![\"Tostadas](\"https:\/\/missiontimescourier.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Combo-plate.jpg\")
<\/a>The prized property, which offers pretty views of the 18-hole golf course from its enclosed back patio, used to house Eva\u2019s Cocina & Cantina at the turn of the century. I was naturally curious who took over or whether the restaurant was simply re-branded.<\/p>\n
According to a terse waiter who received two of my phone calls before I visited, \u201cThe owners never come in.\u201d And he wasn\u2019t sure of their names, adding that when emergencies arise he calls a maintenance company.<\/p>\n
Another server I quizzed, this time onsite, responded to the ownership question with a strange tone of uncertainty, saying it\u2019s family-owned before scooting away in a blink of an eye.<\/p>\n Emiliano\u2019s apparently runs on autopilot. It\u2019s in the hands of employees who don\u2019t like fielding questions of any kind. Even when I once politely asked if the re-fried beans are vegetarian, the waiter replied \u201cyes\u201d but with a skeptical pause as though I was sent in by the vegan police squad.<\/p>\n The appealing view and colorful d\u00e9cor are the restaurant\u2019s strong points. Ample seating extends throughout a few sections, including the inviting back patio. And a full bar slings a variety of sturdy margaritas, ranging from regular to bird-bath size.<\/p>\n The table chips, too, are noteworthy. They\u2019re thin, light and bubbly, the kind you eat shamelessly by the basketful even if the accompanying red and green salsas lack oomph.<\/p>\n Missing from most of the dishes I tried were perceptible doses of chilies, cumin, oregano, garlic, cilantro and onions \u2014 critical players in Mexican cuisine, no matter how Americanized. Only a beef-filled tamal that came on a combo plate carried hints of chilies and spices, similar to the flavors you\u2019d taste in barbacoa-style meat, which the menu also features. In the tamal, the red-tinted beef struck an appealing contrast to the moist, cakey masa encasing it.<\/p>\n The waiter reacted defensively when I asked if the chicken tacos use dark or white meat, or a mix of both. He tentatively replied \u201cwhite meat\u201d although I\u2019m certain it was both.<\/p>\n The corn tortilla capturing the generous measure of poultry was somewhere between crispy and chewy, exactly the same awkward texture I encountered in a carne asada taco on my other visit. But flavor wise, the diced beef offered more signs of life than the shredded, under-seasoned chicken.<\/p>\n My biggest disappointment was the chile Colorado and bean tostada. Served in a gigantic flour tortilla shell, the abundance of chunky meat sitting beneath a mantle of lettuce, cheese and commendable guacamole tasted like Betty Crocker beef stew.<\/p>\n Chile Colorado, whether made with beef or pork, is normally flavored deeply by trios of ancho, pasillo and guajillo peppers, as well as garlic, bay leaves and Mexican oregano. I struggled to detect any of those ingredients.<\/p>\n<\/a>