La Fresa Ice cream — Restaurant in Akron

Paleteria La Fresa is the perfect place to eat if you know very little about Mexican cuisine, but desire to be properly educated. The location is divided into 2 parts: The Ice cream side is filled with coolers and freezers containing just about every frozen confection and a wide selection of house-made agua frescas (try the horchata!) The other side contains the kitchen and ordering area, with tables for dining spread throughout.

When you arrive, head over to the kitchen counter and take a look at the menu on the wall. The staff will explain every menu item, offer samples and a ton of ordering guidance that you won't get anywhere else in town. Tacos are popular here, as is the torta and burritos, but don't let that stop you from exploring the rest of the menu. Once you have your food order in, they'll direct you over to the other side to grab a drink from the agua fresca counter. Free samples abound here as well, and the staff is extremely focused on making sure you are well cared for. A selection of canned and bottled beverages are also available.

You've ordered your food, got your drinks, now you need salsa and veggies to round out your meal. Under the wall menu is a display of chilled salsas, cucumber, radish and lime wedges; You'll need some of all the veggies plus salsas to suit your palate (Creamy green salsa is #1!) By the time you get your salsa on, you food will be ready. Dig in, you'll love it. Squeeze a lime wedge onto your taco and add a dab of salsa for best results.

When ordering, estimate 2-4 tacos per person, 1 torta could be considered shareable for two. Burritos are large and hearty, and one order of enchiladas is more than enough for a full meal. On some of my visits, I ordered food for 6 and found a basket of tortilla chips on my table, your experience may vary, as it is not listed on the menu.

If you still have room in your stomach, head over and grab some dessert, there's plenty of choices, served up with more great service. By the time you're done, you will know quite a bit about OG Street-style Mexican food, to prepare you for learning more on...

Edit in response to owner: Hi! The language barrier was not the issue and did not make me uncomfortable as you attempted to misconstrue in your reply to my initial review. The fact that the staff seemed uncomfortable with us being there from the moment we entered is what made us feel unwelcome. I work daily with people learning English and am trying to learn Spanish myself as I said before. I understand that language is tricky and speaking a language you’re learning with a native speaker can be difficult. However, your staff just seems to be uneasy with non Spanish speaking patrons and/or black people (as the other young lady also described in another review). It felt as though we were not welcomed. I appreciate your offer to come and talk, however I will not be doing that; nor will I be removing my review as it accurately describes my experience.

Just don’t go if you don’t speak Spanish.We got stares and whispers as soon as we walked in so the vibe was uncomfortable. I initially tried to order in English which the young lady didn’t understand, so I used the little Spanish I do know to name the flavors I’d wanted. The girl shrugged so I tried using google translate and at that point she just laughed in my face. I did manage to get the mango popsicle after our miscommunication and it was really tasty. However after this experience and seeing the other young ladies review about the staff making racist comments about her in Spanish I will not be returning or suggesting this place to...

i just wanted two scoops of their sorbet. I asked in English which the lady didn’t speak any English. Not a problem. I think said orange and Lime in both Spanish, then then looked at me and giggled and insisted she had no idea what I wanted. She just kept pointing at random things. I then Google translated and showed her my phone, she then laughed again and just shook her head at my phone and began pointing at random ice cream before I finally realized maybe I just wasn’t wanted there. I end up getting something random so I didn’t waste my time. No one wanted to help me, I be like this place isn’t for anyone who isn’t Hispanic but I could be very wrong. What I did end up getting was very delicious which is a shame because I will never step foot in that place again. The entire menu and signs in the store was all in English so I don’t get why she was confused. Good luck on your...