July 3, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Indian man hitches American Dream to Mexican Post
by LEN LEAR

The red snapper Veracruzana entree and the “Big Max” enchilada — three soft corn tortillas layered with jack and cheddar cheeses and ground beef, topped with a sauce and served with rice and sour cream — are two of the popular entrees at Mexican Post.

You would not expect a Chinese man to open an Italian restaurant or an Irish man to open a Japanese restaurant, so I was surprised to meet Nilesh Desai, owner of the Mexican Post trio of restaurants at 1601 Cherry St. and 104 Chestnut St., both in center city, and at 3100 Naamans Rd. In Wilmington.

Why would a man who grew up near Bombay, India, decide to open a Mexican restaurant? (The Old City location was the first of the three, having opened 19 years ago.) The answer is quite uncomplicated. “I wanted to open an Indian restaurant,” explained Desai, 50, “but I could not find qualified Indian cooks. On the other hand, I knew some Mexican chefs from working previously at a place called Margarita’s in University City. I felt I could trust them, so I opened a Mexican restaurant instead. Some of the workers have been with me almost the entire 19 years.”

Desai’s career odyssey began in Europe with nine years in the importing business. After being laid off, Desai decided the only real job security lay in working for himself, so he started an Indian restaurant in Heidelberg, Germany, in 1987 because “there were very few Indian restaurants in Heidelberg at that time.”

After just eight months, though, Desai left Germany and decided to settle in Philadelphia after visiting several major American cities. (“I like the fact that it’s big but not too big and yet still has a small-town appeal.”) He started near the bottom here, working at a convenience store in University City and then moving up to shift manager at Margarita’s.

The Mexican Post at 1601 Cherry St., across the street from Love Park, can seat 80 outside in the largest outdoor patio in center city. (Photos by Len Lear)

After again growing tired of laboring for the benefit of others, Desai opened the first Mexican Post, but the sweetest peach was still out of his reach. “Business was miserable,” he declared. “South Street was the happening place at that time, but Old City was dead. The Middle East and Mexican Post were the only restaurants on the 100 block of Chestnut Street. I almost gave up, but Paul Remmier (the late owner of the Rib-it chain of restaurants) convinced me to stick with it. He said that within 10 years, Old City would be the hottest area in town and that Penn’s Landing would be developed. He turned out to be a visionary.”

It took more than three years for Desai, but the Mexican Post in Old City, which is still flourishing, turned out to be the grill of his dreams. Then, seven years ago, Desai opened the second Mexican Post in Wilmington, and early last year, with the help of two silent partners who are high-tech specialists, Desai opened the Cherry Street property. Located in a towering office building across the street from Love Park, it can seat 122 inside and 80 outside at the largest outdoor patio in center city.

“It took forever to build,” said the native of India, “mostly because the union contracts were a nightmare. It was supposed to be finished in six months, but it took a year.”

The menu at Mexican Post is similar to the menus at many other Mexican restaurants, but even Desai admits that the main attraction is the prices, which are very reasonable by center city standards. For example, there are lots of combination entrees that offer two items for $9.25 or $10.45 or three items for $12.25. You can choose from tacos, enchiladas, burritos, tostadas, etc., and you can fill them with ground beef, shredded beef, chicken, pork or refried beans.

Nilesh Desai is originally from a town near Bombay, India, but today he is the owner of the Mexican Post trio of restaurants at 1601 Cherry St. and 104 Chestnut St., both in center city, and at 3100 Naamans Rd. in Wilmington.

And there are dozens of other choices for appetizers, soups and salads and entrees, as well as fresh guacamole and salsa. During a visit last year we thoroughly enjoyed the nachos ($6.25), chicken wings ($6.95) and chicken quesadillas ($6.95), although everyone at the table agreed that two other dishes were excessively salty.

One great dish we sampled during our visit last week was the camarones Acapulco — five shrimp stuffed with Chihuahua cheese and spicy jalapeños, wrapped in bacon and served with a chipolte dipping sauce, a great buy at $8.45. Minichanga — crabmeat and baby shrimp stuffed in a flour tortilla, lightly fried and served with chipolte sauce ($7.50) — was also a big hit.

One pin in the balloon was the red snapper Veracruzana entree ($19.45). During our previous visit, this was a home run, but this time it barely got out of the batter’s box. Although the menu referred to a “fresh filet of red snapper,” the smell and taste indicated that it had seen its better days.

One member of our foursome was delighted with her “Big Max” enchilada — three soft corn tortillas layered with jack and cheddar cheeses and ground beef, topped with a sauce and served with rice and sour cream. A great deal for just $10.25. During both of our visits, we loved the ice cream dessert that is rolled in cinnamon, sugar, chocolate chips and corn flakes, then deep-fried and topped with choice of sauce (we chose caramel) and whipped cream ($3.25).

Mexican Post has a huge selection of beer, wine and cocktails, including lots of margaritas, and more than 100 varieties of tequila. They make a great strawberry daiquiri (based on a previous visit), raspberry margarita and mojito — rum with fresh mint leaves, fresh lime juice, simple syrup and a dash of club soda.

Mexican Post on Cherry Street has one of center city’s hottest outdoor Happy Hours Monday through Friday, 5 to 7 p.m., with $2.99 snacks and $2 off all drinks. On Thursday evenings there is also a live band, and on Fridays, starting at 6 p.m., there are Brazilian dancers and music. Another big asset is manager Diego Hernandez, who was formerly in the banking industry but is now paying tasty dividends to customers. Also, there is a parking garage on 16th Street, one block north of Cherry Street, where you can park all evening for just $5.

Despite Desai’s success, the restaurant business presents a non-stop series of roadblocks to surmount, even more than most other businesses. “Ever since 9/11 it has been so hard to get good people for the kitchen,” he said. “In Europe you can always get special workers’ permits for qualified cooks, and it used to be that way here, too, but no more. And the biggest challenge is this business, even before 9/11, was always getting good, reliable employees.”