Tex-Mex style food in the east of England, it's not authentic, but then, what is? It's certainly styled like Mexican food, but I don't know of any Mexican place that does "Peri-Peri Snapper" or "Hawaiian Chicken." It's on the first floor ("second floor" in American) up a flight of stairs. I don't believe that they have a lift ("elevator") so if that's a requirement for you or someone in your dining party, consider another restaurant. There was a bunch of us that showed up without a reservation, so we got drinks and waited in an interesting sofa-equipped lounge area until our table was ready. It was quite odd to see Blue Moon and Coors Light on tap, so I had the first "Silver Bullet" in over a year. Yes, it tasted exactly the same as any that I've had back in the States. The Blue Moon did not have the usual slice of orange in it that's the norm when it's served in the US. For starters, I went with the chicken nachos. A huge portion with a large scoop of sour cream on top. Only a few jalapenos, but a good amount of chicken and cheese. It was good! For the main, I had something they called a Mexican Blanket. A large 12 inch tortilla folded with chicken and BBQ pork topped with cheese and ranchero sauce, served with a massive pile of salad and a large portion of rice. The portion was huge - as large as you could expect in any American restaurant. About halfway through, I gave up on trying to clean my plate and started digging through the thing for the meat bits. No dessert, but someone ordered a pitcher each of their regular and strawberry margaritas. I thought they were quite weak without enough tequila to taste and way too much sweetness. But maybe that's what they consider a margarita over here. Decent service, though somehow we ended up with a strange £100 charge for tacos on the bill. I don't know if this was accidental or our waiter was trying to pull a fast one with a large group. He took it right off when we pointed it out. I've been told it's a great place for lunch with a decent chicken chimichanga. Perhaps I'll try that next time. read more

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Being from the States and having tried my share of Tex-Mex (Texas, Florida, etc), I was pretty impressed with this place. My husband and I gave it a go after seeing it on Google Maps when visiting the area. While the name seems something more fitting for a Caribbean style restaurant and some dishes weren't the norm for a typical Tex-Mex, this place is worth trying! I had them make me a chocolate and strawberry mixed shake, which was delicious! We tried the Jalapeño Poppers to start and they were okay. Not as spicy as I would have liked, but not horrible. I ate the Ultimate Nachos as a meal (it's an appetizer/starter) with the Cajun chicken and was relieved to find they tasted close to authentic Tex-Mex. There was just the right amount of ingredients and enough to share (I ended up taking some home). My husband tried their beef fajitas and they were surprisingly yummy. They marinated the beef differently than what we've had at a Mexican restaurant before, making it slightly sweet tasting, and came with quite a good amount of beef. It was actually a big enough portion that we could have shared, had we known in advance. Price wasn't too bad and waiting time was just right. Servers were attentive, helpful, and friendly. Not only will we be recommend this to our friends, we will definitely go back to try more of the tasty looking dishes. read more

This is ony of my favourite places to eat in Norwich! With a large menu and a specially board everyone is likely to find something they fancy eating! I'm always torn between a steak or the tuna. It can be worth booking a table at weekends as it does get very busy. The only flaw, for some, is that there is no disabled access and it is on the first floor. read more

I've been to mambo jambo more than any other restaurant in Norwich and that is for a very good reason, It's just that good. It's got a lovely atmosphere which feels quite welcoming when you enter and also with it being quite a small place it feels quite cosy and this is also reflected in the food. The menu has a wide range of different mexican and tex mex dishes and their is plenty to chose from and if nothing takes your fancy on the menu their specials board has always got a nice variety with ideas that will make you salivate. The staff are excellent as well, always friendly and willing to help and if you like your cocktails you will also like their wide range of them on their drinks menu. All in all it's just simply a nice place to eat, chat and enjoy the food, atmosphere and each other. Please if you haven't gone to mambo jambo give it a try and you won't regret it. read more

As a Californian who spent much of her life near the Mexican border, I have to say that this restaurant is neither Mexican nor Tex-mex. The Mexican offerings are few, and while I expected them to be somewhat Anglicized, they contained no Mexican ingredients of any sort other than some Italian-tasting tomato sauce--no cilantro, no cumin, no tomatillo, no frijoles, no chips, no salsa. The beef in the beef enchilladas was burnt, tough, and tasted like it belonged in a steak and kidney pie. The onions were from the outer part of the onion and inedilble. The tortilla was rubbery. Attempting to cut into the enchillada was a little like performing surgery on someone's bloody stomach. And the worst was the bill, which was quite a bit more expensive than some of the classiest restaurants in town. So, Mexican food fans, don't even think about it. Keep looking. read more

