So this was a bit of a bust. Just got home from a trip and decided to order takeout. We really wanted to try Papi's since we haven't yet in Lancaster. Called and ordered our food. A kids taco, an enchilada, chips and queso, and a carne asada burrito. I drove over 25 minutes later to pick it up. When I got into the village, I realized there was a street festival happening. The restaurant was busy but I talked to the hosts and got my order. I should've double checked each box but I was hungry and didn't think I had to. Got home. And this was the not correct order. My wife's enchilada was a chicken and cheese burrito. My carne asada burrito with pico and sour cream was actually a birria burrito. The only thing that seemed right was the kids taco with cheese and rice. I called when we noticed and talked to the same host. There was no solution offered, a pretty awkward silence and a quick apology before we hung up. We ended up eating the food instead of waiting for another order and it was fine. Nothing we really were craving so it wasn't great. Very disappointed. I know it was a busy night but this wasn't a complicated order and the service wasn't very helpful. Will definitely rethink takeout from here in the future. read more

Papi Grande - Guessing it's the Birria Burrito? - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, New York

Possibly the worst margarita any of us have ever had. There were 4 of us, and we all agreed, no alcohol and tasted like it came straight from a bottle of that super sweet margarita mix from a grocery store. I would have expected better coming from a Mexican restaurant. At $15 per margarita, we spent $60 and koolaide would have tasted betted The Birra egg rolls, very very greasy and very little filling. Would not recommend The enchiladas ... imagine an enchilada with no enchilada sauce. They were not rolled either. Like small soft shell tacos,with a little chicken and melted cheese on top. Would never recommend them either The Spanish rice,at least that's what I think it was supposed to be, came out cold. It had zero flavor. No spice, no seasoning, no onions,or tomatoes, or some of the other things I have had in other restaurants. Very very disappointing. I was excited to try this location and then the new location at IsleView Park, but that will never happen. To say we were all disappointed is an understatement. read more

I'm writing this review in hopes that the ownership can truly see its flaws and make things better. There are some really good things going for this place but I would be hesitant to go back a third time. First and foremost, this restaurant needs to be cleaned. Top to bottom. The walls, coolers, screens, doors and all covered in greasy fingerprints. The floors look like they have never been mopped properly. The back of the toilet had was covered in a layer of dust, which says to me, even the toilets are not getting wiped down. When I was there on Monday, the bartender didn't wipe down the bar once, even when patrons left. It is gross from every angle and once you see it, you can't unsee it everywhere. If they aren't cleaning the customer facing areas, you better believe they aren't cleaning the kitchen, storage and coolers we don't see. The second item would be the professionalism of the service. While mostly everyone was pleasant, the staff was sort of just hanging out, with all of their personal belongings laying on surfaces, on and off their phones, talking with each other or a customer when other customers had empty drinks etc. the first time we were there we almost left because we came in and didn't see an employee for 15 minutes. I don't. Say this to get anyone in trouble, it just needs attention. Food was good, although it obvious that there are no Mexican's influencing this Mexican restaurant (one dirty bottle of Louisiana hot sauce?). We've tried most of the tacos, quesadillas, queso and salsas. Generally bland but this wouldn't keep me from going back. Vibe was great, especially for a Monday. The place had quite a few patrons and there was an acoustic country singer with a phenomenal voice. I hope this place turns around! Meg read more

I always said that the one thing Lancaster REALLY needs is a great taco joint!! This was a good attempt, but not exactly what I meant.... Because $7+ per taco is just mean. I would never call Papi Grandes "Authentic Mexican" . It's not even "California Mexican". It's American food in a tortilla. For instance....they offer Smash Burger tacos. Which I'm sure tastes delicious but I desperately wanted actual Mexican food. My husband and I ordered birria burritos, and they were 90% rice and beans with a tiny amount of meat and cheese. I forgot to take a picture there, but will add a picture of my leftovers when we got home (I ended up throwing it out because who wants just rice in a tortilla?) and then...LOL.... They also serve the rice burrito with Mexican rice on the side. I've never seen so much rice in my life, and it cost us $22 per plate! It was insane. My husband said "Wow this place is a real money grab!". They do have a nice children's menu section, but I will warn you that their mac and cheese is made with their queso which my 3 yr old said it was too spicy. I ended up eating it, and it did have a small kick to it, which to me was Soooooooo delicious, but I get why a toddler would say it's "too spicy". Overly, it's a great building, great atmosphere, the patio is really nice and the service was good. I just wish they would add meat to their food for the price. OH, And a normal sized Margarita?!?! $18!!!! EIGHTEEN DOLLARS. I almost fainted. read more

Papi Grande - Where is the birria in my birria burrito? - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, New York

Overpriced and $20 margarita with to much ice and little liquor. I could get better salsa and guacamole at the grocery store.

