Wow... and not in a good way. For years, this was our go to place for Mexican. Fifty percent off on Thursday nights was the best deal in town. However, after covid, the food and service went downhill and we finally gave up and hadn't been there for over 5 years. Yesterday I saw an ad that they'd be having food and drink specials for Cinco De Mayo today and decided we'd try again. Bad decision.
We arrived at 10:30am. Fewer than a quarter of the tables were occupied. It appeared that all of the booth seating had been removed, which we prefer. We were instructed to seat ourselves, but couldn't find a table that didn't appear "sticky". We sat and then waited and waited and waited. Eventually they took our drink order and gave us a menu. There was no indication on signs or menus of ANY Cinco De Mayo specials, nor did our hurried waitress mention any. Had we not ordered a paid drink, we'd have left after seeing the new menu prices. The new clay drink cups were very bulky, cumbersome and did not sit flat on the tables. As someone with arthritis in my hands, I found them very difficult to lift. No one brought chips and we'd all but decided they must not be serving them at all. After about 15 minutes a gentleman brought chips to our table. There was literally 10 chips in the bottom of a basket for us to split. Long after we'd finished them, the man returned and asked if we wanted more. I said yes, but he never returned. Twice during our visit, we saw him run over to Food City to pick up supplies to bring back.
It was another long wait before our meal was served and by this time the lunch crowd had started arriving. It got quite busy and we couldn't even get refills for our water glasses while we waited. Meanwhile, we saw a guy that appeared to be an owner/manager chatting with guests. He never came to our table, nor did he jump in to help when lines were forming at the register or when tables needed bussing for arriving guests.
It took approximately 40 minutes to get our food while being inundated by smoke fumes from the kitchen and paint fumes from their apparent remodel. When the food finally arrived, we were not impressed by the portion size for the price. It was $12 for a mini chimi (no beans or rice) and was the size of a half burrito. Nothing else. It tasted ok, but was definitely not worth the price and it was quickly finished. We then waited again for the bill. The waitress picked up our plates and twice came by saying she'd be "right back" with the bill. She wasn't. Once we finally got the bill, we had to stand in line at the register and wait yet again.
What happened to the Cinco De Mayo specials and why were they so unprepared??? Being a Mexican restaurant, this was your day to shine! This visit was incredibly stressful for us and we felt that they were extremely unorganized. It will be AT LEAST another 5 years before we try again. read more