Alvarado’s Mexican Food

Well, as of May 22, 2012, it looks as though Alvarado’s has closed. I stopped by and took shots of the exterior (
) and interior (
) yesterday. for you Unilocalers.
My rating for the place is a tossup between 2 and 3 stars (based on one meal, so get your grain of salt ready), but I guess I’ll just give it a 2 since it doesn’t really matter now that they’re closed. Plus… it can help even out my Rating Distribution chart on my Unilocal profile (kidding).
I ate here a single time, at 12:30am on a weekend, craving some basic tacos. The dining room was nearly empty except for a couple getting ready to leave. The TV was blasting some Spanish soap. I ordered a tres tacos combo (2 beef, 1 chicken IIRC —
). Service was good — quick, nice staff. As for the tacos, there wasn’t anything too special about them since it’s hard to mess up shell+meat+lettuce+cheese, but I distinctly remember them coming out a little soggy on an oily Styrofoam plate. I know now that I probably should have ordered the more traditional soft tacos. Those look a hell of a lot better in the pictures.
Fairly tired at the time and not particularly impressed, I satiated my late-​night craving and left with no real intentions to return unless friends wanted to drag me there. To be clear, I didn’t mind the place nor the food… I just think that for late night tacos, there are tastier competitors just south on Buford Hwy.
RIP, Alvarado (your restaurant, anyway).

Alvarado’s is a solid, authentic Mexican fast food joint. The restaurant is located inside of what looks like an old Taco Bell, just inside the perimeter on Buford Highway. From the street outside, you can see their daily specials and their advertisement of free Wi-​Fi and satellite TV with ESPN. They do have satellite TV, but the TV is tiny.
Alvarado’s has a large menu with a multitude of foods to choose from. At first glance, it can be overwhelming, but it’s really not that complicated. They just happen to serve several different combinations and incarnations of tacos, tostadas (deep-​fried tortillas with toppings), burritos, quesadillas, tortas (Mexican sandwiches), enchiladas, and salads. To give you a sense of pricing, most tacos will set you back about $ 2 each while the burritos and tortas are about $ 4 each. The restaurant also offers combo plates for about $ 7 – 8, which includes combinations of the aforementioned items plus rice and beans.
They have a 24-​hour drive-​thru, which is pretty awesome, and they also serve breakfast all day. Breakfast items include heuvos rancheros (fried eggs over a fried tortilla), omelets, and a variety of breakfast burritos. All breakfast orders come with two eggs. Drink-​wise, they have fresh horchata (sweet rice cinnamon drink), jamaica (purple hibiscus tea), and tamarindo (brown tamarind drink).
I’ve tried a handful of items here including:
Tacos:
Lengua — tongue
Chorizo — ground Mexican pork sausage
Adobada — pork marinated in red chili
Fish — battered and fried
Chicken tostada
Chorizo plate
There is a self-​serve salsa bar, but it’s not the greatest. It contains four salsas (two red, two green) and a container of pickled carrots and onions. None of the salsas really stood out to me.
All of the tacos mentioned above are very good. I prefer the lengua, chorizo, and fish over the adobada. I think the meat in the adobada is slightly dry. The lengua is nice and rubbery. Good flavor, as is the chorizo. The chorizo meat is actually quite flavorful and juicy. I like the shredded cabbage and tartar sauce included in the fish taco. I’m guessing the fish used is tilipia. The chunks are big and battered. The tacos make use of soft, single-​layer, flour tortillas.
The chicken tostada is OK, maybe a little too plain and boring. I’m not sure if I would order a tostada from here again. The tostadas make use of hard, single-​layer, deep-​fried, corn tortillas. The chorizo plate is delicious. Small ground chunks of chorizo sausage are fried with egg. It’s fluffy and fulfilling at the same time. You might want to order a side of vegetables with this plate.
I’ve also tried the horchata here and I think the horchata at Taco Veloz and El Rey are better. Personal preference of course, but Alvarado’s horchata seems to have too much of a weird, aromatic «fruity» aftertaste to it. It’s not as sweet as the others.
There isn’t much to speak of as far as service goes since this is essentially a fast food joint. The husband-​wife duo are cute and genuinely friendly.

