Even though Eugene is more than 1,000 miles away from Mexico, it has a fair amount of “authentic” Mexican eateries to visit when craving a little south-of-the-border comida. Problem is, authentic doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing as deliciosa. (OK, that’s the last of the Spanglish, I promise).
While it won’t conjure up images of dining on the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Chapala Mexican Restaurant offers adequate food at near-reasonable prices. There are two Chapalas in Eugene: one in Oakway Center, the other at 68 W. 29th Ave., just west of Willamette Street. The 29th Avenue Chapala is the only one of the two that accepts the 20 percent-off coupon from the Student Survival Kit, which makes it at least 20 percent better than the Oakway one.
The decor of the 29th Avenue restaurant is quaint: Mexican murals and Diego Rivera paintings, bright colors and wooden benches in the lobby. The friendly employees greet guests as “amigos,” and many of the exchanges between customer and food server are interjected with Spanish terms. I still don’t know what the busser said to us, but he smiled a lot and brought a basket of warm chips and a dish of fresh salsa.
We started off with the cheese quesadilla: two flour tortillas “stuffed” with Monterey Jack and cheddar cheeses, onions, tomatoes and mild green chiles. While it was stuffed with cheese, the rest of the ingredients were on the sparse side. It was served with guacamole, which was fresh but bland, and
sour cream.
If uber-speedy service is a must, Chapala makes the grade. Hot on the heels of the quesadilla’s arrival came the meal. While it was nice not having to wait for the food, it’s difficult to enjoy the appetizer when the entrée is rapidly cooling next to it. The waitress embodied this spirit of swiftness, as well. Her visits were frequent, but they averaged about 5 seconds and consisted mostly of: “How is everything, amigos?” Pause for 0.5 seconds. “Good.” And off she was, toting scorching-hot plates of food.
One thing Chapala has going for it is the extensive vegetarian menu. While some restaurants offer one or two vegetarian dishes that usually consist of meat dishes that have the meat removed, Chapala serves a variety of authentic meat-free food. The vegetarian enchiladas were tasty but small. Two corn tortillas are “stuffed” with fresh vegetables and covered with jack cheese and Mexican salsa. Again, stuffed is a relative term. While the tortillas did have a variety of vegetables inside of them, they were neither packed in tightly nor crammed, as the dictionary would have us believe they should have been. The restaurant also has tofu tacos, veggie fajitas and spinach tamales and enchiladas.
The chicken taquitos, on the other hand, while billed as merely “filled” with chicken and jack cheese, were stuffed. The chicken was tender and the two large flour tortillas were fried crisply. While chicken, cheese, tortilla may not seem like much, the taquitos were delicious.
For dessert, Chapala offers traditional Mexican favorites such as fried ice cream and sopapilla. We ordered ice cream nachos: special tortilla chips covered with cinnamon, sugar, honey, whipped cream and chocolate sauce, and topped with an obscenely monstrous scoop of vanilla ice cream. Even though we felt self-conscious when the waitress put the dish down, we still ate it. The things we do for the sake of journalism. Despite the omnipresence of sugar, the dish, as most Mexican desserts are, wasn’t overly sweet. It was a nice way to top off the meal.
Prices range from around $5 to $12.95 – not so cheap that college students could live there and not so expensive that only a visit from the folks could justify dinner. A la carte items are available for around $3 to $4. The 20-percent-off coupon includes all food except take-out orders. Alcohol, alas, is not included.
Chapala has a full bar and a variety of zingy margaritas in gigantic glasses that would make adequate homes for gold fish. Even though no alcohol was consumed on this particular visit, other people were drinking, and they seemed to enjoy it. The 29th Avenue Chapala recently opened a new cocktail lounge complete with a granite-style bar top and flat-screen TV.
While the restaurant’s food was good, it wasn’t great. It does hit the mark for being “authentic,” though, and it is worth a visit if you’re looking for something more than Taco Bell. And with the vastness of the menu, diners have ample choices to find something they like.
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