ENTERTAINMENT

‘Watts for Dinner’ the Takeout Edition: Fresh Mex and pizza too!

Will Watts
Correspondent

This week’s dining destination is ZAZA Kitchen in the Olde Marco section of town. The restaurant offers “authentic” Mexican dishes and “Detroit-style” pizza. 

Things got off to an appetizing start with the “Guac and chips” ($11), featuring guacamole with huge chunks of avocado, some tomato and onion and topped with crumbled Mexican cheese. You get a lot of guac with this dish, as well as fresh tortilla chips. The guac could have used a little more salt and perhaps some lemon juice. But the avocado was perfectly ripe.

We also sampled the cheese enchiladas ($11, more if you add meat) made with corn tortillas and topped with a house sauce and cheese; you can add your choice of meat – tinga de pollo (chicken in a mild tomato sauce), falda (brisket), carnitas (seasoned pork) or ground beef. It includes Mexican rice and refried beans or the house charro beans.

We selected the cheese enchiladas. The green sauce is tangy and delicious. The rice is the perfect compliment and the house charro beans, which stuck me as a little sweet, are amazing.

For my entrée, I enjoyed the Baja fish burrito ($15). It features grilled or blackened fish (I picked the latter), lettuce, rice, pico de gallo, guacamole, and cilantro aioli. It’s served with a side salad. This burrito is more than a mouthful and will leave you satisfied.

Also on the menu, ZAZA’s quesadillas (from $11 to $15) are made with flour tortilla and melted cheese along with your choice of meat – tinga de pollo, falda, carnitas, camaron (shrimp) or a fajita mix of skirt steak or shrimp with peppers, onions, cheese and sour cream). The dish includes Mexican rice and refried beans or charro beans.

My dining companion picked the camaron and was excited about the amount of shrimp that were melted into the quesadilla. Lots of cheese too! I highly recommend this dish.  

While there we also picked up a Detroit-style pizza (prices range from $15-$25 depending on size and toppings). We got the white pizza featuring a house cheese blend with ricotta and pecorino, along with garlic and olive oil.

This pizza is square and features a thick crust that’s airy. It’s baked inside an oiled steel pan, and comes out crispy, especially on the sides. It’s different from the other island pizza offerings and worth a try.

ZAZA is a nice change of pace. The staff is friendly, and the food will have you coming back for more. 

More:‘Watts for Dinner’ the Takeout Edition: Su’s Garden has the veggies and so much more

And:‘Watts for Dinner’ the Takeout Edition: Variety is the spice of Mangoes

Also:‘Watts for Dinner’ the Takeout Edition: Doreen’s – the perfect place for a picky crowd

More:Hey Marco Island, looking for a place to eat?

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If you go

ZAZA Kitchen

  • 1095 Bald Eagle Drive, Marco Island
  • 239-970-5205
  • eatatzaza.com