For eating Mexican food, the Red Iguana is a landmark in Salt Lake City. Whenever a discussion about where to get good Mexican food occurs, it will always get a mention. When I figured out that it had chimichangas on their menu, we put it on the list of places we needed to evaluate as part of our ongoing Chimi project.
Suprisingly, due to the distance between my house and the Red Iguana it has been many years since I've eaten there. Fortunately, the ideal opportunity presented itself recently and we made a visit.
Visiting the Red Iguana is all about the food. The decor is utilitarian, but measures up where its important -- it was very clean and welcoming. We got there early in the evening so we were able to go in and sit right down. By the time we were finishing though, it was starting to get busy. And I have been past there on nights when there are a lot of people waiting out front on the sidewalk.
The menu has a wide range of food and being only two of us, we barely scratched the surface. There are loads of appetizers, salads, seafood, steaks, eggs, enchiladas and on and on and on. Since my brother's focus is chimichangas, that is what he got. Their standard chicken chimichanga. Since I'm just along to eat I always like to stay away from the chimis and try something besides a chimichanga.
Often, my standby at mexican restaurants is some form of a bean and cheese burrito. Over the years I found that this almost always hits the spot when I need mexican food to eat and just about every mexican place I've been to has some variation on this. Lately though I've been intentionally trying to try things other than just a burrito. That came into play during this visit, although I was tempted by the burritos at Red Iguana, surved enchilada style with one of their sauces over the top. The problem I ran into, once I left the burrito section of the menu was that Red Iguana had multiple menu items that I really wanted to try. Here is the short list:
* Enchiliadas potosinas: corn masa filled with queso ranchero and onions, pan fried, topped with cheese, guacamole, salsa, and green onions
* One of the several mole dishes on the menu
* Puntas de filete a la nortena: sirloin tips sauteed with bacon, chiles, onions and tomatoes sitting in a nice pool of almond mole
* Chile rellenos
I finally settled on the puntas de filete a la nortena, knowing that I would have to return soon to try some of the other dishes. And it was a good choice. It made me happy. The sirloin tips were cut in thin strips and then sauteed with bacon, chiles, onions and tomatoes. Add all that hot sauteed goodness to a beautiful almond mole with just enough spice and dinner was excellent. My problem now is that when I go back I will want to order that same dish again and may never get around to trying the other items on my shortlist. Be warned, if you go to Red Iguana it may require a multiple visit commitment.
As for the chimichanga, my brother only gave it mediocre marks. And it was far down on his list of places to get the best chimichanga. It didn't have the necessary crunch on the outside and inside they had polluted the filling with beans, which according to him have no place inside a chicken chimichanga. So the hunt goes on for chimichangas, but if you want some of the best mexican in Salt Lake City food Red Iguana is a must on your list.
Red Iguana
736 West North Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84116
801-322-1489
www.rediguana.com
Comments (1)
No, no, NO! I told you to try the pork chimichanga, you fool! And I still maintain that it's the best I've ever had. Or maybe it was the company: we were eating with Chris and his charming mother-in-law.
I love this place, though, and I've only been there once. I mostly love it because it has a fan-tastic Pee-Wee-Herman-style old motel next to it, with a "garden"/pool area that features multiple oversized cement mushrooms, forest and/or farm animals, and the most pleasantly demonic sign (painted on the side of the Red Iguana) I've ever seen. You just don't see quality kitsch like that very often. It made me happy.
Posted by: jenny | January 28, 2007 11:53 PM
Posted on: January 28, 2007 23:53