Latest visit: Jun 2024 (Woodland Park, CO)
First visit: Jun 2011 (Woodland Park, CO)
Founded: 2000 (Woodland Park, CO)
Locations: 9. There are 5 in Arizona (Gilbert, Chandler, Avondale, Sedona, Page); 2 in Colorado (here and Cortez), 1 in Farmington, NM, and 1 in Moab, UT. Since our last visit, Las Vegas closed and they added one in Arizona.
We decided on this clear blue Father's Day to make the drive out to Woodland Park. We haven't taken Mrs. RJG's mom out since she's been here other than family events. It's also been two and a half years since we last graced our presence at Fiesta Mexicana. We arrived about 15 minutes after open, and they were still relatively empty, though it filled up while we were doing the same - figuratively speaking. Today I stuck with two Mexican lagers while Mrs. RJG once again indulged herself with a margarita on the rocks. She boldly stated how much she enjoys alcohol only to recant her statement after the meal was over lol. As far as the meals went, we all stuck to combo platters. I went with the chicken flauta, a ground beef enchilada, and a beef taco. The ground beef was seasoned very nicely and I liked the crispiness of the flauta and the flavor of the chicken. Rice and refried beans were excellent as well. Everyone enjoyed their meals, though I didn't take note of the exact details. Oh - and the chips and salsa were as good as last time (see below). We didn't ask for a hotter one though, remembering our experience from before. Fiesta Mexicana is a very reliable Mexican option. I don't consider it a rotation restaurant only in that we don't always drive out to Woodland Park. Wayback Burgers is our first option and I would like to try some other places as well next time in town.
I didn't realize until now that this Woodland Park location was their first.
---original 2/21/22 review
Continuing on with restaurants we haven't been to since the Denver townhome years, we decided to make a day in Woodland Park. Usually we would go here to cool off in the summer, but now that we live near Monument, we get the same benefit. We'd also been to a Fiesta Mexicana in Salida way back in 2002, but apparently it's not related (it's a common name as you can imagine).
I was thinking about a beer, but they were out of many of them, so I settled on water. Then Mrs. RJG pulled out a surprise: Margarita! What? She never drinks during the day anymore, so dammit, I'm getting one too. Glad we did - giant globe margs with plenty of tequila. Not just lemonade. Well that set the mood right. Chips and salsa was next, which represents most of the meal. Very crispy and the salsa had just the right amount of kick. They have habanero salsa on the menu, so I asked for it. But they brought me the same salsa with a bottle of El Yucateco habanero red. Ha. We eat that at home all the time. Well I mixed it in, and it was still excellent. I ordered the pork green enchiladas smothered in a verde sauce. They were both dry - the sauce on top and the chili inside. It was still very flavorful but I wanted way more sauce. Oh look, there's that Yucateco bottle... I'm sure we used more of that than your common patron. The rice was hot and delicious. And the refried beans were good as well. Almost as hot (temperature) as I prefer, but falling just short (I like them blazing hot). I meant to ask for whole beans but forgot. Mrs. had one chicken and one ground beef enchilada. She sung its praises. I had some of the chicken, and it was moist and excellent. Service was top notch on this day, and the restaurant is warm and welcoming. We'll be back. Hopefully sooner than 11 years. Afterwards, Mrs. RJG made a beeline across the parking lot to Chimayo Turquoise. One Zuni necklace and turquoise ring later, and happy wife, happy life as they say. And I thought lunch was expensive.... . Imagine if we had 2 margaritas?
Fiesta Mexicana is a chain, but it would appear in name only. Guessing disparate family members and friends, or something along those lines. As of this writing, they have 4 locations in Arizona, 2 here in Colorado (the other is in Cortez, not exactly around the block), and one each in Utah, New Mexico, and Las Vegas. I don't think they're getting an "economy of scale" here. And I doubt they care either. Good for them!
6/5/11; 2/21/22 (new entry); 6/16/24
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