Garage Taco Bar — Restaurant in City of Binghamton

I want to start by saying the food was awesome, drinks were awesome, bar tender was awesome, and our help ordering food at the bar was awesome. A lot of awesomes! The only negative part of my first time trying this place was with the hostess and our struggle to try to get seated.

For context me and a group of 5 other friends showed up without a reservation around 6:30 on a busy Friday. We walked up to the counter and asked if they had room for a table of 6. The guy checking out to go orders told us we had to talk to the hostess about that. After waiting for about 5 minutes she finally came up to us and asked if she could help us with anything. We said yes, we were looking for a table for 6, and she said no problem, checked the scheduling on her iPad, and said it would be about an hour wait. Since the bar was open we asked if we could sit at the bar and have some drinks and food while we waited for a table to be available, which she said was no problem, and walked away.

We sat at the bar, got some drinks right away, ordered some app food which came out quickly and had a great time. About half an hour into our hour long wait we noticed that there were two tables for 6 open the entire time as well as 2 smaller tables. We figured hoped it was for reservations coming in, which we understood as we came without a reservation. 45 minutes in to our supposed hour wait we were getting a little restless as the 6 tops were still open after 45 minutes so we eventually called the hostess back over to check in on our wait. She grabbed her iPad and checked availability and said unfortunately since we don’t have a reservation with them it would be an additional hour and a half plus wait, and then walked away.

At that point since we needed dinner we got up and left and went to another restaurant down the road, which we were seated at instantly since the dinner rush was over as it neared 8pm.

All of this considered they had more staff working than I have ever seen in a restaurant of that size, a very attentive staff, and the 4 open tables the entire time we were there. My experience overall was a 2/5 as I felt dismissed, unheard, and not care about as a customer. I am not sure if the hostess thought our group or 26 year olds was not worth her time and business or what, but I can assure you we were nothing but respectful the entire time, and even befriends the guy who brought us our apps. I hate leaving negative reviews for a business as I know how impactful that is on a small business. I want to give 4 stars with that in mind, and would even say based on the other service and the 5 that is it 5 star worthily, if we got seated and were able to eat there that night. The treatment our party got was not acceptable really needs to be addressed. If there are no openings for a night that is one thing and just say so, but don’t promise us an hour wait and then bump it up to 2.5 hours total and expect...

This is a "modern grunge" styled eatery and bar. There are tacos, quesadillas (try the Cauliflower Quesadilla - you won't be disappointed), and other items up those alleys. Beans and rice, fries, chips and queso might also come with your meal, if you want.

Pros: +Very laid back atmosphere, sometimes there is live music or Quingo or something else (do check their website - you can't always get a 'quiet meal') +Inexpensive Genesee beer on tap +Tacos and quesadillas from a menu that has already been revised many times to emphasize quality and what sells +Sweet outdoor seating for when the weather is good enough, though surprise rains will ruin a nice outdoor meal

Cons: -It can get busy if the weather is nice, so you have to make sure to plan for that -It's not open super late if you're going there to visit it at night 'as a bar' (rather than 'as a restaurant'), but it keeps the crowd from being unruly -The food is not ultra cheap, but priced just about right for the location and compared to the restaurants nearby. I list it as a "con" because although it's not more expensive than other downtown places, people sometimes (sadly) expect 'lower brow' pricing and quality in a smaller city like Binghamton -Table service situation might be a bit confusing, so ask the staff if you're not sure where to sit (the outside 'bar' tables are basically 'bar' tables, but without a bartender - and the tables get regular table service...

EDIT 2025: I’m sorry yall I have to drop my rating… we’ve been in twice this year and both times the service was kind but unbelievably slow. On the first trip it was busy so we tried to be understanding, but the second trip was just as slow despite it being nearly empty.

And the food… I’m so disappointed in how much the quality has diminished. I had the vegan OG burrito again and it was lacking flavor. The tortilla seemed stale and the rice was a little undercooked. The second trip I tried the cauliflower tacos with rice and beans. The tacos were fine if not a little too sweet for my taste but the rice and beans were nearly inedible. The rice was so bland and tasted like it didn’t even have salt in it. And the beans were on the opposite end of the spectrum. They were SO salty and had an absurd amount of cumin. The only way to eat it was by using the rice to soak up some of the salt from the beans.

After two bad experiences this summer, I don’t think we’ll be back. What happened?? :(

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I only make it here about once a year and that really bums me out because it is so. freaking. good. I’m a vegan and this place is heaven. Tried the vegan nachos this time and they were good but nothing beats the O.G. Burrito (vegan option). 🤤 Can’t wait to come back next year lol.

PS - don’t sleep on the homemade hot sauces!!!! They’re all delicious and...