La Cova is a Mexican restaurant that opened in Placentia semi-recently. My girlfriend loves Mexican food, so we decided to give it a try. They have a happy hour weekdays from 2pm to 5pm, taco Tuesdays, and other specials on different days of the week. There is always plenty of parking and a good sized lot that is shared with several other businesses. Seating options include the main dining room, at the bar, or a small patio out front. We sat in the dining room on the booth half of a half-booth/half-table along the wall. We were greeted by our server Rosie who started us out with complementary chips and salsa. We got to talking about chips and salsa, and she mentioned they actually have several salsas and she proceeded to bring us out a great spread of all their salsas. All of the salsas were very flavorful with various heat levels. My favorites were the creamy avocado and salsa verde. Both the red salsa and especially the habanero red salsa packed the heat. The chips were also good, and we went thru a few baskets. For entrees, we both ordered the plate of three street tacos ($12.99). They have a wide selection of proteins and fillings which you can mix and match including al pastor, asada, birria, carnitas, chicken, chorizo, tripa, potato, fajita veggies, fish, shrimp, and soyrizo. You can also choose from regular tortillas or handmade tortillas for a little extra. I decided to try some of the meats and ordered asada, al pastor, and carnitas for my three street tacos. They come with a good amount of protein, and are topped with onion and cilantro. The plate also comes with sliced radishes and a slice of lime for each taco. They were all good, but the asada was my favorite. She was happy to see they had soyrizo as an option, and she ordered one potato taco and two soyrizo tacos. She enjoyed her tacos also. The food was great, and Rosie was the icing on the cake. She was so friendly and hospitable. She even sent us home with chips and four small containers of all the salsas. A really great server goes a long way in building a positive reputation for a restaurant. We haven't returned to dine-in yet, but I have picked up tacos and chips and salsa to bring home several times, and the staff is always friendly. I always ask for all four salsas to go with the chips, and they are always happy to oblige. read more

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Wow! Three things one might expect NEVER to hear at a well-managed Mexican restaurant on Cinco de Mayo: 1. We have no cash for change 2. We're out of margarita mixes (with flights in the menu) 3. Sorry, we're out of chips We heard all three! People who don't work for La Cova (customers) were welcomed behind the bar "to help out" The person serving us (whom I randomly learned from another customer was the manager) delivered all three messages. I felt for her when we first arrived, told her I'd worked busy bars & planned to be an easy customer. We could see she was overwhelmed, and I'm empathetic, but It got worse from there. Had to ask her to remove the previous guest's mess & wipe the bar. We ordered shots & draft beers to be easy to serve, after 15-20 minutes I reminded her we'd ordered shots & drafts & she replied sharply with, "yes, and I'm serving drinks in order!" But she had served others I saw order after we had. I will say that the food, when we finally got it, was pretty good, though the beans & rice were bland & luke warm! (I had grilled shrimp tacos) I know an off night is possible, but this seemed easily avoidable when marketing yourself as having regular Taco Tuesday events, then having Cinco de Mayo falling on a Tuesday! We've known this all year, plenty of time to plan. Up your stock, up your staff & be ready for a predictably higher volume of clients! I still had fun, cuz that's me, and the music was on point, but the service gets zero stars. Big miss. I probably won't go back, and I can WALK here. I wanted to love it. read more

Okay food but dysfunctional service -- we will not be returning. We expected to wait a while for a table with it being Taco Tuesday and Cinco de Mayo, but this was by far the most unorganized restaurant we've ever been to. We arrived at 5:40pm and were not even able to put our name down for 20 min. The hostess had to split her time as a host/waitress and would only address the next party in line. At 6pm we were told it would be a 30 min wait for a table -- completely fine since it's the busiest night of the year for most mexican restaurants. While we waited, multiple tables left and were not shy to share on their way out that they were unhappy with the experience. And multiple parties behind us in line ended up leaving before getting the opportunity to even put their name down for a table. Nevertheless we persisted and were finally seated at 6:30 -- almost an hour after we arrived. We waited 15-20 min for a server to greet us and when none did, we flagged down a waitress. She told us that she will check to see "whose turn" it was to serve us. A few minutes later, that same waitress came back to take our order. Once we had an assigned waitress, we were provided good service. And the food was good and fresh. Our biggest complaint was that it did not seem that the wait staff had enough support to properly operate on, arguably, their biggest night of the year. And, unfortunately, because of our experience tonight we do not plan to revisit La Cova in the future. read more

