Pancho's Mexican Buffet

[Larry OKC]

This got started in the Food Truck thread but didn't want to derail it further...

[rcjunkie]

Needs to be in the sanitation thread, absolutely horrible.

[Larry OKC]

You didn't give me a chance...the later part of the discussion had switched to the locations "old" & "new". I just got back from the one that is still on I-240 to get the info from the old (June 1973 newspaper ad). It advertised the all-you-can-eat for $1.49 and listed two locations:

4621 NW 39th (according to Google maps, the KFC site?)

9211 N. Penn. Place (presume this is the Cassidy Square one CT mentioned?) Google maps isn't showing a "Pennsylvania Place" street but the Britton & Penn area is what showed up

[Larry OKC]

mods: can you fix my typo in the thread title? Thanks!

[ctchandler]

Larry,
The Casady Square Pancho's is a given. I worked at Hertz and at that time I was at the Penn location at Kavanaugh (about 105th) and Penn. We went there for lunch "too" often. When Pancho's shut down it was remodeled and was a Chinese restaurant for many years. I can't remember their name but it's only been a few years since they closed. I didn't know about the one on 39th.
C. T.

You didn't give me a chance...the later part of the discussion had switched to the locations "old" & "new". I just got back from the one that is still on I-240 to get the info from the old (June 1973 newspaper ad). It advertised the all-you-can-eat for $1.49 and listed two locations:

4621 NW 39th (according to Google maps, the KFC site?)

9211 N. Penn. Place (presume this is the Cassidy Square one CT mentioned?) Google maps isn't showing a "Pennsylvania Place" street but the Britton & Penn area is what showed up

[jn1780]

Needs to be in the sanitation thread, absolutely horrible.

Pancho's revenge.

[MikeOKC]

mods: can you fix my typo in the thread title? Thanks!

Larry, If you go to the 'edit post' and then "advanced" mode in the lower right - you can change the thread title.

[BlackmoreRulz]

Larry,
The Casady Square Pancho's is a given. I worked at Hertz and at that time I was at the Penn location at Kavanaugh (about 105th) and Penn. We went there for lunch "too" often. When Pancho's shut down it was remodeled and was a Chinese restaurant for many years. I can't remember their name but it's only been a few years since they closed. I didn't know about the one on 39th.
C. T.

The first one I remember was at this location, it was either right next to or very near the Pier 1 Imports. We went there on a field trip while I was at Jefferson Jr Hi, me and a classmate really stuffed ourselves at the AYCE and really paid the price for it at football practice that afternoon

[MustangGT]

The Casady Sq location was the only one I patronized. Food was mediocre at best, never fantastically good nor appallingly bad. Just ordinary.

[Larry OKC]

^^^
that has been my overall impression of Pancho's from day one. Don't get me wrong, there are some items I think they do very well, and if it wasn't for them I wouldn't go back from time to time. Most of their stuff has a frozen dinner quality to it. Reminds me of a few years ago now with Taco Mayo, no matter what you ordered it tasted "fake". Now how you can make lettuce taste fake, I have no idea, but they somehow managed.

To end on a positive note, the items I really like are the whole beans soup, the flautas and their red & green stews. Their chicken fajita meat that they sometimes have on the buffet is also tasty but is mostly dark meat (prefer breast). The tex-mex enchilades are acceptable.

[Prunepicker]

I haven't eaten at Pancho's since the early 80's. That was the second and
last time. It was awful. It was worse than Casa Bonita and I honestly
thought they had the title hands down. Didn't the one on N.W. 39th
Expressway get closed down for a while because of an inspection?

I wonder how it's managed to remain open. Is it a drug front or a
money laundry?

[boscorama]

Ha! I went to Casa Bonita around 1991 and it was an absolute joke. (It was wonderful around 1970) About that time, someone (owner? manager?) was charged with rape, or some such.

Everyone around me loved Pancho's but I never got it.

[Prunepicker]

(It was wonderful around 1970)

That's when I first ate there. Couldn't stand it. I remember an Iranian,
playing a Japanese guitar and singing "Spanish Eye's". That's all he said.
"Spanish Eyes". He was great but the food was terrible. I was an
El Charrito fan.

[ctchandler]

I was an El Charrito fan.

Prunepicker,
El Charrito was great. I have a lot of nice memories about the one on South Robinson South of 29th street. I went to several of them but as a youngster, my family liked that one. Probably because it was close to home. As for your Pancho's question about the inspection, the Dept. of Health found traces of human feces during a normal inspection. They didn't shut them down, but the reporting of it in the Daily Oklahoman did. I miss the days when the health department's inspections were published in the paper. They are still available online, but nobody knows about it, so ignorance is bliss I suppose.
C. T.

[Larry OKC]

Ha! I went to Casa Bonita around 1991 and it was an absolute joke. (It was wonderful around 1970) About that time, someone (owner? manager?) was charged with rape, or some such.

Everyone around me loved Pancho's but I never got it.

it was an employee (not a manager/owner), IIRC he was a dishwasher. As far as I know, while there were rumors about Casa Bonita serving dog food and the like, I don't recall any proof that it was indeed the case. The certainly had there ups and downs over the decades (at one point they had changed their beef seasoning so all of the beef dishes tasted rancid, that fortunately didnt last long). Casa had the best sopapillias (sp?) anf the Sour Cream Chicken Enchilades were sinfully rich and creamy. Was so sad to see it close in '93 and the other locations slowly follow the same fate. The Denver location is the last one remaining. According to the founder's wife while highly profitable, the ones that closed did so because their long term leases expired and the owners of the strip malls were they were all located wanted dramatic increases to renew the lease.

[Garin]

They are still open in Tulsa

[Prunepicker]

The last time I ate at Casa Bonita. 1972?, I asked for onions on
my cheese enchiladas. They didn't have any onions in the
restaurant because "their customers" didn't like them. I wasted
a $1.49 on an all you can eat (stand) dinner. I remember eating
chips, lousy salsa and iced tea. Oh, and listening to the Iranian
singing Spanish Eyes on his Japanese guitar. He made it worth the
money. Very entertaining and continental.

What's funny, and believe this to be true, Taco Bueno is my
favorite fast food Mexican restaurant. Weren't/aren't they
owned by Casa Bonita?

Of course I only order bean burritos with LOTS of onions and
a strawberry soda.

[ctchandler]

Yes, Taco Bueno was owned by the same group. I don't know if that's still true.
C. T.

[Prunepicker]

Yes, Taco Bueno was owned by the same group. I don't know if
that's still true.
C. T.

How can a place that can make the best bean burrito in the
world not make a decent cheese enchilada? Casa Bonita was
absolutely awful.

[oneforone]

They were owned by CKE the same people who owned Carl's Jr. Now they are their own company in Farmer's Branch, Tx.

[Larry OKC]

from Wiki:


History

Taco Bueno was founded in 1967 by Bill .J Waugh, an Abilene Christian University(ACU) art graduate. The first store was located in Abilene, Texas.
In 1981 Taco Bueno was acquired by British food manufacturer Unigate
Taco Bueno was sold to Carl's Jr.'s franchisor CKE Restaurants in 1996. CKE agreed to purchase Taco Bueno on August 29, 1996.[2]
In 2001 the private investment group Jacobson Partners purchased the chain for $72.5 Million US Dollars to help aid CKE Restaurants in a battle to get out of debt.[3]
On August 10, 2005, Palladium Equity Partners announced its completion of the purchase of Taco Bueno from Jacobson Partners. At the same time John Miller was appointed CEO of Taco Bueno.[4]