Ofrenda Cantina Y Cocina — Restaurant in Berwyn

I have been here twice. The first time I came at 10pm, grabbed a drink at the bar when they told us they'll get a table ready. Never got called for the table. The table was empty for 10 minutes so we sat. Came precisely because online it said they open until 2am. We had waited a full 30 mins for this empty table now, we wanted to order. Waitress comes and tells us kitchen closed at 9:30. Well that's great. The hosts could have told us when we came in at 10pm instead of giving the impression they will seat us and we can dine. I wanted to give it another chance so we came at 8:30. Was told a 45 minute wait. No mention of what time the kitchen closes. But I know from the first visit what time. But it's fine because I already looked at the menu beforehand and know what to order. My issue is now we've waited for over an hour, went to ask what time the kitchen closes and now the kitchen closes 10pm, but they will make "exceptions" for those who have waited. Don't have people wait for tables if the kitchen closes at 10pm and you didn't tell them when they first came in until asked. Another thing, this place closes at 2AM. How do you close the kitchen 4 hours before the actual time the restaurant closes? Also, they will give the bar seats to those who stands around the hosts area instead of those who came first and are on the waiting list. Once we sat down at the bar, the bartenders were nice so I will give it that.

Now for the food and drinks. I had the Flor de Humo and my boyfriend had the O.G Jalisco. Both were good. For food we had, flautas de camaron, guacbelly, salsa Macha wings, dos compas tacos, and the pina colada tres leches cake.

Flautas de camaron is a 3/10. Didn't taste any shrimp, the toppings had no flavor.

Guacbelly is a 6/10. The guacamole is also bland. The mangos on top of the guac is a nice flair but add a bit more seasoning to the guac so the mango is a nice compliment to the flavor without the mango carrying the whole flavor profile of the dish. The pork belly was good but let's be honest deep fried pork belly is always good.

Salsa Macha Wings 0/10. I have never tasted wings that had sauce but no flavor. The description sounded amazing. Tamarindo with smokey sweet sauce. But how is it that the flavor is only there the first second you bite into the wings? I have never tasted wings that taste like water. Season in layer. What ever the seasoning you put for the sauce, marinate it in the wings before you fry. Also how is it that the ranch sauce doesn't have flavor either?

Dos Campos tacos 6/10. Honestly these are pastor tacos with pineapple pieces. 2 tacos for $13? Because it has pineapple pieces on it? Sorry but no. You can walk 0.2 miles(6 mins) down Ogden to El Meson Express and get the same 2 pastor tacos(without pineapple) for half the price for the same taste.

Pina Colada Tres Leches 9/10. Honestly this saved the meal. Cake was good, I loved the pineapple pieces on top with the coconut shaving. Would be even better if you toast the coconut shavings. Very big piece. Worth getting. Everything came out to be $102 without tip. Very upset because I was excited to try the food as the family are also family of the owners of El Meson Express which has been in the neighborhood for years and has also been the go to spot for many. As people who have been in the restaurant business, they need to do better. How are you a taquero for the family restaurant but for this, the food has no flavor!? Very disappointed especially since I waited for over an hour....

I was really looking forward to visiting Oftenda Cantina y Cocina. The space is beautiful—thoughtfully designed with a stylish atmosphere. The menu, while limited, offers a nice selection of spirits, small plates, and entrées that we were genuinely excited to try. Only street partying is available.

When we arrived on 8/12, we were seated quickly and given menus. It started off promising. I even made eye contact with the owner and appreciated the lively, welcoming vibe he was creating around the room at various other tables. Unfortunately, that hospitality never quite made it to our table.

Quite a bit of time passed without any acknowledgment from the wait staff, we politely asked the hostess for help. Even then, multiple staff members passed by our table without stopping, and no one came to take our order or check in. After sitting for about 25 minutes with zero acknowledgment or service, we got the message. It felt like we just weren’t the kind of guests they wanted in their space. That’s a terrible feeling to walk away with, and honestly, I’ve never felt so unwelcome anywhere before.

It’s disheartening to feel overlooked in a space that you were genuinely excited to support. I’m not sure what happened or why we were missed, but I hope it was just an off night and not the norm. The restaurant has a lot of potential, and I truly hope the service can match the care that’s clearly gone into the design...

Congratulations on a successful opening week. I have a few suggestions to improve the dining experience. My group was at a difficult-to-access corner table, and our server was the only one attending to us. After we received our first round of drinks, it took about 30 minutes for our server to check on us again or offer more. The table next to us, who arrived 30 minutes after us, received regular service from a different server and got their food first. The food took an hour to arrive. While I understand that there can be delays during an opening week, an hour is too long and made me lose my appetite. Finally, I have a serious concern regarding a non-alcoholic margarita I ordered. It contained THC, but this was not listed on the menu. Luckily, the drink was unavailable, and the server told me about the ingredient. As a PREGNANT woman, this is a HUGE problem. I strongly recommend that you clearly label any drinks containing THC to prevent this from happening...