Cantina Laredo

We have been wanting to try this restaurant for quite some time now. We just really couldn’t stomach the pricing for what the place is. Finally decided to bite the bullet and give it a try as we were wanting to try something new.
We walked in, promptly seated. First thing we noticed was the great environment ruined by tacky TVs on wheels. Flashback from grade school! It took about 5 minutes or so before we were even acknowledged; it wasn’t busy. Got the complimentary chips and salsa which is always a thing to look forward to at Mexican restaurants. I ordered the shrimp relleno (sp?) and my fiancé ordered the chicken tacos. Overall great food but as mentioned very pricey.
Overall 3 stars due to the very mediocre service, everything was a long wait – took about 10 minutes to get our tab and we were within 5 seconds from a POS system! A table that for seated after us even got done before us and they even ordered table side guac!

My wife and I went to CL this past weekend for the first time, (a gathering with employees that she works with), and it was a pleasant experience.
We sat down and looked over the menu. It’s definitely a tad pricey, but it is supposed to be an upscale Mexican restaurant. The service throughout the night was top notch with the waiter checking in every 5 minutes or so.
I ordered the Tacos de Pascada, which was three little mahi mahi taco’s, which were good but I’m not a fan of the ‘authentic’ corn tortilla. The spicy aioli was pretty dang good though, and it was a nice compliment to the fish. It came with rice and beans, which were good.
The highlight of the night were their margarita’s. Holy crap they are good. I had two, the Cinco margarita and one of their mango house margarita’s. The Cinco was probably the best marg that I’ve ever had. It was the house marg mix with five different types of tequilla. It was pricey at $ 11.50 but it was good to try.
Overall, the food was okay but the margs were so good. I would come back for a special occasion for the margs, but probably not the food because of normal quality and price. Nothing about the food blew me away.

One of my favorite places. Pork shanks are fork tender and delicious. This site wants me to write a book to post. Just a really great place

Service and guacamole were very good. Drinks looked nice but missed the taste mark. Entrees were not particularly tasty and were underwhelming.

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Not unlike an ogre, or a parfait, there are a couple of layers to this review.
First, I came here for a Unilocal Elite event. From that perspective, the event was incredible and the service was great. I cannot get over the guacamole. I could just sit and eat it for hours.
They also offer dedicated gluten-​free options, which is another HUGE plus in my book.
Despite the incredible service and the gluten-​free options, I was disappointed with my actual entrée. The meat was very tough, with a huge piece of gristle running right through it that I couldn’t really avoid. The flavors were all well-​developed and great, but an inedible piece of meat kinda ruins the whole thing.
My partner and I have been here before, once, and had a very different experience. We weren’t greeted at all, the service was not great, the food was lackluster and lukewarm, and holy moly it was expensive for not being a great experience. But the Unilocal event made me think that maybe things are turning around, so I would definitely come back.
Did you know they don’t charge to rent the party room? There’s a food & drink minimum, obviously, but no charge for the actual room. That is cool as heck.

Absolutely wonderful! Went here for lunch, and it is pretty empty. Server was awesome, and loved the Enchilada de Avocado (Avocado and artichoke enchilada topped with tomatillo sauce on bed of spinach). Comes with delicious grilled veggies… so flavorful! Chips and salsa are delicious too.

We came here 2 years ago and the food was good for the price however a little expensive and the service was alright. However my wife and I attended a Unilocal Elite event here and were exposed to all the work and freshness that goes into every meal they prepare. They knocked the event out of the park and it convinced us to give it another chance outside of the controlled environment.
We came back for reverse happy hour on a Thursday night after I worked a 16 hour day, so my tolerance for anything bad to come out was very low. With that in mind, they did an excellent job. We sat up at the bar had a great time interacting with the bartender and she explained to us that they are willing to make anything vegetarian from the reverse happy hour menu for the same price. We each also had a margarita and the entire experience was great and the food was delicious and inexpensive.
I’m going to go back one more time and see how regular day service is before I bump them up to a 5 star, but if I could I would give them a 4.5 right now.

Been wanting to try Cantina Laredo for awhile now, finally stopped in and was happy I did. The restaurant has a nice bar and a plenty of seating. Although given the openness of the restaurant the noise level made having a conversation a little difficult, to be fair it was happy hour.
I will agree with others the prices are a bit high, not horrible, but just a bit higher than wanting. The food is good, flavors are well developed and really cuts across the taste buds. Portions are good sized and lead to leftovers.
The service was fantastic. Very attentive, helpful of choosing a drink before dinner. Plates removed quickly and water glass filled attentively.

