Cielo Rojo Restaurant — Restaurant in Takoma Park

Delicious authentic tacos - worth the drive from McLean! The hand-made tacos are stone ground every morning from bushels of yellow and blue corn, you can definitely taste the freshness and TLC! Hubby and I enjoyed a feast with the little one! Lots of great vegetarian and hearty meaty dishes. Cielo Rojo also truly practices social distancing and takes full Covid precautions.

The scrumptious mushroom quesadilla is my pick and my little toddler devoured it! The corn tortillas are oozing with Chihuahua and Oaxacan cheeses stuffed with "Drunken Mushrooms" with a subtle tequila flavor and garlic. Oddly, you can't order 2 of the mushroom quesadillas, will have to ask about that next time. The drizzle of creamy cashew sauce elevates the flavor and worth the $1 upcharge.

The "Papas con Rojo" roasted potato are chunky and can't be contained in a quesadilla and kept falling out! The potatoes didn't quite pair well with the cheeses. Save the potatoes for the tacos!

The tacos are quite small and a bit dry. The "Papas con Rojo" chunky roasted potato were perfectly tucked inside the tacos and hands-down my favorite vegetarian taco! Much less messy than the quesadilla. The "Drunken Mushrooms" taco was nice but preferred them stuffed in a cheesy quesadilla. The "Nopales" grilled cactus had a spicy kick and fun to try, but not my favorite.

The Guacamole & Tostadas with fried yellow and blue corn tortillas/tostadas was a refreshing take on the classic chips and guac app. The blue corn tostada had a more subtle flavor while the yellow corn was bolder with a light coating of salt. Shards of tostada can be quite sharp and definitely stabbed my tongue a few times! While I enjoyed the guac, I would save my appetite for the mushroom quesadilla. By the time I got to the quesadilla, I was already pretty stuffed and saved the best for last.

The Strawberry Agua Fresca with Chia seeds was quite refreshing and like a strawberry lemonade. The classic Margarita is tasty too and hubby went for a 2nd round!

The outdoor patio is gorgeous with planters and plexiglass dividers to maintain social distancing. The tables feel private and quite relaxing!

Note - There's no table service to place orders, the waiters will just simply bring out your food. You gotta order using the QR code at the table. It's a bit annoying to scroll through the menu on my phone and place a consolidated order. I usually like to pace myself and leisurely order dishes starting with the app to hold me over before the main course. I get it - the contactless method is much more efficient, safer, and helps to reduce unnecessary staffing.

You can't freely enter the restaurant and MUST ask for permission to go inside to use the restroom. A staff member will check your temperature. There's no indoor dining.

Street parking only - free on Sundays. There's a great live band on Sunday evenings that you can hear from the patio!

Excited to come back for the mushroom quesadilla...

I’ve been living in the DC area on the Maryland side my whole life and was excited to see a new restaurant open up in Takoma Park. I used to come to this area before this spot even existed, so I was genuinely looking forward to trying Cielo Rojo. As someone who has worked in casual fine dining in downtown DC, I know that dining out isn’t just about the food — it’s about the full experience. Unfortunately, Cielo Rojo completely dropped the ball.

I called ahead to ask about solo outdoor dining and was told there were tables available. When I arrived, the host stand seemed disorganized, even though the restaurant wasn’t busy. I asked for a table for one and was immediately directed to sit at the bar — something I expect occasionally as a solo diner — but I politely emphasized that I’d prefer to enjoy my meal at a table outside. I was seated in a spot right in the middle of foot traffic, where large parties and servers were constantly bumping into my chair as I tried to eat.

I kindly asked to be moved to a quieter two-top tucked away from the traffic, but was told those tables were reserved — though they remained empty the entire time I was there, and even more tables opened up later. I was offered a seat inside, but declined given it was uncomfortably cold indoors with the AC.

To make matters worse, the food didn’t redeem the experience. I ordered the pescado with plantains instead of fries, and the plate was surprisingly bare. The salsa on the fish added nothing and felt more like a garnish than a real part of the dish. I also tried the mushroom sopes, and again, the flavors just didn’t land. My dinner left much to be desired.

When it came time to pay, the server had already pre-filled the tip amount — which felt presumptive, especially considering the lackluster service. I left it alone, paid, and left feeling frustrated and disappointed by the entire experience. As someone who’s dined at restaurants across the DC–Baltimore area, I often use solo dining to gauge how welcoming a restaurant really is. I also intentionally go during slower hours out of respect for the staff. Sadly, this place made it clear that solo diners aren’t valued, and I have no interest in returning.

EDITING MY REVIEW IN RESPONSE: The tip was pre-populated to 22%, higher than the 20% in your response. Just to fully clarify since I wasn't explicit the first time since it seems like excuses are being made regarding wait staff etiquette. Cielo Rojo isn't the only place that uses the hand held devices for tips so I'm well aware of that...

Service matters in the restaurant industry, and unfortunately I had terrible service at Cielo Rojo. The restaurant is very cute, and on a Saturday night, it was packed. My group and I were sat in the back of the restaurant, and I first noticed a large dark smudge that looked like a sticky smear. I was concerned initially that the table was still dirty from the previous guests who sat there, but I wiped at it with my napkin and didn’t think too much more of it. We sat for a couple of minutes, which wasn’t a big deal. I thought it was just a byproduct of the busy night. When our server, Lisa, finally came to the table, that was when the truly bad service started. She approached the table immediately with an attitude. Her lack of desire to service our table was palpable. She was bothered even when introducing herself. Lisa asked if we had ever been there before. Two of us hadn’t, and I would think that knowledge would drive someone to bring their A serving game - not Lisa. She then asked if there were any allergies, to which I said bell peppers. Her mood went from bad to worse. Mind you, I was not asking for help or guidance with the menu. I was just answering her questions. I am an adult who has been ordering food at restaurants for a long time so her exasperation over my dietary restriction was unnecessary. She then scrolled through her menu device and got audibly upset. She asked if I ate fish, but when I told her no, she got annoyed with me again. I didn’t want her to be upset anymore so I said, “it’s fine, I’m going to order the vegan quesadilla.” She then said, “well, you can’t have any of our salsa.” I replied, “Ok. No problem” and she walked off with an attitude. The entire rest of the night she refused to make eye contact with me or address me at all. It was so awkward that my family remarked how strangely she was behaving, and asked did I know her. No, I have never met Lisa before, but for some reason apparently my not eating peppers or meat made me enemy number one for her. I understand that a busy restaurant is a lot, but maybe ask for a break if you aren’t able to be cordial with your guests anymore. The weird and uncomfortable evening has made it, so I fear I will not back and I can’t recommend this place to others. After all, Lisa might have...