Bonjour, friendly folks! Many of you loyal readers may have seen a photo of Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Cafe on the back page of Tuesday’s Daily.

For the benefit of those who didn’t, here’s a quick recap: Since the end of last spring’s semester, more than 10 new restaurants have opened in Ames, bringing the total to nearly 60.

Case in point: Carlos O’Kelly’s at 631 Lincoln Way near Hollywood Video.

Ordinarily, Central Ames should be a good location for a new Mexican restaurant, but it’s so far back from the road that it’s difficult to see.

By the time you see the beckoning neon sign and the southwestern landscape, you will probably miss the turn.

Carlos O’Kelly’s needs a billboard, or at the very least, entrance markers off the street.

I met some friends at 7:30 last Sunday evening. There was no waiting list, and the four of us easily fit in a booth. (Gotta respect the extra-big booths.)

We commented on the decor, which attempted to be authentic (just like their food). The fake stucco bricks all over the place were especially interesting.

All in all, Carlos O’Kelly’s was decorated pretty much like like every other Mexican restaurant around.

On a scale of authenticity, I’d put Carlos O’Kelly’s above Taco Bell, but below say, Tequila or Cazador. But then I guess I’m no real authentic authority on the Southwest; well, unless you count that stint four summers ago in Tijuana.

My meal consisted of a cherry Coke, a two-enchilada dinner (with both chicken and ground beef equally represented) and a Mayan Snowball for dessert, all for $11.43.

Oh, I’m sorry, are you as bored reading this as I was eating there? (And no, not because of the friends I went with.)

Now, let it be noted that I thought long and hard, and hard and long and then went home, ate some chips & salsa, and thought even more before writing this.

You see, it’s difficult for me get excited about something that was so boring, mediocre and run-of-the-mill.

Carlos O’Kelly’s is on par with Applebee’s, TGI Friday’s and Fazoli’s.

They are all moderate attempts to take a privately owned restaurant like Hickory Park or Great Plains and franchise it so that it ends up being nothing special.

Carlos O’Kelly’s is a level up from Perkins, but priced too high, so as to give the appearance of finer dining.

I know that I’m treading on thin ice here and run the risk of alienating all restaurant chains. This is certainly not my intention.

Carlos O’Kelly’s service was great, the food was good (and definitely filling) and all-in-all there was nothing specific to complain about.

The problem was it just didn’t do anything for me and therefore doesn’t warrant an extraordinary review.

Well folks, I’ll step off my soapbox here until next week when I start a series of reviews on the 3 McDonald’s in town. (Just kidding… I think.)

2 1/2 stars out of five.

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Kim Zangger is a senior in advertising from Mt. Vernon.