I had a fantastic time here for Cinco de mayo and it is LARGELY due to some of the incredible staff. Will was fantastic, charming and accommodating when our group arrived and needed help with our table. Eleanor, a kind and genuine spirit and Samantha R, so funny and a pleasure to be around - both helped make the night unforgettable. Thank you all so much read more

Playa Betty's was a winner for me, Friday night around 6pm. First impressions... walked in & there were about three employees in the front "hosts". No one greeted me nor acknowledged me when I walked in. Yikes, that wasn't a good start. Thankfully my coworkers were already seated at a table so they flagged me down. Our waiter Sam was the sweetest! All smiles, great communication & she got everything right. HEADS UP to my vegans they no longer have the vegan enchiladas which is what I was gonna order according to my fellow yelpers suggestions. No worries Plays Betty's still has other vegan options you can chose from. I personally got the Dharma bowl with tofu & I enjoyed it. In fact we all enjoyed our food & drinks. I would definitely return to Betty's, just be sure to have someone as good as Samantha at the front door to greet & seat your guests when they first walk in. Enjoy !! read more

See all

When my husband got invited on a random Thursday night no less to sit on a 3hr panel on The Loft hosted by Ephrat Asherie (the queen of blending B-girl energy with sleek choreo), we were STARVING by the end of it. And since we were near Lincoln Center, we slid over here to Playa Betty's. The spot is giving playful Tex-Mex vibes- colorful Mexican flags hanging overhead and faux cascading red roses energy. Now let me keep it real: the wait just to get acknowledged was long. But I guess Thursday nights be thursday-nighting here. Or, it looked like there was just one server holding the whole place together with prayer. We started with tortilla chips that were nice and thick with salsa verde- which I rarely get and I appreciated. Drinks? Yeah....they carried the night. Hubs grabbed the classic margarita and I went straight for the passion fruit one. That passion fruit margarita took me back home instantly with pure passion fruit flavor. Plus my cocktail was powerful. BABYYYY. Hubs got the salmon bowl served in an actual.... bowl. Even so, it was awkward to eat from it. I had the shrimp tacos. The seasoning was excellent but the shrimp size was like mini shrimp. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Service was ok, the cocktails absolutely slapped- but the food presentation and quality need some tightening up because the drinks are outshining the kitchen BAD. read more

See all

Came here for I'm a most a breakfast. It was fabulous. Had shrimp tacos had pork taco tacos you name it. The service was awesome. They count checking in on us all the time and the ambience was such a fun brunch crowd. It was definitely a place where you wanna go in and really enjoy it with your friends. read more

Playa Betty’s - Shrimp tacos - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Jordan F..... was the host with the most!!!!! He made sure we was good while being seated, very professional but did his job the the max. I say give him a raise. It was my 1st time there and believe me, you....it won't be the last. It was 1 of my Sistah Circle's Birthday. We've been friends for 20 + years. The food was so good everyone enjoy their meal. The ambiance is a laid back chilled mode....not expensive for a night out but will come back for afterwork Happy Hour. read more

See all

This is a cute casual place. It kinda is a beach theme, but also has movie posters. It's a little corny but it's a nice laid back vibe and the service is excellent. Everyone was so friendly and the food came out fast. Food is expensive for the portion size but it was tasty. The Coca Cola short rib tacos were excellent. On the small side but the meat was super flavorful and sweet from the cola, very tender. The fish tacos were okay, pretty soggy and not very crispy. Def get the cola taco if you come here! Nice to go to before or after a show at the beacon theater. I also like how they give complimentary chips, and the chips were very good, salty but not too salty. read more

See all

This is one of my most favorite Mexican restaurants. The service is always friendly and welcoming. You never have to wait long for your food to come out fresh and delicious. This is the first place I've had pomegranates with my tacos-such an amazing flavor combo!! I love eating outside in the warmer weather. I highly recommend coming here & can't wait to go back soon! read more

