El Mejor Mexican Kitchen + Cantina — Restaurant in McKinney

We are frequent to the Downtown area, and based on the reviews we thought this would be a good place to go for our "non" Valentines Day dinner. Perhaps due to it being mid-week, and it was very cold the restaurant was empty this evening. The host/manager greeted us and was very friendly letting us choose where we sat. The dining area was very comfy and the booths clean and a good place to sit for a bit. The bar area looked great, and stocked well.

We sat and were greeted right away by our waitress who brought us some chips, and salsa and asked if we wished to have a drink as well. We ordered our drinks and a side of guacamole. These came right out and the guac was very good, the beer cold and poured perfect, and for the better half a Skinny Marg.

We ordered fajita combos as well as soup to come out pre-meal. This is where things kinda went downhill.

The food came out at the same time as the soup, I was okay with this as the restaurant was not busy so I figured the food got done quickly. However the soup was cold and I was looking forward to some hot soup. Still just figured it was a miss, no big deal. The fajitas were on the traditional cast iron, and sizzling. I had the chicken and shrimp and my wife had the steak and shrimp, but it came out with chicken and steak. She mentioned this to the wait staff and they stated she ordered the combo not the shrimp. Seemed as though they said it was her mistake... My wife was not upset and asked if they could bring out a side of shrimp which they said no problem. When I looked at the plate my chicken breast looked as though it was not a fresh breast (most likely frozen) and the meat was on a bed of onions. There was no peppers or other veg on the fajita plate at all, and no sides of pico, sour cream or cheese. We asked for these and they brought them out. The cheese looked as though it was taken out of a bag (not freshly grated) and tasted very plastic. The tortillas were obviously the packaged ones (mission or ?) and you woud think they would make fresh tortillas. The chicken was plain with no taste and not charred on the outside (fajitas typically have char on the outside). The shrimp tasted awful as if they were placed into a pan or skillet with soap. We wanted to let the waitress know but we did not see her until near the end (more below). The waitress did finally came of and said she would clear some plates, then left. The host / manager came over and asked if he could clear plates which he did. He noticed the wait staff hanging out at a table in the back and was clearly a bit upset. I asked for our check and shortly the waitress came back with the check.

Our issue was that the place was not busy at all. Two tables of two (including us) were in the restaurant. There were two waitresses and after the initial greeting and order taking we did not see ours very much. Obviously it was a slow night but the food was mediocre, not plated well (no peppers, only onions, no side dishes and had to ask for them), the soup was served cold which meant it was probably ready, but not picked up, and we had to ask the host/manager for another drink from the bar. Also the wait staff seemed to be having a good time while we waited and the host/manager cleared our table, and checked in on us.

Sorry to see this as we had some expectations, and most have said that it is a good place for this type of food in the downtown area. Most likely will not go back... perhaps just a...

EDIT 1: I never said the employees are “anti-maskers” I said “no-maskers” READ ALL THE REVIEWS. Reviews from many months ago up to the present state issues with employees not wearing masks. As of today during my visit, (1/3/21) the hostess came from the dining area with multiple seated tables with no mask on, and only put one on when she noticed I was coming in with one. The maskless bartender gave me a menacing look as to challenge me with a “you better not care that I’m not wearing one” look- while he was chatting with a customer the whole time at the bar. Owner/manager is in denial and challenging his patrons. The other reviews speak for themselves. I’ve worked high-class-service restaurants for years. Do not expect to be treated with dignity from the owner/manager. Moved from a 3 star to a 1 star. I am not high risk, my comment is to HELP people who ARE high risk. Just lost an uncle from COVID on New Years Day. I have every right to inform people of what they’re walking into.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: Went there for the first time today, liked the look of the restaurant. Issue is the portions are off for the price.

Ordered the carnitas tacos ($14) and only got a tiny amount of meat on three corn tortillas and way too much rice.

The meat tasted good but you can tell they try to add a ton of sides to make up for the lack of the entree.

Also, if you’re authentic Mexican, your carnitas tacos need to be loaded with white onions and cilantro.

Pictures online show cilantro, mine had none and hardly any onions.

North Texas has a lack-of-authentic-tacos crisis.

P.S. all the employees are no-maskers so if you’re high risk stay away (and yeah I’m not OCD about corona at all, I’m...

My sister chose this place for her rehearsal dinner. She negotiated a preset price per person at $30 per person. The food and drinks were good, but she and all her guests were price gouged significantly. Guests paid for their own drinks which were pre negotiated to be happy hour prices. The margaritas on the menu were listed as $8 a piece and everyone paid $15 per. Other mixed drinks were also $15+ a piece. Also many of the guests if not all had extra drinks on their tabs that were not theirs my family alone had 4 extra. Extras like queso and quac were supposed to be applied to individuals tabs as well but we’re instead applied to hers. She ended up spending $1000 plus more dollars than was preset. The manager that she worked with on this arrangement was not present and when she texted this individual about marg prices they said they would contact the staff immediately but nothing happened. When she reached out after the fact NO ONE returned her texts or calls. It just felt like a giant scam for a large group of people who they made tons of money off of in alcohol purchases alone in addition to $30 per person on fajitas. Their computer system also crashed mid meal and I see how accidents could have happened there yet there has been zero action on the restaurants part to make it right. The food and atmosphere was great but triple check your tabs and be careful with large groups. So...