Caliente is a complete disaster. I placed a carry out order and was told it would be ready in 10-15 minutes. I got there about 20 minutes later, paid, and was told the food was almost ready. After waiting for 30 minutes, I asked the cashier, Iandra, about it. She rolled her eyes like it was the most ridiculous question she'd ever heard and said she'd go ask the kitchen. I was pretty sure she'd quit or gone on break because I didn't see her again for another fifteen minutes. She came back with our food, acting like the situation wasn't ridiculous. I said, "We ordered this more than an hour ago - was there a problem?" She said, "Yeah. I didn't send it to the kitchen for a long time and then they didn't make it for a long time," and shrugged her shoulders. I started to respond, but she shoved the bag in my hand and said, "Have a nice day" in a super rude tone. Honestly I would have been completely over it if the food had been even pretty good, but it was terrible. No doubt this place will go out of business once La Hacienda reopens. read more

Great menu, great food, nice atmosphere! Hope it stays open given a less than ideal location, as it's not super visible.

My husband and I went to this restaurant last week around 4 pm and everything was great. Last night we decided to take our two toddler girls and the experience was absolutely awful. We had ordered the sides of black and refried beans along with veggie burritos. We had also ordered guacamole (their special) and cheese quesadilla. The beans and vegetables in the burritos had rotten smells. My husband suffered from stomach ache all night long and I was feeling pretty miserable as well. Never going there again. On top of everything server decided to add 20% mandatory tip on the final bill. read more

Chow Hole enjoy food here. Ribeye steak and shrimp taste good,steak slightly over done but still good. Every ones food was ample sized and very good.Beers were cold Chow Hole like Pacifica very much. Chow Hole find decor very interesting,Chow Hole question historical accuracy of wall murals. Chow Hole not sure Mayans had purple water slides. Why is Mayan chief wearing Air Jordans. Speaking of history Chow Holes good friend remind Chow Hole that we ate here 4 years ago. This started a great debate I said we did not eat here Chow Hole wrong (first time ever). On our visit four years ago Chow Hole take big sip of draft beer only to find something in mouth with beer! Chow Hole first thought was it was some type of prize like in Cracker Jack,not prize large shard of a broken glass. Lucky for Chow Hole he no guzzle beer as Chow Hole has done on occasion. The waitress brought over the manager right away he said the next round was on the house. We ordered dinner and more drinks Chow Hole drink from bottle,just to be sure no more "prize "in beer. Dinner very good that time too. Manager picked up the bill for table. Which Chow Hole find generous. Chow Hole would would give 5 stars but Salsa only marginal. read more

Caliente Mexican Restaurant - Fun decor - Mexican Near Me - Carmel, Indiana

I loved coming here from the beautiful decor that also pays homage to our Indianapolis Colt's to the perfectly made margarita. My fajitas came out SIZZLING HOT which is a huge bonus! I'll be back for sure!! read more

This has to be one of the best Mexican restaurants I have ever been to! The service was excellent and the environment is welcoming, friendly, and colorful. I ordered the shrimp fajitas and asked them to add chicken. It came out sizzling hot and it was evident all the ingredients were extremely fresh. Also their salsa was very flavorful and not too spicy or not to mild, just right. The chips were also very fresh, crispy, and warm. Isn't chips and salsa the reason most people go to a Mexican restaurant? Anyway, if you are in the area this restaurant is definitely worth a try! Also if you a colts fan you will love the decor and promotional cups! read more

Great food and a perfect location. The decor is top notch. This is our new family spot for Mexican Food! The owners are very friendly and they go the extra mile to make sure your dining experience is outstanding! read more

The grande fajita was very good and was made with ribeye steak and chicken. The staff was good friendly and playful. We will be coming back. read more

This is your typical Mexican restaurant. Large menu selection pretty basic food. Drink menus were a little vague but still good. Chips n salsa tasty, salsa in the spicier side. Taco salad was good but was heavy with the sauce. Burritos were tasty and filling. I'd go back. read more

