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La Malinche is one of El Paso’s “classic” restaurants, having been in operation for as long as I can remember and probably many years before that. There are three restaurants in the city; this one is on the west side at Doniphan and Sunland Park (just a couple of blocks west of La Malinche is the State Line Restaurant which straddles the Texas-New Mexico border). My older reviews state that the food does not vary much between the different locations, but that I liked the west side restaurant because it had a larger dining room that I found more comfortable than the others. Now I honestly do not remember the food at the other restaurants, but I have enough confidence in my earlier memories to say that it is about the same at all three restaurants.

In my early reviews I stated that La Malinche had a homey atmosphere and food that tasted as if someone made it in their own home. Now that I have other resources to consult such as Yelp I find that many other people are making this same type of comment about the home made food. I would say that by definition this is probably simple food–nothing too fancy or that is meant to dazzle people with their innovative recipes. Instead it is straightforward food that stands the test of time.

Over the years I have tried a number of items here, but by the time I published the first review my go-to items were narrowed down to red enchiladas, chile rellenos, and entomatadas. I usually went for the entomatadas because I could not find any others in town that were as good. I also really liked the horchata, although these days it is not on my diet very much because of the calories and sugar content.

One thing I do remember vividly from earlier visits was that although they had an 8:00 p.m. closing time, I tried several times to go around 7:30 or so and either it was OK or else they would say they were closed (when there were very few other customers). After the pandemic a lot of things have changed, including the fact that I think they have better customer service. In addition, though, they now close at 4:00 p.m.

Chips and Salsa

Just about every restaurant in town serves good chips and salsa, so it is hard to make note of their differences and to really say which ones are best. I have a habit of taking leftover Salsa home, though, and it is there that I noticed how distinctly fresh and flavorful this one was compared to others. In my recent memory this one is really at the top of my salsa list. Earlier I had also noted that it was jalapeño based rather than puréed, and was spicy as a result of the chiles that were used. I think it is always a good thing for salsa to be genuinely spicy as long as it is not this way because it is full of seeds (and the one at La Malinche does not have a noticeable amount of seeds).

The Chips are good. I used to think they were overly salty but I have not noticed this recently.

Enchiladas

Red Enchiladas were one of my favorite items in the past. Recently I have not thought they were in contention for the best in El Paso, but they are good enough that I really enjoy them (especially with an egg on top–see breakfast items). They have had a “strong chile flavor” which I like, but I think it is good to have the egg to provide an offsetting flavor.

Entomatadas

Entomatadas have been my favorite item at La Malinche for a number of years. Nobody else seems to do them as well as here, or at least no one that I have found. These are made the same way as enchiladas but instead of chile sauce they use a sauce similar to the “Spanish sauce” at many restaurants (actually I think it is a ranchero sauce but just not very spicy). The cheese is also excellent, and is also a key factor (but the sauce is special in its own right).

The green peppers keep it from being completely devoid of spice, and along with its excellent flavor I think the entomatadas are really worth checking out.

Steaks

A waiter told me that the best items at the restaurant were the steaks, and there are several from which to choose. The Tarahumara is a rib-eye covered with Asadero cheese and long green pepper, with guacamole, french fries, and beans on the side. I knew I was going to like this one just by its description and I do think this may be the restaurant’s best dish. The staff called the cheese Mennonite cheese, and I think the whole dish has a good flavor combination. The meat had just a little gristle. The guacamole was excellent as well.

The Chuleta Mexicana is also a rib-eye and seems to be much like the Tarahumara but without the cheese. I thought it was quite good.

Caldo

Beef Caldo is one of the most popular items at La Malinche because this is one of the best versions of it in El Paso. I like it because it is “clean” without too much fat and gristle, and it has a lot of flavor.

Other Items

The Chile Relleno is excellent–good flavor, a bit of spiciness, tomato sauce on top like the entomatada. The cheese does not melt very well though.

Tacos contain potato mixed with ground beef. This is a popular local style, and the potatoes are a way to make the tacos more affordable, but this is not my favorite version of the beef taco.

It is somewhat annoying that they will not make substitutions on the combination plates, but this is balanced by the fact that prices are cheaper than at many places. It may be worthwhile ordering more than you think you can eat in order to get all the items you might like to sample.

Breakfast

For breakfast you can get Enchiladas Montadas in which the enchiladas have traditionally been flat. Recently, though, they have come rolled. Both seem to taste just as good. I think these are some of the best “montadas” I have tried in the city, but instead of rice and beans I think I would sometimes like the side dishes to be the same as in other restaurants (such as hash browns).

This is one of the few restaurants in town that uses chile con queso in its Huevos Rancheros, for a different taste treat than is normally the case for this dish. I think H&H Car Wash had the best huevos rancheros with chile con queso on top and I’m not terribly impressed by the others, but it qualifies as an El Paso Mexican food experience that I think is worth seeking out.

Drinks

Horchata is excellent. I think it is made from a mix but I like the flavor.

An Overview
For a while La Malinche had five locations throughout the city, and now they are down to three. This is still a lot for a restaurant which is competing against numerous others which are serving the same type of food. Most importantly, though, the reviews say the same thing I have thought in the past–all of La Malinche’s locations have good food.

Like most Mexican restaurants, though, there are certain items that stand out and seem to make it worthy of a special trip. For me this has been the entomatadas, and I still find them to be the best I have ever had. The sauce is excellent, but the cheese also plays a large part.

Recently I have begun to come here for breakfast as well. It is not that they have the absolute best Mexican breakfast in the world–it just seems better than many of the alternatives. This is especially true in the fact that the food tastes fresh and does not have an oily aftertaste like some of the places that seem as if they do not change the cooking oil often enough.

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RATING: 24

 

Mexican Food Details