Horizons Online Edition

Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: Reviews

Media Credit: Andrew Michael

Media Credit: Andrew Michael Casa Alvarez Mexican Food restaurant, located at 810 White Spar Road, Prescott, serves excellent Sonoran food with great service in a cozy environment.

Nothing makes me crave a big bowl of pasta more than cold weather. Seeming as how Prescott recently experienced the closest thing to a blizzard it ever shall, I was really jonesing for some sort of Italian paradise. By word of mouth, I learned of Papa's Italian Restaurant. Unfortunately, Andy and I got lost when looking for Papa's. The reason? It was as closed as a Haitian hospital. 

Not all is lost, though, for we found an alternate restaurant and an alternate genre: Casa Alvarez and Mexican Food. 

The great thing about Mexican cuisine is that it comes in three types, so Mexican food is essentially three different food genres. In the East is found the Gulf/Yucatan style Mexican food, a medley of fresh flavors that explode in your mouth. In the West, you get Baja, another light style associated with the beach. Last but not least, from the high deserts of Mexico, comes Casa Alvarez' food style: Sonoran. 

I'm a big fan of all three Mexican styles, but Sonoran is the one I grew up with, my favorite. If a cook does Sonoran right, the heavily-flavored, stark tastes of beef and different chiles paint the palate a deep red like the style's signature sauces. Casa Alvarez' cook does it right. 

For about ten dollars, I had a chile relleno and a beef enchilada. The relleno was authentic, made with the right chile, and the beef in the enchilada was cooked slowly with chile, not ground up and fried with some powdered seasoning. This place doesn't pretend to be Mexican, it is Mexican. However, the food gets only four and a half stars. It was authentic, but not phenomenal. 

What's more, Alvarez isn't some dinky taco shop, it's an actual restaurant. It's not noisy; it's cozy and clean. You could take a date there or go there with a few friends to enjoy great food and some drinks. 

As for service, it was pretty great. I really had no complaints about my waitresses, and I usually do, so no complaints equals a four star trait. 

If you're looking for somewhere to go enjoy the tastes of the high desert, or you're not sure how the high desert tastes, you should check out Casa Alvarez; they do it right, there.

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