Mystery Diner: Feeling like a friend at Rudy's Mexican Grill

I’ve always felt like the best restaurants make you feel like a guest in someone’s home. A lot goes into creating such an experience, but it basically comes down to service and the care that goes into the food.

A guest in someone’s home was exactly how I felt recently for a weekday lunch at Rudy’s Mexican Grill in Grayslake. From the road, Rudy’s is fairly indiscriminate. But anyone who knows good dining knows that, as with a book, you can’t judge from the outside. Inside, the dining space is intimate and informal, with a good-looking little bar at the back of the restaurant. The decor says Mexican food, minus the gaudy that some Mexican food restaurants fall victim to. A small, hand-crafted sign reads: “Come as strangers, leave as friends.”

We were greeted immediately by our server, who treated us from the start as her only diners, even with a handful of other groups already seated and eating at other tables. My dining companion ordered horchata – cinnamon-flavored rice milk and a Mexican favorite of many. I ordered iced tea.

Before looking over the menu, our server told us about the day’s steak burrito lunch special. The food at Rudy’s is not your typical Mexican food. Each dish stands alone uniquely and seems to have been created with an attention toward detail in delivering a final product.

There also seems to be an emphasis on fish specialties, which I feel you don’t often see at Mexican restaurants – not nearly often enough, anyway.

From ceviche to fried octopus to green mussels, there are a handful of unique seafood appetizers I would liked to have tried. I have a major soft spot for mussels of any kind, and I’ve never tried them prepared in a Mexican style, so I’ll certainly be needing to go back for that someday.

Rudy’s has its own variation of all the classics you’d expect from a Mexican restaurant – fajitas, enchiladas, tacos and more. I was hooked from the start on the lunch-special burrito; I added on Mexican rice and refried beans. My dining companion ordered chicken quesadillas, with extra rice instead of the beans that would normally come with it.

The quesadillas came on corn tortillas rather than flour tortillas. I don’t believe I’ve ever had quesadillas on corn tortillas, but it was very good. The shredded chicken and cheese were simple and delicious in their combined flavor. The corn tortilla made them seem a bit lighter than I feel like flour tortillas allow.

My steak burrito special was large, but nowhere near as big as my head, which is just the right size in my opinion. The steak seemed to be skirt steak and was subtly seasoned and charred just right on the grill. The pieces were tender and full of flavor considering how small they were. The other thing I noticed and loved about the burrito were the fresh, raw ingredients: onions, tomatoes, cilantro and avocado.

The warm steak, beans and rice contrasted well with the crisp textures and refreshing flavors of the onions, tomatoes, cilantro and avocado. All together, the varied flavors and textures blended very well together. A little bit of salsa here and there also helped with the overall package.

I also really enjoyed the Mexican rice that came with our meals. An aspect of the meal that in some Mexican restaurants seems like a formality was anything but at Rudy's.
The rice was soft and tasted freshly prepared, and was full of pieces of corn, carrots, peas and green beans. Along with the beans, it was a good complement to the meal.

As much as we enjoyed the food, we appreciated the hospitality just as much. Rudy himself stopped by our table to introduce himself and to be sure everything was to our satisfaction.
It's clear Rudy cares about his food and the experience his guests take away. Such dedication goes a long way in the restaurant business, and I'll certainly be back to Rudy's.

I wouldn't have even needed the sign to leave feeling like a friend.

• Mystery Diner is an employee in the newsroom of the Lake County Journal. To recommend your favorite restaurant for a Mystery Diner visit, email lcjedit@lakecountyjournal.com.

Rudy's Mexican Grill

55 Barron Blvd. (Route 83) in Grayslake

http://rudysmexicangrillgrayslake.com

847-223-6176

Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day