Acambaro Mexican Restaurant

301 S. Walton Boulevard, Bentonville

For anyone doing business at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in Bentonville, Acambaro Mexican Restaurant is the perfect pit stop for lunch. Only a couple hundred yards from the retail giant’s home office, this locally-owned restaurant serves sit-down quality meals at fast food speed.

We’re told many of Wal-Mart’s employees make a habit of phoning ahead their orders to maximize time during lunch breaks.

But on a recent visit, our two diners found little need to order early. It took less than a minute to be seated, less than five minutes to get our drinks and about 10 minutes to get our food. Overall, we were in and out in 45 minutes. That kind of service can make a big difference for a sales team that’s on its way to make a presentation, or even just for anyone who’s tired of dawdling restaurant service.

We were also amused by the Spanish-language soap operas that played on several televisions. Like Acambaro’s delicious queso dip, that genre of entertainment is cheesy in any language.

The meal came with complimentary salsa and chips. We found Acambaro’s salsa to be a little on the warm side, but that was OK with us. We also liked the authentic tortilla chips although they could use a tad more salt.

The woman in our group had Enchiladas Bandera ($6) which combines one cheese, one chicken and one beef enchilada. The cheese enchilada is covered with ranchera sauce, the beef is covered with salsa verde and the chicken was bathed in a sour cream-based sauce that made her eyes roll back in her head.

The meal also comes with pico de gallo, rice and beans.

The male diner had the Pechuga Monterey ($8). It features a grilled chicken breast topped with tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, jack cheese and is served with rice, beans, guacamole and sour cream.

He thought the dish was very tasty, and especially liked the way the peppers and cheese were blended together. He also enjoyed sampling the sour cream-based sauce from his fellow diner’s plate.

Both agreed the rich sauce was the most pallet pleasing item on our plates.

Another highlight was Acambaro’s iced tea (all beverages are $1 and have free refills). A lot of restaurants brew their tea in the same vat they use for coffee, which gives the iced beverage an after taste. But Acambaro’s tea is refreshing.

Acambaro has stopped making flan, a Mexican desert that’s similar to custard, so we opted for the sopapilla with honey (85 cents). It was delicious, but remember to save room for this cinnamon treat while shoveling down chips and salsa at the start of lunch.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the Acambaro experience was how courteous our waiter was. He wasn’t too bothersome or inattentive, and his knowledge of the menu was impressive.

The restaurant is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. through 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, Acambaro serves 11 lunch specials that range from $4 to $5. After 3 p.m., the same items are $5 to $6.

Included in the daily lunch specials are just about any combination of authentic Mexican dishes one could think of, including enchiladas, tamales, tacos, burritos, fajita tacos, flautas and tostados. All lunch specials come with rice and beans.

It’s all bueno.