From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published October 23, 2007 Carreta's Grill 2$ Mandeville: 1200 W. Causeway Approach 727-7212 Lunch and dinner seven days. AE, DC, DS, MC, V. Mexican. Carreta's is a small chain of Mexican restaurants that began in Hammond and spread throughout Southeast Louisiana. The locations in Metairie and Mandeville now are owned by different people than the rest of the chain, but the menus are much the same. And there's even a difference between those two locations, with the North Shore restaurant being significantly better. The word "grill" in the name is a solid piece of information. Grilling is indeed what Carreta's does best. Most of the best food is clustered near the bottom of the menu, and includes several Mexican-style cuts of steak (and even a chopped steak, something we don't see in many restaurants anymore), chicken, fish, shrimp, and pork carnitas. Several of these are assembled into a combination grilled platter for two or three people which, at about $27, is quite a bargain and well presented. Salsa and chips are a minor but essential part of a Mexican-American restaurant's offerings, but the salsa here is so good that it's almost reason enough to come here. It holds nothing back on the pepper, and tastes as if it's been cooked a little bit. They also turn out a reasonably decent guacamole (it's unusually heavy with avocado; I add salsa to it). And the queso with chorizo is spicy, messy, and wonderful. The menu includes all the familiar combinations of enchiladas, tamales, flautas, quesadillas, and tacos with rice and beans, in filling portions for less than ten dollars in most cases. But this is all less interesting than the grilled platters. They make a big fuss about the margaritas, but they are more distinguished in size than flavor. You need not be frightened by the amount of alcohol in that big pint-sized schooner of the stuff; I drank a whole one and felt no effects. The flan is just what you hope for: a little overcooked and caramelized, with a nice vanilla flavor. Service is efficient when the waiter is around; they seem a little understaffed, but that's nothing new around town. Subtract ten percent from everything I said above for the Metairie location, which is smaller and less good. This was a restaurant in the 2007 Top Sixty Ethnic Restaurant Countdown. To view the entire list, click here. Click here for an index of all restaurant reviews. © 2007 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.