I haven't been here since it was Tacos Way, so we decided to give it a try on a Sunday night for some drinks and snacks. We sat at the bar and our drinks were amazing! I forget our bartenders name-- she had brown hair and was tan. She was very kind and hardworking. She made some great drinks! I had the peach margarita (my favorite) and a strawberry margarita. There was also an older gentleman who came over and gave us silverware a couple times-- he was really nice! The restaurant has a fun vibe. The music was great! They were playing 90s/2000s/modern r&b, hip hop, and pop. Such a refreshing change from the usual music (or lack thereof) played at other local spots. The only downside was the food. We had chips and salsa, which were pretty good. I wasn't a huge fan of the salsa, I thought it could be more spicy and flavorful. We got an order of the guac which was yummy, I loved the pickled onions! We ordered the ceviche. Our bartender asked if we wanted the shrimp cooked in lime juice (standard to ceviche) or boiled. We asked for it to be cooked in lime juice, but asked that it wasn't grey (we have had bad experiences with undercooked/raw ceviche from other places). The shrimp came out grey and white, unfortunately. It wouldn't have been safe to eat. We felt bad asking for a new one, but our bartender was super nice and accommodating, even giving us a complimentary drink to apologize for the wait. We ordered it with the shrimp boiled instead and it was yummy and flavorful. Overall, this place isn't perfect, but that's not what matters 100% to me. The staff were extremely kind, the drinks were bomb, and the vibes were fun. Was the food absolutely perfect? No, but there's always room to improve, and the staff was extremely accommodating to our requests. Definitely recommend checking out this place if you want to support a local spot! read more

Absolutely terrible food. Ordered the cali pastor burrito and there was barely any meat, just all potato and beans. Told the waitress I didnt like it and she didnt do anything about it. The girlfriend ordered the 3 street tacos, 1 Asada(good), 1 birria(amazing), and 1 potato("worst taco she's ever had"). $40 too is crazy for what we ordered. Also when you walk in, it gives off dive bar vibes, but in the back is a dance club. Definitely do not recommend food here. read more

La Cova - Cali burrito and 3 street tacos - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Cool looking place. Nice bar that runs the length of the restaurant. It was Cinco de Mayo and they seemed really disorganized. The big problem though was the food. Expensive for this type of restaurant, and the food simply wasn't good (and I'm not a particularly picky eater). Had the fajitas and they were really bad. Super bland meat on a sea of picked onions. We had two orders of fajitas, and one soda. No alcohol, no appetizers, just the 3 items. Total bill: $94. read more

My boyfriend and I visit this restaurant often and enjoy there food and service. This last Tuesday was busier than a usual Tuesday ( due to the holiday). Regardless, the food was great, drinks were good and the staff was as friendly as usual. I could tell they were a bit understaffed but but the experience was still enjoyable. The manager, which made us our drinks was very friendly and apologetic due to the longer wait times on food. This is one of our favorite places and will continue to go back. read more

I love that they extended their hours beautiful evenings at La Cova!! DJ playing some great music. Heather mixing the best drinks!! read more

La Cova - The new hours have just made my night!! - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Fun atmosphere and great food! The ambiance and decor were really enjoyable and gave the place a lively vibe. They were a bit short-staffed when we visited, but our server truly did their best and stayed on top of things as much as possible. The salsas were delicious, and I ordered the asada taquitos--so good! The meat was flavorful and high quality, and the taquitos themselves were cooked perfectly with a thin, crispy shell that had just the right amount of crunch. We'll definitely be back, especially to check out their Taco Tuesday specials! read more

We had an amazing time here! The food, drinks and service were top notch. Angie and Rosie are the best! We will DEf be back soon!

