Very rude management and average food. I met my cousin (who I haven't seen in about 6 months) there for lunch today. We ordered an appetizer, cokes and a margarita and mojito. Then ordered full dinners. We were never asked if we wanted another drink. We spent time catching up during dinner and after we were done eating. The waiter took a long time to remove our plates and ask if we wanted a box for leftovers--didn't seem like any rush which was fine for us. Eventually, after I boxed my leftovers and my plate and empty bar glass sat on the other side of the table for an extended period of time, a manager came to remove the dishes and said "we need this table"--pretty much asking us to leave! I said we are getting ready to leave (actually already had our coats on). About 1 min later another woman manager came to the table asking if there was a problem? We said no (kinda with a puzzled look) and she said they needed the table for a large party and we had been there a long time! There were empty tables around us so there was no reason they had to have our table. We got up to go to the register to pay and noticed a party of 5 that had been standing for about 5 minutes waiting to be seated--that was the large party! They seated them at the table we were sitting at. Just to mention, there was nobody else waiting to be seated after them, there was no wait. The gentleman taking my payment at the register was the first manager who told us he needed the table. I told him it was very rude what he did. He didn't respond. I said I had never been asked to leave a restaurant and I would never be back--he said "ok"! My cousin and I are female, middle aged adults, not rowdy, well dressed, and working professionals. The treatment we received was very embarrassing and the most horrible treatment I have ever received as a paying customer at a restaurant. I will never support this behavior and business by going back and I do not recommend it to anyone. There are many other Mexican restaurants in Valpo that have way better food and treat their customers with respect. Shame on La Cabana!!! read more

I drive by this restaurant every day and am glad I decided to stop today. We were greeted right away by a friendly staff and everything was brought out promptly. I ordered the quesadilla la cabana. It had delicious chicken and shrimp inside along with fresh veggies inside. The rice I chose for my side was tasty. Not the best I've ever had but still good. I am very impressed with the service and new decor. We sat outside, very comfortable seating. I am giving 4 stars because the traffic noise did get a little loud sitting outside. It would have been nice to hear music instead. Regardless I will be returning soon. The bill for 2 entrees, 2 pops and complimentary chips & salsa was a little over $30. I hope this restaurant has better luck in this location then in the past. read more

La Cabaña - Quesadilla la cabana - Mexican Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

My favorite place to go for Mexican food in Valpo! A little history, I use to take my kids here when it was Burger King! Great margs and ceviche!!! Their beans are smooth and creamy not chunky like other establishments. If you like rice it's good esp mixed with their salsa to moisten it up. They always run great specials too! I always like getting the combination lunch/dinners! Excited to go soon and sit outdoors! read more

We wanted Mexican on our last day of our trip. I am so sorry we stopped in this place. Our server, Caser was the rudest person I have ever had. He acted like it was so hard to serve. The food had no taste and was cold. The beef taco had a funny taste. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone. Go pass this place to a real Mexican restaurant read more

The I ordered a three toco dinner but did not enjoy the taste. Based on this visit I will not be going back anytime soon.

I really enjoyed the food and the atmosphere of the restaurant. The place was clean and the people were friendly. However our waiter seemed to forget about us. We had to ask for our water, napkins and utensils twice instead of them begin brought out to us when we first set down. I will definitely go back for the food and drinks though. read more

La Cabaña - Mexican Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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The service is painfully slow no matter when you go. The food is FLAVORLESS and the alcoholic drinks are way too strong. Go to Taco Bell down the road instead read more

Very good place to eat. I try to change it up with what I order on the menu each time I eat here but I highly recommend the enchilada dinner. I have enjoyed the food though no matter what I order. This restaurant is clean and every time I eat here I always get very good customer service. During this particular visit I had the special of the day which was the Cabana Burrito which was served with rice and beans and I had a strawberry banana margarita to go with it. The burrito had a very healthy portion of pork. As for the margarita is was very flavorful but not too sweet, just right. Bottom line is they have the best Mexican food in Porter County. read more

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We come here every once and awhile because it's close and I think we're done. The service this past year is just AWFUL and the food is not that impressive to deal with the bad service and rudeness from the servers. We tip big and are typically in and out quickly given we always order the same thing....We can legit be out in 20 minutes. The treatment always makes me feel like we did something wrong and will have spit in my food. Seriously.... I looked for spit. I like that we can walk and get a margarita but it's not worth it anymore.... I'd rather give my money to someone else. Also..... it was closed for awhile for renovations and it just opened back up. It looks exactly the same. The only difference is new menus with more expensive prices. So why was it shut down for as long as it was. I asked the server what they renovated and he said new menus after fumbling his words a bit....This has me concerned as well. read more

