Retire Early Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler

In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Hank's

New Orleans Cafe and Oyster Bar

Santiago de Queretaro, Mexico

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

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We stumbled upon Hanks just out of good luck.

We arrived in Santiago de Queretaro after a long 5.5 hour bus ride on ETNs First Class Double Decker Bus. After taking a taxi from the bus station to our hotel for 130Pesos (about $6.50USD), and checking in, it was about 4pm, and time to eat.

Because Mexico is known for having good restaurants lining their Plazas, we went out to find one.

A Plaza, that is.

Voila!

Hanks was there, staring us in the face.

Patina sign for Hanks

Right.

A New Orleans Cafe and Oyster Bar in Mexico?!

We were hungry and assumed they would have something to eat that was decent, so we took a chance.

We found out later that Hanks began its history in Mexico in San Miguel de Allende in 1999 and was called Harry's.

It became so famous that in 2004 a second branch began here in the City of Queretaro.

This building used to be part of the San Francisco of Assisi Convent  built during the mid-1500s.

Indoor and outdoor seating at Hanks

Offering indoor and outdoor seating in Jardin Zenea, it was perfect, and obviously very popular.

A varied menu at Hanks

So this was an American/Cajun & Creole Bar, eh?

Because we were tired and it was our first meal here, we ordered something simple.

Billy and I shared a Greek Salad, some deep fried calamari with a green mayonnaise/cilantro dip and then later added a seafood chowder.

There was a lot to choose from! Take a look at the menu above!

Greek Salad

The Greek salad arrived and because it had no lettuce, our interest was piqued.

Piled high in the center were chunks of fresh vegetables - cucumber, baby tomatoes, feta cheese, sweet red onions, and tasty Kalamata olives.

The balsamic dressing was a reduction so there was no bite. It might have even been reduced with some honey or raw sugar, and drizzed decoratively over the salad and the plate. There was virgin olive oil as well and it was a perfect blend of flavors.

Fried calamari

I'm not big on fried foods, and when I have them, I don't want them soggy, dripping in oil.

This Calamari was crisp and not oily at all.

Perfect!

Seafood Chowder

We were impressed so far, and since we were sharing this meal we were still just a tad bit hungry.

So then we ordered a seafood chowder with shrimp, whitefish, clams, mussels, and bacon.

Hit. The. Spot.

You can almost taste it right out of the photo!

Pulled pork sandwich and Cole slaw

Our friend ordered a spinach salad with crisp bacon and then since we decided to order and share the chowder, he got a pulled-pork sandwich with Cole slaw.

Lookit that thing!

HUGE and picture perfect.

Our friend said it was the best he has ever had in Mexico.

No doubt!

Where were we? How did we magically find this place?

The bill for 3 people

With drinks, our bill for 3 people came to about $63USD.

Our portion was $50USD which included our tip.

Since Hanks was close to our hotel, it became a mainstay.

Lovely view, outdoor seating

Traditional Cajun-Creole cuisine in Louisiana is a fusion of African, French, Spanish and American style food.

Couple that with a Happy Hour drink menu (ask for it), and we ended up cruising by there several times during our stay in UNESCO-designated Queretaro.

It was fun meeting up with friends for Happy Hour drinks and a meal or two.

Beautiful, fresh grilled salmon salad

Back again for another lunch meal, this time a grilled salmon salad.

As you can see, it's fresh, and plenty big.

Goat cheese, sliced cucumbers, grilled salmon, tiny tomatoes, lettuce and mango.

A drizzle of raspberry vinegar dressing made the whole salad sing.

Pasta Nouvelle

Hubby Billy decided on this Penne made with tasso (pork shoulder used in Cajun cooking for flavor), Andouille sausage (for a bit of spice) with a cumin cream sauce.

This was powerfully tasty and rich.

The bill for two

This meal for two, including drinks came to $29USD.

This was before leaving a tip.

I can't tell you how many times we ate or drank here, but Hanks never failed to deliver.

Once our friend ordered meat loaf with mashed potatoes and that looked amazing. His wife ordered a huge seared tuna salad and it was so good, she ate every bite!

We had so much fun here that strangers came up to us and asked what they should order!

By now we were regulars!

Would we return?

Absolutely!

_________

Hank's New Orleans Cafe & Oyster Bar

Juárez Sur 7, Centro

Queretaro City 76000 Mexico

Tele: +52 442 214 2620

Open daily  Noon to midnight

Website: http://hanksmexico.com/santiago-de-queretaro-en/

For more stories and photos of Queretaro, Click Here

For more stories and photos of Mexico, Click Here

VIDEOS, VIDEOS, VIDEOS! See Mexico for yourself! Beaches, Bars, Babes, Great Food, Live Music.

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