MI MEXICO LINDO — Restaurant in Florida

Mi Mexico Lindo- Merritt Island, FL- 2 Stars

Continuing my quest in the post-Covid world of surviving restaurants, I found myself in the mood for some good ole authentic Mexican food. I jumped into the Big Boy Mobile and headed north until I found myself in front of Mi Mexico Lindo in Merritt Island. If nothing else, at least they had a pretty name. Get it?

I would be remiss if I didn't touch on the post-virus precautions they have introduced to protect their staff and patrons. The place was spotlessly clean and the seating was well spread out, not that that mattered as we were the only ones in the place. Was this foreshadowing of the fare or timing?

Soon upon sitting, a lovely young lady by the name of Tia approached. While Tia did have that "pre-busy, I don't wanna be here vibe" emanating from her, she was pleasant and competent. I placed an order for a Taco plate, one carne asada and one chorizo as the Big Boy likes his spice!

First up were the fried to order tortilla chips and homemade "authentic" guacamole. The guac (as we called it in the foodservice industry back in the day) was incredibly creamy and had deep red, lush tomatoes in it, yet something was missing. I couldn't quite put my finger on it then it hit me...flavor! I am serious, there must have been zero seasonings in this guac, it was completely tasteless. Shouldn't there be at least a hint of fresh lime juice in it? Perhaps some salt or chili powder? This was a creamy mix of avocado and tomato and nothing else. The chips were as you would expect. They were obviously fried to order and the fry cook nailed it.

Moving on to the taco plate, I was hoping things would improve and here is where I would find their real-deal Mexican flavors. For starters I found their Mexican rice to be exceedingly unappealing and their homemade concoction of beans disgusting. Neither brought any joy to the palate.

With slight trepidation, I moved on to the tacos. Sampling the carne asada taco first I was immediately taken in by the chew factor of the gristle I was attempting to masticate. This was either the cheapest, lowest grade of meat they could find, or I got lucky. Either way it was inedible as I couldn't chew through the gristle. The chorizo had to be related to the previously mentioned guacamole as it too had as much flavor as a piece of cardboard. Chorizo with no taste?? How is that even possible? I think the whole plate should be renamed to "Taco Birria Plate" as birria means apology in Spanish and they sure owe their patrons one for this bland hot mess! How an "authentic" Mexican restaurant could serve flavorless food is beyond me, unless, of course, they have been led to believe that Americans prefer their food tasteless (I assure you, at least this one, does not).

The Big Boy says, "if you are up cruising around Merritt Island, get hungry and pass this place...keep going. You'll thank me later." #iamthebigboy...

UPDATE: today i had the birria tacos (actually quesabirria) and they were unbelievably awesome...i may not order anything else going forward they were so good...need to make my way down there once a week...man, they were good!

good combination of authentic mexican and tex-mex...the tacos were excellent and authentic mexican with soft corn tortillas, many types of meat from which to choose, and mostly meat filling with some diced onion, cilantro, and radish, and lots of limes to use as you wish...also had some tasty sauces, although the "hot" wasn't very hot...the chips and salsa were good and probably more spicy than the hot sauce and the guac was very good...i had 3 meat tacos - asada, barbacoa, carnitas - and all were tasty although the carnitas were not as fall apart tender as i would like...i finished with the churros mexicanos...they were filled with a very sweet filling which i did not recognise, and were served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream...all very good...i thought overall it was very good and i...

This was my first time eating here and I was from out of the town and the owner made me, my boyfriend, and the kids feel so welcome. The customers service and hospitality is beyond gold standard. He make sure to even ask our picky eater if she wanted anything other than ketchup and gave her multiple options. The business is family owned so the service was exceptionally fast considering it was Good Friday at dinner. Next the food, the food was cooked perfect and had so many authentic flavors that my godmother that was from Mexico used to cook. It was 100% on point. This whole experience made me my night and frankly my weekend. After we were done the owner came over and watched the kids bowl for a couple minutes and gave them high fives and told them they were doing good. This is role model for customer service and hospitality and how to just conduct yourself as a business owner. I didn’t get your name but I wanted to say thank you so much for the food and next time I need to order a meal to go because that’s...