WE HAVE ARRIVED! HISTORIC PALM LOUNGE NEWEST SHRIMP PLATE NAMED AFTER THIS BLOG'S EDITOR. MUY CALIENTE!

(Ed.'s Note: This past Easter we were sitting in the Historic Palm Lounge sipping on our favorite libations when we got a hankering for some traditional camarones con nopales con chile rojo and asked owners Edwin and Terry Hernandez if some were available because they did not appear on the menu.

They weren't. 

But Edwin said he could offer us the next best thing, camarones a la diabla, with a personalized touch. It turns out that one of his kitchen staff – a cook named Cruz Vargas who had worked in some upscale casinos out west in Phoenix and Las Vegas – might be able to come up with something special to whet our appetites. 

The succulent dish above is what Cruz created, a version of camarones a la diabla flavored by a zesty salsa that he concocted and involved habanero peppers for good measure. It comes con un arrozito, su enslada y tortillas. They were delicious and we have shared some of this dish with knowing gastronomists around town who agree. Since then, we have asked for the special order and order them to go to share a taco with our friends far and wide. They love them.

So it was a delightful surprise when Terry asked us if we would mind if she offered the dish in the regular menu and called it Montoya's (your truly's last name) Shrimp a la Diabla. We know fame is fleeting and we may add, chiloso, but allow us to indulge and bask in this small pleasure. Take our word for it, they're to kill for, estan a todo dar!)