Alebrijes Kitchen — Restaurant in Seattle

I rely on Google maps reviews to make decisions about where to dine out. I am really surprised that this place is getting 5 star reviews on Google Maps. The food I had was really bad. I don't like to give bad reviews, but this place is not as good as the other 5 star reviewers suggest. The salsa tastes like watered down sour cream with watered down tomato puree with a lot of cayenne or other pepper. It leave your mouth tingly, but that is it. I do not think I have ever had worse "salsa sauce" even Taco Bell has better salsa. 😔 The house margarita tasted mostly like bottled "sour mix" that you can get cheap at restaurant supply stores. Not worth the $12 price! Where is the tequila?😔 The guacamole tasted like lemon juice or citrus powder. It was served really cold, like they just pulled it out of the restaurant supply store premade mix and served it with a topping of chopped underripe tomatoes. The tomatos were so underripe the tomatos had no flavor and are white inside. Not worth the price! 😔 The pork enchiladas meat was really bland and so overcooked that it lacked moisture. The other problem was that the meals at our table came out 15 apart. The waitress kept asking the kitchen for our enchilada, so I think the kitchen just through the pork on the plate microwaved the whole plate rather than preparing it regularly. It was served so hot that it was inedible. We had it put in a to-go box and it was still too hot to eat when when we left the restaurant.😔 *The wait service was well intentioned, but really poorly executed. Nothing came out in order. We ordered drinks and appetizers and 15 minutes later, no food or cocktails had arrived, but the waitress came by and asked for our main course orders. The waitress kept coming by after that and suggesting our apps and drinks were coming which was very awkward. It was not a good feeling. I felt bad for the waitress, but, this is not how I want to spend my evening. The main course meals came out 15 minutes apart. It is really awkward to sit with food in front of you while other people have none. I sat and waited, but by the time the other main course arrived, my food was cool. I would not give this place a 2nd chance. It was...

Holy cow. More like, holy spirit animal, just go there already!

I was tired, still working, starving and needed real sustenance. I was driving by and saw a small place with a lot of cars. I was praying for takeout, and the person who greeted me said they had that!

The place is warm and cozy, was filled with families having fun and clearly enjoying their meals and each other. A very happy vibe here.

I ordered the Enchiladas Verdes. Simple, fast, and will hold well.

What I got may be the best enchiladas I've ever eaten. I am a big fan of foods south of the border, middle and South America. I even worked at a Mexican restaurant, I love this food. Yes, the best enchiladas I've ever had.

I went with the chicken, it was tender, so moist, seasoned perfectly, with so many amazing flavors. Smoky, a little cinnamon (cardamon?) a little chili, a little cumin, the occasional burst of sweetness, like citrus. It made them light and tasty. The tortillas, I'm willing to bet one of their desserts, those tortillas were fresh, made right there or here in town. They were not commercially made tortillas. They were fluffy and full of flavor on their own. Only homemade tortillas taste like love.

I am so happy right now. Like genuinely happy.

The black beans were to die for, creamy and subtle. Honestly, I wolfed them down, I usually don't.

An awesome part was the fresh, not frozen, potatoes and carrots. Roasted, with crispy bottoms just starting to caramelize. Like... In cast iron roasted, you know? Crispy, the potato tops melting into a soft explosion in your mouth? Yes!

Fresh, real guacamole, and I swear, the cook, they are psychic. I thought to myself as I ordered the guac "maybe with a little pico on top?" And promptly ignored my little voice, saying not to be greedy.

Imagine my surprise when I opened the container, wonderful, fresh, Pico de Gallo crowning the guacamole like it belonged there.

My tummy is beside itself with joy, my mind is loaded up with all those feel good chemicals (I am totally in love). I'm stuffed, giddy and I'm not sharing my leftovers.

I can't even imagine eating anywhere else when I feel the need for honest, authentic, heritage food. This is the food of...

I am genuinely confused on how this place has been rated so highly. Including being given best new restaurant of 2023 and a 9.3 rating by infatuation.

Service was fine and atmosphere was good. The drinks were decent but nothing to write home about friend got the sangria and I had the house margarita which had pomegranate juice in it which I thought was an interesting choice not necessarily bad but somewhat weird.

Starting with the food. The complementary chips and salsa we received were unremarkable. The chips were two different types one yellow corn and the other one lighter possibly flour? The salsa was extremely thin and very watery; it also used green onion which was very strange. Both began the trend of our dinner by being completely under seasoned.

I ordered the same enchiladas rojas with roasted pork and my friend ordered the quesabirria. These dishes followed the trend of the chips and salsa and were also very under seasoned. Both dishes felt like the cook was afraid to use too much salt. The “birria” tasted just like someone slow cooked a pot roast with a hint of salt. There were no discernible flavors of chile topically found in a traditional birria as well as being completely under salted. The enchiladas were fine but the sauce again had the same issues as being under salted and not enough chile flavor. The roasted pork inside them was again pretty flavorless and dry in some bites. The crema and massive amounts of cheese on top helped to make them more palatable but could only go so far in hiding the dishes weakness. The enchiladas were also served with potatoes which again were underseasoned and felt like they were just boiled.

Overall extremely disappointed with the meal. I had much higher expectations for this place upon reading the reviews, especially from reputable professional food critics. I honestly have made much more tasty and flavorful enchiladas, birria, and salsa at home. I would recommend people to honestly pass on this restaurant if they are looking for traditional mexican food and look somewhere south in the burien white...