I’m John Fancher, also known as Foodie Fanch. I’ve helped my family and friends decide on places to eat for quite some time, and I love to give suggestions. I spend time looking up restaurants in different towns to plan out which ones to visit when I’m traveling there.
Restaurants will be scored by “The Official Foodie Fanch Napometer,” with my overall rating being based on atmosphere, service, taste, food appearance, if I’ll return, and how tired myself and my guest are after the meal.
As things begin to take shape for Foodie Fanch, which will include food stops, food suggestions, and travels, I need to make everyone aware of one thing. My love for Mexican food. I don’t think it is even remotely true that I was born way up in Bethesda, MD, because of my love for Mexican cuisine. My close friends and my family know I could eat Mexican food three times a day AND on Thanksgiving.
My first lunch stops for Foodie Fanch and MoArk News Now was a hidden little spot right in the middle of Branson that somehow, I had even overlooked and never been to. How this happened is beyond me!
Kevin Russell and I walked into Las Casitas and were immediately greeted by Edith. She helps with the front of the restaurant and has been there since they opened and is a bundle of sunshine (I’m pretty sure I’m a long-lost cousin of this family).
Now for the chips and salsa! The taste can help decide a Mexican restaurant for me. This high calorie guy has tried thousands of variations of salsa and consumed gallons of it. This one is a medium heat, non-offensive, you want to keep on dipping, very comforting. It is hard to explain but it just hits a little differently from the normal you find. Next time I may ask for some hot to mix with it, and you will be asking for more. While we continue to demolish the chips and salsa, I like to ask our waiter, since we’re at a new place, to select a couple of their favorite entrees for us to try.
Several minutes later, the entrees arrived, looking like artwork. These dishes are one of those snap photos before you think about eating moments. Stop the chips right now; they just brought out The Colorado, a burrito with shredded beef that seemed like it had been slowly roasted forever and spicy red sauce. The spice didn’t hurt; you want more of it. Like I want to slap it on eggs, chicken, anything. I’m reordering this again and again; it was instantly my favorite, and even though it was the size of my face, it disappeared.
They also served us a Grilled Shrimp Burrito filled with beautiful nuggets of shrimp and rice throughout. Just wow! The flavors of their menu items blend and mix perfectly. Topped with cheese sauce and chipotle mayo drizzled over it.
The other dish they brought out to us was a Burrito Bowl, for which you can pick the protein and make it your own style. It was full of flavor too.
When we were tackling the last of these monster dishes, the staff overheard that I liked seafood, so they brought out one of the appetizers: Ceviche. This appetizer is wonderful and a very fresh dish of shrimp and tilapia bites mixed with tomato, onion, cilantro, and avocado, and lime juice. Oh my! Oh my! Oh my! I have no idea how, but I finished every, last bite of that bowl of seafood in lime juice.
Las Casitas is on my permanent family list. I can’t wait to see them again. My opinion is the staff and their service will make you smile, the artistry of the food will have you pulling out your camera to take a pic, and the bold flavors that may even form a little tear in your eye and will make you a fan as well.
Now to share the experience by photos. See below.
Please stop in and see the owners, Olivia and Roberto, and give Las Casitas on Shepherd of Hills in Branson, MO a visit, or try their second location in Blue Eye. If not as a lunch stop, definitely for dinner, because it just scored a 9.88 on The Official Foodie Fanch Napometer!
