Aleyda's - The Place For Tex-Mex In West Palm Beach
Written: Nov 26 '04
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Pros: Good food, fast service, inexpensive, fun atmosphere
Cons: Bathrooms could be cleaner, not a great area late at night
The Bottom Line: -
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| carnut2k4's Full Review: Aleyda's Tex mex Restaurant |
Enchiladas And Rice And Beans, Oh My
Sometimes nothing will do but Cheese Enchiladas. On such occasions there is only one choice for me. Aleyda's Tex-Mex Restaurant. I discovered this little gem about a year ago and have been there probably once a month ever since. It's located in a part of West Palm Beach that is currently experiencing some growing pains. In the past two weeks we've had something like a dozen fatal shootings which were all late night drive bys. Four of those bumped off were killed shortly after leaving a dump called Club TKO. Aleyda's shares a parking lot with them.
Remember The Alamo
Aleyda's is a free standing building which sort of looks like The Alamo. Greens and reds bouncing off the cream colored walls. Mexican and Texan flags tower proudly above the building. You enter through a long enclosed archway which houses a cage on one side of it. Not a cheap cage - we're talking zoo quality. A large green Parrot and an enormous white Cockatoo (I think) greet patrons. These mascots have been screeching at folks since Aleyda opened the doors back in the early seventies.
It's A Party Inside
Inside, a friendly and festive atmosphere awaits you. Mexican music plays softly. It's the kind of Mexican music that tourists expect. Terra Cotta tile floor with occasional red accent tiles mixed in. The walls are red from the floor up to three feet and then green to the ceiling. There's probably seating for a hundred and fifty people but the restaurant is broken into small intimate dining rooms. No more than thirty to forty people per room. All entryways are arched. The walls are littered with sombreros and neon Corona signs, and cheap acoustic guitars nailed up here and there. All sorts of Mexican chachkas to keep your eyes busy. Ceilings fans spin slowly. One of the greatest things about this place is that you can see how much the owner has put into it. The wood backs of the booths and many parts of the walls have intricate flowers painted on - by hand. Not high enough quality to indicate a professional but high enough to let you know the owner and her family painstakingly decorated by hand. It's a nice touch. The table tops are inlaid with bright yellow and blue Mexican tiles. Parts of the walls are too. The bathrooms are not clean but they aren't dirty. They're old bathrooms in an old restaurant - if that makes any sense.
Comida
Aleyda's has a HUGE menu. There website (listed below) has the full menu on it so I will just give some basics here. When you are seated the Chips and Salsa are immediately brought to the table. The chips are always hot and I've never had a batch that was more than a few minutes old. They're made fresh all day. The salsa is also made in house and is hands down the best I've had. They oughta bottle this stuff. For appetizers they have an amazing assortment of quesadillas and nachos. They make their own soups daily - chicken noodle, tortilla and navy bean with ham. They've got all the burritos, tacos, tostadas, enchiladas, flautas, rellenos, chimichangas and tamales you could ask for. A couple of steaks are offered too. A standard children's menu is available with burgers and hot dogs and chicken fingers and even burritos if your kid's adventurous. Along with Coke products an assortment of juices are available. As far as liquor - they have the expected sangria and Coronas and Modelos, etc. They also offer about ten variations on the margarita.
What We Ate
Like I started with - cheese enchiladas! I just love 'em here. More Jack cheese than I should eat in a year wrapped in a flour tortilla and then buried under some more Jack cheese. A biting red sauce accompanies the enchiladas (three on the plate) and some shredded lettuce and cubed tomato is joined by a slice or two of cucumber so they can call it a salad. Yellow rice and re-fried beans round out the platter. It is amazingly good. Me and the Wife both order the same dish here. In the past I've tried fajtas and chimichangas and can attest to their excellence as well. Even though we were full we had to stay for dessert. As always, we shared a Deep Fried Ice Cream. So how does one deep fry ice cream you ask? Well let me tell you as I wipe the drool off my chin. First a flour tortilla is shaped into a bowl and deep fried to a crispy golden brown - then it is dusted with cinnamon sugar. Next a baseball sized scoop of vanilla ice cream is coated in (what I believe to be) crushed up Rice Krispies. This is then flash fried to melt and crisp up the outside and then it's served in the tortilla bowl covered in chocolate sauce with a single maraschino cherry impaled by a toothpick up on top. This is insanely good. The coffee tastes like instant. Our meals with sodas and dessert (no booze) set me back just under thirty bucks.
A Word Or Two On Service
One of my favorite aspects of Aleyda's is the service. These people are on point more than restaurants that charge ten times what Aleyda's does. As soon as you sit you'll see the frantic wait staff bustling back and forth. You won't be seated more than a minute without the Chips-n-Salsa offered and the way they work is unusual. It seems any waiter or server or busboy will do anything for you. They all happily ask you for your order (sometimes repeatedly because of the chaotic system) and everyone who walks past makes eye contact with you and runs over to assist you if you look back. Don't you just hate when some jackass waiter goes out of their way to avoid eye contact? I'm one of those loud people that will yell across the restaurant if my waiter is MIA for an unreasonable amount of time. This will never happen at Aleyda's. The meal happens at your pace. They will never rush you - but they will also accommodate a guy like me who wants to order and eat quickly. We had our dinners in front of us within ten minutes of being seated and when I wanted dessert I simply looked up and within moments an employee came over and five minutes later I was digging into deep fried ice cream. I like that. Aleyda runs a tight ship (she is a real person by the way). She overseas the kitchen and the floor and makes it a point to greet every single diner - even if only for a few seconds. When she asks you how your meal is she isn't just being polite. Her restaurateur style has kept regulars coming back for decades. It's easy to see why.
Aleyda's Tex-Mex Restaurant
1890 Okeechobee Blvd
West Palm Beach, FL 33409
561.688.9033
561.688.2451 fax
www.aleydatexmex.com
Reservations.. .. .never required
Vegetarians.. .. .. as long as you're not vegan
Bathrooms .. .. .. .could be cleaner
Kid Friendly.. .. ..yes
Hours.. .. .. .. .. .. .. mon-thurs 11 - 10, fri-sat 11 - 11, sun 4 - 9
Dress Code.. .. .. .. casual
Parking.. .. .. .. .. .. ..ample
Wheelchair Access..yes
Credit Cards.. .. .. .. visa, mastercard, american express, discover
Recommended:
Yes
Kid Friendliness: Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
Best Suited For: Friends
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Epinions.com ID:
carnut2k4
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Member: Jason
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Muscle Shoals has got The Swampers
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