Iguana Mexican Grill reopens in downtown Oklahoma City
by Tim | August 13, 2008 | 17 Comments
(votes: 21, average: 3.86) 
Loading ...Iguana Mexican Grill is located at 9 NW 9th in downtown Oklahoma City (map). They are open from 11am to 11pm Monday through Saturday, and closed on Sunday. Call them at 405.606.7172.
Every so often, all of our regular writers try to get together to experience a new Oklahoma City restaurant. I say that we “try” because so far, we haven’t quite made it. We were just about to accomplish this feat at the new Iguana Mexican Grill downtown, but Andrew got called away by work at the last minute. Nevertheless, Greg, Sarah and myself were able to get together for lunch at the Iguana. What follows reflects contributions from all three of us.
Perhaps you remember the Iguana from its old location on Western Avenue. I remember eating there several times and noting its uniqueness. Now it’s back and continuing to provide an interesting alternative to Oklahoma City’s standard Mexican food places.
We really appreciate its downtown location. The owners have not only opened a restaurant, they have refurbished a historical building just east of Broadway. One thing is for sure, you have to know the place is there because you’d never have any other reason to turn east on 9th. But once you find it, you’ll be delighted with this “old turned new” achievement complete with beautiful landscaping and free parking (a treat in downtown).
The interior decor is modern — an unfinished feel with giant, bright-colored paintings and glass light fixtures adorning the brick walls. The tables are made locally and, like the plates, sport a rough-hewn, slightly off-balance look. In other words, they have perfectly captured a look that isn’t meant to look perfect.
Now to the food. The starter is chips and salsa, as it should be at any Mexican restaurant, but here are thick, fresh-fried tortilla pieces and five unique salsa options. The house salsa comes for free, but you can try additional salsas for $2 each, or get all four premium varieties for $7. We got all four so we could give you the full report.
Surprisingly, we all agreed that the free, house salsa was just about the best one. It is a fresh and chunky salsa, almost like a pico de gallo, where the flavors of the vegetables stand out independently. Its only downside was being too mild. We felt that if they could add a few more minced shavings of jalapeno to warm things up, it would be just perfect.
The premium salsas were definitely unique. There was a tomatillo (verde) salsa which I liked pretty well but Greg found too sweet and lacking in kick. The smoked tomato salsa, served warm, also let us down. However, the “coral snake,” a sweet peach salsa with a definite kick at the end, was very unique and enjoyable. Then there was the favorite of the premiums — the citrus-habanero — spicy, flavorful, but not so hot that you can’t taste anything.
None of us were very impressed with the guacomole ($2 for a single serving, $4.50 for more). It was okay, but nothing to turn flips down the hallway over. We all agreed we’d had better elsewhere.
I was impressed that the menu offered some very affordable options. It’s a pretty good deal when you can get interesting, creative food in a fabulous location for about the same cost as standard Okla-mex fare. The lunch specials were all around the $7 range, which is at least what you would expect to pay at a Ted’s or Casa Perico. Even at dinner, you can get a meal for $9-$12 or so. Very reasonable for what you get.
Greg was very satisfied with his chicken torta lunch special ($6.50) and offered the following insights:
“Iguana must wood-grill their meat because this was flavorful, moist chicken. The torta bread was nice and chewy, but not too tough. The rice was so-so. Red rice is just your standard Mexican rice, though not as flavorful as some I’ve had, while the green rice was an even milder taste. Instead, spend $1 more and change your side to the sopa de maiz — a roasted corn soup with coconut milk, green curry, roasted poblano peppers and a shitake mushroom dumpling in the middle. Very tasty. If you choose to get it on its own, it’s $4 for a cup and $6 for a bowl.”
Sarah ordered the shrimp and vegetable skewer lunch ($7.50) and here’s what she had to say:
“It was pretty good, but the vegetables and plate were shiny with some type of oil. Wish I had known to order it without oil. That would have made it a pretty healthy dish. Also, the temperature of the food was not hot. Oh, and if anyone out there has tips on how to gracefully remove shrimp from wooden skewers, please let me know.”
I chose the fish taco lunch ($7). It was very good, even better than what I’ve previously reviewed at Chica’s. The fish had no hint of fishiness. I had the black beans and fresh fruit for sides. I was pleasantly surprised to find another Mexican place offering fresh fruit with their meals. My one recommendation would be to split this into two tacos. They served it as a single taco stuffed so full of filling that it was impossible to eat. They could easily add another corn tortilla and serve the same amount of filling as two tacos. It would be much more manageable and seem like an even better deal.
As I mentioned before, I feel that the pricing at Iguana is actually very good. It’s one of the reasons I am comfortable recommending it. They do offer some higher-end options, like their family-style group dining with charges of $12.50, $15, or $25 per person. These options provide a multi-course meal with some great variety, but personally, I don’t see the value there. I’d stick with the dinners or lunch specials.
