Exercise 2. Answer the questions to the text.

1. Why is there a misnomer in the name?

2. What is the location and décor of the restaurant?

3. What is the food menu?

4. What did the customers order?

5. Are the prices cheap?

6. What are the reasons for such success of this restaurant?

TEXT 4

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text with the help of a dictionary. Mexican Mastery of Margaritas

On the border of the old Arbat stands Mexico in the form of Pancho Villa – a hideaway for those wanting to escape from the clutches of hat-hawkers, portrait painters and photogenic monkeys. It is not purely a hangout for those predisposed towards banditry, but welcomes all that want to join its gang of Mexican-munching followers.

T he restaurant has been around for a while, which is testament to its continuing appeal – it has stood the Moscow eatery test of time without losing popularity or credibility. This is completely understandable, as Pancho Villa offers a high-quality, extensive Mexican and Tex-Mex menu, a liver-watering range of cocktails and a very stylish wood and tile interior. As it's far too stylish for me, I positioned myself outside under the huge Coca-Cola parasols while sipping from a liter pitcher of iced strawberry margarita (585 rubles). This is one of a tempting array of beverages on offer from a tequila-heavy assortment of tipples, designed to conduct genocide on the worm population of Central America.

We decided to soak up the margaritas by sharing the "Assorty" appetizer (660 rubles). This is comprised of both chicken and mushroom quesadillas, gorgeous shrimp- and crab-filled flautas de camarones, battered cheese- and chili-pepper jalapenos rellenos, plus a few chicken wings and side dishes of salsa, guacamole and sour cream. The Assorty was a delicious way to start the proceedings, though I would argue there is a certain damping down of spices going on in the kitchen. This lack of fire is presumably to cater to Russian tastes – the jalapeno pepper was muted enough to have been your common garden Bulgarian green, and the salsa was more neutral than Switzerland – until I added the tabasco sauce from our table's condiments. In addition, the portions were ample – rather than amplified – enough for a latter-day Aztec footsoldier rather than a modern, margarita-sodden restaurant critic.

To make amends for splitting the starter, I helped the spouse out with half of her crispy vegetable enchilada (180 rubles) while chomping through my own meaty chicken burrito (285 rubles). Feeling in need of a change in the fruit content in my alcohol, I finished up with a Mexican (150 rubles), a refreshing tequila and grenadine cocktail laced with pineapple juice. The wife convinced me that I had no need of a sweet after so much fruit and, somewhat strangely, I believed her and skipped dessert – not having thought laterally about the merits of chocolate or what exactly constitutes fruit.

We had a very relaxing and enjoyable meal sitting in the shade, surrounded by Mexican music and observing the passers-by sweat it out on the Arbat. The service was pleasant but a little on the slow side: We had to wait half an hour for our main courses, but this only added to the pleasure of languidly sipping on the cocktails while people-watching. Margaritas or matryoshky – the choice is yours.