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    La Minerva

    4.4 (98 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 11:00 pm
    Updated 2 months ago

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    LA MINERVA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Trendy
    Romantic

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    Recommended Reviews - La Minerva

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    Dinner
    Joan M.

    We went to La Minerva, located on Dorchester Rd near Summerville the other day. It's a beautiful big open space with gorgeous Mexican decor & vibe. It was busy. Apparently a family owned business which is great. Our food was good, but I felt lack a little flavor & unfortunately it is definitely geared to the American palate. My friends loved their dishes. But, for me having traveled all over interior Mexico... I just felt the dishes were a little bland. Parking is plentiful & free, staff were friendly & efficient & dishes were huge as were the drinks. It's an ideal spot for throwing family parties, get togethers etc.

    Autumn C.

    I have to say I am so beyond impressed with this place. A lot of New Mexican restaurants do not do it for me. However, as I sat down and tried my first bite of their homemade chips and salsa, I knew the best was yet to come. Their homemade salsa is out of this world and left me wanting so much more (only the first round is free) and their chips are just the right amount of crunchy but also light. I fell in love. My favorite food is ceviche and I am very particular about ceviche that I order. This one was absolutely perfect and exactly what I was looking for. It even came with the plantains! I was very happy with it here and the inside of the restaurant is super cool and unique. Unlike any other Mexican place I have been before.

    Daily specials as of 2/17/26.
    Y-Danair N.

    Really great! Huge amount of parking space since it's in a plaza near PetSmart, Homegoods, etc. Interior is super cute. Staff were very attentive and welcoming. Everything came out very fast. Ordered an overly friendly IPA from edmund's oast. Chips/salsa were free. Ordered the enchiladas trio and it was a great portion--came with a side of rice. Honestly all the sauces were fantastic on the enchiladas but the mole negro was the best. Love the bold flavors on it. It was a little slow on a Tuesday evening--go and give them some love!

    Birria & Shrimp taco
    Justin M.

    Located off of Dorchester Rd in an easily accessible area, La Minervais a Mexican restaurant that warrants attention if one has that Tex-Mex itch. Fair warning I lived in Austin TX for 4 years and would frequent San Antonio, the street taco capital of the US, so I'm a stern critic. Considering I just moved back, I asked my nephew where to go and this place received high marks but the comment "it's a little more expensive" was mentioned. Walking in there's not much of a Mexican soul to the place: it's devoid of hats, murals, balloons, flags and all things that scream authenticity. Instead, they have opted for a very sterile and uniform vibe which, if one says "we eat first with our eyes" then I'm feeling ho-hum. The extremely nice hostess was quick to seat us on a slow day yet the waitstaff was a bit slow as well, at least the chips and salsa came quick. First up the traditional chips and salsa were ok. The chips are light and salty however the salsa was a bit bland devoid of anything interesting. I think anyone who likes what has become a staple of "Mexican food" will find it agreeable. But today was free majitoes! I can see why it was free as the Orange Juice dominated it all together and although the rum was used sparingly, so much so I was curious if it was a virgin majito. It was like an adult drink with training wheels or something for a beginner. Aside from the drinks, I debated an enchilada or tacos. Considering I just moved from Austin, I hate comparing royalty vs anyone else. But I was hungry and my heart ached for something familiar. I was splitting meals with my mother so she got the shrimp tacos. While the shrimp were very good having 3 huge shrimp, well-seasoned and not overcooked, however the rest was like they skipped out on anything else. The tortillas were cooked nicely however there was barely any cabbage on the tacos while the rest of the usual toppings were on the side. This includes a pico with hardly any cilantro and a bland avocado "salsa"(more like a crema). The saving grace was the birria! The shells were perfectly browned in the "consume" fat (it's not REAL consume but the poaching liquid with the fat from cooking the meat). I got mine with cheese so it's got 2 wonderfully browned corn shells. The meat was tender and moist, not that dry stuff grandma cooks up and the, lets call it broth, perfectly flavorful for dipping. Yes, I would say hands down, this was my favorite thing I tasted at La Minerva by far. At La Minerva, the food is above average, the staff is nice and decent speed while the atmosphere is safe and limited. I haven't been here long enough to give comparisons so I can't say how it stands among other options. But in a vacuum, it's a good place to enjoy a pretty good meal with extremely good birria but steer clear of the shrimp tacos.

    La Minerva bowl with grilled chicken.
    Stephanie M.

    We tried La Minerva for the first time today for lunch. The chips and salsa are not free refills, they did let us know upfront. It was 2.50 for additional salsa. I had La Minerva bowl with grilled chicken. My husband had the barria ramen. He compared it to beef stew with ramen. It was like nothing he's ever had before. Would he get it again?,no. My bowl reminded me of something I would get at a tex mex restaurant. The restaurant was huge, clean, and beautifully decorated. The bar was huge! The bathrooms were clean. I'd be willing to come back and try something else due to the extremely friendly and attentive staff.

    Mahi mahi
    Jessica W.

