Rio Grande Restaurant — Restaurant in The Dalles

They've just opened, finally, after months of teasing us. I've been four times now and this is a combined review.

On my second visit i only ordered beans and rice, which were acceptable, nothing special. $6 is too much for even the best beans and rice.. it's beans.. and rice!

My first visit was more varied. I ordered a taco, a tamale, and horchata. First the bad. The tamale has almost no filling. It was a most absurdly overpriced small piece of boiled cornbread. The horchata was good, as expected.

The taco was very tasty, very filling, good price to quality balance, but... i've been buying street tacos, or the local equivalent (food carts, bodegas, etc.) for a long while and they always come with two tortillas, always! Then because they're always messy, i dump half the filling into the second tortilla for ease of eating. Bottom line though, good quality and value.

Now for the good.. they've made some of the best salsa i've every had. It's on the consumerist side, a little sweet, but omg delicious. If they were selling it, i'd be buying it. Luckily, chips (homemade?) and salsa (homemade!) are free with your visit. Do try to leave room for food.

Bottom line, how do you trust a Mexican restaurant that does a bad tamale? How could you not trust a Mexican restaurant that makes the best salsa?

The food is good quality and because they're new i'll forgive any minor discrepancies, but a meh tamale is not minor! The service was impeccable on my first visit and ordinary on the second.

It's a small family-owned place with decent prices. I'm looking forward to seeing how they develop as they settle in. I'll be back!

edit: third visit

I sort of messed up today and spent $35. I ordered my usual; "surprise me" and went all-in today, except for an appetizer. I'm not saying the price is unreasonable but it's something most people should be aware of, it can add up fast here.

This is a family affair restaurant, which is a bonus, and the more i'm there the better i notice the atmosphere. Nice decorating, familia.

I got a cantarita which is a margarita i think, a little sour for my taste, served in a fancy mug which is interesting but awkward. It was not particularly strong. The salsa, as always, was amazing.

My entrée was Las Tres Hermanas which is three chicken enchiladas, i think. Maybe they were burritos, with rice and beans. I don't know the terminology. Nothing special to report. The quality, taste, texture were all fine. One nice element is a chip covered with cheese as a garnish for the rice. Nice touch. Is that local to somewhere?

Now we get to the desert. That was the second way i messed up. I should have left more room. The surprise dessert was homemade cheesecake. Omg delicious. It could be better with a thicker crust and more than a token slice of strawberry, but that is not a complaint. It' was a very very very good slice of cheesecake.

My third mistake was forgetting my doggie box. C'est la vie.

Fourth visit: just Just tacos today, still expensive, still good. But now they come with two tortillas like a proper street taco usually does, so it comes off as four little tacos instead of two expensive ones, which is how i justify buying them wherever. They still aren't selling their salsa separately. Tell them i said they should. ...

First I will share about our amazing well more like outstanding customer service experience before I share about how yummy the food was. My husband misplaced his wallet and thought he had left it there. But couldn’t find it. So they asked for his phone number just in case and sure enough it was left there. Just in a spot where we sat that he didn’t see. But we don’t live in the area and already had left. They went above and beyond to help us out with it though. And they were so genuine and kind about it. Never came across annoyed or like we were an inconvenience for them. Not at all. They treated us like family. They deserve more than 5 stars for just that alone! Now for the food, oh so good!! We shared the shrimp fajitas and the restaurants we have gone to before it comes out on the sizzling skillet, with a plate having the fixings for it. Well this wasn’t like that at all. It was all on one plate together and it was incredible. The sauce that the shrimp and veggies were in was seriously delish and had a slight kick. Not to where you’re needing to chug a soda or something to cut the heat by any means. Just enough of a kick it was perfect. I would order the shrimp fajitas again for sure and go back just for how...

Decently solid Mexican food. Complimentary chips and salsa are tasty. And it is salsa not pico de gallo. With a fair amount of sneaky heat. It was about four or five chips in before I noticed it, somewhere between a mild and medium. I ordered the Burrito De Adobada. The black beans and rice were fairly standard. The marinated chicken was well done, a hint of vinegary goodness without being overpowering. The verde sauce was tasty and the guacamole was exceptional. Entree, drink and tip I was out for $25. I didn’t feel overcharged for what I got but neither do I feel that I got a little extra bang for my buck. The dining room is split in half. The half that faces the kitchen will get you good service simply because that’s where the waitstaff hang out so there gonna see when you need something. The half that faces the entrance, not so much. Out of sight - out of mind. I didn’t feel ignored but I could tell tables on the other side were getting just a bit...