Matador Cantina and Tequila Bar

This place was just what the doctor ordered. We happened upon it at Cinco de Mayo 5K earlier Saturday morning… looked it up and decided to give it a shot. What an awesome meal from start to finish. The vibe is great, waiter was the best and the food was to die for. I had the fish tacos and my husband the chimichangas. Fresh, well prepared, well proportioned and just damn delicious without draining the wallet. A hidden gem for sure. This place is definitely in our rotation.

First time here. Just tried the chicken tacos. Pretty awesome. 3 taco plate with beans and rice for 10 bucks is pretty good. I’ll be back

I don’t know how they aren’t 4 stars. Food is awesome, margaritas are good, employees are cool, prices are fair, and there is rarely a wait. I like it better than Superica type joints.

What a great, neighborhood place! After a rough day at work my wife wanted two things: a margarita and nachos. She got both and was super happy!
I got the tacos and I have to say that they were out of this world and the margaritas were nice and strong! The service was super friendly and the place just had a really good vibe! We will totally be coming back here without a doubt!

Great local spot with wonderful food. Quick service and very accommodating.

This place has treated me consistently well throughout my undergrad years. Thus, this review has been long overdue. I am writing this because I enjoy coming here and some of these other reviews don’t do it justice. If you read the last couple of bad reviews, then you will these jokers are just entitled folks. They claimed that Jason’s favorite dip looked gross but didn’t even try it? Or the other guy that claimed spending $ 100 for two but plates are $ 10 each while margaritas are $ 20 pitcher. What could they have possibly ordered? If the food and drinks are as terrible as he claimed, then why would you order $ 100 worth?
With that said, this is not a gourmet restaurant. If you are looking for upscale foods and premium, then look elsewhere. However, if you want a nice shack to hangout, relax, have chow, and a margarita, then this is jackpot. I have always ordered the 3 specialty taco plates, and they have always been great margarita food. One complaint is their service being hit or miss. For all the other good reasons, this place has been my official birthday restaurant for the past 4 years.
For you other folks bringing people to impress, go elsewhere. There are pretentious places in downtown Decatur, Virginia Highlands, midtown, and other areas around for just those occasions. This place is for real friends because it ain’t fancy.

Normally, this place isn’t that bad, but tonight was an exception. We walked in, and the four was really dirty. Mind you, it’s a Tuesday night. The first beer my friend for was warm, and the server didn’t seem to understand why that was a problem.

Used to enjoy this little spot — visited about once a week for trivia and great «French margaritas» (absinthe). Also had some good taco combinations, pretty good fajitas and at least one fantabulous server (YAY Ashley!!!). Alas, they killed the French Margarita, and some of the other items took a turn for the worse. Sorry to see the reviews dipping here. It was never a beacon of ambience — just a fun, no-​frills, laid-​back neighborhood watering hole. Hope Matador can catch a second wind!!!

Ugh… why did I not look at the reviews for Matador Cantina before we had lunch from them today?
We got Jason’s favorite dip. Now, I don’t know Jason, but I feel really bad that this mess was named after him. Based on the «dip» that we had, they should change the name to meat & cheese water. (See my photos.) It looked so disgusting, I didn’t try it. The chips that came with it weren’t bad, but nothing exciting.
The jerk chicken taco I had was gross. Zero flavor in the meat, and again, watery! This taco tasted like lettuce. That’s about it. Thankfully, I also got a carnitas verde taco. While there was zero verde sauce on it, the meat in it was really well seasoned. So good. I hated the side of bean & rice that came with my meal. I threw them out.
My guy had the Burrito Mexicana. He seemed to like it, buuut… his burrito had a really big piece of bone in it! (I thought that kind of thing only ever happened to me!) There is a photo of that below, as well.
Two stars for the chips, and one of my tacos. –3 for everything else.

Oh how sad to see a restaurant in this caliber in this area. We had ok service but food was incredibly bad. Well it gets worse, drinks were undrinkable. I tried two margaritas they both were awful, extremely sweet and no flavor. I actually did not drink neither one and paid for them.
$ 100 for two and no satisfaction at all. Well it was cinco and live music was good and I don’t even know if live music only belonged to them or not. This experience explains why we lived so close for 9 years and this was the first time we went there.

