After several weeks of reviewing restaurants across Oklahoma City’s broad culinary spectrum, it was time to return to my ever-loving roots—cultura alimentaria pura—and go deep with the Southside dining I was craving.
This time, I went to Restaurante Los Artesanos, 2701 S. Walker Ave., a small-time restaurant I heard about last week and had been dreaming about ever since.
From the street, the festive red and blue building, dwarfed by the surrounding neighborhood structures, hinted at something serious: a kitchen that could very well be the beating heart of Oklahoma City’s Mexican food scene.
Inside it is relatively small, offering just seven tables in the petite dining room. For some that might feel cramped and tight, but if you’re Latino, it makes the whole thing real homey, like your abuela’s kitchen on a Sunday night.
And just like that, the lone server—a tiny, middle-aged woman—emerged from the kitchen with well-worn menus, a basket of chips, and two kinds of salsa, both still steaming in their bowls. That’s when I knew I was in the right place.
Popping the tops off our grande Mexican Cokes ($3.50 each), we placed our orders. Around that time, a few regulars came in, including a priest and his entourage, sitting right next to our table, which made my Catholic-school-raised wife’s back straighten immediately. That’s high praise when a member of the cloth eats here, right?
Amen!
As I gave them a warm smile, I noticed on the menu that instead of the usual appetizers, they had stand-alone, homemade Gorditas on offer. That’s good enough for me!
Though they had many varieties, including Frijoles con Queso (bean and cheese), Rajas con Queso (poblano peppers and cheese), and Asada con Cilantro y Cebolla (steak with cilantro and onions), I had to get the Nopales con Carne de Puerco ($4.00).
From the very first bite, the tender pork, and especially the sliced and diced nopales—edible cactus meat—were intense and truly on-point. The contents spilled out of its pillowy, bready bed onto the plate as my wife and I shared it, and it was one of the best gorditas in town, bar none.
Wiping up the small morsels of leftover nopales, I anxiously awaited my main attraction, breakfast for lunch. I got the Chuleta Ahumada ($14.00) or the smoked pork chops. True to name, it was a smoked pork chop with two scrambled eggs, as well as rice and beans.
There’s nothing—and I do mean nothing—better than a pork chop for breakfast. Smoked and grilled, this was a generous cut of meat that was cooked to near perfection, and even though the eggs were just okay, the beans and rice were much more than a delicious lark.
Meanwhile, my wife went the true lunch route with her Costillas de Res ($14.00), smoky short ribs. Her plate was covered with them, along with tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, and, of course, rice and beans.
This meal was truly revelatory!
The bite-sized, tomato-infused short ribs packed a true smoky punch, and I gnawed each sliver down to a nub—nothing but bones remained. The rice and beans soaked up the grilled onions and jalapeños to delicious effect, and the whole thing came alive in my mouth. I made sure her plate was wiped clean, thanks in part to the hot, fresh, definitely homemade flour tortillas at the ready.
This beautifully curated meal, with the haunting aura of pork and beef decorating my insides, deserved a slightly sinful dessert, but sadly, none were available.
In my imperfect but enthusiastic Spanish, I told our server how much I enjoyed the meal and that we'd be back soon. She thanked me, and on the way out I spotted a small selection of bagged treats—spiced nuts and baked goods—by the door.
I grabbed some chamoy fruit for later in the week, but if I’m being honest, I was still thinking about that breakfast pork chop as we walked to the car, half-tempted to turn around and order another for the road. That’s the power of real Southside food—it calls you back before you’ve even left the parking lot.
Cómpralo ya!
-
Follow Louis Fowler on Instagram at @louisfowler78.
