Tequila Escape - Ridgefield — Restaurant in Ridgefield

Tequila Escape was the first sit-down restaurant I went to after the hardcore quarantine phase of COVID, and it has emerged as one of my favorites in the area.

Ridgefield can be an absolute nightmare to drive through, especially on the weekends. One of the selling points of this establishment is that it's right on the periphery of the main downtown area, so (assuming you're coming from the north) you can actually avoid going 5 mph for half a mile and letting every single pedestrian in Fairfield County cross in front of your car. The parking is also great - there's a mini shopping center/strip mall right across the parking lot, so even if the spaces right by the restaurant are occupied, you don't have to go too far to find one.

I don't have much of an eye for interior decorating (I usually just go to an estate sale and hope for the best), but this place has a very unique, DIY scheme that still looks really professional and changes regularly depending on the season. My mom and I came here for lunch this past Sunday, and they had a wintry theme going on - a roaring gas fireplace and a lot of white decor (right next to our table was this little display of white-washed branches that kind of looked like a classy arts and crafts project, if that makes sense). You can tell a lot of careful thought went into the decorations, and it's a nice, unique touch.

I'm not a huge Mexican cuisine fan as a general rule, but the menu veers closer to mainstream/Latin fusion so it's pretty easy to find something to eat; for every quesadilla or empanada, you'll find an edgy mac and cheese or a burger of some kind. For this particular adventure, I wasn't too hungry so I opted for the ahi tuna tacos app - I've had it before and it's not particularly filling, but it is tasty. In my opinion it's a bit pricey for the amount of food; you're getting two smallish tacos for $17, so I think $13 or $14 is more in line with the portion. My mom ordered the grass-fed burger and was pretty pleased with it but remarked that it was overcooked. She ordered it medium rare and it was clearly closer to medium well - not a pinkish tint to be seen.

The real selling point for me menu-wise here are the cocktails. If you have a literal spirit in the name of your restaurant, you'd better be boning up on your mixology skills and they certainly have. I had the Strawberry Pico Sour. I'm a huge egg white cocktail fan, and this is a decent one for sure. This time around I thought they went a little heavy on the sour, but given that it's in the name of the cocktail I don't think I have too much right to complain about that. One of the great subtle touches of this beverage is the dusting of cinnamon they put on the top of the drink - great sensory experience and helps negate some of the tart qualities of the beverage. If your bartender understands that the nose is just as important as the tongue, you're likely in good hands.

Constructive feedback-wise, the service is average. The waitstaff is super friendly and accommodating (we always seem to get the same perky, tallish lad, who is a delight), but it usually takes about 10 minutes more than it should to receive the drinks and food. It was a little busy when we were there, but it seems to be pretty sluggish regardless of when we're there so I'd be reluctant to come by if I were on a tight schedule. Still, this is a strong recommendation in an area with a lot of edgy...

I wish I could review the food but my waiter never took my order. There is outdoor seating, which is nice. I was with another person...2 people and no reservations- but the restaurant was not packed...they would not seat us at a 4 person table...had they known the amount of food and drinks we normally order, they SHOULD’VE sat us at any table we wanted...but no worries. We were given menus, had our drink order taken and waited a good 10 to 15 minutes AT THE VERY LEAST for our DRINKS TO HIT THE TABLE! That is insane. Food was passing us. People were passing us. The maitre’ d was passing us. Waiters and waitresses were passing us... NOTHING. NOT ONE PERSON STOPPED TO ASK US IF WE NEEDED ANYTHING OR IF OUR ORDER WAS TAKEN AS OUR MENUS SAT ON OUR TABLE. Completely UNACCEPTABLE.

I don’t care how good your food is-why would any paying customer have to wait THAT long for a drink... then sit for at least a half hour longer for their waiter to ACKNOWLEDGE he didn’t take their order... AND STILL NOT TAKE THEIR ORDER is BEYOND ME!!!????!!!

The ABSOLUTE BEST is... we decide to leave after at least an hour of no one taking our order- we ask for the check from a random waitress... receive the check... NO ONE ASKS WHY, IF ANYTHING IS WRONG, IS THERE ANYTHING THEY CAN DO... NOTHING... Moreover, our waiter comes to take the money for the drinks and has the ABSOLUTE AUDACITY to ask us not to rate the restaurant on the service from this night... yet STILL CHARGES US FOR THE TWO DRINKS we had (one each).

I can tell you- the food smelled good and the atmosphere was nice... and I’ve been to some of the best restaurants...the hardest restaurants to get into, including Raos- with ease...and A LOT of restaurants to boot... THIS was a shock and I will never go back there again, NOR will I ever recommend it to...

I was very excited to try this restaurant after seeing good reviews for it. Felt disappointed leaving. My food came out lukewarm at best (crispy chicken tacos), my jalapeno cucumber margarita tasted very good - was presented differently each time it came out, which was not a "bad" thing just interesting since most places train their bartenders for consistency (I know b/c I used to be a bartender). I ordered 3 of these drinks and they were full to the brim w/ ice, I think I took 3 or 4 sips for each one and they were finished - and they took a very long time coming out.

We were asked if we wanted chips and salsa when we sat down, as if they were included (like how bread is at an Italian restaurant - I've been to other Mexican places where they serve this as a courtesy), no mention that there would be a cost so I was a bit surprised to find two additional costs on our bill - one for chips and the other for salsa. (We didn't argue it - we just paid the bill.)

The host was very nice but our waiter could've cared less about our 2-person table. He was unattentive. He never checked on us after we received our food. I had to flag him a couple times when we needed a refill, or our bill, etc (after we patiently waited awhile) - one time he looked at me and just kept drying the glasses behind the counter.

I'll give it one more try whenever I get back to the area but really wasn't impressed overall. Left there feeling like the place was overhyped and not...