Been going to the UWS location for years but I was in the area needing to kill time so decided to…read morestop in for Happy Hour. Sitting at the bar, it was only me one other patron and the bartender (with the host nearby). Had a great time talking, it was a slow day so we all really had a great time. I went with the white queso ($8) from the HH menu and then tried the fried cauliflower($9). They were good, breaded thickly with a great spicy sauce. All went great with a beer on tap, whatever was on HH that day.

About once a year I get an overwhelming craving for fajitas, and Javelina seems to be one of the…read morebest places in the city to find them. Conveniently located near Union Square/14th Street on the Lexington Avenue Line, Javelina is fairly easy to get to from Brooklyn, the Bronx and Manhattan. The restaurant itself is downstairs from the street, but not quite a basement. There is a bar when you first enter on the left, and tables back to the kitchen. The space is usually quite loud, and it can be a bit cramped at times. Don't be surprised if you find yourself raising your voice a bit to keep up. Upon seating, you will (eventually) be offered chips and salsa, and someone will take your drink order. Things can take a bit of time here, especially at busy times, so do not expect the top tier of restaurant service by any stretch of the imagination. The menu features fajitas, and I cannot imagine ordering anything else. The queso is a lovely appetizer, though the trio feels a bit small for the price. If you order fajitas, you will notice another shortcoming of this restaurant, the tables can feel a bit cramped. This is something that comes with the territory in Manhattan dining but do not feel surprised if you end up having to rearrange things on your table to accommodate a delicious platter of sizzling fajitas. The fajitas themselves are fine, and probably the most consistent I've found here in the city. I would not be surprised if there were better places for fajitas elsewhere but in my research this seemed like the best option. Requests have been missed before in my experience (I recall ordering a certain salsa that never came) and because the waiters seem a bit overwhelmed, it hard to address it before you'd want to eat. Overall, this place will scratch the itch for fajitas, but the service is lacking. I'll probably find myself wanting fajitas again in the future and return, but every time I visit I find myself just a little bit disappointed that a good restaurant is not great.

Located in the bustling East Village, stepping into Yellow Rose transports you into the West (with…read morea little throwback vibe as well). Like usual in NYC, the storefront is relatively skinny and packed to the brim with diners, so I would recommend always getting a reservation. With a party of 8, we explored various dishes on the menu with everyone leaving in a positive tone. Each dish was filling, tastey and unique. Even the "standard" red salsa was nothing but, packed with flavor and spice. Any breakfast sandwich is worthy of a second trip but the star of the meal were the kolaches.... Please order a kolache. So sweet, so unique, yet perfectly balanced with dough.

We went to Yellow Rose because of the lore, the mystique, and the promise of Tex-Mex. My partner…read moreand I are Mexican Americans from Texas, and not just any part of Texas... the border, less than a mile from the Mother Land of the Mexica. In the early mornings, after drunken benders that lasted until the wee hours of the morning, we felt the pangs for breakfast tacos, authentic burritos, and greasy plates loaded with huevos à la Mexicana, frijoles, and rice. Mexican diners along the border were headquarters and we were the fucking Mexican Power Rangers. For us, the term "Tex-Mex" was worse than a misnomer. It was a Yankee term used pejoratively to describe The Great Beyond, the Abyss that stares back, except we are the Abyss, seething, yearning for nuance and complexity in Gringolandia. We left Yellow Rose with that same yearning, asking ourselves "What the hell was that?" Chips were stale, a forgivable offense if the salsas are good, which they weren't. They were sweet and flavorless. The mole was gross and my version of good mole comes from a glass container, sold in bulk at Mexican grocery stores, admittedly offensive to the great moles or Oaxaca. What does that tell you? Imagine if Michael Jackson had an impersonator. Now imagine the impersonators impersonator. What do you even call that? It's not a cheap imitation. It's your drunken uncle "moonwalking" to Three Doors Down. He's at his local dive bar, it's closing time and he's crying while half drinking a beer. I love you unc, but it's time to go home. Now, I know what you're thinking. Who does this Mexican think he is, what gives him the right, and wHy iS hE sO mEaN? Let me just say that these questions are stupid and I won't entertain them. Do I have a well thought out response? Yes. Am I lazy? Watch it there, buddy. Texas (once called Tejas before gringos took it over) is a liminal space, a Mexican state colonized not by the US, but by Taco Tuesdays, your racist aunt who DoorDashes green enchiladas on Saturdays and scoffs at Mexican gardeners on Sundays, and the bipedal ancestors of Governor Greg Abbott. The food, however, is beautiful, from the swampy wetlands of Houston to the blistering desert heat of El Paso--Mexican food has a unique expression anywhere you land. Yellow Rose is your drunken uncle. It's closing time. He doesn't have to go home but he has to get the fuck out of here.

