La Hacienda Restaurant — Restaurant in Sebring

I wasn't sure about this place at first. When we first entered, it seemed like a convenience store with indoor seating. It was VERY clean and well stocked.

The gentleman who greeted us was very polite, has a good sense of humour. We gave our orders and in record time, we had our food.

The mini-tostadas were fantastic. Very flavourful. Came with this hand-made green sauce that complemented them very well.

I had a burrito, absolutely stuffed with toppings, and enchilada sauce. Wife had chicken fajitas. Both very delicious.

But the piece de résistance, was the hot sauce.

My review of the food ends here. The rest is about the sauce.

I collect and consume hot sauce as a hobby. I have an extensive range of sauces from peppers as mild as the mildest Cayenne, to sauces using the Apollo pepper, which push 3+ million SHUs.

I asked if they had hot sauce, and he said of course. I figured I would get a bottle of something that could be bought in stores. I was pleasantly surprised when two small plastic dishes arrived with my burrito. The sauces had pulp, which straight away told me "homemade". I could taste the habenero pepper very clearly. It had an extremely good balance of heat and flavour.

There didn't seem to be many aromatics used but that didn't stop the sauce from making the peppers the stars of the show. It was, hands down, one of the best sauces I have had, and I've had a lot of sauces.

This is my new, go-to Mexican cuisine restaurant. I don't use that lightly. Everywhere I've said that, I have been a repeat customer since. This is now on my rotation.

I want more...

Service is good and they always have your food out quick. I’m giving 3 stars because I’ve tried this place twice- the first time I would have awarded it with a 5 star review but the second time was just mediocre. I ordered the same exact meals both visits. The second time it was like ordering from a different restaurant... it tasted completely different. The steak on the taco didn’t taste seasoned at all. The refried beans has literally no taste at all to them. Just texture. The chicken enchiladas had a red sauce on them that was sweet, so sweet it tasted like a dessert dish. They were not appetizing to me at all. I may give it another chance with the hopes that the meal turns out like the first...

Every time we have went there they don't have any tres leches cake made ( which is permanently in their dinner menu, so it's not like it's occasional). We didn't quite finish our first fountain soda with our dinner and took a lot of it home since we were in a hurry, and we asked for to go beverages and we were charged AGAIN for our drinks. The owner said they had no hot sauce and gave me salsa , and as I was leaving I saw 4 bottles of different kinds of hot sauce on a serving cart near the restaurant tables. Very cheap and very rude the owner of this place is! We...