Me and my parents are visiting from out of town (me from Indy and then from Washington). I was nervous about picking a place for dinner because I have not spent anytime in Fort Wayne, but my mom googled food in the area and we landed on Mercado. It was DELICIOUS! The staff was so nice and our server was very personable! I wish I remembered her name she had a long bubble braid in her hair. My mom got the margarita and gave it two thumbs up. For appetizers we order the Trio with the best crispy well toasted chips. It came with delicious guacamole, queso, and salsa. We all got the tacos and I really enjoyed the falafel taco and the Al pastor taco. My parents enjoyed the chicken one. It was scrumptious! For dessert we got the Moo Moo Mud Pie. It was the perfect size to share between the three of us. The waitress was honest and said one Moo Moo mud pie would be plenty to share. Parking was easy and only $2 in the parking garage across the street. read more

I absolutely love this restaurant. The Chicano chicken is one of the best dishes in Fort Wayne and I have a hard time ordering anything else when I visit! The guac is great, their ceviche is fresh, and their "Cholo" cocktail is a good choice if you like mezcal! My husband loves their birria, so be sure to snag that if they happen to feature it on the menu while you're there. read more

Worthwhile. Some dishes slap (dumplings!), although some are just good without shining (looking at you, tacos). Cool spot with nice people.

Really good food. The steak was delicious. Ambiance interesting and vibrant. Overall a good place to eat.

Omg. Wow. Just wow. I've wanted to go to this place for a while now and finally made it. The decor. The vibes when you walk in like you walked into an enchanted forest. It's so insta picture worthy; you'll want to take a pic of everything. Once seated the next decision is to choose what to eat!! The pictures speak for themselves. The food was amazing. And The service was good too. read more

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The Chicano chicken was superb! Came here right after I landed and it was open later compared to other places that closed earlier and I was not disappointed with my meal and service. My server introduced me to the popular items on the menu as it was my first time and was very friendly. The chicken was perfectly seasoned and it was tender, not dry. I love the brussel sprouts is glazed with a different flavor and the addition of the queso was the cherry on top for me. I also like how the potatoes were thinly cut. I would definitely come back here and would probably try their tacos! read more

Mercado - Chicano Chicken - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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Lunch here was satisfying. The dish was prepared correctly and arrived warm. The staff were courteous

The food here is amazing, comes out pretty quick too, hot and fresh tasting! The service is amazing too! Been 3 times so far and one server even remembered my name. Very kind super attentive, everyone seemed so happy to make sure you're enjoying yourself and I love that! The Ambiance gives date night, drink with friends, and solo time! Whatever the occasion it will fit! Come here! Enjoy the great service, the amazing food, and drinks to top it all off! read more

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Loved the chicken tacos for lunch, especially with a choro margarita. You order inside and can sit anywhere lots of shaded outdoor seating, ideal for warm days. Great food at a great price. I'll be back next time! read more

Mercado - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

Amazing as always. Great drinks. Great service. Amazing food! One of our favorite date night spots.

I finally had a chance to come to this restaurant on the landing for lunch. The restaurant has a unique system where you order at the front and they give you a number and bring the food out to you. They will also fill cups of water for you if you don't order a beverage. I was a bit underwhelmed by the taste of my wet burrito. There was significant amount of rice and beans in the burrito and not that much protein. The Carne Asada in the burrito seemed to lack much flavor and was overpowered by the Spanish rice. At times I felt like I was just eating rice and beans. For myself I think that the meal was just OK but for the price you pay, you could probably get more authentic and flavorful Mexican food. read more

Mercado - Wet burrito - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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I hadn't been to Mercado in a while and it was as delicious as ever! I had the #SquadGoals Jamaica Margarita and it was great -- a little sweet, a little smoky! We shared the Dip Trio and polished it off -- and it came with plenty of chips to enjoy all the dips with. For my entree I had the Chorizo Bolognese (yum!), our son got the perfectly-executed Carne Asada Fries, and my husband couldn't stop raving about the Al Pastor Pork Chop! Our server, Mackenzie, was friendly and helpful! Can't wait to go back! read more

Mercado - Two tacos with beans and tomatillo sauce - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

