El Charrito El Charrito El Charrito is a brand of Tex-Mex TV dinners. The word is Spanish for "little cowboy". The brand was introduced in 1980 by the Campbell Taggart company, who owned the El Chico restaurant chain. Though its entrees included taquitos, queso, and beef enchiladas, it was also known for the uniquely named Saltillo Dinner, a three-compartment dinner consisting of two enchiladas (one each beef and cheese), Spanish rice and refried beans. In 1995 the parent company became Earthgrains and chose to focus on baked goods, selling the El Charrito brand to Don Miguel Mexican Foods, now a part of
Tex-Mex cuisine in Houston city. Cynthia Mayer of the "Philadelphia Inquirer" said that Molina's, "a restaurant that began serving Mexican food long before Corona beer and body shots became the yuppie rage," helped George H. W. Bush adjust to life as a Houstonian. In 1972 Diana Kennedy released the book "The Cuisines of Mexico", which detailed food across Mexico from different socioeconomic and ethnic groups. Beginning in 1973, newer style Tex-Mex restaurants, influenced by Kennedy and other people who advocated for actual Mexican cuisine, opened. The food included tended to have grilled meats, salsas, and seafood. Walsh said that while "[t]heir slogans promised authenticity",