Another work lunch for carry-out and we were in the mood for Mexican fare. The last time I ate at Cocula, a group of us dined in and had a nice lunch experience. This time not so much... The Good: The food was ready quickly and was inexpensive. The Not-So-Good: Was denied a carry-out lunch menu by the cashier. Guess this won't be a spot for us to carry-out lunch anymore. read more

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Cocula Mexican Restaurant is brightly painted orange with a green roof, however, you can see the wear and tear on the exterior of this building. Inside is definitely better, but nothing fancy or anything. But I am of the belief that the best Mexican food does not come from some high end place and that the food will always override any concept of ambiance. Cocula Mexican Restaurant is a pleasant enough restaurant and while the menu does not Veer far from the expected, that is not necessarily a bad thing. Cocula Mexican Restaurant offers the Mexican standards that are beloved and are a form of comfort food to so many of us. If you find yourself in asheville, North Carolina and they're craving Mexican food, I would definitely recommend Cocula Mexican Restaurant. The food is good and the service is friendly. Overall, I will give it four stars. read more

It was the best of all of them!! Frozen margaritas are perfect! Always smokes and great service!!!!

The positives: pleasant and fast server; inexpensive. The criticism: I took two bites and shoved the food aside as it did not taste right, that's all I'll say. The server stopped by, looked at the full plate, took it away for me, brought me my check, I paid/tipped and left. Maybe they would have made it right if i had pressed the issue, but at that point I didn't want to risk it as i was traveling thought and I didn't have time to help them correct the mistake - I was on a schedule. read more

First of all, our service was good. This review in no way intended to reflect badly on the hard working young woman who was our waitress. The restaurant is dated and run down. The starting chips were accompanied by a watered down, extremely bland dish of puréed beans. The chips were just gross. There are no expanded words to properly describe them. The meal itself was bland. They do have a "salsa" bar like what you would see at an authentic street taco Mexican restaurant but even the jalapeños, salsa and pico were bland. What the heck. But... the beer was very cold. read more

I've eaten here many times it's the best I had ever not being from Mexico you have a gra great amount of options for some great food and healthy food choices who have a great palate for some down homemade Mexican delicious delightful food read more

Place was no Bueno. Ordered the taco salad with chicken and it was watery, flavorless, and foul. The shell was good and the water was cold. That's why they get 2 stars. read more

I'm a vegetarian, so I've never had any of Cocula's meat dishes. Maybe they're as bad as people say, IDK. Their bean tostaguac is pretty tasty, especially with a little Tapatio on top, and their chips and salsa aren't really that bad. The cheese enchilada is reasonably good - at least the sauce is fairly dark and rich, as enchilada sauce should be, and isn't the semi-translucent, vaguely tomato-ey goo that passes for enchilada sauce in a thousand bad Mexican restaurants across the Southeast. The sauce is a little thinner, and a little more sparse, of late, and that makes me sad. Here's the thing: I can walk into Cocula, and 25 minutes later, I'm walking out with a full belly, having spent like 7 bucks, and 2 of those bucks were the tip. This is not gourmet Mexican food, people. Don't bring your friends here to show off Asheville's amazing culinary scene. This is the typical "Mexican" food most often served in these here parts, and presumably preferred by Jethro, Ellie Mae, and their goats. Go with lowered expectations, and remember - you can eat lunch here three times for the price of one dinner at a nicer place. read more

Loved the food atmosphere and salsa bar. Friendly and fun as well. We both loved it. Chips are delivered upon arrival that arrive warm served with a bean dip that I loved. However salsa bar gives you several other options. read more

Cocula Mexican Restaurant - Quesadilla - Mexican Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

I love this restaurant. I meet friends there every couple of weeks. the food is delicious, the prices are very reasonable and the service is excellent. Jessie is our favorite wait staff there. the building is older but it's clean. read more

Not worth the money. I asked for a simple black bean burrito and they said they could not make it because it was too difficult. They told me they could bring me a plate of black beans and a tortilla and I could make my own, I would've stayed home if that's the case. I am white and I can make a simple black bean burrito. Anyways the food was all together really bad and way over priced for the crappy quality. I would definitely NOT recommend. read more

I called in a order for a veggie Torta, I'm vegetarian. When I went in to get my order I found out the chef (who I think I heard is the owners son) refused to make the order due to the fact that it was vegetarian. The lady at the front desk said she's a vegetarian as well and understands that this was wrong and had to go back and cook the meal for us. Wild haha. Very unprofessional. read more

The food was not the greatest this visit I was very disappointed Usually I have good food and great service and both were Meh today. I will come back but I won't be getting the chimichanga again. read more

Cocula Mexican Restaurant - Chimichangas the chicken one is already gone - Mexican Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

I have tamal, burrito and some rice milk homemade. It's so freshly and delicious. I will come back read more

The food was very good. Service was awesome. All in all a very good restaurant. We go there every time we go to the VA hospital.

