Ok I will cut right to the chase, I ordered shredded beef enchiladas and the beef wasn't shredded. There were large chunks of rubbery meat inside my enchilada. After I decided I was finished I poked the fork into the remaining enchilada and there was something inside I didn't recognize as food. I should have taken a picture, it was like a large clear artery vein or something that was not appetizing at all. If I had put that in my mouth I would have lost my whole meal right there. Seriously, are you looking at what you roll up inside your enchiladas? Grossed me out for the rest of the day. read more

Their sign is absolutely not true! One of the worst margaritas we've ever had. Don't believe it!!!!!!

My husband and I are from San Diego, CA, where even the mediocre Mexican restaurants are decent, and the best ones are excellent. We've eaten many kinds of authentic, "regional" Mexican food and many generic, "Mex-American" meals. We like to try the local cuisine when we travel, and when we're in Hawaii we usually eat fresh seafood, authentic Hawaiian food, or the various "Polyn-Asian" dishes that reflect the influences of centuries of immigration. But on our May 2014 visit to Kauai (our 12th over 20-plus years), we decided to have a taste of "home" by trying Mariachi's Authentic Mexican Cuisine. Omigawd, what a misnomer. The food definitely is not "authentic," it's arguably not even Mexican, and to refer to it as "cuisine" is laughable. We arrived at 6 p.m. and were pleased to get a table near an open window along the sidewalk. Our delight at getting a slight breeze soon was mitigated by the fact that being only feet from a busy street whose traffic featured many older-model cars meant that we'd be gulping exhaust every few seconds. Although a considerate proprietor would position fans near the windows to keep the toxins out (and direct warm air out of the restaurant), we didn't worry too much about it. We were there to have fun and eat Mexican food. As it turned out, we did neither. Although the items on the menu sounded good, I was surprised that it included tacos, burritos, chimichangas, and the like, but not enchiladas. A young man brought us chips and salsa, and both were pretty good. We asked him for two glasses of water. After a short wait, a young woman introduced herself as our waitress and asked us if we wanted to start with drinks. She seemed harried and a little confused, although the place was not at capacity and there were other wait persons. I ordered a house margarita, and because it had been several minutes since we'd asked the young man for water, we asked the waitress for two glasses of water. She rushed off. As we continued to peruse the menu and breathe car fumes, a different waiter approached to take our drink order. He seemed surprised and a little annoyed when we told him we already had wait service. But because we still had no water, we asked if he could bring us two glasses of water. We never saw him again. Finally, our waitress brought our drinks---but no water. We thanked her, and I added, "Could we please have two glasses of water?"Apparently, the fourth time was the charm, because a couple minutes later she slid two glasses of water onto the table without a word and rushed away. I looked at my margarita and immediately knew it wouldn't be good. It was a pale-green color that reminded me of some awful-looking beverage we'd seen pouring from a street dispenser in Leningrad in 1990. There were a few small ice cubes floating in it. It tasted like watery Kool-Aid, with no trace of tequila. I believe it cost $12. Our waitress came back to take our orders. I had the shredded beef burrito; my husband asked the waitress why there were no enchiladas. She pointed to a tiny block of text at the bottom of the menu indicating that enchiladas could be included in combination plates, but why not list and describe them on the menu? He ordered one chicken enchilada and one ground beef enchilada. The waitress, following the current trend, did not write down our order but repeated it to herself more than once as if trying to memorize it. Then she repeated it to us, and we said, "Yes, that's right." She left, but came back a few minutes later. "So, did you want one beef...?" She looked at my husband as if waiting for assistance. "One ground beef and one chicken enchilada," he said slowly. She went away, but came back a minute later with an order pad and a pencil. My husband repeated the simple order a third time, and she repeated it while writing it down. We just looked at each other as if to say, "WTF???" My burrito was big enough to be filling, but bland. To her credit, the waitress remembered to put the sauce and the sour cream on the side, as I'd asked. My husband's enchiladas were the skinniest we'd ever seen. They were suspiciously uniform in size and shape, resembling rolled tacos more than enchiladas. Each had mole sauce on it, which was the only flavorful component; the contents were so similar as to be indistinguishable. Ground beef and chicken fillings should look and taste very different---these did not. Before we'd gotten half-way through the meal, we both knew that we'd never come back to Mariachi's. The final tab, before tax, came to $40---for two skinny, flavorless "enchiladas", one bland burrito, one "mock" margarita, and an iced tea. We love to dine out and never worry about cost, but even at "Hawaii prices," this dinner would've been overpriced at $20. Even though we stay within a short walk of this place, they'll never see us again. read more

