Licha's Cantina — Restaurant in Austin

This place had been on my bookmark list for awhile, so I was happy to finally try it out when a friend suggested it to celebrate his recent promotion.

It is an intimate little eastside bungalow that could definitely use an upgraded AC as it seemed like it was hotter inside than out (no wonder we couldn't score a seat on the patio!). So our first order was for a cold drink. We both started out with their Mula and that hit the spot.

Per the norm for Mexican-style restaurants, chips and salsa were brought to the table and we added on the guac. Both were pretty solid, but since my body physically rejects spicy, I could only tolerate their mildest version of salsa in very small, controlled portions. Their guac was decent and is what I had more of.

We ordered and shared the Molé con pollo, Quesadilla, and Pibil. The molé was solid, not the best I've had in Austin, but they know what they're doing. The quesadilla and pibil were solid as well, though I think of the three the only one I might order again was the pibil. The flavor was exceptional!

I ordered a Paloma and my friend had a margarita. My Paloma was ok, but I wish I could have actually tasted the exotico reposado tequila that was supposed to be in it. My friend said their marg was also on the weak side.

We ordered the tres leches for dessert and it was stellar. It's hard to find a place that gets the texture to soggy ratio right and they do here. We also got what I called a "Chingaso Bueno"- it was a chilled drink made on the spot by the bartender that combined tequila and espresso with creme de cacao and grand marnier. It was amazing and the perfect end to the meal.

So why the 3-stars? While our waitress was very nice and as attentive as she could be (it looked like she had quite a few tables), I docked a star because when my charge came back on my credit card it was $3 higher than my receipt. Turns out $7 tip on a $35 check was not good enough because my charge came through as $45. I got the issue resolved w/my credit card company, but I definitely do not appreciate a place (or server, if it was her) that alters a charge after the fact. This is why I keep my receipts until a charge posts because I have found an alarming number of businesses seem to do this. And while $3 might seem negligible, it is indicative of underlying dishonesty and very off-putting for me personally. That being said, not sure if I would be back for that...

So, it's a great Austin trendy, vibey, hangout. The food was really good, the service was a bit surreal.... Waiter complaining to peer about having to make coffee for customer with no concern for us being right there. Brought us the wrong food, but we didn't know as it was our first time so we start moving food around, they then show up couple minutes later saying oops! Brought you wrong food... but you already touched plate that was meant for others! So she took our correct plate back to the kitchen! And nobody came back to explain, we notified our waiter, who looked bothered and tried to pawn off the wrong meal on us saying, well that has some of that meat in it also! Really!? I said, we would like what we ordered and then he suggested, that he was only thinking we might be getting full and didn't want to wait for our original order! Really?! suggesting to a customer that they might be getting full!! Extremely odd behavior on multiple fronts by the waitstaff, not explaining the cost of drinks properly when asked in comparison to ordering pitchers, so we ultimately paid more for less and didn't realize it until we got the bill. So, $105 for 5 drinks,1 appetizer and 2 basic meals, a bit pricey for what was ordered but now I understand the process, will definitely not count on waitstaff for guidance, but the food is delicious and the ambience is what you look for when hanging in ATX, highly recommend this place for the food, but they really need to evaluate their waitstaff, not all, as I saw 1 guy who was handling his tables like one should in an establishment with$10+ drinks, $15 appetizers and $20 meals. I honestly don't think the prices are out of line as the food was really that good! Hopefully next time the service quality will be on par with the food and...

I love nothing more than a happy hour where all the items are a flat rate. At Licha's Cantina they have a $5-6 happy hour, Tues-Fri, from 4-6pm with a good variety to choose from. This isn’t your standard Mexican dishes that you find widely available, they have some interesting options! In picture order I got:

Tocinada Quesadilla: this is a blue corn tortilla filled with Al Pastor (spit-grilled pork), bacon, and chorizo with an avocado cream and salsa. This is one of the more familiar dishes you’ve had. A classic, my favorite of the items I got! Pretty filling. ($6)

Cochinita Pibil Sopecitos: these are essentially corn maze cups, layered with black beans, and topped with Cochinita Pibil (slow-roasted pork) as well as red onion, queso fresco, cilantro, and avocado cream salsa. These were pretty good too, quite dense. Full of flavor. This was my second fav! ($6)

Tuetano Huarache: think of this like a corn flatbread. This was more unique because it had an interesting mix of bone marrow, black beans, avocado salsa, herb salad, and parmesan cheese. This is a more rich, cheesy dish that I enjoyed. ($6)

Camote: this is sweet potato, goat cheese, with raw cane sugar chipotle. I’ll be honest, I didn’t care for this one. If you love sweet potato though, then this may be for you. ($5)

Esquite: this means “corn in a cup” in Spanish. Great side dish to have that’ll compliment your dish. This is a classic, you can’t go wrong! ($5)

All in all, I had a great time here. There’s a vast menu selection, there’s patio seating, the service was quick, and the food was good. With that said, I give them a 4/5 for...