While El Adobe hosted us for one of our visits to their restaurant, all thoughts and opinions are 100% truthful and my own. For more details, please see the Disclosure Tab.
If you had told me that I’d visit El Adobe Restaurant in Audubon, Iowa, and have the best pasta of my life, I would never believe you! But, that is exactly what happened! Visiting Audubon, Iowa, was full of pleasant surprises and El Adobe was definitely one of those.
How El Adobe Came to Be
Alex, the owner of El Adobe, is very easy to talk to! While we were on our visit, he came out from the kitchen (yes, he is the cook too) to visit with us briefly! During that visit, we learned that Alex is a hard worker with lots of dreams and visions. After years of working in Chicago in Italian restaurants, Alex and his brother knew they wanted to own their own restaurants.
They began the search that brought them from Chicago to Iowa. Settling in Afton, Iowa, they set to work on their first shop. Once that location was up and running, Alex set his sights on his own location. He found this spot (at 320 Broadway St in Audubon) and went to work fixing it up and getting it ready for business. Now, it’s one of the most beloved spots in Audubon! Everywhere we went people RAVED about El Adobe and their menu! The typical response was “I’ve never had anything bad there!” or “Everything is so good!”.
The Food
Imagine our surprise when we sat down and opened the menus to find not only a wide variety of Mexican food, but sandwiches, pasta, and more!
After two (yes, not just one) visits, I feel as though I’m most confident in saying that El Adobe is a shining star in Audubon. As I previously mentioned, Alex worked for many years in Italian restaurants in Chicago and in his own words, “I know pasta better than I know Mexican food.” Suddenly, all the pasta options on their menu made sense. It also made our decision to try the pasta very easy!
Mom selected Rigatoni A, which is rigatoni pasta tossed in a marsala cream sauce with sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, and tomatoes with your choice of chicken or shrimp.
I selected Al Pesto Genovese , which is your choice of chicken or shrimp in a pesto cream sauce over rigatoni pasta. Both were served with garlic bread!
The pasta was pure perfection! It was like no other pasta I’ve ever had in Iowa! It actually reminded me very much of the pasta I ate in Little Italy in NYC. Both the chicken and shrimp was tender and perfectly cooked. The pasta was cooked exceptionally well and those sauces….so full of flavor! Mom and I couldn’t stop raving about our pasta during the trip (I’m pretty sure the people of Audubon were tired of hearing about our pasta dinner!)!! The garlic bread that was alongside our dishes was also done perfectly! Well seasoned without being too powerful and not greasy!
Don’t Forget About the Mexican Food
Of course, I can’t write about El Adobe Restaurant without talking about the Mexican food! Mom and I had to start our meal with margaritas and their complimentary chips and housemade salsa! The salsa was delicious! Mom was convinced she could have eaten the salsa with a spoon! And of course, the chips were warm! The margarita was pure perfection! Flavorful, but not too sweet! The perfect balance of drink mix and tequila! YUM! (And I LOVE margaritas!)
Everywhere we went, people raved about Adobe and so we felt it was only right to return for lunch the next day to experience more of the menu! Mom selected one of their specialty salads while I picked the lunch size Chimichanga! My mom was beyond happy with the salad and my chimichanga and rice was delicious! I could go for another one now! The meat was perfectly seasoned, the chimichanga wasn’t greasy, but crispy, and the rice was well balanced. All of the ingredients through both of our visits were clearly fresh and the very best!
Adobe Mexican Restaurant is the Best!
Whether you’re visiting with Alex, the owner, about his story and how Adobe came to be, sipping a margarita, enjoying the chips and salsa, or dining on the pasta, you will quickly see why Adobe Mexican Restaurant is simply the best! I would never have imagined that I would have visited a Mexican restaurant in Audubon, Iowa and had some of the very best pasta I’ve ever had, but I did it! You need to put this spot on your list of “must try” restaurants!
*One thing to note, El Adobe is so well loved that if you visit during the peak meal times, expect it to busy, and possibly a wait, but it’s totally worth it!
More Audubon Awesomness
Read more about our trip to Audubon below!
5 Ways to Have an Amazing Girlfriends Getaway in Audubon County, Iowa
This restaurant looks amazing. Would love to order both pasta and Mexican dishes – they look really really good.
They were both really good! Some of the best I’ve ever had!
All my favorites! Thanks for the great photos and descriptions!
My favorites too!!!
Now I’m hungry! Both the pasta and Mexican dishes look delicious!
On a dreary day like today a helping of that pasta sounds extra good!
Mexican and Italian are my two favorite cuisines, so this restaurant sounds amazing! Good to know for future trips. I also have a former colleague from Audobon… I will make sure she knows!
Yes! And it was all so delicious!!
LOL at this title. You’re hilarious and now I’m starving- this place sounds amazing!
I’ve never been to a “fusion” restaurant and it was so food! I’m starving too! I’d take a big plate of that pasta right now!
This place sounds amazing! I never know what to order at Mexican restaurants, but adding some Italian flair would definitely broaden my options. Definitely adding this to my list of Iowa eateries to stop at!
It’s so fantastic! I honestly loved both things I had! I struggle what to pick too. I always want to try new things and have a hard time doing it!
That pasta looks wonderful! And I could have chips and salsa, too!
I never would have thought of the chips, salsa, and pasta combo, but it works wonderfully!!!
That sure is a catchy headline. I absolutely had to read about this amazing pasta at a Mexican restaurant. Looks not only delicious, but that it pairs well with a margarita!!! ~ Sage Scott, the Everyday Wanderer
Everything pairs well with a margarita in my book!!!
I absolutely love the look of this place and the food looks even better! Looks like a high quality, authentic meal.
It really is top notch! Plus, when you know the story of the owner, I think it makes it even better!