Best Seattle Mexican Restaurant | Rosita's

My search for the best mexican restaurant in Seattle has taken me to Rosita's, a great little place right off of Green Lake. I'd seen it walking around there several times, tried to eat there once but the place was too busy, and finally made it there at a time when we could sit down to eat. Here's my review!

Rosita's Margaritas

I have a hard time finding a bad margarita in this town, and Rosita's was no different. As usual, I ordered the house margarita, on the rocks, with no salt. It was delicious, reasonable priced, and went down smooth and quickly. So I ordered another one. So did my wife.

Margarita score - 7/10

Rosita's Chips and Salsa

The chips and salsa here were free, which is always a good sign. The chips were made in house and were delicious. The salsa was the same way. It wasn't too hot, wasn't too mild, and had just the right hint of cilantro that I love. We destroyed at least two bowls of chips and salsa. They know what they are doing in this department.

Chips and Salsa score - 7/10

Rosita's Mexican Food

I got an enchilada plate and my wife got a quesadilla. We were both happy with our dishes, which were the epitome of tex-mex food. The plates were huge, there were beans and rice galore, and everything was piping hot and full of flavor. I think we both finished everything on our plates and were happy, full people at the end of the night.

Food score - 8/10

Rosita's Service

The service was really good. We usually like to sit in the bar area when we go to mexican restaurants - usually there is a game on that I like to keep my eye on. And in this case when we sat down we were immediately greeted by our waitress who grabbed our margaritas in no time and took our order.

One thing I will say about Rosita's, at least on this night, was that there service was almost too fast. We ordered our food and it was out on the table in literally five minutes. That is stupid fast, and my wife and I commented that they must be trying to turn the tables quickly to make some money. We never felt rushed, but man did the food come out fast.

Rosita's Service - 8/10

Rosita's Decor

As you might expect with a true tex-mex restaurant, the decor was the kitschy flare that you would expect to see in your neighborhood mexican restaurant. Bright colors, sombreros, and other mexican flare were all over the place. I don't mind it, I think because it's what I expect in a restaurant like this. Others do.

Decor - 7/10

In the end, I'm glad my search for the best mexican restaurant in Seattle brought me to Rosita's. It was really tasty, the service was great, and the margaritas were delicious. I'll definitely be going back here again.

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Seattle Mexican Restaurants | Matador

Best Seattle Mexican Restaurant | The Criteria

Best Seattle Mexican Restaurant | Matador

I thought I'd start off my search for the best Seattle Mexican restaurant with a fan favorite - The Matador. With two locations, one in Ballard and one in West Seattle, The Matador is a staple of Seattle mexican cuisine. We frequent this spot, and it always seems to deliver just as promised. If you are looking for a great Seattle Mexican restaurant, this is definitely a place you'll want to consider.

The Matador Margaritas

Like I said in my last post, one of the things I'll be reviewing every time is the margarita. Even if they aren't traditionally Mexican fare (I think there is some dispute about that) in the states, the margarita epitomizes the Mexican restaurant. And I love to drink them, so I'm going to write about them.

I always order the house margarita on the rocks, with no salt. I don't think paying for the better tequila is necessary for a margarita (shots and sipping yes). And the salt? I just don't like it on there.

At The Matador, like I said, I ordered the house margarita, on the rocks, no salt. It was delicious. It tasted like it should - like a margarita. My wife, Alison, ordered a Pomegranate margarita. It was really sweet, but really delicious. I'd say you could have one of those and then you'd have to switch back to the real thing.

Margarita score - 7/10

The Matador Salsa and Chips

Don't have a lot to say here except delicious and free! Their salsa is fresh, it's house made, and it is really really tasty. It's not very spicy, either, so you can eat a lot of it.

Salsa - 9/10

The Matador Mexican Food

Again, delicious. The night we were there, the wifey and I had a ton of chips and salsa, the scallops for an appetizer, and split the steak fajitas.

The scallops, six of them I believe, were cooked perfectly, served with a sour cream type of sauce, and were great. Highly recommend them for an appetizer.

Fajitas - they were amazing. They come with beans, cheese, guacamole, pico, and lettuce. Even with the both of us eating we had some left over. Lots of steak, lots of onions, lots of peppers, lots of deliciousness.

