Cactus Grille

Given all the so so ratings on Unilocal,I wasn’t super excited when my friend recommended that we eat dinner at Cactus Grille, but I was pleasantly surprise. The menu is definitely more southwest than Mexican (or Tex Mex) with lots of seafood options. That can either be really good or really bad, depending on the restaurant. Our server was very accommodating in helping us switch from outside to inside when we discovered it was a little to cold in the shade and was very in patient with us while we mulled over the rather large menu.
I picked combo #3, which included a chile relleno, seafood enchilada, and fish taco. I started with the fish taco, which was really, really good. Not fishy at all, lots of meat, and a really good chipotle cream sauce. The relleno was a relleno. Nothing special, but pretty darn good. The seafood enchilada was downright impressive: lobster, shrimp, and scallops topped with spicy green chile. Again, amazingly not fishly and well seasoned.
I will definitely insist on visiting Cactus again the next time I’m in Loveland.

We arrived at 7:00 on a Friday night in January and took seats at the bar while we waited for a table. We ordered two drinks, plus chips and guacamole. I should note that both of us have a combined 15+ years of restaurant experience in a variety of roles, so we do come at this with an eye towards good service and the issues faced on a fast Friday night. Chips and guac/​salsa is an easy appetizer that most commonly is served up by the bartender or waitress. We chose this since it should be fast and we were very hungry. We waited for about ten minutes to get the guacamole and another three or four minutes to get the chips. The bartender made all kinds of excuses for how long it took to get both the guac and the chips, basically throwing the wait staff under the bus by blaming them for the delay. I knew our table would be ready soon, so I paid our tab at the bar. I didn’t want the bartender to be cheated from his «earned» tip by having that portion of the bill moved to the waiter working our table.
We were seated at a booth on the right side, near the back of the restaurant near to the door to the kitchen. Once we were able to get the attention of the waiter, we ordered fajitas and tacos. In all fairness, he did greet us right away, saw that we already had drinks, asked if we had any questions, and then went off to have fun with the rest of the wait staff. We could see him and the other waiters/​waitresses hanging out, laughing, telling stories, having a good time in the back near the kitchen, not far from our table. He was too busy laughing with his workmates to be bothered by us, the starving customers looking to eat on a Friday night.
The fajitas came out stoking hot on the cast-​iron skillet, sizzling and making all the right noises. Unfortunately the fajita was heavy on onions (cheap to buy) and light on the peppers and very light on the carnitas. I did order some jalapenos when I realized the fajitas didn’t come with any (really!?!), but by the time I got the side of jalapenos, I was mostly done eating. Very disappointing. The fish tacos were supposed to be «blackened», but were not and came covered in some kind of sauce we didn’t appreciate.
The waiter could have done a much better job of pre-​bussing the table. By the time we were done, we had empty plates, glasses, basket of chips, quac bowl, etc. still on the table. We even stacked some plates with all the silverware on top nice and neat like and put it next to the edge of the table so he, or really any of the many wait staff that walked by could easily pick it up. They didn’t and they walked by a lot. We had to live with the stack dirty dishes and empty glasses on our table for the entire dinner.
We asked for the bill and found not only our drinks and chips/​guacamole on the bill, but they had added another margarita too! We would point out the issues with the bill and he’d only correct one of them. We’d point out the other mistakes after being presented with the bill for a second time and he’d come back with one of them solved, but not the others. It took a few times for them to get it right. The bartender did came over and apologized for not letting the waiter know we had paid our bill at the bar.
Overall, not a great experience. Heck, it wasn’t even a good experience. We’ll probably go back if for no other reason than their outside tables in the summer time. Not many opportunities to eat outside in old town Loveland. However, every time we ate outside here last summer, it was like being in a smoking lounge. The smokers would just duck under the rope denoting the restaurant area and stand there next to their table smoking, often leaning against their chair. I guess it’s legal and all since they were on the other side of the rope, but definitely not adhering to the intent of the law. I don’t know, perhaps we won’t go back.
In the end, we didn’t feel like welcomed guests, but more of an annoyance to the staff.

Can’t understand all the raves. Had the street tacos with carnitas: dry, bland, tasteless. Wife had stuffed sopaipilla, indistinguishable under a lake of abominable sauce. Service was good– though every time we turned around, a new server popped up. My negative comments were greeted with mild concern. Place was noisy, with a typical multiple TV sports bar atmosphere. Extra star for the formidable margaritas.

Thanks again for your business and we all know how much money we have to pay for the growth of your family and manage your email preferences. I’m sure you have to pay for the keg and the beds are comfortable here. We love the sushi and biscuits.

Never a bad meal! Waitstaff very efficient, food, great! Table side Guacamole is amazing! Breakfast is good too!

The staff was friendly and the atmosphere was clean. The enchiladas were average but the cactus bowl was delicious. I also had a margarita that was really strong but still delicious.

This place has good food and drinks. They also have karaōke, which is fun. It is good for a hanging out at night if you feel like singing and chilling.

Came here with my mother-​in-​law for margaritas and appetizers. We got the Cadillac margarita, and it was perfectly delicious. We also ordered the chips with the three dips-​guacamole, salsa, and warm queso, which was also very good. Definitely coming back to try some tacos. The servers were also great.
Found my fav margarita place!

Cactus provides straight forward Mexican food and great drinks. It’s not the fanciest place in the world, but it’s not a bad thing. If you want a good meal and few drinks with friends, Cactus is the place. It also features a cool outdoor patio, which is nice in the summertime.

