Casa Herradura Family Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Ashland

This is a fairly new Mexican Restaurant and has had mixed reviews on social media but is always packed. My wife and I decided to check it out. Its small as well as the parking lot but there is a shopping center across the street you could park at. They do have outdoor seating as well. The décor is very nice and the seats are very comfortable. Being as I have a bad back this was very nice. We went before the dinner rush and just happen to run into friends that were there so the waiter moved some tables around so we could sit with them. He bought out some chips with a salsa which was ok and a cheese sauce which my wife said was really good. I ordered a Margarita Flight which was really tasty and you could actually taste the Tequila along with the flavors of the drink. My wife ordered a Strawberry Daiquiri which basically looked like pink crushed ice and she said "smelled like dishwater" and was not very good. She ended up getting a Coke. She ordered a Taco Salad and I got the Chicken Avocado Tacos. Her salad was "not very flavorful and ok" my tacos were soft tortilla and had a good helping of chicken. Either the there was to much food or the tortilla were just to soft because they just fell apart when picked up. I ended up eating them with a fork. They were ok but not much flavor in the chicken and the rice was bland. Their were 2 different sauces that came with the meals. One was very hot and looked to be made with peppers and the other was spicy and was creamy and had the taste of cucumber. As the place got more crowded I notice that our waiter was the only one waiting tables as well as bartending. There was a girl who appeared to just be cleaning the tables and one other gentleman who basically seated and took care of the billing. Though he was the only waiter he was on the ball. After my tasty flight I ordered a 32 ounce Spicy Margarita and it was probably the best I have ever had. The more I drank the hotter it got. The prices are pretty average compared to other Mexican Restaurants in the area. The only thing that really bothered me about the place was the amount of flies that were in the restaurant. They really need to do something about this if this is a consistent problem. So overall the place is ok. I may come back to give it a few more tries. If nothing else for that...

We went here on a Monday and it was surprisingly busy. We sat out front and they also had a side patio. The menu was essentially the same as a lot of other Mexican restaurants we have been to so we ordered a variety of foods so we could share. The salsa was thin and had an interesting spice, reminiscent of taco seasoning. The "white sauce" is not something I ever enjoy but my child was happy to have a more bland option until the cheese dip arrived. That dip was nice. Not a whole lot of flavor but paired with the thicker chips it held its own. The rice was a little soft but had good flavor. The beans were great. Great flavor and texture when hot.. when cooled they were okay so eat up when it hits the table. The burrito sauce was sweeter but tasted great taken as a full bite. The enchilada sauce had a rich and spicy flavor that was enhanced by the corn tortilla. The taco was essentially what one would expect. The ground beef (in taco, enchilada, and burrito) didn't have a whole lot of flavor but didn't get lost. The cheese quesadilla could use some help from a seasoned grill which will come in time surely. Now the shredded beef in the chimichanga was STELLAR! I had ordered it with ground beef but we were all happy for the mix up. The server wanted to correct the error but it was a very happy accident. And he told us you can replace the shredded beef for ground which leads me to believe you can substitute most proteins for other proteins. That makes for a much better dining experience for those who are a little more picky. All in all for being open less than a week this place was really good, and we're looking forward to seeing how things go over the course of the next...

1/18/25 A pleasant dinner. The food was better than average for Mexican restaurants. Except for around 5 to 10 minutes that we waited to place our order (we already had our drinks), when we wondered if we had been forgotten, the service was highly attentive. Write that off to a brief mistake. Atmosphere on our half of the building was quite good, and my wife enjoyed the decorations. I had the Enchiladas Vallarta, and my wife had a simple combination dinner. The speed at which the food was prepared (even faster than I am accustomed to at Mexican restaurants) had me concerned for the quality. But, the shrimp had just the right bite and flavor, indicating that they were cooked right at the time of the order. The dish was novel to me and the flavors good. A few bonus items..... If you pay by cash, they discount your bill. Although I did not pay with cash, I respect this approach because it recognizes that non cash is the predominant form of payment and an upcharge for non cash is thus basically a junk fee 85% of diners. Thank you for doing business the right way!! No unnecessary service fee. They price their food appropriately, run a tight business, and thus don't alienate me with add-ons. And, for Hanover County, no restaurant tax. More Richmond and Henrico diners should patronize Hanover and restaurants like Casa Herradura, and feel good about avoiding the array of city taxes. Casa Herradura, we will gladly come back to...