Uptown Cantina — Restaurant in Birmingham

I’m extremely disappointed and disturbed by the treatment my group and I received at this restaurant. What was supposed to be a simple dinner turned into a humiliating and racially charged experience that no one should ever have to go through.

We arrived about an hour before closing and were told we could order if we placed it quickly. We did so without issue. However, from the moment we sat down, the service was dismissive and unwelcoming. One of our drinks was incorrect, the other was half full. When we brought this to the attention of the manager, he immediately argued with us instead of listening. Only after the server admitted the drink was wrong did he back down—no apology was offered.

Later, I politely asked that my dessert be brought out after the meal (as I had requested). The server rolled her eyes and said, “I’ll see what I can do.” She came back moments later to say the kitchen was closed and asked, “What do you want me to do?” I requested to speak with a manager again. Instead of getting one, she walked away visibly annoyed, again rolling her eyes. When my group pointed out that her behavior was disrespectful, it seemed to escalate the situation.

After waiting nearly 20 minutes for our food, it was brought out already packed to-go—without our consent. We were informed that the general manager had decided to have us removed from the restaurant due to “our behavior.” At no point had anyone from management come to our table to speak with us or ask for our perspective.

We eventually spoke to another manager who was kind and understanding. He apologized, adjusted the bill, and admitted he was only told one side of the story.

When we were told the owner, Bryan, was available to speak, we were hopeful. Instead, he approached the table with his arms crossed, defensive, rude, and completely unwilling to hear our concerns. When we asked why he made a decision without ever speaking to us, he replied, “I don’t have to talk to you. It’s my restaurant. Your money doesn’t matter to me.” He then told us to “get the hell out.”

What’s most alarming is that from the beginning of this experience, it was painfully clear that we were not welcome—and we strongly believe this was due to the color of our skin. The tone, treatment, and attitude we received from multiple staff members, including the owner, was laced with bias and racism. We were calm, respectful, and simply trying to enjoy a meal, but we were treated as if our presence was a problem from the start.

Racism—whether subtle or overt—has no place in any business. No customer should ever be made to feel inferior, dismissed, or disrespected based on race. I will be contacting corporate and encouraging others to speak out. Until this ownership is held accountable, I strongly urge others to take their...

If I could give this place no stars I would . First and foremost me & my boyfriend walked in and no greetings off rip. Host was nowhere to be found at first ; then finally came back to stand and looked dead in my face and didn’t bother to ask me the typical “how many?” or tell me to put my name down for the “waitlist” if any. A handful of empty tables , No wait line — except for us & we were told it would be maybe 30 minutes (maybe understaffed). When I asked could we sit at bar she said “its first come first serve, you can go look for yourself to see if any seats are available”. We proceeded to walk to the bar and there were seats open and 2 other guests seated at the bar . Food, glasses and napkins everywhere occupying the space infront of the empty seats at bar. No menu was given to us ; I had to clean off ONE single sticky & wet menu for the both of us that was Hidden under dirty dishes at the bar. Girl working at the bar with pony tail & medium brown hair was unwelcoming and unorganized. First thing she said to us was “someone will take care of you” after being seated for almost 10 minutes no acknowledgment. She then proceeded to ask a lady next to us if she wanted anything else… didn’t come back to us until maybe 5 minutes later . We told her our drinks and she then proceeded to take the order of another girl before getting our beverages out. Once she came back with our drinks — As we were beginning to tell her our order the same lady beside us put her card out on the table & she then left from taking our order to immediately cashing out that customer. After she asked if she could take our order again — Note before hand: my boyfriend is lactose intolerant. We asked what the cilantro slaw was and she could not tell us what it contained only that it was “put on top as a garnish” . Well if im eating it i want to know what it is. So , he proceeded to ask could he get the quesadilla without cheese bc he couldn't eat the cheese. She told us we could not get a quesadilla without the cheese because the kitchen didn’t want to make it that way and “it wont hold together”… We ultimately didn't even want to eat there anymore after that response . 0/10 would not be back. Me being 100% true Mexican and work as a server at a family owned authentic Mexican restaurant —- that is 100% do-able and has been done for him before . No exceptions if the customer requests no to a certain ingredient. Andddd the service ? unbelievably horrible to say the least. This is far from authentic judging from the menu .. Dont waste ur...

My wife and I were in downtown Birmingham near Protective Stadium around lunchtime so we decide to try out one of the several restaurants in the area. We chose Uptown Cantina because it was open for lunch and we like Mexican food. Our server, Manddie, asked us if we would like some chips and salsa, which is unusual, because in most of the Mexican restaurants we frequent they bring the chips and salsa‘s immediately, sometimes, even before the server arrives to take our drink order. We of course said yes. (When we got the bill later I noticed that we were charged $3 for the chips and salsa - very unusual.) I ordered my usual, shrimp Fajita ($22), and my wife ordered the Carne Asada tacos - flank steak ($10).

The shrimp in the fajita order were bigger than usual, but they were only 10 of them. So that left only 3.3 shrimps per each of the three flour tortillas provided, insufficient to fill them. Some shredded cheese and bit of lettuce came in a separate bowl, again, not enough to fill the three flour tortillas. I like guacamole on my tacos, but none came with the order. The dish came with Mexican rice, but not the traditional black beans. Overall the resulting tacos were good, but not the best I’ve eaten. I tasted the beef in my wife’s order and it was very good, but she said that the meat was a bit undercooked.

The ambience of the restaurant was nice and the service Manddie provided was excellent.

My wife says I am usually give reviews that are too high, but this time the quality of the food did not justify the $50 bill for lunch at a Mexican restaurant. In the restaurants defense, they probably have to charge more than usual given the cost of operating in their location, but when you charge more, you better have the food...