we have been looking for a new place to hang-out and have a few beers and shots on a regular basis. At first glance we thought that we found a great place however I quickly found out this was not "The Place". Immediately I discovered the bartender said We Don't Have Draught Beer, so we ordered bottles and some food. OMG, $8.50 for a bottle of beer that actually cost $1.50 at the Market!! The whole purpose of going-out for beers is to have Draught Beer, I can have Bottle Beer all Day long at home for a fraction of the cost. Total waste of money! The ambience was great however, due to the over inflated cost of bottled beer. We will never come back. And by looking at the few number of customers during my visit, we would think that the owners would want more customers not less customers, what a total disappointment read more

Great food, strong drink. I got the Al pastor quesadilla and it was sick. Definitely go with the double shots for drinks and you'll be on ur ass in no time! Ashley and her trainee were both amazing! read more

This place is amazing! Ashley is the best! Order the tocos and there margs it's are fire

Had a girls' night here on a Friday and it was really easy to make a reservation. There were a lot of empty tables and it started to fill up around 9-10pm but still had plenty of seats around. The service was great and our waitress Jasmine was attentive and checked on us often. The food itself was only okay and a bit underwhelming. A plate of taquitos came with only 6 half pieces for $22. I think the margaritas and dessert were the best things that we had. It's a good place to go if you are looking to have drinks and snack. read more

"V" is for La Vida Cantina. It's been a while since I've dined at Triangle Square and some restaurants have changed. La Vida Cantina is new to me. I made reservations ahead of time for four people on Taco Tuesday, but we ended up having five people in our party, which I didn't think was going to be an issue until I got there and two of my party checked in ahead of time. This is why it's important to wait for the entire party to arrive! They checked IDs here by the bouncer before entering. Anyway, we were five people seated at a table for four. Our other option was to be seated inside, which some of our party weren't comfortable with. While there seemed to be plenty of seating, it was all reserved for larger parties. We asked for an extra chair and made due. Our server was Kelsey. She was hustling and super apologetic that she wasn't told we had been seated. We had literally just sat down so we weren't in a rush. She told us about the specials so a few of us ordered the house margaritas ($7). We looked through the food menus which are via QR code. At some point, chips & salsa was brought out to the table. It wasn't very spicy and I could have gone with a spicier version of the salsa but didn't have a chance to request it. My fiancé ordered a taco ($3) with a side of beans and rice. I ordered the enchiladas suizas ($16). The rest of the party had tacos, tortas, and a Southwestern salad. It had been a few months since my Alphabet Group was able to get together in-person, so this was a treat for us. The food was brought out in a timely manner. The food was okay. Would I go here again? Perhaps, if I had a large group to feed, but there is plenty of delicious Mexican food to try in SoCal. The place was busy for a Tuesday night. Kelsey stopped by multiple times along with the other bussers who refilled waters, and removed plates. She even split the bill for us by party, so we didn't have to do it ourselves. I recommend to get reservations, unless you want to wait in the standby line. Free parking can be found in the lot underneath. read more

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La Vida is basically an outdoor bar. An awesome lively place, it's preferably not a place you want to take a family, at least in the evenings. People are DRANKING, music is playing, it's a vibe. Most of the seating is outdoors beneath these straw umbrellas, plenty of tables. There's a few fire pits, good music and string lights everywhere --great place to go for a good time. Drinks 5/5 the margs are good and we're just strong enough. The pineapple jalapeño had bits of pineapples that were fun to drink, the spice in it was a good kick. I didn't have food but my friends said it was mid. Service was nice but don't expect it to be as attentive as a regular restaurant-- this is pretty much a bar. There's a 2 hour limit and they do enforce this. We came on a Tuesday night for $3 taco Tuesday at 830pm. There's a roped off line for general admission. It was a 5 minute wait to get seated for 3 people. They checked our ID's and looked inside our bags. There's a free parking garage, drive up to the second floor until you see La Vida on the walls and that's the entrance that leads right to the restaurant. read more

