Samantha's- made the food as bland as possible so that the Caucasians would come! Well it worked!! Who knew that seasoning your chicken with H2O only would be hit?! Stay thirsty my friends read more

I can't say enough good things about this place! We come here all the time! We celebrate birthdays here we come here when things are bad, the wait staff is apart of our family when we are here! And the food is out of this world! The specials are incredible and you will never go wrong getting one! The fajitas and enchiladas are just on another level! I have yet to find Latin food like this any where! My only complaint is that they only have one location! read more

The food IS fantastic at this Salvadorean restaurant, and the prices are high, but fair. It was even full late on a Sunday night. The place is always loud. My concerns are: 1. A cheaper salad was substituted for one more expensive without the server letting us know. When I pointed it out, she said that they had run out of some ingredients. I thought this was dishonest. The hostess did not charge us for the salad, which was nice, but how often do they get away with undisclosed substitutions? 2. They charge everyone an 18% "Gratuity", which is fine if that is stated on the menu, or if patrons are notified in an obvious way on the check. But when you pay by credit card, you are presented with a receipt to sign that has a line for Tip. Many people don't pay attention to the "gratuity" line on the check, especially if they've been drinking. Or being Latino, which many of the customers are, they don't realize that they've already paid because they're unfamiliar with the word "gratuity". The tip is often paid twice. This is a practice that I also consider dishonest. read more

OMG!! TRES LECHES, TRES LECHES, TRES LECHES!!! Yes, three times for this piece of heaven on a plate. I took my 10 year old here for his report card/birthday celebration and he gave it 5 stars! They have the best chips and salsa in the area, we thoroughly enjoyed the ceveche mixto, and our huge entrees. I would have subtracted a star because of the sucky parking situation, but I'm gonna let my son rate this one because he got almost straight A's and he doesn't drive yet, lol. read more

Not outstanding, but solid and reasonably priced with a varied menu to suit a variety of tastes. A mixture of Mexican, Central American and South American cuisines are featured here. The pupusas are quite good as is the salsa and the plantain and cheese appetizer. I had a crab special, which was tasty and we all enjoyed our 1/2 pitcher of mojitos (we were being good)! read more

Samantha's is my favorite restaurant in the area! A long time staple of the neighborhood with consistent service and food- it never disappoints. Plus their margaritas are strong! read more

I agree - Samantha's is worth the trip. The folks who run the place are wonderful and typically the service is quite efficient. But pls note, they do draw a pretty big crowd on the weekends. Their menu covers both Mexican and Salvadoran fare. The wait staff knows their stuff pretty well, so check with them if you have questions. I recommend the pupusas, fish/seafood dishes and also the tres leches for dessert - quite good. Their prices are reasonable and their portions are usually pretty big. Experiment a little bit - some of the more traditional dishes may sound slightly odd, but I have yet to be disappointed. read more

Watch out if you go here! My bill came to $48. I used a Groupon that covered me up to $50. They didn't want to give it to me because they forgot I had it! I told them then I won't pay at all. Suddenly they said they would credit back mu credit card... They did not. Instead of charging me the price of the meal, they charged me $58! I fought it out with my credit card company but imagine if I hadn't checked. The food is ok. But NOT WORTH THE PRICE. Go to El Golfo down the road for the same quality at half the price. read more

I like this family mexi bistro, however. If you want something that resembles authentic MEXICAN food, save your money. After sampling 20 cafes in the Metro area, which claim to serve Mexican cuisine, speaking with the staff/ owners in Espanol illustrates the dilemma. 100 % are El Salvadoran. Anyone with basic cultural understanding of Central Am. Knows what im talking about. These cafes know the names of Mexican dishes, and approximately how they should look, but Salvadorans do not like spicy food. So expect bland, under spiced, uninspired food. Then go buy your own ingredients from one of the 30 local Latino stores, slice up plenty chilis & cilantro...eat your Mexican at home because after spending 60 $ for mediocracy, all you get is beans / cheap cheese / over cooked low end meat, all served up with a salsa which reminds me of garlic marinade. read more

