Q: Why do so many restaurants have Jalisco in the name? Jalisco Grill, Taqueria Jalisco, and La Tequila Jalisco are just a few examples. I know it is a state in Mexico, but why is it such a popular restaurant name?
Merrill Rosas, San Antonio
A: The Texanist is absolutely crazy about the widely varying and ever-succulent smorgasbord of cuisines derived from the culinary customs of our neighbors to the south, west, and southwest of our southern border. In fact, among all of the world’s gastronomical offerings, including but not limited to Cajun, Chinese, Czech, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, and State Fair of Texas fare, it’s probably Mexican food (and, it goes without saying, Tex-Mex) for which he has, perhaps, the greatest affinity.
Very recently, before the Texanist even had a chance to ponder the question at hand, he found himself gleefully bellied up to a table at a little neighborhood spot in the Capital City, where he makes his home, thinking, as he licked the salt off the rim of a refreshing margarita, just how lucky we Texans are to share the close and enduring connection with Mexico that we do. But while the Texanist could go on and on with regard to that love affair at large, the question on the table (sitting next to the chips and salsa) involves a particularly prevalent naming convention associated with Mexican food enterprises and not just how much of a thing yours truly has for the toothsome goods that such establishments are in the business of providing.
The Texanist, at this point, will note that despite his historical connection, personal devotion, and lived experience, he hasn’t actually spent much time, if any at all, considering the motives and reasoning behind the names of the restaurants that serve Mexican food. But even before giving it much thought, he knows, as most anyone would, that there exist some recognizable patterns in the trade. El Patios, El Ranchos, so-and-so Acapulcos, Hacienda this or Hacienda that, and such are a dime a dozen. In Temple, where the Texanist grew up during the sixties and seventies, there was both El Chacho and El Chico, which he’s always found somewhat amusing, as both have very similar English translations.
The Texanist doesn’t recall a Jalisco restaurant in Temple during his time there, though a quick Google search reveals that a half-dozen or more exist in the area nowadays. It wasn’t until the mid-1980s, in Austin, where the Texanist was pursuing his higher education, that he encountered his first Jalisco Mexican food outlet. Fun-loving Austinites and university students of that era will likely remember Jalisco Bar & Grill, on Barton Springs Road. Jalisco’s, as it was known in shorthand, was a festive place. The Texanist doesn’t recall the menu very clearly, but he was able to dig up a capsule review of the restaurant from the time. “The white stucco walls, Saltillo tile floors, and high ceilings invoke the feel of a Mexican hacienda,” reads the assessment from a 1999 edition of the Austin Chronicle. “Jalisco serves a reliable selection of basic Mexican dishes such as ceviche, carnitas, carne adobada, and grilled meats. . . . The bar here has earned a reputation for its happy hour tequila slammers and lively mariachi music,” the review concludes, redeeming the Texanist’s sometimes foggy memory.
Another quick Google search revealed that Austin currently supports a dozen or so restaurants with Jalisco in the name. In the Houston area, there are more than forty, with similarly impressive double-digit numbers in San Antonio and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. And that’s not to mention the names of Jalisco-related and Jalisco-adjacent restaurants. Arandas, Guadalajara, and Puerto Vallarta are all cities located in the state of Jalisco. And “jalisciense,” which translates to “of Jalisco,” or thereabouts, can also be counted among the list.
A bit more research confirmed that there are indeed a whole bunch of restaurants with Jalisco in the name spread out all across the state. But how many, the Texanist wondered? Performing his due diligence, he reached out to his friends at the Texas Restaurant Association, who were kind enough to offer an assist. “We’re aware of over three hundred restaurants in Texas that feature the name Jalisco in some way,” a spokesperson said, noting that this likely represented an undercount since a single exhaustive catalogue of every restaurant in the state doesn’t exist. Still, that’s an impressive number, especially considering that it doesn’t account for all the Arandas, Guadalajaras, Vallartas, jaliscienses, and so forth, of which there are assuredly plenty.
But why, finally, do so many restaurants carry the Jalisco name?
At long last and getting to the heart of the matter at hand, the Texanist can say with some confidence that it is not because each of these eateries specializes in the cuisine of Jalisco, or even a uniquely Jalisco style of cooking. In fact, Jalisco style, if there even is one, is a bit hard to define. Way back in 2007, a contributor to the blog Taco Journalism addressed the matter in a post. “What does Jalisco style mean? It’s an interesting question, and one that I can’t answer with any sort of scientific rigor or academic authority,” the dispatch reads. “The first clue that you are eating Jalisco style is that the sign or the menu will reference Jalisco, or its capital city, Guadalajara,” the post continued. More recently, esteemed taco journalist Mando Rayo, who is also a contributor to the Taco Journalism blog, as well as a host of the Tacos of Texas podcast, explained to the Texanist that he believes a long history of immigration from Jalisco has most certainly played a part. “The name and the state of Jalisco is a source of pride for people from that region, and that’s why you see so many restaurants using that to connect with consumers,” Rayo said.
While a truly discernible Jalisco style may be elusive, a number of dishes are traditionally associated with the region. Birria, carne en su jugo (meat in its juices), torta ahogado, pozole tapatio (red pozole), as well as sundry seafood dishes (Jalisco is located on Mexico’s Pacific coast), can all be found throughout the state.
But after perusing a fairly large number of menus from restaurants with Jalisco in the name, the Texanist discovered that while he was able to find a few that do offer some of these dishes, they appear sporadically and are rarely highlighted as any kind of house specialty. In fact, most of the menus look very much like menus you’d find at most any Tex-Mex restaurant, with burritos, enchiladas, tacos, soups, combination plates, and the like. Some even offer the likes of burgers, hot wings, and garden salads. jaliscienses? Truly jaliscienses? The Texanist thinks not.
In further search of a definitive answer, the Texanist spoke with his colleague José R. Ralat, Texas Monthly’s taco editor. Ralat is a well-regarded journalist and knows of what he speaks, especially when he’s speaking of tacos and the cuisine of Mexico writ large.
“There is no definitive proof as to why, but my theory is that because Jalisco is the birthplace of mariachi, birria, pozole, tequila, and more, the state is considered the soul of Mexico,” he said. “Therefore, it signals a legitimacy to potential diners, even if there isn’t one Jalisco-style dish on the menu.”
Rayo made a very similar point, and it makes enough sense to the Texanist that he’s going to run with it, which brings to a close this most mouthwatering of investigations. Viva Jalisco and viva all the restaurants with Jalisco in their names. Tequila slammers all around!
