Chica Bonita @ Publika — Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

We got there at 5:30 pm, and I should have known that the food wasn't going to be authentic when I heard Puerto Rican music blasting out of the speakers. The staff were indifferent and not very welcoming. There were only two other tables of patrons at the time, and we asked to be seated by the wall, whereupon we were told that all the better seats in the house were "reserved". Out of 30 or so tables in the restaurant, about 20 had "reserved" signs on them.

The food is nothing close to real Mexican food, Tex-mex, or Cal-mex. I was fortunate enough to enjoy delicious Mexican food prepared by Mexican cooks when I lived on the other side of the planet for 20 years, so I'm quite familiar with the flavors and textures of that cuisine. This isn't it. At all. It felt like it is owned by somebody who watched Taco Chronicles on Netflix and got inspired to open a restaurant.

We ordered the La Bomba Nachos with beef, a Carne Asada Taco, a Pulled Beef Barbacoa Taco, and the Enchiladas Ta Loca.

The tortilla chips in the Nachos were too thin, and didn't balance the dish very well. The cheeses used in all the dishes were just wrong. Strangely enough, the tortilla chips were covered in a tomato-based sauce that contained ground beef and cheese. It tasted like Bolognese sauce, and had a sweet overall flavor.

The Enchiladas were similarly inauthentic, and were garnished with a "salsa" that was made with cheap flavorless tomatoes. Both the Nachos and Enchiladas tasted like local "beef" AKA water buffalo, and not actual beef.

The tacos were better. I preferred the Carne Asada over the Pulled Beef Barbacoa, though neither of them were anything to shout about.

By the time we left, close to 7 pm, there were a total of 4 tables of customers in an otherwise empty restaurant full of "reserved" tables. We watched as a potential customer walked away after he was told that he couldn't sit at a corner table. Another two couples came in without reservations, but were given "reserved" tables. The discrepancy reeked of discrimination. Speaking of reeked, the waiter who took our order could do with a shower and a change of clothes before coming in to work.

On the positive side, the decor is very attractive, with the Dia de los Muertos theme, La Catrina artwork, and sugar skulls adorning one of the walls. I also liked the stained glass pendant lamps, and soft lighting.

This is a place to go for drinks with friends, where you can sip cocktails with exotic sounding names in an aesthetically pleasing environment. Not for someone hoping to taste authentic Mexican cuisine. The food has a Malaysianized flavor profile, and if you're ok with that, it can be argued that it is fairly tasty. Especially after a cocktail, or...

We reserved our table here 8pm and get seated immediately, please reserve as you will not get a table if you do not do so.

First of all, this restaurant does not have a proper service. This one waiter keep on sending the wrong food to our table. luckily I know it’s not ours because I have been here multiple times. This waiter came to the table FOUR times with the wrong order. I think it’s annoying.

Secondly, they missed out my order. I order two pizza but only one arrived. So I ask them politely, that they haven’t sent me another pizza. This waitress came back and said “ wE AlReaDy SenT” excuse me? Can’t you see on our table? We literally have only one pizza on the table. However they did get us the pizza but we had to wait (not the biggest issue)

Lastly, this is the biggest disappointment, I wanted to celebrate my twins brother’s birthday here because we wanted the surprise sing along birthday service that they provide. Unfortunately we didn’t get that. We bought not one cake but two cake with them which costs almost (RM50) but NO SURPRISE at all. FYI, I did request but they come with only two staff and the whole situation is just meh. My brothers were not surprised and no excitement in them at all. SAD

Service 1/5⭐️ Food 4/5 ⭐️

I don’t remember the exact menu but this is what I ordered Appetizer Poppers 4/5 ⭐️ La bomba nachos 5/5⭐️

Main Chicken quesadilla 4/5⭐️ Tacos shrimp 4/5⭐️ Tacos fish 4/5 ⭐️ Tacos duck 5/5 ⭐️ Pizza seafood 4/5⭐️ Pizza chicken 4/5 ⭐️

Dessert Sizzling Brownies 3/5⭐️ Lemon cake...

my partner and i came for dinner (we are both vegetarians). we ordered veggie tacos, veggie quesadillas & a tiramisu.

a woman (assuming who is the manager) sat us down and was very accommodating and kind to us. however the staff that attended to us to take our order lacked people skills. it could be bc he was tired and it was towards the end of the night but every time we asked for a waiter they would take so long to attend to us.

the veggie (mushroom) tacos (RM10 for 1, we got 2) was so bland. the beans lacked taste and so did the cheese. we opted for crispy shells so it did get messy but that was expected. the only thing that saved it was the sauces provides on the tables (shown in pic below). 4.5/10

the veggie (mushroom) quesadilla (RM28 for 4 pieces) was also very bland. really there wasn’t anything great about it but again it could be saved by the table sauces. 5/10

the tiramisu however was pretty good. it was very light. it didnt have the strong coffee flavour normal tiramisus have. i liked it since i do not like coffee. however if you do like traditional tiramisus you might not like it. 7.5/10

i have been here before for the drinks and did like them however thought they were a bit pricey.

i have only ever heard good things about this place but i guess we had a different experience because we only got veggie options and this place may be known for their meat food options (& their drinks). i wouldnt come back for the food, but i would consider coming back for the drinks.

(below are pics of our...