I absolutely love this place! The food is amazing and everything they have is so delicious! Been going here for 10 + years and will continue! read more

My husband and I used to LOVE Samantha's. Their seafood enchiladas, seafood soup (I forget the formal name), and stuffed shrimp were my favorites. My husband loved the trout in a white wine sauce with scallops and shrimp on top. And the margaritas were solid. Lately though, the quality has noticeably gone down. On our last visit, they took nearly an hour to get us our food. They're always busy, but we've never had to wait like this, and we had a two-year-old with us. Luckily he wasn't starving and didnt' seem to notice. There were five adults and they gave us one tiny bowl of salsa and one basket of chips. When we asked for a refill we had to remind them when it still hadn't come, 20 minutes later. The staff was apologetic about all the delay, but things were just really off. My enchiladas were supposed to come in a red sauce with Spanish rice. They came in some kind of white cream sauce with white rice that was on the crunchy side. My sister-in-law ordered the same dish and had to send hers back because they tried to serve it to her with burnt cheese on top. My husband's seafood soup, which usually tastes nice and briny, tasted like some cream of mushroom soup had been slipped into the base. My father-in-law went there recently and told us he wasn't happy with what he had, either. Samantha's I hope you return to your former glory! read more

My bf and I went with a groupon, and it it met my expectation as a yelper! I tried the seafood soup as suggested and it was rich and creamy.. very very rich. It was perfectly season. My bf got the ribeye and it too was melt in your mouth and cooked to perfection. We got the ceviche which was also delicious and tried to order pupas, but was soo full, it's still sitting in our fridge waiting to be eaten. bad thing, parking SUCKS! it's small the restaurant is small and the parking is small.. the service was great, very attentive, but it's soo small that you can hear all the conversations of everyone sitting around you. I also got two glasses of wine and they were priced fairly ($6.50) while my bf got some Bourbon and ginger ale and that was under $7.00... all in all we still broke the bank, w/o our groupon it would've been around $80... delicious food yes, but quite expensive. read more

actually 3 1/2 stars don't get me wrong - i like samantha's, but i can't jump on the kudos bandwagon that some folks here are raving about. The food here is good (not great) and if i didn't live so close to here, i wouldn't have eaten here as many times as i have, so with that being said - here is my run down. seafood paella - just ok (and it takes at least 30 minutes to make), pollo saltado - very good (and the mariscos saltado), carne asada - ok (so my wife tells me), chuleta de puerco - ok, camarones entomatados - good (not a lot of shrimp though), masitas de puerco - pretty good. oddly enough, it's the antojitos (appetizers) that are (to me at least) the tastiest food. highly recommend the mejilones al gengibre (aka mussels) and yuca con chicharron (salvadoran pork) oh and the burritos, chimichanges, and fajitas are all good too. all in all - samantha's is good eating, but i wouldn't drive all the way across town just to eat there. read more

