Cabos Bonitos Grill & Cantina LLC — Restaurant in Springfield

I feel awful to have not updated this review sooner. Updated from 3 to 4:

I returned here several months after my initial review to find one of the best examples of taking feedback from reviews that I have ever seen. More variety on the menu and most importantly changes to the recipes. Everything is now very well seasoned and full of flavor! While it is not the absolute best I have ever had in other states, it IS one of the best options downtown.

Staff is is also very friendly and service is wonderful!

Original Review: Opening Week I stopped in for the first time excited to see a Mexican restaurant back in the downtown area. Everything looks very promising. Service was some of the best and food was all out in a flash!

When I first sat I was asked about what salsas id like rather than having them bring out the default right away like most places. I got a set of all 3. A regular, a Verde thick sauce served warm and a Habanero based salsa which was thin. They looked great....but they didn't seem to have any real flavor. None had any real kick or even just that savory flavor you might expect from a tomato based salsa.

I ordered a ground beef burrito with Spanish rice and a bean soup with bacon sausages and other garnishes. I tried the beans first and they were Really Good. The flavors mixed very well. The rice and the burrito though...they were unfortunately just bland. All the ingredients were there, your beef cheese chili con carne on the top. It's just there wasn't much flavor to any of it.

It is important to note, I LOVE spice so it could be a pallet issue and none of the food was bad by any means.

The service is great, the portions are beyond fair and the...

I needed to partake of a quick lunch and saw new owners had opened the old Maria’s location downtown. This place was “off the charts” Tex-Mex at its best. The salsa and chips were an immediate surprise and the hot salsa verde’, oh my. I ordered a combo meat quesadilla because I wasn’t very hungry. Not a usual choice for me, because I like fajitas or enchiladas suitzas. I was pleased to be asked if I would like any rice or beans on the side. I asked if they served a la charra beans, also known as borracha beans. Cabos Bonitos calls them drunken beans because they use Dos Equis in the stew (and I expect this also helps explain the difference from the usual local refried beans). I was convinced the new owner must be a Texan because a heard a “ya’ll” and the music was great. I’m very eclectic in the area of music. I spent almost a decade living just north of Houston and although the owner is not a Texan, he had spent some time there. He also explained that all of their meats, spices, and vegetables were especially sourced for better quality and flavor. I could go on, but the margarita was the best I have experienced. That is saying a lot because I typically don’t care for them. Margs are usually from a mix off putting to my taste. Holy moly…this marg was perfect and I am converted. One more thing…I needed wifi to work on my dissertation and I was given a password upon asking. The service was outstanding! Warning…this is an authentic Tex-Mex experience with no lack of flavor or spice. There are plenty of options for those who like less, but I was truly transported for my little lunch (not so little). Thank you, Cabos Bonitos Grill and Cantina. I’m bringing my Texan back...

I'll start with the good stuff. Cute place with really friendly staff and good service. I really enjoyed the chips (thin style and crispy but were thick enough for the queso). The camarena margarita was decent and I really loved the corn tortillas (a bit thinner than usual with a good bite and savory flavor... I could probably just eat a stack of these alone). The queso, rice and beans were okay (black and 'drunken' beans, which are basically charro/borracho beans). The salsa has potential but seemed very salty tonight (we only received one kind of salsa, it was not warm).

Now for the bad. We ordered a steak chimichanga, blackened fish tacos and a 'thinny' margarita that were all not great. The steak was a weird, tough texture and seemed like it had been reheated or something. The fish tacos came out smelling VERY fishy... I tried them anyways. The first taco wasn't too bad (I actually liked the first one... probably a little spicy for some), but the second one was completely different and was clearly what I could smell. I don't know if the fish was old on that one or what... but it was inedible. The 'thinny' margarita tasted like cleaning chemicals, not even like tequilla (and I almost exclusively drink "skinny" margaritas or liquor with soda water when we're out).

This definitely wasn't an authentic experience and we probably won't go out of our way to come back. Hopefully this was a bad night, because this is a cute little place...