La Más Querida Cantina & Cocina — Restaurant in San Jose

Tonight, we visited La Más Querida Cantina & Cocina, a Mexican restaurant tucked away off Story Road and Highway 101 on the northeast side of San Jose. After reading some strong reviews—and being big fans of quality Mexican food—we decided to give it a try. We’ve been to many (if not all) of the top-rated Mexican spots in the South Bay, so our expectations were high. Not to mention, I lived in LA for over a decade and grew to love authentic Mexican cooking from my coworkers and friend’s moms.

When we arrived, the restaurant was relatively quiet, but it started filling up as we enjoyed our meal. We did have a small hiccup when one of our appetizers was missed, but it was quickly addressed and honestly didn’t take away from the overall experience.

What stood out most was the food—it was phenomenal. Every dish we tried was packed with flavor, well-seasoned, and clearly made with quality ingredients. From the sauces to the chips, the shrimp to the skirt steak, even the beans—everything was on point. As people who regularly fine dine (feel free to check my profile), we were genuinely impressed by the depth of flavor and the thoughtful execution.

The vibe of the place was lively and welcoming, and while it’s a bit of a drive for us, we’re already planning a return visit. The staff was young, friendly, and attentive, and the overall service was warm and casual in the best way.

A few extras worth noting: we appreciated the large, high-quality TVs around the space—great for catching a game. The one small suggestion I’d make is upgrading the napkins to higher-quality or reusable cloth ones. It would elevate the overall dining experience even further.

Pricing was very reasonable, the ambiance was fun, and the restaurant is located in a huge plaza with plenty of parking, surrounded by other Mexican grocery stores, restaurants, and shops. It's a vibrant area that adds to the charm of the visit if you're looking for authenticity.

All in all, La Más Querida is a fantastic find. We’re excited to come back, try more dishes, and bring friends and family...

Well,I want to point at first the importance of costumer service and communication with the staff because this can have a high impact about how business are view trough out the social media and clients experience fortunately George,a member of the staff was able to address the issues we experienced at first when Josephine the waitress who initially took our order to the kitchen was not address properly. we do not know if was her error or the kitchen staff who did not read the ticket properly .we want to think was a miss understanding with the way we request the food to be serve it thankfully George was closed when we where ready to pay and leave and stated our experience to the waitress,immediately he was able to corrected by duplicating our Order but,this time Correcting the order with out stating to him the Mistake.his action winned us and totally changed our first impression and error with how food was served, for that reason We want to appreciate his exellente costumer service skills who make him an asset to La mas querida restaurant and who avoid it a bad review to the business and winned a new clients We want to advised to Josephine the waitress to keep improving and just making sure the people from the kitchen place more attention to the tickets and be able to adress issues like george did in her own afther all been said I highly recommend this restaurant 👌 10 🌟..George deserves to be considered to a higher...

We arrived just in time to get seated—unfortunately, the only available table was right by the front door. It was freezing, and as someone who’s anemic, sitting directly in the path of the cold air made it really uncomfortable. We asked if we could move further inside but were told no, as the rest of the tables were reserved—which was understandable at first, since we hadn't made a reservation.

However, as the night went on and other guests left, we asked again if we could move to a warmer spot. Still no. Multiple tables opened up, but no one offered us the option to move, even though walk-ins were being seated at newly available tables. It felt very dismissive.

On top of that, we told our server at the beginning that we’d like to split the bill. When it came time to pay, the bill wasn’t split. That’s fine—things happen, and it was really loud in there—but when we brought it up to another staff member (I believe her name started with an F—maybe Franny or Frankie?), she rolled her eyes at us and spoke to our server. Her actions came across as unprofessional and rude.

The food was definitely good, which is the only reason I’d even consider coming back. But the service really needs to be more attentive and respectful if I’m going to give it...