Place: Chili's
Item: Classic Fajitas
Price: $9.99

Before we Lunch Guys could answer the question, "What should we have at Chili's?", we had to tackle a much deeper, mind-bending existential issue: "What is Chili's?"

The scattershot menu keeps throwing us for a country-fried-steak loop. It's as if Chili's cut and pasted the best items from Applebee's, Outback, Olive Garden, Cracker Barrel, Chevy's and the neighborhood Chinese joint. Still, you have to hand it to Chili's. It has not only spread Tex-Mex from the Rio Grande to the Canadian border, it helped make fajitas mainstream.

And what does Chili's get for this? Recognition only for the annoyingly mesmerizing baby back rib song. We wanted to give respect due, so we went to the core of the menu for the Classic Fajitas.

Tom: If lunch food had a hall of fame, the Chili's fajitas would certainly be headed to Cooperstown. I appreciate that Chili's is always adding new creative things to its menu, but I have to have the fajitas. That may seem sooo late '80s, but c'mon, it's a near-

The other toppings were good, especially the tomato-heavy salsa, but by the end, I was ready to just take my fork to the hot plate. Those core ingredients had melded into something special. Screw this scooping, rolling nonsense that not only had me dribbling all over my plate, but made the lunch last twice as long.

Tom: The whole make-your-own concept is not only part of the fun, but it's practical. I like more salsa and lettuce than sour cream. Who better than me to prepare that? Plus, the fewer people who touch my food between the grill and my mouth, the better.

Chris: This coming from a guy who walked out with beef splatters on his white shirt. If you have an after-lunch meeting, go with the fork-fed entrees. But you make a good case for these fajitas, Tom. Why can't I have a little midday excitement playing with my food instead of having it all wrapped up for me?

Rating: 5 sporks (out of five)

Food facts: (w/3 flour tortillas, sour cream, pico, cheese and guac): 824 calories (35 percent from fat), 32g fat, 79g carbohydrates, 55g protein

E-mail The Lunch Guys:
tomandchris@thelunchguys.com

perfect lunch if you're hungry. The key to these fajitas is in their simplicity. A heaping plate of marinated chicken and beef, onions and the rare bell pepper on the sizzling cast iron platter, alongside a few accompaniments is all anyone needs. The citrus, garlic and soy based marinade enhances the beef and chicken to the point where you find yourself eating them right off the platter, and the onions are caramelized enough so you don't feel “oniony” after eating. Fajitas aren't trendy like Brittany Spears but they still sizzle like Marylin Monroe.

Chris: I gave the fajitas a chance even though I don't like having to make my own lunch. Would Taco Bell ever have the audacity to serve me a taco shell, a scoop of ground beef and a pile of cheese on three separate plates? Granted, after I had assembled the Chili's chicken, onions, peppers, cheese, lettuce, sour cream, salsa and guac into one overstuffed tortilla, it was almost worth the manual labor. That sizzling, scarily steaming fajita hot plate encompasses what Chili's does best: fiesty, smoky, tender meats sponging up the sweet vegetables.