This was my first and last time visiting. We were seated and orders were taken after a short period of time. Once our food came out, the chimichanga was ice cold (the cheese wasn't even slightly melted. The tortilla was not even golden, but rather soggy and uncooked). It sent it back. After I started to eat my Texas Fajitas, I found a hair..... I chalked it up to it possibility being mine as it was the same color. I continued to eat and to my surprise I found another. This was my breaking point and realized it was not a coincidence nor was it mine. I was finished eating at this point. Gross! I got the waiters attention to tell him about this and he looked at me like I was in the wrong and simply walked away. The manager came over and I told him about it and he simply walked away as well. I asked for the boxes that were needed and our bill. This took them about 10 minutes to get to us. During this time, neither the manager or the waiter made any eye contact with our table. I received the bill and went up to the hostess to pay. The manager THEN tried to do something, but I told him I would pay for my meal and never be back. I saw multiple plates going back to the kitchen while I was there as well. HE NEVER EVEN APOLOGIZED!!!!! read more

being in a semi affluent area of northwest indiana, you'd think it'd occur to the staff that quite a few patrons have a working understanding of 'machine gun' spanish - due to the language requirements of the local schools and our proximity to places like east chicago and lake station. one day someone on staff is gonna say something rude about the wrong patron and it isn't going to end well. overcharging my friend and her catching it - doesn't give your staff license to call her a 'cheap ass'' under their breath in spanish. she had an inkling what staff was saying and still tipped the scumbags 20 percent on a take out order. then there's the time the staff mocked a flamboyantly homosexual man over his drink selection at the bar (whilst the three staffers (and a staff member who was off clock drinking in the bar at a table)) laughed, maniacally. they may have been talking about 'strawberries' - but colloquially, i certainly doubt it. were this the first, second, or even third time i overheard horrible things being said - i would have considered it an isolated incident.... it isn't. one could assume i'm being xenophobic by stating the aforementioned.... were it not for the several occasions i have audibly translated to my friend what staff is saying while in earshot - thereby alerting them that their inappropriate banter was comprehended. alas, once they knew i knew... all the smack talk subsided. i'll remove this review if i see this behavior quelled... but since the manager is party to it - i don't see it stopping anytime soon. food is just okay.... this establishment receives a solid 'c' for the faire on their better days. read more

Typical Mexican place. Food is average. Place is clean though.service is decent. Nothing is complain about. Prices are cheap

Fun frozen drinks and solid fajitas. Our whole group loved the chips and fresh salsa, and everyone enjoyed their meals. It was super crowded on a Friday night, but we were seated after only a few minutes wait. Seems very popular in the Valpo University community. read more

I only rate this 2 stars due to the incredibly slow service. The food was tasty but not "wait twenty minutes before they take your order" tasty. It wasn't very busy at all, and that's what was so shocking about the incredibly slow service. Bottom line: not worth the slow service. There are much better restaurants in the area with much faster service. read more

They are open even though Apple Maps say temporarily closed! We had outstanding service and food as always. We have been here numerous times because of that! read more

Love this local place. We come here 2x a month for dinner or lunch. Always fresh & yummy. The lunch menu is good & the service is fast. Drinks are also good. My favorites are: the enchiladas de Cameron, the queso sauce & mango margaritas. read more

La Cabaña - Mexican Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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Real authentic Mexican food!!! I loved everything about this restaurant. Everyone was very friendly. The food was exquisite much more than I expected. Great place! Go there it's worth it! read more

2 minutes ago I had a very bad experience tonight with the manager Abel Guiterrez deserves 0 stars.. As a customer I have not ever been treated as a customer as bad as this manager treated me tonight. I had a pina colada as I had for the last 5 years there. But tonight there was something off with the drink. I asked if he can change it that it taste different I didn't like it. He refused and said it's the same drink as always. I said sir please I can not drink it it doesn't taste right. He said I will not loose money I will make another but charge you for this one too. I told him this can not be right I am a customer I am unhappy and want them to change it he refused. I asked maybe if he could add more pineapple juice. He was upset and said it is the same dink in front of customers and his workers took my cup and walked to bar. He was commenting on me to all his workers laughing. He added more juice that he said cost more money for me. I told him nicely and calmly I can not believe you treated me like this then having your employees talk about me and laughing. He said well I am not going to loose money. As I return to sit down. The manager went in my area approached a waitress and was telling her about me as I was sitting at my table and she turned to look at me and said for real. He looked at me and shook his head. This was so unprofessional. I wish I had walked out. But I paid for my drinks without finishing it. Was taking out a friend from Puerto Rico bragging about the drink and to be embarrassed. I have never been treated like this in my life as a customer. He had a chip on his shoulder and didn't care that I said I come all the time with my family. He just repeated that he was not going to loose money and not focused on a 5 year customer. Abel Guiterrez should not be a manager at LA Cabana and upon reading other reviews this seems to be a routine of rudeness and bad service. They do not care about there customers. The owner should fix this problem and value his customets. Shame on you Abel Guiterrez you were rude in front of customers and your employees customers should always be a priorty. I do not recommend this place any more and will never return I will tell all my family and friends. read more

