Head for the Border

The Border Grille and Bar offers great margaritas and hearty dinners in a great location.

By Maxwell Tucker

March 2005 – Looking for something to warm us one cold night last month, two friends and I headed out to the Border Grille in Leominster. Located next to the newly renovated Mall at Whitney Field (formerly the Searstown Mall), the Border Grille is a Mexican restaurant with a few surprises — well worth the 20 minute drive from Worcester. After we were seated, we ordered frozen House Style and Black Jack margaritas and a glass of Black Swan Shiraz. Frozen or on the rocks, the assortment of margaritas at the Border Grille is vast. The House was the perfect mix of lime juice and tequila, while the Black Jack was a sweet Chambord Liquor concoction with an edge.

The dining room atmosphere is a cross between roadhouse and function room, with the crowded bar area reminiscent of a sports pub. The themed restaurant has traffic signs (N’awlins – 1,023 miles) and scenes of Louisianan streets and riverboats hanging over the comfortable, oversized booths.

We poured over our menus as we dug into our complimentary baskets of chips and salsa. The Border Grille’s offerings are extensive, featuring Mexican standards like fajitas, enchiladas, chimis and tacos, as well as “Bayou Favorites,” “Rodeo Drive” (steaks) and “Just Plucked” (chicken). For appetizers, we chose Border Wings and Southwest Egg Rolls. The delicious Border Wings were boneless, sweet and spicy and served with a ranch dip. The Southwest Egg Rolls didn’t disappoint either, large rolls fried and stuffed with diced chicken, corn, black beans, cheese and more – awesome. For dinners, we ordered the Border Cut, Salmon Magurey and Grand Isle Tuna. The Grand Isle Tuna is one of my favorites, a
large tuna steak marinated in lemon, garlic and tequila then grilled and piled with peppers and onions. The 14-ounce Border Cut prime rib was excellent. Taking up the entire plate, it was perfectly prepared with plenty to take home in a doggie bag. The winner of the evening without question was the Salmon Magurey. This was a generous portion of salmon stacked with scallops and huge pieces of lobster.

The entrees all come with salads and a choice of sides, including fluffy Spanish Rice, Jambalaya, Garlic Roasted Mashed, Border Skin Fries or Guacamole.

Desserts ran the gamut from Rio Grande Mud Pie (chocolate, coffee and vanilla ice cream served with hot fudge in a pie
crust) to Deep- Fried Ice Cream, Key Lime Pie and other daily specials.

With great margaritas, hearty dinners under $16 and a great location at the intersection of Routes 2 and 190, the Border Grille continues to be no-brainer. So, grab your favorite sidekick and head for the Border! Also, don’t miss the lunch buffet. Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Border hosts Central Mass’s only all-you-can-eat Southwestern/ Mexican lunch buffets.