Ordered food tonight for my family was very disappointed. Food didn't taste good my wife did not get what she ordered which really sucked because she's been sick and this is the first thing she could eat in a minute. I ordered two things of chips and queso and only got one plus the chips were rubbery and the queso didn't taste like queso once so ever. We used to love coming here the only good thing was our sons hamburger and fries. read more

I can appreciate a homemade enchilada sauce!!! They definitely didn't open a can of sauce it was made from scratch!!! It had the ground Chile taste in it with a little spice. I originally ordered the combo plate with 2 cheese enchiladas and 2 chicken tacos!!! I found myself scraping the enchilada sauce into my hard shelled taco ! If I'm back in the area I will definitely be stopping by again for the delicious food and great service!! read more

This is a great place to go if you want diarrhea and possibly food poisoning. Get anything on the menu that has shrimp in it if you like eating feces. They do not de-vein these things. I got a lot of reading done in the 24 hrs after eating here. Things I recommend on the menu... bud light, tortilla chips??? Anything else is a gamble. There is however a gas station right across the street that probably pays their bills selling pepto to people that just ate this shit hole called "Cocula" which now in my vocabulary is used to describe a condition who's symptoms include urinating from the butthole and severe nausea. Go to Papas and Beer down the street, it's decent. read more

Oh my god. Another review needed to be posted about this place. It was so bad that my boyfriend and I now use the word "cocula" as a new word in our vocabulary. Like..."oh man i feel sick I'm going to cocula my pants." I got some sort of cheese and spinach?? burrito. It was soggy...processed...frozen in another life...seriously.. its poop. read more

My family and I have been coming here for years. It is my favorite Mexican restaurant in the Asheville area. The food here is always consistent, quick, and amazing. Their burrito cocula is my favorite item on the menu, but you honestly can't go wrong with anything you choose to order. Bean dip and chips are always provided and they have a salsa bar available in the front with a large selection of choices to spice things or add a new flavor. They have a great selection of beers on draft, including a variety of local brews. Great beer specials throughout the week. Monday's special is Dos Equis drafts for $2, which is a personal favorite. The service is wonderful. Extremely friendly and welcoming. There's always someone at the door to greet you. They have a nice little outdoor area to sit at, if the weather approves. It's not in downtown, but only around a 5-8 minute drive, and worth it! I gave them five stars because every time I've been here the food has come out quick, hot and delicious! You can't go wrong by choosing to eat here, and maybe if you're lucky you'll run into someone famous. James Franco was known as a regular when he was attending Warren Wilson near by! read more

We stopped for dinner which is down the road from the hotel and I wish we would have gone elsewhere. Seated right away however that's where the service stopped. Our waiter acted like he's rather be elsewhere and was not interested in serving food. I had to ask repeatedly for water although the margarita was cheap and decent. The chips were good but that bean dip was a hard pass. I ordered the burrito and sauce was horrid. My husband had the dos compadres and the only thing decent on the plate was the cheese sauce/chicken. If you want actual salsa you have to go up to the bar where it's a help yourself but there was flies around it. Do yourself (and your stomach) a favor and go elsewhere. read more

drink portions are generous. Food is middle of the road. Hospitality is very reserved to non-locals.

Did take out and it was quite good. Would return when we can dine in. The staff was friendly and helpful while I waited. The food did not take long. Had the chili verde burrito and the cheese quesadilla, both served with rice and beans. Those were good too as was the salsa. read more

Unfortunately I have family that eat there because "it usually isn't crowded" and it's close, so I've had to go there on multiple occasions over the years. Not again. I will get a new family. It's a stereotypical 'americanized mexican' food restaurant done very poorly. I am 57 yrs old and this is the worst food I've ever had (and I'm a Navy vet). read more

I love this place. They work hard, food comes out fast and fresh, and it's a good price. We go there pretty often and it's always been the same people. They are wonderful and always aim high I feel like. read more

We have been regulars at Cocula since June of 2002. It is one of our favorites. The food is excellent. The service is excellent. There is a good conversation going on in the bar most of the time. Cocula is a safe place to meet friends for a drink. No fights! as in some restaurants in the area. Cocula is family friendly and has many GF items. Their shrimp dishes are the best in the area, also. You can take your time ordering, too, as there is no rush. It is not a fancy restaurant at all. It is $ rating. We are friendly people and have found when we are nice to the wait staff, they are nice to us. This is true in all service establishments. We highly recommend the Cocula as a quick and relaxing place to eat lunch or dinner without glamour. read more

