Not too long ago, beloved Columbia Heights restaurant Asia Chow Mein closed as the owners retired. First, it started with a repainted roof and cacti placed outside—homage to a new restaurant name perhaps? Yes, it turned out to be true, and months of anticipation later, the tall street-view sign changed over to reveal…Los Cactus! Located right across from Savers at 4905 Central Avenue NE, the fresh hotspot for Mexican street food has already enjoyed almost unanimous rave reviews from diners.
Columbia Heights, and specifically Central Avenue has many restaurants and a variety of dishes to eat. So never say you don’t know what to eat when you are in town! From gyros to burgers, and from fast food to mom-and-pop diners, Heights has so many options and residents were elated about a new addition in a beloved space.
Heights has a particularly robust Spanish-speaking population, with several Mexican (La Casita, El Taco Loco) and Ecuadorian (Chimborazo, El Tequila) food options, but having Los Cactus as a semi-fast food-style restaurant similar to Chipotle Mexican Grill is a huge win for our small town. The brightly-lit yet inviting ordering counter uses a build-your-own meal catering style service, which means guests can assemble their meals from a selection of ingredients in live time. They have more options than Chipotle too—like elote or fries and meat choices like birria to choose from. The servers and cooks are friendly and attentive, willing to customize however the customer wants. The Los Cactus experience makes it clear that the staff is devoted to giving you the best Mexican cuisine experience.
“Honestly, it’s better than both Chipotle and Pancheros,” Diego Ortiz (10) said. “I don’t really like Mexican food, but they have many options [at Los Cactus like] corn and churros, even for drinks [like] horchata and agua fresca. I’ve gone there a couple of times and each time it’s good quality and consistent.”
Unlike Chipotle’s typical set-up of two workers and one line, Los Cactus has 2-4 workers and two areas to order food as well as an on-site ordering drive-through plus an ordering counter. Adding to their convenient design, they have a condiments station at the end of the counter with additional add-ons like hot sauce and lemons. Some customers have even mentioned they don’t charge extra for guac, unlike Chipotle, whose various locations have also become notorious for slower service along with similar chains like Pancheros.
“Los Cactus has really good food and service and they make it fresh in front of you depending on what you order,” Armani Phoumivong (10) said. “I got tacos, which cost a couple of dollars, and horchata which had a sweet taste and was super good. I also got churros, which were warm and came with chocolate sauce to dip in. I really enjoyed it there and the employees were so kind and fast!”
Los Cactus also has striking interior and exterior designs compared to surrounding buildings, making it stand out among the crowded field of businesses on Central Avenue. As soon as you walk in through their double doors, they have a painting honoring Asian Chow Mein and a picture of Los Cactus on the wall. As you walk, you’ll see they have hints of green everywhere—like green chairs and other decorations. They have green LED strip lights on the ceiling and white lights hanging down which makes a quite interesting and enchanting architectural design.
The layout is very different from the location’s previous restaurant, Asian Chow Mein. The reception counter meets you as you walk in and there is an open kitchen, compared to a previously a closed-off kitchen. The exterior is relatively the same, just some paint work and landscaping featuring, you guessed it, cacti. Despite that, Los Cactus looks like a completely different restaurant than the late Asian Chow Mein.
Los Cactus also has an influx of customers and seems to be thriving, with multiple cars in the parking lot and a crowd of people inside ordering and eating. Over the years, Asia Chow Mein built up a good reputation for fresh food and fast services, and though it was devastating to see it go, Los Cactus seems to carry on the beloved former eatery’s legacy of offering fast, fresh food with outstanding service.
