Frida's Cantina — Restaurant in Arlington Township

I’ll begin with the caveat knowing this is a newer establishment, so it’s likely fair to say they might be working out the initial kinks. That said, here was the experience:

Reasonably priced for a restaurant of this type. For example, my pastor tacos included two generously portioned tacos with sides of Mexican rice and refried beans. The beans and rice, excellent. The tacos, fair. Meat was tender and juicy though lacked good salt balance or a punch of flavor you might be searching for.

Chips and salsa were quite satisfying. Extremely crunchy tortilla chips with course salt. Salsa, a little on the liquid side, but plenty of substance and flavor there.

Elote was a little underwhelming. I think part of this was due to the time of year with corn not being in season. The other part (possibly being my midwestern roots preference) was the dish desperately called for more of the mayonnaise/sour cream base that we know and love elote for. A lime was also noticeably lacking to spritz over the cob.

Lastly, Frida’s was unfortunately out of stock with multiple meat options, and notified us not prior to looking at the menu, but when we were ready to order. Small details, but a little unfortunate. After, one of the orders arrived to the table with table with the wrong meat selection. A couple bites were had, and they rectified the error by taking away the two bite-eaten burrito and replacing it with a new, correct meat option. Not that it’s always required to dock an incorrect item from the bill, but I felt it odd that they took away the old burrito. Would it go to waste? To their credit, however. the new one came out quite quickly.

I must say, I enjoyed the theme and decor of this place. I really do feel that there were teething issues being a newer restaurant. But these were the instances that made up the experience, and I suspect they...

Hummmm....not sure what region they consider this as authentic mexican food.

Extremely bland Mexican cuisine flavor. Will not be back.

Salsa - almost no flavor and watery. The only heat in the salsa attacks your throat to ensue a cough attack. Which happened to ourselves and several around us. So be sure you have water on the table before you try it. Since the burn is a quick burn to the throat I am assuming the greatest pepper heat is from dry chilies or cayenne. Do not think there is any fresh peppers in the salsa. Chips - were not light and crispy but more of a thick tortilla chip. Only half a basket was served for 2 people. Need more? You have to buy them.

Rice - was okay. Beans - beans were beans ..... not refried.

Enchiladas - red sauce is a very light tomato puree with just a touch of oregano and garlic. More like an Italian tomato sauce. Definitely not an enchilada sauce. Green verde sauce was very good but no heat.

Steak Fajitas - are an extra $4 charge and not served with a lot of peppers and onions on a heated sizzle plate. No flavor to the grilled onions even though you could see a red seasoning, steak is cut very thick in about 3/4 inch strips. But the flavor was more like a charbroiled steak which was disappointing when you were craving fajitas. Where is the fajita meat flavor? -- They serve ground beef fajitas which is very different from the norm.

Guacamole was fresh and good.

So although I was very disappointed of the missing rich flavors of chilis, spices and overall rich flavors of Mexican cuisine this food was lacking, you may like it. If you prefer less chilies, more tomatoes, light seasoning and a quick sting to the back of the throat as the only heat...

We had high hopes for Frida’s Cantina, but unfortunately, the experience was overwhelmingly disappointing. To start, there was only one server working ten tables, which meant incredibly long waits for everything—drinks, food, even basic attention. The staff seemed to not have a worry and it showed. Although we did not get the pleasure to interact with the bar tender, she was busy behind the bar and ended up serving a large party right next to our table. She was very attentive to this table and checked in on them throughout their long wait for their dinners.

The carne asada was overcooked, dry, and difficult to chew, with tendons still in the meat—not something you'd expect at any restaurant, let alone a dinner that is $25. The mac and cheese from the children’s menu tasted off— our kids wouldn’t touch it.

When our check finally arrived, we discovered hidden charges for meat selections. Even though the description on the menu for the taco salad clearly stated that the choice of meat was included in the meal price, we were charged an additional $4 for the meat. This felt misleading and dishonest.

Also, the number flies inside of the restaurant flying around our head and landing in our meals was stomach turning and a big turn off.

While the decor was trendy and the restaurant had a nice patio area for outdoor seating, overall, the food quality and service were subpar, and the lack of transparency on pricing left a bad taste. We won’t be returning, and I wouldn’t recommend...