Was it remarkable? No.
Was it terrible? Not in the least.
Was it better than the $6 burrito bowl I can get from Chipotle? Negligible.
I live about a block from Alero, and my roommate and I were going a bit stir crazy from the blizzard last Wednesday. So, we bundled up, walked backwards to avoid the wind for the better half of the block it took to get there, and popped into Alero, since it was one of the only restaurants open.
If you have a neighborhood Mexican place back home (and having lived in DC for a month, I have already concluded that at least two-thirds of this city has somewhere else that is still “home” to them), this would be a good equivalent. Nothing outstanding, but if you want a tamale and don’t want to spend the time making it yourself, stop by.
What I had: a margarita, which was unremarkable and unmemorable, but was quite necessary considering the weather, and the chicken tamales. Considering what else was on the menu, I figured I ought to order something I wouldn’t make at home (and quesadillas, tacos, and fajitas don’t fall in that category). The portion was more than generous, with two tamales, rice, beans, guac, and a little salad. There wasn’t very much chicken inside the tamales, but what was there was tasty, moist, and delicious; they were smothered in a salsa verde that was quite delightful. I’ll probably go back, for the convenience and the value ($10 for a platter of food big enough to share), but only because it’s in my neighborhood.
And a note about the chips and salsa: the chips are remarkably light and thin. I can’t decide if I really liked them because of that quirk, or if I would far prefer the chips from the Mexican market back in Illinois that are so think that you can drag one through a bowl of guac with gusto without breaking it in half.
