Original Blanco Cafe — Restaurant in San Antonio

If I could give this place less than one star I would. High prices , the food , an abomination. As a local , I am embarrassed this place is still open to the public. I have never been so shocked at how bad this so called Tex mex SLOP they served us could be. A total excuse for Tex mex. ALL the food was nothing more than flavorless with an extreme amount of OIL AND SALT. Even the tortilla soup was flavorless but extremely salty , the same thing for the cheese enchilada fajita plate, just oil and salt and looked like it had been sitting under lamps all day long. Also the fajita meat tasted off. Not even the tortillas were decent and served RAW and weirdly enough, SALTY also. Oil and salt is NOT flavor it’s JUST oil and salt. NOTHING looked or tasted Fresh. And then they have the nerve to charge what they charge for a plate of SLOP. But most notably I don’t see how this place hasn’t been closed or fined for the state that it’s in. It looks and feels filthy. I was disgusted after sitting down and taking an actual look at my surroundings. Take ONE look at the wall to wall CARPETING and tell me I’m lying. It’s grimy , old and hope to god I didn’t catch covid or anything else from just breathing in the stank air. We took three bites of our SLOP and quickly and quietly got up and left. Made no complaints whatsoever, just paid the exorbitant prices as we just wanted to get the hell out and NEVER come back. For the rest of the day and The next day my stomach felt horrible. Horrible slaty food, disgusting place , RAW tortillas and HIGH prices. Shameful. Close this...

Good Tex-Mex. Cheese enchiladas are commendable. Breakfast tacos are generously filled and very satisfying. Tortillas are as close to homemade as you can get. Been eating here for decades.

The preceeding paragraph was a posting I made a year ago. I felt compelled to update my review due to a recent unsatisfactory visit. While I understand the Covid pandemic has been tough on local businesses, I have continued to support local businesses as often as I can. What I cannot support is poor service. Most Mexican restaurants will give you complimentary chips and salsa. Blanco Cafe was no different pre-Covid. I understand the position and ordered 2 appetizers along with our meal. When I asked for a few more chips to finish a little queso that remained, I was told they would have to charge me for a whole new appetizer. Upon checkout, I asked about the "no extra chips" policy and was told that they don't do give-aways. I reminded the manager that I was paying for my family's meal. There was really no reason to insult a customer. I really don't understand why Blanco Cafe wouldn't want to take care of a customer that has been with them since the mid 1990s over a few chips.

While I enjoy the food at Blanco Cafe, this experience has soured my opinion of the restaurant and I just cannot support going back. When I tried to provide some constructive feedback, I was insulted. The manager was more concerned about defending the policy and not listening to...

Not really impressed by this restaurant for a list of reasons. But up front; great tortillas, great rice, great carne guisada, great cheese enchiladas. On our visit we were served drinks and given menus, then our waitress never returned. I got up to find her, she said she forgot about us and then took our order. After food delivered never saw her again, had to once again hunt her down to get the check so we could leave. We were told they were short handed, so your experience may vary. I found it a bit pricy here, entrees seemed priced more in line with downtown touristy Mexican restaurants (think Mi Tierra Cafe) than a neighborhood place. And you pay for everything. In a city where the majority of Mexican restaurants drop free chips and salsa on your table as you sit down, here they are $4 if you order them. Need a to go box? That’ll cost you. Want more than 2 oz of pico de gallo? $$. I think the only things we were not charged extra for were the napkins. Not impressed with the chorizo and bean taco; chorizo not drained and not enough bean so very greasy taco. Chicken in the chicken enchiladas was dried out, so not good like the cheese. A bit of sauce in there would help. The pico de gallo had no lime juice or cilantro, was just chunks of jalapeño, tomato, and onion. Over cooked and dried out frijoles too. The restaurant was nice enough, lots of tables and clean. They were very busy so perhaps our experience was the exception and...