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DOT COM DINING Restaurant Reviews
by SanGabrielValleyMenus.com
Los Gueros Mexican Restaurant
in Monrovia Features Really Good Mexican Food at Really Good Prices
by Bill Coburn
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Storefront |
Beach mural on patio |
Opposite side of patio, Corona wall |
Benjy at the guacamole tray |
Dinner's on |
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Carnitas |
#15 combo |
Flan |
Bunuelos |
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Last week I stopped by Los Gueros Mexican
Restaurant at 313 W. Huntington Drive in Monrovia. I had eaten food from
there once before, but had ordered it to go, and by the time I finished my
errands and got home and ate it, I was a little disappointed. I felt sure
though, that it had been my lack of timeliness that had caused my
dissatisfaction, and that the food would have been just fine had I gone
straight home. So I wanted to give them a second try. I’m very glad I
did.
My wife, son and I walked in after parking in
the rear of the building, and immediately noticed the beautiful mural that
was on the wall opposite their patio dining area, a beautiful ocean scene
with a big bottle of Corona sitting on the sand. Had it not been so cold,
it would have been a nice setting for our dinner, but we opted to sit inside
and be comfortable. It was nice and cozy inside, too, with traditional
rural Mexican scenes painted on the walls, and all booth seating.
We were seated right away, and were pleased with
our service from the time we entered until the time we left. Our waiter
Jose and his busboy Benjy were quite on top of things, bringing more water,
more chips, clearing plates, and checking back to make sure everything was
good and that we had everything we needed. Have you ever been to a place
where the staff feels that once you have your food, there’s no need to come
back until it’s check time? That drives me crazy, and I was quite pleased
that we didn’t have that problem here. At the same time, they weren’t
hovering. They knew how often to stop by, and how much would be too much.
After spending 20 years in the restaurant business myself, I appreciate
staff that takes such good care of you, and that knows how to provide
attentive service without smothering you.
As for the food – we were immediately provided
with chips and two types of salsa. We were also offered the opportunity to
have fresh guacamole made for us table side, which we declined. I am not a
big lover of tomatoes, so I didn’t try the house salsa, I went straight for
the heat. And it was quite good, a nice combination of spices, definitely
packing heat. I then ordered the #15 combo, an enchilada and a taco with
rice and beans, opting for a chicken taco (no tomatoes) and a shrimp
enchilada. I had to pay a little extra to upgrade to shrimp, but even with
the extra $2.00, it was still only $7.95, which is about what I usually pay,
or less, for a taco/enchilada combo (without upgrade) at my usual
Mexican food hangouts. The combinations at Los Gueros range from $4.95 for
single item to $7.95 for three item combinations, which is quite good. My
wife ordered carnitas, and my son ordered a kid’s meal bean and cheese
burrito.
When the food came, we were all quite
satisfied. There was plenty of shrimp, cooked and seasoned just right. The
sauce was delicious (I tried some plain before adding the Tapatio for the
heat I crave when eating Mexican). The chicken taco was piled high with
fresh crispy lettuce and grated cheese, and had plenty of well-prepared
chicken. The rice was fluffy and spiced just right. My wife even commented
on how good the rice was, and she can be kind of picky when it comes to
Mexican rice. I tried my wife’s carnitas, and while it was a little dry for
my taste, she pointed out that it was her meal, that carnitas can be
a little dry sometimes, and that she liked it just fine. And there was
enough of it that the next morning, we both made carnitas omelettes at home
with the leftovers (I didn’t think it was too dry then, so maybe I just got
a dry bite that night). My son enjoyed his burrito as well.
Then it was time for dessert. I have to say,
maybe it’s been a long time since I’ve had flan, but I didn’t remember it
being as good as what I had at Los Gueros. The texture and the taste were
about as good as I ever remember having, and I’ve had a lot of flan. My
wife ordered the bunuelos, a cinnamon-seasoned deep fried flour tortilla
with strawberry sauce and whipped cream. I tried it and it was quite
tasty, and one thing my wife commented on was the fact that they didn’t
skimp on the whipped cream, as many restaurants do. She said it seems like
a silly thing to skimp on, since it’s such a low cost item, and Los Gueros
must agree with her, because there was plenty.
When the check came I was surprised to see that
with all three of us eating, (including the shrimp upgrade, two desserts and
a beer), our bill was less than $33.00. It’s rare to find a place that
offers such good quality food and good service at such low prices.
All in all, it was a good night out -- good food, good service and good
company. We’ll be going back. And I’m kind of hoping that there is a wait
to be seated when we go back, so that we have a good reason to stop in two
doors down at Los Gueros Sports Bar for a pre-dinner cocktail. If you’d
like to check out the menu at Los Gueros, you can do so at
www.sangabrielvalleymenus.com/losgueros.htm.
Bill Coburn is owner of
SanGabrielValleyMenus.com, a restaurant website featuring dozens of
restaurant’s menus, as well as downloadable coupons. He has nearly 20 years
experience in the restaurant business, and has been eating for much longer
than that. |
