El Charro Cafe’ on Court Street

When I first posted my Best Mexican Restaurant In Tucson competition on my TucsonCitizen.com blog in early January 2012, I got a lot of comments. Seems everyone here has his own favorite. But I had dined at most of the suggested contenders and found them lacking in something: margaritas, enchiladas, chips & salsa, service … something.
(Note to you fans of Mi Nidito. You can read my review here and understand why it is not in the running.)
Tucson has a lot of Mexican restaurants and not all are worthy of a second visit. Knowing which ones are best is most important when you have visitors from out-of-town. After all, you don’t want to be embarrassed by taking them to one that they aren’t going to rave about.

With our extended family here over a recent Christmas holiday, it was a perfect time to compare Mexican restaurants for our Southern Arizona Guide viewers. As a reviewer, I generally try to involve many people in my dining excursions so that I can get a variety of opinions. I think this approach provides our viewers with a broader, more nuanced review. We all have different preferences when it comes to food and drink.

Entrance To El Charro Patio & Bar.

I’ve long since lost track of the number of people who have asked me which is the best Mexican restaurant in Tucson. I usually direct them to one of three: El Charro Cafe on Court Street; Cafe Poca Cosa on Pennington; or Theresa’s Mosaic Café. I sometimes joke that Mosaic Café at Silverbell & Grant is the best Mexican restaurant hidden behind a McDonald’s.

Over the years, I have dined at all three many times and all are very good. But which one is best? The Quest-For-The-Best became one of our fun family goals for the holidays.