Casa Maya

I agree with the other reviews for the most part. Ten years ago, CM was one of the best Mexican restaurants around. Now, it’s a shabby and slightly over-​priced joint.
They don’t take reservations so you always have to wait, but it was worth it way back when. Lunch is a decent deal, but dinner prices are outrageous, especially considering the modest portion sizes. Service is good, but the restaurant itself is rundown.

Always delicious and HOT! I’ve been coming here for 20 years and everything looks the same. We like that its authentic and different from all the «Americanized» Mexican places around.

A little Mexican joint wedged at a weird corner, it’s a bit hard to get to and park in front, but there is another lot at the back of the restaurant. The food is decent and my stew pork was tender and flavorful. I just wish the restaurant is not so dark (I could barely read the menu). The service is pretty slow which was quite disappointing. I had to flag down the waiter three times just to get my order taken. Overall it is ok but nothing to write home about.

The food is very good here, but the restaurant design is seriously dated, lighting is so low I can’t see the menu, and the service is slow. I had to ask 3 times to order, then again had to request the bill 3 times to pay and leave. Chances of me coming back, slim to none.

Love this little spot tucked away in Gillette! Portions are generous, and flavors of the enchiladas and fajitas are delicious — spicy/​savory and not bland. There are few Mexican food options in this area, so I’m glad to have such a good one.

I’ve been going here since I was a kid! By far one of my favorite restaurants! I love the food and the place is always decorated so nicely! I definitely recommend

I have been to Casa Maya several times over a 3 year period and I feel it has gotten progressively worse. Today I ordered black bean soup and beef fajitas.
The soup was really just watery black beans. There was no flavor or seasoning and really shouldn’t be called soup. I know there are many variations on black bean soup but this shouldn’t be one of them. The fajita was a solid OK. The meat was chewy and again the seasoning just wasn’t there. I tried to spice it up but the only hot sauce was a fluorescent green habanero sauce. When you see the color it’s an instant turn off. Nothing that’s edible should be that color. I know that’s how its sold but please offer another brand.
Anyway, there are zero other options for Mexican in the area so if you need a fix desperately, lower your expectations and check it out.

This location is private and its pretty small.
byob which I don’t like for mexican because its hard to bring a margarita which I like to have with mexican. The food is alright, its kid of bland. I would like them to use better quality chicken and steak and cut down on the proportions. Its quality not quantity that I care about.
Overall its just alright.

Excellent little Mexican place tucked away in Gilette. Great Carnitas with ALL the fixings. Done perfectly and the service was very attentive.

This used to be a great place to get Mexican but no longer. Prices are higher and portion size has gone down. We usually order the carinitas to go. A few years ago, they would give you enough for two, for two nights. Now it’s only enough for one person. The fajitas are so greasy and I will never order them again. Service is not overly friendly and the servers stare at you. The interior is getting very worn and the seats are very uncomfortable and hard, numbingly hard! I prefer Hacienda in Berkeley Heights which has an identical menu to Casa Maya and the quantities and quality are much better.

They have been here for decades, so obviously they have a following. I enjoyed my meal – it was less Americanized than most Mexican places. Small and cozy space with nice people.
BYO, which is always a plus, and inexpensive with ample portions.
I simply do not find Mexican food all that interesting or diverse – even in Southern California I was not wowed.

Dining area was small but cozy. Service was very efficient and friendly. Food was mediocre at best. Nothing special here.

Sloppy, bland, giant sized proportioned gloppy, gummy Mexican. If this is what you like it’s all yours!
Will get my Mexican fix elsewhere.

Food was good but not great. Came quick (thank God I was starving). Waitress messed up my husbands order & didn’t even apologize (ordered in Spanish to boot) Service is mediocre at best. At least it’s inexpensive. You get what you pay for sometimes.

Here’s a tale of five stars…
Last week my wife and I (we consider ourselves professional Mexican food Restarauntees) went to a five star place and hated it…
Today we went to Casa Maya, a humble 3 star rated location and absolutely loved it.
1. The atmosphere is authentic
2. The staff were all friendly (the English speaking staff, the rest just smiled politely) lol
3. The food was exactly the way we enjoy Mexican food. Tasty, good temperature and well proportioned. I couldn’t finish and I’m a big eater
4. Brought my own sangria, what could go wrong
I will definitely stop back again and again

Love that this place in BYOB. It’s a tiny little spot that can get very busy on Friday and Saturday nights, so be prepared to wait. The chips and salsa are great start to the meal, and the carnitas fajitas are marinated in tequila and SO good. If you’re unsure what to order, any of the fajitas are great and they come out sizzling.
The food is always good and the atmosphere feels very Mexican and festive. I don’t know how authentic it is, but it’s a fun spot!