See all

Great ambiance and pretty good food; wacky margaritas. I really enjoyed the experience here, but if you're ordering a pitcher of margaritas (we ordered as a large group since it was cheaper than individual) I would advise against it. Perhaps it is the quality of the tequila or marg mix but they really did taste off. Had the fish tacos which were delicious and the rice and beans were also great. Guac was alright. Definitely like the ambiance in here and the service was prompt. I just really wish the margaritas were good! read more

Playa Betty’s - Guacamole - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

See all

Came here on Memorial Day and was pretty busy. The three stars is for the food only...the guacamole comes deconstructed and def lacked flavor and salt. The sauces, dips, and tacos were ok. The beans def needed more love and seasoning. However, our server was awesome! Quick and very friendly. He gets six stars! read more

See all

Actually a really great Mexican spot. It's very loud and crowded, so not a great place for an intimate dinner, but fun with a group and food is really impressive! Usually I'm not a fan of queso, but this one is great! Chips are crunchy and salty. The enchilada was soo good - I loved the sauce. And fun rice too! I'd definitely come here again. We were stuffed! read more

See all

Fantastic food, vibe, and area!! I came to Playa Betty to have dinner before a show at the Beacon Theatre (it's right across the street.) I was a bit worried since it was happy hour and the place was PACKED. I opted to sit at a table instead of the bar since it was crowded. I was seated quickly, and my food arrived quickly as well! I didn't have as much of a wait time as I feared. I drank two Palomas (shoutout to the server who came back to check in on me before happy hour ended!!) and a taco dinner, which comes with any 3 tacos of your choice and a side of rice and beans. My three taco choices were: - The Al Pastor (this place has got to have the BEST Al Pastors I've ever had - a personal favorite) - The Carne Asada - The Marley They were all delicious. Playa Betty is a MUST whenever I am in the Upper West Side. read more

See all

I had trouble deciding and I didn't think tacos by themselves would be enough so I got the 3 taco platter with rice and beans. Pricey for what it was. Yellow rice and black beans were fine, if pedestrian. Tacos were good! Loud restaurant for a Thursday night. I wore earplugs. read more

Playa Betty’s - 3 tacos platter with rice and beans. - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Stopped here for a quick bite as we were short on time. It was very packed (Friday evening) but we got high table for 2 right away, looked like larger parties had a longer wait but they do take reservations. Ordered guacamole, tacos and margaritas and informed our waitress that we're pressed for time. Food came out quick, plating is casual, guacamole was fresh (had to add salt) and tacos were good. Margaritas were ok, not very flavorful, which was a let down. Waitress made sure we got our check & could leave as soon as we're done which we appreciated. Good prices. read more

Playa Betty’s - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Playa Betty's is a great spot for After work drinks. The staff are friendly and attentive and the space is fun. It's almost beach themed. The food is not the best Mexican I ever had, but it's solid. You can go there and get some pretty filling things for a good prices considering it's on the upper west side. They also always have a good frozen cocktail read more

Playa Betty’s - TOT-CHOS - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

The food was alright and the overall ambiance was great, but the service was not the best. We had a reservation at 7pm, the hostesses told us they need a few minutes to clean the table. We checked back around 7:10 and were told the table was still being cleaned and were just full of attitude. Guac and queso both came out very quickly so that's a plus. The tacos were OK - pass on the falafel and mushroom tacos. The fried chicken taco was decent and the Al Pastor was meh at best. Would probably not go here again unless it's to get guac. read more

Playa Betty’s - GUACAMOLE 2.0 - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Taco Tuesday! On this scorching 101*F day we decided to finally try Playa Betty's on the UWS -- it was so good! Service is really good and the whole place has So-cal vibes. Incredible Taco Tuesday selection for the variety and size! We were able to get a walk-in table outside and ordered one of each taco off of their $4 taco Tuesday menu. Our favorites were in this order: fish taco, carne asada, jerk chicken, shrimp, Coca Cola short rib, fried chicken, falafel, adobo mushroom. Make sure to get the Tot-Cho's! They're great with fresh guac, pico, and queso blanco read more

