First impression was WOW, this place is big, pretty and clean. I mean, REALLY nice. They were super busy, Friday night. We were seated immediately. 'Lito was our server and he made us very happy. Efficient and friendly. The food... Fantastic. I hadn't had Jalisco style food in a very long time and I miss it very much. I lived in San Diego for a long time and also worked in Mexico a few years ago. The Jalisco Chicken is a touch salty but delicious. The Carnitas is WONDERFUL. Tender, juicy, perfect. The ONLY thing I would change about this place would be to add ALBONDIGAS to the menu. Thank you for a great meal and very pleasant visit. Oh, and the Horchata is also very good. read more

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Hello concerned citizens, I just wanted to tell you about a terrible experience me and my wife had at the La Autentica restaurant on Hwy 321N in Hickory, NC this weekend. First of all the hostess seated us at a booth with a very dirty tabletop, so I asked a waitress passing by the table if she could get someone to wipe the table off. So she went and got a cloth to clean the table with. The problem with that was she was trying to wipe off the table with a dry cloth and only smeared the dirty tabletop and made the matter worse. So I asked for a manager to come to the table, she never came. I asked another two servers to please get a manager. And after the third attempt the owner/manager came to the table, and rudely said "what is the problem"? There is two ways to handle a problem either a nice way or a rude way. And she chose the rude way. She was trying to find out what all the commotion was about! The commotion was that no one speaks English at this restaurant and no one knows how to clean a table that should have been cleaned properly before we arrived. And no one knows how to get a manager for the customer.we never talked to our waitress and don't have a clue who she was? But we were not happy with a very very rude owner/manager that doesn't know how to take care of her customers her name was Viviana. Viviana you lost two dedicated customers tonight that have chosen to eat at your restaurant since you have opened up. But not after tonight, we will let our friends and neighbors know about your rudeness, and hope others will go to another restaurant to be treated with kindness and respect. This is my personal opinion and thanks for a lousy experience. read more

This restaurant is so good, we got Fajitas Texanas for two, great flavor, my kids got shrimp and fries and rice and beans. The music is great. They have a robot that brings out the food, looks like a cat. The waiter was so good, kept our drinks and salsa filled up. Inside the restaurant was so cool, the mirror make the place look much bigger than it is. read more

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Stopped in for a weekday lunch with my wife and daughter. Our server was brand new and in training, and the server training her was very careful to make sure we got exactly what we needed while also allowing the new server to learn. It says a lot about a place to see them pouring time into training their staff while making sure service is still a high caliber. While the menu looks like a typical Mexican restaurant, I found everything to be a step above. From the complementary chips and salsa, which included fresh chips and a delightfully spicy hot salsa in addition to the milder salsa, to the clearly fresh chicken in our dishes, it was nice to see the exceptional quality in everything they did. The inside is spacious, and ideal for small parties and big groups alike! This is a place we'll definitely be back to soon! read more

Super clean, friendly staff, and amazing food. Lots of options and fast service. Astridt was our server and she was phenomenal. We will definitely be back. read more

The food was good. My son ordered a burrito that was huge, he couldn't finish it. I had the lunch chimichanga which was just enough for me. read more

La Autentica - I can't remember which burrito this was but it was huge. - Mexican Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

A big place that feels welcoming and cozy. Probably because the staff was so very friendly and attentive. Tamie to our bartender made the most perfect skinny Margaritas and the mgr checked on us throughout the evening making sure we we happy with her food recommendations. the chilie poblanos were perfect and the food came hot and well presented. The complementary chips and salsa were warm and the salsa was the right amount of well seasoned heat. The mgr had her daughters name on necklace so I didn't catch it but she and Ramiro made us feel at home and we can't wait to go back read more

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Food is good and was served relatively quickly That is why I'm giving two stars. The service and waste staff are not. We went in and sat at the bar and were completely ignored for 10 minutes with only three people at the bar. Bartender was in a conversation with someone else, saw us walk in and would not pause her conversation to simply get us a menu and take our drink order. When she finally did acknowledge us 10 full min later, she made excuses of how she saw us and had menus in her hand, but was in a conversation that she "could not rudely walk away from". Seriously...... Just tell the folks you're in the conversation with to please excuse you for a moment so you can get a menu to a new guest and take their drink order and you will be right back. From there other than the quick food to the table service, we were completely ignored thereafter. Offered no drink refills, never saw our waitress again, and after we finished, our dinner, had to sit and eventually ask a different waitress to bring us our check. I hate that we had this experience because the food was good, but poor service will kill a restaurant quicker than bad food. Best of luck. We won't be back. read more