Staff is very friendly. Food was excellent. I had the Mahi mahi fish tacos and would definitely recommend them.

I'm not sure why this place has 2.5 stars? It should have 5! My husband and I had dinner here one evening during our vacay in Kauai. The food was delicious. I had the Veggie Enchiladas and my husband had a Carne Asada Burrito. We both thought our food was nom nom! The service was great and they had music and plenty of TVs for entertainment. We recommend this place to anyone looking to have Mexican food while on vacation on this beautiful island. Aloha! read more

This place is so bad, it's painful. The service is horrible, the food sucks, and it's a waste of space in beautiful Kauai. We had the fish taco plates, not sure where the fish was because it was all batter, small amount of cabbage and rice/beans were plain and flavorless. One person in our party ordered without the white sauce and what do you know, it came with the white sauce. The waitress was MIA to even mention the mistake. My water glass sat empty the majority of the time. Food portions were small and not even good enough to take home the leftovers. They are a tourist trap. There's a reason why this place was empty each time we drove by. Just don't go here. read more

Yes,sir! This is the best Mexican Restaurant on the island. The Host,waiter and bartender are the best. They were very attentive to our needs. So professional and polite. My wife had the tacos de carnitas. She loved em. My son had the tacos de carne asada. So good,he ate em all. I had the crazy fajitas. They were really good. We ordered the guacamole. It was fresh and tasty. My wife & I had the micheladas.They were on point. Best food we've had since we've been on Kauai. Everything had flavor. Very generous with the portions. Zero complaints about Mariachi Restaurant. You be the judge. Like my 13 yr old son says. Haters wanna hate? Put away the hatorade. Try it for yourself. read more

Went there for Happy Hour, not very happy, slow service and asked for happy hour tacos and they brought me the high entree tacos instead , no go to " eagle" person on site , only ducks read more

Came here tonight after reading many reviews. Daughters birthday with a family of 7. Waiter was so attentive and responsive to our needs. Food was delicious and very filling. We brought a cake for our daughter, waiter took it as we came in a served us after dinner was done. Not sure why any negative reviews. This place is authentic Mexican food with a great Kapaa atmosphere. I will definitely be back for some more great food. read more

We chose this place at random and it was awesome! I had camarones a la diabla and it was perfect. My wife had the chili Colorado chimichanga and she wasn't disappointed and could not finish the large meal. Staff is super friendly and there is a good mix of locals and tourists here. read more

The al pastor taco & burrito was probably the best I have ever had! Wow, they were out of this world good. However, it's not just the al pastor. My wife had the fish tacos and she said they too were one of the best she has ever had. This has to be the best Mexican restaurant in Hawaii! read more

Quite possibly the most contrived & worst restaurant on the island. They self proclaim that they have, "The Best Mexican food & Margarita's"! Even if they were the only Mexican restaurant on Kauai, I would never go back. For example; they charge $5.50 for chips & salsa on their happy hour menu. $70 for watered down Margs & rotten tacos for two people. The food is well below average, their service is beyond insulting. Do yourself a favor, take your money, go to Safeway, purchase a bag of Tostitos, some salsa & limerita, and you'll still have a better experience then Mariachas! I am now no longer confused why there is a competitors Mexican food truck parked in their parking lot! FYI. Went to Tortilla Republic today in Poipu. Outstanding service, clean & delicious food. And still $15 less then Mariacha's! read more