Alvarado’s offers breakfast burritos early in the morning, and they are all so very good! I am a recovering breakfast burrito-​aholic thanks to them. Their sauces are nice, especially the green sauce. Early in the morning you will have to wait a bit in the drive thru, so be patient. Remember, good fast food takes time to prepare. I’m getting hungry for one now just thinking about them. So what I am saying is if you are in the area and it is morning time, grab a burrito and get both red and green sauces to go with it. Ps — they weigh over a pound…
Ok — Lunch and dinner — not crazy about their beef anything. But, their menu is huge and there will be something on it you will like. Oh, and you won’t need to add any salt they have that covered for you.
Sum up — when you are traveling 285 near Buford highway on the way to work, stop and get a burrito!

At first glance I thought I had found a diamond in the rough. I came in around noon on a weekday and there was a decent amount of people there waiting on their food. The first thing I noticed was the salsa bar that was stocked with what appeared to be a tasty variety of salsas and jalapenos. The aroma of food coming from the kitchen smelled good enough, so I decided to order a chicken salad and a beef soft taco.
I waited about 15 minutes before I asked why all of the people that came in after me had been served their food and I had not. The cashier apologized and explained that she must have given my order to someone else. She was able to expedite my order and I had it in a few minutes. All is well!
The taco looked great; a home made corn tortilla with some beef and pico. The chicken salad was pretty skimpy with shredded lettuce topped with some grilled chicken and an unripe tomato.
I was still satisfied until I took a bite. I started with the chicken –no flavor. I tried to top it with the variety of salsas from the bar… still bland. How can you make bland salsa?
I switched over to the taco. The beef tasted foul. I could not finish chewing the one bite. I decided to stop there in fear of food poisoning. I felt nauseas the rest of the day and will never return.
I am giving two stars only because of the home made tortilla and the idea that maybe I ordered the wrong menu items.

This place has been on my radar screen for awhile for a variety of reasons. It used to be a Taco Bell located, oddly enough, in a neighborhood with a plethora of very good authentic Mexican restaurants (on Buford Highway just immediately South of I-​285).
This is the last retail spot before you have to take the highway exit ramp to go towards spaghetti Junction [if you are traveling North on Buford Highway going away from Chamblee]). So it was no surprise that TB went out and this place quickly moved into their old space.
Alvarado’s is lit up like a beacon and is highly visible from I-​285. The only problem is that once you exit 285 to go south, take the roundabout ramp, and are about to turn (South) on Buford, it is hard to turn left and maneuver around accordingly in order to get to Alvarado’s parking lot.
That is without doing a U-​turn on Buford Highway and or turning around in an adjacent side street or parking lot. The exact spot (not sure of the address) is located at or near the corner of Buford Highway and either Stewart Rd. or Chestnut Dr. It is directly across the street from QT (in the old/​now defunct 88 Tofu House).
Once inside, you order at the counter and your food is brought to your table. The menu is posted on the wall above the counter (similar to El Taco Veloz). Many photos of platters are shown along with corresponding prices so it is easy to order.
Let me begin by stating that the food here is good. Very authentic, very inexpensive, and the salsa bar is also good. If you frequent the neighborhood, you need to try this place. I got a plate with two beef burritos, rice and beans; it was more than enough. I was more than a little hungry since I had just come from the Allergist office for periodic shots.
Being hungry before getting shots, and then having to wait around 30 minutes afterwards, made my blood sugar more than just a little bit tweaked. Had it not been for that, I would have had food leftover for lunch (breakfast) the next day.
I am big guy so I can put away no small amount of food if I am hungry. The platter was easily enough for two people to split; and for less than 12 bucks (with a beverage [horchata] it was a great deal. Most platters here cost around 6 – 7 bucks. And the sign out front says the place stays open 24 hours.

The food here is pretty decent. Perhaps I’m spoiled by Tijuana Taco-​Mex a few miles down Buford; the entrees (priced under $ 8) were made to order and came with plenty of beans and rice. Certainly the location is convenient; if you’re passing through Atlanta there’s an excellent chance you’ll be nearby unless you stick to I-​75.
The neighborhood presented a minor problem for us; a less-​than-​dapper gentleman asked to borrow Jodi’s iPhone «to make a call», which resulted in a heads-​up call to the constabulary. There’s an abandoned motel or apartment complex a block away, which is probably excellent habitat for obligate secondary cavity nesters such as tree swallows, purple martins, and people in his situation.
Come during the daytime, don’t be a damn idiot, and you’ll be fine.

