This place is pretty much exclusively known for its very strong (and cheap) margarita pitchers that will be sure to put you in your happy place fast. The food is average at best (the quesadillas are probably the best thing on the menu though) and the scene tends to be a bit divey/routy (especially over the weekend) being just blocks from the heart of collegetown. Overall, a no frills kind of place in terms of food/atmosphere, but a great place to grab a mean drink with some friends. read more

They have a really diverse drink menu featuring all those margaritas and mixed drinks that I have requested at other bars, only to get a stare from the bartender like I was from a different planet. Drinks are reasonably priced for the intricacy. As for the food, its pretty bad. Their beans are bland, and their rice is not the right texture. Their fajita chicken tastes like what you would make at home only a bit more bland. To be fair their guacamole was really good, but thats the only thing worth ordering on their menu. Food is expensive for the low quality. The service was decent. Food took well over an hour to come out, but they gave us extra guacamole while we waited . We already purchased one though, so I am not sure what they would have done if we didn't buy an appetizer. read more

The bar was clean, professional and had a delightful aesthetic. Not many people there, but the few others were dancing really well to salsa music, which was cool. Got a martini with chocolate and crushed Andes mints in it, which was delicious. It felt like a place you could go to relax, but not necessarily party, it's casual but classy! read more

This is basically The Connection's bar annex. They even share the same kitchen, but they go through lengths to hide that fact. The food they serve is absolutely horrendous. Remember those heady days of freshman year when you decided to "cook" for yourself? Remember how you made some quesadillas by tossing shredded cheddar between a supermarket tortilla, folding it over, and toasting it with your brand new clothes iron? Charge $10+ for it, and that's what you're getting at Loco. The drinks aren't really much better. The bartenders seems largely clueless and inconsistent. My first margarita tasted nothing like my second, in flavor or in strength. My friend's mojitos tasted great on the first round, and like a thin slightly sugary glass of water on the next. And it's not exactly cheap. read more

I love Mexican food, so I was excited to try this place out. Unfortunately, it wasn't very good. This place is new, and it seems like they're still trying to figure out how to run things. Service - 2 stars When we walked in, there was a crowd of people near the doors and at the bar, but no host. We stood there for a few minutes looking around in confusion before we had to walk to the back of the restaurant and flag someone down. How can someone not be watching for people entering? They need a better system for people walking in. Our waitress seemed really busy and perhaps forgot about us after giving us menus. After awhile of waiting, we finally had to get her attention as she rushed by. She was extremely friendly and gave us a free appetizer, but the servers should know to check for when the diners' menus are closed. She was great the rest of the meal. Food - 2 stars I had the chips and salsa (1.99) and a beef taco (9.99). The salsa was very watery and didn't have much of a flavor. The chips were warm, which was nice. The beef taco came with a plate of fillings: beef, chopped tomatoes, cheese, shredded lettuce, rice, beans, and salsa, and 4 hard taco shells. The beef was disappointing. I liked that it had cooked tomatoes in it, but it wasn't very flavorful. Instead of the tomatoes I would have liked a nice pico de gallo with cilantro, onions, and chilis. I also would've liked sour cream and guacamole. I really, really enjoyed the cheese though! It was my favorite part of the meal. It was thick shredded monterey jack cheese and was very creamy. Ambience - 1 star I'm not sure if it was just because it was a weekend night, but it was extremely noisy. Loud music was playing, and lots of people were talking loudly (exacerbated by the tables being squished so close together). It was hard to have a conversation. The place had somewhat of a club feel to it with the dance music playing and people swarming around the bar. The restaurant seemed kind of dirty, old, and dingy-looking, which they hid by turning the lights down. I guess the owner didn't want to bother with the expense of some renovations, which also explains the horrible bathroom. The bathroom was really awful. It was a tiny stall with just enough room to stand. The sink had separate faucets for hot and cold, so I was burning one hand and freezing the other. :( There were exposed pipes, and the bathroom didn't look all that clean. Reminded me of a gas station bathroom. No, I wouldn't come back. I can see it being an okay late night place for some Mexican food, but then the prices would need to be a lot more reasonable. read more