On the outside looks great but HORRIBLY slow service and will fill up on chips and salsa before you even smell other peoples food. Outside seating is much better than inside. Coke tasted like cherry coke and sprite was very flat. If you wanna sit outside get a reservation otherwise your stuck inside where the dinning rooms are spread out and not very full. WOULDNT COME BACK EVEN IF YOU PAID ME! read more

This place used to decent, but it has really gone down hill. I ordered a chimichanga but when I received it, I realized it hadn't been fried. It was basically just a burrito. When I pointed it out to the manager, he was extremely rude, said it was fried, and that I didn't know what I was talking about. Then he proceeded to stare me down every time he walked by our table and talk about me to the other staff members. Definitely won't be going back. read more

The food was ok. Chimi was soggy. But meat seasoned well. Margaritas are always good here. Just a shame that they wouldn't get us a new one when 2 bees flew into the drink. read more

We eat here every so often. Today was the worst and we won't be back. My wife ordered two cheese enchiladas with rice and beans. I ordered the El Sol which is one beef, one chicken, and one cheese enchiladas with rice and beans. We were given chips and salsa shortly after we sat down. That was good however the chips were not whole but were in pieces like you get in the bottom of a bag. The wait for our waitress to take our order was okay but I was beginning to wonder. We ordered and also asked for some queso. It came fairly quickly. The queso was very thin and runny. It was hard to eat it with chip pieces! We asked for another order of chips. It came and it was also chip pieces! Unbelievable. Our meals came. We requested more salsa. We were warned that the plates were hot. They were warm at best . The enchiladas on our plates were barely warm almost room temperature. Everything tasted bland. The salsa, the queso, the enchiladas all had little taste, bland. It was kind of discussing. Our waitress was sitting down in the booth next to us chatting with friends. She did that for a good ten minutes if not longer. We never got the salsa that we requested. We were never asked how was everything. We had empty beverage glasses and were never asked for a refill. We informed the manager as we were leaving. All he said was, "I understand." It could be a staffing issue like everywhere nowadays, but why allow your waitress to sit and chat while your paying customers are out of beverages and requested salsa? We won't be back. read more

La Cabaña - Chip pieces! - Mexican Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

With incredible food (you have GOT to try the shrimp tacos!), outside and social distanced inside dining, great wait staff it is the place to go for the best food I have since vacation in Mexico. We have eaten at several Hispanic restaurants in the area and we travel to eat at La Cabana every chance we get. Worth the drive for sure! read more

Great margaritas! I love outdoor seating- so get me a decent place and a seat outside and I'm pretty happy... well decent weather too! Service was great- food was good, ordered veggie fajitas and loved them. read more

I would give them less stars if I could. I went there in person and they gave me the total wrong order, I ordered pork, I got spicy steak. After they took about 10 minutes just to seat us, when they were not busy at all. I placed an order through doordash another time. They screwed up my order again, tried to charge me double and then yelled at the delivery person. They held up our order by over a half hour. I WILL NEVER ORDER FROM HERE AGAIN! read more

Service is hit or miss, but they have some of my favorite Mexican food, second behind a place in San Diego. The margaritas are potent and delicious. The chips and salsa are fantastic. Whenever I come to Valpo, I come to La Cabaña. read more

Well they have a new cook, which is disappointing because the food is NOT what it was. It was soupy and they had to have dumped a ton of salt on it. One of my favorite restaurants gone to crap. What a shame to see this happen here read more

No stars. Took over 15 minutes to get our drinks and 30 minutes to get water after asking 3 times. Ordered food before the table next to us who was done with their meal before we even saw our food. Once our food finally arrived, one dish was cold, the other looked like it was just thrown on the plate and the bottom of my burrito was burnt from sitting under the warmer too long. The manager was called over and all he did was take two if the plates back to the kitchen. At that point I said I was ready to leave. The waitress then 5 minutes later brought us our check. Not even an apology. read more

The food was great but the service was poor! We asked for salsa 3 times and never got it. The waitress was not very friendly either.

