MexCantina — Restaurant in Cincinnati

This is becoming my new favorite for Mexican food in Cincy.

Over my three dinner visits so far, the food has been excellent, the service friendly and fairly attentive, and the prices incredible. No matter if you're getting a discount during happy hour or paying full price, you get a lot of delicious bang for your buck here.

Also, I appreciate so, so much that there are plenty of options for vegetarians. Like, legitimate meals, not "Here's your side of beans and salsa." Before my first visit, I called to find out if the beans and rice were veg-friendly or if they were made with chicken stock, and they excitedly told me that they were all vegetarian. The person on the phone wasn't making things up on the spot, she actually already knew and understood why I was asking. She even mentioned vegan options. As someone who has gotten sick from stock before, I appreciated this immensely, and it pushed me to give the restaurant a try.

I typically get one of the veggie burritos or veggie fajitas. They all come with so much food that you may as well request a takeout box at the outset. Everything is seasoned so well and makes you eager to just keep going. I've also requested black beans instead of refried beans -- accommodated with no problem -- and my god, those beans are absolute heaven. Additionally, if you have room for it, order the stick of street corn. Yes, it's messy to eat, but the combination of the cheese, spices and sauce are well worth it.

My only minor suggestions for the restaurant are to bring water by more frequently (or ask if a table wants a carafe left with them) and to consider the noise level. There are no soft things to dampen sound here, so it's a meal of loud music, scraping chairs and clanging pans. I'll keep going despite that, but it does take away from the experience of great food.

Overall, though, MexCantina provides food and service with incredible care. This is a wonderful addition...

I'm torn with MexCantina. Sure, it is better than Mesa Loca, the former occupant of the space, but there are still other Mexican restaurants in the area that I enjoy more. I do think the space is well-appointed, brighter than it ever has been, and inviting to anyone passing by. Plus, the patio is the best in the area!

The made-in-house tortillas and the included maker space are really awesome! This might be the highlight of the restaurant honestly.

The chimichanga from the specialties menu is a ton of food ($16.99 for chicken)! It includes two deep-fried burritos topped with housemade cheese sauce. But most of the plate was occupied by a large serving of both rice and beans. The chimichangas themselves were a little bland aside from the cheese sauce. Fortunately, some guacamole, pico, and sour cream were provided on the side to add some flavor complexity.

Chicken fajitas came out sizzling with bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, and tomatoes ($20.99). On the side is a plate with lettuce, guacamole, sour cream, pico, beans, rice, and of course a container of fresh tortillas. I thought the price was actually a little high for this dish, but it was split between two family members, thus making it a good option for sharing. I think the overall sentiment was that it was a good dish, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The trio enchiladas is a pretty-looking dish of grilled chicken enchiladas topped with cheese, ranchera, and verde sauce ($14.99). After having this dish on a return visit, I think I can say that what I think is lacking is much of any flavor on the grilled chicken, thus making any of the dishes a little underwhelming. I think if the chicken was shredded and cooked with some other ingredients, it could be a better filling for many...

This restaurant just opened, so they’re still in their soft opening phase and getting the kinks out. We went there with this understanding. Yes, service was a little slow, but we were there after 8:00 pm, so there were few servers there by that time.

The menu was varied and had a number of things that I’d like to go back and try. My husband had the Carnitas Michoacan. He found the honey-paprica sauce a little bland, but they do have a tomatillo sauce you could request to punch things up a bit. He said the meat was very good and completely cleaned his plate. I had the Pollo Escondido - strips of chicken stir-fried with sausage and pineapple, served over a tortilla, with rice, lettuce, tomatoes (fresh tomatoes instead of pico - yes!), and sour cream. It was smothered in cheese. I truly enjoyed it. We also tried one of the street tacos. The tortilla was fresh and made to order, lightly grilled, and nicely chewy to set off the filling.

The plates were full of food. We paid $18 and $22 for our meals and had plenty. In fact, I took some home for my lunch the next day. We saw other things on the menu that we definitely want to try, so we do plan on returning.

Overall, they’re working their way through a soft opening, so there are always bugs in the process to work through. I suspect that they’ll have things working much better once they hold their grand opening in another couple of weeks. Definitely worth a try if you’re in the area. Parking on Hyde Park Square is free after 6 (I believe). They are open at 11 if you’d rather stop in for lunch and have several lunch specials around $12-14. We certainly...