Frida’s Cocina & Cantina — Restaurant in Mountain Brook

I really wanted to like this place. But, I just could not get over two things.

One, it is possibly one of the loudest restaurants I’ve ever been in. It’s more like a rave that offers food. I know that sounds harsh. But, I found myself literally shouting across the table to two people that I had dined with that night. if I had stayed for another 30 minutes, I think I would’ve lost my voice. Here’s how you fix that they will have to put sound baffling either on the ceilings or the walls. This was just something I could not get over.

Two, I only ate the Al Pastore tacos, three tacos. But, that is an entrée. Look at this picture. Please tell me where the meet is. It may be the most scant amount of meat I’ve ever had in tacos. And, it was $15. Now, $15 is not a lot of money. But, if you’re going to give me three tacos, I need more than just cilantro and a few pieces of meat.

My suggestion about the portions, make them substantial. If you’re going to charge $15 at least fill the taco shell halfway up.

I really don’t like giving reviews that are negative. But, this is where restaurants have an opportunity to take honest feedback and say either this is an outlier and we don’t usually have this kind of offering for people but, I was talking to my mom about the experience. She told me she had visited this place recently. It was very noisy as well.

So allow me to recap, you will have to get Sound baffling. The decibel level in this place was just off the charts. Two, that’s just not an entrée that I was given.

For full context, the individuals with whom I was dying had different dishes that look decently proportional. But, you gotta hit it...

My lady and I were very excited to come to the newly-opened Frida’s Cocina & Cantina!

Margaritas: One of the most important aspects of any Mexican place are the margaritas, and I have mixed feelings about Frida’s. You have to try the margarita named after the place first, and the Frida’s Margarita was very tasty, however… it was 95% ice. After 4 good sips, that “huge” looking marg was done. Not too sweet, and not just your typical mix. The house margaritas were, of course, a pre-made mix, but that’s ok. Sadly, ONE lady was attempting to keep up with ALL drink orders for the entire restaurant the entire time we were there, which she was mostly pulling off, but it was also hard to watch and she’d understandably get very backed up at times.

Food: We had the Stuffed Avocado- 5 stars - a crispy fried avocado stuffed with chicken and cheese. It was as good as it sounds. It also came with a small steak burrito thing and a cheese enchilada type thing. All great.

We also had the Pollo Barracho - 2 stars - a pounded flat chicken dish with fresh avocado, onions, and other vegetables all over. The chicken was weirdly cooked. Not a cook, so not sure if it was undercooked or overcooked, but not great and while it was moist, it was kinda bland/watery.

Overall, we liked the place and the staff was extra friendly and...

This place is a real gem. Fantastic service great food awesome selection. For the past 20 years my family has been going out for Mexican food every Sunday night and we dined the usual I would think Mountain Brook Mexican restaurants. Frida is a step above as far as the selection of the menu the quality of food and service. There is also several unique vegetarian items and gluten-free items that were fantastic. The best part is this restaurant will take a reservation. I would think one of the biggest complaints is going out on a Sunday night and having to wait 45 minutes for a table, that’s no longer the situation. Upon finishing our meal, I spoke with the manager who was very friendly. We will definitely be back. This will Become Our regular place for...