Hola! Let’s talk about Mexican food. I’ve been to Mexico and eaten it in the city of Zihautanejo and beach village of Troncones. But I’ve also eaten plenty of it locally and consider myself to be an easy-to-please anti-snob of the cuisine. My palate’s needs are simple, and my taste buds can’t really discern the difference between high-end, fancy-pants Mexican food and dime-a-dozen offerings.

That means, before I had taken a single bite of my lunch at the recently opened Azul Tequila Mexican restaurant in Gorham, I had already won.

Azul Tequila is just a few doors down from the busy intersection where you’ll find MK Kitchen and textile designer Erin Flett’s studio and shop. Its School Street address has been a bit of a revolving door, previously home to the Blue Pig Diner and before that St. Joe’s Coffee.

Azul Tequila opened on Feb. 2, and my visit was about a month later. I got there at about 11:30 a.m. and found the place already hopping with an early lunch crowd. The people in line in front of me were all speaking Spanish with the kitchen staff, so when it was my turn to order, I dusted off my Espanol and managed to get almost all the way through the conversation without using English. The man who took my order told me he is from Honduras and that the owners are Mexican.

Azul Tequila’s menu has many staples you’d expect to find, like tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, burritos and taquitos, but also wings and chicken tenders, which will please the crowd who (gasp!) doesn’t love Mexican fare. I decided to try the enchilada combo ($10.50), which is two enchiladas with rice and beans. Choice of fillings for the enchiladas include chicken (my choice), steak, carnitas (pulled pork), chorizo (Mexican sausage), ground beef, shrimp, fish and vegetarian. I also treated myself to a side of tortilla chips for $1.99 and dipped them into the melted melange of cheese, beans and chicken. Every bite was hot, flavorful and satisfying.

With just about all of the menu items, you can add your favorite salsa from among roasted tomato, roasted jalapeno, fresh jalapeno, tomatillo and avocado, all of which are made fresh daily. I chose the avocado salsa, and it was the perfect match for my enchiladas.

Portion-wise, this was plenty of food for the money, and I left there badly needing a siesta.

Lest we forget the name of the place, Azul Tequila does indeed stock plenty of tequila along with beer, wine and a full bar, and will certainly take care of your margarita needs.

I got the sense that Azul Tequila is popular among both University of Southern Maine students and locals because it’s in a spot accessible to the college crowd and those running errands or out with their kids. My one suggestion would be to ditch the disposable plates and utensils for reusable ones.

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