See all

I eat a lot of Mexican and Tex-Mex. I appreciated the reasonable prices, though found the taco meats to be underwhelming. Al pastor was the best. Carne asada was chewy. Short rib was borderline inedible- so tough I had to use fork and knife. read more

Playa Betty’s - Al pastor, CARNE ASADA, short rib - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

The waitstaff and bartenders are amazing - super attentive and friendly. The manager Rafa is the worst. There's now a 90 min time limit for meals, even for large groups. He will time you. read more

I went here for Taco Tuesday where the tacos were $4 each. The staff was friendly, good ambiance, and at least on Tuesday the tacos were affordable. Not the best tacos I've ever had but they were solid - would go again on another taco Tuesday read more

Playa Betty’s - Taco - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Sometimes I come here for discounted tacos on Taco Tuesday, but I've been coming here less after they took fajitas off the menu. The rest of the menu hasn't been great, but the restaurant has a fun ambiance with plenty of seating and outdoor seating. It's a nice place to relax with some tacos and drinks. read more

See all

Enchiladas were just ok but the Queso with chorizo was the star This place was hoping on a Sunday night. Service was slow and our appetizer and entry came at the same time...thus 4 not 5 starts. THE QUESO. read more

Playa Betty’s - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

See all

We had the Baja Fish Taco, The Marley and Southern Girl. They were pretty tasty, with the Baja Fish Taco being a quick favorite. The rice and beans were also quite tasty. The service was alright; the waitress rushed us a lot despite there not being a lot of people. Liked the beachy atmosphere. read more

Playa Betty’s - Baja Fish Taco - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Friendly server. Found the tortillas for the tacos to be rubbery and inedible and the pastor a bit dry. Good queso. Overly bright lighting. Just OK read more

One of my go-to spots on the UWS! Decent Mexican food to satisfy your craving, accompanied by complimentary chips and salsa. It's a fun and lively place to gather friends. The drinks are great too! read more

I had heard mixed reviews of this spot but decided to try it for bottomless brunch and really loved it! It was pretty dead for a Saturday, but thus the servers were very attentive and always made sure our glasses were filled. I got the chicken burrito and thought it was a great portion and super tasty. The prickly pear bellini and red sangria hit the spot too! Would definitely come back to try the tacos. read more

Playa Betty’s - hot sauce - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Great server yesterday8-10-25@630lm , African American mid age gentleman Everything was hot and correct We were starving we order everything at once and he was ok with it Thanks for making our Sunday family day special See you soon read more

Saturday night dinner - great vibe love the decor great service and 3 tacos for $20 very yummy

Fantastic food, atmosphere, and service that works for a family dinner or night out with friends. We ate here after a long day at the Natural History museum. With 3 hungry young boys and 1 tired baby we made our way through the front door. Usually, our crew is met with a deep breath as the restaurant knows there is a 50/50 chance that our table will be rowdy, BUT not Playa Betty. We were met with a huge "Hello and Welcome!" and every family member received a fist bump from one of the waiters. Once seated, Craig greeted our table and informed us of happy hour, which I took part in. He quickly came back to tell me that the keg was being changed so it would take a few more minutes but I didnt mind trying the other beer instead. After receiving my beer, Craig returned with a sample of my original order now that the keg was changed, and he said, "I didn't want you to miss out on what you originally wanted!" Craig was an incredible server, acknowledging all of the kids that ranged from 1.5 to 12 years old. The whole restaurant catered to our kids and made them feel welcomed and appreciated. Only one of my kids got a kids meal which came with an ice cream at the end. Since this restaurant knows kid dynamics they voluntarily brought out ice cream for the other 3 free of charge. The atmosphere was absolutely incredible and would work for any occasion from family dinner to night out with friends after work. The food was out of this world good and the family could not get enough of the street corn. I highly recommend this place and will absolutely be going back! read more

See all

Vibe: 5/10 Service: 6/10 Value: 4/10 Queso: 6/10 Short rib enchilada: 6/10 Cali carnitas: 5.5/10 Overall: 5.5/10 (2.75/5) [To clarify our review system: 10 = we'll never have anything else as good as this in our lives (we use 10 very sparingly!) 9 = extraordinary 8 = great 7 = above average 6 = average Anything below 6 is being critical] read more