We went to La Cabaña today for lunch and the food was very authentic Mexican. Let me first start off by saying that the place has been completely rehabbed since the last time it was open and the changes are apparent in both the atmosphere and the food! We were a party of three and all of us ordered three different dishes. I had a burrito which was as big as the plate it came on, It was a combination of beef, chicken, and shrimp, came with re-fried beans, rice, and a typical garnish found in Mexican cuisine. All of the food was fresh and arrived hot. The spices in the food were consistent with the cuisine and it was very good. What was not standard was the presentation- the burrito came out folded in half like an omelet rather than a standard burrito folding. This was fine as I am not a huge fan of hefting an entire burrito up to my mouth and prefer eating them with a fork and a knife. The second dish ordered was a shredded pork dish which also come with the standard garnish and the elected charros beans. This dish was set apart by both its flavoring- the onions were partially caramelized before they were added to the pork stew and then finished, the result was a delightful addition to taste as well as a variation in texture. The third dish was the carne asada, which is a very common dish to almost every Mexican Establishment.The same technique of grilling the onions partially before combining it to the dish gave the same contrast in Texture and accentuation of the flavor, also came with rice and beans as a garnish. We also ordered an appetizer of guacamole... it was OK, but we were not crazy about the texture, it was way too creamy. We are fans of more of an old fashioned Guacamole. I would love to see them put it together table side so you can get a sense of the freshness of the ingredients. The end result were three empty plates and a four star review. There are a lot of Mexican Restaurants in Valparaiso, and this one strives to set itself above the rest in terms of the variety of the menu as well as the atmosphere, and I think it succeeds admirably! I will be back. read more

I am in between a on ratings. To explain my rating, over all I will give a 2 star rating mainly due to how the first woman greeted and sat us down, there was no welcoming at all, just a two of you, and sat us down. I could tell she had an attitude about something, not sure what, but very unprofessional. Our waitress I would give a 5 star as she did a great job in opinion. Issue is not her fault on my decision of not coming back ever again, I believe management needs to talk to the front girl, and the kitchen on their food and service. I come from a family that is multiracial, so I have been lucky to try foods from different ethnic backgrounds. Not to mention friends who are Restaurant owners, chefs, and master chefs. So critiquing restaurants is what I do at times. I got to say I read some the reviews on here and I got to be honest, most who said the food is authentic, I think need to go read the true definition of what it means to be authentic mexican food. The food is not 100% authentic, in my book, especially with how fast our meal was brought to us. In opinion I feel our food may have been frozen and reheated, just due to taste and flavor. I had at the beginning while reading over the whole menu, asked our waitress how big their burritos were as I like quantity in my meals. I ordered the burrito thinking it would be well sized and packed with ingredients. My Lady ordered a dish I forgot the name too, but brought flour tortillas, rice, beans, lettuce, shrimp, and couple other things. Our food was brought out to us within 10 - 15 minutes, usually those types of dishes take longer to prep if made fresh. The food tasted like it was reheated in a microwave. #1 Pointer to point out, I have been to dozens of mexican restaurants a burrito is not tortilla filled with shrimp and some ingredients. seriously if I wanted a taco I would have ordered a taco(that was the #1 thing that annoyed me about my meal). Not to mention later in the day my Lady and I got sick, I hate to say it, but be cautious on getting seafood dishes from this place, one's experience may be different than ours, I know it happens at a lot of locations, but I as well know fresh from not so fresh. The only thing I can say tasted fresh was my salsa I requested to be made spicy, That was the only thing I really liked sadly, but true. #1 issues with the menu, I have seen this with all restaurants, but La Cabana is the first I have run into that does not have a Mole dish on their menu, these guys seriously need at least one or more Mole dishes. #2 Prices, you guys need to research your prices more, some your items on menu are priced hirer than other restaurants, I am unsure if it is because this restaurant is in Valpo, or if it is another reason, but I have seen other places server better and real authentic dishes for better prices. #3 I am unsure if this is due to the door being open several times, but you guys have a real bad fly problem that needs to be looked into, while eating I noticed two flies flying around us, so that is another red flag not to come back to this location, like stated earlier, other may have a better time than we did, more power to those who go, but I am just trying to be honest. customer service and food preparations is the major reason not coming back again. read more

It starts with the salsa and chips. I'm serious... if you bring out Pace picante and some store bought tortilla chips I'm gonna choke you. La Cabana had the decency to bring out a reasonably good salsa and chips. Good start! I ordered the fajita quesadilla which, from the picture, looked good. It was good and I mean good not in the sense of, "We are in northwestern Indiana" but good in the sense of "They got it down." Maybe it was a bit pricey but overall I was happy with the meal! I shall return! read more