We went for Dinner.The waiter could not understand what we would ask him.The language barrier was so bad...We ask for bean dip in the small round dish same as the salsa!He brings out a cheese dip.Totally wrong! Next He literally brought a small platter of beans. Had to ask for refills of Tea,water... The Atmosphere is Great do not get me wrong! He made soooo many mistakes...The food was barely warm and the enchilada shell was difficult to cut with a knife.Barely any meat inside these enchiladas Then when we went to talk up front to somone about the extra charges the girl up front said the bean dip was an appetizer! Lol.Not on their menu! The waiter came up and started talking in Spanish to the girl... They were defensive, arrogant super rude .They looked at us and said we are right you are wrong! We said we will not be back and the managers said we do not care! Horrific service,over charged! Speaking to each other constantly in Spanish! Obviously disrespectful to Americans! They chose to argue instead of resolving anything. Unbelievable experience! read more

The restaurant has a nice atmosphere, but that is not enough to make up for the poor service we received during our visit. Food quality is average at best and certainly not worth the money. The biggest problem being the lack of communication due to the language barrier. Many mistakes were made during our visit and we ended up being up charged for something that normally comes with the meal(i.e. bean dip). That being said, we ended up paying for a bean dip appetizer that was never ordered. Also, the server randomly brought out cheese dip that we sent back and were still charged for it at the end of the meal. When we went to pay, we brought this to their attention only to receive an incredibly rude response by the lady manager and our server saying that that's the way it is at this restaurant and they would not be taking anything off of our bill. Needless to say, we will not be returning to this establishment ever again. The arrogance and absolute disrespect we received is inexcusable! read more

The staff and service are off the charts, as well as the bar and atmosphere. As a pescatarian, I have been able to find several tasty dishes. And also have plenty of food to take home. read more

La Autentica - Wonderful bar! Coconut Margarita! - Mexican Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

The staff was great all very nice...the tea was good that's very important...the food was awesome we will be back

We were so glad to see this beautiful building occupied once again. We arrived, and there was a 20 minute wait, so we headed to the bar for some delicious margaritas. We were offered chips and three salsas to enjoy while waiting. The bartender was great. Once seated, our server Eileen was awesome. We ordered and had a great dinner with plenty of leftovers. We enjoyed our visit and definitely will return. Our friend ordered the margarita flight. It looked amazing. I wish I had taken a photo. The restaurant was packed, and people seemed to enjoy the restaurant as much as we did. read more

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Some of the best salsa! I love how they give you both the hot and mild! Food was good. Great service at the bar and the robot is awesome!! read more

La Autentica - Chicken Chimichanga - Mexican Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

This place is Amazing!!! The food was Great, The service was even better! The robot was cool to watch bringing out food for some tables!!! I believe this is my new favorite Mexican Restaurant! We went for lunch, but I will definitely be back for Dinner sometime soon!!! read more

Good food at a decent price. We ate lunch and ordered from the lunch menu. It was filling and service was quick.

Food was tasty but the value for the money was not there, I got the fajitas and there was 2 times the veggies than there was meat. With my fajitas I was supposed to get tortillas, when those never came out I asked the server for them, no problem. At the end I look at my check and he had charged me for the tortillas. All around far from the best Mexican food in Hickory. The only cool thing is seeing the robots that bring out the food. read more

We were pleasantly surprised at the excellence of service and variety of food and drink options for our party of eight. The decor is fun and mostly tasteful. We will return. read more

Just left La Authentico what a beautiful place, our server Junior was on top of everything and checked in on us. We will be going back. Nachos were 10.75 and we were very full read more

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Start with positives, the building is great, and the service was quick and attentive. We had a traditional margarita, obviously made with a mix so quite sweet. Then we had the ACP, and the carnitas dinner. The ACP the Chicken tender but there barely any sauce, and the sauce we found was very milky and super thin, so overall dish was very dry. The carnitas dinner was bland and not balanced over 2/3 of plate is rice and refried beans more rice than beans the last 1/3 was lettuce and the carnitas, the tortillas we gummy from being steamed to long so they completely stuck together. Unfortunately overall it just ended up being an adequate chain restaurant, not the worst but certainly not close to the best. read more

