La Costeñita — Restaurant in Hillsborough Township

La Costeñita is a small restaurant in a small strip mall: very unassuming. Don't let that deter you from giving them a try, or, better still, frequenting this little gem. The food is excellent: it is obviously made with care and pride. Rather than generic Mexican found in many chains, La Costeñita features Oaxacan cuisine. I am not well versed in Oaxacan delights, but folks I know vouch for the authenticity you find here. While we have dined here in the past (there are a few tables), it seems like La Costeñita is mostly takeout. Should you choose to dine in, La Costeñita is BYO, a nice feature if you're working on a budget. This visit, for us, was takeout for a family celebration. My wife had the Shrimp Taco, which she really enjoyed, others in our party had burritos, and flautas, which they consumed with gusto, while I thoroughly enjoyed my Chile Relleños. Everyone was very satisfied with their meal. I was impressed with the way the staff handled one burrito, with multiple instructions (I was reminded of Jack Nicholson in "Five Easy Pieces") on its prep. Well done, La Costeñita. The staff is friendly and accommodating, although at times, rarely, there is a bit of a language barrier. La Costeñita is clean and pleasant. It is conveniently located, parking is more than adequate. Give La Costeñita a try, you'll be...

I am very disappointed in the customer service and willingness to accommodate my needs. I googled a search for a mexican restaurant in town and La Constenita came up. I looked up the menu directly linked to the restaurant and the only shrimp dish I saw I ordered and I was unaware that is was in a very spicy red sauce. It said chipolte shrimp with rice and plantains. My husband picked up the take out and as soon as I saw the red sauce, I knew it was not for me so I called immediately and the person who answered the phone was no help at all. She said there was nothing she could do and she didn't know when the owner would be in and I should just try calling back another day. I asked her if I could get something else and she told me she couldn't. I left my name and number to have someone call me back and to my surprise the owner called back, but refused to do anything. I wonder why she even called. She told me that she has no website and I should have looked at the take-out menu and she refused to believe that there was a direct link under her restaurant that had a menu. I am very frustrated that she even bothered to call and I guess satisfying a customer is not as important to her as a single sale of a meal. I will not be ordering from there ever again and I guess we will be going elsewhere for...

The first time I went - great! The second time - meh 3rd time - messy food 4th - terrible service The quality of service just kept going down from the first visit. The owner, on the first visit, served my order and prepared the meal herself. It was wonderful. Made my tummy happy. Oh my it had been a while since I had authentic Mexican food. After then, the second visit, they got my order wrong and the owner wasn't around . The 3rd visit, I ordered the same thing I order each time the spicy shrimp to Tostadas and they went low on the shrimp, didn't make it spicy, barely had vegetables and the platter was messy. I didn't care to say anything, because I was soooo hungry and ate the food anyway. The last visit, I waited for about 30 minutes to be attended to, someone else walked and the owner took their order while I was still standing there. Seriously! I mean I never said anything to them and never met them before except when order food from the restaurant- I don't think I deserved such treatment.

Either way - hungry or not, I'm never going there again! The 2 stars is for the first...