La Vida Cantina - House marg and jalapeño pineapple marg GOOD - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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Completely disgusted with the host and team here. What terrible customer service, we didn't even make a reservation for a table, turned around and walked out. You people legitimately have MAJOR ISSUES. FIX YOURSELVES!!! Background: - Tried checking into this restaurant for the first time ever. As you can see by my Yelp elite status, we dine out and support local business quite a bit. After watching four people, hostesses and managers included, talking and laughing, we finally asked for some attention. Crazy right?!? Imagine wanting some service at a restaurant you pay for service?!? I tried scanning their digital menu barcode multiple times (with zero luck) as their own online server was down, before even asking for a paper menu. The hostess (completely RUDE) couldn't even make eye contact, did not acknowledge our request, and slipped us the menu to the point where it blew away in the wind because she was apparently too good to hand it directly to lesbians and their kid. The manager had ZERO cares (probably because he cared more about getting in her pants than her customer service) to acknowledge her complete lack of professionalism. We were a party of 3 about to drop over $300 on our meal. I cannot believe that some people have jobs when there are so many desperate for work. If you are the owner, ask yourself what the lifetime value of our new business would have been, versus us now NEVER coming back due to your terrible staff (and managers, yikes!). read more

La Vida Cantina - A hostess and manager who were too bothered to be inconvenienced by lesbians and their child to provide proper service. - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

This is a crazy wild place to hang out and there are so many fun people to interact with at the bar. I don't know about the food but the drinks are great! 4 stars for the late night ambiance!! I had champagne and it was delicious! read more

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We had dinner here before going out to Time nightclub downstairs. We all wanted different entrees and Ash, our server, gave us great recommendations of the Birria quesadilla and chicken nacho's. Would definitely come back here again just to hang out and have drinks and the great service! read more

I love my serve Ashley she's the absolute best!!! Made my birthday so much fun! The food is literally the best and the drinks are AMAZING!

Amazing food and service the drinks are delicious and fairly priced Ray And Jose were really helpful and offered great recommendations and just overall amazing vibes read more

Well we had read about this place as being #1 for Happy hour & bar hang in the OC Register. Made a reservation, however...Rod our server was not really stretched thin, just appeared to be annoyed to be a server. We ordered some tacos and Margaritas, but the menus being a tad confusing we asked for further clarification questions...It did not appear he was happy with this "normal" customer interaction. OK, but beyond that initial we had to ask and re ask reminders for spoons, napkins, etc. Got thru everything but ordered the last margarita 3-4 minutes after happy hour, so the bill came charging full price for a small margarita. Asked for it to be $7 like the other 3 and the manager came over and simply said nope, it's posted everwhere... OK, but we ordered just a few minutes late and it came 15 minutes later...Her response was too bad, want to watch the video of when we ordered? WOW, Just WOW. OK then, way to take care of a couple whom just spent $80 bucks on 4 margaritas and 4 tacos. Bottom line, it should not be named best Happy Hour, because right below is Yard House with a much better one! Food was a 4 out of 10, small street tacos and barely worth the "happy hour" price. Also service was not anywhere near what you would expect at a place named best! So 2 customers will not be going back there and it's their loss over $7, slow service, sub par food. read more

Very good service + good chips and salsa!!! Ambiance is very good, more of a drinking scene to catch up with friends. Would recommend & visit again! read more

Ambience is fun, with great music and great staff. My fiancée and I had some drinks and ordered a cheese quesadilla for sharing. It was pretty good. We felt like we were at some day club on the beach (that's the vibe). I like the idea of being outside and enjoy summer. When it comes to food, not sure cause we didn't eat here. Maybe next time. read more

La Vida Cantina - Cantaritos - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

We went on a Tuesday night for "Taco Tuesday" We had planned a double date since we figured it would be a lively place for food and music. I've actually come here quite a bit but not on Taco Tuesday. We got there around 9. Waited in line for about 15min. We requested a seat near one of the fireplaces but all were reserved for bottle service of course. Got to our table and the waitress was very nonchalant, not much personality and not very friendly. We ordered our drinks and food. The food took a really long time. Every time we'd order another round of drinks, seemed as if she was being bothered. The vibe we got was a much younger, cool crowd and we caught her talking and talking with her regulars that got bottles as we'd wait for drinks or food. I feel as if because we weren't getting bottle service then we were treated differently. The food was ok. Didn't really care for the fish tacos and the fajitas tasted bland. The place itself is really nice, very cool ambience. I'd only recommend to go if your in a big group ready to party and ordering bottle service. More of a social club then good food or service. read more

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Our family had an awesome time!! We came out for Brunch and Ashley insured she we had a GREAT time! Definitely will be recommending and coming back! Thank you for making it an experience for us Ash! read more

Great customer service by Ash! Food was great, service topped it.would def be coming back, thank you Ashhhhh!

