The Black Angel Restaurant

Amazing experience, the food was absolutely amazing. Our server Rito was a touch on the odder side as he greeted our table with a traditional Mongolian throat singing etude. But was perfect besides that.

Best fries in town. Lots of vegetarian options. Recommend the huevos.

Wowowowowow! We visited for the first time last night. Our server, Rito, was prompt and kind and generally wonderful. The ambience of the place also hit all the right notes: beautiful stained-glass fixtures, but lit dimly enough to curate relaxation and conversation. But best of all: The food was OUT OF THIS WORLD. I love the way the menu meanders between southern, Mexican, and classic American cuisines—something for all the eaters in my family. At our table, we had the pozole, the double double burger with fries, and the huevos rancheros. Every one of us ate every last bite, and then we shared a tres leches dessert. Highlights were 1. The FRIES (now that Bread Garden changed to gross fries and Shorts always cooks them into crisps, there have been no GREAT fries left in Iowa City. I’m so happy to have found some!) 2. The black bean compote (don’t know what else to call it) served with the huevos was both delicious and exactly the right texture. 3. Both the Pozole flavors and having it served “hot pot” style made it feel like a true special. The only drawback was that the pozole wasn’t quite hot enough—it was warm but probably needed to be piping hot for the hot pot approach to work. Both of my sons are counting down the minutes until we can go back for another special meal. And me? Next time I’m ordering the black bean burger so I can have those fries all to myself. PS) Vegetarians rejoice. Lots of options here for us.

I really wanted to like this place. Dimly lit, great ambiance. Very cozy. Server was very rough around the edges. He was eating in plain view of customers (no handwashing), tried taking our plates while we were still eating, and gave an overall sense of rushing us. We would have ordered desert but heard him state that the kitchen was closed and the chef had already left for the evening, 20 mins before close. The food was oddly seasoned. There is a definite attempt to enhance flavors with different seasonings here, but the odd pairing of herbs and seasonings with the food itself, totally misses the mark. Oddest food items I’ve seen on a menu. This place feels confused about its identity. I would not recommend. Not likely to return.

This is our 3rd time at Black Angel, this time for a delicious breakfast. We had breakfast tacos with hash browns and a breakfast burrito this morning. Servings are very generous - we have enough for breakfast another day!