UPDATE -- September 2026: It genuinely pains me to change the glowing review I left here in 2022…read more
Four years ago, I wrote: "You come here for good, affordable Mexican food in Newport." I recommended the torta and bistec tampiqueña, praised the value and portions, and specifically wrote that the "staff is super friendly." My only complaint was that the music could be too loud.
That matters because I'm not someone who came here once, had a bad experience, and trashed the restaurant. I've lived in Newport for 5+ years and have dined at Los Cuernos since 2021. I've brought my parents, sister, extended family from the Philippines, friends, coworkers, my significant other and her family. In 2023-24, coworkers and I sometimes came for happy hour twice a week.
If someone asked me for the most "worth it" restaurant in Jersey City -- balancing quality, price, portions and convenience -- Los Cuernos was genuinely my answer.
That's why today was so disappointing.
The food remains excellent. We had the chimichangas and quesadilla today, and longtime favorites include the queso fundido with poblano peppers and bistec a la tampiqueña. My opinion of the kitchen hasn't changed.
Unfortunately, my opinion of management has.
I've always loved the chips and salsa here -- some of my favorite in NJ/NY. Over years of dining here, I've been accustomed to complimentary refills, sometimes proactively offered by servers.
Today, I asked for a refill and the employee who brought our food told us it would cost $1. Fine. Restaurants change prices. I agreed.
The bill arrived: $4.50.
Our waiter Alejandro, who provided good service, explained refills normally cost $4.50. I told him another employee specifically quoted us $1 BEFORE we ordered it, so he got the manager.
I expected a simple resolution: "Sorry, he gave you the wrong price. We'll honor the $1."
Instead, the manager repeatedly insisted refills have ALWAYS been $4.50, have ALWAYS been charged, and no customer has ever complained. He emphasized his four years in management and the restaurant's seven years in business.
But I wasn't asking for free food or a change in policy. I was asking the restaurant to honor the price its own employee quoted me.
If refills cost $4.50, fine. Tell me $4.50 and I'll decide whether I want one. But if YOUR employee tells me "$1" and I agree based on that price, why should the customer absorb the employee's mistake?
And all of this was over $3.50.
I asked the manager to bring over the employee who quoted us $1 so we could clear up what was said. He refused and continued insisting on the policy.
Then came the part that completely lost me.
As I was leaving, I saw the employee who originally quoted us $1 and pointed him out: "That's him. That's the employee who told us it was $1."
The manager responded: "I know."
That response said everything.
If you knew exactly which employee I meant, why spend the interaction telling me what the restaurant has "always" done instead of acknowledging that your employee gave a customer a different price?
As for the claim that refills have ALWAYS been charged, across five years and 10+ groups I've brought here, I genuinely cannot remember seeing a refill charge. I've had servers proactively refill the basket, and older Yelp reviews also mention complimentary chips and salsa/refills.
Maybe the policy existed but wasn't consistently enforced. Maybe employees comped them. Maybe something changed. I don't work here, so I can only speak to five years of my own experience.
To be clear: this is NOT about wanting free chips.
I don't deserve special treatment because I've been coming since 2021, and bringing friends and family here doesn't mean the restaurant owes me anything. I mention my history because it shows how much goodwill this restaurant had built with me.
The principle is simple: if your employee quotes a customer a price and the customer agrees based on that price, don't make the customer absorb the employee's mistake. That applies whether someone has been coming for five years or five minutes.
To the manager working September 10 around 6 PM: I respect that you've managed this restaurant for four years. But I've also been dining here since before then. Neither fact automatically makes either of us right.
What I know is simple: your employee told me $1. I agreed to $1. I was charged $4.50. When I identified the employee, you acknowledged you knew exactly who I meant.
A $3.50 discrepancy could have been resolved with one sentence. Instead, it became an argument over whether years of my own experiences here were somehow incorrect.
After five years of meals, happy hours, recommendations, and bringing countless friends and family here, I won't be returning.
Not because of $3.50.
Because of how management chose to handle a $3.50 mistake.
My 2022 review shows how highly I once thought of Los Cuernos. I sincerely wish my 2026 update could say the same.