A Casa Que Pasa - Bellingham, WA

Another successful monthly trip to Trader Joe's, Fred Meyer and Costco (gas at $3.61 a gallon - what a steal!) so Mr. Piglet and I head out to find some grub in Downtown Bellingham.  We inevitably end up on the  Railroad Ave strip where there's a ton of independent stores and a few choice eateries.  We didn't really know where to eat so after a drive up and down this strip, we stop at this place that seemed colorful and busy enough from the outside.

Don't mistaken this for Mexican food because it's not - A Casa Que Pasa is a burrito joint that serves food of the Mexican style (aka Tex Mex) but is not a classic Mexican joint.  The space is hippie/hipster where local artists are showcased on the one wall (all of the artwork is available for purchase), independent newspapers can be found in the corner and flyers on an opposite wall advertise local events and local businesses.  When Mr and I approach the counter, we have no idea what to order.  I ask the cashier what the most popular items are and he says 40% of the business is based on a particular burrito and another dish which is one of his favorites.  We order those two dishes and a drink and sit down waiting for our food...

Potato Burrito $6.29 (regular size)

The world famous potato burrito featuring battered, deep-fried potatoes with beans, cheese, and Casa's own red chili cream (aka potato burrito sauce)

It's massive!  (That's what she said).  Holy cow...  That's a regular size???  Alright here we go...  The people were right, the potatoes in this burrito are AWESOME.  Super crunchy and it's like having the best tater tots you've ever had rolled into a burrito with perfectly cooked beans.  To spice things up a bit, I got some two types of handmade salsa on the side and both taste really good with the burrito.  The only thing I don't care much for is the flour tortilla - it basically just holds everything together but has no taste.  I much rather prefer a corn/masa tortilla for some flavor and texture.  After eating half, I've actually gotten kind of bored of this monstrosity.  I need a change of pace, aka some greenery and a protein would be nice as well.  Mr. loves the bejesus out of this thing but next time, I'll probably order one of the variations of the potato burrito, like the Rancho Deluxe or the Chorizo, since it'll have those wonderfully crunchy potatoes but also a vegetable or chorizo in there to give it some variety.

Fish Tacos - $7.99

Tilapia filet is beer battered and deep fried, garnished with a lemon pepper ranch sauce, fresh salsa, and served on a bed of cabbage, comes with a side of Spanish rice 

Our recommendations from the cashier/server are turning out pretty good.  The fish batter is super crunchy (they know how to deep fry here) but the fish itself isn't overcooked.  Mr loves his white rice and although I didn't care much for it, he loved the Spanish rice since it was nicely seasoned.  The sauce, salsa and veggies were a nice accompaniment - cool refreshing kick to a deep fried item.  Both Mr. Piglet and I would order this again.  Mr complained that the tortillas were too small to wrap the fish into a taco - he's complaining that the fish and the fillings are too much???  Yeah, I know, crazy.

Everytime I've come out for food in Bellingham, I notice that the only cars around are those with Washington State plates but when we go to any of the grocery stores, the parking lots are stuffed with BC plates.  Since you're down there anyways, why not just grab a cheap meal while you're at it?  A Casa Que Pasa is only a 7 minute drive from Trader Joe's and if you want a healthy (as in large and not nutritious per se) and filling dose of tex mex food, A Casa Que Pasa is the place for you.  We enjoyed the giant portions, moderate prices and a hipster vibe and I think you Piggies could get into it too.  Bon appetite!

Pros:

• Large portions
• Food was pretty tasty
• Cheap to moderate pricing
• Free parking everywhere on the weekends, even right outside the door!  Gotta love Downtown Bellingham...  so nice not to pay $2.50 for 1/2 hour of parking
• Friendly service

Cons:

• Not authentic Mexican by any means
• Dingy interior - some flies flying around and floors, windows and a few tables desperately needed a wipe down and clean
• Self serve - you order, they bring it to your table but you get your own condiments and utensils and bus your own dishes