We tried the food at soon-to-open Superior Grill Lafayette. Here's what we thought.

The highly anticipated opening date for Superior Grill Lafayette is inching closer. 

After months of construction and the reveal of a handsomely designed interior with tiles from Morocco and glass from a Frank Lloyd Wright building, the restaurant is in the middle of hosting a series of soft openings for friends and family. According to general manager Andrew Lugo, the public opening is intended for sometime next week, but he wouldn't confirm the date yet. 

"We're going to see how it goes," he says. 

READ MORE: Take a first look inside the fancy new Superior Grill in Lafayette

A few reporters and a photographer had the opportunity to sit for lunch today at the brand-new restaurant, and see how the design functions in action. With a full staff and a busy lunch crowd, the restaurant didn't feel crowded. There is ample space for dining and moving around the indoor restaurant, and the outdoor covered and uncovered patios are spacious and thoughtfully appointed, as well. 

When the restaurant does open to the public, crowds and parking are sure to be a concern — but with a large parking lot sitting on around two acres right next to the building, the full space looks more than prepared to take on a Tex-Mex loving community. 

What we ate at the new Superior Grill Lafayette 

Here's what we ordered from this week's "friends and family" menu. There may be some differences or additional options available when the restaurant starts serving its full menu, potentially sometime next week. 

When our group sat down, we immediately ordered a crowd-pleaser: the dip trio, with guacamole, queso and bean dip. The queso was great, and I particularly loved the bean dip that had a wonderful texture of refried beans and vegetables, topped with melted cheese. But the guacamole was a clear front-runner for our table: fresh and flavorful, with a great bite from the red onions and lime. It's a good addition alongside the house salsa and chips. 

We also ordered the chimichanga appetizer — one platter with beef and one with cheese (the menu order comes with a choice of mesquite chicken or ground beef, but we opted to make one order vegetarian-friendly). Not too dough-y or over-fried, the chimichangas were a tasty two-bite appetizer that went well with the variety of dips that we had. 

Chicken and San Lucas Fajitas

"Very good. Tender. Well-seasoned." That's what reporter Ja'Kori Madison had to say about the chicken fajitas, which arrived sizzling and were served with flour tortillas, pico de gallo, cheese, sour cream and rice. Customers also have an option to select beans, black bean soup or tortilla soup with a fajita order. 

Photographer Leslie Westbrook went with a surf and turf option for his fajitas. The San Lucas fajita platter comes with skirt steak and two butterflied jumbo shrimp that Westbrook said were "stand out." He also said that the steak was delicious and cooked "just right." The fajita platters also come with two sauces, a queso fresco dip and a salsa that's a little more rough-chopped and watery, but still flavorful, than the house salsa. Both Westbrook and Madison said that they liked the variety of "extras" on the side with which to build the perfect fajita taco. 

Pluma Bowl

Reporter Stephen Marcantel has been a vegan for the past eight years, and he went with a modified Pluma Bowl for his lunch. The bowl is usually served with the customer's choice of ground beef, chicken, brisket or fajita beef, and with queso fresco. Marcantel opted to have his bowl without meat or cheese, and he was served a generous portion of mixed greens with fresh pico de gallo, black beans, corn and avocado. Mexican rice came on the side, along with a chipotle ranch dressing. 

His comment on the salad? He said it was fresh and tasty — and "not light." Even without the meat, it was a large and filling salad. 

Beef taco and cheese enchilada combo

I love ordering enchiladas at Tex-Mex restaurants, and knew Superior Grill's version had to be my first order at the new location. I prefer an enchilada with the sauce, cheese, tortilla and filling steamed and baked together in flavorful harmony — as someone who's had a few sad, dry and falling-apart versions in the past.

This one was exactly right. The mild red enchilada sauce paired perfectly with the cheese baked on top of the dish, and the cheese filling was sturdy without being dry. It was also very good (hard to put the fork down good) eaten with the rice and refried beans that came with the combo platter. 

The beef taco was exactly what you'd want to find at a great taco night — simple, quality, easy to handle. Full but not over-stuffed with ground beef and cheese, I added extra pico de gallo and sour cream to half of it. That half was great, but I also loved the un-adorned half; and reflected that sometimes, no additions are necessary when the quality and execution are good to start with. 

As for Superior's well-loved margaritas — they were not available on this menu, and after all, it was a working lunch. When the restaurant opens its doors I (and the rest of Acadiana) look forward to claiming a spot on the patio and sitting back with a margarita. 

Superior Grill Lafayette: What we know

Superior Grill co-owners Bob Kirchoff and Phil Barberee purchased nearly four acres of property in December 2021 on Kaliste Saloom in Lafayette, across from The Grand Ambassador movie theater. The purchase price was $3.5 million, and the property was the site of longtime Lafayette restaurant Randol's Seafood, which has now reopened in Breaux Bridge. 

Last month, media and other guests were invited for a first look at the restaurant prior to opening for food service. In describing the level of careful detail that went into designing and building the site — there's also neon art from Austin, and glass doors from Turkey — Lugo had this to say:

“We wanted to do it right, and we wanted to make sure we had a great quality product for Lafayette. We had a vision and a goal, and I think we’re finally here. To see that come to life has been fantastic.”

It's the first south Louisiana location outside of Baton Rouge and New Orleans, and the seventh location for the chain that first opened in 1983 in Shreveport. 

Known for sizzling fajitas and margaritas, Superior Grill has been consistently rated as one of the best Mexican restaurants in the state, company officials said. Gustavo Santiago will serve as head chef for the Lafayette restaurant.

Superior Grill Lafayette is located at 2320 Kaliste Saloom Road.