My wife and I have live in Silver Spring and since moving here we've yet to find a truly overall amazing Mexican restaurant. With Samantha's, I feel we may have closed that chapter in our quest! In order to fully rate a Mexican restaurant one must have high standards for the following: chips n' salsa, drinks, basic meal, atmosphere, and customer service. In most places we've been too, one or the other categories will slide off our otherwise good standards, but rarely will one exceed expectations. We're not too picky, and never would we expect lavish, over-the-top treatment, but if you're a mid to late twenties couple...... you expect a certain level of normality. Let's start: Chips and Salsa - Perfect, just the way I like them! As others have stated, the chips are thin, fresh, and hot! Not too filling, but not too boring at the same time. While the salsa is creepily perfect as well. It's thick, not too chunky, and hot (spicy wise, but not too the point that you can't eat it). I hate restaurants that try and make their own salsa, and it comes out like a bowl of soup. Or for that matter, restaurants that use "canned" products. This was the perfect blend of chips to salsa that I have come to expect, yet so rarely find! Drinks - Sadly I am referring to the alcoholic ones, as I've out grown water and soda when visiting restaurants (joke). We ordered a half pitcher of margaritas...... they didn't suck. Although it appeared as though they originated from a larger container in their bars frig, they were clearly made earlier (fresh), and tasted as a margarita should! By that I mean, lime, margarita stuff, and tequila! Not the cheap stuff mind you, the flavor was clearly of a name brand and strong! We sample sangria and margaritas whenever we go to a Mexican restaurant (tacky I suppose), but it can sometimes show a generic "standard" so to speak. Bottom line, you will not be disappointed by their booze (FYI- they have a liquor store next door, so I'm sure they get a discount!). Main Meals - Before I go on, I should add this caveat; we randomly received a "hook-up". For whatever reason, and maybe because we are both good mannered, nice people), our waitress brought us out an appetizer of taquitos! She informed us, they were somewhat known for these, and we would have to try them. These were not your average taquitos! They were large, fresh meet filled (steak in one, chicken in the other), and arranged in such a manner you'd think you just ordered "southwest egg rolls". They came with some additional sides and dipping sauces, but all those were unnecessary! There's a reason why the taquitos are "known" here...... get them, trust me! But I digress....... I ordered the chicken fajitas, while the wife ordered the beef tacos. I use restaurants fajitas as a judgment tool as well, and needless to say, I was not disappointed! The chicken was seasoned, juicy, and plentiful. While the standard sides were large in quantity and filling. I was shocked, as I didn't expect such flavor and quality, and as I looked up at my wife, she had a similar look on her face. Her tacos were large and over flowing with contents (in a good way), and the beef....... it tasted like eloquent cuts of fresh steak....???? I was shocked too! Don't get me wrong, I've been to places where Yelp was screaming, "this is a five all the way baby!". But when we show up, seemed more like a three in our books. I can't comment on other foods, but if this is an example of what's to come, rest assured we will be back this weekend! Atmosphere - A few people have mentioned the location isn't the best (adjacent the intersection of University Blvd and Piney Branch Rd). I've traversed that location a lot, and it's a perfectly fine area to be in! From the outside Samantha's looks pretty normal, nothing too write home about, but the inside is another story. The decor is simple, easy on the eyes, and calm. No loud music or TV's blasting. All you get is a well decorated restaurant space in a modern design. The majority of the place is candle lit, and clearly sets the mood to enjoy ones food! I suppose someone could say the candle light is there to hide all the imperfections? I looked, and found none! General Customer Service - Always a much needed high mark in our books, as we've been to too many places that set the bar high (Lauriol Plaza in DC consistently hits the mark). Our waitress was pleasant, happy, and eagerly available to answer any questions we had. She was even though one that brought us the random appetizer, insisting we try it as it was one of their "known" items. Have you been to a restaurant that served chips and salsa, but you always ran out? The owner's kid (maybe 12) comes around and refills you at a drop of the hat. He was very professional, and pulled off the "mini-suit" very well (ha-ha). I suppose it beats mowing yards in the summer? Bottom line.... you should have already been there, like last week! GO NOW!! read more

Restaurant is clean and somewhat elegant on the inside, with white table linens. Let's start with the chips and salsa. The house salsa was warm (not my favorite way to eat salsa). It had a decent flavor, but I would have liked to have seen more onion and cilantro in the mix. The salsa was not very hot. I understand, some don't like it hot, but I like HOT. So I asked the waiter to bring hotter salsa, which he did and oh boy did I hit the jackpot. It was even too spicy for me. This secret salsa was made with habaneros I believe. The trick was to mix this dragon's breath with the regular house salsa for a custom perfect mix. The chips were nothing special. Had the Beef Taquitos as an appetizer. They were somewhat larger than the taquitos I'm used to. For the main dish, had the Chili Rellenos. Comes with 2, your choice of beef or cheese. I had one of each. I liked the cheese one best. All in all a pretty good Mexican/Latin restaurant. I think the prices were a little higher than what I'm used to for a place like this. read more

Samantha's Restaurant - Chili Rellenos - Mexican Near Me - Silver Spring, Maryland