Simply put: it’s decent Mexican food. More like half Mexican, half Tex-​Mex. You can get more authentic fare somewhere else on buf hwy, but for the price and the convenience of location, it’s pretty awesome.
Hint: stay away from things on the menu that look like they would belong on a taco bell menu (which is ironic because it’s a former taco bell restaurant).
The tongue tacos are awesome. If you can get over the fact that it’s tongue, you’ll find it’s one of the tastiest and most buttery cuts on the whole animal.
Go for carnitas tacos as well.
Basically if you see a Spanish word up there, say it and order it, you’ll get what the Hispanic people get when they come in. Or better yet, just ask the guy at the counter (who is most likely Mexican and really nice) what he would order.

Cheap and the meat is better than Taco Bell! I don’t mind coming back here. The carne asada taco surprised me. The steak was nice and juicy. My horchata virginity was taken by this place. I need to try other horchatas in oder to say the one here is good.

Armed with the new Scoutmob for blackberry app (FINALLY!), we headed to Alvarado’s for our exciting 5pm dinner out. There’s a lot to process on the overhead menu. Having read Melissa W’s review about the chile relleno burrito, I opted for #12, the chile relleno platter (2 CR, rice, beans), and a carnitas taco. J got the carne asada taco platter, and his sister got a cheese quesadilla with rice and beans. J also ordered guacamole as an appetizer.
As we sipped on our tamarindo and jamaica (discussing the fact that I pronounced it like the Caribbean country when I ordered it — whatever, they knew what I was talking about), and watched the tv showing Yo Gabba Gabba, I ventured to the salsa bar. As previously mentioned, these are clearly pre-​purchases sauces. And I managed to pick the one that tasted burnt.
Our food arrived quickly. The guacamole over chips came with yellow cheese as well. The guacamole itself was just avocado with spices and seasoning — simple but very good. The chile rellenos were good and spicy. Beans and rice were beans and rice, made more exciting by the faces of my 10 month old as we fed them to him, with a little of the guacamole mixed in. The carnitas taco was good with lots of filling for the little corn tortilla, and crispy pork, as Michael L described. My SIL’s quesadilla was huge and filled with yellow cheese (she was expecting white).
If I worked closer, this would be a good lunch spot.
#Yelp365 — ²⁸⁵⁄₃₆₅

I just wanna say, this is the real baja caliFornia south of the Tiajuana border GRUB! ! Finally. I was born and raised on Tortillas. I ordered on my 2^nd visit a carne asada burrito and had to pinch myself to see if it was real.
If you dont like the mexican food youve tried before.
Bring some change down to alvarados… and get some mexican
Awesomeliciousness! I did talk to a worker, told them that they need to add a Caliente salsa/​hotsauce to the bar. Welcome Alvarados 2 the A!

Don’t let the fact that this place is inside of an old Taco Bell scare you off. Their food is authentic Mexican street food, and it’s amazing. Try the fish tacos or the fajitas plate and you won’t regret it!

I love Alvarado’s.
The drive thru here is open 24 hours!!!
I’ve been on three or four occasions, and enjoyed it every time. The guacamole & chips is served warm, with melted cheddar cheese on top — it’s delicious! My favorite combination plate is the rolled tacos (sort of like taquitos).
Today, after a night of super hard drinking, Alvarado’s sounded like the perfect thing to absorb all the sloshiness going on. My companion and I ordered the Super Nachos, the Carne Asada fries, and a shrimp cocktail. The Super Nachos were good, but the Carne Asada may be my new favorite indulgence. A huge pile of crispy fries, topped with cheese, guacamole, cream and a bunch of yummy carne asada meaty bits, all for less than $ 6. The shrimp cocktail was pricey @7.99, but well worth it — it was a huge container stuffed full of shrimp, avocado slices and a
delicious gazpacho-​esque sauce that made me super happy.
Other reviewers have mentioned disappointment with the salsa bar. Each time I’ve been there were three salas — a tomatillo, a red, and a dark smoky sauce. They’ve also had fresh sliced limes and hot peppers & carrots. Yes, it isn’t the amazing salsa bars I experienced in San Diego, but it was still pretty darn good.

