Delicious menudo at Loncheria El Pollito Loquito, in El Rosario...

When I stay in a small Mexican town, I like to get out and walk, as that's the best way to see the town, take lots of photos, capture the "essence" of the town, and meet the people. You just don't get the same experience if you're in your car, as you don't get to experience the personality of the town, and everything just seems cold and impersonal. As I was hiking down the unnamed main street, which is also Mexico Federal Highway 1, in the small town of El Rosario, Baja California, I did a double-take when I saw Loncheria El Pollito Loquito, as the restaurant is housed in a shell of a school bus! I noticed from the sign that the loncheria is only open for breakfast and lunch, so I made a date with myself to come back the next morning for breakfast.

Photo: Have you ever eaten in a restaurant that's housed in an old bus? Notice the flimsy cover and the plastic tables and chairs. Yes, that's daylight under the bus!

How could anybody, including the author of this article, resist eating in a restaurant that's housed in an old school bus? Saturday, October 6, 2007, I arrived at Loncheria El Pollito Loquito at about 08:00, and I was happy to see that they were open for business. I happily walked up the three steps, at the rear of the restaurant, guided by the sign that reads "Food Service Inside" and was immediately greeted by a young girl who was busily engaged in mopping the floor. I sat down at a booth, and her mother waked up to me, and greeted me with a cheery "Buenos Dias," and asked me if I was ready to order. You bet I was ready to order, as I was quite hungry!

Photo: Some of the family members, the television, and the hand-printed menus, inside El Pollito. I took the photo while sitting down at my chosen booth.

Loncheria El Pollito Loquito is only open for breakfast and lunch, and their menu features a very limited choice of entrées. The menu for breakfast, "Desayunos," features eggs, with your choice of choriso, ham, bacon, or quite oddly, hot dogs. Of course huevos rancheros are on the menu, and menudo, either white or red, is served on weekends. Lunch includes the usual tacos, tortas, burritos and quesadillas. Since I was visiting on a Saturday morning, menudo was on the menu, and when asked my choice of red or white, I ordered red, which is my favorite.

Photo: Doing dishes in the compact kitchen. This is all the work area that the kitchen has! When the girl turns around, she'll face the stove.

Have you ever had the pleasure to eat a bowl of menudo in a small loncheria that's housed in an old school bus? Well, this was a first for me. I was surprised that the thing didn't "jiggle" when people walked around inside, but the bus seemed to be anchored to the ground just fine, as it was solid as a rock. Of course all doors are open to the elements, as are most of the windows, so the restaurant gets good natural air conditioning. The interior features small booths, and when I say small, imagine dining in a school bus... but the electricity works, as a TV was on, tuned to a soap opera, which are very popular in Mexico. Loncheria El Pollito Loquito is owned and operated by a husband and wife, so during my visit the whole family was there, including the children, who were watching TV, pestering mom, who was getting my order ready, and running around the restaurant. Quite interesting!

Photo: My menudo is heating in a pot on the stove, and it includes the calf foot. The roasted peppers and tomato slices appear to be left over from the previous day. I never found out what their purpose was...

Like most small restaurants in Mexico, you're free to walk into the kitchen, if you choose to do so. Since El Pollito is housed in a 35-foot school bus, the kitchen is quite compact, and it occupies the first 10 feet or so of the restaurant. The small, 4-burner range and storage occupy the left side of the kitchen, and the right side is occupied by a compact sink, work area, and storage for utensils, plates, pots and pans. If you were wanting to describe the kitchen in a single word, "compact" comes to mind. Here's the part that I found interesting, in that after I ordered menudo, I followed the girl to the kitchen, and she reached into a big pot that was sitting next to the stove with a ladle, and ladled menudo into a pan. Next, she lighted the burner and started to heat the menudo. As I was watching this operation, I wondered what had I gotten myself into? I decided the best thing to do was to return to my booth, watch the kids play, and talk to husband.

Photo: Looking from the kitchen bulkhead into the "dining room" at El Pollito. You can see that the dining room is quite compact, and the family members are enjoying a Mexican soap opera, as I snap the photo.

The menudo was good, not great, but it arrived steaming hot in a gigantic bowl, and it was brick-red in color. Diced white onions, lime quarters and cilantro were offered on the side, along with a surprise: a bollilo! Normally, menudo is served with either corn or flour tortillas, but at Loncheria El Pollito Loquito, my breakfast featured a toasted bollilo, cut in half, which was quite a new experience for me.

Photo: My bowl of delicious menudo, and the sliced bollilo is in the basket. I had already applied lime juice, chopped cilantro and diced onions to my menudo when I snapped this photo.

The menudo was priced at MEX $45.00, which I consider a bit on the high side, but menudo is always priced on the high side, due to the long preparation time. I've eaten better menudo than the menudo that I enjoyed at Loncheria El Pollito Loquito, but I've never eaten menudo in a converted school bus, nor have I ever enjoyed the company of a husband, wife and four kids while eating my menudo. Loncheria El Pollito Loquito gets my vote, and a two-thumbs up from this author!

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