By Charlie Fitzgerald ‘20

In a diverse neighborhood like Beverly, there’s a little bit of everything. With generic Mexican places on what seems like every corner, El Gallo doesn’t really seem authentic to the blind eye. But if you give the family owned establishment a go, you won’t be sorry.

Of course, before I tried one of my favorite Mexican places for this review, I implored the opinion of three dear friends, Hugh “Newts” Sullivan, Ryan Adasiak and Caitlin Richter. They gave some great insight on the dinner choices.

First, let’s start with Newts and Ryan. Now Newts is no stranger to the El Gallo taco dinner. Living so conveniently close to the venue, he brought up how he indulges in the Mexican cuisine at least twice a week.

He said, “I feel like there’s a little bit of myself in El Gallo. Honestly, the aesthetic suits me and the food is delicious!”

Ryan is more of a newbie. Living in Oak Lawn, he rarely feasts on El Gallo, but was still confident in his taste buds.

“The best Mexican food on the South Side. No doubt.”

All this food talk is making me hungry, but before I make my way to 111th Street, I thought it’d only be fair if I got got an opinion on another menu item.

I inquired the judgement of my close friend, Caitlin Richter. Caitlin told me she likes to stop at El Gallo on the way home from cheer practice when she’s craving Mexican food.

“I would have the ‘El Gallo King Burrito’ for every meal of the day if I could. It’s truly mouth-watering.”

After examining both viewpoints, I decided to head over to El Gallo and try Newts’ favorite, “The Taco Dinner.”

At a price of $9.81, tax included, you definitely get what you pay for and then some more. My dinner was splendid and the meat was cooked to perfection. Also, I brought my little brother Mike along. He described his dinner, as any 6th grader would, very simply.

“Very good.” he said. “It filled me up.”

In my opinion, I am a big fan of Beverly’s Mexican eateries ranging from Valparaiso to Pepe’s. But, El Gallo blows these out of the water and is, no doubt, the epitome of authentic mexican food in the Beverly-Chicagoland area.

On a scale of 10, I would give my dinner an 8.4.