Garden of Taxco   

Thriving on continual positive word-of-mouth, this mom-and-pop restaurant treats patrons like family, catering to their likes and dislikes (no meat, no dairy, for instance). You want spicy, they make it atomic. Prefer it mild? They tone it down for you. There's nothing a la carte and no written menu, as all items are described daily by your server, like the house specialty, pollo ala crema, that's been touted as tasting "like the chicken was born in the sauce." The five-course meal includes a quesadilla appetizer topped with guacamole, albondigas soup, baked chicken enchilada or agustina (resembling a beef taquito). Main courses -- chosen from 14 items -- come with rice and beans, dessert (bananas in sweet sour cream) and an after-dinner cream sherry. Soft drinks, beer, wine, margaritas and sangria are available, and Wednesday through Sunday, a singing guitarist roves around and takes requests. The decor is dark and cozy, lit by wrought iron chandeliers with amber lights and whatever exterior light is able to spill through stained glass windows that depict sunrise, midday and evening sky-scapes. Unfortunately, despite the name, there are no actual gardens at the restaurant. But don't let that ruin the experience.