Red Iguana

Reviews 3

CH

Chris Smith

OK, so I know that this is the most popular Mexican restaurant in the greater Salt Lake area and it was very good, but I was just in California two weeks ago and I liked all three of the Mexican restaurants where we ate there better. I realize this is subjective but they were all glorious. I ate here a few years ago and wasnt overly impressed. I saw it on Diners Drive-Ins and Dives and decided to give it a try during a trip to visit family and friends in UT. It was good but I didnt think it was spectacular. My wife tried it on a business trip a couple of months ago and she really liked it a lot and insisted we eat here. I could have taken it or left it. My assessment remains the same as it was seven years ago. In addition, my wife was with me in CA and had that memory fresh in her mind so this time around, she was less impressed. There was a ridiculous wait for a Tuesday evening but we went with some close friends and took the time to chat and catch up. I would have been far more irritated if we hadnt been with our friends. Our sever wasnt particularly friendly or personable but she was probably exhausted from the constant flow of customers. I had the two carne asada burrito plate, a shredded beef tostada and we all shared a shrimp quesadilla. The standout was definitely the quesadilla. It was magically delicious. It had just the right amount of cheese and a lot of large shrimp. If you can get shrimp into every bite, Im impressed. The Carne Asada burritos were tasty but very dry. I dont care for pico de gallo so I just dumped the salsa that came with the chips on them and that was pretty good. They could have used more cheese and maybe a dollop of sour cream on the side. Less impressive was the shredded beef tostada. It was good, I guess but I would have preferred carne asada and that wasnt offered as an option. My wife had the fish tacos, which she had really liked during her previous visit but she didnt like them as much this time around. I tried a bite and didnt like them at all. I love fish tacos but if you dont bread the fish, it tastes very dry, which is what happened here. It also tasted "fishy" which is a fail when preparing fish no matter what the dish. Everyone goes on about the mole. I tried it last time and it didnt really blow my skirt up. I watched them make it on Triple D and they throw a few avant garde ingredients in there. I dont know why, but this has always been a turn off for me. I hate carrot cake and zucchini bread for this very reason. I love zucchini carrots, cake and bread on their own but not together. Anyone who has seen the movie, The Help and remembers the "special chocolate pie" served to "Two Slice" Hilly knows that you can make anything palatable with enough sugar and thats all I can think off when I eat that kind of stuff. If you want to put chocolate in your mole, Ill pass. If youre in Salt Lake and you want the best in town, this is a solid contender. I would eat here again but only if I was with someone who insisted on it. I know that we have even slimmer pickings for good Mexican food in WA so maybe if I hadnt just gotten back from CA, this would have been incredible but my objectivity was readjusted based on recent experiences.

DO

Donald Sparks

READ THIS ONE!.... To give you an idea what you can expect upon arrival for one is a long wait. However that is not the problem I had with this place. First impressions of staff were to say the least a very rude inbred white girl with an attitude that should have turned me away immediately. The hostess stand is OUTSIDE right off a main street with transients walking by every five minutes to bother you. May be the reason why she is rarely at her post, that or the fact it is freezing outside.... Oh did I mention they make you wait outside, In the freezing cold for more than a thirty minute wait. Oh and get this, not only will you wait outside but if your whole party is not with you ( which I was waiting on two girls) they will not give you a table. So there I am waiting outside well over TWENTY MINUTES after there was no one left outside in line any more, just waiting cause Im missing two out of five of my party watching three parties of five walk right in simply because they were all there. I told the hostess to be quite honest this is b.s. . So she got me a manager, another outstanding member of the staff who seemed to be as retarded as the next guy and so on. This unfortunately short man would still not grant me a table. So I exchanged a few very pleasant words with him and took myself to a better restaurant which really wasnt hard to do. I have had their food before. I am from Arizona and trust me I know authentic mexican food. And trust me it is just as good as any hole in the wall. Nothing special about it. Their quality has obviously takin a real DIVE since their appearance on diners and dives... if you want real mexican food find a carneceria with a little restaurant in it and try some little nanitas red or green chili. Very few places in utah what so ever understand spice and flavor. Its a real hard one for them to get here in utah for some reason. A road side diner off the freeway called VIRGS has way better mexican food than red iguana does lol.

AN

Ana Manila

I went to the Red Iguana because it was one of the restaurant on our list for my culture project. I also did a bit of online research I read all the positive feedback made me want to try it. When I first walked in it was pretty packed but, nonetheless the hostess greeted me and had me seated with in 2 minutes. The environment it very homey and I was very impressed with their speedy kind service. The waiter Jesus brought out water, chips and salsa, I loved it! Im picky about water and the water was clean and crisp & I must say the salsa was the best Ive ever had! I ordered the Mole Verde with chicken and it comes with frijoles, Spanish rice and your choice of flour or corn tortillas, I went with the corn tortillas. It wasnt at all what I had expected you can taste the juiciness of the chicken, smothered in the beautiful mole sauce paired with the sweetness of the plantain banana. Just talking about it again makes me hungry all over again. The sides of the beans and Spanish rice with corn tortillas was just the right amount to go with this dish. Im shocked I finished all of my sides because I dont eat beans but, the way it was cooked was excelente!! I am very surprised because Ive been to Mexican restaurants and have had food poisoning, it wasnt a very pleasant experience. I trusted the hundreds of reviews of people who came to this place. The food made me feel as if I were part of the family even if it was for an hour or so. I would imagine this is the real authentic Mexican food served daily in their culture. I made the brave decision to try this restaurant because I didnt want to judge a culture based on a few mishaps that I encountered in the past. Im so happy to say now I know an awesome Mexican restaurant I can definitely recommend to family and friends. Thank you for giving me a world class experience!