La Unica Barrio Cocina Y Tequila — Restaurant in Lake Elsinore

I really wanted to like this place, because the food was really good. A girlfriend of mine and my 9 year old son visited here on Tuesday around 4pm. We walked in, we're immediately greeted and sat in a comfy booth, noticing the very unique artwork and decor.

Pros: The Cadillac Margaritas on the rocks were very good. Ordered to start the guacamole and chips, was very tasty. We shared the Main Lobster Puerto Nuevo Style, the cook level was on point, and the seasonings were delicious. Now we were told it's 2 lbs of meat, which was definitely not the case. The cost for how much meat, I would say, is not worth the price at $95 an order. My son had grilled chicken tacos that he said were good. And we all appreciated the little churro ice cream dessert I received for a special birthday surprise.

Cons: On a 1-10 level of volume, the music was at a 9, for 4pm on a Tuesday, it felt like they were trying to turn the place into a dayclub. Just seemed unnecessary to have it that loud. We could barely hear each other across the table. After sitting a while listening to the music, I would absolutely never bring my son back here. A couple of songs passed as we sat, where every other word was N$gg@#, F@$k, or other explicit words. Some may not agree, but I'm only 38 and find that highly inappropriate for a restaurant. Now, if that's the ambiance you want to have in your restaurant, no argument, however, then make it a 18 and up place or post something stating children may not be the best audience for your restaurant. We even made a comment to our waiter, and he just smiled and said, "Ya, there's a lot of songs like that we play!" and walked off. Our service was definitely less than stellar with him, let me tell you. As we walked in, we stated it was our first time. Anytime we asked a question, before we could finish our question, we were cut off and met with a very dismissive, hasty response as he would be walking away as well. It felt as if we were offending him or he just had more important things to do. Their menu is very confusing, as we were trying to figure out the taco pricing (since it was Taco Tuesday). The service from our waiter, I would say, was a 1 of 10. He was not friendly (even though he smiled) his demeanor was uninviting and sometimes condescending.

In the end, thankfully, we had another young lady who was taking care of us. She was very sweet and pleasant as we commented on our concerns she stated she would let the manager know. In understanding, it's not her fault, we would've told our waiter. However, he disappeared after we received our food. All in all, this place has good food, but it is not good enough for us to spend almost $200 for horrible and...

The worst restaurant experience I’ve ever had. Went there on a taco Tuesday over a week ago. The restaurant was recently redone and tripled in size yet there was only about four parties in the restaurant. After waiting about 30 minutes finally got water and chips and salsa to the table by the hostess and not our waitress. We ordered three margaritas and never received them. Our waitress was only waiting on a couple of tables but she would disappear for 20-30 minutes at a time and not come back and just advised us that the bartender was very behind and couldn’t get to our drinks. The other tables around us had cocktails but we were told by the hostess and our waitress that “she “could not make our margaritas. “She” was not only the bartender, but the manager on duty. We went to the bar to ask why we could not have our margaritas that we ordered an hour and a half previously and she said she couldn’t get to them to make our drinks. My friend told her she was currently making drinks for other patrons in the bar and she said no they are drinking beer. But she had a tray of cocktails that she was making for them in front of her! I have never in my entire life been told I can’t make you a drink, I’m too busy in the bar! We did express to the waitress, hostess and manager how disappointed we were with the restaurant and the manager never offered an apology or any compensation to us. We had to ask for our bill three times which we did make clear to the waitress a couple of times we wanted twochecks and she brought out one check finally with no compensation on it and included the three margaritas that we waited an hour and a half for that we never got. She then went back to correct our bills.I wanted to leave without even paying the bill but that is not my nature. Our friends that met us there upon my urging because we loved the food, drove from Temecula winery area. Needless to say they will not be returning. I reached out to speak to the owner the next day but no return call. Called 2 days after spoke to the manager Desiree let her know of the terrible service from the restaurant & told her the owner should know about this. She did apologize and advised me she would speak to the owner and the staff that provided the terrible experience and get back to me. One week later but no response at all. Obviously they don’t care that we won’t be returning. Very disappointing as expensive as it is to eat out these days and have such a terrible dining experience. Clearly this place...

La Unica Cocina Mexicana means The Only Mexican Cuisine, but in the street where they are located we saw several Mexican restaurants. Is a daring title, because perhaps it implies that they stand alone in culinary excellence, and from the numbers of 5 Stars reviews found in Yelp, I even began to believe they were going to be that good. So we decided to go, just a few days after a not very auspicious dinner at another highly rated Mexican place: Provecho, in Sun City. I was curious to compare one with the other. Service was acceptable, place was nearly empty when we arrived at around 7:15 PM on a Wednesday, but gradually more patrons kept arriving. The restaurant area is built like a train cart, long and narrow. Menu has changed, website description is incorrect. Food ordered: Supremos Nachos, with Carne Asada, $14. An expensive failure that was no better than lesser priced Nachos. Pieces of Carne Asada chewy and old. Beans dried and tasteless, guacamole a little nicer but small, salsa acceptable but really a sad beginning for this highly praised eatery. No more than one Jalapeño slice in the concoction. 1.5 Stars. Carnitas Combo (2), $14 each. One with Black beans, the other with Pinto refried beans. The refried old and dried, I heard that the black beans were better. Mexican rice well made. Two corn tortillas, stale and lukewarm. Carnitas were dry, a sip of water after each bite dry, charred and salty, with maybe one or two more tender pieces. Can’t believe how poorly made they were. 1.5 Stars. Camarones al Mojo de Ajo, $16. With Black beans, rice and two corn tortillas. This Shrimp dish with garlic, according to the one who ordered it, was delicious. 4.5 Stars. Enchiladas Shrimp, $15. Served with their refried beans, rice and two corn tortillas, and smothered in their red sauce, eater said it was okey, not great by a long shot. 3 Stars. Churros w caramel inside, $8. Three small churros, with barely any caramel inside, covered in sugar, a joke that costs way too much for what it really was. 2 Stars. Creme Brûlée, $9? Very well regarded by those who tried it. 4.5 Stars. Water was fresh, chips warm, salsa average at best. Total close to $125 before gratuity. Let’s just say that this place is no bette, or worst, than just about any other...