Oh, one more thing — we did try out the key lime pie ($4.50). It was a hit. As Sarah said, “it was the only thing that was to die for.” This is key lime done right — a creamy filling with real, tart, lime flavor on top of a crumbly crust, served in a raspberry sauce. Very good eats, though Greg and Tim felt that the raspberry sauce was unnecessary. Sarah just felt that it was yummy.
Though we’re not saying the food is out of this world, we believe the Iguana is definitely worth a try. If nothing else, it’s a unique Oklahoma City eatery that highlights the potential of our downtown area and offers an alternative to the same old Mexican food we’ve all had over and over. Given the fact that pricing is quite reasonable, I highly recommend you check it out soon.
Tell us what you think in the comments.
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So far, 17 people have responded to this article. Won't you join in?August 14th, 2008 at 8:41 am
How was the service? We went for lunch the week after it opened. It was relatively empty, but the service was absolutely horrible. Server didn’t turn in out ticket. and even after 25 minutes of waiting for our food, he only came back to us once to see if we needed anything. We even had to ask for him to get our ticket, which took another 15 minutes.
The food was pretty good, though if a little bland. Just don’t think I can spare 1.75 hours for a work day lunch. The place is downtown, you’d think they would be prepared for business folks looking for a quick lunch.
August 14th, 2008 at 8:42 am
A group of us went there two weeks ago, and no one was “blown away”. To me it’s just another El Chico style restaurant, but it’s located downtown. One of those places to try once, but I have no desire to ever go again. Personally I think the over all better deal is Casa Perico or Ole… Two way better restaurants on many different levels. The building Iguana uses is nice, and it’s always a plus for new business to move in that area…
August 14th, 2008 at 8:54 am
@Matt Jank, the service for us was better than what you experienced. It was a little slower than a normal lunch but nothing unbearable. I’m willing to give them a few more months to get the kinks worked out and then try again to see if things are speedier. One thing I did like is that they split our checks and even split the cost of the appetizers out over multiple checks. That is a nice little feature.
@Cody, thanks for sharing your take. I agree that the building and location is the best thing going for it. For the price, I still think it’s worth a try but I don’t think it’s going to be a place that everyone just LOVES.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:32 am
Went last night with a group of friends. Mostly happy hour and appetizers. We kept poor John running! we sat outside, the patio is great and the food is wonderful. Great place for many happy hours. I love the tequilla “back”. Nice addition.
We will be back! And the occassional train horn was a funny!
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:21 am
I was impressed with the drinks and the service and the art inside the building was gorgeous. I unfortunately don’t recall the food. For some reason it just wasn’t memorable for me.
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:50 pm
We (14 of us) went there about a month ago and it was a definite hit with everyone! We went at 6:00pm and got right in, but could see the tables filling up the later it got.
We ordered the #2 family-style meal and ate every bite. It seemed to work perfectly for us. Those of us eating a lot got all we wanted, while those of us eating a little got as much as we wanted.
Every item on the meal was outstanding; the chips & caso came out in mass quantities -in Oklahoma shaped bowls, the chicken tacos and enchiladas were very moist & favorable (my favorite of all-time), the beef tacos and enchiladas were great as well, the green beans & black beans were very tasty, tamales were “wonderful” (as I was told since I was too full to try one), and if I missed anything else on the meal it had to be just as good or else it would have screamed out to us as being different.
The service wasn’t outstanding but remember, we had such a large group. The girl had her hands full but still kept my tea glass from bottoming out all the while keeping a smile on her face.
The location was a little different, but it reminded me of Javier’s Gourmet Mexicano in Dallas (up till now that was my favorite Mexican restaurant). I bet this restaurant will be an asset to the area, enticing other businesses be quickly follow their lead. Iguana’s décor was different, yet really cool.
My mouth is watering while thinking about another trip to Iguana, although I know it will be hard to match our first experience.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:07 pm
We really need a good tex mex choice, I feel like Ted’s and La Luna have declined the last couple of years.
September 4th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
A group of us went for lunch and found the food to be “average” and the service below average. Decided to give it another try for parents night out and thing were much improved. The food was hot, tasty and fresh and the service outstanding. We loved the fact that they refurbed an old building which adds to the uniqueness of the experience. The lunch gang is planning a trip back to see if things have improved during the lunch hour.
September 16th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
The restorations look great. The location is great, plenty of parking … I’ve been about a dozen times since opening & it’s gets better everytime.
Food’s great, friendly service, and LOTS OF “MUST SEE” art hanging (some for sale$$) from 3 very talented local artists. It’s worth stopping by for a cocktail or two just to check out the local talent.
September 19th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
I can’t believe all the negative remarks about this great little restaurant! I have been to Iguana’s four times since it opened and have had nothing but fantastic taste explosions and happy, attentive service. The fish taco’s are the best ever, and the house margarita’s more-ish (is that good or bad?!). Iguana’s is a fantasic addition to the growing downtown/midtown area of Oklahoma City. Cheers!
