New Restaurant and More

Back home in East Tennessee… Not too much happening but we did go out for dinner and couple of times. 

El Senor took over and remodeled a building close to I-75 on TN Hwy 72 in Loudon.  It has served as the location for several different restaurants in the 14 years that we’ve lived in the area.  The exterior and the parking area have been refreshed…and it’s hard to miss the visual that is El Senor when driving past it.

Inside El Senor, there is plenty of color with matching decor everywhere!  It is almost ‘de rigueur’/required to see a portrait of Frida Kahlo in Mexican restaurants these days…and El Senor is compliant as regards this trend.  Plenty of other paintings, posters and colorful décor cover the walls.  Even the table tops and the front of the bar are highly decorated.  The only items lacking ‘color’ are the chairs and the seats in the booths.  Actually, those bland items, actually prevent color sensory overload… The effect is that this is a ‘happy’ and upbeat place to be.

We did imbibe… I had my usual Miller Lite ($4.07) while Laurie opted for a 20 oz. Lime Margarita. ($10.25) Laurie thought that her Margarita was a nice change from the usual…

Of course, our server brought us the usual corn chips and salsa.  We stepped it up a bit with an order of Choriqueso…cheese sauce topped with some spicy chorizo sausage crumbles.  It was excellent, one of the best we’ve had lately.

A total of 9 different appetizers are offered.  I made note of the Buffalo Wings, 10 for $13.99, which I will compare to another restaurant in my next post.  Tex-Mexi Egg Rolls ($9.49) and Shrimp Ceviche ($13.99) were a bit unusual and worth noting.

For her entrée, Laurie went ‘vegan’!  She ordered the Quesadilla Vegetariana stuffed with spinach and mushrooms. ($11.32) She topped it with a bit of the red salsa and she was a very happy camper.  Mushrooms don’t ‘happen’ at home…

El Senor has a huge menu.  In addition to the appetizers, burritos and quesadillas, there is a large selection of vegetarian offerings, nachos, steak, pork, seafood, chicken, house specials, combos, fajitas, salads and much more.

For my dinner, I ordered the Burrito Carnitas. ($11.93) My 10 inch flour tortilla was filled with shredded pork and then topped with cheese sauce and salsa verde/green sauce.  It was a very good burrito and there was enough cheese and green sauce to mix in with my rice too!

We were very happy with our dining experience at El Senor Mexican Restaurant.  It is hard for a Mexican Restaurant to really stand out in our area.  I can think of 3 or 4 other Mexican dining venues within 15 – 20 minutes of our home that also offer quality Mexican food.

El Senor Mexican Restaurant is located at 10058 TN Hwy 72 in Loudon Tennessee.  Phone: 865-657-3777.  Website: Home (google.com).   

Now onto our home and a family photo…

A prolonged cold snap this past winter resulted in the death of the 2 boxwoods which stood sentinel by our front entrance.  We recently replaced them with a pair of Japanese Cleyera Japonica.  These new bushes can get quite large but they can also be pruned to keep them from overwhelming the space.  The leaves change colors with the seasons and with age, so we’re expecting them to accent the entry to our home.

A couple of pluses include the fact that Japanese Cleyera Japonica are low maintenance plants…except for pruning…that is mostly pest and disease-free and they’re also deer resistant. 

The two planters between the new bushes are home to a selection of colorful flowers chosen for Laurie by our local plant expert at our local hardware, lumber and garden center.  They just keep blooming and don’t require much attention...other than water depending on the weather.

I thought I’d end this post with cuteness!  This is Elliot Jane, Laurie’s youngest great grandniece.  Elliot is holding her bunny, whose name is ‘Pistachio’.  With those ‘shades’ on, the bunny is looking really cool…

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave