El Paraiso Awards

El Paraiso Restaurant Review:

Those who bemoan the lack of real, honest-to-masa Mexican restaurants in Denver haven't been to El Paraiso, an always-crowded, super-size space that parades an eight-page menu, much of it written in Spanish. It proffers everything from shrimp cocktail and oyster ceviche to molcajetes and parilladas, charcoal-fired metal trays that tumble with grilled meats, seafood and fish, spring onions with bulbs bigger than a ping pong ball, queso blanco, white onions and tongue-singeing peppers. An order for one feeds an orchestra; an order for two satiates a symphony. The house-made corn tortillas, flattened on an antiquated wooden tortilla press, are first-rate; the salsa, fiery and fresh; and the aguas frescas (Mexican fruit water) might even make you swear off Corona. Be forewarned that weekends command long waits and you'll need to navigate your way through the swarms of kids practicing their dance steps to the mariachi band, which, by the way, is quite good.