Awesome atmosphere and service! Pricing is reasonable and food tastes great. Not a thing on the menu I wouldn't order! Definitely a repeat customer! read more

Good service- very good food. This was my first time dining here and it was very good. Plenty of servers and food. I had the fajitas and this is the first time I actually got enough fixings for fajitas. I would recommend this for your casual dining pleasure. read more

My wife is a vegetarian and usually Mexican is a great option for us. Not here though. Much like a great episode from Seinfeld, "no substitutions allowed". We asked for bean tacos and were told they could bring out beans, taco shells and the sides but we would have to make them. The "chef" would not make a bean taco. Another time we asked to have black beans instead of refried beans on a taco salad, again we were told they couldn't do that but the server offered to put the black beans on the side. I'm not sure what is so difficult about a basic substitution but the chef runs the store. It's too bad as the food is great and the servers are wonderful. There are at least 3 other Mexican restaurants within 2 miles that happily take substitutions and are much more customer friendly. read more

Have been here many times and it never fails to be of great food and service! Always warm, delicious, and comfortable! Plus have not had to wait for tables at all. read more

First visit didn't disappoint. Noya was our waiter. He was personable, friendly, fun and very attentive. Great service and great recommendations. Try something different. We did. Huge portions as well. You know it's gonna be good when the chips come our warm. Jumbo margarita was perfect after a long day. We'll definitely be back. read more

Great food but I ordered a beer and I never ended up getting it. The Quesodilla I ordered was late for one and second was the wrong order. Otherwise I would go again if they end up with better service read more

I had lunch here today with family. When I walked in the hostess was on her phone and didn't acknowledge me. It took her a moment as she continued with her attention to her phone. We were seated and eventually ordered our food. It took what seemed like a very long time for our food to arrive. When it did arrive only 2 of the 4 meals came. The two that didn't come were for children..... their meals came 10 min later. Refills on drinks were slow to come as well. It was after lunchtime so there were not many customers. The staff was friendly but that is the best that I can say. I wish them luck but I'm not planning on returning. read more

Food and service was amazing. It's a drive for me coming from Fishers, but this will be our number one Mexican food place to come to from now on! read more

Good typical Americanized Mexican food, good prices, and nice staff are found at Caliente. However, we like to bring friends with kids here because of the over-the-top colorful decor. It's like none other. Good margaritas. Attentive wait staff. Clean. Good value. Keep up the great work, Caliente!! read more

The staff was very unhelpful for a to go order, and they couldn't get off the phone fast enough. They said it would be a 30 minute wait. I went in about 40 minutes later and waited another 45 minutes before they finally brought my order out. They said that they put the order in but the kitchen didn't get yet. The cashier then apologized and said it wasn't fair to me. Keep in mind this happened after I paid, so no discount or anything. The food was mediocre too. read more

We thought we would try this restaurant for the second time first time was okay food was okay but how do you have fruit flies flying around you when there's 9° degrees outside sort of scary thinking that maybe there is a problem. It was sort of gross trying to eat with them flying around your head and landing on your food we probably won't be back read more

