Barrio Cellar — Restaurant in Sydney

I had my eyes on this place for few weeks, from the menu and pictures I saw on google maps it looked really good. It’s entrance to the basement was gated in the morning and when I walked by it looked like a homeless shelter. I didn’t actually see any people there, but looked like blankets and sleeping bags laying around. and I wasn’t sure if they would actually be open at Noon.

When I finally came to eat here, I entered around 12:35pm, it was already pretty busy, and burger orders were passing by me.

There was no body to greet me at the entrance so I asked the bar tender if I can seat myself. She said I can sit at the bar if I was alone.

The music level matched the ambiance, but the loud group seated by me overwhelmed the room.

As with many bars, the bar tenders were busy and didn’t seem very friendly nor helpful. I was ready to order, but it took some time for them to take my order. The male bar tender finally took my order.

I asked for the wifi password couple of times and no response…. Or they didn’t know and have ask someone else. But didn’t go ask anyone… Maybe it wasn’t for guest use?

For being a Mexican place I saw more burgers passing by me to those who came before me. I actually came here for the $19 AU Hamburguesa burrito, so I had high hope.

When I got the burrito, and took my first bite, I noticed hash browns in there. It felt like a breakfast burrito without the egg.

From the menu, The burrito is supposed to be their regular burger wrapped in tortilla, the menu didn’t say anything about hash brown potatoes. It didn’t give me any memorable impression wanting to come back again, but it was very filling.

The chips that came with my burrito was cold. I think I got the last of the batch made recently. I told the waiter that my chips were cold and would like them replaced with fresh ones. It took few minutes for the new chips to come out, but they were hot this time. I never mind waiting for hot chips, but will complain if they are served cold. The waiter checked up with me to make sure everything was good after that and I told him yes.

Few other notes

I like the basil packed vase on the bar, it gave off nice fragrance while I sat at the bar.

Air conditioner was cracking hard and it was little cold.

I must have been hungry, and rushing to sit down when I entered, because as I was walking out I noticed sticky floors and as I was going up the stairs, the area smelled bad as if the homeless was hanging around.

Over all it seemed like a very popular bar/restaurant, and people seemed to be enjoying dining there.

I had mixed feeling about the service, but the waiter was very nice and helpful.

Will I go back? I...

If you are from the other hemisphere, DO NOT come here to eat. Their "Mexican" food is absolutely atrocious. It is as if they looked at some pictures of Mexican food and said "yeah, we can make stuff that looks like that". And sure, it does look like Mexican food, but it tastes horrendous. As a California native, I am warning everyone from the Americas to stay far, far away.

Did not order drinks; there were some young people in nice clothes drinking and having a good time so I'm sure the alcohol is fine. But be warned, do NOT eat the food.

Edit: The owner of this restaurant wanted more specific feedback. So here goes.

My companion and I ordered four items: chips with guacamole & salsa, chicken tacos (2), asada taco (1), and pork taco (1).

Chips (tortilla): Thick, crunchy, no salt/seasoning, just there, bland. 2/10, maybe.

Guacamole: Mashed up avocado (good), minimal salt/garlic, seems to have used lemon instead of lime? No cilantro that I could see. No onions. No tomatoes. No jalapeno. So basically it was just avocado, not guacamole. 1/10.

Salsa: Diced tomatoes (good). Minimal salt. Again, no lime? No jalapenos (zero spice whatsoever). Couldn't see any garlic, but might have been present. Like the guac, it was just some food processed tomatoes. 1/10.

Asada taco: Blue corn tortilla (single). Cheese was still shredded, not melted at all. Basic shredded lettuce and diced tomato, like you might find at a fast food Mexican place. Asada (steak) was lightly marinated. 3/10.

Pork taco: Blue corn tortilla, floppy and single. Pickled onions were good. No cilantro. Pork was lightly marinated; could have used a little more time on the grill for some texture. 4/10.

Chicken taco: The worst of the taco options. Not shredded chicken, more like blended chicken slurry doused in sour cream. I forgot about what toppings were on it because the protein choice was so...dense. 1/10.

And I, as an American citizen of California, understand, acknowledge, and appreciate the historical lands of the Mexican people. Yes, California was once Mexican territory that was seized by the United States government in the Mexican American war. I had no part in this. But, if you are indeed traveling to California, please send me an email so I might point you in the direction of some food that people of Mexican heritage prepare and delightfully serve to their guests. Hopefully, this might be of a particular quality and inspire you to introduce Australians and guests of Sydney to the delights of Mexican food. (in other words, delete the cheeseburger...

I was looking forward to checking out this place out after reading the positive reviews.

Walked down the steps to the sounds of a busy basement bar/restaurant. The room was a mix of after work people coming for an early dinner and larger groups having a catch up. The buzz was good.

We were seated and asked to order via the QR code at the table and it was all downhill from there. The QR code did not work. Mentioned to a staff member who said she would be back to take our order. We were left waiting. I eventually walked back to the bar and had my order taken there. A Sweet Bacon Blues burger an a Hamburguesa plus two 2 beers.

Time ticked by and we noticed other tables that arrived after us were getting their meals. Asked the waitress to follow up for us, however, once again we were left waiting. Asked another waiter who came back to report that there was an issue and our order not being received by the kitchen, could we re-order. We’ve now been sitting here for over an hour!

The order was taken and we were told it would be quick. It was only two burgers. Eventually one burger arrives. The second one did not appear. Had to chase up again! As we had a prior engagement, I was contemplating asking for a refund, however, I took my burger me to go and ate while walking through Martin Place. Not the start to the night we had planned.

Nothing wrong with our burgers and fries, it was the service was what let our night down. I believe that staff could have handled things a lot better. I did receive a couple of complimentary drinks, however, we really just wanted a meal before heading out. Over 90mins to get food after our arrival is not what I would expect from a restaurant in one of the world’s capital cities.

I appreciate that technology may have let them down at the start, but staff need to be more in tune with what is happening at each table and be adaptable to taking orders when technology fails. A couple more staff would have helped also. This could all have...