We’ve been to Cantina once or twice ago awhile ago and hadn’t been drawn back… UNTIL a Unilocal event opened our eyes to the awesomeness that it is. We quickly return for a visit during their reverse happy hour. Cheap, fresh made margaritas. Cheap beer! Half-​priced food on the bar menu. We were delighted to hear that they are VERY accommodating for us vegetarians. The food is sooo fresh and made in-​house every day. Plus, our bartender was so sweet and attentive. We had a great time and can see ourselves becoming regulars! I am so glad I know now what this place is really all about.

As usual, my fellow Unilocalers did not disappoint. This place is in a great area with a great outdoor seating area when it’s nice. My friend and I came on Cinco de Mayo so I was kind of expect in the service to be slow, which it was. Our server Adam recommended the Carnitas Sliders. I thought they were great. I expected a bit more out of the drinks though, but that’s because I consider myself a true drinker. My friend had the house margarita frozen and she said it was «okay». I had the cinco de mayo special margarita which I also thought was ok. So for round two I tried something off the regular menu thinking my drink may have been watered down because it was one of the specials. Overall the wait was 3 stars the drinks were 3 happy hour prices 5 stars service with Adam 5 stars and food taste was 5 stars but the portion was lacking.

The food while good is overpriced. I feel that the cost is more about the location than the food. Having said that, my wife and I had an enjoyable time sitting on the patio in fantastic weather on a warm fall evening. It took several years to finally eat here so I doubt I’ll head back soon unless someone friends decided on it.

I returned for lunch, this time the service was great too. We ordered the guac that was better than before and had the Enchiladas Veracruz which were the best thing I have had in the restaurant, and they were ok. Nothing earth shattering. Still give it maximum 3 stars.

The location is great for this restaurant. I work in Midtown and frequently come here for team meetings. The most recent experience I had was amazing!!! Our waiter was the best I’ve had anywhere. I can’t think of what his name was, but I’m sure I’m not the only one to praise his customer service! He was on top of things and made some great guacamole!
Besides my awesome service, the food is great. I love their chips and salsa! I do wish they had more options for vegetarians. But I just tried the spinach and mushroom enchilada and it was great!

It surprises me that this place only has 3 stars. I go hear for Taco Tuesday’s a lot and it’s always really good. I’ve been hear a few times for dinner as well and the service seems to be always great and guacamole is fresh as its made right in front of you :). I guess the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars was the drinks are expensive in my opinion. But go try the steak tacos you will not be disappointed.

We came in during happy hour and waited for about 15 min before someone asked us if we’ve been helped. We were told that we could not get the bar happy hour food unless we sat at the bar, so we moved ourselves there (nbd). The service was still slow even though there were two workers there.
I ordered the pollo taqueria. Great presentation but the chicken was on the dryer side. We also ordered the ahi tuna tacos. They were excellent just like what other Unilocalers had said. My daughter had the chicken tortilla soup. She didn’t like it very much though. She did enjoy the free chips and salsa, however.
Overall, food was just ok. The service was not very good and it wasn’t until this server, «Adam,» walked into the restaurant that things perked up. Adam’s attitude alone gave this place an extra star.

