Botanico Tacos & Tequila — Restaurant in Mount Dora

I have never been so DISAPPOINTED!! Upon arrival and getting out food, there was absolutely nowhere to sit on the inside , so because our “party” was too big, we had to sit outside. Don’t get me wrong, it is decorated beautifully, however that’s the only thing that was nice about this establishment.

Now, let’s talk about the food. I ordered the Carne Asada. Steak was tough as nails. I almost got lockjaw trying to eat half of my taco. I also ordered chicken tenders and fries. Now you would think you can’t mess that up, they proceeded to bring out chicken tenders and tortilla chips. NEVER told anyone they were out of french fries. They did give me an option of 5 more nuggets instead of fries or get the tortilla chips and they would bring out a side of queso. NEVER brought the queso. Actually upon asking them is when they let us know they actually ran out of queso. I ate 1/2 of 1/4 of my tacos. I requested they take the chicken tenders and fries off since they had no alternative to the only side worth purchasing. NONE of my food came out at the same time. It was very scattered. People in my party whom ordered last when I was the first to order were even getting their food before I did.

Now, the servers were however were a true delight. Very understanding and very friendly. I did express to my server who again was very understanding how I was feeling. She told me that she would go and get the general manager so he can comp. the meal, because none of it had been eaten.

The General Managers attitude was DISGUSTINGLY AND DISGRACEFUL. An UNOPENED bottle of alcohol that was a GIFT was sitting on one of our tables. He, (the general manager) comes over to 1/2 of our tables in a very rude and nasty manner and told us to put it up and it was not allowed. {Sidenote: one of HIS staff actually brought us plastic cups to take shots!} We apologized for it being on the table and explained that it was a gift due to us celebrating a birthday at their establishment. In so many words, he said he didn’t care and it was “making him lose business”. He also in a very snarky and sarcastic way said “When has that ever been okay at any restaurant?”. Now as I stated before THIS WAS A GIFT. He then proceeds to ask you know, what we thought about our meals. I did tell him exactly how I was feeling. Actually was I said was “MY TACOS WERE DISGUSTING AND THEY WERE SO TOUGH I ALMOST DISLOCATED MY JAW TRYING TO CHEW IT.” I also told him everything that I stated that was wrong above. He told me yet again, in a very rude tone that “he would take off anything that wasn’t eaten.” I didn’t have a problem with that cause the money was never the issue. I can’t help that the food was gross.

I , again did have a large party. So common sense would have told him I certainly would have not been the only person to complain. Other people in my party did complain. As the minority of us did order the same things. He was VERY rude to the other people in my party. Overall, my point is DONT DO IT!!! If you have a family with picky eaters or just anyone with tastebuds in general, this would not be the place for that.

But cute decoration. And very good music. We did meet a nice couple there and we sung “Set It Off”- Boosie! Such friendly bystanders. Nice staffing....

Be aware, that this restaurant told us last night, it will not service families who have more than 2 children with them. Because it messes with their kitchen’s ability to cook food.

Overall, we had no issues with the food, drinks, or service for such a young restaurant. However, even excusing a 30+ minute wait for a table, which was understandable due to the size of our family unit; and the complete messing up of our orders, which is also understandable for such a small kitchen (* this is the old Zellie's Pub, for those who are familiar *). What we could not excuse was the gentleman who told us that they were not going to allow parties of more than 4 people per group seating.

Yes. He came over at the end of our meal, squatted down next to our table, and began to tell us that we could only come back if we were a party of 4 people or less.

We did not ask him to come over. We did not ask for any management of any kind to speak with us. We did not complain about the slow service. We did not complain about the overcooked food. We did not complain about the lack of basic napkins and utensils which were provided for every other table around us but not us. We did not complain about the switching up of the food items being served when the kitchen ran out of what half of our party ordered, but we heard being delivered to tables around us. We didn't complain at all. We thought we were very understanding having worked in the industry for many decades ourselves. We even left the waitress with a generous 22% tip.

However, he still felt the need to come over to our table as the last of us were finally getting our food order (* a full 30 minutes after the 1st plate arrived ). And it was hot. And it was good. But he wanted to inform us that the entirety of the evening's failures (Again, none of which we were complaining about*) were our fault for having a family of 8. Yes. Our fault for having 6 children. All young adults. All behaving. All enjoying their meals, without complaint. All were gracious to the servers and the other staff, some of whom they remembered from school.

He did not tell us his name, nor how he was related to the establishment. Although I did ask, and it went unanswered. He spoke from the point of view of "We". "We do not mean for there to be groups of more than 4 people." "We are working on our website." "We do not take reservations." Which was something we had tried to do, but understood when we could not make them. Some restaurants simply don't. And that is fine. As a family of 8 we have always known it to take some time to be seated when reservations are not allowed.

But to tell us that in the future we would not be allowed to sit together as a family because of our size and that our size is the direct result of "messing with their kitchen's ability to service food."

Now, I have gone to this location when it was Zellie's, and not once did the kitchen have an issue with my family being the size that it is. Not even when my parents joined us. Nor when the addition of my sister and her family, made us a party of 15.

So, take that into consideration when choosing your next meal. This one only wants young couples or those who have chosen to limit their family unit...

I was really excited for Botanico to open. The restaurant itself looked like a beautiful addition to Mount Dora. The interior is well-designed and inviting, and the outdoor area is extra large with swings, benches, raised bar tables, string lights and a lot of natural shade from the trees. Honestly, it felt like walking into a restaurant in Tulum. Beautiful, relaxing, fun.

I came incredibly hungry, and excited to try out this new establishment. The waitress came around to our table fairly quickly to grab drink orders. I didn't glance at the drink menu beforehand (my fault) - I just assumed there would be iced tea, but alas nope. I don't drink alcohol or soda, so a round of waters for the table.

The menu was quite limited with food options and the name "quesa-dilla" should have been a red flag that this was not going to be an authentic experience. That's ok - keeping an open mind!

Food came out after about fifteen minutes or so. And it was not what I expected. I got the torta de pastor - which I assumed would be....actual tortas, but they are indeed your typical American hamburger buns with sparse amounts of chopped pieces of the meat and salsas. I asked for no red onions, but it came with red onions that I picked off, no problem. The meat was chewy, perhaps overcooked. I honestly couldn't taste much of anything besides the plain white buns. The buns are not heated or toasted, just served as is. Perhaps a toasted bottom and some sauce would have added some flavor to it. Overall, not super impressed by it. Maybe it would be better as an appetizer with a beer? Perhaps that's the target audience for this establishment. Idk. For the price, I'd expect more protein, more sustenance, more flavor - less filler bun.

My husband got the quesa-dilla which had more meat and flavor and was the clear winner for our meal. He enjoyed it, but also felt it was pretty pricey for what you get.

The tables do not get your typical free chips and salsa, and the meals don't come with them as a...