I was initially dismayed to find Masa’s Woburn location to be tucked into the middle of a strip mall, but don’t let this deter you.  Once you enter, you will find a fun and contemporary restaurant with a Southwestern decor fit to match the food.  The ambience is nice and they do a good job of keeping a lively bar area that doesn’t detract from the dining area, despite the close proximity,  the TVs and the crowds in the bar.

I started by ordering a masarita, the restaurant’s specialty margarita that includes apple and orange juices.  The apple juice lent a slightly different flavor to the margarita, but it was otherwise nothing special.  Given the large amount of ice in the drink, I felt it was greatly overpriced at about $8.  I finished it quickly and ordered a raspberry mojito which was perfectly made and well-balanced, but also much too heavy on the ice.  I left feeling as if I’d had less than the equivalent of one full drink for the price of about three.

Before dinner we received a lovely bread basket replete with moist corn bread and a thick-crusted soft white bread, as well as three condiments including a hummus-like bean spread and a honey butter.  The honey butter was fabulous on the corn bread, and it was difficult not to fill up on bread.

We started our meal with the Roasted Butternut Squash and Fall Apple Bisque and the Smoked BBQ Duck and Gouda Quesdilla.  The soup was thick and pleasing, garnished with a miniature jalapeno biscuit which was mushy from being partially sunken into the soup.  The garnish was completed with cold apple chunks – I didn’t care for the cold chunks in my warm soup, but the texture was nice.  The quesadilla was fabulous – the combination of bbq duck and gouda was brilliant.  The duck was tender and beautifully complemented by the cheese.  The bbq sauce was mild and did not distract from the other flavors, instead it made the filling moist and cohesive.

Dinner was good, but it fell short of the appetizers’ greatness.  We were dismayed to see the size of our entrees given the prices – we had plenty of food given that we had filled up on bread and apps, but entrees were not a good value by any stretch of the imagination.  My husband ordered the Adobo Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Cilantro Chimichurri, partly because I was indecisive in ordering and intrigued by the dish.  It was served with creamy rajas (chilies) which were extremely spicy but not especially flavorful or creamy, as well as a stuffing that consisted of blue corn bread and chorizo.  My husband loved the stuffing; I felt the chorizo was a bit overpowering, but we agreed that the texture was lovely.  The pork itself was a bit dry but helped by the delicious chimichurri which had a nice cilantro flavor and a beautiful green hue.

I ordered Braised Lamb Enchiladas with Cranberry Raisin Chutney.  The enchiladas didn’t look like typical enchiladas but instead like small taquitos – there were three tightly rolled bundles and the tortillas themselves didn’t appear to be browned.  The lamb filling was good but not especially memorable.  However, Masa should bottle and sell the chutney as this really made the dish.  The plump golden raisins added a nice chewiness to the dish and the cranberries added added a pleasing tartness.  On the side, I had a pureed hominy which was creamy and mild (if you haven’t had hominy, it tastes sort of like a milder and slightly less sweet version of corn).

Despite being fairly satiated at this point, my husband and I were out celebrating, so we ordered two desserts.  Mine was a chocolate tamale of sorts – a sort of cross between a brownie and chocolate pudding served in a corn husk.  It was garnished with a drizzle of a berry sauce which was far too sweet and cloying for the dark chocolate yumminess.  The presentation was creative, though; I have never seen a corn husk incorporated into a dessert.  My husband had a chocolate banana dessert.  The presentation was impressive – hollowed out bananas filled with soft chocolate – but the dessert was average.  You can’t go wrong with fried bananas and chocolate, but they did nothing to elevate this classic pairing.

Overall, Masa is a bit pricy – I feel this is less justifiable at their suburban location – but the food is creative and the restaurant has an enjoyable atmosphere.  Watch your wallet, but enjoy some delicious appetizers.

I returned this past weekend with my husband, after a long absence, and was pleased to see that the restaurant was booming on a cold Saturday night – so booming that they have initiated a shuttle service for patrons unable to find parking in their cramped and awkward parking lot.  We entered to find it slightly renovated since our last visit, with a more open bar area.  The hostess informed us that we would have to wait, but after fewer than five minutes, we were escorted to a table near the bar.  Seating was more cramped than on previous visits, and as we were surrounded by large parties, the restaurant was uncomfortably loud and crowded.  Several tables had been rearranged to accomodate large parties, leaving me in the path of every staff member who attempted to navigate the maze – the jostling quickly wore on my nerves, but memories of their delicious and generous entrees stayed me.

Chips and salsa deterred us from ordering any appetizers, but unlike previous visits where we were given a small bottle of thick, hearty salsa, we were dismayed to receive a small, sad-looking bowl of watery salsa with limited chunks of tomatoes and onions.  It also lacked in herbs and spices.  We both ordered tropical drinks (a Bahama Mama and a Hawaiian Sea Breeze) and found them to have a nice kick and pleasing fruity, tropical flavors that staved off the cold.

After warding off starvation with a few chips, I was somewhat concerned to see that the menu had changed from charming descriptions of Mexican entrees to a large plastic menu reminiscint of a lack-luster chain restaurant.  Prices had been raised considerably since our last visit.  Nonetheless, my husband and I both ordered the Combo Casa Blanca, or three-way combos, and waited anxiously for our food.  And waited, and waited.  After a nearby group (who ordered several minutes after us) received their entrees, our waitress assured us that our entrees would arrive shortly.  Fairly soon after we received our combos, but we estimated that we probably waited for 30-45 minutes at that point.  While portions were generous, we both recalled the platters being smaller but more amply filled in the past.  We received plates that looked like large, white serving platters – both so large that they nearly didn’t fit across from each other on our small table for two.

Our first impression was that the beans were unappetizing without even trying them, having apparently been sourced from the same watery origins as the salsa – the “broth” of our refried beans ran freely over the plate.  Upon eating them, the texture was lacking, as was the taste.  They were, in fact, watery and mushy.  Their saving grace was the small amount of Mexican cheese sprinkled over the top.  The rice was simply cooked, a sort of Mexican-sticky-rice, and was very good.  Our combo choices were a mixed bag.  I was pleased to find my chile relleno not overly fried and filled with hot and delicious cheese that ran out with each forkful.  It had mild heat as expected and was my favorite part of the main course.  My husband and I both ordered tamales, one of our favorites.  Casa fills them with both beef and pork, and I was surprised to see large chunks of somewhat dry meat in each of our tamales.  Mine was almost too mild, while my husband found his too spicy.  The outer corn layer, however, was thick, soft in texture and had a pleasing corn flavor.  We also each ordered enchiladas verde, mine with pork.  I was disappointed to find my pork filling consisted of large chunks of dry pork that could easily have passed for another kind of meat, such as a cheap (and overcooked) cut of steak.  My husband’s was filled with shredded beef, which was surprisingly not shredded, but he enjoyed the hearty pieces of steak, which was more tender than my pork. 

To finish our Mexican smorgasbord, we placed an order for Churros, which are similar to fried dough.  They are roughly the shape and size of breadsticks, and arrive with a strawberry dipping sauce and a side of whipped cream.  They were warm, crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside.  My arteries clogged a little more with each bite, but it was well worth it.

Overall, Casa Blanca has decent Mexican food and fun libations, at somewhat elevated prices.  It may not be worth fighting the weekend crowds or taking a shuttle bus to eat there, but given the area’s paucity of Mexican options, it’s worth a try… preferably on a weekday, unless you find yourself ready for a rowdy fiesta.