Reviewed Monday, 24 September, 2007 – Regional specialties. Open Monday through Saturday, 7am – 3pm. Calle 68 at the corner of Calle 63.

THE HILARIOUS BRIGHT RED BUILDING ON THE CORNER is crowned by a fitting name – El Mil Chistes –which means “One Thousand Jokes” and is the title of a popular Mexican comic book. But however brisk the service and however amusing the name, the food was by no means delivered with a smile, which is unusual in this part of the country. That is not to say that the couple/owners were mean or anything, just not the usual warm and gracious personalities that one quickly gets accustomed to here. But the food was some of the best we have ever eaten at any cocina económica, and so we were prepared to put up with a host of discomforts, including the tiny, tinny sound of electronic music coming, we guessed, from a video game and playing such teeth-gritting ditties as “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town.” We shared two of the specialties of the day (Monday): puerco empanizado and relleno negro. Both were served with simple yet buttery and flavorful white rice, and the red table salsa of tomatoes and chile habanero was so fresh we wanted to eat it with a spoon. The pork was a thin milanesa cut, tender, juicy and subtly flavorful nestled inside the crisp and surprisingly oil-free breading. Served with shredded lettuce and large slices of fresh avocado, the entire dish was satisfying yet light. The relleno negro appeared in a deep, broad bowl, with an indiscernable (but tasty) chunk of turkey and a slice of the rich meatloaf known as but, all happily bathed in the heady black sauce. We each ordered the media ración (half portion) and left full. The meal for two including beverages came to $45 pesos. Judging from the traffic, El Mil Chistes also does a whopping take-out business.