    Just went to this place. And it's totally amazing. Especially nice and CLEAN. Service are great very friendly. Good came out not oily at all. Love the salad they give me. Many berries in it!!!

    Birria Quessa-tacos
    Mel W.

    This was my first visit to La Minerva. They advertised that they had live music Saturday night (a saxophonist) so I wanted to check it out. Upon being seated I noticed a majority of the menu was not in English, this seemed odd. I also felt their menu was a bit limited. Second, I noticed every thing seemed A la carte. You are not getting free chips and salsa over here my friend, nope $5.00. Ok no problem that's not expensive. Now when ordering tacos (2) rib eye tacos for 18.00 with no side dish.. no rice or beans?? That's crazy to me since I have a Happy Hour spot in the area with $3.00 beef $ 4.00 chicken tacos AND complimentary chips and salsa. I ordered the Quesa Birria tacos, they were good. My service was a mixture of good and odd. We asked The server who brought the drinks if we could have some lime wedges he smiled, walked away and never returned. We figured out he didn't speak English. Later a woman, possibly a manager checked on us regularly and thanked us for coming, she had great customer service skills. While I enjoyed the saxophone player I don't know if I'll return any time soon unless it's for a cocktail and to listen to music.

    Paella $24
    Rebecca A.

    La Minerva was a hit and miss for me, but the hits outshined the misses, so I'm leaving 4 stars. We stopped in around 2 on a Saturday. The place was dead, but granted we were eating at an odd time for lunch. The place is also gorgeous. They spent a lot of money and time on the decor. It's definitely upscale compared to the other Mexican restaurants in the area. We started with the queso. It's fantastic and worth the $8. Same thing can be said for the birria egg rolls for $10. I love birria meat with the consome and this was good. Then when it came to our entrees, both were a miss. I had the lunch enchiladas. Everything was bland except for the salsa verde. Their salsa verde is delicious and should be highlighted in way more options! Where things went downhill was the crema, tortillas, rice and chicken tinga. All were bland and the chicken was dry and chewy. I wasn't able to eat it. JD got the paella and there was plenty of good seafood, but he said the plate as a whole, mostly the sauce, was bland. One note. I didn't try it, so this is his take. We wanted to try a new local place, and we accomplished that! In my book the good outweighs the bad, so I'll return. I'll just be sure to order the hits!

    Cherry Mae B.

    La Minerva had cute cocktails and the guy assigned to our table was really helpful with suggestions on what drinks to get and explained the menu to us. The queso I ordered was almost mozzarella consistency but it could be due to the hot plate it got served on. It was still good but I ended up not finishing it. Me and my friend enjoyed the drinks, and the Churro was the perfect dessert to finish our meal with! I was really excited to try it, and I thought it was very good. It comes with a caramel and chocolate dip as well as ice cream on the side. It's definitely not your usual Mexican restaurant. They did a good job with the interior. I recommend this place for anyone looking for a more upscale Mexican dining experience in the area.

    Grilled mahi mahi
    Justin J.

    Stopped in, thinking it would be a typical fast casual Mexican place like Los Reyes. Turns out to be a very upscale Mexican place! Food was stunning on the price, meaning it was extremely reasonable, only a few dollars more than a place like Los Reyes for a very premium experience. Inside it's swanky and hip, nicely decorated. Server was fantastic he recommended the grilled mahi mahi which was light, but filling, and tasted amazing. Can't believe this gem was right here the whole time and I never stopped in before! J.Ja

    Daniel G.

    We love to sit at the bar and have Diego make us drinks! The food is really good too! I read a few reviews on here about people that want "free chips and salsa" lol this isn't that type of spot....wild to leave a small business a bad review for that. Welcome to 2020s in America ‍ We love the Mexican old fashioned with mezcal and Diego makes the best espresso martinis in Charleston! We have been probably 40 times. HIGHLY RECOMMEND

    Nina C.

    I mean wow this place is stunning . It was definitely not what I expected walking in but glad we stumbled upon it. The owners have several restaurants but this is their newest and more upscale. You could tell there was a lot of thought and intentionality in developing the concept so I really admired that. Our server Vania came and greeted us, shared some things about the menu and made some recommendations. We informed her my husband was celiac and she was very knowledgeable about what he could and could not have which was refreshing. We were off to a good start with a delicious margarita and we ordered a birria ramen simply because it was a unique option and also a pork plate with rice and beans. Everything was colorful and had distinct flavors, while the ramen could've used just a touch of salt, it was still very good and enjoyable. All the accoutrements of sauces, diced onions and jalapeños made the dishes even better. I got to meet the owner and she was so sweet. I think this is a great spot and the menu had so many amazing options so we look forward to coming back!

    My Ceviche - delicious!
    Rob H.

    Go! This is not just a new Mexican restaurant. This is an authentic cornucopia of offerings from the owners' hometown, in an upscale, relaxed, and pleasant setting. The dishes are crafted with care and reflect a regional cuisine with several dishes I've never seen before. The service was excellent, attentive from the moment we walked in. We enjoyed a memorable experience.

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