The Mexican Chain With Chips & Salsa You Cannot Miss, According To Reviews

If you're dining at a Mexican restaurant in the U.S., it's almost an unwritten rule to have tortilla chips and salsa as an appetizer, and hey, sometimes they're on the house! Sure, you can learn the secret of making great chips & salsa at home, but there's just something about restaurant salsa that seems to always taste better. For those seeking a customer-approved, terrific tortilla chip taste, look no further than Plaza Azteca. 

Plaza Azteca, a chain primarily located in East Coast states, has some of the best-reviewed chips and salsa dishes out of all chain restaurants, and customers love to chat about these chips. First of all, they're complimentary with the meal, which one Facebook user notes is "a pleasant surprise". If anything, they might be too pleasant, as there is a real danger of filling up on chips before you even finish your margarita, according to Tripadvisor. In fact, "chips and salsa" was the most popular mentioned term across the reviews, showing what a highlight this starting snack is for the Plaza Azteca menu.

While chips and salsa are a standard fare in any Mexican restaurant, chain or otherwise, Plaza Azteca has something a little special that you can't get just anywhere: Virginia white sauce, also known as salsa blanca. The salsa is a fascinating piece of Mexican-American history that's creamy, tangy, and similar to ranch dressing, thanks to using Miracle Whip (of all things) as a key ingredient. We know, we know, that sounds insane to put on Mexican cuisine, but the sauce is a Virginian favorite, and Plaza Azteca was one of the first chains to serve it with their chips when the locals asked for it. 

Adding salsa blanca wasn't just a way to stand out in the crowd of Mexican chains, it's also reportedly delicious. One Yelp review calls out the white salsa as "really good", and a Reddit user who was unsurprisingly surprised by the inclusion of ranch-like dip for his chips said it "mixed pretty well with the salsa". If you're ever able to visit a Plaza Azteca, don't be afraid to try out the salsa blanca and for a unique twist of Mexican-American cuisine. Just remember to save a little room for dinner!