This is my new favorite taco spot! I went here for lunch, and I'll definitely be back for more. We did two of the $10 taco combos and one Ube Horchata. Ube Horchata - $6 - This is a must get. It was so smooth and flavorful. Hands down the best horchata I've ever tasted, and probably the best you'll ever have too. I seriously need this recipe, hint hint, cough cough. They also have regular and strawberry. Get this, you won't be disappointed. 5/5 stars. Ernie's Fish Taco - Extra $2 - You get two fish portions, perfectly cooked, with a delectable spicy sauce on it. Now, I can handle about a medium spicy for most things, and this was nearing my limit of spiciness. If you can't handle spice, avoid this. If you're like me and can do medium, you definitely need a drink to offset the spice. Now, that being said, this was an amazing fish taco. Tortillas held up well, the taco was overflowing, and plenty of sauce. 5/5 stars. Chori-Queso - I was worried about this being too greasy, but it wasn't that way at all. The fried cheese kept the tortilla from soaking up too much grease (but really there wasn't much to begin with), and the chorizo had a good flavor. 5/5 stars. Carne Asada - Good flavor, wish it had another tablespoon of sauce, but it was still a good taco. Nothing dry or bland here. 5/5 stars. Cali AF - This was an interesting taco. It's like eating elote corn with chicken. I'm not a big fan of elote corn, but my boyfriend is, which is why he picked this taco. It's good, but you need to like elote. Chicken was tasty. This one definitely had plenty of sauce. 5/5 stars. Rice - It's good, but it's just typical rice you expect to get. This is by far the best taco place in town. Go here now. You must get the horchata. read more

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Was highly recommended by locals and did not disappoint. Just a short four block walk North from the convention center and Theatre. Upscale tacos are the focus of this menu with a California flair. Guacamole made fresh in house. Open covered patio available on nice days. read more

I came here with 2 buddies, one of which highly recommended this spot and instantly I loved the vibe inside this establishment. We were promptly greeted and shown our table after confirming my reservation. Our server took really care of us and recommended several dishes. I went with the "choose 3" tacos and chose the steak taco, Cali AF, and, Chori-Queso tacos and they were spot on! I'd get all 3 again! It also came with beans or rice and I chose the beans and they were so good! While I don't always make it downtown for restaurants since I love 50 minutes away, I may have to make exceptions more often! read more

Our waitress was super friendly and attentive. The drink menu has many options, and the four we had were very good, and decently strong. The queso dip came in a skillet, which I always love the flair of that. It was a good portion of dip, especially for the low price, that tasted great. It comes with just a few tortillas (everywhere you go it seems they're stingy with tortillas). Guac and chips solved the dipping dilemma as restaurants always overserve the chips. We sat on the patio which could use sprinklers on a hot day. We didn't opt for inside because the music was too loud and rap at a Mexican establishment was jarring to me. read more

Get the queso fundido with chorizo! It comes in a little cast iron pan, piping hot, served with tortillas. You eat it by scooping some of the melted cheese and chorizo onto a tortilla, fold up the tortilla a bit, and eat. I probably could have just sat and ate baked cheese the whole time I was there. We visited during their brunch hours, a time when they serve things like chicken and waffles, strawberry waffles, breakfast burritos and avocado toast along with their other Mexican options. I can't eat breakfast at a Mexican joint, which is why I opted for the queso fundido to start, followed by the Los Tacos combo, which is three tacos served with rice and beans. I got the Ernie's Fish Taco (beer-battered fish, cabbage, cilantro and some sort of fancy mayonnaise), the Brefas Taco (chorizo, egg, onion, cilantro, crema) and the Calif-AF (fried cheese, chicken tinga, elote, cojita and cilantro). I loved each taco individually, but the fish taco was probably my favorite! The rice and beans were OK -- the tacos overshadowed them. My kids each got things from the kids menu: a steak taco with rice and beans, and a strawberry waffle. I have a kid who could eat breakfast food at any time of the day, so he was super excited to see waffles on the menu. One thing that stood out to me was that I heard like seven Bad Bunny songs while we were there. That's the the ambiance here: Think Bad Bunny/Rosalia vibes. As I was pondering why I was hearing so much Bad Bunny, I looked at the drink menu and saw the first item on the cocktail list was a Bad Bunny cocktail! It's turmeric vodka, pineapple, cinnamon, lime, honey and ginger beer. Someone likes Bad Bunny here, obviously. I didn't partake of any alcohol when I visited, but I thought it was neat that they offered flights of mezcal, tequila, Mexican amari (including fernet. Like, WTF, who offers a flight with fernet? That's awesome.), and a lot of other things I had never tasted. The service here was amazing, and the decor is colorful and fun, and there's an outdoor patio with a beautiful mural of peonies, which are the state flower. Everything about this restaurant is great, and I'll definitely be back the next time I'm in Fort Wayne. read more

Not bad, both my friend and I loved it. I hope the main dish can be made with a little bit more spices.