Really!!??!?! Changing the name and nothing else isn't going to help. Yes the food is amazing, but the service is terrible. Taco ways to La Cova why bother? read more

Weird experience. Walked in to sit at bar eat/grab drink. Bartender said bar was closed bc private event. Offered table instead. (I was trying it out... didn't want table.) I assume a guest - who reserved the entire wrap around seating. Offered up a seat at the bar to join them. At that point, I was ready to go... only then did bartender say, okay you can sit at one of the 10 open spots. Still laughing at the off experience. Maybe will try again when in area. read more

Heather and Christian are the best bartenders in town! They can literally make anything, and their cocktails are always well balanced. My go-tos are the guava, tamarindo, or watermelon margaritas. You can't go wrong with the taquitos, loaded papas, or quesobirria tacos. The background music is vibey, and I love that live bands are in the house every week! Table service is good, but sitting at the bar is the best. read more

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I always order the lemon pepper wings during happy hour, to go. Their loaded papas are definitely a suggested dish. The service is always good. I aim for happy hour bc they are a lil pricey but I do believe that they're worth it honestly. read more

Came on a Friday night, first time going here, had a very nice experience, hits all my criteria, parking was easy, vibe was welcoming, service was great (thank you Rosie!), food was all fantastic- fresh and flavorful. We will definitely go back! read more

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La Cova is amazing! The food was absolutely delicious, the drinks were top-tier, and the staff made the experience even better. Everyone was friendly, attentive, and welcoming, which really set the vibe. From start to finish, everything was on point. Highly recommend and can't wait to come back! read more

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Loved it! Excellent Margaritas and friendly wait staff. The food was amazing! The ceviche and chile relleno were great! We will definitely be back! Tv's with sports on and great music! read more

La Cova - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

This is my 3rd time eating here the food is delicious! Angie and Christian were so great and attentive to us! Super friendly and fun environment with good music. The birria tacos with the handmade tortillas were amazing. The presentation for the champagne was also so pretty!!! Very friendly and sweet environment. They brought out the creamiest flan I've ever tried for my mom's birthday and made it very special. read more

La Cova - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

I dont review much but the food was ok the birria ramen was salty and the chefs kept staring and whispering at me and my boyfriend. The waitress are nice honestly but Hopefully someone tells the chefs to be more discreet if you are going to shi talk read more

The best Mexican food by far in OC, the service is amazing and they are in the top of it with a big smile & the ambiance is just perfect

Faith is a wonderful waitress. Food and drinks are perfect. 10/10. Good music and clean! read more

La Cova - Faith is a wonderful waitress. Food and drinks here are perfect. 10/10. Service is amazing every time. - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

I've been to La Cova twice now, and both visits were awesome. The food was very good, and they have a well-curated happy hour with delicious margaritas (I loved both the hibiscus & cucumber varieties) and great appetizers. The staff is friendly and attentive. Definitely worth checking out. read more

This place was great! I'm not sure if it's new since there aren't a lot of photos but it was really good. I got the Birria platter and it hit. I really like their complimentary salsa, we got a lot of it. Get the churros to finish off your meal. Our waitress was lively and attentive even though she was the only one, everything went great. This place is much better than kalaveras and tempo in my opinion and the prices are way better. read more

La Cova - Birria platter - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Went to this restaurant for lunch. Service was wonderful. Food was good although one of our dishes was served to us at room temperature and not even warm at all but the staff were very attentive and offered to warm the plate for us but we declined and just took the food to go. Vibe was good. Maybe we'll try this place again for dinner when the restaurant feels more alive. read more

Great food and great Vibes! Our waitress, Faith, did an amazing job especially in recommending the drinks and food! read more

La Cova - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Amazing Mexican food and vibes. Small restaurant/bar scene and totally worth it. We had their mulitas and shrimp tacos with flan and a cannoli cake to die for. Angie our waitress was the best she was literally managing all the tables but didn't miss a beat. Will definitely be coming back. read more

Heather is a wonderful manager! Food and atmosphere are great and we thank you for supporting El Dorado High School!

