Mmmm, burritos ... Burrito Parilla Mexicana, Lombard

We have spent the last few weeks buying a house and moving, and now that we are all settled into Lombard, we have even more new and awesome places to explore!

One of our first stops was a little burrito place near Butterfield Road and Highland called Burrito Parilla Mexicana (2770 Highland Ave, Lombard).

It's a taqueria. A gussied-up, sleek, modern, "Highlands of Lombard" taqueria.

It looks Chipotle-esque at first, but you don't actually walk down the assembly line -- you order and pay, then wander down to get your drinks and have a seat. (Which, come to think of it, makes for some wasted counter space.)

I ordered tacos al pastor, with cilantro and onion, and my husband ordered carnitas nachos. We both went with water, although it's cool to note that they have horchata next to the soda fountain -- free refills!

While we waited for our food, we were brought a smallish bowl of chips and two kinds of salsa. The chips were slightly above average; the salsas were both fresh and delicious with a creeping-up-on you heat.

My tacos were quite tasty; the meat was a little crispy around the edges with a great flavor and I liked that they used lightly grilled red onions instead of white. The rice was nothing too exciting, but the refried beans had a great flavor to them. My husband's nachos looked very tasty and I snagged a bit of the guacamole, which was excellent.

Everyone was very friendly and we got offered multiple chips/salsa refills. The interior is sleek and comfortable, with huge comfy booths around the edges.

It's a little pricier than your average taqueria, but I attribute that to where it is -- and they do offer the free chips and salsa, which is a nice touch. Plus: It's walking distance of our new house! Score!

Time for tacos? Taqueria El Sol Del Pueblo, Bensenville

Despite living pretty close to Bensenville, we don't go that direction much. Which is too bad, since I know B-ville has its share of good places to go too.

But on Friday we decided to check out a taqueria we've passed many times -- Taqueria El Sol Del Pueblo, 1221 W Irving Park Rd.

Located just barely east of the Route 83 overpass, at the corner of a strip mall, this taqueria is brightly painted and warmly decorated. Warm reds, yellows and oranges cover the walls, and the ten or so booths are pretty comfortable. There's also a counter for take-out.

It's a taqueria, so don't expect fancy. Each table has two salsa bottles and you get free pickled veggies (gringa that I am, I don't know the name for the marinated jalapenos, carrots, garlic, onions etc that many taquerias serve). Chips aren't free, but since everything is so cheap it's worth ordering a basket if you want to showcase the (fairly spicy) salsa, which comes in two varieties: medium salsa verde (tons of cilantro flavor) and spicy salsa roja (and boy was it spicy, but with great flavor).

The menu is fairly simple; tacos (served the RIGHT way with just cilantro and onions), burritos, quesadillas, tortas, etc. Lots of agua fresca and smoothies. Lots of Mexican soda.

I got one of the few dinners they do offer, a flauta platter (two cheese, two chicken) that came with rice & beans. My husband got tacos, a chorizo and two beef. My flautas were crispy and hot, the rice was delicious, the beans were above average. The tacos looked great and my husband devoured them.

The food was all fresh, hot, and made right. Service was pretty good; though not five-star they were very friendly. They offer some more obscure meats, like tongue, chitterlings and goat (yep, goat). I won't be trying the goat, but I do want to try more tacos, their guacamole, and probably some agua fresca. They also have Mexican breakfasts.

We'll definitely be back to El Sol Del Pueblo the next time a taco craving hits :)