Mr. Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant and Cantina

Nothing special, to say the least. Chili’s has way better food and service, and is cleaner to boot. Fish tacos were truly awful.

In the hopes of scoring a good not great Mexican meal on the shoreline, we gave Mr J’s a shot. So in we went, two adults and three kids. The bar area was large w/​a couple pool tables and a small stage for bands or karaōke. We sat in the dining which is about what you expect in respect to décor and table spacing. On a positive side, the server was nice and well intentioned and that’s pretty much where it ends. The chips were cold and pretty stale, likely from being in storage, the salsa was the worst salsa I have had (no joke, I’m 44 and have consumed a lot of salsa). The burrito was huge but flavorless as were the quesadillas. I would have to agree w/​earlier reviews, which I had not read prior to our visit (we were going to Cuckoo’s which is mediocre in its own right but thought we’d give Mr J’s a shot) that the refried beans and other sides were out of a can and not made on premises. This might have been a blessing considering the caliber of the cuisine assembled. Relatively speaking, the ‘authentic’ tacos were the best thing we had so if you find yourself here, order them and steer clear of the rest of the menu. The marg was ok. As we walked out my wife commented that the food was ‘gross’ (she never says stuff like that) and that Mr J’s was a good candidate for a restaurant makeover TV show. So net net, still no good Mexican places on the shoreline. How hard is this stuff?

This place is great! Reasonably priced. I get the chicken fajitas almost every time I have been there and I am never disappointed. Sometimes the service is a little slow/​non attentive but I keep going back. I like it better Tequilas and Cuckoos Nest.

Compared to the other over priced Mexican restaurant in the area this was awesome! We had the Bionic Burrito, I had fried pork and my husband had steak. It was delicious! My son had the kids Quesadilla and loved it too:) we will definitely be back! Service was great too!

If I could, I would give zero stars. This place was horrible. I got the taco salad and had to ask the waitress if the beef I ordered was in the salad because I couldn’t find it. Turns out, it was in there but disguised as chunky, refried beans. She told me it was shredded beef because ground beef wasn’t authentic. Taco Bell is more authentic than this place. It tasted like everything came from a can and was microwaved. Gross. Just gross.

If you’re reading this review on your way to the restaraunt turn around! If you’re in the parking lot leave immediately! I hope it goes out of business so people won’t ever have to eat here! I could make a better meal with scraps from a dumpster. Here’s a list of Mr. Jalapeño’s failures:
— chips are tri-​colored and stale
— salsa is canned and bland
— steak nachos suck
— refried beans from a can
— rice sucks
— beef taco really sucks
Honestly I haven’t had a worse meal in recent memory. Mr. Jalapeño’s you suck and you know it!

Really good! Enchiladas were outstanding (one chicken and one cheese) as were the rice and beans that came with it. Also had a tongue taco after the waitress said it was her favorite… it was delicious. The kids had the cheese quesadilla and they both loved it. They also had a Mexican watermelon smoothie and it was gone in about 30 seconds.
The only two things that were just average was the salsa — very spicy and a bit strange but not awful. And my wife ordered the bean and cheese nachos and they were too heavy.
The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable about the food.
Happy to have good Mexican on the shoreline… this place blows away the other places in town. We will be back!

Stopped in on a whim because I saw their lunch special and was pleasantly surprised! I ordered the beef tacos, which with their special, came with beans and rice and was only $ 7.50. It was honestly great! I’m a bigger guy, and I left pretty full. The beans were awesome with the melted cheese, and the rice was flavored very nicely, although the grains looked a little different than the typical rice served on the shoreline. Everything was flavored very well, no copious amounts of cilantro, just hints here and there that really brought the flavors out. I was extremely happy with the service and my meal, and I will gladly add this to my rotation of lunch places!

I had high hopes but was sadly disappointed.
I grew up in Texas and have high standards when it comes to tex-​mex. The best part of this restaurant was the staff. They were all very friendly.
The chips were hard and the salsa didn’t seem freshly made and it was too spicy. The frozen strawberry margarita was good not the best I have ever had. A little too chunky on the ice, but the flavor was good.
I had the vegetarian enchiladas and my husband had the pork burrito. They both were ok but bland on flavor. The rice had no flavor but the beans were actually pretty
good. Being vegetarian I liked the beans because I didn’t taste any pork fat in them. We did not order dessert, but I was shocked they did not have sopapillas.
This place was better then Cuckoo’s nest, but it is mediocre tex-​mex.

Stopped in for a visit, despite mixed reviews. Have to say — GLAD WE DID! Absolutely loved our meals, desert, drinks, everything. Waitress was awesome. Outside of building may not look so great, but inside is nice.
Love to go back.

Stopped in on a recent Saturday night and have to admit was a bit out off by the large building and large nearly empty parking lot. Based on other positive Unilocal reviews we gave it a go. First of all we were greeted by the friendliest most enthusiastic host. We were promptly seated and the server came right over. Service throughout the meal was very good. The chips are not great and could use an upgrade. (note to owner: buy a Carter– Hoffmann chip warmer, upgrade the chips, salsa and guacamole and folks will come flocking for happy hour and dinner). The salsa was too spicey for my palate but the rest of the food– steak burritos– was surprisingly good! We definitely will come back.

The only good thing was the knowledgeable waitress. Ribs were cold. The fish in the tacos was soggy. Decorations looked like they came from party store. The guacamole was not fresh

Fantastic Mexican, friendly serivce!

