Barcenas Mexican Grill — Restaurant in La Marque

I waited a few weeks to write this review to make sure I wasn’t writing something out of anger. I’ve recently moved to this area and drive pass this place everyday on my way home from work. I was wfh this day and didn’t want to drive into Houston for enchiladas and queso. I read the reviews to make sure food was at least half decent. Many complaints were mostly about prices but hey that’s the world we live in so no bigger. Placed a pick up order and the total was around $47. I arrived to pick up my order which the host handed to me. I didn’t even get to check my food before leaving because the plastic bag was tied so tightly with a triple knot. I looked through the bag to make sure I had 2 plates and a cup of Queso, which I did. I returned to my car, placed the bag on the floor and proceeded to head back home. As I was at the traffic light waiting, I looked down and seen something yellow gooey running down the inside of the bag. I picked the bag up and notice the Queso cup mushed between the plates causing the top to come off. Usually tops are secured with tape but every restaurant is different so I cannot assume that. Now, I am trying to open the bag to save what little queso I can but again the bag is tied so tightly I cannot do anything. I turned away and return to the restaurant with the bag in hand where I was greeted by a male server. I explained to him what happened and if he could see if I can get another cup of queso. He look at the bag and tried opening it also and said sure no problem. He even offered to take the bag of food to the back to clean the plates up and I told him, “no thank you, I appreciate it but I’ll do it when I get home, I would just like a replacement” (I have a thing with sending food back so that’s on me). As I’m standing in the front waiting on the server to come back I was then greeted by a manager wearing a red shirt sitting at an office in the front next to the host table. He overheard the conversation and asked if he could see the bag. I said sure, and handed him the bag. By this time ALL the queso is at the bottom of the bag. The manager felt the bottom where the queso sits now and said, “it’s still hot”. I said, I know sir I just left not even 5 mins ago.” He said, “well, we didn’t give it you like this.” I said, “okay, I understand that sir I don’t know where this went wrong at but I wasn’t even able to open the bag as you can see to even prevent this.” Now we are going back and forward. He keeps saying the host didn’t give me the bag like that. I keep telling him, I understand and I’m not blaming anyone, I was just trying to get a replacement. Remember the server already left to get it so I am not sure why the manager stood up and addressed the situation further. Now I am upset because I am really having a disagreement over spilled queso. I told the manager since you have your food in hand I would like a FULL refund. He is still trying to tell that they didn’t give me the food like that which I NEVER accused anyone. I guess the general manager was watching the monitor and notice the exchange. He come over to defuse the situation, which he did respectfully. He asked me to speak with him. He apologized from my experience and also acknowledged the queso wasn’t secured properly due to having no tape on the top (I figured but didn’t want to assume). He replaced the queso, gave me a gift card and asked me to give them another try. We all make simple mistake especially in fast food so I clearly understand how my incident happen but it was the reaction of the manager that doesn’t sit well with me. Customer service will make or break a business. You can have mediocre food with mixed reviews about taste and ppl will overlook it because EVERYONE taste preferences are different! But to have mediocre food with bad customer service is a bad combination. If ppl have no customer service skills they shouldn’t interact with customers. Thank you to the general manager for handling the situation like him did. Hopefully the rude manager will use this review as a learning tool....

Honest Review from POCs: If I could give this restaurant negative stars I would. There were so many issues with our order for the amount we paid for. One of the food orders had 2 strands of hair in it. The tortillas were extremely stale and impossible to eat with the 5 orders of birria that we placed. The only thing that was edible to be honest was the chips and salsa. The enchiladas were ahighlighter orange color which was extremely off-putting. Both orders of chulpas only included one chulpa even though it states in the menu that 2 are included in the order. All 5 of the horchatas tasted like just cinnamon and water. I would not recommend this restaurant at all. The entire food experience was disappointing, a waste of money, and food.

Update 8/9/22: while I appreciate you calling and listening to my concerns with our order. We are not satisfied with how this situation was handled. As there was too much focus on the fact that no other patrons complained of illness, while ignoring and dismissing the personal experience of 9 individuals who had an adverse affect to the food that was served to us. Chalking it up to a virus, stomach bug, and even COVID-19 potentially being the cause. There was no solution to the hair found in the food after providing pictures, missing parts of the order, or the food that was completely inedible due to it's staleness. I was hoping for a more favorable solution, as you mentioned we will proceed through the proper channels.

Update 8/10/22: I would like to clarify that my experience did not change. I provided an image with hair. Let's be clear the fact that there was hair in my food is the issue. Our party chose not to go to the hospital as our insurance is not accepted as we are visiting temporarily. That is an immediate out of pocket cost, in case we had to be footed with the bill and your insurance not cover the entire cost. Also, I did ask for a refund but no where did I say a full refund. The only solution you gave us was to go to a hospital. Your story changed over the phone however when you said there were no women in the kitchen, but then the women wore hair nets with their hair tied up. Your responses and the way you're handling this situation is negating our experience. You have failed to address or provide solutions to the hair in the food after proof was provided; parts of the order missing, or the quality of the food. We are just appalled to see how you are handling this situation as in other reviews we have read you seem to attempt to work towards solutions for...

Food: Maybe slightly above average. Atmosphere: Typical aging and rundown Mexican restaurant. Service: First time in my life, I have left a penny tip. Sat down at dirty table. I was extremely disappointed! 5 minutes after our food came is when we got our utensils. The staff seemed to not care about us. We were there 20 minutes before we placed our order. We ended up so full on chips and salsa that we scrapped the fajitas and just got us a couple of appetizers. When I asked for stuff, like utensils, I got the "one minute finger" multiple times. The bill: The bill had an extra charge, "LRG 1.50". When I asked about it, I was told it was for the drinks. We had 3 sodas, which were already on the bill. When I pushed more, I was told it was because we got large drinks. I told him that we didn't ask for large drinks. He said it was because the drinks cost 3.25. He started to get abrasive, so I just paid the bill. Conclusion: They ran off a potential new repeat customer, as I just moved to the area. I usually spend about $100 meal and we go out to eat a lot! I also was a waiter once, and I tip GOOD. Usually, about 30%. Look, I'm not rude or demanding customer who expects a super experience. I just want to feel like the experience, food, and my time were worth the money...