Restaurante María Bonita — Restaurant in Oaxaca

We used to love Maria Bonita years ago when it was a neighborhood restaurant with terrific stuffed squash blossoms, but the "new" configuration is less than inviting. Last year we ventured upstairs to the terrace a few times, braving the treacherous stairs, to get a good view of calendas passing by.

Two days ago, headibg home on a hot day, my husband and I stopped in for an impromptu beer on the upstairs terrace and casually ordered french fries, a rare guilty pleasure. We were not given a menu and there was only a QR code on the table which we were not able to open. Who needs a menu to order a beer and french fries in Oaxaca?

When the bill came, we saw that we were charged 95 pesos for the small single order of french fries. Shocked, we asked to speak to the indifferent manager who told us that the 95 peso charge was for french fries with bacon and cheese, which we did not receive, and that they charged the same for plain french fries.

We speak Spanish. We ordered in Spanish. The waiter did not ask us if we wanted plain french fries or the special. Perhaps the waiter is inexperienced, but the manager refused to remove the charge or reduce it. We stated how unhappy we were with the very poor customer service and that I would post a negative review regarding the overcharge.

Since we were stuck with the charge for bacon and cheese we had neither ordered nor received, my husband said he wanted the bacon and cheese to go. We waited while the kitchen staff prepared a small bag of bacon and put liquid (!) cheddar cheese into a plastic bag. As an aside, we had asked for mayonnaise which the waiter brought but it tasted "off" so we left it. Sigh.

We won't be going back, ever, as the whole experience felt like a deception and demonstrated the lack of respect shown to customers. The owners need to train a staff In Customer Service. I have posted very few bad reviews, but this was just so aggravating and...

Loved this place! From the outside it doesn't seem like much but the food is the star here. We had pork ribs with a tomatillo sauce and a "pozolito" with pork and mole. Both were sophisticated flavors that we did not expect. Probably a lot of reviewers would give this five stars, but I reserve that for something mind boggling. This is definitely worth trying as an alternate to the much more expensive and fancy places nearby. Will definitely...

We came here because the music was fabulous. They had an amazing live band, one of the best. The drinks were misrepresented, though after complaining and getting some attitude, they were good. The service was as bad as the music was excellent - clueless, slow, grumpy and indifferent. In short, great music, which you should enjoy from the...