La Villita Cantina — Restaurant in Los Angeles

My mother and I have frequented here ever since it was Franklin and Co. (the best restaurant that graced the street). When it changed to La Villita Cantina we were disappointed but wanted to give it a chance; we love Mexican food but what Franklin had was beyond unique (the brussels sprouts were to die for). We've been giving it a chance for a few years and today was the last day. The food is okay, though very overpriced unless you do happy hour and too small of portions. Chips and salsa are never complimentary, unlike most Mexican restaurants, and their refills are not free, also unlike most restaurants. The waitstaff (the main reason we return) is always kind... except for today.

Today was the day I said goodbye. Today, while eating outside as I always do (I have tourettes so I don't eat indoors because my twitches are very irritating and people never hesitate to make me aware of it), a couple's german shepherd kept growling and barking at every dog and person that walked by. If you've ever been around a german shepherd you know the strength of their bark... ear piercing. The patrons would not quiet their dog, named Cecilia, and the manager nor the staff would ask. If that wasn't enough, a man passing by recognized the couple and struck up a conversation while smoking a cigarette. The cigarette was overwhelming, it collected in the semi-enclosed outdoor seating area (small and with outdoor shades drawn); it made me cough, which agitated my tourettes as well as my migraines. I asked for my check and a to-go box earlier than I would've liked. When the waiter asked how my tacos were I told him they were good but the atmosphere wasn't. He asked me why and I informed him of the dog and the smoking non-patron. His solution? "Then maybe you should sit inside next time you eat here." Seriously? I sit outside every time I come to this restaurant, every-time, and I am told to accommodate a dog and a smoking non-patron? That was one of the most rude things I've ever been told. I'm already casted outside due to my disability now I am being told to go inside, where I will be a nuisance and definitely not enjoy myself nor will others, because of an atmosphere that no patron trying to enjoy their food (eating is more than just about the objects on the plate) would appreciate. Thank you for reminding me of my position in this world, below everyone and everything....

Ordered through DoorDash. Food wasn't ready at 845pm waited until 910pm. Still not ready. Strangely, I received a text that the order was ready. When I inquired, the host was rude and pompously suggest I could just cancel the order. Sounds like they didn't even start making the order until 910pm. I was trying to ask if I should come back later but the host was arrogantly telling me to give them 5-10 minutes (after he already asked me to wait 5 minutes outside). Finally at 930pm the food is ready. The host said all the food was in the bag. I didn't check on purpose and didn't want to deal with him anymore. And guess what happened. Yes, some of the items were missing. Had to walk back to let the host know. They quickly fixed the order. My suggestion is, if you don't have a customers order ready please ask for their phone number and call them when it's ready so they don't have to wait around and continue to deal with your poor attitude.

And then... The restaurant replies 6 months later with this: "Sorry Dinh that was actually a Doordash issue not ours but we are sorry it still happened."

Yeah try again. The person who responded didn't take the time to read the review and actually ignores the issues mishandled by their staff. Doordash wasn't responsible for the delay or the missing items. La Villita, you could have just ignored my review and let the problem fade, but instead you once again show your lack of...

I ate here last night with some friends. We had a great time but after being up all night, I realize I was fed meat even though I ordered all vegetarian tacos. My partner and I ordered 5 vegetarian tacos to share. Upon getting our plates, I asked the server if our tacos were vegetarian. I felt I had to make sure because I had ordered 1 hard shell beyond meat taco, and we had received 2 hard shell tacos. He assured me that all the tacos were vegetarian, so we proceeded to eat them. We ate everything except for one of the hard shell tacos and then got the servers attention. I told him that I had ordered only one beyond meat taco and that we didn’t receive the cauliflower shawarma taco so I think he took the order wrong. He took the beyond meat taco and brought us a cauliflower shawarma taco. I now realize that he had originally given us the chicken shawarma instead of the cauliflower shawarma taco and we never received the soyrizo taco we ordered. That makes 3 mistakes in a 5 taco order. Please be careful eating here if you are vegetarian or vegan as they seem pretty careless. I haven’t eaten meat in almost 6 years so this is very...