Mochuelo — Restaurant in Fresno

Fried Artichoke Hearts (3 out of 5) One of the better items of the evening. Excellent lightly fried batter with a contrasting soft center.   The dipping sauce seemed a little bit out of place and a competing set of flavors.

Fingerling Bravas (2/5) Soggy and bland. Desperately needed salt and pepper and caramelization on the potatoes.  While the sauce appeared vibrant, it was surprisingly lacking in flavor.  My suspicion is that the potatoes were boiled too long and that accounts for the soggy texture.

Wild Mushroom Croquettes (1/5) Awful.  The mushroom duxelle was burnt with an acrid flavor.  The exact opposite of what we were hoping for.  Lacked basic seasoning as well.

Bacon Wrapped Dates (4/5) Excellent.  Good combination of classic flavors and well executed. Maybe a touch too sweet with the finishing glaze, but otherwise well done and I would order it again.

Gambas Al Ajillo (2/5) Sad destination for a high quality shrimp.  Good selection and quality of shrimp, but sad execution.  No seasoning.  Needs salt.  Do I detect a pattern?  No caramelization on the shrimp.  Sauce was basic at best, but would have probably been better without it.

Seafood Paella (2/5) What a terrible disappointment from a tapas restaurant.  Expected a basic sofrito and a flavorful paella experience with a few seafood high notes.  No sofrito and no crisp on the rice.  The only flavor that comes through is the large pieces of bell pepper.  Needs basic seasoning.  I took it home with me and was able to make a pretty solid dish out of it.

House Churros (5/5) Amazing! Never change this recipe.  Tender center with a crispy exterior.  Pate a choux perfection.  The dipping "sauces" (which I think is a store bought jam and pudding) we're a detraction.  Okay, so they could improve on those, but the churros themselves were perfect.  I would order them every time.  Just skip the sauce.

Salted Caramel Bread Pudding (3/5) Besides being cakey and clumpy, a decent flavor.  When the breads are cut by knife and NOT by hand this tends to happen to bread puddings.  Or, when the bread is packed in too tightly they can become dense like this.  It just seems like an unfinished recipe, but it's off to a good start.

Decor (2/5) It looks like a conference room that's been gutted without any attempt to modernize or decorate.  Definitely not where you want to take someone on a first date.  You go here after you have a ring on it...and for a while.

Service (1/5) Expect complete apathy from your waitstaff.  Empty water glasses, 20 minute waits between ordering food, no knowledge of the menu, and you'll almost never see the waiter.  The only staff members that seem to care about the customer experience are the employees that they kept trapped in the back that poke their heads out every once in awhile.  I'm guessing this was a management decision because maybe these employees didn't have the right look, but they are the only employees that came out to apologize or check in with us about our dining experience.

Probably not a restaurant I would come back to, especially when there is so much competition nearby, including The Annex across the street.  But, I could be convinced if somebody told me that they had improved their quality, even marginally.  I do think it's a food experience that has a lot of potential, but just has not figured themselves out yet.  The menu ideas are there, but not the execution.

Also, here's a funny picture of what they brought me when I...

I am new to California and ended up in Fresno tonight at the Hotel Piccadilly. After checking in I decided to look for a place to eat but I didn't know that I was so close to a wonderful little gem by the name of Mochuelo. I decided to try the Spanish cuisine restaurant and see if it held up to the great reviews I saw on Google. I was very pleased. The staff was awesome. I had no history in Spanish cuisine. I did not know what tapas were. I foundl that they are individual dishes to share at a table setting. One would say it is almost like family style eating but a notch above. I was by myself and decided to try three different tapas. I had the roasted brussel sprouts, the Moroccan street tacos, and the bacon wrapped dates with almonds inside of them. I also decided to try their sangria on tap. For dessert I had the honey goat cheese panna cotta. I must say every dish was unique and I have never had anything like them. Everything was superb. I highly recommend this wonderful restaurant. I understand that it has recently been remodeled and it looks very up-to-date and clean. The staff was very helpful and did an outstanding job. If you get a chance try this little gem located inside of the Hotel Piccadilly you will be very happy. Be adventuresome and step outside of the box. You will...

Cool, trendy interior decor, like the gold chairs and fun chandelier. But, most of the food was bland and not creative.

The seafood paella was probably the worst I've ever had; seafood was undercooked (shrimp was still gray on the outside and scallops were still cold). Lost my appetite on the first bite. Paella completely lacked basic flavor. Uncle Ben's rice would have been a better choice. I felt nauseous about an hour after I tried this dish.

The summer fruit salad was good, but barely included any of the greens that were described on menu. And, the goat cheese balls were frozen on the inside!

The only cool thing about the smoked fig bourbon drink was the tobacco leaf smoke demo, but bourbon tasted super cheap. I watched the lady pour the bourbon out of a clear, unlabeled bottled so it's hard to imagine it was the craft bourbon described on the menu.

The dishes reminded me of what you might find in a cruise ship cafeteria. Yucko. Actually, cruise ship cafeteria food is better than this place.

The music was so awful , too. Will not be back.

They could use some serious improvement. The servers were pleasant, but I think we're short staffed. We definitely weren't made to feel special or anything.

This place...