Always a great fun night out - Mambo Jambos has been around for ages and for good reason: Great food (Chicken Enchiladas - yumm!) I'm always stuck deciding what to have. Portions are huge so you can't fault MJ on value for money, main meals are mostly about £8+ for burgers and £10+ for other meals, however most mains come with a huge salad and either wedges fries or rice. Not many clear plates at the end! Atmosphere is great and always good music playing, and the cocktails are great. Staff are friendly so whatever the occasion you should have a great night! One review mentioned parking - either St Andrews or St Giles car parks are easily within a 3 minute walk from MJs. read more

To be fair. Anyone that has the brass neck to diss this place wants to be taken outside and beaten with a wet flannel. It's cheap, it's cheerful and probably isn't going to kill anyone. Add to that the fact that only a pack of starving hyenas could get through two courses, and that you're not surrounded by farting students like I am here in Frank's Bar, then you can't go wrong. The staff are friendly, the music is loud but unobtrusive, the vibe is totally chain and classic tex mex™. The crowd (on a Sunday night and, to be fair, it's about the only place that is open in Norwich on a Sunday night) is a mixture of chavs and family birthday parties. Go for it. You won't need to eat for days, and there won't be a hole in your pocket. Revised review. Just one party of chavs too many. Essex meets Norwich. Please kill me now. read more

I don't know what's Mexican about this place...maybe it's the Philadelphia cheese steak or the sticky toffee pudding. Once again British cuisine can't get right. read more

I really wasnt impressed when I went here. everything was greasy and fried, and overcooked - I had chicken and it was like rubber. The drinks was far too syrupy, and it was overpriced for the quality. Although the menu was huge and the choice rerally varied, I think they were taking on too much. A few well made dishes is much better than all the choice in the land with bad quality. I would have to be convinced very strongly to go here again! read more

Overall, average. The food wasn't great, nor was the service. I probably wouldn't choose to go again, but I think they have enough redeeming qualities to warrant any tex-mex love to give it a go. read more

Excellent value for money, Mambo jambos is up there with Paedros as on of the best restuaruants in the centre of Norwich. A steep flights of steps will take you to a small welcome bar where you can sit in the comfy seats and await your table. The service is very fast and efficient. There is the usual wide spectrum of Mexican dishes on offer, which are always well cooked and you certainly get plentyDon't expect to have too much room to drink after you have eaten! read more

This I think is the best restaurant in Norwich and my firm favourite. The food here is amazing and always cooked to perfection. The staff are friendly and upbeat and nothing seems too much trouble. Book in advance especially on occasions ie Xmas, valentines or even Saturday nights as it does get booked up very quickly. Theres a seating area just as you come up the stairs which is handy for big partys meeting and having a drink before the table is ready. The only downfall to this restaurant is there is no parking facilities and mostly in that area are double yellows or car parking charges. Probably best to get a taxi if you can as its in the city centre so can still go on after for a few drinks in the bars around Norwich. read more

Our dinning experience started off fairly well seated quickly and order taken. The food then came quickly and we where asked if we would like anything else my fiancee responded sour cream and since she put the idea in my head I said the same. After our meals I asked for the bill on it was something to the effect of "Jacks SC x 2 £1.50 £3.00" we quickly worked out this was sour cream that we didn't know we would have to pay for. We questioned this with the girl who came to take our payment and she said she'd get a waitress. At which point the lady who had asked us about anything else in the first place shoves the menu in my face and says it says £1.50 for sour cream and I say she didn't say it was extra. She responded with I dont state the price for everything. At this point I saw red and asked to see the manager at which she replied she was the manager in a condescending tone and i said i would not pay for it. With no argument she said it would be removed from the bill and walked off obviously deciding it was worth the argument. we paid and left. Now for those reading this you might be thinking I'm cheap by no means am I, I'm happy to pay for it but £3 for maybe at the absolute most 100ml of sour cream that's 15 times more expensive than if I went and got it from Tesco less than a minute round the corner. So that was my experience perfectly alright food and what would have been a 4/5 review becomes 1 star. Short version manager needs to learn to speak to customers like people not like something she stepped in. read more

The food here is fabulous, pity you cant go in just for a drink any longer, you used to be able to. The ribs, combos, steaks and desserts are brilliant and a great selection of cocktails. Great for a night out in town. Hot chocolates and the milkshakes are to die for. Bit tricky with those steps though. read more

Over priced, average food. I ordered salmon. It came with chips that were average, the side salad was poor too. No garnish or special sauces etc. Decor was dated and restaurant cramped. I really don't know why it is rated highly on here. Odd layout. Had to walk past other diners who stared as you passed. No imagination in the other meals my friends ate. read more

Everything about Mambo Jambos is amazing! Gorgeous food, huge portions, great atmosphere and really friendly staff! Prices are nice and cheap too, especially for the amount of food you get. My personal favorite is the Mexian Blanket (they have even let me swap salad for onion rings before which was a bonus!!) A brilliant place for a celebration. Just make sure you book in advance as they are always very busy due to how loved this place is. A real gem in Norwich lanes. read more