We didn’t have a 4th of July BBQ as originally planned. The weather was just too horrible (rainy and in the upper 50s…hello, WTF happened to the season known as summer?) Crystal sent me a text message saying that we would instead be going to the Texas Embassy for dinner. Hmmm…the Texas Embassy…for dinner…on the 4th of July. I felt dirty. (And for those of you not in London, no, the state of Texas is not opening embassies throughout the world…it is a Tex-Mex restaurant near Trafalgar Square). There was an hour wait, so we headed over to the Sports Cafe (kinda like ESPN Zone but not as cool) for a drink. Crystal and Matt insisted on drinking that crappy beer known as Miller Lite, while I opted for the usual pint of Strongbow, to which they said “If you drink Strongbow on the 4th of July, the terrorists have already won.” Perhaps so, but ordering a Miller Lite in London? That’s a crime!
We finally got our table at the Texas Embassy and the first thing our waiter brought to us was TWO HUGE BOWLS OF TORTILLA CHIPS and a GIANT BOWL OF SALSA (FREEEE!). I was floored. Chips and salsa for free…in London? No way! And they weren’t horrible Doritos, either! I was very pleased. We also ordered nachos and a large bowl of salsa con queso….overall, very good. As for the main course, I ordered a chimichanga, but honestly I was so full from gorging myself on chips that I could barely finish it. I remember it was pretty tasty, but could still not compare to the restaurants in California. I do remember being impressed by their selection of Mexican beers, which was much, much more than just Corona. At one point in the evening I began to wonder “Hmm…Texas…maybe I could live there.” Clearly, at that point, I had too much to drink.
The restaurant was decorated with American flags and streamers, but I still think a majority of the patrons were British. There was a live band, and at one point they began to play “Is This The Way To Amarillo” which made some of the Brits go crazy. They started a conga line, which reminded me of the Royal Guards spoof video, but, well, without that Iraq location.
Overall, the Texas Embassy was quite good…I would recommend it for drinks and appetizers.
Sadly, no fireworks, though…eh, oh well…maybe next year.
And hopefully I will soon have time to post the Italy pics…this week has been pretty hectic.
