PHOTO: B.A. Nilsson

What You Need

Tortillas

138 Broadway, Rensselaer, 434-1080. Serving Mon-Sat 11-8:30. D, MC, V.

Cuisine: Tex-Mex and a light fare mix

Entrée price range: $1.75 (single taco) to $5.50 (almost everything else)

Ambiance: intimate, with kitchen view

By B.A. Nilsson

‘Tortillas. What do you need?” The take-out orders were coming in at a steady rate as we doffed our jackets and settled in at one of the half-dozen tables in the tiny space. The menu is chalked upon a narrow blackboard that runs the width of the room; behind it is the spacious kitchen.

Too spacious, but that was the work of the previous owner, who ran the short-lived Empire Lunch Co. and installed a huge stove and hood assembly in the middle of the place. “I’m just going to work with what’s here for now,” says current owner George Miller. He ran a far fancier place in the Purple Pepper, in Valatie, an area puzzled by fine dining. He went on to work with Ric Orlando at New World Home Cooking Co. in Saugerties before returning northward and settling on a spot in Rensselaer.

“I think this is the place to be right now,” he says, “with all that’s going on both in this town and in Albany.” It’s easy enough to get to Tortillas from Albany: Take the train-station exit off 787, turn right at Broadway. It’s a couple of blocks up the street.

As far as developing a menu, “We decided to see what people weren’t doing in the area, and decided it would be a unique concept to put together a few different things, keeping a focus on global cuisine.”

The printed menu, which is easier to study than the blackboard, notes the restaurant’s culinary theme: burritos, gyros and burgers. And so we sampled one of each, skipping, for now, the daily specials (including an enticing-sounding chipotle chicken preparation for under $7) and the fajitas, quesadillas, wings, pulled pork, nachos and more.

Salads include a Greek mixture ($6), with olives and feta, and a Caesar ($5), which we also ordered, and which, when you look beyond its styrofoam container and the fact that it’s untossed, with dressing on the side, was a better-than-average mix of romaine, croutons and cheese. (Add chicken or beef to the salad for a couple of bucks more.)

Burgers start with a whopping nine ounces of beef, shaped on the premises, served on a plump kaiser roll—or substitute a chicken breast for any of the listed versions. Those include plain ($5), topped with cheese (the usual choices, $5.25), prepped with a Cajun rub ($5.25), or topped with varying combos of chili, bacon, mushrooms, feta, salsa, peppers and more ($5.50).

There’s no mistaking the heft of a nine-ounce burger, and when you drape it with added items, its presence becomes more profound indeed. I’m not convinced that feta works well with burger or omelette—the texture of the cheese resists heat and remains uncooperatively crumbly—but the flavor it adds makes the occasional mess worthwhile. Add to it the vinegary heat of pepperoncini and the sour tang of tzatziki, and you have the flavorful Greek burger.

Like the other sandwiches we ordered, it’s served with tortilla chips, which we added to the basket previously arrived with an order of chips and salsa ($3). The tomato-intensive homemade salsa is sweet, with a generous presence of cilantro, but you’ll want to try one of the hotter brews. I went straight to the hottest, which is thick, fiery and sweet, the last-named quality derived from a combo of pineapple and mango.

A burger without fries is naked. Fortunately, a half-dozen styles of french fry are offered ($1.50-$3), including toppings of cheese, Cajun seasonings and, per my order, chili, a surprisingly well-crafted stew of beef and beans and appropriate spices.

My wife shares none of my stubbornness when it comes to pronunciation. The pressed-meat sandwich is spelled “gyro” and sounds like “hero,” but she asked for a “ji-ro,” which Craig, who cooks and serves here, discreetly repeated in the correct manner. I gloated quietly.

Ideally, the meat continually toasts on a rotisserie; failing that, frozen patties approximate the flavor. Although Tortillas offers the latter, the beef-lamb mixture is tender and crisp and stacked in enough quantity on an outsized disc of pita that I’m willing to forgive. Dressed with tomatoes, onions and tzatziki, it’s a massive meal. Gyros also are available with a filling of veggies or chunks of chicken breast ($5.50 apiece).

Burritos are clearly a signature item here. The $5.50 sandwich is another meal-in-itself dish, a massive flour tortilla wrapped around ground beef or chicken and dressed with rice, beans, lettuce, salsa and cheese. As humble looking as the serving may be—nestled in butcher paper in a plastic basket, more tortilla chips on the side—the flavors blend nicely, with bolder strokes than is often the case.

Tortillas, which has been open for about eight months, is the kind of culinary crutch communities thrive on, with good, unpretentious food, low prices, and a cheerful ambiance. We were well-fed and warm as we punched into our jackets and heard, as we left the restaurant, “Tortillas. What do you need?”

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