The Pepper — Restaurant in City of Plattsburgh

To me coming from the west coast where hispanic culture and food is everywhere, this is not mexican food. It could be considered "Tex-mex" which is a very Americanized version of mexican food. But still I'm not sure I would label it as that either.

Despite the fact that the service was amazing, the Cantina style restaurant was very clean and the food "looked" fantastic. However, the rice was not Spanish rice. It tasted like southern rice you would find in Louisiana. But, it was absolutely delicious and, was the only tasty thing on my plate.

I ordered the fish tacos. First, they were served on flour tortillas instead of corn (not mexican). Second they probably used some sort of surface fish from a lake, I could tell because of the extremely iron taste that overwelmed all other flavors that were added to the taco. This taco tasted a lot like potting soil.

The fish taco traditionally is not a dish that comes from the heart and soul of southern North America (Mexico City). Instead it stems from the California/ Mexican border area called Baha. And being on the coast of the Pacific ocean a fish taco is served with Flounder, Grouper, Cod, or Seabass. These fish when cooked right are delicous, less iron tasting, chunky and flakey... Ideal for a taco. There was also red cabbage and guacamole in the taco, two more things that aren't in the "Mexican" repertoire. Instead, lettuce and fruit is usually served with this dish like guava, mango or pinapple to balance out the fish taste and finally topped with onions and green chilles which also were missing from this dish. The beans that were served with the rice were not bad but were unseasonned and tasting as if they came out of a can.

The chips and salsa that came with the table were tasty but again not what I would find at a Southwest Mexican restaurant. The chips didn't look or taste as if they were cooked in-house and had little salt on them. The salsa was not freshly made salsa. Instead it was picante sauce that you would normally buy jarred from a grocery store.

Many of you may think I'm being pretty harsh on this dish but for the high price I paid for this simple and horrible dish which was comparable to the price of a juicy steak, I think my honest opinion is warranted.

I wouldn't judge the entire Experience of "The Pepper" from one dish. Im sure they probably have some delicious food in their menu but, I'm pretty sure it would be safe to assume that none of it would fill my mouth with the delectable and savory flavors of traditional Mexican food. Because, I sampled the Turkey enchiladas and some other Turkey filled dish that my friends ordered, they were way better tasting than my dish however, tasted nothing like traditional Mexican food... turkey???

Next time I feel the urge for Mexican food I will go down Oak street in Plattsburgh or to Burlington VT. The next time I visit The Pepper, if there is a next time I will not bring my hispanic tongue, nor will I order...

Should we start with the culturally insensitive decor or the absolutely foul food? Hanging piñatas in a Mexican restaurant? Really?

I ordered a margarita, my girlfriend got water. Her water tasted metallic, and the cheap tequila that overwhelmed my drink literally caused me stomach pain, where I was given directions to a dirty bathroom with a clogged toilet. It didn’t get better even when stirred, and clearly did not even have all of the listed ingredients (for reference, this was the cadillac margarita).

We both got the taco plate. Twenty minutes after we ordered in a nearly entirely empty restaurant, which seems to only employ blonde women as servers, our lukewarm food finally arrived. After one bite, it was evident that these tacos were not fit for human consumption. The beef was watery somehow, and all the ingredients clearly had been frozen for some time. The hard shell taco was moist by the time it reached the table. The soft shell was crispy, and not properly wrapped. The entire plate was unseasoned, bland, and wet. I wish that was a joke. The rice was the best thing, and that was only by default. We had to rush out of the restauarant, and neither of us could stomach more than one bite of taco. All of...

if I could rate this zero stars I would.... your better off eating taco bell(americanize mexican)...I love real Mexican food. idk what the pepper is trying to pull off.there margeritia are good. but there food is down right gross. on top of that there service sucks. they were busy when we went in which I understand a little wait. but there was 3 waters for maybe 15 tables. 4 water if you count the bartender. the main my the time they sat us. 4 other groups showed up who were sat immediately after us. but all for of those tables recieve the table chips and salsa and there drinks before any waitress even came over to take a drink order mean while the waitress are standing around chating with each other. bar guest etc... the food...rices is not Spanish rice. it basicly ragu in rice what is under cooked. there taco shell. which is there signature plate. were basicly store bought taco shells. there soft taco were stall.. there table chip were covered with Chilli powder...there was cabbage in my pork tacos. snd the beef taco just tasted like they dumped liquid smoke on low grade beef. to top it off. there wasn't even all the ingredients in the taco as stated on the menu... serious...