Being born and raised in Southern California forces you to become a taco snob, hi. In the ten years that I've been living here, I've tried all kinds of taco's in search of something that actually TASTE'S authentic... and I KNOW that El Salvadorian food is not Mexican like it is in California--but people, the a la carte carne asada's are perfection, and so are the seafood enchilada's which are stuffed and very surprisingly fresh tasting. The guacamole is the real deal, and not the cheap, fake, artificial crap everybody except Chipotle are using--which is another sacred violation to Californians. I've been searching for my "go-to" taco joint and found her at Samantha's Restaurant. read more

We went in wanting light fare so we chose 2 appetizers and 1 main dish. The ceviche (peruvian style) was OK, you could definitely taste the jalapeño peppers. It should always be served with corn (maiz / choclo / hominy) and sweet potato but both items were missing from my plate. Instead they put a couple of lemon wedges. Without the corn and sweet potato it really is an incomplete plate of ceviche - the sweetness of the sweet potatoes is there to offset the acidity of the ceviche itself. The teenager in our group ordered the chicken taquitos - which I sampled. They were shredded chicken with a very mild flavored sauce (almost lacking in flavor). The taquito shells were nice and crispy on the outside but the chicken itself was so-so. We also ordered a chicken milanesa (breaded chicken) which was well cooked and huge! It came with a simple salad, rice and black beans. This was probably the best tasting of the dishes we ordered. Service was friendly and polite but there was a long gap in time between when the dishes were served and when they came up to check on us. I've been to Samantha's about 3 times now sampling different plates - the lomo saltado is pretty tasty, the burrito is standard (they don't give you grilled steak or grilled chicken, instead they give you ground beef or shredded chicken which is a big nono), the grilled chicken salad is exactly what you'd expect, grilled chicken over greens with a vinaigrette dressing. Overall the food is mediocre to good depending on what dishes you choose. Located in an area that lacks in sit-down dining - it is noteworthy. read more

Looks run of the mill from the outside. Inside is a festival of good eats. Wow, we ate so well here. read more

This restaurant is far overrated. I have been to great restaurant in cities known for strong Mexican food and this place doesn't even come close. It's over priced (14 dollars for two small carne asada tacos with chewy meat), and flavorless. It may be good for DC, but it is certainly not good Mexican food. read more

Made our first visit today for lunch after seeing it several times and wishing it was time to eat. It is very neat and tidy inside and the service is excellent. The prices are on the high side and we stuck to the appetizer menu. The ultra thin and crispy chips go very well with the warm and tasty salsa - yum alert! The chicken quesadilla was thick and loaded with all the right ingredients. The tamale was unexpectedly soggy and bland since it was wrapped and steamed in a leaf. The star of the show was the taquitos, a meaty crispy delight that could have been an entree. Parking is challenging in the private lot that also serves a beverage store and landromat, They also charge for soft drink refills, which annoys me. But the food was good and the place was full of happy diners. Definitely another visit in the near future. read more

Having driven by here for years, I was surprised that it was rather nice inside once I finally stopped in with the family for an early dinner. Service was friendly though our waitress was a bit inattentive. Chips and salsa were nice. No complaint there. I was rather surprised at the very limited options for vegetarians and almost nothing listed that was appropriate for small kids (ala carte options would be nice.) At one point, I walked back to the restroom and noticed the kitchen is open and exposed. I noticed the kitchen was a total mess. The floor was absolutely filthy and covered in food debris. Yet, I saw numerous plates being lined up to be served and they looked excellent so I let it go. Our dishes were ok. Better than many of the other Latin places in the immediate area. Not great, not bad. So by the end of the meal, i thought, I'd stop in again. By the next morning, however, I was clearly sick and all signs point back to this restaurant. I can not prove it but I'm quite sure something I ate was contaminated. It's not terribly likely I'll go back anytime soon. read more

