Prickly Pear Southwest Cafe

How is this place only 3.5 stars!!! Their food is AMAZING! Loved how they feature a lot of fusion-​like dishes.
Went with a gf the other night, and we had a really hard time choosing off the menu, but eventually decided to family-​style:
–Scallop quesadilla (What you say? Scallops and melted cheese? YES! Heaven on a plate)
–Chile rellenos with red mole sauce (super delicious and the mole was pretty authentic)
–side of guac (could have used a touch more lime and cilantro, but packed full of avocados without the overwhelming amount of onions and tomatoes other places have)
–even the complimentary tortillas chips were YUM! Tasted like they were made in-​house.
Cozy ambiance with great service! Will definitely be back to sample all the other dishes.

Prickly Pear. Strictly average Mexican food in a town where there are plenty of yummier (and cheaper) options. Four of us came for dinner and drinks. The chips and salsa were good. I got the strawberry margarita, which tasted artificial and not too tasty. I tried the shrimp and brisket enchiladas ($ 14.45). The shrimp lacked flavor. The brisket enchilada was decent. Service was fine. All in all, this place just screamed meh to me. I don’t think I’ll be back, but I’m okay with that.

This place has always been great. Classy & cute, Friendly staff, clean, food always comes fast & fresh. They serve fresh chips & salsa. The fajitas for 2 is $ 25 & it’s perfect size for two! The only thing I will say is that they have limited seating inside, but they also have seating outside. Would recommend!

Was very disappointed with this place. I found the food to be very bland and lacking in flavor. The salsa was more akin to just diced tomatoes and onions with very little taste to it. I would not return. Service was decent though so the stars go to them.

There are so many Mexican cuisine choices, but don’t overlook prickly pear. They bring salsa and chips to the table when you sit down, which is always a plus when you’re a hungry student.
Really good vegetarian black bean enchiladas and portabella mushroom quesadilla. They have plenty of vegetarian options which makes me a happy customer.
Busy place and crowded seating, but if you’re in good company then it’s no bother.

Part of the average rating was probably my fault. I wasn’t feeling all that adventurous and agreed to get fajitas for two. When you’ve had the Southwest staple a billion times, it’s just not that exciting. It wasn’t bad, it was simply a fajita skillet.
Now I will take my moment to put my foot it in the ass of the cadre of Unilocaler’s who try to boost their credibility by claiming their from Texas, Mexican, etc… 1– who cares? It doesn’t mean you know jack about food. 2– A lot of what is on their menu is not traditional Tex-​Mex food. They have some pretty creative takes going on the old staples, and I give them bonus points for that.
Someone in our group got the crab enchiladas and they were excellent.
I really like the fresh chips and the salsa was more mixed then pureed, I thought it had great flavor and the right amount of heat (God, if I have to read another person complaining it wasn’t hot enough to singe the hair off their forearms, I’ll scream. Heat des not = quality). Sorry, I guess I am being a little cranky towards my fellow Unilocaler’s today.
We got the shrimp queso dip and it was really interesting. Very creative and lot going on, I’m not sure if loved it, but would try it again. Never seen anything like it, that’s for sure.
The sides that came with the fajitas were ho hum. Rice really didn’t have much flavor except for pepper or cumin, and I felt it was a little too much… for rice anyway. Totally acceptable in taste and texture, but pretty average.
Our server was nice, the staff– even members that weren’t really waiting on us– smiled and all said good bye as we were leaving, they were very friendly.
An odd complaint, but I found the booths a little uncomfortable. To be fair, I’m a runner and I have some issues when seated too long in my hips and knees so it may be no big deal, but I just found the overall space a little confining, Also, our table had a small light on the wall next to it, what I’d typically call a sconce, but it had no shade and the light wasn’t really direct. The person seated toward the wall– when I ever I went to look at them in conversation, I felt like I was blinded for half the meal. Ok, minor stuff, but it might actually affect my willingness to come back or at least get a booth.
There’s a good chance this is a 4 – 5 or star place. There is also a chance that maybe *I* was having an off night when it came to judging the food. But aside from the crab enchiladas, nothing really blew me away. I’d put it at 3.5 stars for now with the potential to be much better if I find the right dish.

I wanted to impress my mom who was visiting from California with some amazing Ann Arbor fare, and I picked the Prickly Pear on a whim, since I had not been there before. We both were floored! It was so delicious!
We ordered the spinach & cheese enchilada, sweet potato enchilada, and a butternut squash to share. The meals came with Michigan salads (cherries yes!) and they were delicious. The chips and salsa (more like pico) were perfect. The butternut squash soup was KNEE-​BUCKLING GOOD! (Jerry Seinfeld would agree). It was buttery and spiced just right. I think there was a nut butter in the middle which just knocked my socks off. The enchiladas were both super yummy, though not traditional.
The prices were very fair, and the outdoor seating was very nice. I would go here again in a second!

Checked out the Prickly Pear recently while in town for a Michigan football game, at the recommendation of family. We went in on a Friday evening and the place was fairly busy — it was a little cool out but we opted to sit out on the patio. They had one gas heater out there but it wasn’t close to our table so it was a little chilly, but tolerable. The inside of the restaurant was extremely warm, like almost unbearable, so this was the lessor of two evils, and it turned out to be a great decision. Even though I found it odd that about half the tables have fiestaware plates under them, must be due to an uneven patio. Great people and car watching on Main Street.
After being seated we were quickly served waters and chips and salsa. And not a skimpy «am I going to feel like a fatty when I ask for a second order of chips» serving size, both the chips and salsa were in really large bowls! I still managed to eat most of them… darn those chips get me every time! The salsa is more of a chopped, pico de gallo style salsa rather than being blended. Not my thing, but my dining companion loved it. Started with a margarita to drink, which was REALLY good. Not too sweet, not too bitter and quality ingredients. So quality that I quickly ordered a second… but when it came out it was gross. Like way too sour gross. I told the server and he replaced it no problem, he said the bar ran out of their pre-​mix and they were scrambling to make more. The replacement that came out wasn’t as good as the first, but tolerable.
For food we had the brisket enchiladas and the shrimp/​scallops quesadillas. Both were excellent! Prices are a little on the higher side, but worth it for the quality of food you get. Service was good… super friendly and helpful with menu questions, but a little slow and not checking on us enough. But this may have been due to our server having tables inside and outside and having to run back and forth, and them being super busy.
All in all a very good experience, with just a few kinks.

This was the the worst service and meal I’ve had in at least 4 years. Just wow.
The chips and salsa good. Dinner for 3 people taking two hours? Insane!
25 minutes for the beers to come? No water refill ever? WTF.
Chicken empanadas? more like 99% black bean empanadas with undercooked beans.
Just quit the resturant business.

Damn fine Mexican food with great service and reasonable prices.
Went in by myself while traveling for work for brunch. I really wanted the Huevos Rancheros but the stuffed peppers seemed the best choice. They were very good but a little bland, definitely needed hot sauce. Once that was applied it was extremely tasty. The chips and salsa that came with were fresh and excellent.
The mojito came in a pint glass and was very watery. I would rather just a highball glass and a tasty drink. Also they didn’t pour the drink over the muddled mint but laid it on top — it was weird.
The ambiance was pretty lackluster. I felt like I was in the waiting room of a motel in the southwest.
Service was great. The food and prices keep it at 4 stars, otherwise it is hovering twoards a 3.