The place is prefect for a friend outing, and it has become my go-to place for Taco Tuesday. Ambience: 10/10 Spacious, nicely designed and decorated. I love the fire places and the outdoor area. The inside turns into a small "club" after 10pm and we love that! Food: 10/10 The taco/drink deals are great on Tuesday/Thursday, and their tacos are so so addictive!! I did not even like crispy tacos before but this place changed my mind! Now I am here every week for their Crispy tacos and mahi mahi tacos! Drinks here are great too! The margaritas is strong and not watered down. Service: 6.5/10 I have to say that the service here is not the best. We have occurred some bad service for some of the time we had been here unfortunately. On our last hangout, our waiter messed up our ordered twice and did not bring us any utensils (until we let us know). It is almost impossible to get their attention (Understandable though as it was busy), but we felt a little let down because of this. read more

I came to have dinner and drinks with the girls before going to time nightclub. All the food and margaritas were absolutely delicious, shout out to the kitchen! Ask for Ash as a server! She made great recommendations. Will be coming back here again! 10/10! read more

Came for dinner and ash was awesome! She gave us a good food recommendation and was really accommodating. Cant wait to come back!

Boy has service gone seriously downhill here. The hostess is just nasty as hell too. I guess it's fun to be rude to customers yay. The food here is just ok. This has never been a dining destination. The lure has always been meeting people and mingling in the scene. The scene has moved on though. I noticed they've got a crowd but it's not the Newport crowd anymore. Food wise- their brunch is ok. Nobody is going to rave about their dishes but they're not going to toss it in the garbage either. You'll be safe ordering the eggs or a cheese enchilada. I'm on the hunt for a new restaurant near the house with a patio. What a shame this place has gone so downhill. read more

The food is ok but the outdoor umbrella is no good its red and it ruins everything all you see is red! It ruins all the pictures we took! read more

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Ash was very attentive and made sure that we were having a good time (: i got the breakfast burrito and i would rate it a 8/10.

Ash gave Amazing service!!! so kind and food was delicious and quick!! great music also

I had so much fun here !! The food is amazing and our waitress Ash was so wonderful. She attended us with so much grace and made our experience here so fun! read more

Came here for my birthday deep house brunch. I totally forgot the name of our waitress but she had lots of tats and fuchsia colored hair. She really made my birthday special She was prompt and had perfect service considering they were slammed. The food was good the drinks were tasty and the music was lit. Also the manager I believe who took my reservation was pleasant. The staff is legit. read more

La Vida Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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Group of 9 came here for a 21st birthday. The food was delicious, but unfortunately the service was not attentive and felt very disorganized. I ordered the birria tacos and I was given the wrong order. We had to request warm tortillas 3x before we got anything and it took over 20 minutes which kind of killed the vibe. read more

amazing service! ash took such good care of us definitely coming back soon ! fresh food, fresh drinks, and great ambiance! read more

La Vida Cantina - food and appetizers - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

Been coming here for years, but came here for my besties birthday and Ashely was very attentive, and had the best energy! I forgot how fun it is here on taco Tuesday! read more