See all

Super cute place! I'm forever in the beach state of mind, so while walking down Amsterdam, this place obviously caught my eye. What a great unofficial start to beach season! Got a nice table on the inside lining the open windows overlooking the street. There were so many things that looked good to me on the menu, but ultimately went with the breakfast burrito: scrambled eggs, Jack cheese, avocado, and tots (in the burrito!). The burrito arrived hot and huge, and somehow, being stuffed among everything, the tots remained crunchy. (No one likes a soggy, oily tot!). Delicious hot sauce was offered at the table along with sour cream, and I loaded that bad boy up. I'm still amazed I ate the whole thing, but it was just too good to stop. The hot sauce had my nose running and eyebrows sweating, and it was fantastic. Decor: Chill and awesome Food: Delicious Would come back: absolutely! read more

Playa Betty’s - Breakfast burrito - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

Decided to stop in for dinner after the Thanksgiving Balloon inflation event. We didn't have any reservations and the hostess said it would be about a 25 min wait. We went downstairs to use the bathroom and the men's bathroom was flooded. One of the managers came down and saw us waiting and got us seated - he was super nice wish I remembered his name. Once we sat the kids were given kid menus to color except they didn't give them anything to color with - we ordered right away at 6:00pm it was 6:40 and our food still hadn't come out. The waitress apologized that the kitchen was backed up- brought us over chips and salsa while we waited. Finally the food came out at 6:50 almost an hour waiting for the food. My kids were exhausted and starving. We asked for the manager - Todd came over to talk to us (forcefully) because we saw when the waitress spoke to him and he shook his head. When he finally came over he repeatedly apologized - however it wasn't sincere- he seemed frustrated. Overall - He did the right thing. The food was good not great. read more

Playa Betty’s - QUINOA - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

My friends and I had an early dinner at Playa Betty's before a comedy show at the Beacon Theater. It was a perfect location to grab a bite to eat and not have to rush to the show. The decor inside is very bright and fun. It is also very spacious inside, though some of the tables are a bit close together. The more the merrier I guess! Our waiter came over and asked for our drink order. He was very friendly and brought out our drinks quickly. I ordered a mango margarita and to be honest it wasn't that great. Pretty syrupy and the salt on the rim was lacking for sure. I decided to go with a classic margarita for my second drink and I liked that one a lot better. My friends and I ordered the build your own guac to start and it was very good. I liked adding all the different fixings to it. The only problem was we finished it and still had half a pile of chips. We decided to order a side of salsa so we could finish up the chips. For my meal I ordered the three taco dinner. I had a baja fish taco, the marley taco, and the short rib taco. I do appreciate very much that you can mix and match your tacos. I love having that option. My favorite taco out of the three was the baja fish. It was very good. The chicken in the marley tasted a bit dry, but the baja fish was great with all the right fixings. Overall, we had a good time eating some tacos and catching up at Playa Betty's before the show. Rating is more of a 3.5! read more

See all

We were catching a show at the Beacon so we made a reservation early (on OpenTable) and stopped here - JUST in time for Happy Hour! We were a group of 4 and were seated immediately. Since it was happy hour, we got 2 pitchers - 1 paloma & 1 margarita (each was $45). The drinks were smooth but strong. My husband also got the Mexican mule. For starters, we got the Birria Poutine which was french fries covered with birria meat and sauce as well as Shrimp Ceviche. The fries were amazing - the cotija cheese crumbled on top was the perfect addition. The ceviche was fresh and did not smell fishy - it was just made. For mains, we all ordered tacos & tried them all. The jerk chicken taco with plantain was to die for & the carne asada were top notch. It was a good bite before the show - highly reccomend. read more

