Don Ramon Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Lyndhurst

Update: despite previous praise, on our last visit, while the service was good, the food was overseasoned. Salsa was a lot spicier than normal, as were the shrimp enchiladas, and even a simple dish of chicken & vegetables had over-salted chicken. The space's ambient noise & smooth surfaces made it even less pleasant. We still received good service & everything was timely & prompt. But we won't be going back, as even after the shrimp enchiladas got sent back, the supposedly milder cheese sauce was still too spicy. Bear in mind that the enchiladas normally come with salsa verde, which is a mild sauce. So it was all abnormally spicy. Hence, I can no longer endorse this restaurant as being that good for a pleasant meal. Apparently, new management has made a difference. On my first visit to this relatively new location, I was unimpressed, as they put us by the bar, which meant talking over the blender that was making drinks. It was so annoying. And given, if like me you have sound/noise issues, I can recommend the booths along the walls away from the bar. You will be a lot happier. If you like noise, you can sit in the middle area. All that being said, my second visit was a lot more impressive. We were sat in the middle and near the bar, but we were able to basically enjoy ourselves and hear eachother well. (We were seated by I would guess someone who is a child of the owner or manager, given her apparent age, so I'm willing to forgive it.) Our server had a lot of people to tend to, if you can imagine a Mexican restaurant being busy on a Saturday night. So if you go on a busy night, expect service to be a bit sparse. Try to figure out what you want quickly, as difficult as that is with such a wonderful menu. There is a lot to choose from: appetizers, salads, entrees featuring various ingredients, combination platters. I ordered the #13 combo, which was an enchilada and a burrito with your choice of meat, and a chile relleno. A chile relleno is basically a giant jalepeno popper, only made with a big green chile. (I want to say it's a poblano, mild but with a little heat to it; watch out for seeds.) My companion enjoyed a new burrito featuring shrimp & pineapple and covered in melted cheese sauce. In her own words, it was perfect. They had some coupons in the mail that we used, and we were able to save a little that way, so watch your mailbox or see if they sent you something. As for the meal, I enjoyed mine, and they provided tall glasses of cold drinks, which goes perfectly on a cold night with warm tortilla chips and fresh salsa before your meal. If you are a sports fan, the bar features large-screen TVs to watch the big games on. That night, they were showing one of the NCAA games and one of the world league soccer games, so that made for interesting viewing. The place is clean and the staff are attentive and want you to have a good experience. The manager came by to check on us, and was very friendly and personable. It made us feel really special for him to take the time, especially since we tried a new and innovative dish that we had never seen elsewhere. I would recommend this place for families or friends looking for a festive and flavorful night out. Menu items are great for splitting or for enjoying by yourself. Parking is ample and easy to access, as the location (the Greens shopping plaza)...

I ordered online and picked up my food - it seemed fairly simple: a kid's meal with a beef enchilada and a hard shell chicken taco. When I got home, it was reversed. I had a chicken enchilada and a beef taco. I called to inform them of the error (after I checked to make sure it wasn't my error) and they said I could come back and they would replace the meal. Fine, it happens. As I got ready to leave for the restaurant, they called me back to say that the order was prepared correctly and the error was not theirs. I told her what my online order said and she told me to read the ticket attached to my bag. It said: Kids Combo #2 Beef Chicken Hard Shell She said that the first item equals the protein for the taco and the second protein is for the enchilada. I asked then why is chicken above hard shell? Last I checked, enchiladas don't have hard shells. That is obviously the taco. Perhaps their staff wasn't properly trained to read their tickets. I asked if I could still come and have my meal replaced. She asked her manager and then reluctantly agreed. When I arrived, I was not greeted and they treated me like I was trying to get something for nothing. I paid for my child's meal and just wanted what I ordered and paid for. I tried to show the cashier my online order so they could see I wasn't trying to get them to pay for my error. She refused to look at it. They gave me my corrected meal. I checked it before I left and THEY PREPARED IT THE EXACT SAME WAY! There was a chicken enchilada and a beef taco. They really weren't happy with me when I showed them. It was prepared again and when the cashier handed it to me, I checked it, smiled and thanked her. She didn't return the smile and just handed it to me. She walked away without saying anything. No have a nice day, no apologies for making me come back to the restaurant, no apology for me having to wait for them to make it a third time, nothing. I certainly didn't feel like a valued customer. I am attaching photos of both my online order and the ticket that was attached to my bag. My family and I were frequent visitors to this restaurant. I truly don't want to patronize them anymore....

Recently, I dined with a group of four people, including myself, and 4 people is not a large number, yet half of us were served our meal while the rest had to wait.

This is a peculiar practice in certain restaurants. Some of the guests are served while the others are left waiting. This practice can be disheartening and even lead to an unpleasant dining experience for those who are left waiting. It's essential for restaurants to prioritize fairness and efficiency in their service to ensure that all guests are treated equally and receive the best possible dining experience. By doing so, restaurants can create an atmosphere where customers can relax and enjoy their meals without any undue stress or frustration. In my opinion, it is basic food service etiquette that the entire table should receive their meals at the same time or within a very reasonable timeframe. Ideally, the extra waiting time should not exceed two minutes. There is no justification for serving some guests and leaving the others waiting for their meal. When a customer experiences this service issue and brings it to the attention of a manager, it is important for the manager to handle the situation appropriately. A suitable resolution may entail offering the customer a discount a free drink or other form of compensation to mitigate the inconvenience. Regrettably, in my particular case, at Don Ramon Mexican Restaurant, the manager failed to handle the situation in this manner. Instead of providing any compensation, the manager merely attempted to rationalize the issues and offered only a flurry of excuses for the new staff's inexperience, the kitchen backlog, and the food unavailability. I believe that guests should never have to accept excuses and should not have to endure a substandard dining experience.

To ensure a positive dining experience for everyone, I recommend serving the meal to all customers only when all meals are ready. A two-star rating is a...