This is a well kept secret that people in and out of town need to discover! We live in Old Saybrook and have passed by this restaurant all the time and we finally tried it 3 days ago and we came back today because we were craving it!!! I would highly recommend giving it a try! The staff is very nice, and the food is stellar!

My favorite ??? Well. There are a lot of us in the family and a number of favorites. Mario’s Fajitas, the super nachos, kid quesadilla, taco salad and the margaritas are great. Have tried a few.
Best of luck with your continued success. We really enjoy the place. Very pleasant staff and bartenders.

I hate writing bad reviews for two reasons… First, having been in the business, I know first hand how it impacts the dreams and hopes of the owners… Second, I really want to support the growth of restaurants around my home.
Unlike many of my fellow diners, I take no pleasure in writing a bad review… but this one has to be written.
Last night my GF and I ate at Mr. Jalapeño’s with great hopes… having read the inconsistent reviews, I saw enough good to believe that real Mexican food may have finally come to CT… I learned what great Mexican and texmex are living in FL and traveling throughout the Southwest and Mexico, but my hopes were dashed…
The black bean soup was only broth with a few unsoftened beans in the bottom of the watery morass.
The free «homemade» predinner chips were stale and obviously store-​bought. The salsa with them was spicy but totally lacking flavor (I know, that’s tough to accomplish).
My chile relleno had certainly been deep-​fried… unheard of… I knew it had been because the unmistakable fryolater grease taste was so old and tired it would have embarrassed a bad Chinese storefront takeout.
My grilled shrimp were bland and tasteless… no doubt, from Costco… although butterflied, they were never cleaned and were filled with black veins (civilized term for shrimp poop).
My GF’s enchiladas were so bland she nearly emptied the salt shaker, and the melted cheese product that covered them had the unmistakable sheen of airport pizza cheese product.
I feared for the service when it took three tries to get my shot of crown and a bottle of beer correct… it got worse…
Our appetizers and entrees arrived at exactly the same time without word or apology…
The only bright spot was a homemade guacamole that was well seasoned even if way too chunky from completion in haste.
My GF was sick before we got to the car and barely made it home. I fared a bit better but still paid the price with a very restless night.
So the field is still wide open for decent Mexican in CT… sigh…

Don’t let the looks fool you! My family was looking for a mexican spot for dinner and were town between this and Tequilas. Tequilas had better Unilocal reviews, so we planned to go there. When we pulled up, it looked desolate and a little creepy, so we came down the road to Jalepenos. It also looked a little quiet and looked like a bar setting, but we decided to give it a shot.
The waitress/​owners daughter was the sweetest, most hospitable waitress I’ve had in a while! She was always checking in on us and honored every little request we gave her, not once taking the smile off her face. The tri color tortilla chips were super yummy and i loved the spicy salsa that it came with. We ordered a couple sangrias and some cocktails, all were pretty good. Quite strong!
For entrees, we had two orders of vegetarian burritos, a ‘combination order’ or taco and burrito, and a taco salad. We tried to make a change to the veggie burritos, but were told its a pre made mix. which concerned me, but we went with it anyways. When the food came out, we were happily surprised with the large portion size and authentic look of the food. I ate the veggie burrito, and it was DELICIOUS! the pre-​made mix of veggies that concerned me was actually so delicious and marinated perfectly. it had a sweet but peppery flavor, and the yellow rice and beans were perfect. My moms taco salad was great and simple, and my fathers combo also looked great, and he seemed to love it. We shared the friend ice cream for dessert; another huge portion and so yummy!!! i kept eating it even tho i was so stuffed from dinner!
Service, cleanliness and quality was really excellent. I would go back here any day of the week. They also have a super cute bar area with fireplace, TVs, and plenty of tables. You get well worth what you pay for!

Bright colors, sombreros, and a few authentic menu items make this the best Mexican in the area, with a staff that seems like a large family and warm comforting food.
Skip the overly Americanized burritos and go for the enchiladas and tacos with refried beans and rice. Note: not «New haven taco truck» level authentic, but it’s all flavorful, with moist seasoned meats. My favorites: Great fresh guac, unique spicy salsa, shredded beef and make sure to ask for one chicken enchilada with the «green sauce» instead of red. (Warm and comforting like chicken soup)
If you like Bloody Mary’s you’ll be thrilled with their version which contains corona instead of vodka. Michelada I think is the official name. The Jalepeno Margarita is a great contrast of salty, sweet, and spicy.
Warm! Dive bar area with warm fireplace or brightly colored dining room, they do the right thing by keeping this place toasty warm. (Many restaurants in cold New England try to cut corners on heat)
They recently added a menu of very authentic soups which I’m looking forward to trying.

It must be incredibly easy to open a restaurant these days. Will these people that are opening Mexican restaurants in this area please go to either Baja’s in Orange or Mezcal in New haven and for god sakes learn how to make Margarita’s and cook Mexican food.
It seems like they were short staffed today and the owner grabbed someone off the street hitchhiking to see if they can wait tables for the day. The Margarita tasted like cheap powder mix lemonade, so I returned it and got a Capt’n n Coke (tried to play it safe)…served in a glass about 3″ high, had to ask 3 x’s for chips, and the salsa looked like cream of Tomato soup. The interior is also completely unappealing.
I make better Taco’s at home, and anyone can take a handful of cheese and sprinkle it on Nachos from a bag.
Never again…

Very decent Mexican. Very nice service at the bar from Milton. He even let us change the tv channel. Compared to the other places in town, this place is top notch!
Update. This place has gone way downhill… Unfortunately will not go back.