Say Cheese! We’re at Los Ayala’s in Orange

 Los Ayala's 

2139 North Tustin Street #1

Orange, CA 92865

We were back from our East Coast trip and needed some Mexican food and to visit with my parents. I wanted them to stay near home, so I looked for a Mexican restaurant in Orange. I only had to scroll for a second on Yelp before finding Los Ayala's. It was the first listing there, and it had an impressive four-and-a-half-star rating with just over 150 reviews. This is impressive for a spot that has been open for two years this month. 

If this address seems familiar to you, you must have eaten here when this used to be Bobby D's. It's in the same shopping plaza with Target, Hickory and Spice BBQ, Flame Broiler, and a Domino's Pizza, right across from Trader Joe's at the corner of Meats and Tustin. I had never eaten here when this was Bobby D's, but people loved that place and expressed apprehension that Ayala's would be as good as its former tenant. 

We arrived at Ayala's at half past 5 on a Saturday evening. The restaurant was probably at seventy percent of capacity. Ordering is done at the counter, and the food is brought to you. The menu here is more varied than expected at a typical fast-casual Mexican restaurant in Southern California. There are one and two-item combination plates, burritos, tacos, starters, salads, and Mexican favorites. They also have a breakfast menu, but it's unclear whether it's available all day. Most items hover around the $16 mark, with only a shrimp platter eclipsing the $30 price point. We made our picks, found a table, and waited for our food to arrive. 

Since this was a fast-casual Mexican spot, I was slightly surprised when they brought these Chips and Salsa. The chips were crisp, and the salsa had a slight bite of heat. It will be manageable if you are averse to heat; it's just a hint of spice on the back end of each bite. The salsa was also very well blended, with little to no chunks. Good to nibble on while waiting for our food to come out. 

I have been on a big nacho kick lately, which continued here at Los Ayala's with these Nachos ($16). A bed of tortilla chips was topped with beans, shredded beef, jalapenos, cheese, salsa ranchera, sour cream, and a dollop of guacamole. These nachos get plus points because they had plenty of toppings and used shredded cheese instead of liquid cheese, and even though this was topped with a good amount of wet toppings, the chips stayed relatively crisp until the last few bites remained. My only two critiques are that they could have gone a little easier on the sour cream, and there could have been more guacamole, as we were fighting over it as soon as this was sat down at our table. An excellent start to our meal, though. 

My mom is a one-trick pony when it comes to eating in Mexican restaurants. She always veers towards a cheese enchilada. There needed to be better communication between my mom and dad when ordering her meal. She wanted a cheese enchilada ala carte, but my well-meaning father got her the Cheese Enchilada Combo Meal ($13) instead. This traditional red sauced enchilada was filled with cheese and then topped with more melted cheese. My mom seemed to like this but felt too much cheese was involved here, which was the point to me. She sparingly ate the refried beans and rice, which I happily took home for dinner the following evening. 

Katie kept the combination vibe going with her selection of this 2-item Combination Plate ($16) featuring a Crispy Chicken Taco and a Cheese Enchilada. Unlike my mom, Katie really enjoyed the cheesiness of the enchilada and would get it again. The crispy taco was indeed crispy, and the chicken inside was seasoned well and not as dry as most she's had. It came dressed simply with pico de Gallo, cheese, and lettuce. The beans and rice rounded out her plate nicely. She left Los Ayala's completely satisfied with this meal. 

I've been on a real losing streak lately regarding carnitas. I have not been impressed with the last dozen places where I have gotten this fried pork dish. I like variety in my carnitas: a little fat, some crispy tips, and tender bites. This Carnitas Plate was better than the last few versions I have had at other restaurants, but they were not good enough to break my carnitas slump. I liked their citrus marinade, but the pork was too lean and lacked any fat. Some of my bites were on the dry side, but that was remedied by adding some refried beans to each forkful. I'm not usually a rice guy, but the Mexican rice here was light and flavorful.  

As I stated earlier, my mom is an easy read regarding her Mexican food choices. My dad is just as easy to peg. He's a Chile Relleno ($13) fiend. At Ayala's, their chile relleno is filled with cheese and then topped with red sauce and even more melted cheese. For my dad, this was too much cheese. What's with my parents? Who have they become? Too much cheese is never something I'd say, but that was my dad's takeaway with his meal. He said all the cheese neutralized the chile, so it was like it wasn't even there. He liked the beans and rice but would probably get something else on his next visit.  

My parents were not impressed with Los Ayala's, but Katie and I liked it. Even though my carnitas were just okay, I enjoyed the nachos, cheese enchilada, beans, and rice. Los Ayala's would be one of our usual spots if we lived in the area. The food came out quickly, the staff were friendly, and the prices were reasonable. For a fast-casual Mexican spot, they are doing a good job, and maybe, over time, people will even forget how much they miss Bobby D's.  

Out of five talking reindeer (because this restaurant is across the street from the recently closed Orange Mall, which had reindeer that would speak to you while you waited to see Santa back in the '70s and '80s), five being best to zero being worst, Los Ayala's gets 3 talking reindeer. 

For more information about Los Ayala's, head to their website by clicking here: https://losayalas.com/