Dear Dining Detective,
My family and I have always gone to Don Tequila’s for Mexican food. I know that there is another Mexican food place by the U-Haul and a new one that I’ve been hearing about next to Cook-Out. We were wondering if the other places are good? We love Don Tequila’s but maybe we should give the other places a try?
Thanks!
P.S. I love guacamole!
The Dining Detective is on the case!
I love Mexican food and this area is fortunate to have four restaurants, not including Taco Bell. Even though two of the restaurants are the same (Don Tequila in Lexington and Buena Vista), it’s nice to have so many options just in Lexington. The other Mexican restaurants you mentioned are called Muchacho Alegre (the one by U-Haul on Rt. 11) and Taqueria Jalisco (next to Cook-Out).
Although you said you go to Don Tequila often, I’ll still review the food to give a base for the comparisons. I’m not sure what you and your family usually order, so I’ll choose three fairly standard menu items to review and order the same thing at each place: street tacos, a burrito, and enchiladas. I also want to test the traditional Mexican drinks: jamaica (a sweet drink made from dried hibiscus flowers) and horchata (another sweet drink made from blended rice, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla). The horchata looks like milk, but traditionally does not contain dairy.
My goal is to answer your question of whether the other Mexican restaurants are worth the try from something you and your family already know you love.
Don Tequila:
Tacos: The street taco option only comes with one choice of protein for all the tacos, so I ordered carne asada. They were topped with cilantro and onions and served with a lime wedge. They had plenty of meat in them and it was really good and juicy. Though I really wish I was able to try different kinds of protein. The green sauce it came with has some decent heat.
Burrito: The burrito California was quite large and smothered in a tasty white cheese sauce. I ordered it with steak instead of chicken, and it was chock-full of delicious steak. It also had beans and rice in it. The steak tasted well seasoned and was tender, though I would have preferred if the burrito had more complex flavors.
Enchilada: The enchiladas rancheras were open-faced and had a choice of rice or beans with it. I chose beans. The salad that came with it was fresh and helped with the heaviness of the rest of the food. The sauce on the enchilada was savory and a little spicy. There were a lot of grilled onions and bell peppers, which I really like.The sauce of the enchilada soaked the bottom of the salad, but it didn’t taste bad.
Unique comments: The restaurant is frequently busy but the high-backed booths help with the noise. The jamaica comes in a very large glass and is very sweet. The chips and dips are free but I must admit that I did not enjoy the white sauce it came with. The guacamole was smooth with a mild spice. There are also lunch specials and combos, which make it convenient on a budget. Overall, it’s obvious why this place is the most popular Mexican restaurant.
Muchacho Alegre:
Tacos: I ordered three different proteins: al pastor, pollo asado, and carne asada. They were also topped with cilantro and onions and served with a lime wedge. It came with a small bowl of dark red chili sauce. My favorite was the pollo asado taco with the chili sauce, it was a perfect combination of sweet, savory, and spicy. I was a little disappointed that they didn’t have a lot of meat in them, because it made them feel a little dry.
Burrito: This place also has a burrito California. I thought that the pico de gallo on top of the burrito made it look better and more fun than just being covered in white cheese sauce. The meat was also really good, and I liked that it had lettuce and tomato in it.
Enchilada: This enchilada was different. Unlike the enchiladas at Don Tequila and Taqueria Jalisco, this place has the classic-looking rolled enchilada that’s covered in sauce and melted cheese. It had a nostalgic flavor that many might remember as something a family member might make for dinner on “enchilada night.” Though because it was a different type of enchilada, it’ll be a little harder to judge.
Unique comments: This place also serves free chips and salsa. I ordered the guacamole because you can’t just go to a Mexican restaurant without having chips, salsa, and guac! It was very chunky and had more heat to it than Don Tequila’s guacamole. It’s still a big place, similar to Don’s but it’s more open. The horchata also came in a large glass and had cinnamon on top, which was a nice touch. The beans were chunky and the rice had more veggies than the other restaurant’s rice.
Taqueria Jalisco:
Tacos: I ordered four tacos, each with a different protein: chicken, birra, steak, and carnitas. They were topped with a lot of onions and cilantro. Three sauces were included with the tacos (red chili, green chili, and avocado) as well as two lime wedges. These tacos had so much meat! The avocado sauce was my favorite with these tacos, a little spice and a smooth flavor!
Burrito: The Jalisco burrito was the most similar to the burrito California from the other two places, but this burrito was bigger than the ones from Don Tequila and Muchacho Alegre. It had lettuce and tomato in it like Muchacho Alegre. I really liked the flavors.
Enchilada: The ranch enchilada had pork instead of beef but was very similar to the enchilada from Don’s. It had tomatoes along with the grilled peppers and onions, and also came with both beans and rice. The salad got soggy on the bottom, like with Don’s enchilada, but it was bigger so it wasn’t as noticeable. The guacamole was also chunky but not as much as Muchacho Alegre. It has a nice savory flavor and has spiciness but not too much.
Unique comments: Unlike the other two restaurants, this location is very small but there are a few things that set it apart. For instance, I appreciated the quality of the corn tortillas, as they are made in-house.This is also the only Mexican restaurant in the area that carries traditional Mexican sweet bread - called pan dulce. Unfortunately, chips and salsa are not complimentary.
Final thoughts: First of all, I think it’s usually a good thing to branch out and try new things. Even though all of these restaurants have basically the same things to offer, a change of pace or scenery can make an important difference.
To answer your question, I feel that it is definitely worth it to try the other two Mexican restaurants in Lexington. All of the restaurants have large menus with plenty of dishes to try, which gives any Mexican food lover a world of variety!
For instance, all of the chili sauces had the same bases (red or green) but had varying flavors and degrees of spiciness. The atmosphere also plays a role: Don Tequila and Muchacho Alegre are better suited for large groups and work well for parties or celebrations, while Taqueria Jalisco is getting a decent reputation as a good lunch spot for people who work downtown.
My favorite place for street tacos is Taqueria Jalisco because that place had a lot of meats to choose from, you could get different kinds in each taco, and the meat-to-tortilla ratio was the best. Plus, that avocado sauce was delicious.
My favorite place for enchiladas was Don Tequila. The sauce that it came with was really good and I loved the amount of peppers and onions.
My favorite place for a burrito was Muchacho Alegre. For me, it ticked all the boxes: presentation, tasty meat, good portion, lots of toppings inside.
I liked that the Taqueria and Muchacho Alegre allowed you to choose different proteins for the street tacos so I could try lots of different combinations.
The guacamole at Don Tequila was my favorite because of how smooth it was but the close second is Taqueria Jalisco for the overall flavor.
My choice for spice is Taqueria Jalisco for the variety of sauces available.
And washing anything spicy down with some jamaica or horchata will instantly cool your mouth so you can keep trying more and more spice!
The bottom line here is that each restaurant has something for everyone and trying each place at least once will give you and your family a change of pace. You may even find your new favorite dish! But even if you and your family decide that you still prefer the food at Don Tequila, I hope you may be able to find something you enjoy at either Muchacho Alegre or Taqueria Jalisco.
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