I've been to La Malinche three times and have yet to be disappointed. I'll first focus on the starters: we ordered bacon covered dates (datales) and housemade guacamole. The datales, rolled with perfectly crisped bacon and stuffed with cheese, almost melt in your mouth. The guacamole tasted fresh and lemony. Next, we had crisped potato cubes with a spicy aioli (batatas brevas) and bacon-rolled shrimp skewers (pinchas mariscos), which were each just as memorable as the starters (yes we ate a lot of bacon in this meal!). Finally, we had tres leches for dessert. The cake was loaded with all the gooey sweetness one would expect in this dessert, but unlike other tres leches experiences, the cake was perfectly textured and held moisture without becoming soggy. The atmosphere at La Malinche is romantic but relaxed. It's just as suited for a weekend date aimed to impress as it is for a midweek informal escape. If anyone is in the Silver Spring area, I highly recommend La Malinche. read more

Whenever my friends visit, we have to have brunch here: bottomless drinks, delicious tapas. You'll need about two servings of the bacon wrapped dates. Can't have just one. Chicken empanadas, Pancakes, Croquetas de pollo, Bistec Mexicano and Lamb chops are also really good. I've never had a bad meal here and the service is good too. read more

The tapas are quite good. They have pan con tomate but do not advertise it as such. The sangria is a bit different than other places around but is still great. The restaurant is loud when even half full, so it's tough to have a good conversation. read more

I love yelp. The reviews brought me to this restaurant when it was almost empty, bypassing several others that were much more crowded. But was it worth it! The lamb chops are simply phenomenal. We live in Southern California where we have superb Mexican food, but the guacamole here was equal to or better than anything we've had at home. This place is an absolute steal. read more

I've been to La Malinche a few times. It's awesome! The food is delicious and the service is great. I love all of their different sangrias! Their weekend brunch is AWESOME! I love their mimosas! Strongly recommend it! read more

Good food, god price, good waiters service but please go to the place for a brunch or happy hour because if you go in regular hours, you will spend on top of the $75 for two people and you will still hungry and angry after that, brunch for $30 all you can eat and all you can drink is the best choice of this place!!! read more

La Malinche was quiet and charming on a Saturday night. My boyfriend and I were looking for a quiet place to relax and have some drinks and La Malinche was exactly what we wanted. We had the pico de gallo, which was perfect; the calamari, which was good, especially with the tart sauce that came with it; and the datiles. All I can say about the datiles is that they are astounding. Bacon wrapped dates filled with cheesy goodness? Perfect combination of sweet and savory. I also had one of their top-shelf margaritas, which may have been the best margarita I've ever had. The service is fast and our waiter was lovely. 10/10 will be revisiting, loved it. read more

Had a gift card here and went with two other people. Every single thing we got was great. Sangria, civeche, prosciutto type pork, veggies, shrimp, beef, fish tacos, churros and flan. I've rarely been to tapas where all the items are good (you always have one or two that don't make the cut). I would 100% come again and prices were great. read more

This restaurant is a very affordable place to get good tapas. My companion and I shared the Dátiles and Montaditos de Jamón y Queso for starters. Both very delicious. Then she had the Chuletitas de Cordero and I had the Carne de Becerro for our main dish. We both couldn't stop commenting on how delicious and tender our meat was. Seriously, every time we took a bite we exclaimed. The portions were not big, but for us they were just right, as we didn't want to stuff ourselves. For dessert, we had the Churros, which were fine, nothing to write home about. I also had a Sangria and a Cortado coffee. Our total bill was around $50. read more

This was a nice spot for a Friday night. We had tapas and the jalepeno marigatas! The staff was pretty nice, not overly attentive. I didn't sit at the bar, but it appears to be a rather small bar area given the size of the restaurant. The menu had a nice variety of tapas. read more

The BF and I went for Happy Hour before a show at the Fillmore. Everything we had was delicious and the staff were courteous and attentive. We will definitely be back! read more

Great HH spot for Sangria and tasty tapas....I got the bacon wrapped olives, empanadas, and house sangria for under $15. Best!

