Mexican Cafe — Restaurant in Waitematā

I’ve been regular customer for this place for over 4+ years now. Excellent food and nice ambience. However experience this afternoon was very disturbing. We ordered food for 2 and was promptly delivered. Half way through my Taco Salad and I found a foreign object in my mouth while eating. Took the bite out of my mouth only to find it was a “metal screw”. Could not believe my eyes. Called the wait staff and advise her, she took the metal screw away and an older gentleman came out and confirmed what happened and went back inside to investigate leaving my plate on my table. 15 minutes goes by, no response from anyone. My appetite was gone after finding a metal screw in my food and my mouth anyway. We made our way to front desk. The gentleman at the front counter (may be duty manager) was about to charge me full price for food. I advised him I would not pay of the Taco Salad as it had metal screw in it. It seemed like he was not aware of the incidence at all. Then came the shock as I was taken aback by duty manager’s response. He reluctantly said “this is not the first time you have complained”. I could not believe what I was hearing. So I clarified to him, in past if I have complained, it’s because either the lasagna is over cooked or something else is wrong with the food. I have always conveyed my feedback in a polite way and I always paid for the food in full never asked for any credit or reduction in bill. However today I do not want to pay for my Taco Salad as there was metal screw in it and I am worried what if I have swallowed it. The gentleman still kept on arguing as if it was my fault to have found a metal screw in the food. An absolute shocker of an experience. Zero customer service, no acknowledgement for their error (a serious one) and biased approach towards handling a customer concern. As much as I love their food, never visiting again due to how we were treated this afternoon. I hope they treat this seriously and ask their staff to focus on serious issue highlighted rather than passing judgmental comments on...

Won’t be coming back. I used to really enjoy coming here , for over 20 years ( or probably more ) as it was one of the few places in the CBD where you could sit outside and get table service .I haven’t been here for a year or so, and was looking forward to coming back . After a recent visit, it is clear the staff either don’t know what to do or view the customers as an inconvenience ( or possibly both ) . I ordered a beer and wasn’t offered a glass ( saves washing up I guess ). When I ordered the same meal I’ve had for years , it was way too hot (flavoured ) this time and made it inedible for me . My friend who eat the same dish suffered a coughing and sneezing fit due to the hotness but decided to eat it . I waited for a passing staff member to bring it to their attention. It’s very rare for me to order something I can’t eat, but sometimes these things happen . But after waiting several minutes it was clear no one was going to bother checking on whether we were happy with our meals . Which was odd because they weren’t busy , with maybe only six people in the cafe . I got up and found someone , when they agreed to exchange my meal. After enjoying the replacement meal, I was going to thank them for swapping the meal , I expected someone to check on whether I was happy with the replacement, but again, no one checked . So I was not able to pass on my thanks .My friend , who was still sneezing, went to pour a glass of water , but noted there was no glasses on the table despite a bottle of water on it , and we weren’t offered water glasses when we were seated . We couldn’t be bothered waiting and asking all over again for things so we decided to pay up and leave. The final irony came when the person taking the money asked if everything was ok...

I’ve dined at The Mexican Cafe so many times in the past 25+ years but admittedly today was the first time in about 2 years since I’d been. 20 years ago, this place was bustling on any given night. Service was quick and efficient. The food was plentiful and packed with flavour. The energy in the place was high. Tonight it was flat. From the moment we reached the top of the stairs the restaurant felt flat. It was 4 min until a server approached us to seat us. We were told the balcony was full so we had to take a table inside opposite the bar. I love that the decor had never changed. I hope it stays that way. I ordered the vegan quesadilla only to be told there is no vegan cheese despite the menu saying vegan cheese is included. The cost was $30 but no discount was offered. Eventually the server went to the kitchen to ask what is used in place of cheese and the chef offered extra guacamole. I ordered a low alcohol Heineken only to be told they are now not available despite it being listed on the drinks menu. The food came out quickly but I’ve not had a quesadilla like this before. It looks more like a soft taco. Not a lot of flavour and the taco itself was chewy and stale. Good size portion however. My partner had a lamb and a chicken quesadilla. He said the lamb was very good but the chicken was average in flavour. There was minimal staff on. 1 bar staff, 2 servers for the entire restaurant including FOH and 2-3 in the kitchen. We dined at around 7:30pm on a Thursday. There was no paper towels in the ladies bathroom. Overall, I’m sad this iconic Auckland restaurant seems to have...