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Publico

3.9 (612 reviews)
Closed • 11:00 am - 11:00 pm

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PUBLICO ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Trendy
Moderate noise
Dogs allowed

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Recommended Reviews - Publico

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La Denna R.

This place is nice and spacious. Clean environment with friendly staff. They have a variety of beers along with mix drinks. They also have daily specials on food. I got the tacos and plantains. The amarillo plantains came with an aoli sauce that I was not a fan of on the plantains. If you order ask for the sauce on the side. The Fish taco was amazing. I recommend you grab a fish taco.

Puffy waffles a la carte
Chad A.

Came here for brunch with my wife and I. Prices are quite reasonable, food is tasty and original, and our server (April) was great. Really the only thing I could gig the place on was that all chairs were barstools, but that also means people don't hang out all day and you can go here for lunch after church without a 45 minute wait. Actually, we had no wait time. While I don't drink, their selection of alcoholic drinks is extremely comprehensive, I think it would impress most. Definitely worth going as they offer a military/veteran rate as well :) Enjoy!

Cynthia E.

Had a great time at Publico! The staff was festive and friendly, and it was nicely decorated for Christmas. I really enjoyed my meal, which was the Ube bubble waffle with fried chicken. It also had plantains and kimchi - an interesting mix of menu items! This was part of their brunch menu. overall, everything was delicious! I also got the pineapple mimosa which came with a rubber ducky on top. All in all, everyone enjoyed their meal. My only issue was that the kimchi came on top of the waffle which made it extremely soggy and kimchi flavored. So I couldn't eat the whole waffle. It also had some of the sauce from the plantains on the waffle as well. So I would say to serve the waffle on a different plate in the future.

shrimp poke bowl

the food was so terrible. Our bao buns were burnt, and you truly can't call them poke bowls if they have just two pieces of shrimp in it... really disappointed and even the prices weren't justifiable for the experience. Nice atmosphere though and staff were kind.

4x2$ Medeteranian Tofu )delight)
Jack R.

Taco Monday, chef special: Medeteranian Tofu. Vegetarian & Vegan Heaven right here in river city. First rule of best places - see Fight Club.

Manchurian Scorpion taco
Donnie F.

Sunday Funday in full effect so I decided to take the wife to Publico ... unfortunately the air wasn't working and the wife was not to thrilled ... for my app I ordered the Spicy Turkey Gyoza ... they were bomb .. wish they had a dipping sauce but they were fresh and very flavorful and they weren't over fried and they aren't spicy lol ... for my meal .. I ordered the Manchurian scorpion that has real scorpion ... the Bang Shrimp ... and the Hot Honey Yuzu .. it came with a side I got the plantain from my wife's order and personally ordered fries... didn't plan on drinks but order the Spicy Cantaloupe Cooler because of the mezcal ... Up first the Scorpion taco .. first and foremost if you don't like spicy don't order lol .. not season as much as I wouldn't liked but it's not bad ... up next the HotHoney ... once again no wow factor .. the honey was good but it was missing the hot :( .. they say 3rd time the charm .. and it was the bang shrimp was AWESOME.. flavorful and seasoned .. my personal favorite.. our waitress was also very good considering the air wasn't working lol ... lunch DT is always good over being able to see 5 points in the day time lol iykyk... I will be bacc now that I know to order ... till next time

Tostada salad
Amanda P.

This was the first time I came back to publico in over a year and I had a great experience! There was a 30-45 minute wait on a Sunday night when we came, but it went faster than I thought. I honestly forgot about how wide of a range the menu is, there really is something for everyone here. I had the trio and tostada salad. The salad was amazing, super filling and I loved the salsa. However, I do think there is better queso in town, so next time I'd love to try a new appetizer. All in all I think this is definitely a great place to come to with a group of friends, especially this time of year since they are all decked out with christmas decorations and have fun christmas cocktails!!

Fried cauliflower
Adrianna S.

Great spot in 5 Points. Large outdoor area with some games like Jenga and Connect 4. Service was great- friendly and fast. On Thursdays, they have pitchers of beer for $15. You get about 4 beers out of it. Food was good. Not amazing but good. They have some fun tacos. Salad and cauliflower bites were lacking in flavor. Could have used more dressing or seasoning on the salad. But lots of outdoor seating and a great spot to spend a nice afternoon or evening.

Nacho fries and Santa!
Raymond M.

Great atmosphere! Next, the food we had today tasted wonderful! Finally, Mia was a WONDERFUL server which was helpful since we stopped by today for our first ever visit to Publico. She made sure to explain all of the food and drink options to us, had a great attitude, and made sure we had everything we needed. Here is a picture of the Nacho Fries next to a lovely Santa mug. The picture doesn't do justice. I was dipping jalepeños in the base because it was so tasty!

Bar area
Tania M.

We were thrilled when we stopped into to Publico to check it out for dinner. The decor and ambience is awesome. We were greeted and sat right away. Everyone we encountered was so friendly and welcoming. Our server was fantastic. We ordered a couple of tacos and a burrito. Delicious! The menu is full of drink specials and lots of yummy options. We will definitely be back!

Tsai-Anne J.

Any place that has a server that is super aware of what is gluten free is a win for me. I love the atmosphere here. The tacos I had were good especially the birria. The margarita was also great. My friend really enjoyed her ramen but not the seltzer she chose.

Birria quesadilla and House Kimchi

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4 years ago

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Michael D.

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1 year ago

The Food it's good, the atmosphere and the service are great they have a nice outside are. We had a great time.

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

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5 years ago

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1 year ago

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11 months ago

College crowd spot. Have cheap drink specials the micheladas are decent especially when on sale. Food is just there would skip.

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

Been several times now. Good and service are both excellent. Brunch and dinner were great!

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2 years ago

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4 years ago

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4 years ago

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4 years ago

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

Great atmosphere and the food was good. Love the themed times and Christmas time was fun!

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4 years ago

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7 years ago

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

Publico has brunch options in the weekend. They had good drinks and good service also.

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2 years ago

The Publicó Burger and the brisket Bao bun was so good. Also the churro ice cream dessert. Amazing!

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5 years ago

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1 year ago

Tacos were great. The drink I had the Yippie Ki yay M...fr was the best! Nothing like a good meal and good drink!

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

Good portion and great atmosphere/service. Food's a tad salty for me but overall, we enjoyed the good.

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Page 2 of 16

Ask the Community - Publico

Where can you buy the coconut ghost chile sauce? Or, does anyone know the brand since they don't make it in-house?

you can buy it at publico! they have packaged hot sauces you can buy individually.

Hi! Is there a kids menu? Or will the kitchen accommodate making a plain burger or taco?

There are some kid options. When we went my kid got a cheese quesadilla.

View All 4 Questions

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Publico - newamerican - Updated June 2026

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