We really love this place. As a guy who's been here long enough to remember when it was a Burger King, the atmosphere is very pleasant. The menu has a great variety, and everything we've had was top-notch. The margaritas have a decent amount of tequila instead of the usual splash with a bunch of ice and mix. The wait staff has always been friendly and prompt. When we want Mexican, this is usually our first choice. read more

I've always given La Cabana multiple chances because of their spicy sauce they put on food but after today no more. My fiancé ordered a burrito for pick up with the red spicy sauce which we always get and when she got their the "manager" says no you said enchilada sauce not red spicy sauce and started an argument with her inside the building in front of customers. After finally getting them to agree to remake it she asks for 4 tacos for me and he gave her attitude about it, ripped her wrong order out of her hand, and was mumbling spanish as he was walking away. The manager is giving customers attitude for ordering more food and spending money at their establishment. Overall customer service is absolutely terrible. The first time I went there they made a shrimp burrito for me that tasted rotten and gross and the manager previously told me they would be the only time they'd remake my food ever. If you want Mexican food go to el amigo. This place is awful with customer service!!!! read more

This place was packed on a Monday! We walked right in and we're seated immediately. The moment we sat down hot chips and salsa were on the table. The margaritas were really reasonably priced, and actually had alcohol in them!! The food was on point. Our server Cesar was great with taking care of my wife's dairy allergy and was on top of everything we needed. Great food, drinks, and outstanding service. read more

Ugh. Slow and poorly trained service, and flavorless, unattractive dishes. Mexican food is my favorite, so I came here expecting to enjoy it. Alas, no. The service was very slow overall. It took a long time to be seated, a long time to have our order taken, an unbelievably long time for the food to come out of the kitchen, and so on. The server didn't do basic things like remember who ordered what beverage or dish. I can understanding forgetting an item here or there, but when you show up and just start asking "who had X?" for everything, it's like you're not even trying. Our meals came out incomplete and we had to ask twice before we got everything. Actually, one person never did get a refill on his drink, and I do mean never. The menu was what you'd expect. Tacos, burritos, combo plates, etc. Complementary chips and salsa, which were unremarkable, but hey, they were free. Salsa was thin and bland. Chips seemed like out of a bag. I had a combo platter with a tamale, burrito, rice and beans. All of it was bland. The enchilada sauce had an odd flavor, maybe clove, which was at least interesting, but not good. My fellow diners said the same. Nothing we'd go back for. There are three filtered one-star reviews for this place that are spot on. The star rating for this place is artificially high as a result. It's a two star at best, I promise. Not a bad place for a margarita or a beer, I suppose. read more

For some reason, I thought this place was an upper class kind of place. We finally paid la cabana a visit and learned it's more approachable than previously thought. Felt like Applebee's in there. The TV was frozen, but I don't go out to eat to watch sports or anything, so I didn't care. Anyways, I had Texas fajitas, and they were good. We will be returning. read more

The ambiance is nice. There is a huge patio area that would be great to sit in on a nice day. We didnt wait long to sit, but the waitress was slow and not very helpful. I ordered a chicken taco meal. It came with 3 shredded chicken tacos, rice and beans. It was a little dry and not very flavorful. Also served on a flour tortilla. I didnt think to ask for corn cause every place I've gone serves them on corn. My husband got a giant burrito. He said it wasnt anything special. Really the best thing there was the salsa. They should bottle it up and sell it. I probably wouldn't make a special trip all the way out to Valpo just to eat there. read more

The food was awesome. Two tacos, rice, great chips, tasty salsa, and a much needed margarita. Did I mention fast friendly service? You need to try this place!!! read more

My husband and I went there on 07/28/2014. We are not Hispanic so I cannot tell you if it was Authentic Mexican but I can tell you when enjoyed it tremendously. We waited to be seated however, in a good restaurant that can be expected. They seated us as soon as a table became available and immediately brought chips and salsa. We ordered drinks and I had the Mojito. I would recommend this drink and will be back just to have another one. The food was very good. We usually go to Hacienda but my husband and myself enjoyed the ambiance and food at El Cabana a lot more. From a non Hispanic point of view I found the staff to be attentive and friendly with most having a slight accent which I found quite fitting. The food was warm and good. The amount of food was quite enough. The service great and the drinks even better. Worth a visit. PS ..we frequent many restaurants as are children are raised and we have every intention to revisit this one. Enjoy and have a MOJITO. read more