Abuelo’s Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Chesapeake

Craving some Tex-Mex food. I went there on a Monday evening. Parking lot was pretty empty given its size. The place has a very large seating area broken up into three or four sections. Plenty of booths and I asked for one even though I was by myself. The menu has an impressive variety of choices including vegetarian and gluten-free options. I ordered a margarita which they serve in a shaker that they leave at your table. I couldn't have even half of it as I could feel the effects pretty quickly. Since I was driving I decided not to finish the drink. I ordered a steak from the gluten-free menu and the sides from the fajitas menu which includes tortillas, guacamole, salad, cheese, and sour cream. I could have ordered the beef from the fajitas menu but I don't like my beef cut up for me and prefer to cut it myself. This way it stays nice and juicy. I ordered the steak rare. The food arrived soon enough but before that I was served nachos with a couple of dips. See pictures. I wasn't impressed by the green dip but the tomato dip was tangy and tasty. My steak was perfectly cooked. I cut it up into thin strips and made little tacos or burritos - not sure what you call them exactly. I wasn't particularly impressed with the tortillas. They were soft and pliable and I could easily make my wraps with them but they seemed store-bought. They weren't bad - it's just that I've had much better tortillas in other similar establishments. It's a nice, relaxed atmosphere. I was served by three people in all. The usher, the waitress who took my order and refilled my cup, and the lady who delivered the food. All three of them were very friendly and made me feel welcome . High ceiling that's painted sky blue makes you feel like you're in a lively, sunny place. There is a large mural painted on one of the walls, and a few South American style paintings hanging here and there. This place should be great for large gatherings. They have the room for it. I'm surprised there weren't a lot...

We just moved here from San Diego and were missing Mexican cuisine. This restaurant does not disappoint. Everything about our experience here was exceptional. When getting seated, I was taken by the amazing interior design of the building. The ceiling was painted and lit that brought me back to our visit to The Venetian in Vegas. As soon as we sat down, the manager introduced himself to us and made us feel at home. He checked on us twice more during our meal. The waiter seemed new, but super friendly and attentive. He immediately brought us chips and salsa and kept it coming throughout our entire stay. We had concerns about the use of peanuts that he brought to the manager and answered our question. Our order was delivered exactly as requested(even with the substitutes we requested instead of beans). He made sure we never ran out of drinks and checked in on us five or six times throughout the meal. When the food was brought to us, we were astonished at the effort that went into the presentation of the food. The colors were vibrant, and the placement was perfect. The plates are very hot as warned, so do be careful. The taste is very traditional, and reminded me of the Mexican food in Southern California. The portions are very large so come hungry. They used the right combination of spices to enhance the flavor, and no more. Another review here mentioned they didn't use enough spices. I completely disagree. If you want over-spiced Mexican food, go to Chipotle or Taco Bell. This restaurant is not a fast food chain. Great care went into every small detail of our meal. I will be coming to this restaurant regularly for however long I end up living here. ...

Came here for the first time with my parents, let me start off by saying, the place is beautiful inside I was highly impressed with the scenery and decor. Subpar service from hostess to waitress. Nothing mind blowing or memorable. I went in with expectations of an authentic Mexican restaurant, but it ended up being just another over priced Tex mex establishment, and there’s nothing wrong with that, it was not what I was expecting though. So the menus is overpriced, we received chips and salsa. The salsa tasted to be out of a can, the chips were under cooked. We ordered and waited almost 25 + 30 minuets for our meals. Tacos with sides of beans and rice and a soup. The tacos were a disappointment. Only two tacos, very small ceramics of beans and rice. The tortillas were obviously out of a pack and we’re cold and stiff. They were not even warm. I was outside on the front eating and after waiting 25-30 minuets, I got my food, ate some rice, one taco, looked down and a moth or butterfly flew into my food. Waited another 10 minuets to see the waitress. Told her what happened, and she took the place and left. I would of rather gotten a discount on the meal because I wasn’t gonna eat it after that. She brought it back, and crazy enough she brought back the same taco that I had left on my plate 🤢 I mean with all the money they make, they are just greedy with portion sizes and not to mention one taco?? And that taco was on my plate when a moth/butterfly flew into it? They just replaced my sides, that was all. Smh Disturbing and disappointed. And very disgusting. Will never...