Refried beans question?!

Refried beans question?

Our favorite Mexican restaurant -- which is not a chain, by the way -- has one fault, if it is indeed a fault: Their refried beans are very thin and soupy in consistency. As an ala carte side, they have to be brought in a small bowl. When you order a bean burrito, it comes as a huge platter of soupy beans -- almost like gravy in viscosity -- with a pathetic collapsed flour tortilla in the middle of the plate.

We haven't complained, and probably won't, because we do not know how "authentic" to the cuisine this may in fact be. But we have to wonder if they are just practicing the expedient of keeping the beans extra wet so they won't dry out on a hotline.

In any event, I would like to know what the "proper" consistency and thickness of good and authentic Mexican refried beans should be.

Thanks in advance.

Lots of variations in restaurant refrito style beans...I don't like those soupy ones either...to have a pool of beans beside the rice is always disappointing. Good frijoles, or "re-fried beans", should be thick enuf not to spread or pool up on a plate, and should have actual BEANS visible...still softer than an equivalent serving of mashed potatoes, but not so thinned out they turn into a puddle. The home-cooked recipe requires half of the cooked beans to be mashed up and mixed in with the whole cooked beans...and the resulting mixture "re-fried" in a big iron skillet with a little oil. When you buy the canned variety, they seem quite stiff out of the can - but heated up, they get creamy--a dollop of salsa, a sprinkle of cheese and you've got something substantial on the plate. I think your restaurant may be cutting corners by thinning the dish and saving on amount of virtual beans.