La Chata de Guadalajara — Restaurant in Jalisco

I can’t really hate on this place, especially as a tourist just visiting for the Guadalajara experience. It’s been around for awhile and has perfected the formula (and the show - more on that later) for keeping customers satisfied.

I came around 9:30am on a Friday, and there was no line at all (when I left there was one out the door along the sidewalk). I was immediately seated at a table near the front and the fresh-faced waiter took my order within 2 minutes. I noticed that all the servers were young males and the “coordinators/hostesses/money handlers” were all female. I have noticed this gender arrangement at other establishments also. No big deal, just an observation.

Everybody had earpieces on, which I thought was unique, but I quickly realized it was like they were executing the D-day landing at Normandy! The waiters/busboys were literally running up and down the aisles, spinning around avoiding one another, and laughing. It looked they were having a lot of fun, and every single person was smiling and personable. I had 3 different people from my waiter bring food, bring drinks, ask me if I needed anything … that’s why I can’t really hate on it.

But honestly it wasn’t a relaxing, cozy atmosphere. On the contrary, it was anxiety-producing and I swear I’m not an anxious person. For me it was too much going on first thing in the morning when I’m waking up. I didn’t feel like they were pressuring me to hurry up and eat, but you could tell they wanted a quick turnover to accommodate the patrons waiting outside. The noise level was up there too.

In the end, the food was good (not amazing). I got the omelette mixto, which came with a smallish side of chilaquiles and frijoles (excellent). The cut-up bread was hard and a little too difficult for me to chew.

I came into this place not aware of the atmosphere. Don’t let that dissuade you from coming, because it’s a popular and historic place, but don’t think you’re gonna sit in a corner booth and lazily read your book while classical music gently plays in the background. I also can understand why there weren’t any older servers - there’s no way they could keep up...

La Chata, widely considered one of the best and oldest restaurants in the Guadalajara metropolitan area, offers a great take on the cuisine that is native to this part of Mexico.

I want to start off by saying that I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that I was seated straight away once I walked in here. I expected there to be a wait since the last few times I had walked past here, this place was PACKED. I mean the line to get a table was down the street.

Once I sat down, I realized how cramped the place was. You are practically elbow to elbow with the people sitting at other tables. You would think a restaurant like this would have a larger dining area considering the amounts of people trying to eat here on a daily basis.

Most of the items on the menu are foods that are native and best eaten here in Jalisco. It ranges from tortas ahogadas, pozole, flautas, enchiladas, carne en su jugo and the list goes on. I had been told by locals that damn near everything on the menu is really good. I ended up ordering a Plato Jalisciense which comes with a sope, flauta, enchilada and some fried chicken breast with potato wedges. A little bit of everything.

Though I will say it was nothing too extraordinary, I still found it to be a satisfying meal. It came with a lot of different flavors as they put different fillings and ingredients into each item of the plate. I enjoyed the sauce they used to garnish the enchilada and the bowls of salsa they brought to the table. I enjoyed using these to add flavor to the food.

I would say that this is a place definitely worth coming to check out if you’re looking for some authentic food from...

Sunday night we waited half hour behind 20 people for a table. The street was very busy due to the Independence Day fireworks.

The place is about 1,000 square feet, nice, clean, festively decorated, tables were full but there was enough room to move around. The cooks prepare dishes out front in view of the public.

We ordered La Chata's special dish of Jalisco's traditional food and a brochette of beef. The Jalisco plate had 2 chicken legs, breaded, deep fried and braised in fresh tomato sauce, pretty tasty, with fried tomato wedges, 3 crispy fried tacos, a muffin covered with gravy and shredded lettuce.

The beef brochette was thinly sliced and grilled, over cooked, salty and tasteless, vegetables dried out. The jalisco plate had tasty chicken legs, breaded, deep fried and braised in tomato sauce, potato wedges salted and fried in lard, which caused indigestion.

I ordered a mango margarita. The English-speaking waiter confirmed they had mango, but served a lime-juice margarita. He then pretended not speaking English and refused to take it back.

We were seated just as the 5-man mariachi band started playing a dozen songs, which was a nice treat. The band was hired by the restaurant and clients were not tipping.

Looks like Mexicans generally prefer their seafood raw and their meats way over salted and overcooked. Beef brochettes in other countries are in 25 mm cubes, marinaded and grilled to perfection, tender, juicy, tasty.

It costed $35 for 2 plates plus a drink, not too expensive. This place is not worth...