Kelley Bass, writer, foodie and host of the Ben E. Keith-sponsored podcast “Heaping Spoonful” told us this week that Mexico Chiquito is bottling and selling its signature fruit punch. He told me he had an extra 4-pack and offered to bring it by the Arkansas Times office, but when he arrived I wasn’t there. I was on my way to the lone remaining Mexico Chiquito location, the double drive-thru+to-go restaurant at 1406 W Markham St., and I was there for the cheese dip because I’ve never once had the fruit punch without it, and I’m not starting now. I can’t remember the last time I had Mexico Chiquito’s signature chile con queso or fruit punch, but it had been a minute. I remember the first time I tried the cheese dip in the ’80s when my babysitter gave me a bite and blew my 7-year-old mind. It was my first experience really identifying the flavor of cumin without knowing what cumin was. When my parents returned that night I gave them fair criticism for not introducing me to it sooner. Little did I know at the time the restaurant would later be credited as the inventor of cheese dip. Who knows how I would’ve reacted if the babysitter had filled me in on that detail? “The inventor of cheese dip is down the street, and you didn’t even think to tell me!”
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I’m sure the waiters didn’t like it, but when I was in junior high my friends and I would go into Mexico Chiquito’s Lakewood Village location in North Little Rock on our skateboards and just order cheese dip and fruit punch. Those two items are largely what the restaurant is known for, and that it introduced Arkansas to Tex-Mex when it opened in 1935. I texted a friend yesterday, an Arkansas native and foodie who lives in Tennessee now, that I was listening to a Mexico Chiquito podcast and he responded “Cheese dip and punch” with a fire emoji.
Bass interviewed Kim Lester, Patti Jones and Lisa Glidewell — sisters who, along
with other members of their families, own and operate Mexico Chiquito, on his podcast last year. They cover the history of the restaurant, the origin of the elusive cheese dip (which many have tried and failed to pinpoint over the years) and the punch, which is made in 55-gallon batches. Now the sought-after punch is being sold at the restaurant in 16.9 ounce bottles of 4-packs and 8-packs.
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My memories of the punch were not as accurate as the cheese dip, which I can taste by just thinking about it. I remember the punch being sweet enough to take typical teenage energy and amplify it to embarrassing heights. But it’s not as sweet as I remember it. It’s actually pretty refreshing and doesn’t taste artificial. In other words, it’s a great fruit punch!
From the press release:
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The pre-packaged bottles of punch have a four-month shelf life and don’t have to be refrigerated, unlike the punch to go that historically has been sold by the glass at Mexico Chiquito. Mexico Chiquito’s fruit punch is available in 4-packs ($8.99) and 8-packs ($17.99) and is sold through the double drive-thru windows from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.
“Our fruit punch is one of the signature items that has kept our faithful fans coming back since Mexico Chiquito was founded in 1935,” says Lisa Glidewell, one of the five sisters who are carrying on the legacy of their father, Jerry Haynie, who purchased the iconic restaurant in 1979. “We are happy to be able to now offer it for people to take home and enjoy.”
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April 22, 2022 at 07:50PM
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Mexico Chiquito bottling and selling its signature fruit punch - Arkansas Times
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