September 23rd, 2008 at 12:45 pm
I went to Iguana with my boss for lunch and we really enjoyed our food and service. Since it was a beautiful day, we decided to eat outside, which was alright except for the four trains that passed by throughout our lunch. We both tried the sopa de maiz, and came to the conclusion that the soup would have been better if it was creamy rather than a broth. Other than that, everything was excellent… enchiladas, burritos, etc. For dessert we tried the chocolate chimichanga and the deep fried ice cream - both were really nice. I wouldn’t say it’s the best mexican in town, but I would definitely be a repeat customer at Iguana!
October 9th, 2008 at 9:10 am
Went to Iguana last night with my boyfriend and two of our friends. While I can’t say it was horrible overall, my food was definitely not good. The chips and salsa were good, and it was fun to see some different versions to try. I ordered the fish tacos, and they were really bad. Everything was so oily, there was actually standing oil in my plate. I guess it all came from the four corn tortillas used for my two tacos, because the fish itself was pretty dry. I had roasted potatoes and fresh fruit as sides, and the potatoes were very tasty, but the fruit was 90% cantalope, which I’m not really a fan of. Not their fault, but it would have been nice to have more variety. My boyfriend ordered the crispy pork tacos and said they were good. He got black beans for one of the sides, and they were absolutely flavorless. It didn’t taste like they’d used any seasoning at all. Overall, the consensus last night seemed to be that it was decent: not horrible, not great. The atmosphere was very nice and the staff was great, maybe we’ll try it again in a few months to see if the food has improved at all.
October 15th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Four of us from the office ate there for lunch today. The salsa and chips were great. I ordered the burrito and subbed the sopa de maiz. Both were excellent. The service was good and there were no problems. Had the Key-Lime Pie for dessert, that was wonderful as well. Has a nice atmosphere, and the prices were exceptional. Overall I was impressed. I will return.
October 21st, 2008 at 5:17 am
4 of us met there for dinner on Sunday night and it was just awful. The service was disorganized and so slow. it took over and hour for the appetizers to arrive and then they were served at the same time as the entrees, which is inexcusable. Our waiter apologized a few times, but didn’t offer to take anything off the check, which is the proper way to handle such terrible service. As to the food, it fit the previous comments, some was ok, but some was extremely greasy, especially the fish tacos, which were horrible. Send someone to San Diego for a weekend and learn how to make them right. I also ordered a Mojito that had to be sent back it was so bad. One final note, we sat outside as it was a nice evening, right next to the door to the main restaurant and every time someone went through it (around every 10 seconds), it was slam shut, then bounce back and slam again and make this incredibly irritating racket. I really can’t imagine why no one has considered a door stop or anything to solve that problem. The only redeeming feature was the music playing, which was the soundtrack to “Across the Universe,” but I can hear that at home. We won’t be back.
November 2nd, 2008 at 6:36 pm
My wife and I stopped by for Sunday brunch today. The $2 mimosas were great. We were also served free fry bread with honey, something we hadn’t had the three previous times there. I chose the pork verde breakfast burrito, which was extremely good. My wife had the chorizo quesadillas, which, while tasting great, were a bit greasy. I don’t know if you can fully avoid that with chorizo.
Having been four times now, I can say I always like the food I choose, but the service is the greatest variance and has been bad enough two of the times to partially sour my meal. The first visit the waitress was over-the-top trying to sell extras… My wife and I are believers that portions are almost always too large to begin with - why would we want an appetizer and dessert if it’s just the two of us? The second time was slow at the start, but it moved well enough later. Our third visit was in the bar… this waitress was even worse with the salesmanship. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s a waiter or waitress who can’t take a simple “No Thank You.” So, if they ever get the service down to a regular level, we’ll enjoy it more.
November 4th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
The service was great and the place has a neat urban atmosphere. The food, however, tasted to us like an 80’s mexican resturant chain: store-bought flour tortillas [that arrived cold] for our bad fajitas: had all the bells and whistles; roasted vegetables. But the vegatables were mushy - should have had a slight al dente to them. The salsa apps was OK: seemed more like they tried to come up w/ “neat” name, when literally the honey-green salsa tasted like Honey poured over green salsa - no real sophisticated taste and didn’t work. None of the salsas tasted like they had fresh cilantro/lime - which for me is key. As much as i hate chains, Cafe Laredo @ Penn sq. mall has the freshest/best-tasting salsas in OKC..wish it wasn’t so, but it is! On a good note the margaritas we got were great - best we have had in OKC. I would not bring out of town guests here….would rather take them to RIO in Bethesda for chain-like tex mex [that is actually done right].
November 11th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
My wife and I checked this place out the other day, and we both really liked it a lot. We LOVED the house salsa, but agreed that it could have used a few jalapeno seeds to spice it up a bit. I had the chicken burrito, which was excellent. And mark my words…SMOKEY GREEN BEANS! They’re delicious! So were the roasted potatos. The red rice was ok, but those two veggies made up for it!
Please tell us what you think.