Best Bites: This Lucha Libre-Themed Restaurant Serves Knockout Vegan Quesadillas

Grab lunch in the colorful dining room of Dilla Libre Uno. Tirion Boan

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Welcome to Best Bites, a series where we celebrate not a whole restaurant or menu, but one specific and amazing dish. These bites have something to say and we are listening. Keep reading for dishes that are seriously worth the trek across metro Phoenix to find. Dig in!

The vegan quesadillas at Dilla Libre are so convincing that on first glance, it seems like the server has mixed up the order and delivered a meal from the wrong side of the menu.

A crispy skirt of golden cheese sticks out of the over-stuffed tortilla, melting with gooey goodness and an impressive cheese pull. A little stamped toothpick, however, indicates that the dish is, in fact, entirely plant-based.

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The quesadillas at Dilla Libre sport a skirt of melty vegan cheese that is crispy on the outside and gooey inside.

Tirion Boan

Dilla Libre started out more than a decade ago, when the food truck titled Luncha Libre started rolling around town. Fast forward nearly 15 years and the concept has grown to include permanent locations in North Phoenix and South Scottsdale which both serve two menus. One is packed with all of your classic Mexican restaurant meats and cheeses, including carne asada, carnitas, chipotle chicken, and shrimp.

Flip the laminated menu over for a full selection of vegan options. Some dishes include meat substitutes such as Beyond carne asada and chickpea chorizo, while others celebrate vegetables, making tempura fried cauliflower, fried potatoes, black beans, and fresh pico de gallo the stars of the show.

As the name of the restaurant suggests, the specialty is quesadillas — massive, overstuffed tortillas folded around a mountain of fillings — but tacos, burritos, and bowls are also available. The Vegan Napoleon Dynamite, made with Beyond carne asada, tater tots, vegan crema, pico, and vegan cheese, makes for an especially hefty meat-free burrito.

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The Vegan Napoleon Dynamite makes for a hearty burrito filled with Beyond carne asada and tater tots.

Tirion Boan

But when it comes to the quesadilla options, try something truly unusual with the Papa Thai'd. This concoction steps outside of the boundaries of Mexican food with fried potatoes, sliced serrano chiles, grilled onion, and vegan cheese. A sugary, tangy kick is added by sweet Thai chile sauce and a fresh, aromatic note joins the party with the addition of Thai basil and fresh mint.

Chips and salsa served upon arrival and an order of Buffalo sauce-dunked fried cauliflower bites gave an indication that this little restaurant goes big on spice, and the quesadilla was certainly no different. Order a cool glass of horchata or a refreshing margarita to have on standby.

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Fried cauliflower bites dunked in tangy Buffalo sauce are the perfect, spicy start to a meal at Dilla Libre.

Tirion Boan

At the north Phoenix location, Dilla Libre Uno, pick a table next to swirling murals of luchadores or sit at the tiled bar underneath a collection of championship wrestling belts hanging from the high ceiling. Take solace knowing there will be an option for everyone at this exceptionally accommodating restaurant, vegan cheese pull and all.

Dilla Libre Uno

1339 East Northern Avenue

602-399-4024

Dilla Libre Dos

8018 East Thomas Road, Scottsdale

480-947-5100