A tale of two tortas, and all that it implies
first let me say, i love a torta. or a least what i thought was a torta. and i was so excited to try rick bayliss’s tortas frontera during a layover at o’hare. and i was bitterly disappointed. let’s look at them closely:
torta milanesa from tortas frontera, $9.50, “crispy-crunchy chicken breast, black beans, pickled jalapeños, Chihuahua cheese, cilantro crema, avocado”
i got it with no cheese, which may have ruined it, but probably not. the problem is that the sandwich is so meat-centric and i ordered what i thought would be the least meat-centric sandwich on the menu.* all these veggies they described were there only in the most technical sense, basically as condiments. and i wanted my black beans.
and the pickled jalapenos were overwhelming. i know that it would have been balanced by the cheese but a good place would have known that and adapted to my order. also, why is it pressed? i didn’t order a panino or a cuban. so what i got was a dryish piece of chicken with a smear of beans and crema on toast.
torta pastor at la jarochita**, $4.00, “mexican sandwiches come with mayo, beans, cheese, sour cream, onion, tomato, lettuce, and avocado”
la jarochita is a cart next to my old office that was amazing. i had my first torta there in 2008 and i basically stopped ordering anything else. look at it: basically a mission style burrito on a lovely soft roll. with tons of sandwich veggies and a generous layer of avocado (unpictured) at the bottom. and i have been quite the evangelist for it. and it’s $4!
from what i have gleaned, la jarochita is own by a 40 year old woman from veracruz named lupe. she runs it with two other mexicans, a woman and a man, who i assume are family. her food is just really good, as can be seen by the lines that form in front of the cart. there are literally 2 mexican carts right next to it, yet we wait.
and now we talk about the root of the issue: fancy food vs “real” food.
tortas frontera bills itself as a sustainable option in the airport. it uses the right takeout containers and compostable plastic. it lists purveyors on the menu, all from . i’m sure the tables and chairs are made from some reclaimed barn, whatever. other than the food, my real problem is that tortas frontera, and the rest of the airport, had no compost bins so all that green was just being thrown in the trash.
compostable plastics are a huge thorn in my side. businesses buy them but we don’t have the infrastructure to process them. people don’t realize the difference, toss it in the plastic recycling and gunk up the system. people toss them in the trash, thinking it will just degrade, but that is NOT the case. american landfills are lined on the bottom to prevent groundwater contamination and covered with earth and a plastic liner every night. there is no decomp going on. in its afterlife compostable cups are the same as a styrofoam cup.
like many businesses, these sustainable features are being used as justification for its prices but of course, it’s more about the rent of the space, general airport pricing structure, and celebrity chef pricing structure. nueske bacon is not a rarity, it’s big business. and when you’re serving it in the airport, home of carbon emissions, does it matter that the pork is local? honestly, i would have been happy to pay as much as i did of the product wasn’t so disappointing. i would rather support the small business that i love than have organic meat.
i like rick bayliss. i like watching him on tv, so softspoken!, and i based my tortilla soup recipe on his. to me he is source #2 on mexican cuisine after diana kennedy. but i have never eaten at one of his restaurants because i don’t make it to chicago very often. and now i don’t know it i want to because although i wouldn’t infer the quality of his cooking by this experience***, but in the chain of command the fault is his. he designed this menu and oversaw the experience and he should have adapted for shortcomings in staff or circumstance.**** it’s a failure of vision.
*there was a garlic roasted mushroom option, but you know, airport and no toothbrush. didn’t you think about that rick? do you want your customers to one of those assholes on the plane?
**the milanesa is $5.00 but i didn’t have a good picture of it for comparison.
***we all know that missoni for target is not missoni. i can highly recommend bouchon bakery, though. i never understand why people suffer the lunchtime lines at whole foods time warner when they could get an awesome sandwich upstairs for about the same price and no wait. plus the madeleines!
****i know for a fact that he visits quite often so it’s not that he’s blind on the issues.
