Rockstar Burger Bar Dowtown — Restaurant in El Paso

Just a few days ago, 24SEP2022, my much better half and I were attending another fantastic El Paso Symphony with two good library friends, M.H. & A. This was also the first time we agreed to carpool from their home on the near-West side. Our intent was to begin this excellent evening with an excellent meal here at this eatery. Actually, because this cursed COVID is still killing ~400 people/day in the USA, we got our food “to go”. Not knowing any specific dish, A. highly recommended the shrimp taco, which was A-OK with me because I am a “shrimpaholic”. After obtaining our take out, we enjoyed our mask-free meals in the lovely San Jacinto Plaza. I was amazed at the quality & quantity of the delicious/grilled to moist perfection medium sized shrimp. And, yes, there were some corn or flour tortillas/sour cream/snappy salsa as well, but the main feature was absolutely dominant/tasty/worth every dollar! This eatery/shrimp tacos certainly had my coveted “¡Wheel of Approval!”

Fast forward a few days to today, Tuesday, 27SEP2022, and I was back downtown carrying out spousal obligations, but I was really looking forward to another amazing Shrimp taco from this amazing eatery. Arriving there about (12:30), the server/host/waitstaff was again just as efficient as before, even filling my now-empty Pilot coffee mug with chipped ice. Soon enough, a plastic take-away bag arrived with a recycled cardboard cuboid filled with steaming gastronomical satisfaction, and I was Gimpwalking my way back the county courthouse parking garage for a feast. Once back inside the (motor)vehicle cocoon, I carefully emptied the sour cream & salsa cups onto the gooey food, salivating with the anticipation. I attacked it with the plastic fork and sawed the smothered flour tortilla into bite size portions. This was going to be great! I forked a mouthful between my lips and, wait, where are all the shrimp? There were some in unrecognizable form of being extremely overcooked mush, kind of close to “wet bread”. It definitely was nothing like what I had enjoyed before—no whole grilled shrimp dominating the dish, just bits and pieces. It was as if these were the last leftovers from the box of healthy shrimps; I certainly don’t mind licking my plate clean, but if it’s going to be remnants, at least use from a new box, too. Everything else was quite alright, especially the ice. But the main course—SHRIMP tacos—was sorely disappointing, and definitely does NOT get any praise from me!

SO, it’s now 50-50.

It seems obvious that I must return at some point to learn if the wonderful Shrimp taco on the 24th the truth, or is the dreadful Shrimp taco on the 27th is the truth. Only time will tell, and it may be next month prior to another El Paso Symphony (Harry...

Disclaimer! I love that El Paso's downtown is growing and getting more restaurants, activities, etc.

Sooooo....the good. I wish I could rate this higher. It's new, so I'm hoping they track reviews and make the necessary service changes. First, the food! I got the nacho burger, and it was definitely tasty. I love creative burgers, but sometimes they get crazy big and impossible to bite into and/or even finish. My burger had chorizo and jalapenos. The bread was light and not too bready, overall pretty tasty. My husband got a crazy big burger (can't remember the name) and ended up hating himself the whole night. He complained about the bbq sauce being too sweet. I can't comment on that though.

And...the bad. Service. Service. Service. When we got there the place was busy, which we expected for the time. The host (who I now think may have been the manager?) Was a super nice man in a bomber jacket who grabbed us as soon as a table opened. We sat and order two beers. Our server, a young lady named Melody is either a green waitress or doesn't really care about her job. We waited 10mins for beers. The tables around us also seemed to be bothered by the same things. The thing was, other than the man who first greeted us, who seemed to be doing everything, helping servers, helping bartenders, busing tables, seating people, everyone else seemed a little lost. Then the music which was at max acceptable dinner capacity was turned up by the bartender. It was 7:30 not 10pm. My husband had to start yelling over our beers. Then the burgers came. The piece de resitance happened. We asked Melody for napkins (we'd never been given napkins or utensils) she told us, "Sorry. We ran out." When I asked her what we were supposed to do, she gave a little shrug and walked away. Never said, "some are on the way" nothing. So, after a few mins I got up and grabbed paper towels from the bathroom. Walking back to the table, I saw the waiter wash station with the same paper towels. So, trouble shooting or initiative were definitely not one of our server's strengths. We order a second round of beers only to wait until the above mentioned man went to grab them for us. Later, when we were close to being done, Melody brought us some napkins, but never once apologized or joked to eaase the awkwardness of the situation. The dude is seriously the rock star of this place. The rest, seem mediocre. They bar was definitely understaffed, but the servers definitely need some training. The food did not make up for the service. We left slightly deaf and in awe that a restaurant ran out of napkins. #burgersaremessy...

Unacceptable Service and Subpar Food Quality

I visited this restaurant for lunch with a group of coworkers (8 people total) and had an incredibly disappointing experience. Initially, things seemed promising as we were seated and attended to promptly. However, the issues began after we placed our orders.

We waited over 40 minutes before the first third of our group received their food. Another 8-12 minutes passed before the next set of meals arrived, and the final orders weren’t served until nearly an hour after we ordered. This staggered service meant that some of us were left awkwardly watching others eat while waiting for our food. A lunch gathering turned into an unnecessarily drawn-out ordeal.

When my Hawaiian burger finally arrived, it was evident it had been rushed. The patty was completely unseasoned—no salt or pepper—and the ham was just two thin, store-bought slices. The buns tasted stale and carried an unpleasant, slightly rancid grill flavor. I could only stomach half of it, and it wasn’t worth the $16 price.

The experience went from bad to worse when it came time to pay. I attempted to settle my bill with a $100 bill, but the general manager, Alex, refused to accept it, claiming they only take large bills for checks over $50. When I asked where this policy was posted, he condescendingly stated, “It’s common knowledge.” His dismissive tone and lack of professionalism were offensive and uncalled for. There were countless ways he could have handled the situation more courteously.

I asked to speak with a manager, only to find out Alex himself was the general manager. He only offered a half-hearted apology when he realized I was planning to leave a review. His insincere attitude made the apology meaningless.

This was an incredibly frustrating and disappointing experience, both in terms of food quality and service. I will not be returning, and I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a pleasant or professional...