When I told people that I was having a birthday dinner with my Starbucks friends, I definitely got some odd looks. I mean, everyone knows I have a coffee problem, but maybe they didn’t know they extent 😉 The truth is, I’m just a chatty person and I like to meet new people, so after 3 years of seeing the same baristas almost every day, having one of them officiate my wedding, and running a half marathon with an other, this group has become pretty important in my life.
I gave Kara a list of a few restaurants I’ve been wanting to try, and left the rest up to her. We ended up going to Barrio Cafe. As soon as we arrived, it was like love at first sight! It has a tiny, hole in the wall feel. There was live music, and the whole atmosphere seemed really authentic! There was a pretty significant wait, but we all sat outside and chatted, and the food definitely was worth the wait!
In addition to the Starbucks group, Nicole, Lance and Carolyn were also able to join us. It ended up being the perfect group! When we first sat down, we immediately ordered margaritas and took lots of pictures.
This is my super awesome friend Amelia who married us. She makes good faces, 🙂
Carolyn
Mona
Kara
Nicole & Lance
Charlie
I was a little surprised when the salsa came out with a bread basket instead of chips, but it was delicious!
The margaritas were also pretty amazing. Nice and tequila-y, and not super sweet. I hate a marg that tastes like sour mix!
We ordered the guacamole–they make it table side, and oh my gosh, it was absolutely incredible!!
I was totally skeptical of the pomegranite seeds because I usually don't like pomegranites, but it was such a perfect flavor combination! I must try putting fruit in my guac!
And look, we did end up getting chips also! But bread and salsa is a surprisingly delicious combination.
Then the food came and everything looked incredible.
Enchiliadas
Tacos--I had a little bit of food envy when these babies came out!
Steve and I split this steak dish that came in a sweet and spicy sauce with bleu cheese on top. It was ridiculously good. The steak was crunchy and slightly charred on the outside, while perfectly tender on the inside! YUM!
Every single item I tasted was absolutely delicious. I must admit, I was a little surprised at the prices when I first opened the menu, but the flavors were all unique and well worth the price.
After our dinner, we had cookie bar cake made by yours truly 🙂
Carolyn, I'm sorry I suck and never bake anything gluten free 🙁 Glad you enjoyed your plate anyhow.
And we resumed our photo session…
They even have a super awesome graffiti wall that we had fun in front of!
Me + Starbucks group
Oh no! Someone killed Carolyn! And apparently, rolled her over afterwards...
At least she looks happy about it.
Oh good! She came back to life! Hey Steve, I don't appreciate this whole from below angle that makes me look like I'm expecting. Let's work on that.
Okay, you picked me up, we're good again 😉
And then Nicole suggested we practice our jumping pictures….
Clearly, I don't need any practice.
We regularly pose for White Girls Can't Jump Weekly.
This was just one of those nights where everything is pretty much perfect. Perfect company, food and atmosphere. I was also super in love with our waitress who was hilarious and even tried a piece of the cookie bar cake! Ohhhh, and the band even sang me happy birthday! Pretty much, if you live in Phoenix and haven’t been to Barrio Cafe, that needs to change immediately. And if you’re ever visiting from out of town (like if your name is Mac and you will be here in a month), you cannot leave Phoenix without eating at the best Mexican restaurant I have ever been to.
Special thanks to Kara for organizing such an incredible night, and everyone who made the last couple of weeks super special for me 🙂
So much to comment on here:
A – Your hair was perfect.
B – The guac and margaritas were AMAZING.
C – I had MAJOR taco envy also…next time!
D – You don’t suck.
E – I love that open my mouth so wide when I pretend to consume gluten. Go back and check the above and the posed beer photo from the race. Ok I don’t love it but it makes me laugh how fake it is.
F – Graffit Wall rocked, I had fun laying on the ground, I look like I am in pain in the 1st jump and hardly got any air in the 2nd. I demand a retake on Saturday, I promise to wear shoes this time!
G – Remind me not to wear that outfit again.
Good night and Happy Valentine’s Day Ari!
You are ridic–you looked so pretty! PS, I’m so excited that I get to see you again so soon!
I tell my bf about Barrio all of the time…I’m going to show him your photos and maybe it will entice him to go. I’m having hunger pains just thinking about it.
It’s seriously a must try! I love trying new restaurants, and of the ones I’ve tried recently, Barrio was definitely my favorite. Thanks for reading and commenting! I went over to your blog and noticed that your in the area–would you like to be added to the AZ bloggers email list? We’re planning a meet up in March 🙂
Ari!! Yes!! Please!! Diana at 1 Mile at a Time told me about this secret AZ Blogger Society and I would love to be a member. Just neet to learn the secret handshake 🙂 phyllinphat@phyllinphat.com THANKS!
Thanks so much for inviting us to tag along! I had lots of fun and I LOVED this restaurant – both the atmosphere and food were amazing (and I can’t complain about the margaritas…)