The Mystery of Don Chilito's

When I last visited Don Chilito’s Mexican Restaurant, Ronald Reagan was president and I was a teenage hoodrat.

My tastes were less discriminating then, but I recall thinking that Don Chilito’s served the most forgettable Mexican food I’d ever eaten.

After a twenty year absence, I returned for lunch on Thursday to the same establishment at the intersection of Metcalf and Johnson Drive. It’s still bad. The emphasis on bland ground beef, cheese and salsa is no different than the offerings at elementary school cafeterias on their monthly Mexican day. Taco Bell’s kitchen turns out the same counterfeit-Mexican menu at half the price.

But what do I know? Don Chilito’s was packed with happy customers Thursday afternoon. As a sneering teen and as a paunchy man, I clearly don't understand what constitutes a successful restaurant in Kansas City.