Cheers! I cannot believe that after so many visits to Mercado this is my first review. Anyway, let's get to it! Let me start by saying that while I enjoy Mercado very much, there are certain things that keep it from being my go-to, perfect place. Mostly this has to do with the prices. I will not shy away from paying what is due to establishments for exceptional dishes. Paying $15 for some meted cheese makes me a little mad. I happily ate all the melted cheese though. Come on, it's melted cheese in a little cast iron pan! It's the principle of the thing that bothers me. Great cocktails, great food! (With one small hiccup a few years ago when my daughters and I got sick from the chicken tinga...we have since become brave enough to go back) I don't want to bash Mercado. I think it's a special place with good food, great atmosphere and a perfect location. By why so expensive? I'll probably keep paying up. Melted cheese is really good. read more

Mercado - Orange Spritz - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

One word... Outrageous. Mercado is unarguably the best Mexican joint in FW. Marketed as Cali-Mex, this place is purely authentic... As good if not better than anything we've had in Mexico. When you walk in, the atmosphere doesn't disappoint... Trendy, lively, good music, and a friendly staff. But onto the food and drink... Their margaritas are exceptional (maybe the best of I've had) - We had the blood orange margarita, and it was fire... So good. This time around I got the tacos (carne asada, chicken tinga, and fish) and my wife got the chicken enchiladas; just outright ridiculous and insanely fresh/good food. To top things off, our server Gabby was exceptional... Super friendly, attentive, and timely. The best way I'll put it is this place is a party in your mouth and all of FW is invited... From management, to food quality, to service, Mercado does it right all the time. read more

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I can't say enough about this place. From the customer service to the taste of the food everything was amazing. The decor is very cute. I ordered the Carne Asada fajita, my husband ordered the chicken Tinder, and my son ordered the tacos. I could hardly get a picture before he done the first one. We also had a side of guacamole, which was very fresh and also perfectly seasoned. Highly recommend. read more

Mercado - Chicken taco and rice - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

The food is amazing and the menu is well crafted. Drinks great as well. Good service. Good ambiance, specially outside read more

Mercado - It is the Chicano Chicken - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

Mercado... one of my favorite places to visit in Fort Wayne. My friends and I went for the Cinco de Mayo celebration over the weekend and the atmosphere was perfect! A live band, a covered tent, and quick service. It had been ages since I'd been back, but the food only got better. The chori-queso and carne asada tacos are incredible, and we shared the dip trip at the table. Highly recommend visiting with friends to try multiple items, and enjoy sitting on the patio with good weather this summer. Love it! read more

Mercado - Carne Asada Taco - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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First time in Fort Wayne and I'm so glad my friends took me to the Landing! Mercado was so cute, hip & the staff were so fun and friendly. One margarita did the trick for me (Chamoy-Rita)! The menu is full of creative Mexican fusion options, however the chips and dips are a staple. The salsa is perfect, guac is limey/salty, and the homemade chips are crisssssp. Def check out Mercado if you want some fun and food!!! read more

Mercado - Cali AF (top), Carne Asada Taco (right), Broken Spanish Taco (left) & side of beans - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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The location itself gets a 5 star review. This is my wife and I's favorite place to eat in Fort Wayne. We love The Landing, but Mercado specifically is incredible. Haven't had anything bad to eat there and I've tried just about everything. Incredible drinks as well. Service is always 10/10. Just an all around great place. read more

Hip and happening joint with a really fun food and drink menu. Loved the vibe inside from the colorful art and murals to the large wall of bottles behind the bar and the relaxed outdoor seating. Service was friendly and accommodating and rather quick despite visiting during dinner time. Loves the varied drink menu and even though I ordered a cocktail that I didn't enjoy, the server quickly accommodated my pivot and kept things flowing nicely. Tried the taco trio and found them to be out of this world with incredible savory flavor, unlike anything I've ever had before. Highly recommend the chicken and the chorizo options! Homemade style street style shells with excellent homemade means as a side. My only complaint is that we don't have this in my hometown. Would certainly come back again next time I'm in Ft. Wayne. Highly recommended! read more

