El Milagro Mexican Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Omaha

Speaking of first impressions I'd like to offer mine. I visited this restaurant for the first time yesterday. It was a Saturday afternoon. I was meeting up with a buddy we wanted to have lunch and get a couple drinks. We saw this restauramt and decided to give it a try. Walking in I admit it was outstanding. Fresh vibe nice clean organized. Cleanliness I give it 5 stars no doubt hands down. We were seated at the bar. My friend had to use the restroom he said order me a mexican coke and I'll be right back. The waitress came up. Wanted to know if I was ready to orderI said yeah my friend wants a Mexican coke. I asked if they had a drink menu. She they did not. But I could look at the bottles of alcohol across the bar to order what I want? They brought out free homemade chips salsa and bean dip. I ordered a gin and sprite. Within 5 mins they asked us twice if we were ready to order some food. Both times my friend responded I'm not really sure yet were just talking for now. They seemed a little irritated. I took two sips from my drink and we went outside for a cigarette. They did not have designateda smoking area outside. I left my phone on the bar counter as a way to let them know we would b back in. After finishing our cigarette we come back in some guy from the kitchen was standing behind the bar watching us. He said the lady thought you guys left (without paying our bill) I laughed I said no we were right out front and why would I leave I don't even finish my drink yet. No friendly smile or laugh just a dead stare. Two more times the lady came back out more iriitated asking us if we were going to order some food. By now we had a few free chips I felt like they thought we were taking advantage of the complimentary appetizers. For the third and fourth time we said no we were not ready to order yet. The lady in charge was talking to a server which by what I overheard was to ask her to stay out and watch us to see if we leave without paying. The homemade chips were okay extra thick extra crispy it actually chipped one of my back teeth eating it. The salsa was okay very thinned out. The bean dip was better but extra salty. The drink was made good and wasn't too expensive. But the customer service sucked. I don't appreciate how I was treated how it made me feel. Truth was we were ready to spend money and leave a big tip and a good review. If we were treated like the other guests. I'm not sure what went wrong. Idk if we were judged by our appearance demeanor or what influenced the overall attitude toward us. But I do know if we weren't treated any differently the little amount of respect would have went a long way I'll probably never come back or recommend anyone else to try this establishment. I hope they work on their customer service and treat all customers the same. Don't be so pushy or jump to conclusions be patient and try to add a drink menu. You...

My wife and I made reservations through Open Table and joined another couple at El Milagro in Pepperwood Village near 156th and Dodge on May 17. Overall the experience was poor at best. We were served chips and dip once we sat down. The salsa was bland and watery and I had to ask multiple times for small plates to use.

When the waiter took our drink order my wife specifically asked if the Paloma cocktail had real grapefruit juice or just a grapefruit flavored drink, such as Squirt, in it. She explained that with the medicine she was on she could not have real grapefruit juice. The waiter answered it was just the flavored drink and not actual juice. Our drinks were served and the waiter had the sense to double check the ingredients and came back to tell us that the cocktail was made with real grapefruit juice. My wife said that wouldn't work and asked if she could order a Mojito instead. The waiter took the order and removed the original cocktail.

A few minutes later the manager came out and said he understands there was a "problem" with our drinks. He seemed a little aggressive with his approach - no questions of concern from him, he just wanted to get to the bottom of the drink issue. We explained the health concerns with real grapefruit juice and told him that another drink had been ordered. No apology or promise to "make it right", he just walked away after we told him. A few minutes later the waiter came out to tell us they would have to charge us for the original cocktail, and brought it back to our table. The Mojito came out and it was very weak. Maybe they were upset with us by this time.

The rest of our time there was less than stellar, also. Though there were several open tables, our service was pretty slow. After dinner my wife learned that the restaurant marked us as a no-show on Open Table. None of us in our party will ever go back to El Milagro. If any of my friends or family asks I will definitely recommend they look elsewhere for a nice place to eat.

We paid $9.99 for a cocktail that my wife could not drink. That drink probably cost the restaurant $3 or less. For $3 they permanently lost at least four customers and whoever else might listen to us when we tell them we would never...

I was excited to explore this new eatery based on the calibre of other establishments operated by the owner. The restaurant was clean and logically decorated. There were four other families dining at the time with three servers attending to them, so the restaurant was not overly busy. I was greeted by a server (not a host) within a couple of minutes of arrival, and then a staff member expediently delivered fresh tortilla chips/salsa, etc.

At this point, my frustrations began to mount. I didn't meet my server for 11.5 minutes (I timed this out of sheer curiosity since it was a new restaurant). Ultimately, I had to get a server's attention for service.

The food arrived curiously quickly and was pleasantly presented. I ordered house-made guacamole and the La Guerrita chimichanga. The guacamole was truly delicious. Silverware included only a fork and a spoon, and a knife was definitely needed for the chimichanga. Unfortunately, I had to wait 5 minutes for a knife despite a server recognizing I needed one, a period of waiting that caused my food to become luke warm. The chimichanga, itself, was disappointingly relatively bland, and I was left with the impression the chicken was minimally seasoned. A server did bring me their spiciest salsa to complement the food after I shared initial feedback, and this addition did help. To conclude my meal, I ordered the churro sundae - it was well-presented and tasty.

Overall, my experience was mediocre. Will I return? Yes, but I will most likely do so after a few months when service has been honed, and I will likely explore a different menu options...