Yes, the place is a bit divey, but it is also home to the best margaritas and bartenders in Ithaca. Guthrie (the head bartender) is fantastic. He knows his drinks and he knows his customers. Whenever I go in, I'm welcomed and feel at home. If you go for a margarita (and there are many to choose from), tread with caution. They are strong, but not overpoweringly so. They are also delicious. The food menu has changed over time, but you can't really go wrong with chips and salsa, wings, or quesadillas. Besides, would you want anything else at a bar with amazing drinks? Each night, there is typically something different going one, whether it be karaoke, coin flips (if you call the coin correctly, you get a discount), or wing night. Regardless of the day, it's always fun. read more

It's ya boi Biniam aka Bin.I.Am aka Sure Handz. I'm back from my half year hiatus in Key West. Boi do i miss da breeze. Back to the review doe. Ya boi is going back to his long island ice tea grind but he's bringing it to Ithaca. My first stop brings me to Loco aka Luna's drinkery. The long island here is quite good. Good mix of flaves + alc. Top notch drinks here. The only probs i have is the homogeneity of their drinks. I started my night with an order of 2 long islands. That individual gave me a great drank, with both of em tasting the same. I ordered another one about 10 minutes later/ after i finished the 1st 2. The thing is that a diff dude made my drinks and it didn't taste like the first one. It had more alc which i easily tasted. But guess whatt....??? That's a plus so i give dis a fiver. This is a very opinionated scale so....... I'm right. read more

I went here again for dinner and I have to say that the quality dropped off, especially the margaritas. The balance of the ingredients simply wasn't there and relied too much on the tequila. My friend ordered the Cervesaritas and he said each one tasted different. The house margarita wasn't as good as the last time. It wasn't sweet enough. The salting of the rims was inconsistent. The first one I ordered was barely salted. After I asked for more salt, the second one was covered with it. The drinks also came in smaller glasses than last time. I was disappointed. The food was pretty uninspired too. I had the Southwestern flat bread which was canned corn and black beans with chicken and i think mozzarella. I usually make this dish when I am cleaning out my pantry and I personally think my interpretation is better. Again, like last time, the dishes were under seasoned and under spiced, two qualities I think are fundamental to Mexican food. The crust was nice though. My friend had the burritos and he commented that they were nothing special. I hope this place can get back to making good food like last time I was there but it seems like there was no passion in kitchen. read more

This is the best place to meet up with your Bumble date to casually grab drinks and get to know each other!! My Bumble date and I met up here and had an awesome experience. The bartenders were very attentive and the drinks were very reasonably priced!! read more

Ordered online, so this review obviously won't cover all bases. Got a burrito ($8.99) from this joint, paid extra ($2.00) to put ground beef in it. Delivery took about fifteen minutes longer than projected. I'm never offering a tip before the food gets here again! The "spanish" rice was undercooked and flavorless. The beans, salsa and guacamole formed a disgusting, convoluted mash on the side. I paid for beef, but didn't see any - not that it would be easy to find if it existed. The burrito was primarily nasty rice, and everything else was a mess! Absolutely disgusting, and a disgrace. One of those places where I don't ever want to see the kitchen. Never eating here again. read more

Have not tried the food, but its not a bad place to get drinks. I've been there 2 times already and I don't have much to complain about, of course this is for Ithaca standards haha. If you want cheap drinks and are with a good group of friends then its definitely a place to consider. read more

Pros: Probably the best margaritas in town. Many different types. Cons: The food is really bad. One of the dishes was not edible. read more

