Esmeralda Grill — Restaurant in Cary

This place is more worth your money than most any other Mexican place in the area. Despite its super unassuming exterior and humble family-style decor; this is some of the absolute best Mexican you can get for your money in Cary.

It says a lot when actual Mexicans and Mexican-Americans are regulars in the establishment. The food quality is as good as you'd expect from a casual Mexican restaurant with a few pleasant surprises. Their tortilla chips are thicker and of a higher quality than chips I've had at other Mexican restaurants, and they offer some unique dishes like huaraches (a thick tortilla, almost like a pita or similar flatbread covered in meat, veggies, and cheese). The amount of food you get for your money here is spectacular. I would argue that you spend a little less here than many other Mexican spots around Cary. For example, the huaraches are an entree, and they are under $11. Also the amount of choriqueso you get for $8 is double what you get at some other places, AND it comes with more chips in addition to the free chips and salsa. Two people can easily leave full for under $30

All in all, I'm very pleased with Esmeralda Grill. If you want the best bang for your buck Mexican in Cary, this...

Really good food at a good price! I ordered the molcajete they offer, it consists of 4 meats served on the sides of the molcajete and a spicy jalapeño salsa, with a slice of melted cheese, in the center of the molcajete. The molcajete is served with a plate of rice, beans, and a salad. The meats served are chicken, shrimp, beef, and pork. This dish is very appealing and tastes amazing.

I asked if it was possible to substitute the beef with chicken, and the pork with shrimp, since I do not really like beef or pork. They said that it was fine and they could do that, which really pleased me. I got my food in 15 minutes or less, and the very friendly waitress checked on us periodically during our meal to make sure everything was okay. The shrimp and chicken were super savory, delicious, and very well seasoned. The shrimp appeared to have a flawless grilled texture that made it taste amazing! The side dish of rice, beans and salad complemented the chicken and shrimp. The salsa in the molcajete was delicious and spicy, and the melted cheese on top of it, made it taste even better when mixed together. I will definitely come back again, and I recommend it to anyone who wants to try good...

To the owner: I have been coming here since 2018, this new wait staff needs to be trained or replace they are dragging your business down. I walk in no one even acknowledges me, Its like they try to avoid eye contact. I ask " Could I be seated?" She looks at me annoyed asks me to wait and comes back after a minute or so. She then walks me to my table that had dirty dishes and she removes the dishes and places my menu. I ask " Will you wipe the table?" She looks at me then walks away (never got wiped down) I let it go. I place my order, She clearly wasnt listening, I repeat myself and she still forgot things. She checks on almost every table but mine. I start to wonder if its a racial thing because I was the only black person. She drops the food off and run off before I am able to ask for anything. She forgot my drink. At the end I go to pay and that was the ONLY time the entire night they were nice to me because thats when I write the tip, I chose not to. I used to be a waitress myself, I tipEVERYONE but this is the one chose not to. These waitresses are going to drag your business down. Food was excellent as...