I keep going back and forth between 4 and 5 stars, but I’m giving it 5 just based on the manager’s action.
I’ve been to Cantina Laredo 3 times. The first was for a Unilocal elite party, the second time was on Valentines day, and the third was tonight. Feel free to check out my Unilocal review, I was beyond impressed.
When I went on valentines day I got a server who was more than just a little pushy. He made me completely uncomfortable and even stupid at times the way he talked to me. Both my husband and I were really put off by this. I ordered an enchiladas, one chicken, one cheese and onion. It came with rice and beans also. They were to quote the manager «pedestrian» and tasted like something I could gotten at taco bell or the freezer section at Walmart. The rice for both mine and my husband’s food was a bit dry but the beans were good. Thankfully I have an amazing husband who swapped dinners with me so I got the beef fajitas. AMAZING.
The female manager happened to walk by and ask how I liked my food and I had to be honest. Not only about how much I disliked my enchiladas but about how much I disliked my server. She went and got Marcus (general manager) who came out to see me. I think Marcus and I have a good rapport after the Unilocal event. He told me I should have called him out to say Hi and that he totally agreed with me that the enchiladas were lack luster and pedestrian. He said they are changing the sauces served on-​top (which I confirmed tonight they have) and he gave me 2 free meal coupons and a free guacamole coupon to come back and try them out again. It was more than I expect to be very honest.
Skip to tonight I spend all day cooking so obviously I don’t want to cook my own dinner (so silly). I decided to try out Cantina Laredo again.
We get there and they are not busy at all, I dunno if it’s because of Lent or the «snow storm» we are getting right now. Freakishly we got sat in the same spot we did last time. I had bryce (spelling?) for my server tonight who was amazing! He kept our drinks filled, our chips and salsa full. He even gave me extra chips to take home so my husband could take some to work.
Of course this time I asked if Marcus could come out and say Hello. He greeted me and even though the coupons said up to $ 15 free meal, he said I could have whatever I wanted, my husband also. On top of that he offered us free drinks. My husband got a margarita and I got a non alcoholic thing that Adam whipped up for me. Who I add is STILL the MOST amazing bartender ever. Seeing him again was worth going, he just brightens up your entire day.
I ordered what my husband had last time, the costillas con fajita. It’s a new item on their menu and It’s GREAT! You get served 4 ribs covered in tequilla bbq sauce. You get a full portion of fajita meats, guacamole, sauteed peppers and onions, sour cream, tomatoes, and 3 or 4 warm flour tortillas. (they also offer you corn if you prefer). Normally this dish is served with both beef and chicken fajita meat but I asked for all beef. The chicken is great don’t get me wrong but the beef is top quality! This is saying something as I NEVER eat beef because it’s too tough and icky for me, any place that can make me want to eat beef… hats off to you.
On top of this, we also had guacamole prepared at the table by Bryce and it was okay. It wasn’t the best guacamole I’ve had. I think it could have used more lime juice and I had to add some salt to it, but it was still very yummy.
Oh and before I forget to mention, you also get all you can eat chips and salsa. They serve you two types of salsas. A warm «spicy» kind that is the best and not actually spicy, or a cold green salsa that is kinda icky. My husband ate like 3 bowls of chips and they just kept them coming. HAHA
I took a piece of tres leches cake home with me and It doesn’t really seem traditional at all, but you need to appreciate it for what it’s worth. It has this mango topping on it that I dislike so I scrap it off. The cake is light and moist and yummy. I will say it again though, PLEASE put that pistachio cake we had at the Unilocal event on the freaking menu. I would come here once a week just to order that.
All in all I paid $ 17 (including tip) for my dinner tonight because Marcus hooked us up. They went ABOVE and beyond to make up for my last experience, Marcus, Adam, and Bryce were just amazing. Best part is I have half my dinner in the fridge for tomorrow’s lunch and half a piece of cake for breakfast… yeah don’t judge me. ^_^

I ordered the fajita tacos and it is fresh guac, grilled chicken and cheese. The chips and salsa are fresh and taste fabulous. I went to happy hour for $ 5 premium fresh margaritas. The service was prompt and included fresh chips and salsa with my to-​go tacos too.

Walked in… no one was in here except for one group on the patio. I should have known then that this place was not going to be very good.
I wanted to walk out. But I didn’t.
I sat down and read the menu… nothing seemed that great. I decided I wasn’t going to order anything lol.
The person I was with… didn’t want anything after taking a look at the menu… but we decided to get one entrée and share it.
Free chip and dip comes to the table. It was pretty good. It is not cold salsa… it is cooked.
Before ordering we asked the waitress if the food was good. She WAS so convincing. I JUST KNEW it wasn’t going to be great. So I asked about a few entrees… she said «They are wonderful, a burst of flavor… «and all these other things that made the food sound like a slice of heaven. I actually let out a little chuckle because I just had a strong feeling that she was over-​talking the food.
Ordered the fajitas … (the waitress said they were marvelous and to die for)… well, you get the smallest serving with four tortillas. Barely any steak. Chicken was an ok amount. Onions and toppings… very small amount.
Food was not seasoned well.
Just was an average meal.
I do not like upscale Mexican food… I will not try this again.
When I am eating upscale… I just wish I would have went down to 24^th street and got the real deal!
The bartender who walked by our table was very nice!!!

Not good by most taste bud measures. Just O.K. The menu didn’t really make the food sound great, so we decided to share a combination fajita. There was very little meat, but that’s fine, because the flavor was off.
I asked for four dinner plates for the four of us and they only brought three. When I asked for the fourth plate the waitress said I could eat off the plate the tortillas were served on. She seemed friendly enough and I don’t think she meant to be rude, but it’s still unacceptable.
I have to say the bartender was very friendly, personable, funny and oh yes, handsome too!