See all

I came here for brunch on a Sunday. I thought it would be hard to get a reservation, but there were plenty of open tables just a couple hours in advance of our seating. To drink, I had the Playa Mai Tai. In my experience, Mai Tais are usually orange in color from the orange curacao, but this one looked and tasted more like a margarita. It didn't really have any fruity flavor and mostly tasted like lime sugar water. My partner got the rum punch and it was also an unexpected color. He found it way too sweet. To eat, I got the breakfast quesadilla. It was a good portion size. The tortilla was crispy and filled with scrambled eggs, pico de gallo, black beans, and cheese. The guacamole and sour cream came on the side. I enjoyed this dish, especially with a good dousing of hot sauce. We also shared the fluffy corn pancakes. These lived up their name and actually had chunks of corn in them. They were topped with blueberries and strawberries. The perfect sweet addition to brunch. Our waitress was friendly. They had a great playlist of top 90s/00s hits. I'd come again! read more

Playa Betty’s - Fluffy Corn Pancakes - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

See all

This place touts itself as being California style Mexican. It's not. I'm from California and it's no where near that good. I loved the interior decor though. It was bright, super adorable, and colorful. I decided to go with the Taco Dinner, which consisted of any 3 tacos, brown rice, as well as pinto or black beans. I liked that I was allowed to mix and match the different types of taco. I requested the rice and beans to be separate, because I'm not a fan of black beans. The brown rice was on the bland side. For my tacos, I selected Fried Fish, Carne Asada, and Short Rib Beef tacos. My favorite was the fish one, which was tempura battered cod, cabbage, pico, cotija cheese, along with jalapeño crema. The fish was lightly crispy, delightfully fried and flaky, while the cabbage was fresh, with a nice crunch. The jalapeño sauce was flavorful without being that spicy, which I appreciated. The Carne Asada taco consisted of grilled, marinated skirt steak, onions, guacamole, and cilantro. The steak was juicy, succulent, and well seasoned. The short rib taco included braised beef short rib, pickled red onion cilantro, and chipotle tomatillo sauce. This was pretty tasty and the meat was full of flavor. I couldn't resist getting dessert and had a tough time choosing between the warm chocolate brownie a la mode or the guava cheesecake. I went with the brownie, which was served piping warm in a little cast iron plate. It was decadent and delectable. Melty, rich chocolate with a sweet crunchiness, accompanied by creamy vanilla ice cream. Service was good. The waitress was personable and on top of it. Pricing was decent for the area. I wouldn't return though because I'm a Mexican food snob, and this didn't hit the spot. read more

See all

This is a great place to go before a show at the Beacon. Food is on point. Drinks are delicious and service is great. There was a minor mistake with my food and the manager fixed it immediately with a smile. Always a fun time. read more

My Fiancé and I recently dined at Playa Betty's )not our first time) and it was an unforgettable experience! The ambiance was warm and inviting. The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive, making us feel right at home. We started with the SHRIMP CEVICHE and I had the CARNE ASADA Taco along with the PURA VIDA" FISH and He had the VEGANCHILADA (see photos / see menu for description) Everything was Delicious!! Thanks to the staff for always accommodating us with our scooters. read more

See all

Fun Cali-Mex place with great margaritas and inventive 'n tasty tacos. The guacamole was the best we've ever had!! We had dinner here right before a show at the Beacon Theater and the location couldn't have been more convenient -- it's right around the corner. We will definitely be back the next time we go to the Beacon. read more

Overall, this is a decent Mexican restaurant. My favorite in the neighborhood? No. But it is decent for simple foods and a margarita. One of the bartenders is really good, but the others are just okay. I do have to say it is an awesome spot for cinco de mayo - just get there early if you want a spot at the bar read more

A fun Mexican spot! The music was loud and the lights were down low. It was very busy on a Monday night with football and baseball games on. The guac was freshly made and could have used a bit more chips, garlic, and salt. Great to share with a small group and like the small dishes of add ins. The dharma bowl with tofu had a lot of flavor from the dressing on the side and spice from the black beans. The sweet potatoes were undercooked and sparse. The tofu also had a great seasoning on it to ensure that the bowl wasn't boring. Fun atmosphere and our server was great! read more

Playa Betty’s - Guacamole 2.0 - Mexican Near Me - New York, New York

See all