The Camino — Restaurant in Missoula

This is not a typical review for The Camino, I absolutely ADORE this restaurant, but this evening was very off for them. At first, our server was super kind, helpful, and patient with our table of nine. The group I was with, at least in my opinion, were all trying the hardest we could to be considerate to the wait staff (even with a reservation, we all work service jobs so we know how hard it can be!) Unfortunately, out of all the dishes and drinks we ordered we had an issue with a single one. None of us get any joy out of sending something back, but the item we got was so out of the ordinary from every time we’ve gotten it before. We ordered the mussels, they had an off smell and tasted like they were about to go bad. We talked to the server and reiterated that it was completely okay if nothing could be done, but we wanted to check just in case if the kitchen noticed something was wrong that they could possibly take it off our tab. At first the server was super understanding and brought it back to the kitchen to see what she could do and came back with the dish and asked us if the off taste could possibly have been from the char on the bread (it definitely was not the bread, it was the mussels themselves). After telling her this, she took it to the kitchen again and proceeded to work other tables and largely avoided our table without any update on the situation (the restaurant was not slammed by any means, there was a small group at the bar and then a few scattered tables of couples and trios but very obviously spread between several servers). Anytime we tried to flag her down for our checks she would disappear again, which if she was just super busy that’s completely understandable, but it felt really off. When we finally got her attention she very bluntly explained that they couldn’t take the mussels off the tab as we had already eaten half of them and we didn’t alert her soon enough (keep in mind, we got one order of mussels for a table of nine, so each of us trying a single mussel made the dish immediately cut in half) and we let her know once she came back to our table to check on us after our first few bites. To be completely honest, all of our food EXCEPT those mussels was absolutely incredible. And the service was lovely up until that point. This review would’ve been five stars across the board if that hadn’t been our experience. All nine of us at the table work service jobs, we all know that if any of us ever acted that way towards customers no matter the situation that we would be in huge trouble. This review is not at all to say that we want anyone in trouble or to steer people away from The Camino because EVERY other time we’ve gone it’s been delightful. We just wanted to flag a concern we had over something that we all thought would’ve been a relatively simple fix. Overall, and apologies for the long read, the experience was incredibly disappointing and put a literal sour taste in our mouths. I really hope they do better next...

I showed up about 10 minutes ahead of my dining companion, so I had ample opportunity to take in the Camino's ambiance. It is pretty tightly packed, with not a lot of space between tables. That means it's pretty noisy when it is crowded, as it was on this Saturday night. Nevertheless, with its subtle lighting and interesting decor, the Camino has a comfortable and cozy vibe.

My companion and I did not have any appetizers or cocktails so I can offer no opinion in those areas. She had a T.J. Caesar and I had a cup of pozole to start our meal. Her salad looked good but I didn't sample it. My pozole was excellent. It was spicier than most pozole that I have had, with a slightly thicker broth, but I like spicy. It had crema mexicana added as well, which was the first pozole that I have had with this addition, but it's a good addition, with the crema kind of balancing out the spicier nature of the pozole broth. Next time, I might get a bowl of pozole instead of a cup.

We then shared five tacos: Al Pastor, Shrimp, Cochinita Pibil, Carnitas and Picadillo, listed in order of preference. Since we had the salad and soup before, sharing five tacos was plenty for the two of us. Without the salad and soup, we might have needed an extra taco or two to leave the table satisfied, as the tacos aren't huge, almost more of an appetizer size, though they are attractively stuffed with the various fillings.

The Al Pastor was the best, with the pineapple adding a sweet flavor that went well with the roasted pork. The Shrimp was the next best, but I'm not particularly objective here, as I love shrimp. Given the menu description of the Cochinita Pibil, I expected more, It wasn't bad but I guess I was a bit disappointed. I love Carnitas, but I like my carnitas on the crispy side. These were sort of soggy and not particularly flavorful. Finally, I also like Picadillo, but my picadillo experience has been made with shredded beef. This picadillo was made from ground beef, though the menu said stewed beef and it was overly spiced, with not much nuance to the spicing. None of the tacos were horrible but I'll try a Carne Asada and a Pollo next time to replace the Carnitas and Picadillo tacos. I do give them credit for ambition, as the taco menu does provide a lot of variety.

We did decide to have dessert, but the dessert menu is limited and not very interesting. We had a sundae, which I thought was overpriced at $11. Throwing tortilla chips in an average American sundae doesn't make it Mexican. Mexican restaurants aren't generally known for their desserts but flan, a Mexican custard, is a standard Mexican dessert. The Camino might want to try to add flan to their dessert menu.

I thought the service was excellent. Overall, I will definitely give the Camino...

I had the worst dinning experience of my life the other night at The Camino.

(BTW...I am a Local Guide for Google and I have NEVER left a one star review before)

On Thursday, my wife Amy, sent 2 emails (just like The Camino answering machine asks you to do) requesting a table for 12 at 7:30pm for Friday, the next day. On Friday morning at 10:30am , my wife called and left a clear voice mail confirming our reservation for AMY WILSON. She was so excited to eat here again and introduce even more people to the restaurant. We were more than willing to leave a credit card and have them charge us if we did not show. Which we had no intention of doing. We arrived around 7:15pm and they told us our table was almost ready.

Our entire party waited and WAS EVENTUALLY SEATED.

All of us.

We waited to place our drink orders and 10-15 minutes later we were asked to leave because their host made a mistake and double booked the table. Someone named Amy Johnson.

I am dead serious. This happened. Has that ever happened to you?

We have eaten at this restaurant almost a dozen times since they opened a few months ago and we have spent thousands of dollars there (receipts to prove it). We were excited to have dinner with close family friends (restaurant owners a block away) and my daughter who had just flown in from out of the country.

We dine out 5+ nights a week and the reason I mention that is...

THIS WAS THE WORST RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE.

The lady in a hideous pinkish brown turtle neck dress and her husband, whose breath smelled like he had just smoked 2 packs of cigarettes, identified themselves as the owners. Some how I doubt it.

Have you ever been sat at a restaurant and then asked to leave due to double booking??????

I have NEVER had an owner treat a patron with such disrespect.

AVOID THIS RESTAURANT. Clearly the owners don't really care.

Less than a block away you will find El Cazador. This is an authentic Mexican restaurant owned by Maria and her husband Alfredo. They are the sweetest people you will ever meet and have been in business over 25 years.

It will be fascinating to see if The Camino will last 25 years if they continue to treat their customers this way.

AVOID THIS RESTAURANT.

TAKE YOUR DINNING DOLLARS ELSEWHERE.

Having been in business for a quarter century myself, the way I would attempt to handle this situation would be to start with an apology.

Accidents and errors happen.

Tomorrow...