El Rio Grande–Mayfield Mexican Cantina

You may have noticed that the large restaurant behind Golden Gat

e Plaza has undergone another transformation, becoming a Mexican restaurant (ironically enough the building originally housed a Mexican restaurant).  I notices a $5 off coupon in Scene magazine, so I figured I would give it a try.  I arrived early on a Friday evening and the place was nearly empty, but had a very festive décor with bright primary colors, hand carved chairs and tables.  With enough people to fill up the large space this could be a fun and happening place.  The décor and menu are similar to that at the local El Rodeo chain, but there is a El Rodeo about 1 mile down Mayfield. 
As usual out came the chips and salsa, the chips were ok, the salsa bright, but a bit too mild.  Easily fixed with some hot sauce, but noting special.
The menu is generally what you would expect from a Mexican restaurant, plenty of choices, but a lot of the same ingredients.  The Seafood section is a bit better then some other places.  I had the Chili Rellenos dinner, which was two cheese stuffed peppers fried and topped with sauce.  The peppers were ok, although the cheese seemed a bit underwhelming, the dish could have used more sauce, but the sour crème drizzle was a nice touch.  The rice and beans that came with were ok, but once again nothing special.  Overall the food was decent, but not anything that I am going to hurry back for, especially if I have to pay full price.
I think El Rio Grande has a chance since the décor is good and the service was fine, but the food is just OK.  There are plenty of other places to go for Mexican food and if you are going to open a new place, especially one this large you need to make sure that the food really is something special. 
Give it a try if you grab one of the coupons, otherwise there is much better ways to spend you dinner dollars.