TL;DR - Crappy service, unseasoned food, sick the entire night. I will never eat here again. Let me start off with saying this was 6pm on a Friday night. This was my first time eating here, we walked into a symphony of color and atmosphere. We wanted to sit outside though since it was beautiful. Our meal starts out with over cooked chips. My party didn't seem to mind and chips isn't what I came for so I thought I would just forego them. We ordered our food which one member of our party had to change her order twice due to them being out of items to make the dishes requested. (She isn't picky, they were straight off menu, no special requests. Did I mention this happened on a Friday? This interaction made my raise my eyebrow.) and while this is going on another table is sat behind us with a different server. This is only important because for whatever reason they get their food 10 minutes before us. Okay it's obvious our server is way in over her head. I make the excuse she is probably new and still getting the ropes down. The servers name was Vivaldi, I only remember as a joke was made about the reason she was so terrible was being dead for so long. Obviously in reference to Antonio Vivaldi the famous baroque composer. Our food finally comes out, well parts of it anyways. I ordered the steak fajitas. The plate with the toppings and the skillet with the meat comes out to me...no tortillas. Another 7 minutes or so rolls by before the other part of our meal comes out. Let's start the food portion of this review off with the daiquiri I ordered. The "flavor" I picked was raspberry but I'm not sure why they had flavors. The rum was so strong it's all you could taste and I'm not the only one there was another peach daiquiri at my table same problem. Moving onto the main course. The fajitas were so underwhelming. They basically tossed the meat with green pepper and onion but no spice. I ate one fajita and left the rest. Another person had the pollo fundido his favorite meal from other Mexican places. He said they didn't fry it long enough to there was a lot of moisture inside still, odd enough though the chicken at the end was burnt to a crisp. I can't speak for this just what he told me. The same guy has been in and out of the bathroom all night long with stomach issues. Thankfully I have not had this issue but it makes me wonder if it was the too strong daiquiri killing that bacteria in my stomach before it had a chance to make me feel ill (I'm not sure this is even a thing just the only thing I could think of). Just don't eat here- I'm not sure how this has 4 stars with 64 reviews I'd like to punch those people in the face for recommending such a terrible place as a four star. This review might be severely long but I thought important you know I'm not bitching outright and made excuses for this place where I could. read more

I was so happy that I tried this place. Maybe we were very hungry because we finished our meal. We liked everything that we ordered last time. They serve all popular/typical Mexican food like chimichanga, fajita, burrito, tacos, etc. Great price and great taste. Their complimentary chips and salsa were tasty too. I personally think their dishes taste better than other casual Mexican restaurants in the area. I did not have any problem with the service during our visit. The servers were quiet, but I thought they were prompt and polite. Check out their coupon online, you may save some money. We will go back next time. read more

Mid afternoon late lunch visit! We were loving the outdoor seating and our server was quite helpful! Made some great suggestions. We must have ended up with the worlds largest bowl of fresh guacamole ever! I will definitely give this place another try read more

The first day I arrived and moved my life here to Indy from Texas two years ago, I was starved and stopped in here for a bite to eat. Ever since I had routinely come back! (At least once a week). Lately in the past couple weeks I've noticed since they expanded their restaurant they have a whole new staff, and the service was on a downward slope. I assumed up until today with new employees they may be a little slow. Today was different. I waited at the front for 5 minutes hoping someone would walk by to seat me. When I finally was seated, I was forgotten about for over 15 minutes. One waitress walked by to bus a table and asked if I had been helped, and stormed off. As I walked out I caught up to her and offered to pay for the chips and salsa that I ate and she told me not to worry about it and didn't insist I stay or offer a solution? Idk. I always received such a warm welcome here and such great service with being the "easy to please" customer, but I will not wait over 20 minutes to be forgotten about. I honestly didn't feel up to waiting for a manager either to discuss this with. I'll give them another chance, as this has been one of my go to spots for a margarita and a decent meal. But I don't have much faith at the moment, so one star for now. read more

Great food and service! Small but important suggestion: they recently added more space but the new dining areas have VERY bright lights, like doctor's office bright. They should turn off the overhead lights and just use the table lights like the bar and older areas do. UPDATE: They fixed the light issue and it's now back to its nice, calm ambience. Just perfect! read more

The chips are warm & the salsa is spicy - the margaritas are amazing - what a combination! The enchiladas are really good served with rice & a lettuce & tomato salad with guac. All the chicken dishes I've tried are good, the Arroz con Pollo especially. The way the cheese is melted over the chicken & it soaks down in to the rice, yum! Burritos are a hit as well. They serve Coke products too if you are not a margarita fan. This is a really fun place to experience the decor inside very colorful & inviting. Servers are friendly & helpful. read more

