Picante — Restaurant in Berkeley

Originally I put 3 stars because of the lady at the register slumped over at the register that was taking my mother's order in a very dry, sarcastic, uninterested way. Her personality was the same. She seemed uninterested in being at work and was not very welcoming. I would not allow that to ruin her special day so I ordered two dishes one for us to both share and one for myself. I had the pork in green Chile sauce with pinto beans and Mexican rice served with pickled carrots and zucchini and a ramekin of queso fresco to ad at your own discretion. The beans and rice were cooked perfectly and the pickled carrots and zucchini really added a tasty zest to the dish. The shared order was chicken Flautas, four crispy tacos rolled up like a flute and fried served with crema fresca más queso fresco with pinto beans. The second shared order was a dish called "Mancha Manteles" which translates to stained table clothes lol a great name for a dish and boy does it live up to its name. It's three very nice sized chicken tacos covered in a delicious red mole sauce with pineapple. The taste of pineapple was a little stronger then the mole which I found to be a little too strong for my taste because as much as I do love pineapples I love mole more and that should be the star of the dish. But nevertheless it was very good. It came with a side of black beans topped with Pico de gallo. I ordered a horchata to drink and it was balanced with just the right amount of cinnamon, sweetness, and rice milk. Last but not keast the salsas. All were fabulous. Habanero salsa, Smokey chipotle, salsa Verde, and Chile de arbol salsa. Picante has definitely stepped up their game in recent memory. I would definitely go back regardless of the lady that...

I promised i would change my review if they got my order right so this is me keeping that promise. The actual reviw is the same but i have changed it from 1 star to 3.

This used to be my favorite restaurant! My parents started going here when it first opened so I've been going here my entire life. I loved the food and the atmosphere was absolutely amazing, I even started making papel picado because of how much I loved their decor! Imagine my suprize when my parents and I decided to go there only to find the place completely changed. What was once bright and colorful is now dark and drab.

I decided to go back today for takeout because you don't need the decor to be good for takeout! For both visits I ordered the same thing, a bean & cheese burrito with guacamole & crema, hold the salsa Fresca, BOTH TIMES they didn't give me any crema and they added salsa Fresca! While I can handle it, I don't like spice and salsa Fresca is spicy! The spice completely sucks any enjoyment out of eating it for me.

I'm going to give them one more chance in account of them being my favorite restaurant for 18 years, but if they mess my order up again I'm never going back! Now I'm going to force myself to eat this burrito because it's literally the only food I have in my house. I would be angry, but I just got back from a 3 hour drive so I only have the energy to be sad.

Tldr: they used to be my favorite restaurant, but they messed up my order 2 times in a row so...

I am torn about this review since the food was very good but it was also very expensive. We were shopping near by and wanted to grab lunch and Google showed this place a block away. We did not look at the menu as it looked like it had a patio and we were hoping to sit and eat in this Covid world. The restautant did not have a patio and they had built a shed by the street to order and pick up food. You are supposed to order online or by phone but again we just stumbled on the place. The lady was very nice and accomodating and took our order. A carne asada plate with rice and beans, a carne asada burrito with sour cream and cheese, a bag of chips with salsa and guac and 2 mandarin sodas. It was $54 plus the suggested tip meant this meal for 2 to go was $60. Even in SF that would be an expensive lunch. Granted I didn't look closely at the menu or the prices and I will say the burrito was very good as was the plate and both were large portions. The bag of chips was pretty small and the side of guac was the really small, about the size of a silver doller, plastic container. Very citrusy and the only dissapointing part of the meal. Again didn't know what I was getting into and I know restaurants are getting hit hard but $60 for a mexican lunch to go caught me off guard. Good quality food but read the menu and know what you are buying...