Met a few friends for Sunday brunch here! They do have a bottomless brunch option if you're into…read morethat. We didn't get it, but their mimosas were so good. All of us loveedddd our meals. I got the stacked brisket enchilada and it was soooo good. The brisket was cooked perfectly and the rice and beans on the side were yum too. I'd deff come back again for some Tex Mex goodness!

We have eaten here before but at the Union Square location. This is right around the corner from…read moreour daughter and we were very please with the food and service. Wyatt was our server and he was very accommodating to our requests. We got there right before happy hour was over and he even told us we had a couple of more minutes before the end of HH and if we wanted anything else. Who does that? This place is a cool restaurant in a good location. Right next to the 72nd street Q station, so real easy to get to. The menu had a great selection and I am glad we found a place that serves you chips and salsa with your meal at no extra charge. This is not the status quote with other restaurants in the area. My wife had the Javelina salad and added chicken. We asked if the chicken was all white meat chicken and Wyatt said it was a mix, but could get some fajita chicken if she would like. It was a dollar more than the regular chicken up charge. Perfect, we were good with that. I ordered the Enchiladas De Tejas. I don't know if I have had a better dish. I was so good. I am a huge enchilada person and very picky on what I get and I definitely will be getting this again. The red chili gravy on the enchiladas was amazing. Of course we had to have a couple of HH drinks and they were great. The margaritas were good. The beer was the only beer they offer which was up my alley. We will go back and keep trying new things. Stay tuned.

10/10! Manager was so sweet, service was incredibly fast. Would recommend to a friend!read more

We had a time Mamasita's!!!! We went for lunch on our first day in NYC and ended up returning…read moreanother day because we had such a great time. They have a very extensive menu of margaritas and can make anything you can imagine. To start, I ordered a spring fling margarita. It consisted of passion fruit, mango and strawberry. Whew! This was delicious. To eat, I ordered a lunch combo that came with a chicken enchilada, ground beef taco and Mexican rice. Caitlin was amazing!!! Not only did she make the best drinks, but she was extremely friendly and welcoming. We enjoyed everything and I wouldn't hesitate to return when I come back to NYC.

I encountered La Contenta when scoping out Resy and OpenTable for brunch reservations in the Lower…read moreEast Side. The reviews were strong everywhere, so a reservation was made. Interestingly, it looks like you can reserve on either Resy or OpenTable? Also, there was a pescaterian in our party, and La Contenta's menu seemed to offer several meatless dishes which was also a point in their favor.  I walked in and found La Contenta to be cozy-sized with a bathroom to match. We were the only diners for a little while but then the space filled up. Our server was pleasant and checked on us regularly. She also offered options for things which I appreciated. We ordered the guacamole ($17) to start. As my main, I picked the chilaquiles verdes o rojos con huevo ($19) with chicken for a few extra bucks. The dishes were actually bigger than I expected, always a nice surprise in Manhattan. The chilaquiles were fantastic. Several of the entrees sounded delicious but I was content with the chilaquiles. There were a lot of customizations available for 'em: you could get tomatillo sauce instead of the chipotle-tomato red, you could add steak, your egg was cooked any way you wanted. Regarding beverages, some folks ordered cocktails and mocktails. They were beautiful to look at!

I always go back for the same thing I need that steak !!…read moreUsually spots that I go to the offer steak at such an affordable price have steak that's tough and not tender! La Contenta changes the narrative!! The space is small inside, but that's good cause everybody makes you feel like you're in your own living room 5 's

Quesadilla is FILLING, plenty of quac and the chips are crunchy but not mouth-cutting. Also the…read moreapple soda was a happy alternative to an alcohol drinks. Good spot would go again.

