Tequila Modern Mexican — Restaurant in Cincinnati

Had been looking forward to this place opening for a while! I have been 3 different times all different times of the day and on different days. Opening day when we went for lunch and our server was great and super attentive! We sat outside and food was really good got lunch (chicken and sopes) and margaritas were amazing! Second time went for early dinner as a party of 4 and service was okay, they were fairly busy but we had to flag down our server for everything and had to ask for chips after watching every other table get them before us. Guacamole was great, entree portion sizes were fairly small for the price and I would say taste quality. Didn’t order drink at this visit which may have been why we were not a top priority for our server as we were not “big spenders”. For my most recent visit, I went with my partner for their birthday. We went and they were not super busy but we were seated right after a large party came in. We ordered the guacamole with the ribeye and chicharron which was good, but I feel like there is no point of asking how I wanted my ribeye bc it is fairly thin that it all got cooked as medium well-well done. We did order 2 margaritas and would’ve gladly ordered more but our server never asked or really checked up on us so we opted not to. We also saw the manager or owner going around and checking on some tables but did not check on ours, as no one did for the time we waited for our entrees. We waited for 45+ minutes for our food (our one dish) after we had ordered it. We got the molcajete $40 to share, which we have gotten at numerous different restaurants before and this by far was the most expensive but stingiest one. There was not a ton of meat, the shrimps were good and large, steak was cooked medium well-well done when we asked for medium rare. The frijoles charros was okay, but it doesn’t look super pleasing to the dish when all the meat is scattered on the outside and inside there is just beans and tiny hot dogs. I would’ve much rather gotten rice. We also weren’t given the tortillas or pico that was described on the menu to come on the side and it was also not hot rather warm like it had been sitting in the back for a while. Only one plate was given to us to share. By the time we got our food we were filled up on chips and were also running late to where we needed to go since it took so long to get our food. We just asked for a box and our check. This was a super disappointing visit for us, as we love to support our local businesses, but I am regretting how much money I spent on my last visit for very subpar...

We came on Saturday around 5 pm, and there were 4 people around the host stand. 2 were working, and 2 were sitting at the bar looking bored, even though there were multiple tables inside and out with patrons. We asked for a table outside, with an umbrella or on the shade, and the hostess said something like, "Oh well, let me see as she just got sat with a table." That shouldn't be something you tell guests. You should accommodate the guest request and work it out with your staff. We did get sat right away, which I appreciate, but it took quite a while to get a server. One lady brought chips and salsa, I thought she was our server, but no, apparently, she's just the chip lady. When I asked her for queso, she said she would let our server know. Another table behind us was sat, ordered and received food before out server showed up, even though multiple staff walked by pur table repeatedly. It took another 15 min or so before a server showed up to take our drink order. Once we had a server, he was pretty attentive, and things flowed from there. The food was pretty good. The salsa looked amazing but tasted like spaghetti sauce. It did taste better with the queso.

When I went to the restroom, it's located right next to the kitchen entrance, so I had to dodge past staff coming and going. No one said excuse me, and they didn't stop for me to go past. They kept moving like I was the one who was supposed to stop. The red neon lights in the bathroom are cute, but being the only light is very disconcerting. A couple overhead can lights in white would be appreciated.

Overall, the food here is good, but they need to work on the guest experience more. It seems like everyone is so busy working that they are forgetting about what their guests are there for. Alot of that should be behind the scenes, and guests shouldn't have to see...

It's the small things that make or break restaurants. Tequila Modern Mexican is new on the scene and they need to work on all aspects of their business. For example, how do they make you feel when you walk through the door. Everyone welcomed us with friendly greetings, from the wait staff to the bartenders. Check! They got that right. How quickly does the wait staff come to the table after you have been seated. Check! Our waitress brought water to our table immediately and returned with our drinks quickly. All good, so far.

We placed our meal orders and an order of guacamole, which was brought to our table after only a few minutes. The train was still solidly on the tracks. Then, a warning light. Where was our food? Timing is everything in a restaurant. We waited and waited. The restaurant was not crowded at all, so what's happening in the kitchen? Finally, our food arrived. It was served hot and it was very good. That's pretty important for a restaurant's success. So, check that one off.

Atmosphere is extremely important. You want to enjoy your food in a nice environment. Some restaurants are very quiet and others lively. But, when there are screaming kids running around, it kills the experience. I understand if patrons bring in unruly children, but when the restaurant owners bring in five children and use the restaurant as their kiddie-playtime venue, it's not good or reasonable. They were not eating. They were just there. That was the deal breaker for me.

You're running a restaurant. Act like your customers are your first order of business or soon you won't have a business. We are not likely to...