It was a dive,... but the food was pretty good. We had nachos and steaks Ranchero. Be prepared to get your own salsa at the bar where you have 9 to choose from. We had to ask for regular salsa to learn about the bar. They bring some kind of bean dip that was pretty good too. You can probably find us at booth number 3 the next time we are in town. Lol read more

Cocula Mexican Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

The food is good as fuck!! Really filling and highly recommend. The art is spectacular & original! read more

Was going to eat here but now that I see you're not enforcing the face mask requirement I won't. Make me wonder if the kitchen staff is following code?! read more

Awesome Mexican. We are visiting from out of town and didn't want anything super fancy or expensive. We were seated immediately and were able to go to the salsa bar where there's some turn for everyone. Food was delicious and will definitely be coming back next time we are in town read more

Another one of many no frills Mexican restaurants here in the Asheville area. The food was very average, and borderline bland, for Mexican. Not stating that everything has to be hot or spicy, but I would expect there to be flavor. We enjoy Mexican food very much, not to mention that my husbands family is of Latino heritage, so it's not like Im being a picky white girl, I just know what Im talking about. I ordered the 2 things I always order a a Mexican place (on my first visit). I ordered a chicken tamale, and carnitas. When I ordered the tamale, I asked if it was stuffed with the chicken or if it was on the outside only, they told me it was both. Well, the plate came, and it was covered with chicken in an adobo sauce and nothing but the cornmeal tamale that was smothered. I don't know about you, but I personally prefer for my tamales to be stuffed with goodness, not the chincy way they are being made at so many places now with the protein poured on top. I also found the tamale to be very dry in texture. Though, the chicken in the adobo sauce had a nice simple flavor to it. just not for me. Carnitas are easy, for the most part. Again, I am not a fan of their style of carnitas. there was no flavor and again, dry and chewy. Even after adding a little salsa and lime it was still not hitting the mark. The rice and beans that came with the standard meal were not even worth a mention. Now, I will say, they did have some very nice salsas on their salsa bar. including one that was sweet and spicy. made with sour cream, habaneros and pineapple. I honestly think, that was my highlight. I won't be coming back here unless dragged by a friend, but friends don't let friends eat bad food. read more

Cocula Mexican Restaurant - It make look pretty but don't let that fool you too much. - Mexican Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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Local Mexican. Dos Equis and family vibes, brings us back daily... read more

Avoid at all costs. Employees there have stolen my CC info and I had to go through a trial just to get my money back. The food is low tier mexican and is only a notch above Taco Bell. read more

Not recommended. That food was horrible. This is the worst Mexican food my husband and I have ever had. We eat Mexican at least once a week, and like to try new restaurants. We had the Mole Pork and my husband had the fajitas Texana. The service was also pretty sad. Not recommended. read more

Excellent food and great service. The salsa bar is amazing- so many different flavors to try and all very authentic and unique. Food was absolutely delicious and all 3 entrees came out very fast and very hot. Service was excellent. Loved the experience and will definitely be returning. read more

My favorite Mexican restaurant in Asheville! I am a local and I eat here once a week. The food is great, the service is efficient and the food comes out really quick. I would definitely recommend the Cocula Quesadilla! read more

I ordered the lunch shrimp chimichanga and it tasted like luke-warm, microwaved mush. It literally made me gag. I was very polite about asking for something else and the waitress was so rude about it. Very upsetting! Brought me another dish 20 minutes later and threw the dish in front of me with no silverware. Another 20 min later brought the check. I will not return here. (I hate to leave bad reviews, but this place should really shape up) read more

In town for a Sunday afternoon-there was a gnat in the ice of my drink & a hair on the salsa cup from the salsa bar-certainly not mine. Completely ruined our appetites. Paid & left the rest of our meal. I normally don't post reviews but this place was gross! Clean up please! read more

Awesome food, service, value and drinks. Seated straight away and given chips and refried bean dip and given access to their salsa bar with 10 different salsas. I ordered the combo plate which was $10.25 four your choice of any 4 items. Ordered a Margarita which outstanding! All in all a very high quality real Mexican restaurant 10/10 read more

We were traveling when we got off the exit really in search for a fast food drive through for our little ones. We past by Cocula and decide to dine-in. I got the enchiladas crema. They were very good. Great speedy and friendly service. If I lived nearby, I would definitely eat here often read more