I had heard so much about Crystal Park Cantina in Manitou Springs, but for some reason I have never made it there. Habit and nothing else, -it’s a powerful thing – is what kept me from going, there was always some other place that I had been to and liked.
Last week though friends invited us to dinner and suggested go exactly to this restaurant! Wonderful! We seized the moment and met our friends at the Crystal Park Cantina. Crystal Park Road (what else?) was winding itself up the mountain side where long before our arrival at the Cantina the cars were lined up. We suspected that it would probably be awhile before we were able to get a table.
Our friends who are frequent customers said that they are not taking reservations for groups less than 6. Therefore we waited. The time was cut short as the company was great, so was the beer on tap and our blackberry-thyme margaritas (how ’bout that?!) were delicious and doing what they do when they hit an empty stomach (go straight to your head)!
I absolutely loved the atmosphere! It was busy, but the mood of the place was so relaxing.
As in most Mexican restaurants we got some chips and red salsa. I love salsa and this one was good, though I was REALLY hungry and I think I probably would have eaten my shoe by the time that salsa got to our table. The dinner menu is not very big, still plenty, innovative and really,all you need. I had the Avocado Pulled Pork Burritos, our friends the Navajo Taco and the Chicken Taco. My pulled pork was perfectly cooked and seasoned, and the accompanying veggies were bright and fresh. In fact all meals seemed to have fresh ingredients. LOVE <3
If you go to Colorado Springs make sure you stop by Manitou Springs as well. There are lots of restaurants to try, but this one is a fail save.
