Alejandro's Mexican Grill is subdued but clean. Three TVs are perched in various corners, a small but fully stocked bar anchors the rear and large windows front Campbell Avenue.

The best novelty at Alejandro's is the self-serve chip-and-salsa bar featuring 12 house-made salsas.

Photos by Wade Anderson | Special to The Roanoke Times

Alejandro's Mexican Grill

• Where: 127 Campbell Ave., downtown Roanoke
• Prices: $3.50 to $13 (does not include a la carte items)
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 to 2 a.m. (limited menu after 10 p.m.) Friday and Saturday; noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.
• Soda products: Pepsi
• Alcohol? Full bar
• Plastic? Visa, MasterCard
• Smoking? Nonsmoking before 9 p.m.
• Takeout? Yes
• Delivery? No
• Patio seating? No
• Reservations? No
• Live music? No
• Handicapped accessibility: The Blue Ridge Independent Living Center has determined that this restaurant is accessible.
• Kid-friendly? Yes, highchairs and children’s menu available.
• Vegetarian dishes? Yes
• Wireless Internet? Yes
• Call: (540) 400-7053
• Fax: (540) 400-0733
• Net: None

A new restaurant opened in November in the space formerly occupied by the Green Dolphin Grille on Campbell Avenue. Alejandro's Mexican Grill serves a wide variety of Mexican dishes with an array of meats to choose from, including steak, grilled chicken, shredded pork, sausage, barbecue pork, steamed beef, shredded chicken, shredded beef and ground beef.

At lunch, patrons line up at the register to place their orders from a giant dry-erase board menu before sitting down. Typically, a server will move down the line taking orders to help speed up the process. At dinner, the staff serves you at the tables.

Although some have referred to Alejandro's as a taqueria, sort of a Mexican fast-food taco shop, such a label oversimplifies the breadth of cuisine and level of service found here.

THE FOOD

The best novelty at Alejandro's is the self-serve chips-and-salsa bar. Here you can refill your basket of chips whenever you wish and choose from at least 12 house-made salsas including traditional, green and white, with varying degrees of spiciness.

According to Moses Nucamendi, one of the co-owners along with his wife, Lisa, and his brother Alejandro, they will often add new salsas and discontinue others according to customers' preferences.

During a lunch visit with three friends, I tried the California burrito ($5.90), a delicious concoction of grilled chicken, rice, beans, lettuce, guacamole, cheese and sour cream wrapped in a flour tortilla. This gargantuan burrito was practically bursting with prodigious amounts of scrumptious spicy chicken accented with cilantro.

Another favorite was the taco de pescado ($2.50), a fish taco made up of a grilled and seasoned tilapia filet, onions, cilantro and salsa. The fish filet was perfectly flaky and the cilantro again compounded the flavor. My friend graciously let me sample his shredded pork taco ($1.90), which was also savory.

One minor disappointment during a dinner visit was the rice, which was stiff and flavorless.

THE SERVICE

At lunch you are responsible for getting your own drink from the soda fountain and your chips from the salsa bar, so service is not really an issue. However, the staff delivered our food quickly despite the huge lunchtime rush. I did return for dinner one evening, and the table service was quick and efficient, as it should have been considering there were only a few occupied tables.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The food at Alejandro's tastes freshly prepared and is certainly a good value. My group of four ate lunch for approximately $30, which included entrees, chips and salsa, and drinks. Also, the variety of meat fillings is a big plus, and the salsa bar offers a chance to sample flavors that might otherwise be missed. Better yet, the service at lunch is speedy and competent. Give Alejandro's a try.