This family run business has been a HUGE part of my life growing up. And I know from all of the years spent dining in their restaurant that they make it a point to get to know their customers - at the end of the day, their goal is to serve you fantastic food. In this place, the customer is KEY. They appreciate feedback and truly listen to their customers. Since my family has been coming here for years, my father swears up and down he has tried everything on the menu at least once and says everything on the menu is fantastic. Pupusas and curtido are just excellent. Carne asada is perfect. Seafood is always the best and I've never had a bad fajita. Word to the wise - I refuse to order enchiladas from here. With so many options to chose from, I don't see a reason to order it in the first place. I can make enchiladas at home. I cannot, however, make some of the incredible sauces they prepare that make their dishes so perfect. And about take out - I get it all the time, but I'm selective about the food I get to go. Some dishes are simply BETTER in the restaurant. Once boxed up, the food WILL cool and condensation CAN happen. Go figure - who knew?! In all seriousness, not all dishes are meant to be enjoyed outside of the restaurant. If you'd like to have a large group come in, call a day in advance and reserve space. Despite the small space, they can seat large groups with ease. And they are great with kids, too. A lot of the reviews here complain about parking - the beer/wine store that shared the parking lot with Samantha's has moved down the street, so that frees up a couple of spots! Truly, the owners and managers of this restaurant care about your experience with them and aim to satisfy their customers. If you're not pleased, TELL THEM. If you're unsure about a dish, ASK THEM. They are truly wonderful people. read more

Fantastic light chips and great salsa served as soon as we sat down. Service was good--attentive and helpful when we had food dilemmas. The fajitas were pretty good, although the pico de gallo was a little sad looking and the onions were a bit underdone. The margaritas were tasty and the tres leches cake lived up to it's reputation as the best dessert they have. My friend had the spinach empanada and wasn't happy with it, but she ordered it ala carte and wasn't too upset about the $4.00 she spent. Definitely great for the money. read more

Worst food ever. Tried twice. Will not go back. Who runs out of corn tortillas at a Mexican restaurant?

I've been here many, many times after hearing good things about it. It has exceeded my expectations. I am not a fan of the fast-food, cheesy, gloppy, fatty beans, rice, and tortillas you usually get at Mexican food places. This place is totally different. It's like fine dining for a good price and large quantities. The food smells great, but more importantly, tastes fresh and delicious without the overly-cheesed, greasiness that I've come to associate with bad Mexcian cooking. My only complaints are two-fold. First, there are only about 8 parking spots next to the establishment, but if you go about a block north, there's a neighborhood arterial that has street parking. Second, although the waiters and waitresses are polite, service takes a while sometimes, especially when they're full. read more

Samantha's has really gone down hill! Ordered red snapper... Dryed out and way overpriced. Took an hour tp get my food Told me it was $25 and charged $29. What happens? Even the service was poor. I used to really like the place. Will Never Come Here Again!!! read more

Don't believe the reviews. Honestly, this is well below-average and overpriced Tex-Mex with a lame attempt at Cuban-hybrid at it's worst. Refried beans out of a vat, typical Tex-Mex covered in mass-produced low quality cheese. Sweet plaintains that are like compressed sawdust. Huge portions of nasty food at super high prices for Mexican food. I swore I'd never go back but we found ourselves nearby and were hungry so we stopped in. Well, that was a huge mistake, yet again. So much better food out there - and at BETTER prices! read more

Parking is bad, but the food is great. If you want to drive out Layhill Road & Bel Pre Rd in Sil Spg, 20906, they have a second restaurant next to the the 7-11. Not named Samantha's, but same menu... read more

I was on a first date, and about to play twenty-questions....luckily I was saved by my pollo saltado. It was adequate for the distraction, but seemed like I could make it at home. My date ordered enchiladas, and although the server seemed less than enthusiastic about the enchiladas, my date was quite pleased. We also had pupusas as appetizers--very delicious and loaded with cheese. The salsa was great, chips were okay. Small parking lot. Totally worth coming back, though I would try something other than the pollo saltado. read more

This white table-clothed eating establishment has consistently good quality Latin American fare and decent service. Ambiance is pretty good, too, with fair prices. A good haunt to celebrate special occasions or take a good friend out to for a satisfying meal. read more

Being from LA it is really tough to find comparably good latin food anywhere. Samantha's has saved me! I literally had two dreams about their Pupusas, look it up before you call me a perv. Check out Samantha's though, excellent, affordable food in a charming atmosphere. read more

