Poppo's Taqueria — Restaurant in Florida

Everytime I go to this Poppos location I am more and more displeased and disappointed. I’m a long time fan of this taqueria, but to anyone reading this, don’t even bother going past 6pm. Let’s start with an experience we had a couple of weeks ago. This location advertises that they close at 9 pm. To me, this means that we should be fine and dandy to order take out / to go food at 8 pm. We’d be wrong. The staff member that night told us they were completely out of chimi aioli sauce and guacamole (selfishly, two of our favorite things to order to complete our meals.) But, nonetheless, we love the food so we keep coming back. Tonight’s experience is what topped the cake. We came in at 7:45 (more than an hour before closing time.) We walked in and the two young boys working failed to greet us and took their sweet time to get gloves and aprons on- very obviously disappointed to see guests walking in. The first thing they said to us was “Just so you know the only meats we have left is steak and a little bit of chicken.” Almost implying “You should just leave now…” The meat that they did have (that we could literally see in front of us) looked like it had been sitting out all day…. Then, there was hardly enough rice for one burrito… it’s a good thing we didn’t both order rice! After the two boys finally finished our burrito and quesadilla, we both had to literally spit out over half of our bites because the steak was so fatty as well as undercooked. Additional to our poorly prepared food, the place is disgusting and horribly maintained. I’m not sure if the young boys were just being lazy at the end of their shift- but if they were in such a hurry to get the place closed down by 9 o’clock sharp, they could have focused on wiping down the tables or taking out the trash in the restrooms… for starters- instead of hindering the food quality experience of paying customers. I’ve never been one to leave a nasty review, and I certainly would not do this unless my experience was really worth the complaint- but now we have had a poor experiences on several occasions and likely will not be returning for another chance. I wouldn’t recommend this...

My husband and I used to LOVE Poppo’s and have been going there for years. Always fresh and delicious food. However, on our most recent visit, no prices were listed on the menu board! My husband almost turned and left right away, but decided to stay since we were starving. Upon ordering, the sign said that prices had increased due to climbing costs and the company not wanting to charge for extras. My husband and I both ordered a burrito. No idea how much it was going to cost because no prices were listed. We also ordered chips and salsa. When we got to the cash register, our bill was $28 for 2 burritos, 1 soda, and a bag of chips/salsa. When my husband asked for extra salsa, they said there would be an up charge. While waiting for his burrito to be complete, I heard the woman behind him ask for sour cream and heard the employee state that that would be an up charge. I thought they said they didn’t want to charge for extras? Then, as we sat down, we noticed that they gave us guacamole instead of salsa. My husband asks if we paid for guacamole and I didn’t know because no receipt was given and no itemized prices were listed on the menu board or when I paid! My husband returned to the register and asked for salsa instead, per our order, and the employee questioned him and gave him the tiniest cup of salsa I’ve ever seen. Both of our burritos were VERY soggy due to the employees not draining the fluid from the beans or meat before serving, as the place was crowded. Although the flavors were as awesome as ever, it seems that prices have gone up, quality and service have gone way down....

My quest continues to find good Mexican food in Sarasota. It seems everyone is allergic to cumin in Florida. In any event, I was looking forward to trying Poppo's when they opened at their new location off University Parkway. I'll start by saying the food was decent. I had a chicken burrito and must say it did have cumin in it. However, the visit was somewhat frustrating. The first thing they want to bilk you for is a spoonful of sour cream and guac. They try and trick you into spending your hard earned money as when you say you want guac and sour cream, as they're reaching for it, they say "That costs a little more is that ok?" as they're putting the spoon into the extras. The most aggravating part of the whole visit was their beverage service. First, they have no brand name service, nether Coke nor Pepsi. Secondly, the "FountainHead" beverage service offered no diet sodas at all and they also offered no artificial sweetener for their unsweetened teas. If you want a diet soda you have to pay the boutique prices for their bottled soda. If you're going to go, bring your own beverage and save the $5. I may go back for the food but in all seriousness, I'll bring a diet soda with me at a 1/4 of the cost of one of their bottled favorites. Around $22 for a couple of burritos and 2 fountain beverages. Basically a...