Carter's Cantina — Restaurant in Lenox Township

This place was recommended by a friend in lieu of our usual anniversary taco place. When we got there, I remembered I'd been there once before, and recalled that it had been "not bad." The food that time had been okay, Americanized mediocre. The worst part was being forced to witness the dishwasher change his shirt in the hallway my seat was facing. But this time, it was bad. We should have left when they said they didn't have coffee, and the only iced tea was sweet tea. When I asked for cola, the waiter didn't know what I was talking about. When I clarified, "Pepsi? or Coke?" he said they had Coke. By the time I had a chance to flip the menu to see that Jaritos cola was an option, it was too late; he was already pouring the watered-down tooth decay from the fountain. I ordered the "street tacos" and my husband built a burrito. I got my tacos a full 5 minutes before my husband got his burrito, which sat dying in the window while our waiter swept the floor and talked with a waitress who was doing some questionable pouring of vodka from one bottle into another. I don't know if it was because we went after work, so they were going to be closing in an hour, but they seemed to have run out of seasonings by the time we got there. The "salsa" that came with the obligatory basket of half-crumbs-half-chips was red in color, but that's as close as it came to salsa. We asked for a hotter version, and got a bowl of something slightly chunkier, still red, but otherwise not very salsa. As my side, I ordered the refried beans. One bite was enough to know that this was not going to get any better. I ate the tacos because I was hungry, having not eaten much all day. Somehow, even the onions were bland. My husband did manage to get a mystery hot sauce that came in a little plastic cup, and that had some heat and flavor, but after saturating my tacos with it just to give the chicken some moisture, the flavor was mostly vinegar. I don't know how chicken can be dry and oily at the same time, but they did it. Overall, our meals tasted a lot like sand. Sand and vinegar, but mostly sand. If you like eating sand, check this place out. If you enjoy flavor, go...

I'm sorry to say, but having had some amazing authentic Mexican food from many family run restaurants and taquerias, including several in Mexican town in Detroit, I can honestly say Carter's isn't particularly great.

Overall menu selection is pretty lacking compared to many other Mexican restaurants. The rice and refried beans they serve have tasted like cheap, pre-made canned goods every time I've gotten food here. I'm assuming that they're not "home made" because of this.

As for the main dishes, I've tried almost everything they have on offer and all of it ranged from fine to bland. Bland is definitely not something one typically expects or wants from Mexican cuisine. My least favorite was the burrito, which was filled almost entirely with lettuce, sour cream and more pre-made overly dry rice.

Finally, the prices can be pretty ridiculous, especially for the amount of food you receive. Street tacos are basically $4+ each, which is insanely high, especially for sub-par quality. If you order guacamole and chips (for $7) you get a little paper bag of chips and a very, VERY small styrofoam container of guacamole. It was maybe 3 or 4 fl. ounces of guacamole. It couldn't have been more than half an avocado to make it.

I hate to be overly critical, I just want to put out an honest review of my experience after having had their food several times and being only mildly satisfied each time. If it wasn't so close to where I live, I would not order from here. With that said, I have to imagine that people giving Carter's glowing reviews have never had authentic Mexican food from any other place ever in...

I did not have high expectations for a Mexican restaurant in a strip mall out in the middle of no where... I moved out to the area 6 months ago, and have always thought about eating food from Carter's, but have always decided on something else. Now I regret missing out on six months of some of the best Mexican food I have ever had!!!!

As I mentioned before, this establishment is located in a strip mall and I did not have high hopes, but was surprised from the moment I walked in the door. The ambiance is amazing - nice booths, a little bar area up front and the decor was really something.

Service was amazing!!! I always judge service very harshly because the sole job of a member of the waitstaff is to "wait" on you - so in my opinion that job should be executed without question. The waitstaff at Carter's was AMAZING - 5 stars plus. They were always making sure I had everything I needed and were absolutely amazing.

The food - we ordered a quesadilla app and two chimichanga dinners (one chicken, one ground beef) - I did not try the beef, but my chicken chimi was the stuff of legends!! The crust was crispy and perfect, not soggy or moist. I think they even put a layer of cheese inside the crust when rolling the chimi - something I have never seen before. The food itself was over and above... magnificent!!

I have eaten at restaurants all over the world - at some of the best, and unfortunately some of the worst - and Carter's is definitely a world class eatery when it comes to taste. I...