Don Alfredo Carnitas

On the NW corner of 25th Ave and Lake St in Melrose Park is the Don Alfredo Carnitas taqueria. It is a small, unassuming place with maybe a dozen stools at a counter for seating. They seem to do a serious carryout business. I have sampled their menu several times in the past couple of weeks, and all I can say is "I love it." Absolutely delicious carnitas. Tender, juicy, well-seasoned, lean, and in good quantity. Tacos are under two bucks and burritos around four bucks. And great homemade horchata. Who could ask for more? If you haven't tried this little gem, put it on your list soon. Their specialty is clearly carnitas, but they also offer the other usual choices: carne asada, al pastor, chile rellenos, etc., but I can't attest to their worthiness. I can't get past the carnitas, and don't want to. David, have you tried this place yet, you're a carnitas fan, right?

Don Alfredo Carnitas
2501 W Lake St
Melrose Park, IL 60160

Thanks for posting on this and reminding me. I paid a visit last year on the Saturday of the Taste of Melrose Park and grabbed a few pounds of the carnitas, some salsa and tortillas to go. If I remember correctly the tortillas are hand made on site. The carnitas are great indeed and packed with flavor, even to the center of the larger chunks. The red fiery salsa was a good complement to the rich meat and was toned down a bit by the fat. I also remember the sign had a large exitable pig in a cauldron. The carnitas heated up especially well the next day in the oven and retained internal moisture while gaining a satisfying crispy outer layer. I know where I'm going next weekend.

tony

I stopped by twice, both late in the day, and they were out of carnitas, but these posts encourage me to go back.

I believe there's may be another another Don Alfredo outpost on the southeast corner of Lake and First Avenues.

I can't say for certain about the lake/first, but I am 99.99% sure you are correct. The place has the word carnitas in its name at the very least.

This is an awesome place. My kids and I discovered it one Sunday morning. The line was out the door and we had to stop and see what the attraction was. They only have carnitas on Sunday and the tortillas are homemade right there. My kids drool when I mention going there. We have gone back many Sundays and gotten it to go by the pound. They love the steak burritos also.

I will confirm that they have opened a second site at the corner of Lake and 1st Avene It is closer to my house but I still love the one at Lake & 25th.

I stopped by today and picked up some barbacoa consomme. A rich beef broth with lots of meat. It was great--highly recommended. Also picked up some excellent carnitas tacos. They are always spot on. Last week I tried their pozole, just so-so.

Drove by and it looks as if DAC will be moving west into the new development next door.

Went to the one on Lake and 1st avenue today on the way home for a pre - dinner snack.
(fyi - 99c carnitas tacos!) There was nothing on the sign stipulating what day of the week, so maybe it's everyday?

Anyway, here, the carnitas are finely chopped. Not my preference, but I could see how that could be considered nit-picking. Carnitas today - meh - nothing special. Solid, but not spectacular. Good for the price, we'll say. However, I was instantly drawn to the red salsa. Well roasted chiles were in this one (arboles) I'll assume. Very earthy, bordering on fiery hot. The salsa vede was searing hot. I liked it a lot as well. All in all, solid snack of two tacos de carnitas for 2.18 out the door.

I randomly drove by alfredos after a not so satisfying sandwich from starship subs and thought it was really good. Im surprised I missed the original post. Its always a good sign when theres about 10 different people waiting for takeout. It was even better to see that they were all taking carnitas. I opted for two carnita tacos but chose for the homemade tortillas instead of the $.99 special with store bought. The homemade tortillas may be a weekend thing.


Two carnita tacos with onion, cilantro and lime served on homemade tortillas

As much as I love Mexican food and pork, im not a carnita expert but these tacos were really good and the homemade tortilla and above mentioned salsas took them over the top. I esp. liked the fact that there were some really crispy pieces paired with some extra juicy chunks. I think they were $1.50/each. I got the feeling from the smell, lines of people and fact it is attached to a gas station that it was good eating and it was. Even though there can be a line it moves fast and on the weekends its quite entertaining watching everything go on right in front of you behind the plexi-glass.

Not sure about an address but this was the location right next to a citgo.

Da Beef wrote:I randomly drove by alfredos after a not so satisfying sandwich from starship subs...

OT, BUT -
Just in case you're in the area again,
Maybe you'll like these sammiches?

I got the feeling from the smell, lines of people and fact it is attached to a gas station that it was good eating and it was.

seebee wrote:

Da Beef wrote:I randomly drove by alfredos after a not so satisfying sandwich from starship subs...

OT, BUT -
Just in case you're in the area again,
Maybe you'll like these sammiches?

Da Beef - please accept my apologies. I see you've come across better than Alpine in the area. ("Al&Joes thread has been bumped.)

el pollo regio is also just down the street:

www.elpolloregio.net

1918 W Lake St
Melrose Park, IL 60160
(708) 345-5011

A very tasty $.99 taco ($1.49 on weekdays or with a fresh-griddled tortilla) at the Lake/25th location on Saturday. They're using an aquarium for keeping the pig hot and crispy, and they carve off a chunk, chop it with a cleaver, and throw it on the grill for a minute before adding to the tortilla. I particularly appreciated the carefully cleaned lime, onion, and cilantro, in a year when I've found a lot of places just throwing unselected (and perhaps even unwashed) chunks onto the plate. The red salsa is really something special, with a fresh smoke to it, lots of acid, and easy on the salt to let the vegetable and citrus flavors sail through.

I've now been to all three Lake Street locations (the tiny corner shop on Lake/25, the bigger shinier one attached to the warehouse building a stone's throw away, and the Lake/1st one attached to the gas station), and can't detect a difference in quality. All pretty damn good pork.

