NOTES THAT THIS RESTAURANT HAS CLOSED AND IS NOW A BARBECUE RESTAURANT AS OF 2018
This is a review of a locally-owned (as opposed to chain) restaurant in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
My plan, for each Mexican restaurant that I visit, is to have the same thing – the Chimichanga plate. So far I’ve stopped in at the two Tortilla Factory restaurants in Cheyenne – a locally owned duo.
What makes up a chimichanga? It’s a deep-fried burrito with a single type of meat inside and nothing else. The deep fried part is important. A properly deep-fried chimichanga should have an outer coating that is golden brown and crunchy. I’m used to having my chimichangas smothered in cheese – at the two Tortilla Factory locations, it was drowning in mild green chile sauce (I always order mild as I don’t like spicy).
So, onward to the Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant, located just a few blocks north of the Tortilla Factory on Greeley Highway, at 715 S. Greeley.
Storefront for Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant at 715 S. Greeley Highway
Ironically, the Tortilla Factory on Greeley (at 2706 S. Greeley) was until 2015 to be found in this particular storefront. It is now in a purpose-built, stand-alone building that is, ironically, less attractive than this refurbished location – with concrete floors and the bathrooms placed as if in an afterthought in a small alcove in the front of the building, where they are unheated.
But, let’s talk about the Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant. (At one point it was called the Don Reyes Family Kitchen, but the Don Reyes name seems to have been removed.)
Front of the Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant Menu
Ambiance
This restaurant is located in a converted office building. I’m not sure when the refurbishment was done (between The Tortilla Factory and today, there was a different Mexican restaurant in this space) but it is much more attractive now, with blue carpet on the floors and serapes on the walls, which have been painted in such as way as to resemble adobe. There are also big-screen TVs located in certain corners of the long restaurant (which could be inconvenient if someone is watching a show that you don’t want to watch, or hear).
Entrance from rear parking lot
The Service
I arrived for lunch on a weekday, and was the only person in the place. I was greeted by a man, presumably the owner or manager, who told me to sit wherever I liked and went off to get my requested water. A waitress came by a few minutes later, bringing the water. She was clearly new. She took my order of the Chimichange plate and it arrived in about five minutes. She was pleasant, but did not have a professional gloss of an experienced waitress.
I don’t know if this restaurant provides the typical tortilla chips and salsa while one waits for one’s entrée. I did not receive any tortilla chips, but the waitress may have just forgot.
The Food
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The plate seemed warm – but certainly not hot. (I’m used to plates being served hot or at least warm to keep the food on them warm).
Everything was hot – the chimichanga, the rice and the beans – though this being Wyoming (high altitude) the rice and beans did not stay hot for long.
Presentation of the Chimichange plate. Swimming in green chili.
The chimichanga was good – overall I enjoyed it the best of the three Mexican restaurants here in Cheyenne that I’ve been to so far. The exterior had not been deep-fried long enough (as it had been at the Tortilla Factory on Stillwater), but it was still good, with a sprinkling of cheese over the top, and the filling of shredded white-meat chicken seemed to have been hand-shredded).
Big chunks of shredded white meat chicken
The rice was hot, briefly, the refried beans stayed hot longer but were definitely watery. The green chili was hot as in warmed up, not spicy. The rice and beans did seem spicy – not sure why. But because everything was hot, I enjoyed it.
Woman’s Bathroom
The door was of the doorknob type – no need to shove open an extremely heavy door. Inside it was single-occupation – only one toilet. A large bathroom, room for a handicapped woman with a walker if need be.
Directions and Parking Lot
This restaurant does not have an easily visible sign. The storefront is obscured at the moment by a political billboard placed so low that it is hard to see the storefront itself as you drive north on Greeley Highway.
Use as a landmark the bright green sign for Wash ‘n Go. You’ll see their sign first. As you come closer, you’ll see a driveway just below that sign. That’s for Wash ‘n Go. The driveway in front of that driveway, is the one for Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant. The driveway itself is unpaved, as is the parking lot at the rear of the restaurant, so be careful of pot holes.
Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant is on your right as you drive north toward Cheyenne. Use the green Wash ‘ Go sign as your landmark – you’ll turn before that sign.
Verdict
Based on a single visit and a single type of food – the chimichanga – if I had to make a choice between the Tortilla Factory on Greeley or Stillwater, or the Family Kitchen Mexican Restaurant on Greeley, I’d come here.
About the Culinary Curmudgeon
The Culinary Curmudgeon is a gourmet who has a very limited palate. Her restaurant reviews focus on what she likes to eat (chicken, prepared in a variety of ways, or steak), and drink (milk or Pepsi). Dessert – milk chocolate. Restaurant ambiance and quality of service is all important. Her reviews attempt to be humorous. Hopefully she succeeds.
