text: I will have to say I was pleasantly surprised by La Mestiza After moving to Madison in March from Chicago I lamented ever finding good Mexican food in town I went to La Mestiza twice and have to say the food is pretty good Let it be known I am judging Mexican food against places in the Pilsen and Logan Square neighborhoods of Chicago as well as locales in Southern California so I have fairly high standards stars is a good showing a against all of Madison this is the best I have had so farnnOn visit I had mole enchiladas and they were a solid presentation wit a good portion The mole was of good quality even if a touch underspiced but opinions vary on that topic The chicken in those enchiladas however was the best It was tender white and juicy not dry as in every other enchilada I have had Rice was ok but the vegetarian black beans were excellent with very balanced flavors I recommend those highlynnOn visit I had lunch This time I wanted to get a taste of their various meats so I went with a trio of tacos one al Pastor one chicken and one carne asada The chicken was good and the carne asada better than most but I found the al pastor lacking with too much sweetness All tacos were proper tacos with doubledup corn tortillas diced onion and chopped cilantro The refried beans and the rice were average but that is not a negative They are fine just nothing specialnnDespite the strip mall location La Mestiza has been able to make you feel as if you are not in a strip mall I feel they are done they best they can on that front and applaud them for it nnService was pleasant and attentive but both times items I had ordered were forgotten and I had to ask My opinion is the waitstaff is pressed due to a groupon deal so I will not fault them too much for it Again they were super nice both times just a little forgetful Seeing a table of walk in will do that I suppose Prices were fair but nothing to write home about I did not have and drinks but the selection of Mexican beers looked good I would get Pacifico if I were younnI would give stars if I could I will still be back and hope they iron out the kinks sometime soon