Azul Tequila — Restaurant in Austin

This is a 3-part review based on Food, Service, and pricing.

Came here w/a large group this past Saturday and ate on their lovely patio. However, w/it being disgustingly muggy/hot, it would have been nice if the fans they had on the patio had actually worked and were not just decorative. Also, beware, you will be eaten alive by mosquitos. Even w/mosquito repellent bracelets, I still came away with 8 bites (and counting) over 2+hrs. They may want to look into some citronella torches.

The food here ranged from meh-average to spectacular. We sampled their chicken quesadilla (meh, but the guac that came on the side as a dressing was very tasty) and I ordered their mole enchiladas. I am very much a mole snob having spent considerable time in my youth in Oaxaca, so the mole I had here was superb! It had an excellence balance that is often not achieved, especially in Austin, between the spice and chocolate that makes a well done mole exquisitely delicious! I also had the sopapillas for dessert and they were ok, but could have definitely used more honey, cinnamon for the plate of four than what it came with. Food: 3stars.

The service, when you could get it, was fine, but we had a terrible time wrangling our waiter to place orders, whether it was for drinks, food, dessert, or another round of drinks. The drink service was painfully slow. Since we were basically melting, our table and myself went through our waters like our lives depended on it so trying to get someone over for a refill was a task in and of itself, but when our respective mojitos and margaritas finally did make an appearance, I was already half-through water #3. Also, our waiter would either forget a drink order that had been placed or forget it at the bar (as he told a few of my table companions a couple of times). Service: 2 stars.

Now on to my biggest gripe, not just w/this place, but w/restaurants in general that do this...I HATE having to have my bill corrected because I was charged incorrectly. This place was a total mess when it comes to drink pricing. Firstly, when our tables got their bills we were floored they were trying to charge $12 for their margarita (to our knowledge it was not extra-top shelf) and $8 for their mojito (though it was a well-made mojito it was not at the $8 benchmark). This, of course, did not reflect the drink specials we were supposed to have received, but that ended up only being $1...? We were there during their "Everyday HH from 4-7pm" as a sign says near the hostess stand at the entrance and there was another sign stating $11 pitchers of Dos Equis on Saturdays, yet somehow we were charged $13 for our pitchers? And to add insult to injury, a friend of mine and I split a pitcher and when our waiter asked how we wanted it split, we said "down the middle" and it had shown as $10 on my original receipt (the $11 HH price minus the $1 discount), however, when he brought us back our updated bills to reflect the split, we were each charged $6.50. Both of us just wanted to leave at that point and we didn't have the energy or motivation to try and flag down our waiter, who obviously could not do basic math where somehow $10/2=$6.50? So we cut our losses and left. Pricing and execution: 1star.

It was such a shame, too, because there was a great band that kept us entertained for about an hour, but the whole pricing inconsistency fiasco left a very bitter taste in my mouth. As much as I did enjoy their mole, I will...

4.0 star rating 4/11/2017 1 check-in I love this place for many reasons.

They have amazing food and great customer service. We love to sit outside on their patio and mainly because - and this is why I can only give 4 stars and not 5 - the inside dining room smells really bad. I am not sure if its old mop water or just an old building but every time I come here, the stench is powerful....The patio is rather large and comfortable, we do like to sit outside.

There are many choices for food here and not all typical Tex-Mex/Mexican cuisine either - there are unique dishes that are not offered just any ole where. But what I come for is the cheese chili relleno. This place is my absolute favorite for my favorite dish... both locations serve this well. I fell in love with the South location and was very happy that they had a place up north as well. They do not deep fry their chili relleno like most places do which I love and not only that but they stuff theirs with so much yummy white cheese that it spills over on the plate and remains stuffed in that delicious pepper. I always order mine with Verde sauce which is absolutely amazing, not overly acidic like other places - but a mellow roasted green chili sauce. Let me tell you about their beans...yes - I said beans! Best in town. I love the charo beans here the best and their refried beans are out of this world also. Very bacony - what I consider to be comfort food for sure.

I have also had their Chicken Tortilla soup which they serve in this enormous bowl and this is my second favorite dish here. My husband loves the carne guisada dish. He has had the cowboy relleno in the past and liked this as well, also another dish he would recommend is the austin pechuga - the chicken is so delicious.

They have amazing drinks as well, my favorites are the cucumber margarita and mango margarita - definitely a place to go for some good drinks and you get what you pay for - they are not stingy with their alcohol either and the drinks are very flavorful.

We will always be a repeat customer here. We just wish they could do something about that cold smelly dining room so we can enjoy this place in the winter as well. Other than that small issue - this place is one of my favorites in Austin - both...

Unfortunately I have to post this since going to the management gave no attempt at resolution or apology. I had previously recommended this establishment in high regard to many people, however my last (and I do mean MY LAST VISIT!) left a bad taste in my mouth! As far as the food goes, it's okay but there are plenty of other places in Austin serving Mexican cuisine at more reasonable prices. However, the food alone is not enough for me to take to the internet to express my opinion, good or bad. In regards to Azul Tequila the feedback is not positive. First of all, the service was beyond subpar - my party and I had waited over an hour for drinks and items ordered when there were only a few customers in the dining area. If this was my only complaint, I would not be taking the time and effort to write this review. On top of which, my party of adults was chastised about our volume, in the company of the two other patron families in the place. I could understand the establishment perspective in needing to reprimand a customer for being lewd, profane, or disruptive, but we were none of these. We were a group of adults enjoying some time together at what was once a favorite place to go. Several members of our party (all in the service industry mind you) attempted to speak with the manager to no avail. They simply didn't care if we had a bad experience, and made no effort to make any sort of amends. Bottom line, I'd rather spend my money at a place that cares about its customers and will not be coming back here. Be aware Austin - there are plenty of other places to go for Mexican food - don't waste your time...