Nueva Onda

Nueva Onda is tucked away on a side street near the insanely busy corner of Oltorf and S. Congress, not 100 steps from the site where Pancho's Mexican Buffet used to reign in all it's (dubious) glory. Rest assured that the GPS coordinates are the only thing similar about these two places.

Nueva Onda prides themselves on using fresh, natural ingredients, and it shows in the food. I've been visiting for both breakfast and lunch on and off for quite a few years, and the food is consistently solid. I especially like the Huevos Motulenos for breakfast. They close at 3pm, so don't swing by for dinner.

On my most recent trip I had the beef fajita gordita plate with charro beans and fideo.

The beans were the highlight of the meal. A nice thick broth was complemented by perfectly tender frijoles and a healthy heaping dose of bacon. The fideo (mexican spiced vermicelli) was also quite good, flavorful and tender.

The gordita shells were handmade and delicious, with a nice chewy texture. The fajitas themselves were very tasty when I pulled one out and chewed it up. The flank steak was cut in longer strips, tex-mex style, and had a nice peppery taste. When eaten all together in the gordita with all the lettuce, tomato and (excellent) salsa, the meat kind of got lost.

The prices at Nueva Onda are a little bit on the high side for me, but that is somewhat ameliorated by the excellent array of lunch special available every weekday.

Nueva Onda - 3.5 stars - Cornbiter Deluxe
2218 College Ave
447-5063
7:30am - 3pm