The place has a nice ambiance - French, Italian poster art. Was pretty busy on the day we went - Friday at around 7:30, but were still able to get a seat very quickly. The chips were good and the salsa was excellent - I love warmed salsa (only ever had it at Guarillos on Wilson Blvd). With 4 of us, we ordered the margarita pitcher...it ended up being 2 pitchers, which significantly increased the price of the dinner. But, it was worth it. For my appetizer, I had the zuchinni pupusa - it was really good: cheesey but not too much, nice strips of soft zuchinni but not over done to mush, and a cripsy outside of the pupusa. I'd go back to try have this one again and try another. My main course was the chile cheese rellenos. The chiles were actual small, long chilles and not just green bell peppers. The cheese was the real Mexican cheese and the sauce was good. However, it lacked the spice I need in my food. So I asked for the hot sauce trio. The green is tasty, but not spicey. However, the orange/red sauce is, but definitely add the pickeled onions onto it as that actually kicked it up enough for it to satisfy me. I put some on what was left of my food in the doggie bag and 2 days later it was really, really good - cheesey and spicey. Why am I giving it only 3 stars? Because there isn't that many options for Vegetarians - definitely a lot for meat & seafood eaters. I remember only 2 other options, which I will go back to try (veggie burrito and faijitas). Will let you know if that bumps up the stars! read more

Stuff chicken with mushroom and spinach was the Bomb! Salsa was great and different. Del black beans tho were off tha chain!!!!! Parking sucks big ole donkey d, but overall it was a MFn win! read more

Great variety on the menu- stellar Civiche and enchiladas, great pupusas and other more home-style dishes from around Latin America like Pollo Saltado (which is my personal fave) - some of the entres are way too big for one adult, others are more reasonable portions. Atmosphere is really nice and comfortable with good lighting and decor but without the formal feel. No mariachi music blaring or anything like that but it can be a bit loud and cramped just because its a small space and always packed. Staff is wonderful. VERY friendly and welcoming- even to small children. This place is the local hot spot for an early 'nice' dinner with your toddler- lots of little kids and babies from about 5-7ish. lots of multi generational families at all times and even quite a few couples. read more

The service was good. I came here only because of all the positive reviews on yelp, but I was deeply disappointed with my meal. I ordered the ceviche mixto and it was probably the worst ceviche I have ever tasted! It was not fresh, super dry, had a weird texture, and I was forced to literally spit out my first bite. I ended up returning the meal and getting an enchilada just to play it safe. The enchilada was ok, although really bland. The Langley Park area def. has better options out there.... they just have not been written about yet... read more

Samantha's has great pupusas. The location is tight and not very spacious. Samantha's wait staff have been consistent in satisfactory customer service. Though their entrees and many other menu selections are over priced the portions are generous. The biggest drawback is the inaccurate prices on the restaurants website. Call ahead to verify. read more

This place seemed pretty good. The pupusas were very good and came with a tasty vinegary slaw and were super-cheap and filling. The lunch menu, overall, was a little pricey but portions were on the larger side. Warning note - the salsa was warm. It's tasty but I hadn't anticipated the temperature - it's fine, just fair warning. Parking could be a problem, as the parking lot was small. Service is uneven - taking a long time with drinks, a la carte takes a lot longer than lunch menu specials (so be prepared), and getting the check is a bit difficult as well. Decor was pretty outdated and the interior of the place was dark. However, the noise level at lunch was pretty low. read more

Samantha's is some of the best Mexican food east of the Mississippi. We really enjoyed our experience!

Yelpers, you led me astray! Tried the lunch special and was very disappointed. The food is microwaved plates that are dangerously hot on the outside and lukewarm on the inside. The tacos came in hard shells!!! and the meats were on the cold side. What a shame. read more

I love Samantha's - great service, great (and cheap!) food, and powerful margaritas. Whether you're just getting some pupusas or coming for a full meal of south-of-the-border goodness, Samantha's is a fabulous read more