Cicada Cantina

We’ve been four times and I’ve loved it each time. We’ve had nothing but great service! There are only two places I’ll eat flautas and this is one of them. They are so good here! So are the little empanadas and enchiladas. One of our favorites are also the plain chips and salsa. They use some type of cheese sauce and it’s awesome! We’ve sat outside with our pup twice (they have a huge TV if you want to watch the game) and inside twice. Both have great ambiance. Good food, good service and great ambiance means we’ll definitely be back!

This has been our traditional post-​houseboat lunch spot since back when it was a Chevys — and I think Cicada is a big improvement. On our way home from Lake Shasta, it’s nice to have a beer and some delicious food before making the long drive home to the Bay Area. The staff at Cicada are friendly and attentive, and never even blink at my ‘lake hair, don’t care’ appearance that probably clashes badly with the funky but cool décor. They have a good selection of beers, specialty mixed drinks, and a varied menu. The bacon-​wrapped jalapeño poppers are especially good. On my last visit I had a wonderful beef torta (sandwich) with fries. Never heard a complaint from our crew. Thumbs up for this one!

Went there today for the firsts time and paid the consequence of server vomiting and diarrhea! Will never go back, should of got the hint when you get a dirty glass with like egg yolk died inside your drink.

Terrible. No other words needed. I can see why they have low Unilocal placing. Should have known better. Went on a recommendation from a local guy. The ONLY good parts was our server, Lexy was good. Not great, but good. My food was so bad I only ate a few bites and they didn’t offer to take the overpriced dish off. I had Mahi tacos. Tasted like Talapia not Mahi. Good was BLAND, BLAND. Drinks were OK. Chips were good.
I still don’t recommend & won’t return.

I’ve had my issues wth Cicada in the past, but their new management seems to really be trying.
My husbands smothered burrito was beautifully made and delicious. I asked for ghost powder in our salsa and they mixed it just for me.
For a local spot with great outdoor seating, it’s worth checking out.
I can recommend their blended marguerita as well.

Went for lunch today. The tortas and appetizers were great and our server Aaron was on point. Not your everyday «traditional» Mexican restaurant. If you go expecting that you will not get this food. will be back to try some more dishes. Good job!

Decent Mexican food in a town we have had some difficulty finding great food in. Good service in a pleasant outdoor patio surrounding, and within walking distance of our hotel (The Oxford).

I was told this place had good appetizers but that the entrees were not that great. We came here with a group of about 10 and waited a little while for them to get a table together but overall I’d say it wasn’t a very long wait. The restaurant had a nice feel to it and a pretty cool looking outdoor patio area out front.
The chips come out with two different sauces, one is a pretty spicy red tomato sauce which was pretty good and then this chipotle sour cream type sauce. I mixed the two.
I was going to order an app but the burrito looked and sounded good on the menu but I was h

I was so beyond bummed that this place was SO AWFUL last night. It’s been a few years since we’ve been in so we figured we’d give them one more shot. Total mistake especially on Cinco de Mayo.
They were busy, but not so busy that the lack of service and quality were excusable. I was in the service industry for almost 10 years, I get it, sometimes things are out of your control as a server.
However, our server wasn’t only behind in her «duties» but she couldn’t have cared less about us, our drinks or our food.
We ordered a margarita and a beer prior to our food. Food showed up first, no apologies from our server. Food was barely edible. I had the chicken enchiladas that were super dried out and had probably been sitting in the heat window for some time before it was served. My boyfriend had the street tacos and said they weren’t the worst he’s had, but they were still «meh».
When our drinks finally did show, our server drops off my margarita (supposed to be a blended strawberry/​mango) and says «Sorry we’re out of strawberry» and leaves a half melted blob of mango purée (it had clearly been sitting at the bar for a while and no one bothered to ask if I was ok with that or if I wanted something else). I started to tell her I’d rather have a beer, and she basically gives me this look of «don’t you dare try to change your mind now». Needless to say it didn’t get touched and our server didn’t give a shit.
When she finally came back for the CC (I had to just set it on the table since she clearly wasn’t coming back to check on us and I was beyond sick of waiting for her to drop off the bill) she took one look at my untouched drink and nasty food and says, «do you want a box?» Doesn’t acknowledge the full drink or half eaten plates at all. Just takes the card and walks off.
Any good server (busy or not) would have noticed how CLEARLY unhappy and disappointed we were. This chick just wanted a paycheck.
Either train your staff how to treat people and serve decent food and drinks, or people are going to stop coming in all together unfortunately.

Girls had a wonderful afternoon lunch a month ago!!! Thank you for the great service. WE will be back.

