Tonali: Refreshing Summer Fare
Tonali is an ideal summer restaurant choice for lunch or dinner in Durham. The menu offers light, tasty Mexican food. This was Date Night for us and Tonali is located close to home. The chips are homemade. The salsa is mildly spiced and smokey–thin rather than chunky. Both were a pleasant accompaniment to our ice cold Modelo and Pacifico beers. The delicious mussel stew with chorizo in a chile ocean broth ($10) was spicy but the crisp green beans and avocado cooled the burn. I ordered the duck confit carnitas tacos with a pickled orange-pineapple salsa ($9.75). Even though I am not a big fan of pineapple in a savory dish (always makes me think of flavored lip gloss), this was a yummy combination. The plating of the food at Tonali is another selling point–in addition to tasting good, it looks good too. Mr. H sampled the crispy grouper tacos with mango-jalepeno salpicon at $10.95 (which I tried two weeks ago). He found this dish as tasty as I did. The fish is crispy on the outside, the spiciness of the relish accents not overwhelms. The sides were light and colorful. Dessert was a rich but not sweet chocolate gooey-on-the-inside cake served with strawberries and lightly carmelized bananas–mmm! And the coffee! Deep, dark Mexican beans in a French press…maybe I will not get to sleep tonight but the aroma! the flavor! The service is timely and the owner and his staff are quite nice. The menu is seasonal with entrees ranging $9-$20. Take the time to visit Tonali. Tonali: 3642 Shannon Road between MLK Blvd and Old Chapel Hill Rd (shares a bldg with Barriskill Dance Studio). Hours are Mon-Thu 11am-2:30pm and 5:30-9pm, Fri 11am-2:30pm and 5:30-10pm, Sat 5:30-10pm. Closed Sundays. http://www.tonalirestaurant.com/ |
Carpe Durham does not issue ratings, but registered users can agree or disagree with our opinion. If there is significant user disagreement, we highly recommend that you review all of this post's comments, because, sometimes, we just don't know what we are talking about.
No members have expressed a view on this post.
I generally agree.I generally disagree.
how about some vegetarian options–were there any? Their ’site still doesn’t have any menu info up, unfortunately.
[Reply]
do they charge for chips and salsa?
[Reply]
Yes, there are vegetarian dishes on the lunch and dinner menus!
No, there is no charge for the chips and salsa. In fact our server offered us another serving if we wanted it. Unlike some Mexican restaurants that bring a huge basket of chips and individual bowls of salsa, Tonali serves a modest plate of chips (thick, homemade!) with a small bowl of salsa. The result is that it feels like a starter course to a good meal rather than a feedbag. (Not knocking those endless baskets of chips and bowls of salsa at some places–sometimes that is just the ticket!)
[Reply]
who charges for chips and salsa!?
[Reply]
Blue Corn Cafe charges for chips and salsa. It annoys me every time I go there! I wish Dos Taquitos would open a location in Durham as their food is delicious, and they serve complimentary chips and salsa.
[Reply]
they charge for chips and salsa? WTF?!
[Reply]
yeah, its the “new” thing to do at the higher end mexican joints. It hasn’t caught on here yet but up in DC and NYC it’s almost normal.
http://www.endlesssimmer.com/2008/02/29/getting-a-chip-off-my-shoulder/
[Reply]
I’m also annoyed when I get take out from Cosmic, and you only get chips when you eat in the restaurant! Maybe I’m just a little too hung up on my chips and salsa . . .
[Reply]
Leave your response!
Recent Comments
Recent Forum Posts
posted in forum Food on July 7, 2009 at 6:37 am
posted in forum Food on July 7, 2009 at 6:35 am
posted in forum Food on July 8, 2009 at 11:17 pm
posted in forum Food on July 7, 2009 at 6:42 am
posted in forum Food on July 2, 2009 at 2:52 pm
Twitter: carpedurham
Archives
Food Blogs
Other Durham Blogs
Categories
You need to log in to express your opinion
Carpe Durham requires users to be logged in to express their opinion on this post.
Alternatively, if you do not have an account yet you can create one here.
Powered by Vote It Up