I ordered the Hibachi Bowl for dinner and it tasted lovely. The shrimp was cooked to perfect along with the chicken and the rice was just right. The sauce that the bowl was mixed in tasted very nice. Not sweet or salty just perfect. The portion was a bit smaller than I imagined for the price. Maybe over time and after reading reviews Papi Granda will enlarge their portion sizes. The ambiance was pretty neat for being in the Village of Lancaster. It's real nice seeing this type of restaurant in the village of Lancaster. Bringing in more people to the area which is nice. I didn't deal too much the service as I ordered the food to go. The cooking time seemed average and it was put in a sturdy to go box and placed in a bag. read more

Papi Grande - Hibachi Bowl - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, New York

Really, really, really bad. No service whatsoever. Wasn't busy but had to wait insanely long to even be seated. No one took our order, had to order drinks from the bar, drank them, still no one came. Waitress didn't care wasn't apologetic. Horrible music blasting outside too loud. Will say wife's margarita from the bar was excellent. Do not come here unless you just wanna hang out at a bar. read more

This was our first time here, coming for dinner on a Saturday evening. When you walk in if you turn left you're in the bar area with some high top tables. If you turn right, you are in the restaurant portion with a combination of tables, but mainly booths. There are two TVs on the wall but they are positioned so that only a few tables can comfortably watch them. I had an excellent server named Lindsey who was very attentive and professional. We opted for the specials of the day which was tacos with chunks of lobster meat in it for my husband and I took the sizzling platter that had four grilled shrimp and two pieces of grilled fish which I believe were haddock. My platter came with three small flour tortillas a scoop of sour cream, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and a scoop of coleslaw and a scoop of macaroni salad. We did receive a basket of chips and salsa immediately upon sitting down in our booth. This salsa was a bit watery and kept falling off our chips. The chips were nothing to write home about as they were not made in a restaurant. My husband enjoyed his two tacos and he was full after that since he had eaten the majority of the chips. My platter had a lot of food on it I ate a shrimp and about half of the fish. One piece of fish was blackened and was seasoned past my comfort level. It was just okay. I also found the ambiance and the decorations to be rather plain. We really could have been in any restaurant, there was little in ways of decoration to let you know it was a Mexican-themed restaurant. There are very high ceilings, so unfortunately all of the music and noise from the bar side came right over to the dining side. I would recommend they reconsider the volume of the music and DJs necessary for a festive atmosphere on the far side when they are in dinnertime dining mode. read more

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The bartender was awesome. Spiked up good convo and never let our drinks run out. Fantastic service and the drinks were amazing. I have to say, on a summer day, for a place that adheres to large bays that open up for an outdoor experience, they don't accommodate for the hot weather and it was unbearably hot inside. The food is pretty bad. Chimichanga came out brown and tasted like old oil. Rice had a cardboard taste and texture from a box. The absolute worst Birria taco I've ever had. Dried meat with 90% water in the Birria side to dip. Queso was good tho. read more

Another great experience. The waitress was nice and was accommodating to us being on a time crunch. We shared the Bottia Nachos and each tried a new taco than we had the first time there. The smash burger taco was unique and tasty, however the Pescado taco was the winner tonight. I loved the batter on the cod and the pickled onions!! Our wait time was minimal, our service was excellent and the atmosphere was very nice, sitting inside this time, on a very hot day! read more

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Don't go! First, took 5 minutes to have someone come over (and only 8 people in place at the most). Then went downhill from there. Had our drink and then left to go somewhere else. We will not be back! Place was dirty also and staff was not interested in the customers. Read Megan's post here also!! It perfectly describes the atmosphere and matches our experience also. read more

Newly opened location for Papi Grande in Lancaster. There is a dining room and a bar seating area with high tables. Service was excellent. Food and drinks were served up quickly and the servers are very nice. There's a huge wraparound raised deck area which is very close to opening. It is still under construction but looks to be 98% done. Drinks were also very good. Prices are a bit higher than normal but it's a classy new place. This a good addition to the rapidly improving downtown Lancaster area. Street parking is available but tough to come by but there are a couple public lots in the area read more

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Extremely slow service when there were only 2 tables occupied. The margaritas tasted like there were premix and not fresh which would be expected at an authentic Mexican shop. read more

Ungodly salty and horrible American-style flavors! We were sat down and forgotten about, as we were about to get up and leave a super friendly waitress came to greet us & apologize that their hostess was not doing her job. For a starter; the chips were COVERED in excess salt, the salsa tasted like marinara sauce, the queso was melted mozzarella-type cheese with extra salt, and the quac tasted like too much lime juice was added. Our meals were worse; "fajitas" tasted like canned chicken in teriyaki sauce and the hibachi bowl had water logged shrimp and salty rice with more teriyaki-type sauce. None of the food tasted like it was made there or Mexican, just tasted like it was purchased from a distributor and reheated with restaurant depot sauces. We ate about 1/2 the food, I spit out my last bite as I just couldn't stand the amount of salt and flavoring, and will NEVER return even if we were paid to go back. Such a disappointment and shame, hopefully it was just a one-off experience. read more

