Chica Bonita Manly — Restaurant in Sydney

We dined here on Sunday, January 5, for my husband's birthday, as he wanted Mexican whilst we were in Manly. Having tried their burritos years ago, we thought we'd give it another go. Unfortunately, our experience left much to be desired.

From the start, service was slow—we waited a while to be seated and even longer for our drinks. Our cocktails didn’t arrive until our starters were served.

The food was a mix of highs and lows. The tacos with guacamole were tasty, but the chip-to-guacamole ratio was off. The fish and chicken tacos were excellent, but that’s where the positives ended. The tuna tostada was forgotten, and though our waiter, Connor, admitted the mistake, we were still charged for it. Worse, when it finally arrived, it wasn’t fresh, and we barely touched it.

The beef birria bowl was disappointing—dry and lacking in accompaniments. It improved slightly once we received the sauces we had to request. The fish burrito bowl was also dry and felt overly fried, with unnecessary tortillas that would have been better suited to the birria bowl.

To top it off, sitting near the kitchen, we could hear the chef swearing at staff—unprofessional and unpleasant. Service remained lacking throughout, as our plates were left uncleared, and we had to go to the counter to request the bill.

Overall, this was a letdown for a special occasion. Given the poor service, forgotten orders, and disappointing dishes, I can’t recommend this restaurant after...

I really wanted to love this place. Great spot, great vibes but that’s where it ended for me. We ordered the guac to start with and it had no flavour and oily chips. The avocado texture felt like it was straight out of a tube from Coles. Guac should be creamy and chunky with texture of real avocados, not taste watery and should be a generous serving. The tacos I got were pork and chicken, the corn tortillas were dripping in oil when they came out and the fillings again had no flavour. I have had good Mexican and been to Mexico and this just isn’t it. The service was also very poor, our waiter didn’t really show interest, just wanted our order. Didn’t want to talk us through the menu or offer recommendations. My brother in law ordered 3 tacos and one of his never came, the waiter proceeded to clear our plates, we mentioned the missing taco and he asked the kitchen to quickly make it. But there was no apologies about the mistake made. The Margherita was also 70% ice. Couldn’t drink half of the drink as ice kept spilling in to my face. It’s a shame because this could be a really good spot. strange menu, strange Mexican food and unfortunately pretty poor service. And to top it all off I’ve also had a very upset stomach...

Chica is the BEST Mexican around!!! The most delicious food with incredible flavour & a really cool menu to suit everyone! I love how the menu at lunch is different to dinner.. they are both awesome!

It has a relaxing but super fun vibe both through the day & night, always with a perfectly matched music playlist in the background. Perfect for any occasion - a chilled lunch with the best burritos & bowls, drinks & nibbles, a fun dinner with kickass tacos or an event function with an amazing set menu. And with every occasion you can’t go past their margaritas… honestly the best I’ve tried! They are the perfect balance of everything.

And to top it off.. they always deliver attentive, helpful & super friendly/fun service. But the highest mention goes to the manager Maggie who is absolutely incredible. She is an expert at food & beverage, her service is top quality and she makes every experience absolute...