El Potro Mexican Grill has been serving up authentic Mexican food since they opened their Somerville, MA location in 2006. Since then, they’ve expanded to Chelsea, Lowell, Methuen, and Malden, and the Chelsea location has been one of my go-to spots for fajitas and margaritas for the past couple of years!
I recently stopped in to explore more of their menu, and it’s safe to say you really can’t go wrong with anything, and I’ll have a serious case of indecisiveness next time I visit.
All of the margaritas I’ve tried at El Potro have been delicious, but I have to give a special shoutout to the Coconut Margarita. I love coconut as a flavor profile, but I do not love drinks that are on the sweeter side. This marg was made with 1800 Coconut Tequila, and having the coconut flavor infused with the tequila rather than as a sweet mix-in alone, really made it super flavorful without being too sweet.
Other margaritas I love at El Potro are the frozen Strawberry or Raspberry (again, at some restaurants, these would be too sweet for me, but El Potro’s are perfect), and the Margarita Azul, made with Silver Tequila, Blue Curaçao, and margarita mix.
For appetizers, we started with one of my tried-and-true favorites, the Super Nachos. These nachos come with your choice of shredded beef, ground beef, or shredded chicken, refried beans, sour cream, guacamole, and tomatoes. The best thing, though, is that the toppings are placed evenly on each chip!
I love nachos, but I don’t love how most of the time, the few chips on top are perfect, and the rest is a mix of soggy chips or bites with no toppings at all. The Super Nachos at El Potro are truly the best since each chip gives you the perfect bite.
If you’re looking for something a little lighter than a full plate of nachos, the guacamole and queso were also delicious and would be the perfect start to a full meal or small bites and drinks at the bar.
Now for the apps that were new-to-me on this visit: First off, the Tamales. I love Tamales and these were some of my favorites that I’ve tried in New England. They come stuffed with shredded pork and are topped with El Potro’s spicy house red sauce and cotija cheese.
Next up, the Picado Mixta and oh. my. god. Is this my favorite dish at El Potro now? The Picado Mixta comes in a huge platter filled with sliced carne asada, grilled chicken, French fries, cheese quesadillas, chicken flautas, fried pork rinds, queso fresco, and grilled shrimp. 10/10, no notes, just wish I had some extra stomach space.
For mains, one of the standouts to me was the Chimichanga with pork. Joe, Business Manager for El Potro, made some excellent recommendations and this was one of them. Chimichangas are not something I’d typically gravitate toward on a menu with so many other options, but this one might be changing that for me. In the past, I’ve sometimes found Chimichangas to be a little dry, but that wasn’t the case here at all, between the pork inside and the sauce on top.
One of my favorite things to order at any Mexican restaurant is a fajita. I love the trio fajita here that comes with shrimp, chicken, and steak, so you can try a little bit of everything. The marinade on the meats, much like El Potro’s sauces, is packed with flavor, and the leftovers from this one really got me through the rest of that week.
Josh’s regular order at any Mexican restaurant is often a combo plate with some mix of tacos and enchiladas, and El Potro has a few different options if you also like to go that route. For this dinner, we went with Combo #1, with an Enchilada Suiza, Ground Beef Taco, and Chicken Flauta.
While we’re talking enchiladas, I have to mention the Enchiladas de Espinaca. I would never think to order spinach enchiladas, but we gave these a try at another one of Joe’s recommendations and I think they may be a new regular order for me at El Potro. If you’re someone who loves spinach and artichoke dip, this dish is a similar creamy, savory experience, all rolled up in an enchilada.
Rounding out entrees, the Bistec a la Mexicana is a must! This is actually the first dish I tried from El Potro years ago, and it got me totally hooked. It features grilled steak sauteed with peppers and onions in a savory tomato sauce, with hints of cilantro.
Last but certainly not least, if you visit El Potro, you have to take a few minutes to take in all of the art and decor around the dining room. During our last visit, Joe told us about how the restaurant worked with artists in Mexico to create custom art and tables for the Chelsea location, and I loved taking a closer look at all of it.
If you haven’t tried El Potro yet, you’ll definitely want to add this spot to your list for next time you’re craving Mexican food on the North Shore!
Thank you so much again to Joe for having us out!