I must say that this place absolutely amazed me. I was surprised to see such low reviews when I looked them up on yelp. The civiche was AMAZING! Perfectly cooked fish in lime juice served with chips yummmmmmm. I also had the mahi mahi tacos which were also nothing less than perfection! Bonus was we told the waitress we had to be in and out in a hurry and she made it happen. I would come back again for sure! read more

Poor service! We had fun because we were with the family--MINUS the cockroach!!! There was a HUGE cockroach running under the tv. The dishwasher killed it and we were all disgusted!!! Not to mention--chips are not good. As LA natives, maybe we are too picky. However, check the fajitas closely! If there is movement, it was the cockroaches family or their pet! read more

Ate here on 12/24/16 and had absolutely the worst carne asada I have ever had. Wasn't thin cut or marinated. Basically it was a 1/4" thick unseasoned bland piece of meat for $18. read more

Mariachi's Authentic Mexican Restaurant - Worst carne asada - Mexican Near Me - Kapaa, Hawaii

This place has decent Mexican food but EXTREMELY POOR SERVICE. Luckily we came during happy hour and I had a margarita to keep me cool after being rudely ignored by one of the waitresses. I asked if we could have more chips as she walked by our table, and without even looking at me she held up her finger to tell me to wait and didn't even say, "One moment please" or "I will be right back" or anything like that. The waiter was not very accommodating when it came to trying to alter a menu item, did not check on us the whole time we were seated, and did not even refill our waters. The only good part of my dining experience here was that the chips were free and the salsa was pretty good. I would definitely NOT recommend this place to anyone visiting Kapaa. I am sure the small Mexican shop across the street (Mermaids) would've been a better choice. read more

We made the mistake of checking reviews after we ordered. Oops. Our gps couldn't find Verde. This place had a sign that said it was the best mexican food in town and my hubby fell for it. He figured, "it's Mexican. How bad could it be?" Margaritas were large but tasted like Kool Aid. Beans were blah. I order fish tacos whenever they are on a menu. The fish tacos at Mariachi are the worst ever. They tasted like salty lime. My husband orders cheese enchilada regularly and his meal was awful as well. $60 for lunch for two is outrageous. There isn't even a view. The chairs were sticky and it just didn't seem very clean. We were there during their happy hour period but there was no mention of happy hour deals. Verde is just down the road next to Big Save at the stop light. It looked cleaner and much better overall. read more

Ordered the simplest things on menu and waited almost 1 hour. Margarita was watered down. Waitress didn't even come back. Food presentation, for cost, looked bare and the quesadillas looked thrown on the plate. Very disappointing! So many lost opportunities for making an impression here in a small town. Not impressed. Won't recommend or return. read more

I wanted tacos and checked this place out. It has a nice open air atmosphere. The tacos were good but also about what I would find at most other places. They were also priced higher than I typically expected for a lunch. read more

Second time in the island and first and last time at this Resturant . As a Los Angeles native who is half Mexican I can say that this the worst Mexican food I've had. We had a party of 11 and half the orders came out wrong. The quality of the food was mediocre at best. They're over priced, over hyped and not worth my business again. read more

Service was terrible. The only time in my life I've ever gotten up from a table and left before we were even asked for our drink order! Sat there for a good 20 min with servers passing by our table and not a word said .... Finally just got up and left, they didn't deserve our business. read more

I wanted huevos rancheros once while on vacation. Did not disappoint! My daughter doesn't eat eggs and the server immediately offered her the lunch menu. Hot sauces were delicious and HOT. Do this if you're in the mood for Mexican while on Kauai. read more

OH SHEIT! No wonder this place for such crappy reviews! Service sucked! Had to ask THREE people for one drink! Much less trying to order any food! Just keep on walking....If I would have known....I would have. read more

After reading all the negative reviews I was a little concerned about eating here but I'm glad we stayed. The food was fantastic!! I had carne asada tacos and my kids had quesadilla and everything was great! Service and food was definitely a 5 star. read more

Went here for dinner and it was delicious. All servers were friendly and attentive, but bartender needs an attitude adjustment. Doesn't enjoy his job or just doesn't like tourists. Too bad. Everyone enjoyed their meal. I had veggie fajitas and they were awesome. read more

