(May 14, 2004)

Berryhill Baja Grill on Highway 360 across from Davenport Center is a restaurant that has a wide range of appeals. My older daughter Jenn's twenty-something friends like it for ladies night on Tuesdays. My 19-year old likes to have tacos their with her friends. I've seen lots of families inside and lots of cool, Lake Austin types sunning out on the lovely back patio overlooking the Hill Country. And me, I just flat out the like the food and the ambiance.

Berryhill is a smallish Texas chain that is run by a passionately independent owner operator, David Bain. The fare is Mexican with an emphasis on the southern coastal fare so popular in Baja California. To start, I'm vary partial to the Crab Cakes. These have some zest to them as evidenced by the red onions and jalapenos mixed in with the lump crabmeat. Served with a really tasty cayenne mayonnaise, I have dusted off more than one order of these on occasion. The Taquitos are also very good. These are deep-fried tortillas filled with chicken, and served with sour cream, pico de gallo and guacamole. They're moist, flavorful, and for fun, try dipping them into an order of Berryhill's mellow queso (which I often do).

And let me tell you about the Poblano corn chowder. Please let me tell you. The first time I tasted this soup I had a food epiphany of sorts. The poblanos are broiled over a fire, peeled and deseeded, and then put into a double boiler with corn and cream. Each order is individually heated on the grill in a sautee pan and the result is just magical. Try this soup. The tortilla soup is also quite tasty with a nice chicken broth base.

Berryhill makes a mean taco. Double wrapped in soft corn tortillas, the Original Fish tacos are supposed to be the king of the hill. Now they're very good, but to me, the Crispy Shrimp tacos, which features tempura fried shrimp, a lovely remoulade sauce, red cabbage and cilantro are the smash hit. The convergence of flavors and the ying-yang of the red cabbage all just explodes on first bite. Ditto for the pork tacos. These feature shredded pork, red onions, red cabbage and green olives and they rock. Put on one of the many great sauces available at their sauce bar and go for it.

The burritos are huge and delicious. The Perilla Pescada Fish Burrito which is filled with chipotle grilled fish, rice and beans, pico de gallo and a Dijon sauce, is enormous (about the size of a large salami) and very tasty. And the Enchiladas are a treat. My favorite is the Corn Enchilada, very derivative of the baja style. The blend is whole kernel corn, red onions, Anaheim chili, and of course the requisite cream cheese topped with a zesty tomatilla sauce along with Monterrey Jack cheese. Again, a very engaging and intriguing flavor.

If you're a fan of the mother of all Mexican libations, the margarita, Berryhill's Caborita, made with rocker Sammy Haggar's CaboWabo Tequilla, cointreau, and their hand-made sweet-sour, and you have one rockin' good drink. One minor cautionary note: an occasional server may be attitudinally challenged. Waiters who think the classic Beatle's song was named "Hey Dude." But that is not predominant.

So come on out to the San Clemente Village off Highway 360 about a mile south of the Lake Austin bridge, near Chili's, and experience the laid-back lifestyle and zesty cuisine of Austin's own taste of Baja, Berryhill Baja Grill.

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