I wish I didn’t need to write this as Casa Maya came very recommended by people we trust, but I feel diners need to be forewarned, especially considering some other recent Unilocal reviewers (like Holly M.) had the same specific reactions.
Bottom line: This experience was not just bad, but completely unacceptable — so much so that moments after our entrees were served, we asked for the check.
The problems started right away. If the chips were not store-​bought, they sure tasted like it. Not even slightly warm or authentic-​tasting, they were very disappointing. Same with the salsa — no heat whatsoever, tasting very much like it came from a supermarket jar.
I ordered steak fajitas and my wife ordered shrimp/​crab enchiladas. My wife detected no crab, but was told they were basically in the sauce. What she did see were a number of small, hard shells, which rendered the dish inedible.
My fajitas were the worst I ever had. It came out sizzling, but within seconds was room temperature, as if only the plate was hot. The steak was cut in very small, thin strips, like you would get in a Chinese dish. The steak was also very chewy/​rubbery.
Our yellow rice had tiny cubes of carrots and peas in it, telling me they were just frozen veggies at one time. The re-​fried beans didn’t have much flavor, and were basically pulverized into a purée.
We asked for the check because I would rather pay for nothing than pay for bad food, but it’s important to note the restaurant took care of us and apologized.
The place was packed, and plenty of people swear by it, so I encourage you to judge for yourself. For me and my money (and the prices here were pretty high), I had better experiences at Cactus Charly in Maplewood and Don Jose in East Hanover.

Stuffed and amazed! My husband and I split some camarones al ajillo. The flavor was divine! I had the chiles rellanos and he had the chicken and beef combo fajitas. Also amazing! We asked for chipotle sauce. They didn’t have any but about 10 minutes later the waitress produced some made right on the spot in the kitchen. Unbelievable! We will definitely be back.

This place is NOT authentic in any way. I wasn’t expecting much from any Mexican food I might find in New Jersey, but the place is cute and looks like the real deal from the outside. Sadly, the building and décor are where the authenticity ends.
The food is just awful. I hate giving bad reviews, but can’t find a way around this one. The chips are definitely store bought, and the cheaper kind at that. Tostitos are much better. The salsa is not fresh and tastes like it’s from a can.
Spoiler alert: NOTHING in this place is freshly made! I had the black bean «soup» and my boyfriend had the gazpacho. The black bean soup is just black beans with some of the juice thrown in with a few onions on top and the gazpacho is just more of the salsa. We both ordered tacquitos; I had beef and he had chicken. They both tasted and looked like prepackaged food that they fry up there. The beef wasn’t shredded, it was ground, and had the same seasoning and texture that you get from Taco Bell.
The only good thing I can say about the food is it came out quickly; it’s probably because nothing is made from scratch.

Lunches are tasty and generous, reasonably priced at $ 8 which includes a soup like black bean or gazpacho, also the first round of chips and salsa. This tiny restaurant gets busy at night, but at lunch there’s no long wait for a table and the kitchen isn’t in the weeds so you don’t wait long for the food either. Rates 4 stars for food, 2 stars for seating, worth 3 on Unilocal.
About that seating: these booths are the most BUTT-​HOSTILE things I’ve ever parked my butt on, plywood benches with ceramic tile on top, and built in a perfect right angle to make reclining totally impossible. Guess I’m not supposed to linger, eh?
I can’t resist appetite-​killer chips and salsa, not anywhere. Meh here unfortunately. Casa Maya chips seem homemade, large unsalted and crispy. But the salsa is blah, mild-​mild flavor, no chunks of tomato, too many onions, absolutely no heat.
Our food at lunch was better than average. Puerco guisado was a huge serving of long-​braised flavorful pork, plus rice, guacamole, sour cream, topped with olives and tomatoes, and fresh hot flour tortillas on the side. Enough food for two lunches easily! Chicken in mole sauce was delish; mole is a rare find in New Jersey so make sure you try it.
Playfully decorated interior with toy trains, christmas lights, flashy sombreros and more. Don’t bring a big group here, just don’t, the largest table seats 6 IF you put someone on the end to block the aisle and slow the wait staff down yet further.
BYO! Seriously, don’t forget the tequila at night, you need something that makes time fly while you wait.