La Cantina Grill
Prices
Average main course: $10.
Description
Chef Juan Carlos Lopez ran a Mexico City restaurant El Famoso ("The Famous") 13 years ago, and now he's brought his straightforward menu here. That means you can expect the usual suspects, like ceviche, tacos, fajitas, chicken mole and grilled skirt steak, along with dishes like the "El Jardinero" salad topped with fresh tomatoes, avocado and tortilla strips and rotisserie chicken rubbed with 14 spices. That menu, plus a dozen tequilas, Mexican beers, fruity sangrias and margaritas, might just make him famoso in Chicago.
Hours
Lunch, dinner .
all the look and feel of your average americanized mexican restaurant - but it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The flaming cheese appetizer is to die for and the mole sauce was awesome. We went on a Sunday and the staff appeared to be new (the bartender had never made a mojito before and the waitress had never put a flame to the cheese on her own) but could be a Sunday thing. The great food, environment and friendliness are enough for the rating (and the bartender made a fabulous first mojito!)
To top it off, the food was subpar and my rice came with an extra-long hair. When I showed it to the waitress (and manager for that matter), their first reaction was "What color is it?" Not - I'm very sorry or Can I bring you something else. Since the hair was blonde, they proceeded to tell me that there were no blondes working in the kitchen and seemed to imply that I was at fault. Instead of being gracious and accomodating, the staff and manager were unfriendly and accusatory
Don't go to La Cantina Grill if you are looking for a quiet dinner with good service and tasty food. After a less than satisfactory first meal at the restaurant, I gave it another shot last night and confirmed that I will never go there again. The acoustics are terrible and we could hear almost every other diner's conversation in our area. The waitress seemed completely uninterested in serving us and even turned away from me before I had finished giving her my order. To top it off, the food