Casa Oaxaca

Came here for lunch while working. I’m not a big fan of Oaxacan dishes due to my mixed reaction to Mole. But they have plenty of menu options that meet everyone half way. As noted in a prior review the décor is a little odd. Prices are average and food quality is average to above average. Service was friendly, which is good since we were the only ones in the resturant. Over all it was a fine lunch experience and I’d return if I was in the area.

This has been several different restaurants since it was the excellent Japanese place (if memory serves it was called Shogun). Finally had a chance to have lunch here. Inside is meh. Started off good with warm chips and bean dip & salsa. Pastor tacos had a weird sauce, asada were just ok. The mole tamales were yuck. The tamales were burnt and the mole sauce had a funky aftertaste (maybe I just don’t like mole…). The majority of their dishes on the menu were chicken and I’m trying to steer clear of the «dirty birdy».
Don’t know what happened to the other Unilocal review — but they didn’t have any beef dishes as shown in the pictures. Service was poor — had to keep flagging the guy down. Won’t be back…

The only reason why I’m not giving this 5 stars is because I’ve never had any other Oaxacan food for comparison. But that’s the point – New! Different! In Federal Way! I’ve been here a few times and everything I’ve had has been great. A personal favorite is the enfrijolatas, a kind of sweet, chocolatey black bean over tortillas and queso fresco. I also really liked the pipian, a green sauce made out of pumpkin seeds and served over chicken. Oh, and the horchata is great too.
The décor – it’s strange. This place used to be a Korean/​sushi restaurant, so it’s kind of fiesta meets Asian modern. I don’t really care though because it’s clean and that’s really my only must-​have in a restaurant besides good food and good service. Which, by the way, this place has. Super friendly!