Milpa Kitchen & Cantina — Restaurant in Denton

If I could leave zero stars I would. What a terrible experience we had. It’s a shame too because the first experience we had with them was great. We ordered through catering the first time and it was a good experience so we decided to go through them again. This time they didn’t have a catering opening when we needed it so George, the supposed owner/operator, told us to just order from the menu online what we wanted and he would make it work. We ordered basically what we had catered through them the first time but on the online menu we were actually supposed to get more food because of the way the quantities were stated on the menu. We went to pick up the food and when we got home with it we were shorted two thirds of what we paid for. I called and spoke with Autumn, who told me she was a manager, and she said she would make it right. She said to go ahead and come back to the restaurant and they would have the food we hadn’t received plus a dessert for the hassle. So I sent a family member back to the restaurant. Then I realized we had been shorted on chips too so I called the restaurant and George answered and told me that they weren’t wrong and the kitchen measured out the quantities and that we weren’t going to receive anymore food. He insisted his kitchen was right and had given me what I had paid for. I actually measured the quantities with a measuring cup just so I was accurate in my statements about how much we had been shorted and George proceeded to tell me they don’t measure by actual quantity of food, they measure by size of container. So basically what they’re doing is putting a third of the amount of food you ordered into a container the size of what you ordered and telling the customer they are getting what they paid for. That’s called stealing in my book. When I order 48oz of something I should get 48oz, not 16oz in a 48oz container. This happened with all of the dips we ordered (white queso, yellow queso, guacamole, and salsa.) They also shorted me on chips (put a third of the chips in a giant tin to make it look as though I was getting what I paid for.) We were also supposed to receive 36 flautas and we only received 24. I’m not sure how you mess that up, obviously the kitchen wasn’t right, go figure. George did agree to give me the 12 flautas I was missing but would not agree to give me the rest of the food I had paid for. Since we already had guests at our house and one of my family members had gone back to the restaurant and was literally standing there waiting for the debacle to be rectified, I was extremely frustrated and told George I would be leaving a bad review for his restaurant. He then stated he would refund a portion of what I paid. It’s been three weeks and I have not been refunded. We will NEVER give Milpa our business again, which is a shame because we spend a lot of money on good food. Their food is good but their customer service is terrible and they don’t care a thing about their customers as they will continue to steal their money and give them much less than what they’ve paid for. Buyer beware if you appreciate your hard...

It’s has been awhile since I’ve eaten at la Milpa in Denton. I had a photo shoot nearby and had the opportunity to peak inside and was pleasantly surprised at the atmospheric changes and to see the owners preparing and photographing drinks, appetizers and entrees. There was pride in their work. Tonight i gave them another shot and was pleased with the result. I ordered the happy hour appetizer plate ($25). I started with some chicken empanadas which were accompanied with a traditional milky sauce, white queso, a mild verde and a HOT RED salsa along with a generous portion of Guac. Gone were the bland and tasteless and in were the spices and complex Mexican and South American flavors. The chef also had created a few barbacoa nachos with a pickled red onion and some simple but tasty chimis which were an excellent way to try all the sauces and dips. Three generous chicken taco with subtle flavors in buttery flour tortillas were very receptive to the panoply of delicious sauces. My date had chicken enchilada and beef taco so I was able to review their rice and refried beans. Those beans were complex and rich with lots of flavor, as any I’ve had and the rice was, well, rice. A bit mild but perfectly serviceable in light of the sauces at my disposal. Chips were crisp. And the table salsa, with roasted peppers, was still good with a heat that built slowly. Service this time was impeccable, knowledgeable and well timed. I am raising my rating now to 4 Stars. Well done la Milpa. I shouldn’t have waited so long.

Old review below is completely rescinded.

Where did they find all the banquet frozen TV Dinners to scrape out for the tasteless rice and beans served at this restaurant? With the ambiance of a Junior High School cafeteria, they presented me with a three item combo on an oversized plate that gave the food the feeling of a science experiment. The chicken in the chicken enchilada, lonely in its pasty and unnaturally white sauce, was boiled chicken. Period. Boiled. The taco meat, although plentiful in the taco, was an under seasoned travesty of taco fillings. The tamale stuffing could likely have been anything, covered in a sweet ranchero sauce. Add a single serving of tea and a 30 minute wait for food, this meal has been a complete success at failure. But the...

Myself and two of my friends came here to eat on a Saturday (6/21/14) night about 7pm. It was not crowded (that we could tell) and no wait to be seated. We order an appetizer and drinks. The appetizer arrived and we ordered our meals. We then proceeded to wait and wait and wait. The waitress walked by about 15 mins after ordering and said our food would be right out. We waited another 10-15 mins.. .meanwhile the waitress would not make eye contact. Finally we asked for a manager. As we are talked to the manager part of our food arrives. My friends food was luke warm.. cheese was not melted, and looks like it had been sitting or was put together too quickly. The manager offered a 20% discount. My friends meanwhile are ready to walk out... the manager convinces us to stay and she will make it right. They offer to re-make my friends food and will be comping the food 100%. I ordered combo Fajitas. I was given the beans and setup but no meat or tortillas (it will be right out). As she walked away here come Fajitas... oh.. they were not mine. UGH! 5 mins later.. the Fajitas arrive, Tortillas are barely warm and are dry (not very good tortillas). My friends food arrives and it's better than the 1st time but still not fully cooked. Overall the food was below average for the metroplex. We were told there was a large party and that was the cause of the kitchen delay and that's fine. But, we didn't see the large party in the other dining room nor could we hear them. They could have handled that whole situation much better. But sending out sub-par food is a the fastest way for me to never return despite the attempt to make up for it by comping the bill. Sorry.. but I will never return.. there are too many other places to spend my time on sub-par...