Café Corazón — Restaurant in Milwaukee

This isn’t a bash to the restaurant but detailed critiques to consider based off my initial experience.

I was very excited to try this place and actually choice this over some old reliable Mexican restaurant options. Since its reviews/ratings were stellar, I expected to enjoy the food.

I order a to-go for my partner and I. Our appetizer was guac + salsa, entrees were a burrito each and we both got horchata.

Unfortunately the horchata, was the only thing we enjoyed from the entire meal. For a $50 lunch, we did expect more of a satisfying meal/experience.

Online Ordering feedback:

I ordered a “Wet Burrito” which is the same as a Corazon burrito but intakes a sauce on top of it. I selected “No Sauce” when the ordering system asks about adding a sauce for an additional cost. I didn’t want what seemed implied, an extra sauce on an already wet burrito. (Will attach an image) However when I received my wet burrito, I didn’t get any sauce whatsoever. Probably because I marked no sauce, but I think the listing could be altered in the system to avoid that confusion. I was looking forward to trying a wet burrito I just didn’t want it soaked.

So Instead of giving customers a sauce or no sauce options on a wet burrito listing, consider just giving a which sauce option. And incorporate the cost of sauce in the initial listed price. That way when you request a wet burrito, it’ll come with sauce regardless.

My partner had a naked salmon burrito that was very packed with different ingredients like pickles, aiolis, fish. And yet the dish was extremely lack luster in flavor/seasoning. He had to use our hot sauce from home to help with the flavor.

Personally, flavor/seasoning was not the issue I had with my carne asada burrito. The meat was seasoned well!

However, the protein distribution within both of our separate burritos dishes seemed a bit dishonest or just skimpy. By the time we each ate 2/3 of our respective burritos, we were met with no protein and instead, filler ingredients that wouldn’t have been pleasant to finish.

My carne asada burrito remaining piece had a whopping glob half melted shredded cheese and a few rice grains nestled within it. My partners salmon burrito remained had a welted spring mix at the end. Neither of us were interested in finishing the entrees.

I think a different organization method when packing the burritos could’ve made the eating experience better.

Finally, the shining start the horchata!!! Now I will say I did expect a larger portion for the $4/ea price point. However, after initial sip, I understood that it was a quality horchata and therefore the price was fine with me. It tasted as if they might be actually soaking the rice back there verses using a pre-made mix like some other establishments. I hope I’m right about this though, it was very delicious and we thank you.🙂

Overall, I hope Cafe Corazon and I do not remain on this foot but at this moment, I am not sure if we’ll see eachother again. I hope the business considers this feedback as it continues...

Cafe Corazon is one of our favorite stops in town and at the top of our list when we are craving Mexican food. There are so many things to love about Corazon: the flavorful and wide selection of food (brunch and dinner), the vast cocktail list, and the fun and eclectic atmosphere.

The food: This is a great stop for everyone from meat-eaters to vegans. Most everything comes in a hearty portion size, so its great place to share if you're not up for indulging a bit. They have three veg-friendly substitutes/options available, all of which are great: herb tofu, soy chorizo and roasted vegetables if you want to go soy-free. The soy chorizo is definitely my favorite. There are many items that are specifically crafted as vegan already. But most options just say to pick your meat or vegetarian substitute. And as mentioned above, they have brunch and it is fantastic. Their chilaquiles are the best in town.

The drinks: Obviously, you will find plenty of margarita and tequila options. But they have quite the extensive selection beyond those that are inventive and can please many palates. Also, they do have drinks on special sometimes that are extra exciting, like the recent cranberry margarita they had over winter. They know how to spruce things up and make the familiar feel unique. Their sunrise margarita is a great pairing with brunch.

The space: Fun and eclectic is probably an understatement. You'll find lots of religious icons, bright colors, mismatched vinyl tablecloths, a variety of twinkly lights and fresh flowers to boot. The space is relatively small but there's a wide range of seating options, especially in summer. When you walk in there is a bar and indoor seating. That section wraps around to a sort of indoor patio, which of course, opens up to the full outdoor patio. Though this is the perfect place to be in the warmer months, it also brings warmth during the winter.

Some extra tips: It can get quite busy, especially for brunch. I recommend showing up right when they open at 10 or making sure its a nice day for waiting outside if you come later. It's not the easiest place for a big group, but certainly can be done (again, if you come early enough.) Also, if you'd prefer not to be outside at all, make sure to mention that as the indoor patio section is often opened up...

We came here this evening and were so disappointed. I want to say that we are usually such huge fans of Cafe corazon, but the last few visits have been disappointing.

We arrived this evening and once we were seated, we realized pretty quickly that we were under the vent blowing AC and were really cold. Our host came over and I asked how long it might be to sit outside instead and they said at least another 20 minutes followed by a pretty rude and dismissive "sorry!" And quickly ran away with no other offering of how to solve the issue.

It took several minutes before anyone came to our table and asked if anyone had come to us yet. Our server was great, no issues at all with them and I could tell they were feeling bad about how long everything eas taking/looked very much stretched thin. I asked the server if it was possible to sit at one of the other tables and they said they'd ask the host. We told them not to and that we'd already asked the host about sitting elsewhere and were dismissed.

We went to order drinks and they were out of fountain Coke, not a huge deal at all, just a part of a collectively not great experience. We ordered within 10 minutes of sitting down (ordered only 5 tacos, no sides, no drinks) and didn't get our food for over 45 minutes.

We have always loved coming here, it's just a quick bike ride away, but over the last few months it feels like things have changed. They used to constantly have fresh chips going, tonight we saw they were scooping from a huge bin (who knows how long they've been out), long wait times for food, for a moment they had the QR code ordering system that defeats the purpose of eating in person, no soap in the bathroom, host was coming in slamming dishes around loudly, absolutely freezing inside, and so on. Food is still great, but we will likely either make the drive to Bayview or find...