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This is definitely my favorite restaurant in all of Fort Wayne to go to. My friends and I love them and we all agree that our favorite item on the menu is the carne asada fries. I'm not a big steak person but they're just that good. The staff are always helpful and kind. The vibe of the restaurant is good and I feel like it's always some place cool to show others who have not been there before. read more

Mercado - Broken Spanish Taco, Carne Asada Taco, and Fish Taco. - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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Food is great! Service is wonderful! Ambiance is right on track. Try it. I have never had bad taste in my mouth when I have left here. Great place! read more

The food was delicious! The fish tacos were excellent, and the sub asada fries were especially yummy. The hostess and waitress were helpful and knowledgeable. We will return!! read more

We used to go to this place once every couple of weeks however, something has happened in the past year where they might have changed ownership or something else I don't know what but the food is not the same and the prices are even higher. They used to have specials every day and I don't even think that they do that anymore. With this place becoming more expensive there are tons of other options that are in my neighborhood so I would rather go to those. It is a shame as this place was a great go to place and it was close to my house so it sucks that things went the way they went. read more

Great food, drinks and service. Ceviche filled me up! Upbeat atmosphere. Highly recommend.

We searched yielp and decided to try, BUT it's NOT authentic Mexican food and NOT American grill neither! The foods were soo oily and not fresh! I ordered an entree costs $31, Shrimps are ok, steak was not good and the grilled vegetables underneath were totally OLD and NOT freshly cooked at all! My husband dish was very oily too! Chips are too hard! Totally not worthy and bad trying! read more

Mercado - Chamoyada Salad - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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I came here primarily for chips and guac/queso dip. I like the area, and the staff is friendly. My girlfriend had vegan tacos. The falafel protein option was not thoroughly cooked, but her other taco was really good. I thoroughly thought this queso dip was one of the better dips I've had. Guac was fresh and savory. Had garlic flavors. Ambiance is good. There are nice paintings and music playing in the background. We were staying at The Bradley, so this was a very convenient location. read more

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Mercado has incredible tacos and margaritas in Downtown Fort Wayne. I came here recently for lunch and enjoyed chatting with the bartender while enjoying my meal. There is a taco combo lunch special for $9 that includes two tacos and rice or beans. I tried the Falafel My Homies and Cali AF with beans. The side of beans was a very generous portion. I kind of wish I could have order both rice and beans just in smaller portions since I just wanted to try a bit of both. The Falafel My Homies was excellent as the falafel was perfectly crispy. The Cali AF taco has chicken tinga, elote street corn, and fried cheese. It was so messy, but so tasty! As a native Californian, I'm still not sure what makes this taco Californian, but it sure was delicious. I also ordered the Mercado Margarita. It was nicely balanced. It's not just the food that's good here, but also the atmosphere. With so many other menu items that look incredible, I'm excited to come back here and try more things. For those into Mezcal, Mercado also has Mezcal flights. The couple sitting nearby me ordered one and seemed to really enjoy it. The bartender spent a lot of time explaining each of the spirits and talking them through the tasting. read more

Mercado - Mercado Margarita - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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We still had decent weather on a late October weekend and headed out with some friends. We hit The Landing and walked into Mercado for the first time. Really cool vibe and the place was packed. Side note- looks like a snazzy place when the weather is warmer and can sit outside. Service was spot on and our server was knowledgeable, informative and friendly. Our party of four each tried something different and we all enjoyed our selections. Interesting margarita menu and certainly worth a trip back during the summer. Another nice addition to the Fort Wayne restaurant scene and I can't wait to go back. read more

