Sierra Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Gates

First, let me preface this by saying that my husband and I hadn't been to Sierra Mexican Restaurant in Gates, Oregon since they reopened from the fires. We loved it when we visited before.

We returned today and were so happy to see that they were busy! The redesign of the interior looks so nice and the bar area is spacious. Booths were filled and the restaurant was bustling.

As always, we were incredibly impressed by the staff. They are friendly and attentive, and service is quick. They know how to make a fine margarita, too!

Prices were quite reasonable, and I found that we definitely got our money's worth.

I ordered their house special with 3 enchiladas with sour cream sauce. I made sure to get one of each type of meat (ground beef, carne asada, and chicken). The special comes with rice and refried beans, and the portion of food that you get is quite enough to make two or three meals out of it. Everything on my plate was flavorful and exactly what I wanted! The sour cream sauce is creamy, with a decent amount of spices added. They topped the enchiladas with the sauce, lettuce, and sour cream. Each enchilada was packed nicely with a good amount of meat. And that cheese! 😍 Perfectly melted and did the perfect stringy stretch with each bite. Definitely a plate I will revisit!

If you're ever out this way, I highly recommend stopping in and visiting this little gem...

Everyone was friendly, but the service, food, and drinks were terrible.

To start, the margaritas were surprisingly small, sickeningly sweet, and didn't taste like they had any tequlia in them at all -- everyone had to buy an additional shot to make them even palatable. I ended up ordering a simple tequila and tonic, but that seemed to confuse the entire staff as it took about 30 minutes and me asking 3 times before I finally got a drink.

As for food, every Mexican restaurant I've ever been to provides you with free chips and salsa, but Sierra charged us for each basket of chips. When I finally got the carne asada I ordered, it tasted ok, but was like chewing on shoe leather. They also advertised guacamole as a main feature of the dish, but when it came out, there was really only enough to cover two or three bites.

As a side note -- reading the menu, we immediately noticed the "Pollo ala Diabla" was listed as chicken, Clamato and ketchup. Even if that was delicious (and I have my doubts), it sounds disgusting and was an indicator to me of the quality of the food.

Overall, it was one of the worst Mexican food experiences I've ever had...bad enough to write a review, anyway. I don't go that way often, but I would not eat there again. I gave them 2 stars just because they seemed like...

Walked into this place on a referral. Was skeptical based on the outdoor appearance. The inside was welcoming, modern, clean and classy. The family owned restaurant made us feel like family. Nothing but smiles and kind gestures even though we came in after they were already closed by our mistake.

Their salsa made the my husband smile and continuously say it was the best in the area, including Salem! When the food arrived promptly we were both blown away. Never had we tasted such a perfect combination of heat and spices. My plate was creamy and flavorful the way I never knew camarones a la crema could be. Even the rice and beans stood far above it's competitors. Most and firm without being dry or overly mushy.

We ended our night fairly quickly to be considerate of their time even though they insisted we not rush, but we both agreed that after 15 years, we have found our new favorite Mexican restaurant. This referral proved to not disappoint. Will definitely be back for great service, relaxing environment and...