Rudy’s Mexican Food

April 23, 2015

Monrovia, California – I had some business in town to attend to this afternoon. But because I misread the instructions, I arrived at the location a couple of hours ahead of time. Electing to stay in town instead of going home, coming back later, and having to return home again, I decided to walk along the main drag and find something to eat. One or two places interested me as I walked up Myrtle Avenue. It wasn’t until I was heading back down the street that I saw about five obviously very happy people, smiling as they exited this restaurant. It wasn’t even one of the places I was had considered as I passed by the first time, but five seconds later I found myself opening the door and walking inside.

Rudy’s is located in Downtown Monrovia and is easy to find. Street parking is plentiful. The large brick building sits right on the corner. On the corner of the building itself is the entrance.

Once you walk in, your first impression will be something like, “This place is a lot smaller than it looks from the outside.” The walls are painted dusty yellow. There are only a handful of solid wooden booths, chairs, and tables for dining, with stained glass lamps hovering overhead. And it does get cramped by the door. From the layout of the room, I thought it might only hold a few customers and most would be ordering food to go. I was mistaken. Keep reading.

One of the hosts walked out from behind the ‘counter’, menu in hand, and asked how many in my party. I told him there was just me. I thought he was going to seat me in one of the booths. Instead, he led me through a portal. On the other side was a much larger dining area. Keep walking forward and you’ll find, off to your left, even more tables. That was a big surprise. Judging from the space you first enter from outside, you could not tell there was a room of this size in the building. It gets better: There’s yet another portal, through which is the bar and banquet room. I learned later that Rudy’s designed the layout that way due to two expansions into adjacent properties.

A family-owned restaurant, Rudy’s Mexican Food was started by Rudy and Rosa Castrellon. Their staff is comprised of mostly family. They recently celebrated their 20^th anniversary, having been in business since 1994. On the wall is a painted message proudly proclaiming “La Familia Castrellon a sus ordenes” (The Castrellon family at your service).

There are other paintings on the wall, including a charcoal drawing of owners Rudy and Rosa that was presented to them over the 2014 holidays, if I remember correctly. You’ll also find a few photographs.

It was pretty quiet when I walked in to the restaurant. A group of three was in the main dining room. Two of the party seemed to know the proprietor and were chatting with him. In the main dining area, windows let in light from the outside – but not enough. Today was a cloudy day to begin with so the interior of the room had a darkened cast.

My server arrived promptly and was very friendly. He brought out the requisite chips and salsa. The salsa was delicious. A little thin for my preference but still held on to the chips nicely. It looked and tasted freshly made, with chunks of tomato and diced onion. Looks like green onions were in there, too. And cilantro, of course. Very good mix with onion leading the way but I would prefer a little less liquid. The chips were served warm, tasted fresh, and had enough body to hold up to the salsa. I polished them off just before the main course arrived. My very attentive server knew what I was thinking and promptly brought another round.

On the menu you’ll find many choices. Rudy’s has several of their own special dishes that feature twists on the familiar: The Monrovia and Rudy’s Old Town are two examples. Their fare has won several Readers’ Choice awards.

For today’s lunch, I ordered the 2 soft tacos special ($8.95 lunch price), choosing pollo

and carne asada as my meats. The pollo was diced chicken breast. Diced chicken breast. Hmmm. An interesting way of making the taco. Points for originality but too dry for my taste. Which is why I prefer dark meat chicken. The carne asada, on the other hand, was just right. Nice flavor, nice savor.

Both of the tacos were much bigger than I expected. Both were stuffed to the gills with lettuce, cheese, and diced tomato, on top of the meats. So full that contents spilled out from top and ends when I picked them up.

Rice and beans come with the taco special. The rice was fluffy Spanish rice. Nothing else really special about the rice. The beans came topped with cheese. Nice flavor. Good enough to scoop with the chips. To me, that means they pass the taste test with flying colors.

I also ordered the Carne Asada Burrito ($8.55 lunch price). In my opinion, this burrito was just about as perfect as a burrito can be. Slightly charred carne asada, beans, covered in enchilada sauce. Thank you, Rudy’s, for not putting rice in my burrito. It was a huge burrito, too. One look and I knew I should not even attempt to eat it now. So I decided to take it home and have it for lunch or dinner the next day.

To go with the meal, I ordered a Victoria beer ($4.25). I had never heard of Victoria before. It’s made by the same brewers that make Pacifico. My server suggested it. It has more of a full flavor and a darker color than Corona. It sure paired nicely with the meal. My Victoria was served chilled along with a chilled mug. Just a little bit hoppy but it goes well with food.

I also ordered an iced tea. Unfortunately, it was a very weak iced tea. Think I’ll skip the tea next time.

What I won’t skip next time is one of their special Margaritas. Rudy’s claims to have one of the top three Margaritas in Southern California. They make several different types, including one that costs $75. That is not a misprint. Not sure which one I should try first. Unless you, dear reader, are buying, it won’t be the $75 one.

Rudy’s seems to have all bases covered. Families, solo diners, large groups, small groups, couples, regulars, first-timers, everyone should be happy dining here. This is a place I would happily drive a long distance to patronize. The food is very good as is the service. Be sure to bring your appetite. Rudy’s is truly a family owned and operated business. And they make you feel like family, too.

Rudy’s Mexican Food – 4 forks. Recommended. Rudy’s also caters.

Note: Photos were taken from a subsequent visit when it was sunnier. One of the tacos shown in the photo is carnitas. In the original visit, it was one pollo, one carne asada.