I have been craving Mexican so I stopped in on a whim before seeing Hamilton to eat some yummy…read moreMexican food. It was happy hour so that was a bonus! The place was very lively and the service was excellent. What I wasn't expecting, was the quality of the food to be excellent! The guacamole was so fresh I could almost taste the knife on the avocado. It was seasoned so well. And the chips were so good. It was a perfect amount. The tacos I had, however, were the showstopper. Suggested by my waiter the flank steak was tender, seasoned well and grilled perfection the onions really dressed it and the four tacos were exactly what I needed for dinner! They gave me my space to read and enjoy my time. I will absolutely be going back!

This is my favorite restaurant downtown Brooklyn. They have the best breakfast in the morning when…read moreI have meetings downtown I can call and tell what I want when I get there It's still hot you should try there codfish and coco bread and they all ways have a Line they know me by now they are nice and friendly know care what

These tacos were the best tacos I've had in my life. I've eaten a lot of tacos living in the Bay…read moreArea! I am still thinking about this meal after coming home near just a few days ago. The same day I went here I ate tacos at two other places and had a taco showdown. This place won hands down! Who needs seats, eat, enjoy, use the big trash can and come again tomorrow. Enjoy!

What a marvelous little place! We arrived at Happy hour…read more I ordered the Quesadilla de pollo. It was stuffed with shredded chicken and topped with loads of cheese. My daughter ordered the Guacamole and a burrita. She raved about it. Then we shared the Beef short ribs with Thai basil... totally amazing... fork tender. Quite a busy and pretty noisy place.

Three years after my stellar reviews...It's not really the same place…read more The lobster taco that I used to dream about and went several times to satisfy my cravings is now very meh. Nothing special about it at all, it's like they forgot how to make the flavors pop. One thing I didn't like in my other visits was that the spicy version of the guac was not spicy and very bland. The other options weren't appealing to me to I tried it again. Not spicy and very bland. At least they're consistent here. Salsa was different and also bland, which is hard to do with salsa. On the plus side, I love a perfectly fried chip, and they nail the chips here. Spicy Kale was decent. Service was...passable.

Didn't have reservations, but was able to get a seat outside on a nice spring weeknight within 5…read moreminutes around 7:30pm on a popular Taco Tuesday. Happy to see Vegan Chipotle Cashew "Cheese" on the menu, so decided to go for full vegan nachos and was not disappointed. It was perfect for a happy hour appetizer and drinks for two. Service was a bit stretched between inside and outside tables, but we were in a relaxed mood, so the timing didn't matter as much.

After shopping at a nearby, Sample Sale We popped into this location for a quick lunch. The…read morerestaurant was not busy despite its close location to Madison Square Park. We started with two seasonal margaritas and an array of tacos. The food was fresh and tasty. The prices seemed elevated for tacos ($7 for the pork birria taco, $8.75 for the brisket taco, $7.75 for the fish taco), but these days it's hard to gauge. I really enjoyed the smoky chicken taco and ordered another one. For the pair they were $11. Which I thought was quite reasonable compared to the other prices. The dining area was quite large, and the bar was fully stocked. We sat in a booth which was a nice touch. Ines was an excellent waitress and answered any questions that we had.

Came here for a Packers game and boy was this one of the best experiences I've ever had watching…read moreNFL football. I'm newish to NFL football and im a brand brand new Packers's fan thanks to my partner converting me. Not only did he manage to make me fall in love with him, but he also got me to fall in love with football. Like legitimately. Had you told me id be watching all the football games even 3 years ago, id have laughed at you. Anyway, so this was his first time ever in NYC and it was important for us not to miss the game so the fact that we found a Packers bar for the game was amazing. We arrived slightly after the game started but right at the first Packers touchdown and the place was packed to the brim. We made our way to the other side of the bar and there was a bit more wiggle room there so that's where we made ourselves comfortable for the rest of the game. I started off with Shirley Temples and then converted to beers. We ordered cheese curds (so freaking good) and wings (very meh) to eat. After the game we wanted to order more cheese curds but they had run out. That made me so sad. I had never been to a Packers bar before but I am so glad that I am a Packers fan because I swear that they are the best fans. Everyone is so unbelievably nice (49ers fans on the other hand ....). I will definitely be back for a game!!

This is a really solid dive bar in HK. The food is definitely bar food but it's rather good for it,…read moreand very affordable for Manhattan pricing. Bar staff is very friendly and attentive. They have a good happy hour too!