Tito's Taqueria & Bar — Restaurant in Richmond

I was invited to come to this restaurant because of it great reviews. So I ventured into this supposed Latin-style restaurant with high hopes of flavor explosions and culinary delights. What I got instead was a parade of blandness that would put a saltine cracker to shame. There was absolutely nothing remarkable or special about this place.

Expecting bold, vibrant Mexican flavors, I was met with dishes that tasted as if they were on a flavor strike. The street corn was as exciting as a lukewarm bath, and the tacos had all the zest of a cardboard cutout.

I guess their interpretation of "Latin" cuisine involves a generous application of dullness and a complete disregard for taste buds. Maybe they forgot the spice rack or mistook it for a decoration.

Let's begin with the servers, who clearly took a crash course in cluelessness. The servers, while pleasant and somewhat attentive, demonstrated a baffling lack of training. The servers assigned to our table seemed oblivious to the menu, as evidenced by their inability to explain dishes like Pastore. With over 65% of the menu lacking descriptions and no labels on the tantalizing food pictures, frustration was inevitable.

I mean, who needs to know what "Pastore" is, right? It's not like it's their job to explain what's on the menu or anything. And don't get me started on the soda debacle – apparently, only the chosen few are worthy of canned soda the soda machine was out of order, and canned sodas were reserved exclusively for the bar, forcing everyone to opt for alcoholic beverages—no exceptions, except for those who looked underage, who were relegated to tap water. However, magically, a couple of young ladies, barely legal, managed to score alcoholic drinks.

But wait, it gets better. When the food made its grand entrance, it was like a game of culinary roulette. The servers decided to spice things up by auctioning off our dishes to the highest bidder at the end of the table. Who ordered the enchiladas? Who cares! It's all part of the fun, right?

I really wanted to love this place, I really did. It had that cozy "abuela's living room" vibe going for it, complete with randomly placed decor and a selfie wall. A selfie wall.

The food itself was a lackluster 2.5 out of 5. Nothing distinguished it from any run-of-the-mill garage to hey let’s start a restaurant. While the venue is clean and boasts ample staff, it feels overpriced and stuck in a bygone era. The salsa was disappointingly watery, and the nachos seemed to have come straight out of a bag. Ironically, Taco Bell serves up better-tasting fare that's at least warm.

If you're into food that makes you question your own existence and wonder why you didn't just stay home and microwave a frozen burrito, this place is for you. As for me, I'll be searching elsewhere for my culinary adventures, preferably where the flavors haven't gone on vacation.

1 start for amazing drinks! We had the margarita flights. Yes. All of them. lol. Five out five!!! Reasonable priced.

What wasn’t priced based on 2024 pricing was their tequila flights. Pretty sure these prices are based on future pricing where money has been replaced with diamonds, gold, plutonium and the deed...

I was super excited to try this place. I unfortunately was slighted disappointed. Upon arrival there is no hostess to greet you so had to seek someone in regards to seating. Once seated it took a very long time for anyone to come over and even acknowledge us, approx 20 mins( it was not a crowded night). There was a guy bringing food out and several times came to our table and others with someone else's food, that was alarming as it seemed very unorganized. Once finally ordered food was worried it would take long based on service but surprisingly it did not. The food came out quickly and was tasty, no complaints there. The drinks were my issue as this was the main reason for my visit...they were NOT as advertised. The Latina came in a broken bath tub( there was no faucet , no flower, and no bubbles as advertised) I made mention to this to whom I believe was the owner also to the waiter and there was no recourse , simply they ran out of dry ice and the tubs get broken.... this drink is $17 you're paying for these details so that was VERY disappointing. It has a good taste but very little alcohol. I also tried the La Maria, again NOT as advertised as it was missing the bottle of liquor that it is advertised and listed on the menu as coming with, they provided a shot glass and it was tasty. The restaurant has nice decor and is clean but no music at all so not much of a vibe. The service needs work, it was slow and had to request basics like silverware and small plates for appetizers AFTER food had arrived. They charge 20 percent gratuity which the service did not reflect. The waiters were nice but could tell they were overwhelmed. Hopefully they can improve service and the drink presentations. As this is a fairly new restaurant I will give it one more shot to work...

TLDR; drinks are overpriced, food was seasoned well, and it had a good atmosphere.

I went with two friends, and we ordered the dip trio appetizer and the ACP, fajitas, and egg and vegetarian chorizo tacos for entrees. We saw the queso app on TikTok that had a flame under it to keep it warm, but it was not served to us that way. We weren’t fans of the guac. Additionally, the egg and vegetarian chorizo tacos came without eggs - the receipt reflected only vegetarian chorizo tacos, so it was put in incorrectly. The chicken in the ACP was seasoned really well, and I believe the person with the fajitas enjoyed them.

A big reason we came was to try the fun-looking drinks we saw on TikTok (shots served in an airplane, drinks served with an astronaut, etc). While some of the drinks did come in different, fun vessels, we found them to be very weak. We each had 3 mixed drinks and 2-3 shots in a three-hour timeframe, and we weren’t even buzzed by the end of it. I’m not sure if they do the liquor in the straw trick, because we could taste the alcohol in the drinks at first. The drinks were also overpriced - a shot of a certain tequila that’s typically ~$8 everywhere else was $12 here. Their house tequila also tastes like vodka that’s made to taste like tequila - it was bad. It took awhile to get drinks at times. At one point, a shot that was ordered was forgotten.

My bill with tip was $93 for the ACP, two mixed drinks, and two shots.

Overall, I’d probably go back for the food if I was...