Indecision over Korean BBQ versus Fogo de Chão prices forced my friend and I to settle on my default lunch preference--Mexican food. We chose to try the non-chain La Cova based on proximity to our location then and some colorful Yelp photos--in short, pure happenstance. Accessible mini-mall parking proved prescient in that the restaurant was nearly empty when we arrived circa 2pm on a Friday, and (thus) we had our pick of indoor seating. Maitre'd and waitstaff could not have been more accommodating as my friend and I hemmed and hawed over the vast menu options, along with the various salsas for our complimentary chips. Our drinks and lunch entrees arrived soon after ordering. I don't recall much details after my first bite into the Ceviche De Camarón: The gustatory explosion of sweets and sours aligned perfectly with the beautiful and mouth-watering presentation. My friend's Baja Taco dish seemed also a feast for both eyes and gullet, in spite of her overly rapid feasting that left precious little time to fully savor the complex flavors in each mouthful. Would I return to this place? Hell yeah con mucho gusto! Would I tell my friends and family? Probably not--La Cova is Placentia's best kept secret in fine Mexican cuisine, hands down! read more

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For some reason on a Saturday night, we got turned away at the front door. Apparently they were having a special party. It looked really fun and I was excited to go. But really couldn't go with the only eating at the bar option when there was no one in the restaurant. read more

I'm so glad I came into this new Mexican gem! From the moment you walk in, the atmosphere is warm and inviting, with friendly staff that make you feel right at home Their margaritas are next-level! Perfectly balanced, not too sweet, with just the right kick. And the taquitos with birria? Absolutely delicious!! The meat is tender, juicy, and packed with flavor, and the crispy taquito shell gives the perfect crunch Whether you're here for drinks, a snack, or a full meal, you can tell they put love into everything they serve. I can already see this place becoming my go-to for Mexican cravings. Highly recommend giving them a try! read more

Heather was awesome BUT BRANDON !!!! He did his big one ! My cup wasn't even empty and he rushed over with so much enthusiasm to fill my cup , asked for a hurricane shot and I was given two! Highly recommended this spot jet 2 holiday vibes forsure ! read more

La Cova - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Came in thinking it was a different restaurant only to see the interior is the exact same as tacos way (which is totally fine). Unfortunately the food is different. We were greeted with chips and salsa. All 3 of us were very disappointed in the salsa. Very odd tasting. Not sure if it's coming out of a jar. I opted for the asada plate which was on the bland side. I will admit the beans however were outstanding. Perhaps I ordered the wrong things. I hope this place can turn it around and be successful. I think this is the 4th restaurant in this location in the last 10 years. read more

Had the mulitas today. Another new favorite to add to my list. I tried a carne asada and chicken. Carne asada was a little greasy for my taste but the chicken was delicious! read more

La Cova - Mulitas with a cucumber margarita. I preferred the chicken over the carne asada. - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Awesome place. The service is great. Their drinks are amazing and the vibes is just awesome. Visiting next week again.

Amazing food. I loved the loaded Nachos--fresh ingredients perfectly blended to create a spectacular appetizer or entree. Ambience is great!! Service is definitely 5 star. Can't wait to go back to experience other items in the menu. read more

The food is amazing and the service is awesome . I really like the vibes, it gives LA but not the drive and the vibe is more relax and super cool . The drinks are really good. read more

Food was excellent El Pastore is the best in my opinion beers amazing restaurants, clean customer service excellent Brandon was amazing attentive. I would highly recommend checking out this restaurant and ordering the platter for All tacos. read more

La Cova - Amazing beers amazing place amazing food come check it out - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

Talk about a place to have a great time From their margarita flights to birria platter that will leave you wanting more Loaded michelada with shrimp And a ceviche plate with a generous portion fit for the whole family or for one really full person All with a great staff Definitely a spot I highly recommend A+++ read more

What a wonderful Friday date night!! They had a DJ who kept the vibes up & the aguachiles accompanied with margaritas & great service sealed the deal!! Make this your next date night! read more

La Cova - Mezcal margarita & Cadillac with candy shots - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California

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Faith was excellent tonight thank you thank you for the great yummy food it was deluxe!!! read more

La Cova - Me n babe !!! - Bars Near Me - Placentia, California