I finally got around to this place on Saturday. Instead of tacos, we got the pound of meat for $7.99 and 5 tortillas for 99 cents. It was enough for much leftovers after we finished the five tortillas. I said to my wife, "I liked it, but I missed all of the gooey bits." She said, "I liked it because it did not have all of the gooey bits."

Anyways, if I was making a carnitas ranking, I would surely put this place behind Carnitas Paisa in Logan Square as well as Carnitas Uruapan in Pilsen. I'm not saying I felt gypped with the lack of ribs and bits of porky kidney and other stuff that make the carnitas experience, but then on the other hand, Carnitas Paisa gives you some chicharron with your table chips. Still, that does not mean this place is not a very welcome addition to the Oak Park-ish dining community. I'd be happy to return for sure.

Also, just for the record, my wife and I tried a few of the barbacoa tacos, and with no ickyness divide on this one, we agreed totally on their deliciousness. Big amount per taco too.

I thought I'd leave a short post about the new DAC place at Lake and 25th Ave. in Melrose Park. This place is at the end of a strip mall, and about 100 feet west of their original shop, which is still also open, BTW.

The new place is much larger and has about a dozen or so tables and a short bar with stools. The best thing about it though is the expanded menu. They have at least twice as many items available on their menu as their smaller relative a few feet away. Today I had 2 tamales and champurrado for lunch, only $2.89. On my first visit I had a luncheon plate with tortillas, rice, beans, salad, and pork stew cooked in red pepper sauce (sorry, don't know the Mexican name for this dish), for only $4.99! Everything was well-prepared and tasted great. They also have a nice selection of other meat entrees and vegetable side dishes that looked good. Flan was available for $1.25, and homemade horchata for .99. For fast, inexpensive, quality Michoacan cooking, this place is tough to beat.

I stopped into Don Alfredo (on the NW corner of 25th and Lake, the older one, I think) and had a great lunch. Handmade tortillas? Check. Rich and flavorful carnitas with a good fattiness present? Check. Smoky, vibrant red salsa? Check. And the check? Around $5 for two tacos and a Mexican coke. I'll be back for a pound of carnitas and two orders of handmade tacos one night when I'm too tired to cook...

N.B. There was also a good but not great green salsa available, but one taste of the red and the decision was made.

I found out about this place from the twenty year old college students who always seem to know where the best food is at.

This place is very busy on the weekends. I stopped and got tacos, both steak and chorizo. They were very good. But what I really liked is that they gave me a whole order of grilled green onions on the side which was bigger than the dish of tacos I got.

The prices were very reasonable. I had to rush thru but will definitely be going back. I have to go back and try the carnitas.

I'm a fan. I had some sort of pork stew in green sauce. It had plent of bones, but it was fantastic. The carnitas are solid.

Note there are two establishments about 100 yards apart. Strip mall and corner "shack." The shack only serves carnitas on the weekends.

Plus the gas station on 1st and Lake!

Vitesse98 wrote:Plus the gas station on 1st and Lake!

I've seen the signs, but never tried. The concept of carnitas out of a gas station seems a bit risky. LOL.

teatpuller wrote:

Vitesse98 wrote:Plus the gas station on 1st and Lake!

I've seen the signs, but never tried. The concept of carnitas out of a gas station seems a bit risky. LOL.

No more risky than gas station shushi.

I've watched them making tortillas by hand there. If they're cooking those up from scratch, I'm confident they care about the rest of the food as much. Also, plenty of traffic come lunchtime, which is another good sign, and besides, it's not actually in the gas station, just part of the same compound.

electric mullet wrote:I also remember the sign had a large exitable pig in a cauldron.

I'm happy someone mentioned the pig art. That's important for a carnitas place.







Oh, and the food is important too. I like Don Alfredo quite a bit. I'd rank it just below the top tier places (Uruapan, Don Pedro etc).



Carnitas Don Alfredo
http://www.carnitasdonalfredo.com/ (warning: music!)

Original location:
2501 W Lake St
Melrose Park IL
708-338-0844

Gas station branch:
15 N 1st Av
Maywood IL
708-343-3351

Sit-down location:
2511 W Lake St
Melrose Park IL
708-345-6901

I'd drop it below Sabas Vega, too. But I haven't been there in some time.

Drove there today from River North to take a field trip and try the food (went to the sit down location). Perfectly fine but didn't think anything was special special. I did like the smell of the tortillas from outside. Very inviting. But found the food fairly regular.

The Don Alfredo's on Lake and 25th, the sit down location, is one of those classic places that's great at being good, but not good at being great. As I said many years ago, the carnitas are decent enough--carnitas, like fresh cut fries and orgasims are good even at their worse right--but I've had better. Still, I really enjoy a meal at Don Alfredo, with the fresh made tortillas, a few fried peppers and onions, there are often tacos in baskets/taco dorados tempting me, and the stews can really hit the spot. It's more like a fonda you see in an Andrew Zimmern episode than a Chicago area place., not just the variety of food looking at you but the clamor of the place. Not quite sure why, but I especially like eating solo here, where I can over-indulge, maybe even a little sweet empanada for dessert, without feeling too guilty. I'm not sure it's the place I would travel to if I lived in River North, but it's the kind of place I am very glad to have close to me.

well.. I did not know about the gas station on first and lake.. That is closer to me. have to try. sort of weird getting food from a gas station.

For what it's worth, some of the best boudin in Acadiana comes out of current/former gas stations.

I should known better than to judge a book by its cover. My favorite Mexican restaurant is el pollo vagabundo and it looks like a storage locker.

And I had some of the worst food, fish and chips, ever at a supposedly nice mom and pop greek style diner... the Elm Grove Grill in Elmwood park.

So its true.. where good comes from doesn't matter.. it is the food itself.