Paco's Tacos & Tequila — Restaurant in Charlotte

I was looking forward to having some excellent food on my girls weekend in Charlotte but never once did I think I would find the best Mexican restaurant right here in North Carolina. Living out west for almost thirty years I have eaten some great Mexican food from New Mexico to California and everywhere in between. From green chili sauce in NM to Colorado style Chili Relleno with Green Chili to CA fish tacos. To say I have eaten at over 100 Mexican restaurants would be a total understatement. So let’s get to why this place is soooo good! First of our server, Patrick was fabulous and very attentive. He was fast and friendly and had wonderful drink recommendations. They have a book of tequilas all agave I might add. The drink I ordered was tasty and strong. Just like I like them to be. The chips came out warm and the salsa had a wonderful heat that lingered in my mouth with such a wonderful flavor that it was as hard not to fill up on them. The table side guacamole was big and made with quality ingredients. The flavor was just perfect. I ordered the two taco plates and for $19 it was definitely priced correctly as it is so wonderful and filling . They had several options to choose from. I had the Tanked up with was a grilled mahi mahi it also comes beer battered . It was bright and crisp and the had a wonderful chipotle ranch sauce. I had them to put it on a classic corn tortilla. I also order the Gringo beef which was made with ground beef. I always order a ground beef taco at every restaurant. It is how I judge all Mexican restaurants. It was packed full of fresh ingredients. The soft tortilla held up to the stack of filling really nicely. The beans and rice are really amazing. I love how they serve the beans in their own bowl instead of slapping it on the plate. Also beans is another dish I always order because if your refried beans aren’t good can you really say you have a good restaurant? My friend ordered the chimichanga, it was almost the size of her head. So just know that you will leave here very full and happy. We chose to take our Tres Leche cake to go and wow one of the best I’ve ever had!! The milk mixture was incredible and not to sweet . I was wondering as I ate it how they accomplished it. Such a perfect balance of cake and milks. So if you love Mexican food as much as me you MUST try this place. The freshness alone is a reason to go. Not to mention strong affordable drinks and flavors that explode in your mouth! Thanks for a wonderful experience! I will...

Excellent Food! Horrible Service!! I am only giving it 3 stars because of the food. The service deserves a solid one star! I've had several problems when coming to this place. There are not many good Mexican restaurants in Charlotte, so this place does get all the attention. I am from the West Coast and lived in very Hispanic areas throughout the years and do know good authentic Mexican food. I grew up in Oregon. This place, however, does have a more Tex-Mex style so is not quite what I am use to, but it is still very good and better than any other options.

However, tonight really pushed the line. I ordered beef chimichanga and when I received my order I started eating it and noticed it was chicken. Neither of the bartenders seemed to care at all and one said "OH YEAH, THAT HAPPENS A LOT HERE". I am like What the Hell? In addition, they did not offer any compensation and forced me to pay the full price. I thought they would have docked some off the bill since I did not have them take it back and re-cook it. I saw they were super busy and didn't want to burden them. Anyhow, I was very disappointed with the service and lack of care for customers.

Indeed, going to this place is not an uplifting experience. The people treat you like you are a burden. I can see they are understaffed and the owners are probably wanting to capitalize as much as possible, but there is a price to pay for overworking your workers. Bad Service and unfriendly faces! Yes, every time I go in there they act like they want you to order, eat and get out as fast as possible. It is not relaxing or uplifting environment.

After this last experience I question if I even want to go back . I love good food, but with the way they treat customers I kind of think I will just cook at home instead, until I can find a Mexican restaurant that has good service and good food. Not an easy combo here in Charlotte!

Another thing to mention, since they are pretty careless about getting your orders wrong and don't seem to care if they do, if you are people with food allergies, vegetarians, etc please be careful when you get food at this restaurant. There is a good chance they may have not correctly taken your order.. Double check always that you get the right type of dish...

Unfortunately, I'll have to cut Paco's loose. On two separate occasions, I called in my order because I work from home and only have a 30 min lunch. My order each time was ready but I took great pains today to let the person know I did not like or want sauces on my food i.e., sour cream or variations of it, aioli, etc. That's why I called rather than place it online because I didn't have the option to leave those instructions.

Because one taco did have creme fresca, I think it's called, it had to be remade. That was time I needed for a restroom break and to sit unrushed to eat my food. Instead I had to wolf down my food standing at the kitchen counter and hop right back online. I barely had 10 mins left of my break so there was no sitting and briefly decompressing.

As it stands, I had decided to give them another chance after my last pick up order in Dec, I believe it was, where the young man behind the bar knew I was there and wouldn't come to my end of the bar. Granted, I saw my order and could've taken it and walked out if I were that kind of person or wanted to be as obnoxious, but I stood patiently and waited a good 7-8 mins while he chatted with those on that end of the bar.

Needless to say, I didn't leave him a tip but did give the young lady almost 20% in cash today. That makes it even worse for me after I've tipped and my order isn't right though she was perfectly polite and assisted me almost immediately. So all that combined I'm going to have to cut Paco's Tacos off my list and probably need to stop eating out altogether because it seems like wherever it is, all I ever get is a reflexive apology and no thought or care to my inconvenience.

As for the food quality, I find it just okay now. It was so much better and one of my favorite places to go on a Fri before the pandemic. I would tell family/friends when they come I have to take them, but something's changed and I'm not sure what. That's why I gave the food 3 stars not because of the incidences mentioned. Additionally, it's clean and laid out like most other family and/or quick dining places. The service is above average most times I've been over the past 5 years but it's those small things that prevent me from rating the...