Don Ramon’s offers authentic Mexican style

DINING OUT

It would be hard to find a better place to celebrate Cinco de Mayo

than Don Ramon’s on Goldenwest Street.

When it opened about eight years ago, the free-standing building

was decorated by artist Clayton Parker with expansive murals,

trailing vines and flowers. It’s a catacomb of separate dining areas,

a cantina and a glass-protected patio.

Owned by Sally and Ray Gutierrez, Don’s Ramon’s Kitchen has two

excellent cooks Jesus Navarrete and his nephew Israel. The service is

attentive, the dishes are hot and overflowing with Spanish rice and

refried beans topped with melted Monterey Jack cheese.

On a recent visit I had a tamale (lunch $4.95) combo plate that

was very good, just the right amount of seasoned beef to soft corn

masa. Another selection served with the rice and beans combo is two,

foil-wrapped soft tacos (lunch $6.25) filled with chopped tomatoes,

onions and sweet, leafy cilantro.

Gutierrez plans to add some special dishes for Cinco de Mayo.

There will be chicken mole -- a dish from southern Mexico with red

mole, a savory chocolate-infused sauce. There will also be some

special shrimp dishes such as al mojo de ajo (dinner $13.95), which

will have five big shrimp with crusty edges sauteed in a mix of herbs

in a delicious garlic butter sauce.For dessert, flan ($3.75) made

fresh, is a dense, firm custard with a frill of whipped cream and

topped with a cherry. Another dessert is Don Ramon’s version of deep

fried ice cream ($3.75), which has a light flaky tortilla that forms

a saucer for a big scoop of vanilla ice cream doused with chocolate

syrup and whipped cream.