Casa Fiesta — Restaurant in South Carolina

I can’t understand how this place has all these glowing reviews. Awful, awful food. I hate to give places a bad review and usually don’t bother, but this was just too egregious to not post something. My wife and I just moved to James Island and as such, we are on the lookout for good places to eat. Mexican is one of our favorites, and this place had such great reviews, so we decided to eat there. Big mistake. And again, how the hell does this place have such good reviews?! Chips and salsa were standard fare, nothing special but not bad. My wife got carnitas and I got a combination plate with an al pastor burrito, cheese-filled chile poblano, rice and beans. From the first bite, I knew this wasn’t going to be good. The red sauce on the burrito and poblano tasted like pasta sauce. I know Mexican oregano is a thing, but honestly I felt like I should be eating pasta with that sauce on there. Not a flavor I want in my Mexican food. The al pastor was little pork nibs with sad, flavorless pineapple, and lots of fat and gristle. The real disappointment was the poblano though. Chiles poblanos is one of my favorite Mexican dishes, and this was easily the worst I’ve ever had. I took 2 bites and didn’t touch it again. The pepper itself was not cooked all the way through, making it tough to cut and chew, and it tasted like a raw pepper. The batter was totally flavorless and added nothing to the dish. That wonderful eggy flavor that most good chiles poblanos have was nowhere to be found in that dismal dredge of soggy batter. And to top it all off (literally), was that horrid red sauce. I think somebody switched what they normally serve with Ragu, because it would have been totally fine atop a bed of angel hair with fresh parmesan. I’m not at an Italian restaurant though. The carnitas were at least pretty decent, but there were more onions than there was pork. Rice was ok, but the beans were watery and tasteless. All in all, this was a very disappointing dining experience, especially since this was the first Mexican place we’ve tried on JI based on the reviews. I certainly hope there are better options around, because we will never...

Arrived at Casa Fiesta around 6:30 on a Friday evening for dinner in July. We were seated immediately upon entering the establishment. The restaurant wasn't vacant nor busy; it was comfortably in-between.

The ambiance was welcoming, but loud. Unfortunately, the screaming of young children and clanking of dishware echoed off the walls. The decor was very pleasant; I absolutely loved the artwork. 🫶🏻 The table was wobbly and tipped upon placing weight upon it. The booth seats had rice sprinkled across it; they could've used a good wipe-down before seating customers.

Our server was kind, quick, thorough and efficient. Food arrived within 15 minutes of placing our order. The server kept our waters filled and checked on us regularly, though we did have to flag them down for the check and a box.

They brought chips and salsa to the table while we waited for our dinner, which didn't take us long to clear. The salsa had a delicious flavor and appealing consistency. Unfortunately, it was too spicy for me to eat, but I have a spice sensitivity, so I'm a terrible judge of spice. What I did taste was good though, and the chips were fried perfectly; not overcooked nor oversalted.

I ordered a bean and cheese burrito and it was delicious. Husband ordered the trio enchiladas, and said they were the best enchiladas he's had in a while. Daughter ordered shredded beef nachos and successfully ate half her plate (which is a good thing; she eats like a mouse). And our son had the machete special and ate most of his plate. Overall, the good was wonderful.

The price was affordable and more importantly, we didn't feel ripped off or receive sticker shock. I highly recommend this establishment. You get your money's worth! 🫶🏻 We will return the next time we're in Charleston.

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Super super disappointed. We came today for my daughter's 6th birthday. All she wanted was to go to a Mexican restaurant and get to wear the birthday hat and have them sing to her. I called ahead to make sure they did that and was assured they did and to let the server know it was her birthday and it would be taken care of. We told the first server and she seemed excited. Half way through the meal the server changed and someone else took her place. When we finished she asked if we wanted dessert and I told her it was my daughter's birthday and she acted like she already knew and asked if my daughter wanted flan or friend ice cream. She chose the Fried ice cream and the server came back a few minutes later saying that they didn't have fried ice cream and said that she could bring her regular ice cream. My daughter was disappointed but said that was fine.They came back a few minutes later and put the bowl in front of her and left. No celebration, no hat, no song.That was the entire reason we even came to dinner here. I don't like to leave bad reviews but you massively disappointed a child and I don't understand why they told me they would do the celebration if they...