I had the pleasure of touring the new Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant in Kennesaw GA, and my taste buds were wowed with the on-the-house fresh foods and tasty margaritas. I am free to comment on Chuys in any light. No other compensation was received.
So Mexican food: It’s my mom’s favorite. I’m pretty sure another cuisine (apart from BBQ) could never hit my husband’s lip ever again and he’d be satisfied, and I’m the recent reigning Princess of Guac. So it’s safe to say that I’ve been around my fair share of restaurants and quesadillas. When it comes to Chuy’s I was familiar with the chain. I knew it started in Austin, and branched out quickly, being known for it’s kitschy decor and hand squeezed lime margaritas. With no predilections, I was excited to try out the new Chuy’s location in Kennesaw and see what it was really like.
When you step through the front door, you’re nearly assaulted by the decor! Lots of bright, beachy hues, jewel tones and busy accents adorn everything. From the hub-cab room to the wooden fish hanging over the bar (all made by the same family for over 25 years!) to the mosaic floor beads and framed dog photos, the employees of each Chuy’s have a heavy hand in decorating the location. Each restaurant has a traditional Elvis shrine, where the patrons are encouraged to bring in their Elvis items to be hung on the wall and collect together. Likewise, you’re invited to bring in a framed photo of your dog (and that gets you a free app, too!) to help decorate!
The very next thing I took in after the accented ambiance was the nacho bar. It’s no ordinary buffet! Crafted from a real car, the Nacho Happy Hour from 4-7pm boasts free chips, queso, boom boom sauce, taco meat and fixins for FREE; it’s my favorite part of the restaurant! All craziness aside, the nachos were delicious, as were all of the freshly-made-in-house sauces. The Creamy Jalapeno dip (ironically, NOT hot at all… and medium salsa burns me up) was my favorite, and I’ve heard others lovingly refer to it as their crack dip. I would go along with that…. 🙂 Others say that the boom boom sauce, (a super hot, green chile and cheese sauce) is their favorite, and put it on everything. I tended to prefer the milder fresca (almost pico de gallo) sauce and the in-house made tortillas.
So enough about the dips, what about the drinks? I had the pleasure of tasting one of the famous Chuy’s hand squeezed margaritas – super fresh and extremely good (even by tequila-hating standards). The strawberry frozen version is not to be missed. Even with lime prices skyrocketing, Chuy’s prides itself in staying with the freshest ingredients available, and it absolutely shows.
Speaking of fresh, check out this freezer. Or lack thereof. The teeny tiny restaurant freezer only houses the dessert ice creams and some french fries for pickier kiddos. The two white boxes on the bottom shelf? Extra fish from the shipment of that week – not normally stored there. The enormous, family room sized walk in fridge is where the meats, daily delivered veggies and other fixings live. I can only wish to have that array of color and foods in my refrigerator!
The result from only keeping fresh food on your kitchen line is really amazing. All the kitschy decor aside, the food was so incredible. The care the staff takes with the cuisine shows in the biggest way. I recommend the chicken quesadillas (top left) and the nachos (top center). If you like hot and beefy, try the hatch chile beef fajitas (danger: mouth burningly hot!!)
Lastly, because I do have family on the brain, I wanted to make sure that Chuy’s was a family friendly place to grab a bite to eat. The Kennesaw Chuy’s (and other locations in the chain, I imagine) is fully stocked with high chairs, crayons, kids menus, drinks and even tortilla dough balls for the kids to practice with and play at the table. See if your toddler or child can artfully create a tortilla! best of all? Chuy’s little bowling pin game. There are 24 mini bowling pins hidden in the restaurant (they are only 2-3″ tall). How many can you find on your visit?
My overall verdict on the local joint? Awesome food, a fun atmosphere and super friendly staff. Take your family and be sure to hit up that nacho bar!
My late husband and I used to love watching Shark week. I love all the crafts you have featured here
These are all such fun ideas. I need to let Graham watch some of shark week!
The watermelon shark is very cool. These are all great ideas! I don’t think I’ve ever watched shark week.
Many people are such huge fans of shark week. I bet they would these fun crafts and games.
These are great! We love shark week around here and my kids would have a blast with these!
I’m not on the ball with our schedule but I might DVR shark week and try these projects. I’m sure my little sea maties would live these as well.
I love this list. Especially the hat!
What a fun place! That margarita looks awesome! I LOVE the Nacho Happy Hour with the real car!
Chuys hot sauce is my favorite! I love that restaurant.
Ahaha, that watermelon shark is hilarious! I wish I was good at carving them. I would so do that for my kids.
I’ve never heard of this restaurant..but I love Mexican food!
Ha! That watermelon shark is so fun! What a great list.
What a wild décor. Love the Nacho bar. The food looks fantastic.
Love the decorations and setup! How fun that would be to visit!!
I just love this week! My son is so into sharks! Thanks for the great list
We just got one of these recently. I haven’t been yet- but hopefully soon!
That watermelon shark is too cool. I want to try that!
I love all the pictures, everything looks so yummy! I wish a place around hear had a Nacho Bar sounds AMAZING!
Well that does look like a fun place to visit! The bowling pin hunt would be a hit with the kids, I’m sure of it.
I would love to get a Chuy’s near us! The food looks amazing and I love the decor!
My son would have LOVED that car salsa bar! What a fun atmosphere
Looks like a really cool place. I love good Mexican food. It was my favorite in Oklahoma. Up here in Michigan they have a different way of preparing it. I haven’t really found a place similar to home.
I’m making a trip here soon. I think the tortilla balls will really appeal to my boys and I like that they’ve thought about keeping kids busy. Sounds perfect for family friendly dining out and I pinned it to that board. 🙂
This looks like an awesome place. I’m a huge fan of Mexican food so the food has me drooling over here.