Chivos Mexican Bistro & Cantina — Restaurant in Louisiana

Won’t be returning for sure and if we had known it only changed names from Chuy to Chivos, we never would have gone back in the first place. It wasn’t the absolute worst Mexican in the world but they are trying to claim it’s “made from scratch Mexican” and that couldn’t be the furthest from the truth. This is stated everywhere from the Northsore magazine to their Facebook page. The chips were thick and hard and definitely store bought, the tamale was a blonde white color that I’ve never seen on a tamale before and the Chile rellano tasted like it had been sitting in grease for quite a while with parts of the breading being hard and stale. The tortillas are not homemade. I even asked about that one. I make my own homemade tortillas at home and believe me it makes a big difference. The rice is orange in color with diced up carrots and corn in it. They had to change their name because of the Chuy’s chain that actually does make their tortillas homemade and the steak for their fajitas is tender quality steak actually cooked to order instead of steak that’s so thin it’s impossible to cook to the temperature that the customer wants. I like mine medium rare and that’s exactly what I get every time at the real Chuy’s in the most amazing soft pillowy flour HOMEMADE tortillas that are pressed out and cooked right before your eyes. I’m glad they made you change your name because you will never live up to those standards until you change how you run your restaurant. I don’t appreciate a restaurant claiming to offer something they don’t really have and deceiving their customers. I ordered a to go order once before for my son who was in the hospital and had all these same complaints about his food but I thought this was a new restaurant. That’s the only reason we went back but it will never happen again. Chivos, shame on you for claiming you have fresh homemade quality food when in reality you just cut corners and strive for quantity over quality. I’ll give you one thing and that’s all and that is that the top shelf margarita was pretty good. Otherwise, don’t waste your...

Let me preface this review with a brief story.

You know how when you order food from a delivery app, you get the food usually a half hour later than you should and when you get it, its soggy, or just bleh? Yeah well, that didn't happen with Chivos. It was so good, we decided we needed to go to the restaurant and dine in person.

So, we walked in the door and were greeted by a very nice person. Sat at our table and proceeded to look over the menu.

The food came out about 15 minutes after ordering. With a dinner crowd growing, the kitchen was working efficiently because it came out quick and was piping hot.

The taste. O! M! G! For as great as the food was through delivery, dining at the restaurant in person, the food was absolutely amazing. Not over seasoned. Not over cooked. Absolutely perfect!

I struck up a conversation with the nice gentleman that greeted us at the door. I wanted to know the reason for the name change. It was then that I leanred that the man that greeted us was also one of the owners! Wow!

The service of the staff only worked to compliment the amazing food flowing out of the kitchen. Our server was attentive and very friendly. My cup didn't ever go empty and he was on the spot when we ordered our desert.

Now, let's talk about portions. I ordered the Carnitas. The portion size is massive. You'd be hard pressed to eat the entire serving in two sittings. So value per dollar, you're getting so much more than you're paying for.

When you take into consideration the great atmosphere, the swift action in the kitchen, and the attentive and friendly staff, you're getting the trifecta that builds loyalty and brings you back. Again and again.

Thanks Sergio for being so kind to us and for the amazing meal that was served. We...

Maaaaaan lemmie tell you, this is the BEST Mexican restaurant around here. The margaritas (on the rocks) will knock you on your butt :) Big Sur fajitas, the flautas, the enchiladas tricolor and the 6 wonders salad are my favorites. Imma be upfront, in general, I hate beans but this the ONLY place I eat beans, they're fantastic. When the Israelites talked about Manna from Heaven I really think they were talking about Chivos frijoles charros; it's really that delicious and remember, I'm a certified bean hater. The free bean dip and the salsa with chips are both so yummy also :)

The churros are the kind with filling in the middle. D I V I N E.

My only disappointments are the churriqueso, it's incredibly yummy but it's really runny and it makes eating it pretty messy. Maybe that's why it's so much more runny than other places, the flavor is just too much to contain. Okay and disappointment #2 and maybe they'll take this as a hint... there's no tres leches cake :( :( :( i mean i honestly shouldn't be so upset because Id want to get it every time and that's not good for my waist (eheheheee) but like i just know it'd be the best tres leches cake I'd ever have in my entire life and my soul utterly yearns for it. I'm going to try my best to manifest it so we can all have it in our lives.

Anyway, thats my review, food is great and the atmosphere is great and the wait staff is wonderful. I have a favorite waitress and...