Restaurant Review: El Coyote

I have a set of guy friends from a previous job and they swear by El Coyote and their steak. So much so that when I went with them once - I was shamed for even looking at a menu! 

Recently they opened in downtown Cincinnati right behind Fountain Square in the old Cadillac Ranch. It's a nice location and they benefited from all the money that Cadillac put into the location. 

There is a mechanical bull inside - since it was lunch we did not partake. 

We were (eventually) brought out chips & salsa. They are open for lunch but they're not real smooth with the service yet. We were there at least 10 minutes before anyone came over.

The salsa is good - you can tell it uses fire-roasted vegetables as it's a touch bitter but it also has a good spice level. I didn't love the chips - they're a bit stale.

I got a salad before my meal and it was pretty good - fresh veggies, good croutons and good ranch. Belly happy.

I went for the Sour Cream Enchiladas with Shredded Chicken - then I swapped out the enchilada sauce with queso. If you can't tell - it's a cheese EXPLOSION. The white stuff is sour cream and cream cheese mixed together - hallelujah have mercy! Also this is only ONE enchilada. I would love to have this smothered all over nachos.

As a dish on it's own - it was good and I liked it but didn't love it. I'm not sure why - that combination of cream cheese & sour cream is very very rich.

I took my coworker out for his birthday and he got the Steak Fajita Salad. The tortilla looked light and flaky. He liked it all right. He's one of the normal "steak" crew but it was lunch and I was buying so he didn't want to saddle me with a $30 steak bill.

Why Should You Go? Well the steak is what folks go for - you can get sides of bearnaise or cilantro butter (according to the boys - you are supposed to get both). The Tex Mex is okay - it's nice for a change of pace downtown. Our server was very animated and fun - but the service was slow (kitchen & check more than him). I'd go - but with low expectations.