Came here for a 2^nd dinner of sorts– ordered the following:
Carnitas Taco ($ 2.19) — The meat was tasty– cooked to almost a complete crisp on the edges of the meat– some may not like the texture of crispy pork– but my wife and I thought it was great. Plenty of pork stuffed into this taco. (3.75)
Fish Taco ($ 2.19) — The shape of the battered fish initially looked quite random, from a super long rectangle to more circular pieces– kind of strange. The flavor of the fish was okay, and the shredded cabbage was done alright (a bit too coarse– needed to be a bit more finely shaved). Decent, but nothing special. (3.25)
Carne Asada Fries ($ 5.29) — For around five bucks, this gut buster is a lot of bang for your buck. Carbs, dairy, & protein all in one (oh, and fat too)! The fries were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, covered with shredded cheddar, sour cream, guacamole, and generous portion of meat. While their rendition did remind me of Roberto’s Taco Shop back in San Diego, the meat needed a bit more marinating… as it was on the bland side. (3.5)
The salsa bar was kind of disappointing. All three options were on the watery side, and while there were definitely distinct flavors among the three, it seemed like they were imitating the (better) salsas found at Fin’s (La Jolla). I’ve heard (a message from an orange-​head) that the owners used to run taco joints in San Diego, so it kind of makes sense.
This place is good… but can be better. (3.5)

This place serves some good Mexican food. I am a Chile Relleno freak — and their Chile Relleno burrito beats El Taco Veloz. Alvarado’s version includes some pico de gallo and a little bit of guacamole. EXCELLENT flour tortilla. I ask them to add a little frijoles y arroz and this is the best Chile Relleno burrito in Atlanta.
Emilio, the customer-​service oriented owner is often there. He can be very helpful.
I want to love this place and take friends. But the seating area is pure Taco Bell, and the (2) salsas available seem straight out of a bottle. No extra limes or cilantro or chopped onion. And no cerveza. So you can’t really make an event out of going to the place…
For now, I’m a drive-​thru girl. But darn!, that Chile Relleno burrito …

This place is legit. Southwestern Mexican with full on burritos, not like the moes style but the kind that moes and the like copied. The super nachos will satisfy 3 adults and the horchata is sweet and on tap.
The service is fast and friendly. I inquired about a taco on the menu and a minute later, the owner delivered one to my table, free.
Great prices, better lunch deals and even a scoutmob to boot. Go here and try the carne asada burrito or super nachos, you will thank me.
Also hear the breakfast burritos are incredible. This place is 24hrs, any time you get the craving– go here!

Wow! I’m very impressed by this authentic Mexican place. I ordered a tostada that came filled with steak, refried beans, grilled peppers, tomato, lettuce, cheese, guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. The steak was especially delicious because it was marinated, quality strips of steak, not the questionable ground hamburger that you get at Taco bell, and very tender. The tostada was hot and freshly fried, not the pre-​packaged cardboard stuff. Salsa bar was OK.
Overall, this was a very memorable experience and almost as good as the last time I had Mexican food in California. The ambiance is bare-​bones, but cheerful and clean. I was very surprised by the quality of the food and the freshness for the price. I will be coming back here often.

This place used to be a Taco Bell and it’s right at Buford Hwy and 285.
FOOD: I know Mexican food is usually cheap, but they have lunch specials for $ 4.99. My friend and I had the guacamole and chips, which is heated chips with plain guacamole and cheese. I thought it was a little unusual it came with cheese. I had the two fish tacos with rice and beans. The tacos are big pieces of fish with shredded cabbage and tomatoes on top. The rice and beans are decent. For cheap, decent, fast Mexican food, I’d come back.