First we start with the service is to slow, then the taste on the food is horrible, plus at the end they miss part of the order, fajitas without meat where do we seeing this things read more

Good food. Good drinks. Good service but the fruit flies drove us crazy. At one point, there were 4 of them on the wall by our table. Gross. read more

Papi Grande - Fruit flies on the wall in January! - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, New York

So disappointed, food came out way too quickly for it to be the lukewarm temperature it was. We were so excited to try the birria nachos, it was chips with maybe 1/3 covered with queso and a few hunks of dry meat. The chicken quesadilla taco was so salty and the chicken was rubbery, it almost tasted as if it was a teriyaki sauce on it?? For the prices on the menu it's also a little crazy to be charging for chips and salsa, this place isn't high end enough for that. It also took our server about 10 minutes to greet us.. we were one of 2 tables inside. When he finally came over he was like a deer in headlights.. I understand that this place is "new" but after 4th of July I thought the kinks would have been worked out by now.. read more

The ground beef was undercooked. That said, it was when they first opened. Maybe things have improved. It seemed very starkly decorated for a Mexican restaurant. Again, it was early on. Perhaps they've since livened it up. read more

Drinks 10/10 Food 1/10 Ambiance/Service 10/10 (The high I got from the fresh paint fumes made my experience semi enjoyable) First time - immediately sad they do not give free chips and salsa for the table. Every other "Mexican" restaurant in the area does. Should have tried a taco to test the waters but decided on shrimp rice bowl instead. Shrimp delicious but the rice was absolutely disgusting. Pineapple was from a can. Corn was good but only gave one spoonful portion. Was suppose to have mikes hot honey on it.. could not taste it and mikes is known for being hot. Spending $19 for 5 pieces of shrimp on inedible rice and canned pineapple was not the move. I'm honestly not even upset about the black hair I found in my food.. I'm just upset about the rice. Again drinks were good might visit again for drinks and then head over to El Amigo for authentic tacos. read more

Papi Grande - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, New York

Unfortunately Papi Grandes missed the mark for me-enchiladas, a staple food on most Mexican restaurant menus are typically prepared similarly. These enchiladas, however, were coated in a thick red sauce that tasted like marina sauce with half melted cheese coating them-but somehow the cheese inside was rock solid and not remotely warm/melted or gooey. The salsa tasted like canned tomatoes dumped into a bowl (the first time ever a Mexican restaurant our table did not even come close to finishing our chips and salsa). Overall if you are looking for a similar vibe/menu there are countless other local option that offer fantastic food that is prepared well. ****Not a reflection on the service received which was great. read more

There is a huge difference between both their locations. Food was ok, nothing, service was good but I'll stick to the Amherst location.

First time here. Went with friends for lunch and ate in a booth, Service was excellent. Am a vegetarian and mentioned the lack of vegetarian choices on menu. She instantly informed me I could choose any option where protein choices were given and leave then out, Of course that means I don't get a protein source! Had quesadilla which was delicious. Friends had southwestern salad with fajita chicken and enchilada with shredded chicken. Both stated their selections were very tasty but the southwestern salad was too salty. I will definitely return but do wish they had more black bean options. read more

Definitely wouldn't go back. We put our name in and was told we'd get a call in about 30 min, was never called and when we went to check the list our name was crossed off. After finally being seated we ordered margaritas and tacos. The margaritas were not drinkable and the bang bang tacos only had 2 pieces of shrimp on them. Not worth it at all. read more

Food came out quick but not always a good thing. Mexican rice tasted and temp like it was warmed in a microwave. Nachos order was good but for $19 was mostly lettuce. Kid got a quesadilla but it was shredded chicken. Not really sure if shredded chicken ever tastes better than cut chunks. Not my favorite and disappointing read more

NO MAS!! Mediocre food, DIRTY (food-crusted) menus, over-priced drinks, no ambiance and bad acoustics. Really wanted to like this restaurant and support the revitalization of the Lancaster Village but I will NOT go back to Papi Grande's again. First off, how authentic is a Mexican restaurant that does not bring complimentary chips & salsa to the table? The main dining room is virtually featureless with no ambiance and a brutalist/minimalist decor (meaning, there is none). As such, the acoustics were HORRIBLE and we found ourselves having to shout during the duration of our meal. Our companions noted that the drink prices at this location were $3. MORE than those of its sister location in Amherst, and the menu was much more limited. They came hoping to order the roasted brussel sprouts only to be told they do not serve them. For those of us who enjoy refried beans with our Mexican food, don't come here--you will not find them anywhere on the menu, which is truly odd. Everyone agreed the food was just "meh;" my $17.99 taco salad was bland and the shell was partially burnt. Our companion's shrimp bowl (promised to contain "hot honey") was so sweet and lacking any heat he joked that he must have received all honey and no hot. He did not enjoy it whatsoever. The salsa which accompanied the chips we had to purchase ($3.49) tasted straight out of the jar. Seems Papi needs to go back to the drawing board to bring some grande to this location. read more