By the Gastronomes

It has been quite a while since we have written about one of our favorite Mexican restaurants in the DMV – the Los Tios located on Mount Vernon Avenue in the Del Ray area of Alexandria. This place is a regular stop for some chips and salsa and a margarita while we are doing the issue distribution in that area. And….Cinco de Mayo is fast approaching!!

Since Bob is a relative newcomer to Mexican cuisine and I have some history here since, along with mom visiting from Wyoming and my longtime friend Catherine, I was among the first customers to patronize this location when it opened and it was often my Friday night “go-to” place when I resided in Del Ray.

While Los Tios isn’t a traditional Mexican restaurant, it features some of the most popular Tex-Mex and Salvadorean food in the area. I just wish they would make a great chile verde and add it to the menu.

Los Tios has long been one of our favorite places for good margaritas and some of the freshest corn chips and salsa around. On top of that, the wait staff are some of the best so the service is spot on. You might see a familiar face from the Old Town restaurant scene behind the bar or on the floor these days. Miguel Lemus, former head bartender at The Wharf and previously on the floor and behind the bar at Landini Brothers for years is on board here. He was behind the bar on this visit and that is good because we usually sit at the bar since you can be seated and served right away – the place normally has a line out the door for a table during the dinner hour and on weekends. This is a good sign that the place is worth the visit since it is a huge restaurant. There are two large dining rooms in addition to the bar that has high top seating as well as bar seating and sidewalk dining that takes up almost half of the block.

We love the décor. The color scheme and the multiple paintings on the walls and the various wall hangings all with a Mexican theme make you feel like you are actually in Mexico and points beyond. One of the best pieces of “décor” in the bar area is something that we call the “Tequila Tree”. We believe that it really is a replica of an Agave plant turned in to a tequila holder. Anyway, we think they are cool.

If you are a big fan of the margarita, this is the place for you. Margaritas come in different sizes and are offered both on the rocks and frozen. “Grande” and “Rio Grande” or you can opt for the smaller “regular” house Marg with whatever tequila they use but you have your choice of over 20 brands.  You can also have them in a variety of flavors – too numerous to mention and you will have to ask what a couple of them entail! Bob sticks with the traditional and I am a “spicey” version girl. They also have a nice selection of Mexican beers and we hear that they serve a great Mojito. Wine lovers have a couple of choices but if you are a serious wine drinker, you might want to jump on the margarita band wagon.

Drinks and dinner are both started out with a complimentary basket of fresh house made corn chips and salsa fresca. They have a killer Chile con Queso and the house made Guacamole are great additions to the chips. Worth the splurge for sure.

The menu is extensive and we won’t go in to everything that they offer since you can check it out in its entirety online.

We stayed with our go-to selections of Tacos Los Tios off of the Platos Tipicos section of the menu and a combo of chicken and beef on the Fajita menu. The Tacos Los Tios is offered with beef or chicken and with soft or hard corn tortillas. I always get the beef because I really like the marinade and go back and forth between the soft and hard tortillas. Accompanying this entrée are Mexican rice, refried beans, lettuce, Pico de Gallo, quacamole and sour cream. If you are a traditional taco fan, this is the order for you.

The fajitas come in a bunch of combos on and above just chicken and beef. You have your choice of everything from shrimp to chorizo with bbq ribs in between. Bob opted for a chicken and beef combo. They are served with your protein choice, onions and green peppers sizzling on a cast iron platter accompanied by fresh flour tortillas, refried beans, Mexican rice, Pico de Gallo, lettuce, quacamole and sour cream. The portions are good sized so, depending on how hungry you are, you may come home with some leftovers.

We were so full we couldn’t even entertain the thought of dessert but Miguel treated us to an amazing pineapple and coconut ice cream creation that we just had to consume. It was over the top in presentation as well as taste. Traditional choices of fried ice cream, sopaipillas, tres leches, fried bananas with ice cream and flan as well as key lime pie and cheese cake are on the menu.

In addition to dinner, Los Tios offers lunch specials that are served from 11am to 3pm and Happy Hour runs Monday through Friday from 3–7pm at the bar. Brunch is served Saturday and Sunday 11am-2pm. Open Monday-Thursday and Sunday 11am–10pm, Friday and Saturday 11am-11pm.

If you can’t make it for Cinco de Mayo, just pick any day of the month to celebrate with food that has a Mexican flair.

Los Tios Grill

2615 Mount Vernon Avenue

703-299-9290

Lostiosgrill.com