The prices are already reasonable but during lunch time is more awesome b/​c all the combos on the menu wall are just $ 4.99 — and then if you have Scoutmob, it’s a ridiculously great deal for just $ 2.50! Ordered the combo w/​2 fish tacos, rice, and beans (reg. price $ 6.79). Portion was very generous — I could’ve even finish the rice & beans. They give you a lot of fish too … couldn’t tell what kind of fish but Tom C’s review says it’s tilapia. I thought it was ok. I did like the corn tortilla a lot — they also add shredded cabbage and tartar sauce.
Also shared an order of the Chips & Guac … not sure if I’d get it again. The guac was more like puréed avocado — no garlic, onions, jalapeño, etc. Instead of having the «guac» in a separate bowl, they pour it over the chips — plus they covered the chips with A LOT of shredded cheddar cheese. Probably more appropriate name would be Chips, Puréed Avocado, and Shredded Cheddar Cheese :)
Salsa bar was disappointing — they had three different sauces but they were all very watery in consistency. The chipotle had a burnt flavor :(
I’d still come back when I’m craving Mexican — the location is so convenient (right off Buford Hwy, just inside 285). I’d like to try the carne asada tacos next time. The people working here are super nice — the manager gave us coupons too to come back.

This is one of those situations where I wish I could give the restaurant a higher rating, as I took a group by after reading all the good reviews on Unilocal.There were four of us and we each ordered something different. I ordered my usual Mex fare, a carnitas platter. Overall the food was good — a step up from Taco Bell, and a step to the side from your usual schwag Mexican (term I use for the El Azteca’s of the world — Mex for Americans).
My carnitas were inferior to Los Bravos (the meat should be large chunks of pork slow-​roasted to fork-​tender) — at Alvarado’s it’s more like shredded pork. Not bad but not the juicy texture I wanted. The double-​burrito platter is huge — my neighbor Jeff couldn’t finish it (I have a rule to never order anything that’s bigger than my head — which is unfortunately larger than it should be but that’s a different story). I think the best food they have is the carne asada, as mentioned by others. The thinly sliced steak is just plain delectable.
When you approach the counter to order you’re confronted with a confusing array of photos of the various combination dinners. I think they should pare down the photos to fewer choices then offer a list of variations and prices. Doing this would keep people from staring and looking at way too many options. My biggest disappointment was the salsa bar — if you’ve ever been to the now closed Don Taco north of this location you’ll know what I’m talking about. There should be huge variation of salsas both green and red, smokey and not. Any good taco bar at least has a few alternates to sample. Alvarado’s «red sauce» was like something out of a bottle (probably) and nothing special at all. There’s also a big bowl of pickled jalapenos and veggies. By just adding some chipotle sauce, shredded cheese/​lettuce and pico the total experience would be up a notch.
This location was the old Taco Bell (and before that Del Taco) that’s pretty much continually been occupied by various Mex restaurants over the past 10 years or so, right off the I285 and Buford Hwy exit towards Atlanta (south) — you have to make a U-​Turn at the next light to come back to the parking lot. It is convenient but with so many Mex restaurants nearby I’m not sure if I’ll make this a regular spot — definitely not for the carnitas.
How I wish someone would open a New Mex place around here — posole, green and red chile soups and stews would be awesome. But I’m just dreaming…

Holy Jalapeño!!! I think I found my hot spot for Mexican food.
Here at this unassuming Mexican restaurant are delicious tacos. Forget Taco Bell, get the real stuff for about the same prices.
I ordered a couple of mini, steak tacos for .99, chicken taco in a hard, corn shell for $ 1.49, and a fish taco for $ 2.19.
The mini, steak tacos were delicious. They use real meat, not the mystery grade D meat that Taco Bell uses. The chicken used in the chicken taco was quality (you can definitely taste it) and the corn, taco shell they use tasted really fresh. Not sure if they make it from scratch but it taste better than the shell tacos you buy in the grocery store.
Last but not least, the fish taco was better than I thought. I asked them what kind of fish they used and they replied Tilapia. At first I thought «Eww» because I don’t like the taste of it but at every Mexican joint, you need to try the fish tacos. The fish tacos they serve is huge. Even though it was fried, it came out a little bit cold. When I bit into it, you couldn’t even tell it was tilapia which is a good thing. If I could describe the taste of their fish taco, it would be a McDonald’s Fish Filet sandwich in a taco (Yummy!).
All the tacos I ordered and tried, I enjoyed it very much and I thought it was delicious. Best part is that this Mexican joint is 24 hours. So when you are out partying in the A and you get hungry, you should come here to satisfy your hunger pangs.