This is a standard place for my family to frequent when we want home-cooked style food for a relatively inexpensive price compared to other local places. They offer many specials as well as two special soups of the day and a quiche of the day. I'm not much for quiche, but the soups are generally good. I did not indulge in soup tonight due to my lunch and my snacking on fruit in "post-work munchies" mode. One of the best things about con Leche is that they are willing to substitute their staple side dishes: rice / mashed potatoes and steamed / sauteed vegetables. I generally go for the spiced rice and the steamed vegetable variety. This eatery boasts an Asian-Mediterranean-South American fusion cuisine that never fails to meet expectations for Newtown fare.
Today's dishes to be sampled were Cajun spice-crusted Tilapia with rice and steamed vegetables (me), Mussels al Ajillo (dad), and Penne w/ broccoli in a white wine garlic sauce (mom). The penne dish was actually a creation the cook made for us, replacing the cream sauce described on the menu, since our family isn't so fond of unnecessarily rich dishes, especially on nights where we go out simply to avoid cooking and cleanup.
The tilapia was sauteed beautifully and served, crusted, on top of the rice, which did not lack in its own South American-styled spices with carrots, peppers, and shallots mixed in (though not enough emphasis on vegetables for me : P). The vegetables provided a nice healthy stroll from the protein and starch staples as well as the crunchy texture I enjoy to accompany any good meal of varied textures. They serve sizable portions; however, most are generally manageable for me, if no appetizers or desserts are in symphony.
Dad's mussels were very plump and provided excellent flavor and texture. According to the taster, the linguini was good, and the broth made moreso by the two thick crusty rounds of toasted bread sprinkled with cheese that accompanied. Mom's pasta with chicken and broccoli, which I tasted, was excellent with some freshly cracked pepper, light penne pasta in a sauce similar to that of dad's dish, and crunchy broccoli. The ample sprinkling of parmesean cheese yet again gave a nice savory-salty note to the garlicky meal in its entirety.
All in all, we were rather impressed with oour visit this time and relied on things we knew we would like. Tonight was not the night for gastonomical curiosity, and who can blame us, right? We ended the evening with espresso at Starbucks from some of my favorite baristas and discussion of what money-saving meal on which we would be indulging the next night.... Black beans and rice it shall be!
