s Mexiterranean Grill Express to see what they had to offer.
The first thing I noticed about the spot was its’ accessible and popular location. No more than a 5 minute walk below Washington Square Park, Surina and I were more than ecstatic to have the option of taking our meals to-go for a nice picnic by the fountain. While the restaurant primarily serves as a takeout establishment, we took our seats at the table and bar seating in the entry way of the establishment.
Upon walking in we were greeted with a warm welcome and attentive service from the Grill’s waitress. We were each presented a menu with an expansive variety of options spanning across cuisines and diets. As a pescatarian, our waitress was kind enough to highlight some of the special offers that featured pescatarian friendly options such as the falafel humus wrap special or the fish taco platter.
If I’m being honest, it took us a minute to decide on our order. There were so many different options, and they all sounded like they would hit the spot. After some deliberation (and consulting our waitress friend) we finally decided on our meal.
We decided that I would cover the Mexican cuisine while Surina would cover the Mediterranean food for our meal. My side of the table was served two fish tacos, which were fresh and filling with their blackened tilapia, pico de gallo, lettuce, avocado and salsa fresca. Surina enjoyed the falafel humus wrap special that filled her plate with falafel, tomato, lettuce, cucumber, humus, and onion all wrapped in a tortilla. On top of that, Surina’s meal also came with a side of beer battered french fries (which are my all time favorite fry) and a soft drink, all for only $11.95!
Surina and I are two peas in a pod when it comes to sharing meals, so we promptly swapped out one half of the wrap for one of the fish tacos and got to chowing down. Funnily enough, we both enjoyed each other’s meal better than our own! Surina was quick to enjoy the fish taco right away. For her, the seafood twang paired with the Mexican flavored veggies hit the spot. On the other hand, the Mediterranean spices springing out of the falafel wrap were the perfect combination of comfort food goodness for me. Don’t be mistaken – we both thoroughly enjoyed and finished both of our meals!
While we were stuffed and satisfied after our entrees, we decided we had just enough wiggle room left for a sweet treat to top it all off. A few minutes later, our waitress brought out a warmed and cakey brownie for us to share. The decadent chocolate chips and fluffy texture were the perfect conclusion to our dining experience!
By this point we were grinning ear to ear from our full bellies and appeased cravings. We waved goodbye and thank you to our waitress and headed out of the restaurant to soak up the sun in Washington Square Park. While we were content leaving at the moment, we both promised our waitress that we were eager to make a return. With a menu that diverse, we’ll definitely be coming back to try more!