Seriously my favorite place to go for brunch. All you can eat and all you can drink for 30 bucks. The food is delicious and the drinks are on point. If you go with a big group (we went with 12 people) they will bring out a variety of foods without you having to place an order so you can try everything. And it's all small plates, so you can eat a lot more. Definitely recommend this place for brunch. read more

Love this place Great draft beer Great tapas Order oaky like the shrimp in butter sauce Sitting outside is the best read more

I've had tapas all over the DC area and La Malinche is second to none!! The La Malinche a La Vida GF (ceviche) is the best I've had in a long time. If you want a near-meal, the Salmon GF (blackened) is the ticket! I'll be back again, not only for the jalapeño margarita, but the great food. read more

Great selection of delicious tapas & reasonably priced. Happy hour drinks were good & service was polite & attentive. Some cozy corners inside & a few outside tables. Definitely not Mexican though....seemed much more like a Spanish tapas restaurant/bar. Ambiance could be improved by getting rid of white ceiling panels that look like an office building...ugh read more

This is such a classy place and great for a nice dinner or their wonderful tapas brunch. Feels like it's not as known as it should be!

We came in with a large group for the brunch on Saturday which overall was very good. The steak with egg was amazing as well as was everything else that we had. The most disappointing part of the brunch was desert. There were churros and flan on the menu for desert however when we tried to order them around 1:15 we were told that they were serving sopas instead. This was made even more frustrating by the fact that we kept seeing flan and churros coming out of the kitchen long after we were told that we couldn't order them. read more

Went for a friends birthday brunch. The food was great but the service was terrible!!! The male waiter with glasses and curly hair was in a bad mood from the beginning and did not make us feel like he wanted to take our order. We tried to joke with him and he just was annoyed. The guy from the kitchen had a serious and pissy face. I would love to go back but definitely work on their hospitality, atleast from those two. read more

Came here for the $20 AYCE tapas during a Tuesday lunch. The must-try tapas are: Datiles and beef empanadas. There were only two of us but we ordered the bacon-wrapped dates twice, because they're that good. We would have gotten a second order of empanadas but we unintentionally filled up on less-satisfying tapas first. The Yuca Frita was good, not spectacular. The Patatas Bravas were disappointing, nothing special. read more

This place is fantastic! I used to work at a tapas bar in Charleston, SC so I am always on the lookout for the next best tapas place. La Malinche did not disappoint! The staff is very friendly, service is wonderful and the food is delicious. They also have great sangria and reasonable prices. I would definitely recommend the bacon-wrapped dates and ceviche. If you are looking for a fancy atmosphere, this isn't it, but if you're looking for a fantastic meal, you've found your spot. read more

Excellent food. Fast and friendly service. The selection is large, but not so big as to be daunting. You know you have a good tapas place when you just want to order more food to taste it, even though you are totally full from what you've already eaten! Not a bad score, considering we came here on a whim without knowing much about it. Worth the trip! read more

Hooray for trying new places! I found this spot via Yelp and quickly tried it out. The reviews hold true. The drinks were nice and the food was very very fresh and tasty. I had steak and chicken fajitas, chicken croquettes, and the cava sangria. I sampled my companions selections and everything was delicious. Its a very simple, well decorated, fresh restaurant. I will definitely be back in the near future. Especially for happy hour when I'll sample more sangria! read more

Simply put, a fantastic experience on all fronts. The service is exemplary, with some of the friendliest bartenders and attentive staff all around. My bartender Max completed the welcoming vibe of the restaurant by never allowing my glass to go empty and rousing us with great conversation. And the food... THE FOOD! The beef empanadas, bacon wrapped dates and fried calamari are some of my favorites. This place is perfect for a night out with friends, and even more perfect for a date night. All in all, a gem in DTSS which needs to be visited by everyone strolling through. read more

Great HH! Had a blast with a group of friends and bartender, Max was so helpful and friendly. Offered to have us try his favorite tapas (bacon wrapped dates) just to prove they are amazing. We loved them so much we order two more! Can't wait for my next HH and Sunday funday with their great brunch special. read more

Love the window seating! The wait staff was extremely attentive. Food was quite tasty. Seafood was cooked to perfection. Between the two of us we tried 9 dishes. Everything was timed perfectly. We started out with chicken empanadas with large, seasoned pieces inside. The garlic infused guacamole was creamy goodness. I could have passed on the potatoes but they do have a brunch these would be better suited. Lastly, 5 stars for the jalepeno margaritas! read more

I should start by saying I have never been to Tapas bar before. Having said that good food is good food and everything we tried was wonderful! Decent value, especially if you do the all you can eat. What impressed me the most was how fresh everything was and how fast the service was. Admittedly we came at a slow time but I doubt the quality or service would change even during busy times. I should also say I tend to be a meat and potatoes kind of guy so I was a bit skeptical when my wife pointed this place out, but it was right across from the theater we were going, glad we stopped in! read more

