Elote

Hey fellow dispatchers! My name is Kaylee McDaniel and I am the Sustainable Travel Initiatives and Communications Assistant at OTRD. It’s a long title that pretty much means that I get to write about one of the places I love best: Oklahoma. I was born and raised here, and I love exploring the state and telling other people about what I find. As a recent college grad, my main requirements for Oklahoma adventures are (1) that they are fun and (2) that they are cheap.

One of the reasons I love living in Oklahoma is because of the number of great Mexican restaurants throughout the state. I love Mexican food, and I will take any opportunity to try out a new establishment. So when I met a friend in Tulsa a few weeks ago, I immediately knew I had to sample the Mexican food all my Tulsa friends were buzzing about: Eloté Café.

While it’s relatively new to the restaurant scene (owners Jeremy and Libby Auld opened in May 2008), Eloté has already established a firm reputation for serving locally-sourced, healthy and tasty Mexican food.

In other words, it is the Holy Trinity of Mexican cuisine.

Eloté’s menu takes advantage of nearby farms to provide customers with fresh, local foods—without the high price tag associated with organic eating. Throughout the year, farmers markets provide inspiration for the seasonal menu items. The chicken is always free range, and a Bixby farm provides the beef. The restaurant’s bread and pastry items are also made at a local bakery.

Once I realized how much care and attention the owners put into the menu items, I knew that anything I ordered would be tasty and satisfying. According to my Tulsan friends, the puffy tacos were the lunch specialty, so I ordered the salmon version and prepared myself to be impressed.

One bite of my tacos and I had found one of my new favorite restaurants. The cinnamon-covered churros helped confirm my growing realization that I HAVE to visit this restaurant again.

Sometime between bites, I had the presence of mind to actually take in the atmosphere of the restaurant, which includes a bar made of 100 percent recycled materials and a mysterious wrestling ring in the corner. Eloté is the only restaurant that I know of that has its own certified wrestling federation. These luchadors (think Nacho Libre) entertain the public at matches throughout the year.

Whether it’s eating local and healthy foods, watching people get clobbered in a wrestling match, or just enjoying some darn good Mexican dishes, Eloté offers something for everyone’s tastes.

-Kaylee