Casa Sanchez #1 — Restaurant in Long Beach

Casa Sanchez #1

The first time I can remember falling in love, it was with Mexican food. Casa Sanchez in Long Beach, is an old school Mexican restaurant. The kind with big burritos and nachos and carefully stewed meats in an unfancy building. It was on the corner, and was a standalone restaurant with some indoor seating and some outdoor patio seats. Growing up, it was also within walking distance of my duplex nearby. And, when you're a kid, something being within walking distance is very important. On the rare occasions when I had money as a kid, I would often walk over to Casa Sanchez. My brother and I would often go together, him getting a Mr. Pibb and me getting an Orange Whip. For those of you unfamiliar, Mr. Pibb is kind of like a Dr Pepper and Orange Whip was a kind of creamy orange drink served over ice. And Casa Sanchez had the really good ice: crunchy ice. If you know you know. Sometimes all we would get is a drink because we didn't have that much change. But other times, maybe flush with birthday or Christmas money, we would share a plate of nachos or a big burrito. Their nachos continue to be some of the best I have ever had - fresh, crispy tortilla chips loaded with toppings. This would have been during my elementary years, but it was the kind of thing that made me feel like an adult. Being able to walk to a restaurant and buy food and sit and eat it felt empowering. This was back the 1980s, and Mexican food wasn't nearly as popular as it is now. Southern California was, and still is, one of the best places in the US for Mexican food and after traveling and living across the country, Casa Sanchez remains in my top five. I'll start with the beans. Casa Sanchez had really good refried beans. The kind that feel like someone's grandmother made them. Creamy and smooth but not too smooth, and really flavorful. Back in the day they were probably made with lard and perhaps they still are. Even knowing what I know about lard, I would still eat them. They're that good. The other thing I remember being really good there was the barbacoa. Barbacoa is a stewed beef cooked until it is so tender that it breaks apart in little strings. It is juicy and flavorful and every restaurant does it slightly differently, with their own blend of spices but it's always good. At home, beef meant either steak or hamburgers but barbacoa was a whole other level. There was a lot of skill behind that barbacoa. A recipe passed down and talked about to others and worthy of longevity. Now, it is called shredded beef on the online menu, but I have a feeling that if you ask for barbacoa they will know what you mean. If you ever find yourself in Long Beach, craving old school flavorful and cheesy Mexican food, I recommend stopping by Casa Sanchez. The beans and barbacoa are still on the menu and are both still delicious. The telephone booth that used to be outside when I was a kid is no longer there, but the food inside still...

Wet Burrito with everything! This is worth the money. I've visited Casa Sanchez since the 80's with locations in & around Long Beach. Over the years, some locations vanished but this one On Anaheim & Termino is still around. My favorite is the Wet Burrito with Carne Asada $10.50 approx. BUT worth it. For awhile this item lost the flavor profile and inspiration that I grew to like. It started being too rice & bean heavy, boiled beef and not much, and bland red sauce. NOW, I recently went back and ordered one- loaded with lots I'd grilled Carne Asada done right with the char-flavor, right proportions of rice, bean, cheese and sour cream. Smothered in a flavorful red sauce. This extra large Burrito size flour tortillas is fat stuffed and you gotta use a knife & fork to navigate this one. Flavor profile is right on and so much to ear that I felt like those Lions on the Serengeti feasting on a wildebeest for days cause I are this over 3 meal periods. So that's my take on Casa Sanchez. Get the Wet Burrito with...

Food is cooked fresh to order. The food tastes okay, nothing to astounding. It could use more flavor. The salsa both green and red were very bland and didn't help add any flavor to the food. We ordered a carne asada burrito (it was okay I guess, not our favorite) and we also ordered a carne asada quesadilla (it was big, it comes in a pizza box) that tastes a little better than the burrito because it had Mexican crema and guacamole inside. Our total came out to $22 and some change. I've had much better Mexican food elsewhere. Next I'd like to address the customer service! Not so good. We weren't greeted with a hello or anything and the tone of voice of the cashier lacked compassion. I mean at least fake it! My goodness. She was also on her personal cell phone. Professionalism goes a long way! We have been coming here for years about 9 years to be exact and it's just...