2805 S. Broadway
Edmond, OK
Alvarado’s on S. Broadway
Alvarado’s is one of the oldest Mexican restaurants in the Oklahoma City area, and in fact my early visits to the restaurant were so many years ago it is hard to remember how many times I have actually eaten here. I do know, though, that it has always been one of my family’s favorites.
All of my visits except one were to the restaurant on E. 2nd St.
Because Alvarado’s is not one of the city’s trendy new restaurants it does not seem to get much attention with discussion boards and restaurant reviews. I will admit that I prefer the type of authentic Mexican food that has become available in Oklahoma City recently to the more traditional Tex-Mex found in the restaurants that were popular in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Still, though, not all Tex-Mex restaurants are alike, and I think Alvarado’s is one of the better ones.
Set-Ups
Chips, salsa, and queso
Alvarado’s follows the standard formula of serving chips, salsa, and queso as appetizers. I did not find anything in the Queso to recommend it over others in the city, but as far as I am concerned I have not found any queso appetizers that are close to the chile con queso served in El Paso (at least the queso at Alvarado’s is free).
The Salsa, although very mild and being what I would call the standard “Okie version” of Tex-Mex salsa, was quite fresh and very good. This is my way of saying that I found nothing authentic about it, but I enjoyed it. Alvarado’s also has a green Spicy Salsa served on request that was more authentic and more enjoyable (especially to add as seasoning to tacos). Still, I liked the regular salsa with the chips.
The Chips were thin and not very notable. I got tired of eating the chips long before I had had enough of the “Okie version” salsa.
Main Items
Tacos carne asada
Tacos Carne Asada are one of “Alvarado’s Specialties” on the menu, and they are an example of what I like about the restaurant. They were recommended as one of the more authentic Mexican dishes, and I usually find the dishes that remind me of the food in Mexico to be the ones with meat. With this dish, though, the way the meat was cooked was probably the best part. Although advertised as fajita meat, this is perhaps the first time I have found fajita meat in Oklahoma that really tasted like Mexican style cooking. The meat was moist and full of spices, and it tasted as if it had gone through a much more thorough preparation process than is done with the average fajita meat. I think calling them “carne asada” (roast beef) tacos was really an accurate representation.
Equally impressive, though, were the condiments that came with the tacos. The onions were grilled just right, and the cilantro that came with it was the way I frequently find tacos prepared in the authentic restaurants. The green spicy salsa went very well with the tacos, and I thought everything was excellent.
The Corn Tortillas tasted home made, although they were not the best I have ever had. Still, though, they contributed to the quality of the meal.
The tacos carne asada come with a choice of dipping sauce, and this may be somewhat unique to Alvarado’s. There is a choice of cilantro or chipotle dip, and the cilantro dip I got tasted a lot like salad dressing (it was good, but I did not like it very much on the taco).
The meat on the tacos was perhaps not as good as the seasoning they put on it, but the whole experience was very good.
Charro Beans were on the side, and I thought they were excellent. The Refried Beans that have come with some dishes in the past were less than satisfactory to me.
A small Corn on the Cob that came with the tacos was actually an unexpected highlight of the dinner. This corn was fresh and very flavorful (and in my opinion was a very good quality corn).
My “Tex-Mex” experience has included a Chile Relleno that I thought was very good, and was made with excellent white cheese.
The Enchiladas (Tex-Mex style) were not very good at all.
The Gorditas were OK, but a definite disappointment if you’ve ever had the ones in El Paso.
Green chile chicken enchilada with mashed potatoes
My sole visit to the new location on S. Broadway gave me a final chance to see how far the restaurant could pull themselves out of the world of Tex-Mex mediocrity. I found a meal that on the surface seemed like a good sign– the Green Chile Chicken Enchilada with Mashed Potatoes. Tex-Mex enchiladas are traditionally covered with brown sauce and it was good to see go to green. However, I do not think they knew how to do green sauce. This one tasted like salsa that you put on chips (it was their spicy green sauce). It was not a good choice. Most restaurants know that the salsa they use with the chips is different from the sauce they put on the food (in rare exceptions they can successfully be the same, but not in this instance). They did have another green sauce that was less spicy and probably better, but don’t make it so easy for the customer to make a bad choice.
The Mashed Potatoes were excellent and were one of the best items I have had here.
The Tortilla Soup that I had here and which I think is in the above photo, was very nontraditional and I think probably did not look like the traditional soup. My notes say there was no tomato broth and that it tasted like cheese.
The large bowl in the photo is the Frijoles which I said were good but too spicy (they used jalapeños for the spice element).
In Retrospect
I am now classifying this as a “classic” restaurant, although technically I want to use this term for ones that been closed for over ten years. However, due to its longevity and popularity I think this was one of the restaurants that made an impact on the OKC dining scene and shaped our perception of Mexican food. I think the quality was always there (except when I tried it after their move to S. Broadway). They were struggling, though, to serve interesting and good tasting food that was not too far out of the norm for the Tex-Mex style that most people expected. I think it was this expectation that made Rick Bayless move to Chicago and be able to serve a more authentic version of Mexican food. Today Oklahoma is much more accepting of different types of food but this was not the case in the not too distant past.
RATING: 20
Cuisine: Mexican Tex-Mex
Cost: $$
Hours: N/A
Accessible: N/A
Smoking: N/A
Alcohol: N/A
Most Recent Visit: Aug. 2, 2017
Number of Visits: 10+
Best Items: Tacos Carne Asada, Spicy Salsa, Charro Beans, Mashed Potatoes
Mexican Food Details
| Chile Index: |  |
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Tacos Carne Asada |
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Chile Relleno |
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Corn on the Cob |
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Charro Beans |
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Corn Tortillas |
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Frijoles |
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Rice |
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Guacamole |
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Tortillas |
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Chips |
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Salsa |
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Spicy Salsa |
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Tortilla Soup |
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Mashed Potatoes |
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Green Chile Chicken Enchilada |