While I'm here, we didn't get them this time, but we love ordering the stuffed jalapenos as an apetizer. They can be a little spicy, but they are delicious. Stuffed with goat cheese, wrapped in bacon, and cooked up hot. You can't go wrong starting with these.

Food - 9/10

Service

The service was great. The night we went the place was packed, so we sat at the bar and ate, and the bartenders were right there the whole time to fill our drinks, chips and salsa, and whatever else we needed. Couldn't ask for anything better.

Service - 8/10

Decor

Last but not least is decor. If you are looking for traditional Mexican fare (think Azteca) you have come to the wrong place. This place is hip, modern, dark, and really pretty cool. They have an open area in the middle with a fire going where people can hang out and have some cocktails (we were there while waiting to sit). It has a fun vibe. And the people weren't even looking at us funny dressed in full golf gear.

Decor - 8/10

In the end, I'd highly recommend this place to anyone looking for Mexican food in Seattle. The booze is good, the food is good, the people are nice. So, if you are thinking Mexican, give this place a shot.

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Seattle Mexican Restaurant | Welcome

Seattle Mexican Restaurant | The Criteria

Best Seattle Mexican Restaurant | The Criteria

Before I begin my Seattle Mexican restaurant reviews, let me begin with an honest assessment of my culinary abilities - I don't have any. I can cook a hamburger, a mean chili, and several other sundry items. But a culinary genius I am not. I know what tastes good to me though. I know how I like to be treated in a restaurant, and I know a good margarita when it hits my lips.

Before I got started actually reviewing restaurants (I actually went to one over the weekend just to get this thing kicked off right) I thought I'd outline for you (and to remind me) my judging criteria in my search for the best Seattle Mexican restaurant. They aren't special, they aren't dramatic. They are only things I look for in a good Mexican restaurant.

First up, we have the margarita. This, of course is the staple of any Mexican restaurant. Without a good one, you cannot consider yourself an upstanding Mexican eating establishment. I like my margaritas strong but not too strong, to have good flavor, and to have some fresh fruit inside. My wife will be helping me judge the margarita portion of the review (we were thinking of naming her the Seattle princess of margaritas or something like that, but she didn't like it).

The second, criteria, of course, is the salsa and chips. Because of my choice of restaurant, I really have a hard time giving a passing grade to any place that doesn't give away free chips and salsa. But, for the purposes of this blog, I am going to try to put that behind me. It's going to be hard, but I'm going to do it. And, by the way, if I'm paying for it, it better be some good freaking chips and salsa.

Up next, of course, is the Mexican food itself. For the most part I am a tacos, fajitas, and burrito guy, but I may step out on a limb and mix it up a little. Oh, and if I go to a place a second time (which I invariably will) I'll order something different off the menu and review it too. As for food, I simply like tasty, hot, delicious Mexican food.

Second to last, but not least, is service. Nobody likes to wait, particularly in a restaurant, particularly in a Mexican restaurant, and particularly for chips and salsa refills or margarita refills. Otherwise you just have to be nice. I'm very easy to please.

And last, and maybe least, is the decor. I don't need traditional Mexican fair necessarily for my perfect Mexican restaurant. All I'm looking for is inviting, clean, fun, and welcoming. I don't want to eat in some place I immediately want to leave.

I think I'm going to do an assessment of 1-10 in each category with a final overall tally at the end. That way you can see the restaurants I liked the best and you can see which ones I didn't. Oh, and I'll put up a label for each restaurant so you can get to it easily. And I'll make sure you let you know when I've updated something. If you have different feelings or want to contribute, please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what others think, and where others think I should go!

Welcome to Search for the Best Seattle Mexican Restaurant

I love Mexican food. I love the authentic kind, I love the Tex-Mex kind, and I love the American kind. And I live in Seattle, Washington. So I need to find the best Mexican restaurant that is out there.

I don't know where it is yet because I haven't had a chance to eat at them all yet. I've been living here for about a year and have had a chance to eat some decent Mexican food. Some have been better than others, and I need a place to chronicle my journey. So I made this blog.

If you are looking for the best Seattle Mexican restaurant, you've come to the right place. And if you have a place you think I should try, just let me know!