Benito's Hat (King's Cross)

For station food this was good and quick.

Had about 20 minutes to get something to eat before going on to an event and proper sit down dining was looking increasingly unlikely. So stuck in King's Cross station we decided to dine at Benito's Hat.

The menu was not extensive, which can be a good thing. Diners can basically choose from five fillings (veg, pork, beef and chicken both grilled and braised) plus other sundry fillings such as cheese, quacomole, pico de gallo, as well as various heats of salsa. These can then be used for the filling for a burrito or soft tacos (or as at the Kings Cross branch a burrita). There's also salads and soups but time prevented further investigation.

For expediency's sake I had three tacos filled with beef, sour cream, cheese and opted to have two with salsa brava and one with their hottest salsa diabla.

The meat was definitely tasty enough and the tacos sufficently filled, though next time I think I'd probably opt for some quac and pico de gallo as well as they can look underfilled if you don't get the full works.. The burritos did look the business though and seemed well stuffed. Oh and the soft tacos themselves were great, lovely and soft with just the right bite to them.

There was also a 2-for-1 on maragaritas between 5-7pm, so a couple of those were also ordered.

All in, not bad at all. As before said, the meat was definitely tasty, and the salsas for once had some heat.. (some places in London seem to think hot should stop at jalapeno level heat but the salsa diabla packed sufficient heat for this chilli head..)

Margaritas were a bit on the small side, but at £1.50 per drink on the 2-for-1 they were realisitically sized and you can't argue with that. Other than that, the horchata was also very tasty and a nice finish after the heat of the meal.

Time was against me on this visit but there's plenty to sample here (mexican soft drinks, beers, etc) and I caught eye of a special with cactus involved in it, so that's probably also on the agenda. I'll definitely be returning to sample the breakfast at some point, and the desserts also warrant trying.

Only down side I can see is the atmosphere though, it is in a railway station remember, so it's not exactly jumping. Then again, where is in a station?

Overall, this is definitely a far better alternative to grabbing a burger meal or similar in the station and the service was efficient and friendly which is useful when time is short.
Comment on this reader review

Darryl
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 8
Thursday, April 18, 2013