This place has a great happy hour and the fajitas rock. The menu is a little extensive. The margaritas are very good!

It took 20 minutes from bringing my drink order before taking my food order and then an additional 20 minutes to get dinner served. Waitress was pleasant but slow and the restaurant was less than half full.
I had a burrito platter and it had no seasoning or heat even though I requested the hottest chilie they had.
I will NOT be I going back.

Horrible service. It took 30 minutes to get our order in and then they brought it to me wrong twice! The waitress told me I didn’t order that. Hmmm I will not be coming back.

My fiancé and I came here with his parents for dinner. What a great experience. Thanks for a wonderful meal and great service from Peyton and Brandon. Fish tacos are too die for! The owner Mike was very pleasant and stopped by our table to say «hello». We will be back. Best fish tacos in Northern Colorado. Thanks again we will tell our friends!

Horrible. I’ve lived in Loveland my entire life.
Just recently moved into the Gallery Flats apartment. So I took a out of town friend to this restaurant, because of the location.
We chose to go at happy hour which started around 3pm.
We were the only 3 – 4 customers inside. So they weren’t busy.
It took 30mins from the time we ordered our food to on the table. That’s incredibly too long. Maybe at the dinner hour that’s acceptable but not at a slow time. It almost felt as if they had to call the cook from home.
The food was tasty that’s the only reason I can give ONE star.
At the 30min mark I was just getting ready to pay for our beers and leave then the food magically showed up.
I will not be returning and will not be recommending this establishment to anyone.

The menu was dirt. The table was dirty. The food was less then what you get at a cafeteria. This was the third time we attempted to have our date night here. I tipped the wait staff well out of pity. It will never happen again. The bar with their strong margs must be keeping the place open. Unless your drinking avoid this place.

Earlier this month my husband and I stopped in to see what Cactus Grille was all about. We ordered a Four Corners Dip Appetizer and drinks. Yum. The fresh squeezed margaritas were very good (this is coming from a margarita snob). We will definitely be back to try other menu options.
A strong suggestion… if you smoke, wash your hands afterward. When our appetizer was delivered the strong odor of cigarette smoke, on our servers hands, was very overwhelming.

DON’T GO! I’ts disgusting and owner, Mike Severance, is horrible! He came out and yelled at me, humiliating me, after the waitress told him I thought it was very bland. I called over my waitress and paid my bill after eating less than half of the Baja Fish Tacos, which my stomach already hurts and I sure hope I don’t get food poisoning. I’ve tried to see what people liked about this place and tried it for the fourth time today, hoping the fish tacos would be good. Every time the beans and rice aren’t cooked through and not hot enough. The pico was super old and I didn’t get any cabbage at all. After I already paid cash, Mike came back out saying he’d pay for my meal and trying to apologize, but I said too late, I already paid, and I’d never come here again and he continued to rant after me (Saying «Good…etc.»). How can a restaurant owner come and sit at your table and get up in your face and yell at you? I have my shop around the corner and I might have to close up for the rest of the day because my stomach is very upset.
–Update…Just look at their comment to see how they treat customers. If you get asked, «Is everything tasting great?», don’t answer unless you want what I got.

Uhhggg!!! Margs are watery! Food is no bueno ! How is this place in business !?? Waitstaff is great but I’m having a really hard time justifying the cost of this «food»! Live and learn I guess. I was contacted by the owner with an offer to revisit and I appreciate that however I will decline at this time. While I know restaurants have bad nights I don’t feel like the flavor palette is a good match for my expectations. Good luck with your restaurant I hope you get it on track.

A small group of us came here for a break in our work day. We walked in to a stifling hot restaurant and later overheard what we assume was the owner apologizing for the heat and broken A/​C. Quick suggestion to management is that when it is that hot in a restaurant, it would be top notch customer service to welcome every table and tell them about the A/​C situation. It was hot.
The chips and salsa came out and the salsa was spot on. Just the perfect amount of spice and not chunky which is my favorite.
For my dish I ordered the grilled mahi tacos. They were good decent tacos. The fish could have used a tad more seasoning and a bit less cabbage but otherwise I enjoyed them. I ordered the black beans and they were good but had an unusual slimy sort of consistency that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

Didn’t think this would be «our kind of place», but 3 visits in 1 ½ weeks tells us otherwise!
We like the patio, a lot! I think that’s our main attraction. I’m not a fanatic for Tex Mex Southwest food. Shaded, a bit off the street, comfortable enough seating. Happy hour is a generous 3 hours with ½ price drinks.
So far we’ve had:
#3 combo place with crab enchiladas/​fish taco/​chile relleno – they were all tasty especially the relleno. The loser on the plate were the black beans that tasted to me like a dirty dish rag. My husband had no complaints.
7 Layer Quesadilla Appetizer, thick and full, like a sandwich. Good, but I wouldn’t order it again, it was heavy for an app.
$ 4.88 hamburgers WITH fries on Mondays! YUM! I had the Coyote Burger, the one with Green Chile and Cheese… the first thing out of my husbands mouth was «yours looks better than mine.» It was open face, you need 2 hands (forced it into a sandwich) and twice as many napkins. I ate it all.
My husbands burger was the Lonestar with avocado and bacon. The burgers are as thick as my thumb, nothing stingy going on here.
The fries were a mixed bag of limp and crispy, but the portion was generous.
Supreme Nachos, we both liked the light and crispy chips, but the toppings were on the light side. We ordered beef, but were presented with ½ chicken and ½ beef. I have a thing about shredded chicken, and chicken in general… yuk.
Find me on the patio, during happy hour.