Only place we found on the island with authentic Mexican food. I absolutely hate tex mex and was so excited to see molé on the menu! Food was fresh, service was quick and friendly, and the margaritas were strong. Definitely coming back next time we're here! read more

Not sure why this place has so many bad reviews . Been on vacation 2 weeks and have already been 3 times . I know good Mexican food being born and raised in California :) go for happy hour the ruby red sangria and Mahi tacos are a must ! There chicken enchilada are delicious also . I just love this place read more

The ceviche was actually decent and so were the fajitas but.... service was god awful. Worst I had on the island. And the margarita was gross!! I wouldn't go here again. read more

Giving 4 stars, I guess I'm one of the few who liked this place. My wife said her veggie taco salad was kind of bland, but my mahi Mahi tacos were the best I've had in a while. Live music that wasent so loud you could still have conversation. Service was tip top, fast and friendly. read more

I have eaten the food here several times and have been pleased consistently, which has not been the case at their Nawiliwili location. Food is reasonably priced and delicious. read more

This was absolutely the worst meal we had the whole time we were vacationing in Kapaa. The staff was too busy talking with their friends at the bar. The food was bland and overpriced. While we were there I watched one family walk out without even getting served. Don't waste your time!!!!! read more

Very friendly environment! Best Mexican food! Kapaa has a great location and great staff! Stop in to see Rosy and try a Carnitas burrito with rice and beans inside! I always add tomatillo sauce to mine! So delicious! My friends and I dine here at least once a week and never have any complaints! Thank you Mariachis for the best Mexican food and drinks ! read more

No matter where in the world I travel, I can always find my gente. Stopped in for happy hour. Great people working here. Great beers on tap. AWESOME CHICKEN WINGS! read more

The freshest ingredients. The friendliest service. The most flavorful Mexican meal on the island! Mariachis has a flare all it's own, and the view is super enjoyable. I highly recommend the crazy fajitas! read more

This was the worst place that we ate on the island. The first plate that I ordered was tamales and they came with the worst brown sauce that I have ever tasted. It tasted like dirt. So, I sent it back and they took it graciously. I reordered a plate of 2 tacos. I figured they would be OK since they were just tacos. Wrong. I ordered ground beef in them and I got shredded beef. The rice was not cooked all the way and sat in water on my plate and got the tacos soggy. The tacos were served in deep fried flour tortillas. Yuck. My experience with this place was not a good one and I don't recommend eating there. read more

The best Mexican food on the island. I live in Washington and havnt had this good of Mexican food in a long time. Our server was so sweet and happy to be working with a smile on her face. Amazing food, amazing service read more

Not impressed. The server was not only inattentive, but had almost no serving etiquette. I had some arm in my face and he asked me when we'd be 'finally' ready to order. The chips and salsa cost 2 extra dollars which was clearly stated, but come on.. the margarita had much yo be desired even though the sign outside stated the best margaritas in town. It seemed like the server tried to rush us out, but it seemed just to spite us, when we were ready for the check the server just stood behind the bar and didn't do anything. Just to clarify we were one of two tables. I would choose any other local grindz than this place read more

This place is definitely on my regular list of places to eat. It's close to home and there never seems to be a long wait to sit, or to eat. Service here is fast and efficient. I love the atmosphere and open windows to the street. Reasonably priced in comparison to other Mexican restaurants nearby... And the food is great! I LOVE their Al Pastor... but seriously, anything on the menu is good. The only drawback I have ever experienced is that you don't get the "fluffy" customer service here... Service here is about efficiency, accuracy and speed. So no biggie to me, but others might find it off-putting. Don't let that stop you from trying the food tho. read more

Food was good. Had shrimp in garlic. Yum! Nice surprise because my expectations where low! Drinks just ok, wouldn't get again, but the food was good, nice location in Kapaa. read more

It was just ok. The host that sat us, never smiled or said a word. The tortillas were soaked in grease, but still tasted good. Chili verde was ok and over priced. My dad got the Mexican burger and liked it as well as the fries. read more