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Alvarez Mexican Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Mexican Mexican [Edit]
1600 S Bell School RdCherry Valley, IL 61016
(815) 332-9847
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- Yes
7 reviews for Alvarez Mexican Restaurant
7 reviews in English
-
Review from Jay L.
Union, IL
3/24/2012 1 Check-in Here
Positives: Attentive staff. Inexpensive food. Refreshingly devoid of d-bag hipsters. Everyone around us appeared to be having a good time.
Negatives: Decor is sort of cheesy and dark. Complimentary salsa nothing to write home about.
Went at 6pm on a Saturday and got a table right away. I may not come back often but I will return. -
Review from ken i.
Rockford, IL
5/11/2012
The food was average at best. The service was rude and slow- and they weren't even busy. We won't be back!!!!
-
Review from Chris W.
Rockford, IL
2/21/2011
Eh....
So they have been around for a long time in the area and as I kid I remembered how good it once was.
Not a fan at all with the food coming out the kitchen as it's more like lifeless cheap product that makes you wonder if you should pay...
This type of cuisine is easy to make so I'm wondering whats going on back there? Maybe they microwave everything. -
Review from Alex Z.
Lancaster, PA
7/30/2010
I am surprised by the low quality of the other reviews.
This place grabbed my attention with the salsa. Was it the same salsa that the others were eating? It tasted authentic. It was thick and creamier, but it was flavorful and full of more authentic Mexican-style spices--not tailored to the American palate. I asked if they had salsa verde, and they did...and they brought it out and it was top-notch. Definitely the best green salsa I've had in the midwest.
I ordered tacos, Mexican style, and they were really outstanding. Al pastor, with onion and cilantro on soft corn tortillas. Very authentic. Decent quality meat. My friend ordered Mole--something that can be very easily screwed up--and while it wasn't the best I've had, it was certainly passable. The beans and rice were also good.
This place is not five stars. But it was good. Also, to their credit, service was excellent. We were in a hurry, and we let the server know this, and they were very prompt: the food still seemed like it had had some care put into it though, but we had time to enjoy our meal at a leisurely pace while still getting to our destination on time.
I'd gladly recommend this place and gladly go back. This place is good enough to survive in the southwest, which is surprising. Yet again, the midwest has proven that even the sterile suburbs of dumpy cities like Rockford can have outstanding Mexican cuisine. -
Review from Jeanne L.
8/19/2009
Two stars seems so cruel!
Let's start this review with positives: Excellent friendly quick service. Gift certificates available on http://restaurant.com
The rest of the review will be downhill from here.
I ordered steak tacos. They were not that great. Kinda bland. They were missing essential subtle flavors that I usually am too overwhelmed by to describe.
The guacomole came on a bed of shredded lettuce - ha! Clever! Trying to pawn this appetizer as actually being more than it is. That was ok. It was not ok to be lacking in pizzazz though, and it also was definetely lacking in salt.
We ended with fried ice cream which could have been much better. Meh. It was all a very so-so meal.
Oh, and it was dark in here. Not in a romantic sort of way, but hey-we're-too-cheap-to-pay-for-lighting sorta way. -
Review from Sarah M.
Madison, WI
7/6/2008 3 photos
Below-average Mexican food in a very ugly setting, with attentive and timely service.
Worst complimentary salsa I have ever tasted. I thought it had been thinned with ketchup, my boyfriend guessed the texture was due to an addition of the liquid that canned beans come in.
My al pastor tacos were totally fine -- good flavor and topped with fresh cilantro. The portions of run-of-the-mill beans and rice that accompanied them were pretty small. My boyfriend's vegetarian fajitas were pretty terrible. Someone had overcooked a mess of frozen vegetables intended for a Chinese stir-fry and put them on a fajita skillet. I have never encountered a Mexican restaurant with fewer vegetarian-friendly options. A total of 2.
The dining room is dark and ugly with an Aztec theme -- it does not cross the line into charmingly tacky.
The positives: Service was fast and attentive. The food was reasonably priced. -
Review from To and Jo S.
Madison, WI
12/2/2010
Went here with family. They said it was a pretty good restaurant. We should have known better as they don't have the best taste for food. It was just so so. Nothing that great and we were pretty disappointed. The food was bland and the atmosphere was unexciting. Go elsewhere.
