La Finka Mexican Restaurant & Grill — Restaurant in Huntsville

Sheeesh this wasn't it for us.

We came here last Thursday to play trivia after we missed our usual Monday night trivia engagement. We thought it might be fun to try somewhere new, but I highly doubt we'll play at this place again.

Now I will say all this with the caveat that pretty much no one in our party is a huge fan of this style of Mexican food. Still, this stood out as particularly unpleasant, even to our perspective.

The atmosphere is nice enough, at least; it's a very spacious restaurant with lots of seating, tall ceilings, and lots of interesting art. As others have noted, it is pretty loud inside and it can be hard to hear both waiters and others in your party.

We were seated at a booth for four. Chips and salsa were forthcoming; the chips were hot and fresh and the salsa was generic but enjoyable. As is often the case, the chips and salsa were the highlight for most of us.

Our waiter did not seem to speak a ton of English and either didn't understand or couldn't answer one of my mom's questions about the menu. No big deal to me or her, but something to be aware of when you visit.

My mom just got cheese dip, my dad got an a la carte beef burrito and crunchy chicken taco, my friend got a beef chimichanga, and I got the chicken and vegetable plate. Our food came out in a reasonable amount of time.

My mom's cheese dip was as expected but being cheese dip it was the best thing we ate. My chicken and vegetable plate was runner up, though mostly because it too came with cheese dip. My chicken was under-seasoned and the vegetables were under-cooked and extremely crunchy. The rice was okay.

My buddy who ordered the beef chimichanga did not get it. The waiter delivered a chicken chimichanga and seemed confused when my friend tried to correct the order. My friend decided it wasn't worth the battle and said he'd settle for chicken. He ultimately said the chicken was weird and very dry and he didn't enjoy it. On the bright side, they left off the $2 up-charge for a chicken chimichanga on the bill, so I guess there's that.

My dad said his beef burrito had little flavor but was edible. The shredded chicken taco, he said, was totally inedible and just nasty. He didn't eat it beyond the first bite.

When it came time to pay, the waiter brought out a ticket for my parents and a ticket for me and my friend, despite us asking to pay separately. My friend picked up the tab and I Venmoed him later. It was pricy, at about $25 for my entree and Diet Coke + tip.

An all-around frustrating and unpleasant first (and likely last) visit here. Trivia was fun as usual, but we will stick to our Monday night haunt...

Went today for lunch after a friend of mine read the rave reviews and I have to say it was a huge let down. I'm not sure if it is because I have been spoiled with the availability of great Mexican food living in San Antonio or on the Texas/Mexico border, but this was just a let down to both of us.

The restaurant itself is really nice and clean, which gave me hope when I went in. The staff was very friendly, and they were doing a great job with COVID precautions. Chips and salsa were immediately brought to the table, which was great. The chips were warm and crispy, and actually had a decent thickness. The salsa was weak, though, with no spice or flavor to it aside from tomato and a slight hint of garlic. No spiciness or anything.

Hoping for some redemption from the main menu, I looked for something special there. The lunch menu wasn't very appealing--just different combos of your standard taco/burrito/enchilada/etc variants, with one or two things like huevos rancheros--so instead I searched the main menu. Having a craving for arroz con pollo, a pretty standard Mexican dish, I looked for something similar and nothing stood out, but ended up opting for the Pollo Loco in hopes of something close.

What I got was a disappointment.

The chicken breasts were seasoned with nothing more than seasoning salt. No heat, no spice, nothing even discernable to make it "Authentic Mexican". The rice and refried beans were standard fare that is repeated across almost every other Mexican joint in Huntsville...and was just as unremarkable. The biggest let down for the main course was perhaps the guacamole, which is just plain false advertisement. It was nothing more than avocado puree with none of the tomatos, red onions, peppers, or even a little salt that you would find in even a store-bought guac.

I was really hoping to find food that was as great and inviting as the staff and restaurant itself...but I didn't. Hopefully I just caught an off day and may try to give it one more shot...but with Mexican restaurants being a dime-a-dozen, and great local options like Rosie's, Phil's, or Buena Vista to name a few, there needs to be some huge improvements to the non-existent flavor profiles I found today to steer me away from anywhere else.

Great staff and nice decor just don't win me over enough to overlook something as fundamental as salsa, guacamole, and traditional...

Such a beautiful place, but might be the loudest restaurant where I have ever eaten. Very nicely decorated with lovely architecture and artwork. We were greeted, seated, menued, chipped and salsaed very promptly and politely.

Nice menu, lots of options. Female server was attentive, but spoke very quickly and in heavily accented English which was hard to understand in the noisy restaurant. There were no soft surfaces so every sound carried readily.

Beau ordered a happy hour special margarita as suggested by the server, grilled jalapenos and a nacho plate. I ordered the quesadilla, which is what I get at almost every Mexican restaurant. Food showed up very quickly, but no margarita. The server came by and asked me if I wanted a margarita. I was happy with my water, but we asked about the previously ordered one, which appeared shortly thereafter.

The meal was good. Ate every bite! Salsa was only average, but tasty enough. Chips good and crispy. Very nice texture. We both enjoyed our food, but we would have liked to be able to have a conversation across the table.

The world record holder for loudest table busser works at La Finka. I have never heard such a racket in my life. I don't know what was the problem, but she was throwing the dishes into a bus pan on the bottom of a cart. Yes, she was just tossing them in there like they were going to bounce. (Indeed the base of the margarita glass was damaged.) No effort was made to stack them and place them into the bin. If I owned a restaurant, I would immediately fire an employee who showed no more care for restaurant property than this. Absolutely uncalled for. Glad I am not in charge of ordering their dishware!

It is a decent addition to the many other Mexican restaurants in town, certainly one of the prettiest, but La Finka will not ever be the most beloved Mexican restaurant...