La Reyna: The Most Authentic Local Mexican Cuisine

On Saturday night, my friend and I ventured to La Reyna, a local grocery store and restaurant. Having eaten at many other Mexican restaurants throughout Iowa City, and being disappointed with almost all of them, I did not have high hopes for La Reyna. I was delightfully surprised.

The restaurant is located on Iowa City’s Southeast side on Keokuk Street, across the street from Pizza Hut and K-Mart. La Reyna is tucked away in a small store front. The grocery store and the restaurant are connected, separated only by a small entrance room. The restaurant itself is very small and cannot seat more than thirty people, which was to my liking.

When I arrived with my friend, the restaurant was crowded, and we had to wait for a table. The waiter, who we would later find out to be the owner, brought us a menu and we ordered a beer and relaxed comfortably outside the main dining room until a table was open. The restaurant offers a wide variety of Mexican beers, but that is the extent of their alcohol. No margaritas or tequila.

When my friend and I were shown to our table, entering the dining room revealed how small the restaurant really was. There are only about 12 tables, and the kitchen is not too far off the dining room. The waitress brought us chips and salsa, as well as another round of beer, and she suggested, being as it was our first time in the restaurant, that we try the guacamole. We gave in to her recommendation, and she told us it would be about 10 minutes while it was prepared. Inquiring as to why it would take so long, the waitress told us that all the food is prepared fresh each day, including the tortillas, guacamole, vegetables, and meat.

The guacamole was delicious. The freshness of the avocadoes, the tomatoes, and the onion went great with the salsa. Unlike other Mexican restaurants in Iowa City, the guacamole did not arrive at the restaurant in a large can, but, instead, it was prepared fresh to order, just as it should be.

The dinner menu is limited, but the available choices should suit any patron. After much deliberation, I ordered the Enchiladas. My friend ordered the Tampiquena, which was green peppers, tomatoes, onions, and melted cheese, served over a skirt-steak. The restaurant also offered fajitas, chiles, carne asada, tamales, tacos, and poblanas peppers. All of the entrees include rice and beans. The prices are very reasonable, my enchiladas were only $6.99, and a lot of food is provided.

When our food came to the table, I could see, and smell, the freshness and quality of the food. Unlike other Mexican restaurants, I could taste the freshness in the corn tortillas. The tortillas were also dipped in La Reyna’s special souce, and they were delicious. The chicken was marinated and was sautéed to perfection. The rice and beans were hot and they did not have a crust over the top of them, showing me that they were just prepared.

For dessert, we ordered the house special, Flan, which is kind of like Mexican custard. It was served with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and a cherry, and it was a great end to the meal. Overall the service was wonderful. The owner came up to our table numerous times to make sure we approved of our meal. He told us that his wife, along with one other woman, cook all the food each night. We gave our compliments to the chef and told the man we would be back soon, and we definitely will.