Wish I could leave 0/5 star review for our experience tonight but it's not possible. This is for our server Sergio who provided lazy, mediocre service and yet included 20% gratuity for himself. This is my 3rd time coming here and all the other times I've come I've had great experiences. Yet, this was by far THE WORST SERVICE IVE EVER HAD (and before you come for me, I'm a cocktail server myself in Newport Beach and understand good customer service). We had reservations for our birthday girl and came a little before 11pm. Wasn't that busy either. Our hostess was kind and seated us at a table. We waited 30min for our "server" to come greet us. Unfortunately we got stuck with our server due to assigned sections. The other server we talked to was great and seemed very sweet. Never got her name but she was blonde and we watched her hustling all night. We had to flag him down both times to order our drinks and food. We ordered bottle service and only then did our "server" care to come check on us and ask if we're doing good but even then, forgot to grab our round of water and had to ask for again (glass bottles we were charged $5.95 each by the way). He poured us the first round of shots but that was it. On a $546 bill we'd expect to receive at least decent service but nope. He didn't care to give good service knowing he was going to be tipped out 20% automatically and left early too. The epitome of laziness. Everyone else was great though. I talked to a barback (wish I got his name too) who kept it real and explained the reason we got charged 20% gratuity for bottle service. Erika the security was also super cool and helpful. This place is fun and had good vibes. Good music. Food was decent. However, I will not be coming back here due to bad service. read more

La Vida Cantina - 20% gratuity charged for crappy service - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

Great tacos. Will definitely be back ! Had Sergio as our server , and he provided great drink recommendations and great service ! :)

Ash is the kindest and treated us so well!! She's awesome!! The food and drinks were great as well!! Great service overall!

We decided to go to La Vida Cantina for Taco Tuesday during lunch. We were quickly seated at the bar and our bartender/server gave excellent service by regularly checking on us. The margarita was just the way my husband likes it - not too sweet. The warm chips came with tasty salsa. The potato tacos were good, but they needed more salt. Unfortunately, the mahi tacos were overcooked and lacking in flavor. Overall, this restaurant is better enjoyed in the evening, but it needs a thorough cleaning from the floors to the walls. read more

La Vida Cantina - Soft Taco Mahi - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

I have heard so much about this place and seen countless photos and videos of la vida being the "it place" to party. I finally gave them a try but didn't want to deal with a huge/ crazy crowd and swamped servers. So me and my gf met up on Taco Tuesday for happy hour at 4. This is probably the best time to avoid crowds on a taco Tuesday night because it was mellow and our bartender was super attentive. Happy hour and taco Tuesday deals are pretty solid here. I do find this spot to be more of a fun place to vibe, get drinks, watch a game, etc. The food was good for happy hour and drinks not too strong but done well. Service got a little sketch towards the end when the crowd started to seep in but overall a fun spot in the OC. read more

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We came on Sunday for brunch and we absolutely loved Ash! She was on top of refilling our champagne for our bottomless mimosas. She was super attentive with all of our needs and was cracking jokes with us every time she came around. The food was good and the vibes were great. La vida is the perfect place to hangout and get good food and a good buzz. read more

For a Sunday if you want to have a beer a chill out in the open this spot is cool I just came for the drink so I can't really comment on the food the but the bar has a chill vibe read more

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Came here for a birthday brunch and had the best time. Ash took care of us and did an amazing job!! She checked up on us all the time and made sure everything was to our liking!! Highly recommend coming here, food and drinks was great as well! read more

I'm conflicted but overall, 3 stars. If you're Latino and have expectations on Latin food, chances are you won't be as impressed, I wasn't at least. I can only speak for the chilequiles plate. The chilequiles were adequate. 7/10 not the best I've had but not the worst. The chicken 6/10, a little dry. My issue is w the potato's and beans... they were not the best at all. Potato's were dry and the beans had no taste. If you're coming for drinks this is a really dope place. I enjoyed the vibe, music, and drinks! It's a really good place for drinks but I based my experience / food off a very simple Latin plate as a result, I wouldn't recommend the food as much. The picture of my food was right before I left... I'm a pretty big guy and I eat like a tank. As you can see in the picture, I barely touched my food. Gave it an extra star due to the ambiance and drinks but food was not good and our server wasn't as attentive read more

La Vida Cantina - My food when I left. I barely touched it. Wasn't great. - Mexican Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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This place is awesome. I would like thank Ash for our wonderful experience she's the best.

Went here for bottomless mimosas and was met with a very pleasant waitress named Ash! She was very attentive and generous would come back again! read more