We originally headed downtown for the Latin Festival at City Hall, but it rained hard during the day that there wasn’t much to see?. To stay with the theme, we picked out a highly rated Mexican restaurant near Byward Market – Ahora.
After I stepped down an ordinary flight of stairs, I walked into this extremely vibrant nook with Hispanic music in the background. I felt like I entered the Coco movie. Love the ambience!?
So, you order at the counter and pay first, then the waiter will bring your food to the table. They have a self-serve water jug and salsa bar in one corner. Who doesn’t love an unlimited self-serve bar? There were a few choices of hot sauces and toppings. I filled up on the pickled jalapenos.✌
I got Burrito Grande with steak and a side of salad because that was their most popular choice in the burrito section. (please ignore my oily face?). The salad was dressed in light olive oil, I think? The lettuce salad was topped with a few slices of pepper, 1 slice of tomato and 2 slices of cucumbers. A little stingy with the toppings? My burrito was fairly loose. I would say the burrito maker here wasn’t as skillful as the burrito maker in Chipotle. The burrito was tasty though. It had lots of fillings – beans, rice, lettuce, guacamole, and steak. The steak bits were yummy, but I wish they were more juicy or tender. I haven’t had many authentic Mexican burritos, so I am probably not the best judge of it. But in my opinion, I prefer Chipotle’s burrito?, even though I know it is a commercialized chain restaurant that may be far from authentic Mexican cuisine.
B had the Enchilada de carne with a side of rice and beans. The tomato rice was quite flavourful and the beans were a bit salty for me. B thought the steak filled enchilada was simple, good, authentic Mexican food, although he has definitely had better. Well, with Mexico right under them, the States must have mastered a few secret Mexican cooking tricks up their sleeves. And so of course, B would have tried better Mexican restaurant.
We came in 5:15pm and the restaurant was empty then. But people started pouring in soon after. I guess it was dinner time as well. Around 5:45pm, it was packed with people waiting on the stairs. I’d like to think that we bring the crowd with us.? Anyways, being packed was a sign of popularity. They stated on their website that they are “Ottawa’s best Mexican restaurant”, but the food did not convince me. However, if judging solely on the interior decor, I would say they are the best.
Ahora
307 Dalhousie St.
Ottawa
Burrito grande – $9.75
Enchilada de carne – $13.95