Love La Malinche for Sunday brunch!! Can't beat unlimited tapas and sangria for $30 per person. Everything we ordered was delicious. Bacon wrapped dates are my fav! read more

The food always tastes great but, unfortunately, the service usually leaves much to be desired, especially if you want a romantic time. Let me start at the end: the waiter brought us the check right away without asking if we wanted anything else, thereby cheating himself out of a bigger bill and a bigger tip. He seemed annoyed that we only wanted to have wine and desserts, even though our bill was the same as if we had had a meal. The entire time, he seemed more interested in watching TV than attending to us. We've been here about seven times because we live in the area, and the service is always the same unless the one woman is serving - she's great. As far as food goes: patatas bravas, champinones con ajo, croquetas de pollo, and the guac are all amazing! Whoever cooks at this place is a treasure. So much flavor. read more

go...now! I mean turn off the TV, get off the couch, grab your better half and you'll look like a hero. The dates are like crack for any foodie and the drinks are the same for any 12 step program failure. I have search the city for better but have failed. Happy hour is one of the best I have found. I love this place! read more

Visiting family from out of town and wanted to treat them to a brunch. This place was great. The Sunday brunch which includes unlimited small plates and drinks (even alcohol) was a surprisingly amazing! My dad (who is a chef) was skeptical as they had not heard anything (good or bad) about the place, and he was even blown away and the quality of service and food. Definitely worth a visit! read more

One of my favorite places in Silver Spring. Their sangria is great (especially at happy hour - when you can get it at 15 a pitcher) and the tapas are often excellent (though every once in a while we catch something that is stale or has an off-flavor). Service is good and friendly and the ambiance is nice and quiet. Place is great for a drink and a good choice for dinner. Also, the Valentine's Day menu there is one of the few true values left on a day of ridiculously priced prixe-fix menus. read more

Excellent food, excellent service, great vibe! My husband like going to this place. You definitely won't be disappointed.

Overall a good experience, but a rough start. We ordered the cava sangria when we arrived, but it was about 90% grape juice so we sent it back. (And I never send things back!) Really, it was terrible. They were kind enough and didn't make us pay for it. We ordered wine and beer next, and both were great. For dinner we ordered the crab cakes, bacon wrapped dates, shoulder steak, and pear salad. They were all good, but the steak in particular was a great bang for your buck. It was flavorful and tender. Sangria aside, it was a good experience. Update a few hours later: A little annoyed the restaurant apparently didn't check us in through Open Table so now they think we skipped out on our reservation! read more

Visited here this past weekend while vacationing in MD and the food was delicious. My sister, Mother and I made and reservation for the brunch since it was all you can eat tapas and unlimited sangria drinks for $30. A few of the items we had were French toast, bacon wrapped dates, empanadas (chicken and beef), meatballs, chicken croquettes, breakfast potatoes (can't remember correct name), steak and fried egg, my favorite sangria was the cava because the other ones lacked sweetness. Will definitely be returning the next time I visit my sister. read more

Customer service was overall pretty good. Food was out in no time after being ordered. Quality of food though was ehhh. Went in with high expectations given the 4.5/5 stars on Yelp but honestly there's better tasting food at other tapas places. Nothing really stood out. The sangria was sub-par. Tastes pretty much like straight red wine with some ice and cut up fruit thrown in. Not really sangria in my opinion. 3/5 tops. read more

I wanted to update my review since I finally went here for happy hour! Theirs is amazing and the prices are hard to beat. We got the datiles, patatas bravas, and empanadas. These three tapas were filling, and with some priced at $3 and others priced at $6, with drinks priced at $3, it's easy to have a cheap happy hour with good food and drinks. I would highly recommend for happy hour in Silver Spring! read more

Great place to eat. The food was served well and the portions were great. The rib eye steak was cooked to perfection.

Despite being on a major road with a ton of pedestrian traffic and a lot of restaurant choices nearby this place is one of the best secrets in downtown SS. I had the datiles, hummus Mexicano, and chuletitas de cordero. All were fantastic. Service was perfect. The atmosphere is great for a date or with a crowd of friends. There is a noise, but you can easily talk to your table mates. Good food with a good social vibe to it. And, surprisingly, it's set at a reasonable price. read more

One of the best tapas places. Every dish was awesome! Mussels is a must to try. The pineapple infused vodka was great. Service was excellent too. I went here with a friend for a happy hour on a Saturday afternoon after catching a silent film in AFI across the street. Food and drinks were definitely a very good bargain! I would definitely recommend this place. I will be back for sure. read more