Mercado - Night Market noodles. Very unique and yummy - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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Mercado is another great addition to the unique dinning scene in Fort Wayne. Mercado has a newly renovated facility on the Landing. The facility fits the styling of the Columbia Street area which I love. The interior is very attractive and fun! The bar is prominent so you can watch them make and serve their designer cocktails- which are amazingly attractive and delicious! On this day the garage door was open to allow an outdoor dinning feel for the whole restaurant. That works well on a beautiful evening! Let me start by saying Mercado is very popular right now. A reservation for a prime dinner time is a must. The Retsy app is easy to use and has nice reminders and adds to your calendar. It's fun to invite others to join you as well. The host and waiter staff were all very friendly and professional. Our waiter was right on top of the refills as a couple items were a little spicy. He knew his menu well and had great recommendations. He was also well versed on all the drinks as we were intrigued by what colorful drinks were being served. We choose the chips and salsa for starters. Mercado isn't your typical Mexican restaurant with free chips, salsa and a broad selection of Mexican dishes. They have pared their offerings down to uniquely made and very flavorful dishes. The salsa and chips are an example of paying for a unique/quality dish to experience. The chips were definitely made on site. They are thicker and more crunchy that a normal tortilla. They perhaps come off a little greasy and too hard. However, they were perfect to snap into smaller pieces and dip in the salsa. The salsa again is not your Mexican variety. It is puréed finely so it is saucy with a mild texture. The sauce has a bit is a smokey taste and very mild tomato flavor. There is a bit of spice to warm up up but not much. Give this appetizer a try! My wife had the Chamoyada salad. She loved the fresh greens and fruit. The dressing was a light consistency with a slight kick. I had the enchiladas. Mercado has a small amount of traditional Mexican items on the menu. I love enchiladas and have to give them a try. I loved the brown mole sauce. The sauce, which is the best mole I've ever tasted, was smooth and rich with a slight amount of spice. It really just brought out the flavors of the tortilla and meats. The pork was very moist and flavorful. The chicken was slightly dry and had less flavor. This made it less enjoyable and somewhat difficult to cut apart. The beef was outstanding in flavor and texture. We also selected a side of Elote to try. I love trying unique dishes. Elote is a fresh piece of corn on the cob broken into three pieces. It is covered in a street corn styled chipotle sauce and queso. I have to admit that my wife laughed at me multiple times as I ended up with cheese and sauce all over my face. Dispute the mess...and embarrassment...the Elote was an excellent choice. My wife and I had to try the special cocktails. The menu has a great selection of designer drinks. Each of the drinks were very unique and beautifully designed. We were amazed by the colorful drinks as they left the bar. My wife had the Sangria Mia which came in a designer pineapple style glass. The Sangria was very refreshing and tasty. I ordered the Mando Amargo Margarita. I loved the tequila zip and fresh fruit tastes. Both drinks were excellent. Make sure you give them a try! Overall Mercado is an outstanding addition to the Landing. Make sure Mercado is part of your dinning experiences in Fort Wayne!! read more

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Asked for a recommendation on tacos and the Cali AF was the best of the ones I ordered. The Carne Asada was just meh. Wouldn't order again. Kids shared chicken and waffles and one said it was the best brussel sprouts she'd ever had. I had to try one and I agree! Pricey but we may go back. read more

Mercado is a fun and thoroughly decent Mexican-inspired spot in downtown Fort Wayne, one of several eateries located in what appears to be their "restaurant row". (The location is called The Landing, I think?) We visited on a not super busy evening and ate at the bar. Fresa Con Crema (strong!) and Sangria Mia (really pleasant) for drinks. For entrees, we had the apparently famous Chicano Chicken, and the taco trio. The former was quite good. Tender chicken, interesting spice combination. For the latter, the Cali-AF taco was yummy and the other two (carne asada and chorizo) were below average. One important note: the menu on Yelp shows the Chicano Chicken as $16. This is wrong for dinner prices -- it's actually $24. It's likely other items are priced incorrectly in the Yelp photos as well. Caveat emptor. Nice staff, fun place. But pricier than we had expected. Probably still worth a visit. read more

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Short walk from our hotel, we find this great little street. with a bunch of restaurants and shops. We chose Mercado and we're not disappointed. The wait staff was friendly and helpful. And answered a few questions we had to help us make a decision. My pork chop was out of this world. Pork chop? Who orders a is a pork chop at a Mexican restaurant right. I never would have thought to. The description by our waitress peeked my interest, so I took the plunge and was not disappointed. Flavors that were bold, fresh and with the right amount of heat were paired with a juicy bone- in pork chop. YUM! read more

Mercado - Close- up of some great wall art - Mexican Near Me - Fort Wayne, Indiana

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The restaurant is on the landing in downtown Fort Wayne. Very cute area. Seating is indoor and patio, I went for indoor. Service was amazing. Very nice staff and quick service. I ordered a queso app with a classic marg. Both were perfect. The marg was so good I ordered a 2nd. For the main course I went with the 3 tacos and rice. Carne asada, chorizo and bean. Favors were amazing and not over powering. Classically complimented with onions and cilantro. Well beyond my expectations. read more