EL CHICO
503 I-30, Rockwall.
Open daily 11 a.m.- 9 p.m.
972-771-8814;
It’s now accepted wisdom within the state: The words “hot plate!” roared by a server is something of a culinary covenant guaranteeing Tex-Mex transcendence. As soon as that steaming dish hits the table, you just know it’s going to be good.
For me and my family, nothing epitomized that notion quite like El Chico. I heard those words ringing throughout childhood excursions to Dallas, where the restaurant has been based for more than 80 years. Although our preferred location was an outlet in Waco—a halfway point to our home in Austin—those same molten hot cheese enchiladas,
