Paraiso Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Arlington

Ok kids! LISTEN UP! You’ve gotten through Customs at the Can-Am border and you’re headed home. But you realize you’re STARVING!! If you like really good, authentic Mexican food, (and if you have a designated driver…), pull over in Smokey Point and drive straight to Paraiso!!!

This is a family owned and operated fabulous Mexican restaurant. My first test is to taste the salsa and refried beans. If they pass my test, I’ll stay. Paraiso passed with flying colors. I wanted a really good Margarita made with fresh lime juice. Mine was perfect ( and I couldn’t have driven after just one.) 😳. THANK YOU, Mr Benjamin!!

My husband ordered chicken enchiladas, I got the prawn fajitas. He said his were very good, mine were excellent: perfectly cooked prawns with sautéed onions and green peppers, 4 hot flour tortillas, served with sour cream and guacamole, and a side of beans and Mexican rice, Yum!

The only thing that could benefit from improvement, for me, is the guacamole. It doesn’t have that chunky, fresh texture with a little zip from fresh lime juice and fresh jalapeños. It was more like a pasty, smooth texture that felt and tasted like something less than Mama’s family recipe,

Really really delicious Mexican food is such a treat! I have yet to find a place this good anywhere in Seattle! And no bar I know of can beat that Skinny Margarita!!

Tip: there are tables in the bar. Next time I’d love to sit at the bar and pick the owner’s brain! They are running a fabulous place. And he’s hilarious, which is just another bonus!!

Don’t miss this place! Paraiso is paradise!!

PS: if you get the chance, sit in Lalo’s area. He can manage a full room all by himself! And he’s a really good guy, too.

UPDATE: We stopped by again tonight. Tried the carne asada and the burritos. Again, everything was truly awesome!! And the Margarita was just as perfect as I thought it was.

Paraiso has 3 different seating areas: 2 main rooms and seating in the bar. It’s not too noisy, it was nice and cool on a very hot evening, and this family run restaurant had it all: great food, terrific people, and nice ambiance! Oh! And did I mention the...

Edit: still a very disappointing experience. Burrito was not good and tasted very watery inside. They still try to give you pico when you sit down, I asked if it was extra and I declined it. I saw the waiter set down two others on tables and not mention an extra charge. A person in my party asked if they give a military discount to the lady refilling drinks, she said yes and I heard her tell our waiter. The bill came and when asked about it he just said no. We paid cash but we're still charged the card fee. Not worth asking him for a new bill. Not friendly service at all. I do not want to come here again.

Disappointing experience. When first seated they will bring you chips and as they're setting a small saucer of pico on your table they'll ask if you want it so I said sure. At the end they add over $3 on to your bill for it. There was no mention of a charge when they pur it on your table. It would have felt weird to say no and make them take it back to the kitchen so you just kind of agree without knowing they are going to be charging. It thought it came with it because it came out with the chips and we didn't order it. It seemed very back handed and shady. They also have a bunch of candy up by the register and charge $1 for a sucker. They add 3.7% on to your total for using a credit card. There is no mention of this except for a small sign near the register. It took a very long time to pay. Food was okay but everything else was so...

I ordered the steak fajitas, what they brought me was oversalted sizzling shoe leather with peppers and onions. One of my pieces of steak was a big piece of grizzle. I was surprised a chef would send that out on a plate. The salsa tasted like it was out of a can; watery, lacked favor and no heat. Chips were good. The pico they brought with the salsa was fresh but oversalted. The refried beans and rice lacked flavor and tasted like it was a few days old. The tortillas, if you can call them that, were paper thin and undercooked. You could tell they grabbed them out of a bag and thru them in the microwave to heat them. If you're going to use bagged tortillas at least put them on a Comal to cook them a little. Service was good until we were at the end of our meal. Different waitresses kept coming to our table asking, "are you done with that" while pointing to the dish. Clearing the table as we were still dining, making me feel rushed. I think we were sitting by the kitchen because they kept walking past our table with huge dishwasher racks filled with dishes. When I asked for separate tickets the waitress curled her lip like it was an inconvenience. Word of advice, clean the table when your patrons are done dining and not before. The only time that is acceptable is when you need to clear a dish to make room for more. Having grown up in the Southwest, this place give's Mexican...