Went there during lunch with my work colleagues and loved it! The amount of food you get for the money is amazing, especially the lunch special pricing. I had the mushroom quesadilla with rice and salad. They also provided chips and salsa to us. The service and food were well worth it. Look forward to going there again. read more

Staff was nice, but service was way to slow. Ordered their house guacajete (IE fresh guacamole) and it was completely bland. Soft shell tacos came out soaked. Chips were ok and house salsa was basic. read more

Outstanding salsa, guacamole and cheese sauce. They offer lots of sides (including cilantro) so you can adjust some of the dishes to your specific taste (I like lots of cilantro in my salsa). This was our first visit and I can now say that after two years, I have finally found my favorite mexican place on the northside. Extensive menu options - everyone in our party really enjoyed what they had. Great Fathers Day meal. read more

We absolutely LOVE caliente! I read numerous reviews of poor service but can't say that's been our experience. We visit caliente fairly often and it's always wonderful. Awesome food. Nice environment. Kind staff. Clean. Great chips and salsa. Pretty quick service, even when it's busy. Can't say enough good things about this place! read more

If you know what Mexican food is, don't come here. It's a Disney tourist's fuzzy recollection of the faux Mexican food they ate at Epcot. It is plastic and unsatisfying. The décor is a peyote button away from the worst acid trip you ever took. The service is slow. I got a napkin after my fourth request. All of the staff seems unhappy. read more

Walked into a small room initially unsure if I was walking through the back door however I opened the door and it felt like a completely different atmosphere. we were seated quickly and were given complimentary chips and salsa very quickly, we ordered and received our food in a short amount of time. The food was amazing I had ordered the chicken bacon chimichanga and I couldn't get enough, the waitress was very fast at getting refills and was very friendly. Other reviews had mentioned bad service but I had not experienced this during my visit the food was great and the service was fast and friendly, great experience with an awesome atmosphere. read more

Atmosphere is excellent! Food was great! Very fresh. Enjoyed the chicken fajitas & cheese dip. Go & enjoy!!!

Food was great! Chips and salsa are fabulous!! Service was wonderful. Great spot to take family.

Great food, great atmosphere, and friendly service. The table side guacamole was outstanding!

Tried Caliente for the first time 8/26 @ 6 p.m. The experience began as we waited at a vacated host stand for 5-10 minutes. Then, when the host arrived, my wife moved up to the stand and the host wouldn't look up or even acknowledge my wife as she hurried to gather some silverware and return to the floor. Moments later another host arrived, seemingly annoyed, and walked us to a table. After waiting another 5-10 minutes a disinterested waitress arrived, without a smile of course (as seemed to be the theme for the entirety of the wait staff that we observed). Throw in other long waits for drinks, to order our food, to receive our food, and to get our check, and the below average food was the least of our concern. The only redeeming feature of the restaurant is its pleasantly decorated environment, however, the horrible service (and below average food) ensured that we will never be back. read more

Great food and live music on Friday nights! Nice bar area and everyone is very friendly!

I was really excited to come here when I saw their relatively large vegetarian menu! I read the great reviews and the ambiance was great. The chips and salsa were excellent! I initially ordered the vegetarian A, which was a bean burrito, tostada with bean, and a cheese enchilada, my sister did too (we're both vegetarian). My mom got a taco salad with chicken and my dad got veggie fajitas. After we ordered my dad and I discussed the beans, he doesn't eat pork so he wasn't sure if they had lard, and I said that everything on the vegetarian menu had them so they had to be. WARNING TO ALL VEGETARIANS: we asked the waitress and the manager the beans have lard (pork fat) in them even on the vegetarian menu where everything has beans in it. They were able to replace my sisters with just cheese enchiladas and mine with veggie enchiladas (the rice is vegetarian). My enchilada were okay, the were smothered in nacho cheese which made them really heavy, my moms taco salad was too, which she said wasn't her favorite. Overall decent food, but I am more disappointed about the mislabeling of vegetarian menu when almost nothing on it actually is. I hope in the future they can offer a lard free bean or black beans, or just omit the veggie menu. read more