Lolitas Mexican Cantina NB — Restaurant in North Bergen

For context, I've been here twice before with small (4 people) and large groups (16) and had good experiences which is why it pains me somewhat to write this but I recently had a really horrible experience here.

We made a reservation for 19 (ultimately became 15). One hour prior to our res time we were informed that we'd have to be out by a certain time because another large group made a res after us. First of all, why even tell us this? It started the night off all wrong because I was stressed that we wouldn't have enough time enjoy ourselves and I was the one who chose this restaurant so I felt bad already that I may have chosen wrong.

Worse came to worst when the hostess/manager (Lorena I think was her name) was extremely rude and nasty to us when I explained that none of our children received their milk nor ice cream as a part of their kids meals. Obviously not a big deal and so knowing that they had another large group after us and because I wanted to work with them, I said why don't you give us a small discount off the bill, give us the ice cream, and we'll be on our way.

While a small discount was given, no ice cream came, and all the while, Lorena made it a point to explain to me that she was doing me a favor with the discount and that I was making it very hard for her, that I was wrong and that I should know better for next time. All the while I'm embarrassed because who wants to have a confrontation at a restaurant in front of friends and family as well as a roomful of strangers who are all staring at us by now.

I felt very disrespected and while I normally let such grievances go Lorena's attitude and tone was just something I could not ignore. Regrettably, I allowed Lorena's lack of hospitality and nastiness get the best of me and I honestly have to say I contributed to the escalation of the situation. While I tried to be the bigger person and apologize later I did let Lorena know that it was her nastiness and tone that upset me. While she did not apologize she did say I should try to understand for her because of the busyness of the restaurant and that I should give them another opportunity.

As parents of young ones, we don't get many nights to enjoy ourselves at a restaurant with other friends and their children so you can imagine why I wouldn't give them another chance - not in the near future anyway.

I will say that the rest of the waitstaff and valet gentlemen were quite hospitable and courteous. Oddly, it seems the hostess/manager would have a lot to learn from the people who serve under her.

Definitely not coming back and would not recommend unless you like being disrespected and be put in a position where you feel like you're being rushed out for another group...

I took my mother there on Saturday for her birthday; as this place had a 4 star rating. Biggest mistake! Right off the bat it turned me off. We came in, I made reservations for a party of 6, then come to find out that my guests decided to bring an additional 2 people. I was counting how many more settings we would need because some people also cancelled and in the midst of that a man asked me if there was a problem and I told him we may need an additional 4 settings (The place was not packed) it was 8pm. and his quick and abrupt reply was "ABSOLUTELY NOT! NOT WHEN IT'S BUSY, I CAN'T DO THAT" I think he saw my shocked expression that he later said "if I can I will try and see what I can do but you can't just add people!" before he left my fiancé told him it was not 4 place settings it was actually just 2 additional place settings and he just ignored us. We were seated, and we told the person who was helping us that we needed 2 more seats and they just took a table and added it to our table without a fuss. 10 minutes passed, He came back and told us, "IF YOUR GUESTS DON'T GET HERE I WILL TAKE AWAY THE REST OF YOUR TABLE!" I was so upset! because there was no one waiting and even after my guests arrived 2 minutes later, for 2 hrs, there was no one waiting!!! I asked the workers who this man was and they told me he was one of the owners FERNANDO. I have NEVER been treated this way in my life! I've traveled near and far and have been to various different restaurants from all backgrounds and different cuisines. I can not fathom the thought that an entrepreneur such as this man would treat the consumer in such a distasteful way. My mom was completely turned off, I felt like leaving if it wasn't for the server who was excellent. However, You can have OK food, because the food itself was not great, (Rumba Cubana is far superior) you can also have great service, but if you have poor management or worse, the owner who thinks they can down play you, Im sorry, but NO, you have lost a customer and many others whom I will tell to never dine or party there. Oh and another thing, I called for the dress code and I was told business casual, but all the people in a table that Fernando was entertaining were in jeans and tee-shirts. just goes to show you....

BEWARE SCAMMY VALET. I love Lolita. They always have amazing food, drinks, and service. Unfortunately, this two star rating is due to their valet service. I’ve had my car parked by the valet many many times in the past. More often than not, it felt unnecessary because the car was always parked in the parking lot and sometimes they just gave us the keys back to pull ourselves out. However, we never complained and always tipped. Tonight, I visited this establishment with my friend where she drove her Tesla without her key and only with her phone, which made it not possible for her to leave the car with the valet. When we asked if we can self park, the attendant directed us to a spot, with no mention of extra cost. However, upon getting out of the car, he proceeded to tell us it’s $10 to self park. My friend naively handed him money but I was bewildered. When I asked the manager (who was very respectful), he went and checked with the attendants and came back to tell us the attendant claimed that they provided us an option to park at the back but we didn’t want to therefore they charged “their normal fee,” which I had never heard of prior to today. They also never provided us with the option to park “three minute walk away.” I proceeded to confront the attendant who then said “he forgot” to give us the options. He was dismissive when communicating this and didn’t acknowledge his mistakes. He didn’t sound apologetic, was rude, looked past me without making eye contact, and made snide remakes (“Don’t let this ruin your night” 🙄). It’s not a lot of money and I would have been ok paying had he been accepting of his mistakes and apologized but instead I feel like I’ve been scammed. How am I to trust a man with my car when he forgets to communicate simple information???? While I love the food here, beware of the valet service. I don’t know if I will revisit if it means I have to interact with these...