I ordered the Mahi Mahi tacos for $ 13.99, and waited for a long time, but the Mahi Mahi were so small in the tacos

This restaurant was excellent! Super Fresh, wonderful flavors. Thin crispy chips, with a unique red creamy sauce, and yummy salsa. I so appreciate the real fresh cut lettuce in my taco salad. And my hubby loved his smothered burrito. Dos Equis on tap with also a big plus. Thank you for a wonderful pit stop on the way to Oregon, prompt friendly service.

My husband and I went with our 3 boys about a week ago, I walked in and was impressed right away, nice atmosphere, great seating and they had some good live music, the chips were great and service was average; not bad, not great. The prices were fair, I really really wanted to love this place or at least like it, then the food came and Somehow they forgot the flavor! Not even salt. How do you make Mexican food without flavor? I’m not kidding, the food was so bland! I tried drenching mine with the chip dip, but I just couldn’t. We let the kids finish then left our food. I don’t think we will ever go back but if we did, it would be to enjoy a beer and atmosphere while our children ate.

Stumbled across this place on our trip to the Bay Area — the food is really fantastic. Great ambience and outdoor seating area, and the food is really good. The food is more innovative than traditional, which is fine with me. I get really tired of the same old same old with Mexican food. I had the chile relleno and my husband had the chicken poblano. Both were delicious. We will eat here again when in Redding. The service was friendly and just right.

You should know when
You walk into a dining establishments and only one table is taken that you should move on.
Service slow, even with the fact we were her only table. Food took forever, I would hate to see what it’s like when it’s busy.
Food came out and the steak was very well charred. I don’t understand why they even let fajitas leave the kitchen cooked like that,
Waited and waited for waitress to come back. Again long wait. Asked for tortillas, again waited and waited.
Joe Wong should close the door on this one and find a different chain restaurant that has decent food and better service.
Comped dessert, best part of meal, skip the main course and go straight to the dessert.

Visiting Redding from out of town and chose this restaurant because it was open and seemed like a great place to eat/​drink. Atmosphere was great, karaōke was going on which was fun. Our waiter, Jaime was awesome. He was super friendly and personable. One thing to complain about is that the ceviche is so sour!!! Almost inedible. Other than that, I could come back if I found myself in Redding again.

Food was just ok and a pricey compared to authentic Mexican in town. The queso dip that came with the free chips was yummy. Presentation is nice server was very sociable and easy going. We went on a Monday evening margaritas were 2 dollars off. We sat in their outside area which was very comfortable but clearly not best for more than drinks and apps. Their were not many people so we were able to drag over a second small table for our entrée.
The place is very clean and the atmosphere is better than what you typically find in Redding.
We came here because we had a Groupon which made it a good deal. Without the Groupon I don’t see myself returning. It reminds me of my college years as a nice place to come with a group of friends for drinks and apps. I have 3 kids and this place does not feel kid friendly.
FOOD 3
VALUE 3 (without Groupon)
Atmosphere 4.5
Service 4
OVERALL 3.5… but since I really wouldn’t comeback without a major discount or coupon and 3.5 is not an option I’ll give them a 3

If you’re looking for standard Mexican food, this is not the place. The food here has all the components of Mexican food– tortillas, shredded beef and chicken, cilantro etc… But the flavors are mellower, and the food isn’t as heavy.
I really like the food here, the setting is very nice, and the service has always been good.

My wife and I really enjoyed our meal last night. The service was excellent thanks to Kenzie!
I ordered the smothered burrito, and my wife had the Fiesta Salad. Because it was our first visit to the restaurant, their assortment of salad dressings and sauces made the choices difficult, however Kenzie was quick to offer samples so that my wife could select the proper dressing. My wife selected the cilantro lime dressing, and was very pleased. I chose not to impose, and guessed on my sauce for the smothered burrito, and would have picked the red sauce on my next visit.
I was so moved by our dining experience, that I invited the manager Troy, to express my appreciation for the evening. He was very professional and kind, giving us more information for our next visit. I hope you all try it and have equally as nice of an experience.

Stopped in yesterday with my cousin after a local recommended it to us. We live in Chico, but we were in Redding for the day to do some shopping. We ended up having a great day in Redding, and this restaurant was the icing on the top of the cake for us!
First we just love the locals in Redding, while shopping at a boutique, the girl working there said we should check out this restaurant. She said it was a great local place, and we support local so we checked it out. We had great service here from the hostess to the waitress and even the manager! Everyone checked on us to make sure we were doing ok, and we were greeted and seated immediately.
The waitress had some great recommendations and we ended up ordering and loving everything she suggested. We liked her so much we made a point to tell the manager how great she was. Wish we could remember her name but it was a harder one to pronounce, she was taller and blonde with her hair up. Anyway, we will be back, those fajitas were to die for, served sizzling hot too! Thanks again!