I visited on 5/20/19 around 11:20PM. Place was packed, but this was expected given the time of year at Cornell. Waited about 40 minutes for a pitcher of margaritas. Again, this was expected. Not great overall, very watery. My problem was with when I stepped outside for roughly two minutes to take a phone call at 12:45AM, or 15 minutes to close. After standing on the PUBLIC sidewalk for perhaps 30 seconds, a man with a flattop haircut and blue tracksuit, sitting with the bouncers, began yelling at me to "head down the block in case the cops show up." I'm 21 years old with an in-state driver's license that had already been checked upon my entrance, informed him of this and presented it once more. His reply, once I explained I had stepped out to answer my phone and had multiple friends inside, was to "get down the street." Essentially, I had been removed for no reason. This was astoundingly rude; he referred to me only by the brand of my shirt and tried to remove me, for no reason, from a sidewalk owned by the city of Ithaca. Sorry, get your ducks in order: you cannot kick me off the sidewalk. You also should not treat paying customers, who are of completely legal drinking age, with this sort of tone. Beyond this, I was in no way inebriated: I'd had one drink in the hour I was there and nothing prior, yet was treated like a common drunkard who causes issues. I will never again return here, and this was perhaps my tenth visit; if you get a staff that has the mental capacity slightly more than that of a hog I'll reconsider. Tonight was a complete joke, you need better staff or at least train them on the most basic elements of proper service. read more

I had never had a bad time at Loco until this past Monday. Every time I go to the bar, it's usually a fun night out with some friends, but my recent experience will keep me from going here ever again. I went to Loco on Monday with some friends while on fall break to take advantage of the $5 margarita pitchers. Most of the night was going well, and I was having fun with my friends when a bouncer approached me being hostile telling me to leave and get the fuck out of his bar. I tried to calm him down and ask why and he just kept yelling to get the fuck out. The manager came over and asked to talk to me outside, where he said the bouncer had accused me of touching his iPad, something that I didn't do. After talking to the manager, he said that I would be free to stay. After this was where things went south. I went in, annoyed and told my friends that the bouncer had made up something I didn't do to get me kicked out. At this point the bouncer comes over, gets in my face, and shoves me to the ground, yelling at me that we should take it outside. The bouncer then continued to walk outside angrily. However, when I did not follow him outside, he returned, snuck up behind me, and shoved me from behind to the ground. At this point my friends and I decided to leave, and one of my friends said that the bouncer had attempted to get physical with him on the way out. This kind of experience was the worst I've had at any bar, and it was honestly a harrowing experience. I will never be supporting this bar again, even as much as I've enjoyed my experience with the rest of the staff. read more

Great place for happy hour and late night. Bartenders are always friendly and willing to suggest new drinks. My favorite bar in Ithaca

Drinks/Bar was good. Service was "meh". The food took over 40 minutes to arrive at the table, and our group was one of the only tables occupied. My quesadilla was lukewarm and soggy, and the tortilla itself was one of those sandwich wrap kinds. When I picked a slice up, all the ingredients slid out. I was annoyed that salsa and sour-cream didn't come with it automatically. The cheese also seemed to have a gluey quality. My friend was disappointed because her hard tacos were cold and soggy too, and was more re-fried beans than meat. My other friend thought her nachos were alright, but she had requested the jalapenos be placed on the side and they were not. I'm giving two stars though because the atmosphere was fine, and the restaurant looked nice overall. Our drinks weren't bad either. This seems like a place with a good bar scene, but as far as food goes, I would avoid it. read more

Loco is amazing! It is by far the best bar in ithaca. The bartenders are awesome, very personable, and knowledgeable. I always have a blast when i go. Plus the pizza shop next door "connections" has the best pizza!!! Have yourself a loco night!! read more

This place has potential but it's really obvious that they're just starting up and don't know exactly what they're doing. The food is nothing special & is basically tex-mex not authentic mexican. The drinks are good and there are some good deals (especially during happy hour). Nevertheless, the service is inexperienced and they asked for a credit card # when we made a reservation (?) which we thought was bizarre. Overral it seems like a fun place to grab a snack and maybe a drink and hopefully will develop into a good restaurant with some time & experience. We'll go back but it's not anywhere near our list of hot spots yet. read more

Waited for over an hour for food AND drink! Waitress forgot to place order and then proceeded to tell us that we came in behind a big party so we would be waiting even longer once she actually placed the order. When I tried to order from the bar she stopped me and said the drink was on the way. And it was...25 minutes later. Asked for a manager and none came. Waitress was obtuse and unconcerned and shrugged as we walked out. This was one of the worst dining experiences ever. Further- a couple we were with ordered food (chicken) on a separate order and when the food arrived it was almost raw. Do yourself a favor and avoid this place. read more