During a quick 40-minute lunch at the newly-launched Mexitoes, I’ve packed in at least 300 grams of juicy, crunchy vegetables. The spicy vegetable tortilla soup has plenty of them and sweet corn and bell peppers reign supreme in most dishes. Even the nachos taste of honest-to-goodness corn, not refined flour. They burst with vegetables, beans and a mildly-cheesy sauce.
That is because ‘Health first’ is managing partner Pradeesh Narayanasamy’s motto. He still remembers his frequent trips with friends to Chipotle Mexican Grill in the U.S. when he was studying there. “It offered us a chance to eat affordable, healthy fast food. That’s what we’ve tried to replicate here,” he says. Pradeesh started Mexitoes with his friend Sathya Madhan, who lives in the U.S.
He’s mostly succeeded. Every item on the menu is accompanied by vegetables — either as part of the dish, a relish or a salad. The cheese dips are cheesy but not greasy; refined flour use has been cut down to the minimum; and efforts have been made to stick to just fresh vegetables, preferably sourced locally, and avoid food wastage. In fact, Pradeesh is now looking at farms in and around Coimbatore from where he can get sweet corn, instead of buying them pre-packed.
This policy of his puts him in a spot occasionally, like when a customer asks for that Mexican staple, Guacamole, a smooth creamy avocado-based dip. “It’s not on the daily menu. It depends on whether avocado is available in the market. I hate to stock them up as it reduces their freshness,” he says.
Even the dips are made in-house. Onions with a sharp bite and sweet-sour tomatoes do a merry dance in the tomato salsa served with the nachos.
In the starters, check out the pepper mushroom tarts. They arrive a bit soggy to the table, but the delicate flavours tempt you to overlook that. Inside it are diced mushrooms, bell peppers and lots of garlic topped off with some cheese.
Next up is a burrito rice bowl, brimming over with vegetables, corn, paneer, beans and rice. It’s flavourful and comes drizzled with a hearty gravy.
My favourite, though, are the wraps that are super thin and encompass more vegetables and beans. We try out Healthy Fiesta, which brings together button mushrooms, peppers, rice, beans, paneer inside a toasted wrap. One bite and the flavours explode in your mouth — the mix of tastes and textures adds to the experience. The paneer feels like an intruder at times, though. Pradeesh promises to look at another protein alternative.
We wrap up our meal with some delicious eggless flan. Pradeesh sources the desserts, including carrot cake and tarts, from home bakers. “They are fastidious about quality, and create every piece with passion,” he says.
Our flan arrives like a creamy moon drenched in caramel sauce. It’s light, flavourful, and yes, you can’t stop with one.
(Mexitoes is at 80, Gopal Naidu Layout, Bharathi Colony (next to Haribhavan), Avanashi Road. Home delivery available. Call 0422-2563233 for details. Open from 11.30 a.m. to 10.30 p.m.)
