Casa De Amor Mexican Bar and Kitchen — Restaurant in Hobart

I was not looking forward to going here for dinner after our last visit several years ago, but last night changed my mind. If you haven't been here for a while, let me tell you why you should.

First of all, the service is fantastic. We were greeted [Monday night - table of 16] by the owner [Susie Flanagan] who has been involved in her family business since the age of 21. I remember the best part of our experience from the last time was our interaction with Susie too. She is a delight.

My 75 year old dad was next to me when Susie brought him out a very special glass for his red wine. He was thrilled to feel so well looked after and it was great to see the personal attention at such a busy table.

On to the rest of the staff...

We had two young waiters [I later found out they were quite new] looking after us. The young fella who took our orders and the young lady who delivered our food worked incredibly well together as a team and didn't miss a beat. They were both on point, polite, knowledgeable and helped us through the evening at a wonderful pace. They were always within eyeline and earshot and served us with the competence of seasoned, senior staff members. Hats off to them both.

Now... the MEALS!!

My gosh, I was worried [again] after our last visit here. I have to admit, I warned everyone in the car on the way that you probably shouldn't expect much. Two years ago we came here and I was underwhelmed to say the least. This time though... wow wow wow wow wow

As I mentioned, we were a table of 16 and the first dish to come out was my son's girlfriend's chimichangas. This was the dish I ordered last time and you already know what I thought.

I had INSTANT food envy when I saw here meal. Then came the nachos, the enchiladas, the tacos and everyone's meals looked so great. My dad had his care con chilli colorado put in front of him and the food envy hit me again. Had I made a mistake with ordering fajitas?

I kept looking out toward the kitchen as meal after meal came to the table. Each meal looking as fresh and HUGE as the last.

Then I saw it. The crowd stopper!! A sizzling plate of epic proportions. My chicken fajitas were coming. By this stage I was actually excited to receive my meal. SO much so that I cleared every bit of table real estate in front of me that I possibly could so I could enjoy this spectacle. Mum had the camera out before I could even count my tortilla wraps, and let me tell you... this meal was amazing!!

None of us could finish our entire meals, and not because we didn't enjoy them to the full, but the value for money was just beyond our expectations.

I haven't even begun to tell you how good the drinks are yet either!! You will just have to go there and try the fishbowl margaritas for yourself. I had a corona or two myself, but you can try the full drinks menu and never be bored [or thirsty]

The table of 16 payment was never a problem either, as you "tap" your card with every item you order, so when you are done all there is left to do is thank your host and walk out the door.

Truly, this was the most pleasant and delightful experience we have had at any mexican restaurant in Australia in the last 20 years.

You must visit.

FIVE...

QUICK AND HONEST REVIEW: party size of 10+

Fajita meal: Came out on sizzling hot plate. Beef was Luke warm though? EXTREMELY salty!! Presentation was quite displeasing in comparison to the packed plating of other meals. 3 tortillas with minimal sauce, sour cream and small salad. Actual portion of meat was nice though!

Enchilada meal: Came out Luke warm and was sent back. The meal came back out with a SMALLER rice proportion and now SOGGY enchilada’s… embarrassing… tasted like there was zero seasoning, surprised it wasn’t salty as the majority of the other meals.

Chicken nacho supreme: Taste like home brand canned tuna. Meal was forgotten and last to be served. Once arrived they had forgotten the guac, sour cream and salsa. Underwhelming.

Los tacos chicken: Probably the best meal out of all ordered meals. Tacos and rice, more seasoning was applied than only SALT. Presentation was good.

Original nachos w/ beef: Nacho supreme without condiments: guac, sour cream and salsa. The pulled meat tasted WET as if cooked from frozen packaging.

Fries: Highlight of the night! Def order these for a family and multiple of them! Nicely sized fry pieces.

Overall service!! Our server was very kind and understanding. Answered all our questions regarding drinks and food. Successfully informed us of food and drink specials. The team seems great! But they also seem quite aware of the food and it’s lack of quality Mexican flavour.

Food waiting: Waited around 50mins for food arrival. Not that bad as we happily chatted. But keep that in mind if you’re hoping to sit down and eat quickly! - we did have a large work party though!

P.S We left MANY plates still full and left disheartened by the price of the food and the MINIMUM we ate. Loved the fishbowls! Maybe it was just a rough night for staff. Still not a bad space to eat, we ate outback in the open space. Recommended for individuals...

IF i could give no stars I would. Where to start! We booked for 4 adults and 4 children. Upon choosing our meals it was a given the kids would choose a kids meal which consisted of 2 choices, loaded fries or taco with fries. They told us at that point there were no chips. So the kids meals were $15 for loaded fries or tacos and fries with a kids soft drink or frozen margarita. But since there were no fries they still wanted to charge us $15. Ok so since we were already here drinking our drinks we bit the bullet and ordered. Then the appetiser came out, we started having that and 2 minutes later the mains came out!!! We haven't even started our appetiser!!. 3 adults out of 4, no kids meals. The 3 adults ate their meals, 1 adult still waiting and 2 kids still waiting. The people who received their meals had now finished their meals and the kids and 1 adult still no meal. So we asked what was going on, they tried to say we had only waited 30 minutes.....for tacos....when the rest of our party had now finished their meal. This is simply not good enough. NEVER serve adults before the kids and ALWAYS either serve the kids first and everyone else together or all together. THEN they served the last adult waiting and kept the last child waiting....but it gets worse....the child took one bite of her meal and found it was off....the fish was completly rotten and smelt awful. Bad service, the chef has no idea what he is doing or how to coordinate meals. Ruined our whole night out. Would not recommend coming...