On the Border restaurant in De Soto seems to finally have gotten it together.

I have been in there four or five times in the past couple of years…usually driven by a strong craving for Tex-mex food. Generally, I have been disappointed. Wait…generally I have been disappointed; often I have been really irritated and swore never to return.  Music too loud..bad service..so so food…

Today Marc and I had to go downtown Dallas, and I hate driving down there.  Since Marc can’t drive anymore I have been challenged in many areas, the driving being one.  Anyway, on the way home I thought maybe we we go for lunch..poor guy! He had been working outside when we left home and was in dirty, torn jeans and an old sweatshirt…We must have looked like street people! LOL! 

Anyway, we headed in and it was pretty empty…2:30…past the lunch rush…no one at the hostess station…Not a problem, she saw us and headed right over.

Not sure if she was tired, bored, or having a bad day, but she had that “I am so bored “look the whole time she was dealing with us, and  barely talked.  I don’t think she met either of our eyes.  You know, I think people need to realize how important it is to look people in the eye and smile. You rarely find that anymore.

She seated us in a corner booth, out of the way…perfect for us because it gave Marc a place to put his crutches..but it occured to me later that she may have thought we were street people. Yeah…we looked that bad…I can imagine.

Our waiter was Israel.  If you get over to the On the Border on I-35 in De Soto ask for him.  He is that much a treasure.  No I am not related to him, nor did he slip me a free dessert…He did not know who I was, and probably still doesn’t have a clue “who” I am other than some old lady with a blog.

Anyway, his face was lit up, he was friendly…and he looked into Marc’s eyes when talking to him.  I notice that many people do not talk to people with disabilities…as if the fact that their legs don’t work means their brains don’t either.  He looked me in the eyes as well, by the way, something I do appreciate.

He was attentive and helpful..and he thought things through. I asked for cream for my coffee but when he went to the kitchen to get it they were out.  He brought me milk instead and asked if that would be o.k. In other words he took care of it in such a way that my coffee didn’t get cold while I waited. He also did not flinch when I ordered ice water, with mostly ice, and a little water,  coffee and a glass of ice on the side.  The coffee cups were kept full, and he was attentive to our needs but not so much so that we were not able to have a deep conversation.

Marc was having a rough day and was getting teary eyed…and some of what we were talking about would have been difficult to finish if we were interrupted at the wrong time.  So…Great job, Israel, thank you.

Food. Yes we did have it.  Marc had the enchiladas (he said they were very good) but I could not decide so I had the On the Border Classic Five.

The plate was huge, probably enough for two or three people (unless one of them is one of my sons).  I can’t remember what all was on it…taco, chicken enchilada?…empanada…anyway…it was fantastic.  Served hot, well cooked, and well seasoned.  I recommend this dish in particular because it gives you some of everything.

The pico de gallo was slightly off…not spoiled but it was more than likely on the last day of it’s holding period.  The tomatoes had that “you should have thrown me away yesterday” flavor.

The salsa was perfect.

I looked longingly at some chocolate caramel turtle empanadas pictured on the menu but could not find a place in my stomach to put them. Ah, the angst!

While we were eating Marc’s crutch fell.  We just left it since it was not in anyone’s way.  One of the bus boys came by and gently placed it back up against the wall, smiling at Marc adn I as he did so.  Again, I was impressed.

The dining room was clean, the music was at a tolerable level, and everything was lovely.  I was pleasantly surprised.

I don’t know what changed in the past six months since I was there last but something did.  If you are in this area and have been disappointed in the past try it again.  I hope it wasn’t just because there wasn’t a rush.

One a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best I give it the following:

Overall….********8

Hostess….*****5

Waitstaff….********** 10

Food…********8

I will definitly go back as long as the quality is this good.

I wish that restaurants would go back to cloth napkins.  I have a touch sensitivity that does not allow me to touch certain textures, paper napkins being one of those textures. So Marc had to unwrap my silverware, get rid of the napkin, and I used my jeans for wiping my fingers…..if I was smart I would start carrying my own cloth napkins around.

I forgot to bring my camera, since this was sort of a spur of the moment thing…I took the images when I got home…sorry. LOL!

image: marye audet

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