Vive Latino Mexican Restaurant

Note — this restaurant may be closed as of 2011.0710 — listed phone number not in service

We stumbled upon this humble mexican restaurant one weekend, and it was the best thing ever! We went back three times for lunch the following week. The menu is amazing, and yes «Deep Fried Taco» is one of the menu items. The flavors are just right– I actually wanted to eat the beans and rice because they were that good! I don’t even like mexican food, and I want to go back all the time!
My husband likes spicy, and got his taste buds going while there.

Oh, the thrill of the hunt. Seeking the perfect Mexican fare is intoxicating, to say the least. It is fascinating to me that they take essentially the same ingredients, beans, rice, chilis, tortillas, etc., but yet turn out an amazingly diverse product. The world is full of nondescript strip malls, populated by Mom and Pop (Madre/​Padre) businesses, each and every one rife with the opportunity to become the next Mexican food Mecca. As I have stated previously in reviews, I am not of Mexican decent, so I won’t tell you that this was authentic Mexican food, however… the staff were all fluently speaking Espanol, and appeared to be of Mexican decent. You don’t need to be an MIT mathematician to add 2+2 = authentic. So, with this devout pursuit in mind, I chose the Chile Relleno lunch special. Cheese may not make a Mexican meal authentic, but enough of it can make me deliriously happy, as I swirl the stringy ribbons around my fork. Ah, yes, another gratifying food moment. The rice was light and fluffy, and the beans were re-​fried. All pleasant enough. The ubiquitous tortilla chips were thin and crispy. The sauce was mild, with an above average amount of cilantro. The «hot «was really tasty, with just the right amount of heat. Do ask for the hot. My com padre in this Mexican food reconnaissance opted for the Barbacoa tacos. They looked yumO… yes that is a Midwest culinary term of extraordinary appreciation. The wait staff was gracious and helpful. They went out of their way to keep our sodas full and to answer our frequent questions, not to mention tolerating all of my picture taking. I will return again when I need a break from hospital cafeteria food, and this time I will bring a group of female friends (sometimes men can be such old whiny tales about a foo foo drink), and try the virgin cocktails… mango or strawberry daiquiris, perhaps a Pina Colada, now that screams Fiesta!

OK.
Mexican food in America is the new Chinese. Most places, quite frankly, are just mediocre. Vive gets it right.
Open only two months, they hit the mark on everything I had.
Salsa was actually tasty and did not have the ketchup quality that is so common these days.
Chile Relleno was well executed and double sauced. A little green/​tomatillo and a smokey [chipotle?] cheese sauce. Tasty and not too wet.
The tostado was nothing special, but it was on my combo and tasty crunchy good. Anyone know how to eat these things.
The taco barbacoa was AWESOME. Beautifully spiced beef packed into a double layer of corn tortillas and topped with an avocado wedge. Absolutely perfect!
When I come back it is 2 or 3 of those tacos. They rocked like THAT! :)

It was the best Mexican Restaurant I’ve been to in Kansas City! I’ve been to several more Mexican restaurant but this one did it for me, if you like Mi Ranchito or Fronteras; you will LOVE Vive Latino! They have a huge selection of food and they are well in between budget. The service is good, the food takes a little longer than fast food, but it is so good; you won’t really mind it. Crazy Pineapple Empanadas for dessert. Cheap Food, Great Tasting, Good Service. The 3 G’s