Don Tello's Tex Mex Grill — Restaurant in Stonecrest

I drove from Alabama to spend the day helping my brother and sister-in-law - along with my two nephews, one of whom is nonverbal - house hunt. After the fourth house, it was decided that we needed to find somewhere to get dinner ASAP because we were all hot, tired, and hungry. This is where we chose because it was close and we thought it would be inexpensive.

Wrong.

We were seated in an awkward space - at a table more or less in the middle of the dining area. It would have been better to be seated a little further out of the way, because this was not an area with a lot of space to walk or even sit down. My youngest nephew (nonverbal) was cranky and restless, which seemed to irritate the table beside us. So that was my first issue.

No one came to get our drink order for ten minutes. The servers were either no where to be seen or on their phones or going to every other table except ours. By the time someone did come to the table, we were ready to order food as well. Our server didn't seem to understand that two CHILDREN were being ordered for because she kept trying to add adult foods for them.

It was another ten minutes before drinks were brought out, and she brought adult cups all around. No styrofoam cups for kids. We had to ask her for that despite her knowing we had young children. Cue another five minutes to get those drinks.

Our food was brought out 15-20 minutes later. No silverware, though. We had to ask another server for silverware AND refills. Our server was no where to be seen. When she finally did arrive at our table, she seemed confused. I am unsure if she had just never dealt with a table full of hot, tired, hungry people (and two children on the spectrum) or if she genuinely didn't know what she was doing. Maybe it was her first day? I don't know.

The food was either bland or tasted very off. I had tacos, and added a ton of hot sauce to them so that I could just get food into my system before I passed out. Refills were virtually non-existent because our server disappeared. When she finally did show back up, my brother asked for the check. She asked if everyone was together or separate. I'll give the benefit of the doubt here that she didn't understand that by asking for the check it was implied it would be together, because there were four adults and two children. I'm not faulting her for that. I will fault her for taking another ten minutes to get the check out and never asking if anyone wanted a refill.

Now let's talk about cost. The same dishes that were ordered would have cost significantly less at any other Mexican restaurant. Four dishes were over $20, and they were basically rice with queso cheese and then meat (loco rice is the name I'm most familiar with, they called it something entirely different here). One was $20 even (rice, cheese, and chicken). My tacos were $9. They charged for the refills on everything, including my tea. To add insult to injury, they tacked on an extremely generous gratuity charge (20%) to the bill.

If the service had been good, that wouldn't have been an issue. The service was absolutely horrible, however. It was absolutely NOT worth the 20% gratuity. And we were not a table of six, because no other restaurant that I've been in considers children when they say a part of 6 or more will have gratuity added. We were not told that would be added. It was not stated anywhere that I saw. And to add 20% instead of the standard 15% is just bold when you consider the service was so terrible.

And THEN it was noticed that if you paid in CASH the bill was less.

We wound up going to the ATM for cash. It was another ten minutes before anyone came to get the check. Then our server had to go to the back for change, yet I saw her at a podium at the back doing some figuring on a calculator before she even brought the change back to us.

So no, I do not recommend going here if you haven't been. And if you've been here and the experience was good, be grateful for that. I've never in my life had such an experience as this at...

The food was great! However, this place has inexperienced servers who cannot interact with small children. Our server did not bus the table (meaning plates and napkins piled up quickly- any parent knows how problematic this can become). They brought the food out, placing the two hottest plates directly in reach, instead of away against basic common sense. My 1 year old grabbed the hot plate! Now crying (but okay), my 2 yr old chimed in... not to mention the beverages that fell off the table. Yes, the cups were on the edge, instead of inside. Guests are just looking, but kind, probably at parental empathy by now. My goodness, they put a cone, but never came back to dry the water. Now I'm slipping to my kids highchairs until I asked for a mop to dry it myself. Our server was a friendly young lady, but seemed "off" and very distracted. She also was confused about our tickets closing resulting in us waiting over 30 more minutes to leave. She forgot she had taken our credit cards for payment. Her tip was reduced to $5 (@15 percent) plus whatever my friend left. I began to feel that maybe our service was a little culturally bias as she focused on others more. Maybe she was new, not knowing that parents generally tip 20-40 percent easily (if you don't, you should). Either way, I was able to keep dinner going okay for my friend that selected this restaurant.

Two days later, my credit card processed twice for dinner, so I called and the manager called back promptly. He was okay, this opened the window to talk about the experience. I added a star and I'm sure there was no intentional wrong-doing, the transactions seemed batched days later. No harm done. I live hundreds of miles away just passing time after a funeral with a grieving friend but had the little ones. The experience could have been a lot better, so I downplayed, expressing no upset and basically bussed our own table for space. It was about 2 hours of parental dining chaos after waiting time and the hot plate incident, while most dining trips elsewhere are about 1-1/2 hour to the most.

This review is kinda long, but I hope it helps someone traveling. Great food, not so good service, not much of a kids menu (chicken strips don't count) avoid bringing tots, older kids okay. I was able to grab my child's hand although light contact was still made with this normal looking ceramic hot entrée plate. Imagine if I was not paying attention... Warmed plates are common, but why was the plate so hot for a chimichanga, rice, and beans? Like it was microwaved or oven baked hot... I'd eat there again, but not with the family...

Tonight was a night of mishaps. Originally we went to the Don Tellos in Conyers to celebrate a church member's confirmation. All 20 of us. I was looking forward to the one in Conyers as everything is great there. I go there a few times a month with my friend and I always get the shrimp tacos. Sadly, the storm knocked out power to the block, including the restaurant. We had only ordered drinks when it happened. Five of us decided to go home, but 15 of us stayed to see if the power returned. The restaurant decided to close. No problem, as we understood. So, to still give the company business, we all traveled to the location in Stonecrest. It was like night and day. This restaurant may have the name Don Tellos, but that's it. Apparently they don't have real forks or knives. We were served plastic cutlery in a sealed baggie. I don't know why we were all given a glass of water first, that is a waste in my opinion as not everyone wants water. Maybe save the water cups to buy real forks? There was like club music booming in the bar area and people walking around dressed like this was a club. The bass was so loud, I couldn't have a proper chat to the family members beside me. Our server was better, he tried to lighten the mood. The family atmosphere from the other location with the staff, does not exist at this location. I will give credit to the service as our food arrived fast, but it was met with great disappointment. My shrimp tacos. They are flame grilled at the other restaurant, the tortillas have a light char, and it comes with this special salsa. None of that exists here. My shrimp looked boiled and tasted overcooked with no seasoning. The tortilla would make all the abuelas turn in their graves. And no special salsa. Then, a pet peeve of mine, our server came later with airpods in both ears to give our check. The restaurant closes at 11pm. It was not 11pm when he had the airpods. This restaurant just made me miss the one in Conyers. I will just know that next time to not go here. This is the...