Casa Ramirez
 Youngstown, Ohio        Date of Visit  06-04-11            http://www.casaramirez.net

There have been several restaurants housed in the building that is now the Quality Inn and Suites on Belmont Ave. in Youngstown. I have not been to most of them. When the hotel was a Howard Johnsons the restaurant was a Howard Johnsons, that was a long time ago. Although there have been many incarnations since, I have only been to two of them. Both were Mexican themed restaurants formerly Cancun, now Casa Ramirez (Different Places/Owners etc.) Cancun was shut down by the health department. It was pretty good though.
 

Already Decimated Chips and Sub-Average Salsa
 

As a matter of fact, according to the papers, the health inspector walked into the dining room and ordered everyone to leave (not a good sign, it takes a serious violation to close the place in the middle of service) and the people who were eating argued with the health inspector. “But it tastes really good.”

It was most recently a sports bar and the ghosts of the previous tenants remain. Officially the only Mexican restaurant I have ever been in that has a Guinness “Countdown to St. Patrick’s Day clock. All of the tv’s remain, the bar is the focal point of the dining floor, but they did apply the standard brightly colored paint to the walls inside and the tv’s are mostly tuned to Telemundo or Televisa…Mexican enough.

Our server appeared very nice and really allowed us to take our time even though the place was empty when we arrived. We switched tables as the one we sat at was so wobbly that it would have been like trying to eat on a skating rink on the deck of a crab boat from Deadliest Catch. The first basket of chips is complimentary, the next comes with a small charge according to the menu, we were offered a second basket without charge though. The chips were average but the second basket was still warm and tasted much more fresh. The salsa was wholly unimpressive with a single strong tomato wash encumbered only by minuscule bits of onion, garlic and cilantro, it could really use some balance. We ordered the lunch and dinner chimmys, chicken quesadillas, and steak with chorizo.
 

Lunch...vs...
 

...Dinner

Our server appeared very nice and really allowed us to take our time even though the place was empty when we arrived. We switched tables as the one we sat at was so wobbly that it would have been like trying to eat on a skating rink on the deck of a crab boat from Deadliest Catch. Everything was pretty good, the meat in each dish is clearly the focus of the dishes while the seasoning and sauces don’t really take a significant role. The steak was typical for a Mexican place but the chorizo was less flavorful than what I have come to adore at Casa del Rio. The plate came with loose beans, fresh lettuce and pico, and a side of rice. It all went together pretty well but a bottle of hot sauce on the table would have taken things a step in a better direction. I don’t think I have ever been in a Mexican restaurant that didn’t have bottles on the table.
 

The quesadillas were fine and the chicken inside was tasty but again the sauce over the top could have used something more to make the whole thing stand out. They also arrived with rice and a bit of lettuce. The deep fried chimmys were better, I felt, with the crunch of the tortilla adding depth of flavor that beat out the quesadilla even though the chimmys arrived without any sauce at all. All together Casa Ramirez was pretty good, even if it didn’t measure up to our hometown favorite. Part of me wonders if the cuisine there is more authentic and less tailored to the typical American palate…. I will have to return though…I am curious what exactly Ramirez sauce (their house) might do to the dishes and there is a chalupa on the menu that is stuffed with crab?.? I am curious to see how that would work out. If you’re in the area it’s worth a stop…another Mexican place is opening up the street, we’ll see if that holds true.