La Cocinita Mexican Cafe — Restaurant in New Haven

I'm not sure if maybe the store changed owners or if they just updated the shop, the menu looks different now. I used to come here a lot like 4-5 years ago. Was back in town and excited to stop by but was sadly a bit disappointed by the food.

First, guac and chips is $11, but it is just a tray of chips with a TINY cup of guac. Literally 3 chips worth of guac. You can see the picture. This was really terrible. The description on the menu was "avocado, jalapeno, onions, tomatoes, cilantro and lime juice. Served with tortillas and chips." That makes it sound like it's a proper serving of guac, served with chips. In actuality it's chips served with a tiny cup of guac. Definitely do not get this. Absolute waste of money. $11 is a ridiculous price for what you actually get. The guac itself was ok, not bad but not great.

Second, the prices on the menu are wrong. I ordered tiramisu which was 3.99 on the menu but rang up at 5.99.

Third, the burritos were ok but not quite the same quality that they used to be. Meat was dry and tough, rice was mushy.

Overall, I was disappointed. Burritos by themselves are 3-3.5 stars, but rounded down to 2 stars for tiny guac and...

One visit but I will be back.

The chips were good, a bit on the dense side but that's good for those like me who may need to fill up a little before your meal. The salsa was good. The guacamole was good. The beef burrito without the potato was good, although some of the ingredients were on the cool side which gave the burrito a cool spot that could have been avoided. But still good nonetheless. The food was also very timely.

The server was attention, maybe ALMOST a little too attentive, but I'm sure if there were more people to serve it would be just fine. And he was pleasant as well.

The place is a bit dimly lit, a bit on the small side but on par with most Mexican restaurants I've been to. The red and white vinyl table cloth is a bit tacky but again something I'm used to seeing at Mexican spots. The menu is also a bit sparse but not something unexpected either.

Oh the room temperature tap water is the only bad spot of my visit. Especially taking into consideration that the tap water was the least pleasant part of the visit, I will definitely be back. Hopefully I remember to try a different dish.

Oh ps Mexican music the entire...

I literally just finished stuffing my face with a delicious beef burrito (with potatoes) and felt happy and satisfied. I need quality mexican food in my life!! It's one of the things I miss enormously now that I no longer live in California. This was a delicious no-nonsense burrito with great salsa on the side. I've also tried the al pastor burrito which is quite good too, but I think the beef with potatoes burrito is my new favorite. Great prices for the burritos too, which is another plus.

Haven't tried the rest of the menu yet, but I will eventually. The only thing that would make this place even more awesome would be if they had chilaquiles or posole.

Side note, it might look closed, but it's actually open. The first time I tried to go to this place, I thought it was closed and left disappointed. Came back a second time, still looked closed, and I was starting to get annoyed, tried the door anyway, and whaaaat it was open this whole time?!? A whole bunch of people eating in the back too. I felt stupid for not checking the door the first time. So don't be...