Allan's Authentic Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Beaverton

Let me start with the good. The wait staff was friendly, I enjoyed the tequila flight and we got seated right away after being ignored for the first 5 minutes. I overheard who I believe was the manager or owner say he was just babysitting his staff.

Picked this place after looking at the photos and the relatively good rating. Granted, we went for Cinco de Mayo, and they said they were busy. Now let me get into it.

Uncomfortable chairs; flimsy plastic table tops that slide around; wobbly tables that shift every time you touch them or rested an elbow. The margaritas were weak. When our drinks came, I asked about the tequila shots I ordered. The waitress said they were working on them. I don't understand how its faster to make a mixed drink then to pour a shot. I think she forgot, and didn't want to admit it.

First time I've had pureed salsa - not very good. Had to ask twice for a kid's menu; ordered a grilled cheese with the bacon on the side for my son. The waitress said that's not on the menu. However it was, and I showed her.

After we ordered we waited an hour, then ordered a second round of margaritas. I saw a couple walk out then came in shortly after us without eating.

About 75 minutes later our food finally came out of the kitchen. They brought my wife the wrong plate, and waited another 5 minutes for our son's food to come out. They said they were working on the bacon. My wife's plate got corrected, and the tacos came out smothered in cheese. Her rice looked yellow whereas my rice (undercooked) looked red. I ordered the carne asada fajitas. I don't think the meat was a skirt steak, nor was it marinated or seasoned. It was also over cooked. The sour cream was a liquid soup, the tortilla bowl was soggy and the guacamole was half brown.

Another table of 3 people walked out before their food came shortly after we started eating. I think they heard me say we waited over an hour for our food. The staff was running around like headless chickens - overwhelmed, stressed out and unorganized. They even had to make their own drinks for their tables.

The waitress asked how the food was. And I said no one was happy with their food. She said sorry. No one in management consoled us, and we left. Still waiting on the bacon...

On the flip side they did have some habanero sauce, but it wasn't the slightest bit spicy. They truly need to up their game in my opinion. Will...

First off, let me just start by saying this... Finally a good Mexican restaurant in Oregon. We moved up here 5 years ago from LA and one of the things we miss the most is flavorful Mexican food. Finally my brother in law suggests this place about a week or two ago. We've been there 3 times since.

The fajitas are to die for. They're not super spicy but seasoned so well and very flavorful. While the portion sizes are more on the medium size with beans, rice, peppers, etc. They do not skimp on the shrimp or on the meat in general. In fact they more than makeup for it on the amount of shrimp they give you. Their chips and salsa are also very good. Again, not too spicy but very flavorful. And if you want spicy they have this burrito called the "Diablo" which I'm told is about the spiciest burrito on the planet. In fact they are famous for it.

Margaritas? Yes, please. Best margaritas I think I've ever had. The owner apparently is all about customizing incredible drinks. No packet mixes here only good alcohol and real fruit.

But I think one of the best aspects of the place is the service. Always with a smile and they even box up your leftovers for you. That's a nice little extra as most places just hand you a box and leave you fending for yourself. Katie is always there to greet and take care of us. We must be lucky to always show up when she's there as she always treats us almost like family and is always offering up a good tale about the history of the place. It is people like her that really make a place like "Allan's" extra special.

If I had to find something to nitpick it's that they do nickel and dime you for things like extra tortillas, or substituting cheese and sour creme for extra guacamole. Even getting a kids shrimp taco. We had to order 2 (not 1) and pay the extra charge for shrimp which made it more of a costly kids plate. Some places do that and I get it, I just wish things like a couple of extra tortillas were inclusive in the price. But again I'm nitpicking and the pros are definitely worth the few cons.

So in conclusion a well deserved 5 stars for food and...

The presentation of the food is top-notch however the flavor is disappointing. My dish was so salty it had no other Discerning flavor ,the flavor of salt overwhelmed every other possible taste it literally tasted like Brine. This over salty flavor is very concerning because often times when someone is serving rotten meat they will soak it in salt water to try to disguise meat that has turned bad. I certainly hope that is not what they've done and I won't get sick in a few hours. Everything was served very attractively so that just led to the disappointment. The salsa was some kind of strange red sauce. more like a ketchup and less like a salsa. The service was also not up to standard, it took a very long time to get water we had already ordered are dinners and been served chips before we received a single glass of water. Multiple servers in this restaurant where Kurt and abrupt , if you said thank you they wouldn't say you're welcome they wouldn't acknowledge it at all , they were just basically rude and lacking of all manners. My fried ice cream was previously prepared, most likely in a factory someplace,( not made on site not fresh) the churros that were served with it we're actually Belgium waffles ,they were soggy and lacking any texture it was just a complete Miss. The total for a meal for two people was $54. And to be honest I feel that this is overpriced especially considering the quality of the food I can honestly say if you were to compare it to Taco Bell Taco Bell would get more stars. This place is definitely not authentic! Reviews claiming that this is authentic Mexican food are not an authentic reviews, maybe friends ....? Sorry but this place is just a miss and honestly a...