Juan Fifty Kitchen & Bar — Restaurant in Sunshine Coast Regional

Decided to give this place a try even though we had heard negative opinions on the atmosphere and seating arrangements. We booked for a table of two, not to my surprise we were taken to the high table towards the back in the outside seating area that is wedged between 2 larger tables. You are literally almost touching each table and have to uncomfortably fit between each if you need to get out. I will also add it was that loud at that table you could not even hear the other person your are dining with, immediately I asked to be moved and after hesitation they agreed to seat us inside at a somewhat better table. I honestly don’t understand why you continue to have the table at the back in the outside area for 2, we had heard about this happening to other people being seated there and they advised how unpleasant their experience was. After we asked to move we saw another couple attempting to be seated there and they to asked to be moved somewhere else aswell. Clearly that table arrangement isn’t working and needs to be changed, food for thought as it is ruining the experience for your guests.

The service was also bleak, we came for happy hour and had to basically stare at each waiter for service, we had one younger guy who was actually kind but the female staff member we had made it feel like we were putting them out by being there. A barcode scanner and table service should be an option so people aren’t waiting around just to order another drink. Not sure why you don’t have this feature when most establishments do. It made the experience so stressful not having that option.

And the food, the guac was okay but pretty bland. I was excited to try the birria tacos and I don’t recommend, it’s all oil. We payed $50 in total for 2 each with a side of more chips and guac. The serving size was basically an entree and the sauce was disgusting, again just oil. Definitely not how consommé sauce should look or taste.

If you are after Mexican on the coast do yourself a favour and go to paradise arcade, the best cocktails, food,...

Well I can tell why no staff members at anytime asked how the food is! Or how was the service! Even when paying the bill!

Tacos! Well the chicken was dry and burnt, no flavour and the tacos shells tasted like play dough! (Yer I ate it when I was a kid) They were also meant to be gluten free, well my girl friend is curled up in a ball sick! So guess what they are not! Tacos were bland and cold to put it short!

The chicken nachos would have been suitable for a pub if they were warmer than room temperature, won’t lie I ate it all because I was hungry! That’s not saying much though I would eat rice cakes with nothing on them when I am hungry! I think you need to go back to Mexico and have some cooking classes, because I could make better food after spending 5 minutes on you tube or even just guessing! At least I would make it hot.

Now to the staff…. Well the guy with long hair, I am wondering if you have a soul? Or if you just have for no reason, I can see you should have! A mighty, mighty ego! You a not a god, you look like you may own the place, or maybe the manager! Who cares you have no customer service skills at all! and I mean zero, you had poor interaction and you failed to even ask us how the food was! Or I hope you had a good night…

The lady that served us the drinks and took our orders! You are way to good for that place! Very helpful and interacted with us well! You will do great! Hope you leave soon and find something worth your effort😊

Overall! Poor food, won’t be back, Sunshine Coast locals and know everybody and will not be recommending as we got treated like tourists who won’t be back! (who you probably thought we were ) I can really relate to a lot of your one star reviews! Maybe spend a couple of years in Mexico, and hire a manager who is not rude and has customer service as a priority! Thanks for making my girl friend sick🤮Gluten free! Good joke, hope for your business sake she doesn’t need a trip...

I had high hopes for Juan Fifty Bar and Kitchen after seeing their enticing Instagram posts, so we made the trek from Brisbane, excited to try what we thought would be an amazing meal. Unfortunately, our excitement quickly turned to disappointment.

We arrived just after opening at 12:03 PM, and I was shocked at the quality of the food we received. It’s hard to believe that the chef would serve dishes that they wouldn't eat themselves. The chicken taco was bad made from what tasted like dry, leftover chicken breast. The pork taco was the same and the meat smelled off ! It was bland and unappetising but The homemade tortilla was even worse it felt like I was chewing on rubber, it was burnt and incredibly tough. I wasn’t the only one who noticed that another customer behind us expressed his disappointment as well!

To make matters worse, the food was overly oily and the portions were laughably small for the price. I expected more protein but instead we got a mountain of oily corn chips that left us feeling unsatisfied.

It’s a shame because this place might have been the best authentic Mexican restaurant in 2022, but clearly something has changed, and not for the better. Perhaps it’s time to reconsider the kitchen staff.

The service was decent, considering there were only two people working, so I can't fault them too much there.

Overall, there’s nothing that would draw me back to Juan Fifty. Maybe the drinks are decent, but I won’t be returning for the food...