My mama once said, «if you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.» I never listened! The hostess was super friendly. I just have to say, frozen popcorn shrimp is what you get when ordering a fried shrimp taco here. Yuck! There are too many restaurants in Decatur, why settle for mediocrity.

We just moved to the area and have been trying all of the restaurants within walking distance to our house and Matador is definitely out least favorite.
From the second you walk in over the awkward threshold and your eyes adjust to see the dark and dingy interior that looks like it could use a good pressure washing you should know what to expect.
We love El Myr and were really hoping this place would be like that, but the food was not good, and neither was the service. The «Jason’s Favorite Dip» which was a lukewarm tea cup sized cheese dip with ground beef or chorizo (we could not figure out which it was, which isn’t good) for $ 6 was the final straw for me.
I’d take El Azteca (or El Ponce as I guess it is now) over this place any day.

Today I had the El Cubano Gordo and the Fried Chicken Tacos… amazing flavor and great prices. Dos Equis by the pitchers is pretty great too.

I really wish I could give them a better rating. If I could rate just on the food, I’d give them four stars, because the food keeps me coming back for more, even after bad experiences.
However, the service has always been pretty awful in the six or seven times I’ve been there. I’ve gone both with just my boyfriend, and with family groups, and service has always been really rude and inattentive. There’s one blonde waitress we’ve had several times that tends to just ignore you and give you the stink eye if you need something. She’s tried to take away food we weren’t finished with/​wanted to save without even asking first, and overall has been just really unpleasant to have. Even the other staff seems to drag it’s feet and not even bother to do basic duties like refills even at times when it’s a nearly empty restaurant. One time, a male waiter refilled my boyfriend’s drink, and then didn’t even bother asking about my empty glass. There have been times I’d be waiting for the check and I see them just standing behind the counter texting on their phone. Ouch!
Matador, I want to love you, but you really need to hire some new wait staff that knows how to do their job without the attitude. :(

This is not good food. The menu is standard Tex-​Mex, but the execution is sub-​standard. Meats are soggy, cheeses are oily and clumpy, and everything is just meh.
The service is inconsistent, ranging from friendly and adequate to apathetic and horrible.
I’ve been a bunch of times because friends like to go in groups, but I would not go on my own. If I want good Mexican, I will make the trip to the Buford Highway.

Wow, really awful customer service. Don’t advertise/​say a restaurant is dog friendly and then tell a group that all the dogs must sit outside of the patio — on black asphalt in the sun in July — as if that is at all a humane option. Will never go back, with or without my dog.

Great to relax and kick back a few specialty margs. Friendly staff. Great fajitas and endless chips & salsa

I’m only here in Atlanta visiting friends but last time I was here and again today they took me here for lunch. The shrimp taco was awesome as was the fish taco, the salsa packed a punch and was fantastic. I hope I get to go back as the staff were awesome and friendly and full of chat. Definitely on my list of places in Atlanta and Oakhurst is just a great place in general.

Gringo Mexicano indeed. When the tea isn’t made fresh, look out. Two table companions ordered tea, but it was such a watered down mess, they returned them, asking for 1 water and 1 coke. The machine wasn’t working, I guess.
Anyway, the food was sufficient. It nourished and provided calories, but wasn’t pleasing to look at. The melted cheese floating atop my sauce was unnerving.

I remember the first time I went to Matador, I had no idea this little cluster of restaurants existed mere minutes from my house and I felt pretty foolish for not getting here sooner!
For a veg this place is pretty solid. They have an appetizing menu for us of different kinds of enchiladas, tacos, fajitas– better than a typical Mexican restaurant. I had the tofu taco, it was simple and delicious. Grilled tofu, onions, and peppers with a few slices of avocado. If you slap avocado anything on my food you get kudos. My friend had the potato enchiladas and cleaned the plate with gusto.
The patio is little, but lovely to sit at on a nice day. The restaurant seems to attract families with screeching kids so I try to avoid the early dinner hour. Damn, now I want a tofu taco.