El Palenque Mexican Grill — Restaurant in Town of Amherst

My friend and I went here for Cinco De Mayo. We DID wait 15 minutes before we were seated by a woman with dark red short hair. We were sat at the first table next to the kitchen window. We were RIGHT NEXT TO the, I guess you could call it, the hostess/cashier counter. In clear view of all of the servers. Our server took our drink order and drinks and chips were served. The server was gone for over 45 minutes. We know the times because we were sending text messages, one of which wad one of the decor. We asked a male employee where our server and food was and he went to the kitchen window. He came back and told us that our order was the second one coming out. As we continued to wait we noticed that the two groups of guests that were sat before us as well as the couple that sat after us cashed out and left. We even spoke to one of the couples that were shocked we didn’t have our food yet.

After waiting, and additional five minutes, timer on our phones, we left and saw our server taking care of TAKE OUT! I called the restaurant on my way home to explain to the manager why we left. I spoke with a girl that said she was the manager. Then, after I explained what happened, she said she was speaking to me because she was the only person there that spoke fluent English. I called three additional times to speak with a manager but was continually told he was not there. I spoke with my friend that said she posted our experience here and the restaurants response was they saw us on video and that we sat ourselves. That was where the confusion was.

I have a degree in Restaurant management and I am very aware of working in a busy restaurant I have worked as a server for YEARS and I would NEVER be ignorant and seat myself. Being that I have worked in restaurants for years, it was surprising that you didn’t take names down for seating. You made guests wait on their own. Clearly your system failed you.

Let’s just give you the benefit of the doubt, for kicks and giggles. Even if what you said is true and we sat ourselves, which we didn’t, WHY DIDN'T ANYONE ACTUALLY APPROACH OUT TABLE FOR 50 MINUTES? WHY did we have drinks at our table? WHY did we have chips and salsa? Did we ALSO bring them in with us when we sat ourselves down? WHY was our order the second next order to come out of the window? Clearly someone sent the ticket to the kitchen.

Own your mistake. Stop lying about it. Have some...

I’ve been coming to El Palenque since I was a child with my mother and grandmother, I’m now in my 20s and this place has always held a special place in my heart. Unfortunately, today was my first time back in about a month or so, and it was clear that the restaurant is now under new management. A lot has changed, and not for the better.

Right when me and my bf walked in, we were hit with heat instead of the usual refreshing A/C. We were seated quickly, but then waited 30–45 minutes for our food. During that time, we ran out of chips and drinks, and our waitress never once came to check in. Our queso sat and hardened on the table while we watched her prioritize what seemed to be family members, close friends, and DoorDash drivers over the rest of the dining room, all while our empty cups and basket sat clearly in view.

When our food finally arrived, we were completely disappointed. The rice and beans, which used to be our favorite was drastically different. The beans had a bitter, unpleasant taste, and the rice lacked flavor while being filled with vegetables that were never in the original recipe. The ground beef that came inside of our tacos and enchiladas also had vegetables mixed in it. The chips were thinner and almost dissolved in our mouths with no crunch, a far cry from the hearty, homemade chips we once loved. The queso tasted different too, and not in a good way.

We both ordered somewhat of our usual dishes, but the menu has completely changed. Not to mention the quality was nowhere near what it used to be. This used to be our go-to hidden gem, the food would come out hot, fresh, and in 10–15 minutes max, no matter how busy it was. The previous staff was attentive, professional, and consistent. Sadly, that’s no longer the case.

We left disappointed and honestly heartbroken. This place was special to us, but it’s now just another average spot with subpar service and food. We likely won’t...

Our female server was rude and in a rush to take our order. It was 2 o’clock today 8/26/20. There was not one lunch special that included shrimp. I am a pescatarian and cannot eat meat or chicken for health/digestive/medical issues. I was told I could not substitute shrimp instead of the chicken or add shrimp to the lunch mushroom entree as shrimp is expensive. I am well aware of this and was willing to pay the extra $$. I had no choice but to order off the dinner menu that was double the price. There was a mini taco shell salad that came with the meal that consisted of lettuce, a slice of tomato and some type of guacamole mixture that was already turning brown. The taco shell was stale. When I mentioned it to our server she said, oh you are not supposed to eat that, THE SMALL SHELL IS INEDIBLE. You are only to eat the large taco shells. This was not stated on the menu or stated when the dish was served. I have never heard that the salad served in a mini taco bowl was inedible! I asked for a side of rice instead. I thought the server would take something off our bill as the rice side was $3.00. When we cashed out, I complained to the gentleman as we were cashing out and he stated that the server was the owner. NO EXCUSES!!! I will never go back to this restaurant again due to the poor service and stale food. In today’s economy, I always tip 20%, not today. I only tipped 15% based on the service and stale food. As we were walking out I heard them talking about me in Spanish which I understand. So rude! No apology from the owner/server for the bad service or stale food. Very disappointed in our...