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STEAKS. SHAKES AND TONGUE TACOS Good Day, Sunshine: Look, Athens, I love you, but too many of you, when you're thinking, "I want Mexican tonight," opt for something famil iar, perhaps with a menu that teaches you how to pronounce "quesadilla." Might I suggest, instead, that you check out the new Taqueria El Sol de Zacatecas (175-B Tallassee Rd.), ir the former location of Royal Cafe, in the small strip shop ping center by what is now Bulldawg Wings. The menu you're handed is pretty tiny, but if you're observant and speak at least restaurant-quality Spanish, you can notice a few more items on the dry-erase board over the counter in a space that still bears the faint marks of a Huddle House. Yes, you may have an awkward conversation with the waitress about what exactly buche is (either the throat or the stomach or some part of the intestines, sometimes pork, sometimes beef, sometimes stewed in lard), but good grub is worth fighting through your introversion, and Zacatecas has plenty of that. The place is madly cheap, with SI.50 tacos (both al pastor and league—finely chopped and tender tongue—are recommended, but all the choices look delicious) bearing a heap of cilantro and green onions and good-sized tortas that will provide you lunch for $4. Even the most expensive items, a selection of various incarnations of fajitas, run under $10. Much like the tacos at Taqueria La Jalisco, these can be a little bland when consumed plain, which is why there are two squirt bottles of marvelous sauce on the table: one is pale green, based on green peppers and avocado, and with a cooling effect; the other is a muted, opaque orange that hides its heat in creami ness. Separately, they are strong. Combined, they are invincible. If you're a purist, you may think you're covering up the flavor of, say, your torta, already full of avocado, lettuce, tomato, mayo and chunks of tender pork, if you douse it with both of these, but take heed from one inherently suspicious of sauces and pour 'em on. You even may end up eating the sauces off your finger by the time your plate is clean. The sopas, sort of a smaller version of huaraches, or individual nachos on thick, fried tortilla rounds, are worth your time, dollar and sauce efforts as well, as is the burrito verde. Nostalgic for Nostalgia?: You know how the 1970s for some reason decided to take up the cause, trends, fnusic, etc. of the 1950s (e.g., Grease) as its own, in a strange example of force ful nostalgia? Floyd's Grill (64 N. Main St., in Watkinsville, 706-769-8669, or 76-YUMMY) kind of fits into that pattern. It's not exactly a '50s diner, especially with Badfinger and ELO play ing over the speakers, but it's also not ironic. Instead, it is the closest thing our area has to a Steak n Shake, the promised franchise never having materialized on Epps Bridge Parkway. Step up to the counter (or, eventually, cruise through the drive-thru, which isn't open yet) and order yourself a Floyd's "Special" (an oblong hamburger served on a sub roll with everything) with fries and a hand-dipped shake. The burger by itself is $4.69 (the non-"Special" one is S3.99), and the combe version gets you a side and a drink for an extra S3. Is it fabulous? Well, it's fine. It's quick and inexpensive and very friendly. The onion rings are good and dark and the shakes thick and tasty. The fries are of the steak variety and crispy enough without ceasing to taste of potato. The burger is kind of uninspired but adequate. The grilled cheese could use more of both salt and butter during the grilling process. But at least the food is cooked to order, the menu not un varied (there are sandwiches made with chicken, fish, bacon and steak, salads, fried shrimp, hamburger steak), the soundtrack good and the atmosphere family-friendly. Floyd's Grill is closed on Sundays and takes credit cards. What Up?: Farm 255's "Ask the Chef" option, in which you eat whatever Chef Dave decides you do, is being scaled back slightly, not due to a lack of popularity so much as to an excess of it. "Ask the Chef' will now be offered Tuesday through Thursday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and con sists of four courses. In case you pick this up Tuesday evening (Apr. 24) and need a bite to eat, remember that it's the 13th annual Entree of Hope, with the following restaurants donating 10 percent of their gross sales to The Ark and the Athens Area Emergency Food Bank: Broad Street Bar and Grill, Buffalo's Southwest Cafe, DePalma's (all three). East West Bistro, Five & Ten, Five Points Deli, Fresh Air BBQ (Hull Road), Gautreau's Cajun Cafe, Harry Bissett's (both loca tions), Hibachi Express Inoko, Hilltop Grille, Last Resort Grill, Maison Bleu, Mama's Boy, Plantation Buffet, Roly-Poly, Speakeasy, The Grit, La Fiesta (Hawthorne), The Sultan, Zim's Bagel Bakery and Walt Light's Seafood, Steak & Spirits. Hillary Brown 5*2 0*. ucss/ fay Owt 20 EvoTTc Ftafes - TncuvTng ccvrcqe MancraKt+a on w-Vs $1." VoMesVc Been „ ■PoM£s+7e 53,50 |mFo^4£6 8££B ... $2.' s (JEW WWtfS: ♦ CtfeUdLocg ♦ TvM&aeUoLfl Seafoop Special- Jat^a OK P£RWT3n' VdCLLd foK 7 & Ma*cai<?+a YHcwzk ... $75." Cdil Fj* To do 0^^ (074 MyifR <X. O (70fe) 353-1093 -« retail * uniforms promotions events Custom starting at S3.65 high quality one color zoinktees.com Daily Special by Donna L. Barstow RACE WEEKEND Frozen Margarita Pitchers Try Our New Specialty Tacos & Burrftos NEWS & FEATURES I ARTS & EVENTS I MOVIES I MUSIC I COMICS & ADVICE I CLASSIFIEDS Wr arc deiivmnn within f> miles • ^1/ minimum oTTiqi of y^thens Thai £ Chinese Cuisine www.thaiofathens.com 2033 West Era ad St" Athens. GA • 706-3M-S284 HEALTH FOOD Suegai, Sucvu. Imitation Chicken Open for Lunch - May 12 & 13 to celebrate Graduation & Mother's Day Make Reservations Early! SAT & SUN: NO I UNO \ Bike Race Day Is Here “Voted Best Bloody Mary In Town” Race Day Specials til 6pm 4.5° Bloody Mary l. 00 Champagne 2. 00 Domestics - i—f; /ft * ■flBSR’-i-- i * vl - The Race Is On At Gencol 246 E. Clayton & APRIL 25,2007-FLAGPOLE.COM 17