We went here for the first time for my husband 's birthday. Our waitress was very sweet and prompt, but not overly so. The food was delicious. We will definitely come back again read more

Incredible food, fair pricing, and robots bring your food out. Yeah, I said what I said. Great atmosphere, not too loud, and it's really cozy, if you're picking up what I'm putting down. You won't be disappointed read more

The food was sub par, even for what it was. Chicken enchiladas managed to be very dry, the sauces are straight out of a can and beans & rice were bland and dry. Service was fair, if a bit overwhelmed read more

Absolutely beyond disgusting and offensive to Mexicans everywhere. There should never be ground beef or canned cheese sauce on our food, the rice was definitely boxed and they put a milky gravy like substance on the thing they called an enchilada that was not edible. I went with my family of four all who will eat anything and they were all disgusted. I just don't understand how you could mess up such basic staples that poorly and charge $22 a plate. I wish I could sue for defamation. read more

Food is outstanding....no matter what I order it is as good as the last the chicken is so moist...service is always great with a smile, love the robot waiter, it can be romantic by the fire or can be celebrating with family..love this place and the staff... read more

I wasn't impressed at all by the way that food was made. The seasoning. I could have easily made at home and the food wasn't worth the money spent read more

Great Mexican restaurant right on 321. Great food nice employees. Worth the try if you want Mexican food. Have been 4 time's since they opened and the food has been great! read more

It was over a very good experience. I didn't receive my change out of a $20 I gave with the receipt. So I was took by $15. So be careful what you give the waitress. The margaritas are the best in the area and the food actually had a good flavor. We will be back and careful. Nice atmosphere and clean. Very little wait time. Courteous staff. We ask about the differences in taquela and bar tender was very knowledgeable. read more

Amazingly good food! Great service. I've tried several things so far and will continue to go back and try more. Love this place. Great for a party of 2 or big family gatherings. It's definitely a must try! read more

The food spices are way off. I didn't like the enchiladas. The robot is cute and the restaurant is beautiful. I had the shrimp but I tasted something sweet in it. read more

The food was great for the first time going there. The waiter was very nice and understanding. To be honest I thought it would be very American but it was Mexican love it will come again and fyi Ik Mexican read more

Good food, fair prices and friendly service. Welcome to Hickory, NC. We will definitely return for more delicious food.

Second time here and it was just as good as the first time. So, this is not a fluke, people! This place has seriously AMAZING food! The service was great. And the prices are reasonable. Most definitely will be making a 3rd trip back soon! Plus, the place is beautiful, great ambiance! read more

We lived out west for 30 years and have missed good Mexican food since moving to NC 14 years ago. We were happy to find La Autentica that opened recently. Large, beautiful interior, excellent service, and excellent food. We were pleased with the complimentary chips and 3 varieties of salsa that included one that was very hot--a good thing for us, one mild, and a spicy, creamy avocado salsa. I had shrimp and my husband had tamales that we enjoyed. The servings were generous and the prices reasonable. We will definitely return to La Autentica! read more

Gross taco salad tasted like dog food lettuce was on bottom yuk had to throw away couldn't eat any of it

Amazing food. Great atmosphere. And Bella (the robot) is super cool! We have always had amazing service.

Generous portions and very delicious. I had the best nachos ever with Pork Al Pastor heaped on top covered with white queso, accompanied with generous heaps of guacamole, sour cream and salad on the side. All at prices that won't break the bank. read more

beware... this place is horrible. customer service is terrible, people were getting up from the tables and walking out. this place needs to be shut down. it once was a good place but it's went down hill. go somewhere else read more

La Autentica - the name of the server, jose - Mexican Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

Food is OK. Portions are lopsided. The main portion is less than a third of the sides. I finished my burrito mexicano and still had half my rice and beans. That's get all on a fork in what I tried to be equal. Not worth the higher price than poncho villas. read more

We come just for the salsa! The service has been somewhat slower than expected but it has been packed every day since they opened. But the atmosphere is great and all the employees seem nice! read more