Guadalajara — Restaurant in Virginia

Came here for the first time in years. I was in the little shopping area next door and decided to pop in for some quick tacos. We stopped coming here years ago because the service was notoriously terrible. Food was always good but trying to get someone's attention to get more water or salsa was ridiculous.

It was about 12:15, lunchtime on a Thursday. I was seated right away. I only wanted the three tacos ala carte (I hate making hard tacos at home so any chance I get, I order them at Mexican places) so I only gave 4 stars because this was one day and three tacos, BUT after this visit I'll be back.

Service was good. It took a few minutes to get another bowl of salsa (I was scarfing up the chips and salsa...I hadn't eaten yet at all that day) but other than that, it was fine. But I DID get up and go to the register to pay my tab as soon as I was done, so I dont know if I would have been waiting to get my check paid.

The tacos were not bad. Not outstanding by any means but the salsa jazzed them up...and the salsa...I see some complaining it was too spicy, but I loved it. My complaint is usually there is no spice at many Mexican places. I often carry my own hot sauce to step on the salsa at other places. What I really liked about the tacos is they held together for the most part. I've had tacos at several places and some, the meat is like held in water or something and so juicy the tacos shells are mushy in no time, or the shells are so delicate, you bite in to them and they just fall apart.

I was probbaly in and out of here in 10 minutes paying my tab at the register and not waiting for the server/waitress. I had planned to just grab a fast food sandwich and eat on the road so I could keep moving and not lose time, but this was a great choice instead and didn't cost me...

Affectionately known as "Guad" they have several locations around Charlottesville. For whatever reason, the Pantops location is my favorite and I feel like they make their best food here. Over the years I've been going here they have noticably improved thier food quality. It has always been great however the quality has increased in recent years. While the menu is expansive, which isn't always a good look for a restaurant I have found that all of thier dishes are quite good. There might be one or two things on the menu I haven't had. For Mexican food in town, Guad is a great place to go for lunch or dinner. The service is super fast, and the prices are very economical.My family of 5 can get out of there for less than $65, and everyone is fed! The service is almost always superb. Waitstaff always seem to have a smile on thier face and are pleasant to work with. I recently encountered a rare occasion where my order wasn't correct, and they resolved it in under 10 minutes. Great customer service. The food is flavorful without being overbearing or too spicy. You can add the hot sauce on the table if you require more heat however, if you like things really spicey ask for thier house made salsa, it's really awesome and really hot! The facility is clean, including the restrooms, and the atmosphere is relaxed and casual. Great place to bring the family, meet coworkers and friends for lunch, etc. Give it a shot, I think...

I have eaten at Guadalajara ever since they have been around Charlottesville but this last experience was horrible and I will Never be returning to any of their locations. It was 2pm when we were seated, they took our drink order and quickly brought us drinks and queso sauce. Then we did not see our waitress for another 15mins at least. There were about 12 other tables and only one waitress. The other waitress was sitting at a booth eating in full view of the restaurant while the other waitress ran around like crazy. Then my husband dipped a chip in the queso pulling out a long hair on his chip. When we were actually able to get the waitress over to our table I showed her the hair, saying nothing she grabbed the queso dish and walked away. No apology nothing. She didn't say a word to us the rest of the meal even when she brought us our meals and more drinks. My burrito was lukewarm and it's obvious a bagged rice mix was used seeing as how I got peas, carrots and green beans in my burrito and my husband got the same. Thank you for ruining what used to be a great place to eat, you will never get another dime from me. Best believe I will be telling everyone I know about this experience and Just a little background I've been in food service/ restaurant business over 10 years. If I could give it zero...