About 5 years ago, I was introduced to one of Oklahoma City’s best kept secrets.  El Alex Restaurant on the corner of S.W. 25^th and Robinson.  Named after owner Maria’s father, Alex who recently passed.  It was a real treat to see this guy walking around the restaurant in his Pimp hat all done out just on a regular day.  El Alex is no new kid on the block, originally opening in 1981 closing for a brief time and opening back up in the 90’s through today.  Let’s not let this jewel of a restaurant close again.  Go out and patronize good cooking.

Now to the food.  As most are aware, the most authentic Mexican food can be found on the South Side of the city.  I will submit to you while this food is authentic.  Most of it, note I said most, is fast food and not prepared with the ingredient of time.  At El Alex, Maria takes painstaking efforts to make sure her food is well prepared and consistent.    This is not a Taqueria, but a café.  You will receive chips and salsa the salsa is a thin variety but absolutely packed with flavor.  For something hotter, try the Salsa Verde, hands down the best in the city made fresh in the restaurant.    The cheese sauce is well prepared and by those who adore queso boast this as some of the best they’ve had.  The refried beans here cannot be beat and I challenge someone to find a more flavorful and smooth version somewhere else!

In my many visits, I have become acquainted with Maria and have gathered the courage to ask her questions.  She explained that the style of cooking that El Alex serves is from the Juarez, Chihuahua region of Mexico, just as her mother prepared it back in Mexico.   You’ll find that the Enchiladas are nothing like the fake versions peddled at corporate restaurants.  Enchiladas are intended to be served with a slightly spicy chili sauce.  My best description for this sauce is zesty and tangy.  One thing that also makes El Alex stand out from the other restaurants is the quality of the ingredients used.  The chicken, ground beef, pork, steak etc is not waste parts.  Although this isn’t exactly authentic, it makes for an improvement in my opinion from the original. 

The signature dish in my opinion is the Mole de Polo.  This dish is chicken stewed in a brown gravy sauce that has dark chocolate as a key ingredient.  I know most think this is weird by it is a great sweet and spicy dish.  When coupled with rice, beans, beans, tortilla and a little Salsa Verde one has entered the pearly gates of flavor heaven.  Chicken Mole can also be ordered as a gordita.    Other Items that are better than found at other restaurants are the barbacoa, which is to be eaten with lemon and lime, fajitas and horchata.

So if you haven’t been here you owe it to yourself to stop by and give this place a try!   Be aware though that they are only open Thursday through Sunday before venturing out of your way.

One of the more entertaining aspects of this place is the juke box.  For those of you, like me, who didn’t have the forsight to minor in Spanish during your undergraduate years can enter into a frenzie of picking songs that you’ll never understand…. 

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500 W Main St
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
(405) 601-5858

Website

Map

I’ve eaten here a couple of times and each time was quite good. If you’ve read any of my previous reviews I don’t hide the fact that I enjoy pizza and tend to order it all to often. My latest trip to Trattoria was no different than my first as I again ordered the Tre Fromaggio pizza. Can you really go wrong with three cheeses and a name like Tre Fromaggio allows me to order a cheese pizza without feeling white trash. My wife, while still sticking with the pizza theme, spiced things up a bit and ordered the arugula pizza. When I think of arugula I think of a poor man’s spinach, but on arugula’s behalf I do tend to jump to rash undeducated conclusions a lot.We were both satisfied with our selections, but I’m getting ahead of myself. I should probably spend a little time talking about the appetizer we ordered.

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So some of you may have noticed that it’s been awhile since we’ve updated this blog. That’s not because we’ve spent every meal since January 14th eating within the confines of our comfortable homes, but more to do with us being extremely lazy. So after nearly half a year of not updating I gathered Dustin and Snoopy or BJ whatever the hell he’s going by now together and told them it was enough. I told them there were people counting on us to let them know which restaurants in Oklahoma City were worth a damn. Needless to say my words were inspiring and we all agreed to get a review up this weekend. In fact I was so inspirational to Snoopy or BJ or whatever his name is now that he vowed, not just promised or agreed, but effing vowed to do two reviews this weekend.

Well I’m sure Monday morning will come and this half assed explanation regarding our absence will be the only addition to our wonderful little website.

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7301 N May Ave
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116
PHONE: (405) 843-4557

While this place wasn’t quite what I was hoping for, it did turn out to be a quaint little place that provided a nice quiet dinner. Being a sucker for pizza I didn’t quite study the menu like I should have, but I did notice it had a decent selection of the usual Italian entrées. Without hesitation we ordered the cheese pizza. It was delivered to our table piping hot and caked with cheese, just the way I like it. It tasted good and was extremely filling.

There are other places in the city to get a better pie, but not many that provide the nice quiet ambiance of Nomad II. We had a couple of drinks with dinner and our bill was relatively average. The service was quick and on the spot. We didn’t have to ask for anything special and they were quick in asking us if we wanted another beverage.

There was one couple a few tables away that might not agree with me as far as the service is concerned. He asked the waitress for a straw. She didn’t have any on her at the moment she went to get one. He waited all of 8 seconds before I heard him bitching to his wife about not having a straw. 8 seconds after that he decided he would just get up and find one himself. This was a guy that was hell bent on having a straw. I guess what I’m saying is if you absolutely have to have a straw as soon as you get your drink you should probably just bring one from home. If not then you probably won’t have any qualms with Nomad II.

In closing you will most likely find that Nomad II is nothing out of the ordinary but you will be hard pressed to not enjoy yourself. Unless you’re super sensitive about straws.

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The Underground
1621 S Douglas Blvd
Oklahoma City, OK 73130
(405) 733-7720

OK, let’s begin with an apology – no pictures. I usually stop by this place at 6 AM and am in no mood for taking pictures. Plus the lighting would suck.

Now with that out of the way a short review – I have only had their coffee but they offer the other accoutrements that most places have (scones, muffins etc.). The coffee is excellent as they know what they are doing. Free Wi-Fi and games in a decidedly upscale modern environment always make for a comfortable visit. I usually like my coffee house to have more of a folksy lesbian feel (read Red Cup) but this place feels much more born again (I have seen a few bible study groups here) – if ya know what I mean.

But really none of this is why I frequent this place. Service. The guy that owns the place runs the place and makes you want to come back. A good guy that has taken a chance, invested some money and ALOT of hard work and is proud of what he offers. This translates into everything – including the java – and just makes you kinda feel guilty for going to Starbucks instead.

So stop by, have a cup, take some pictures and send ‘em to me. I obviously need some help.

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