Hector's — Restaurant in Wauwatosa

The fact that this has a 4+ star review is insane...to say the food was bad, the experience was bad, the service was bad, the decor was bad and the vibe was just majorly off would do a disservice to the soul-depleting meal I endured here. I picked Hectors for lunch based on the reviews I'd read and the rating, and the fact that it was nearby...they had huaraches, tamales, pozole, according to online pictures, all signs of a less-than-basic mexican place catering to....a more seasoning-averse demographic if you catch my drift... it was a small hole in the wall, right in the tosa village, and has been here for quite some time. The desire to leave overwhelmed me as soon as our very unpleasant server, Jill, I believe, told me they did not have horchata....that should have been my cue but I stayed, I gave the benefit of the doubt and thought of the multiple reviews that said "best Mexican food in Milwaukee " on google....Going into Hectors is like stepping into a liminal space, like the backrooms, like a place that time has forgotten. The pale mint green walls and the almost entirely empty dining room were eerie and just disconcerting to my soul. The affectation of our server was one of unpleasantness and annoyance and flat responses. Her attitude made me feel as uncomfortable as the energy of the space, so hey, points for consistency. The tables felt sticky, and the soda was flat and watered down. The salsa was a strange pulpy consistency with an admittedly redeemable amount of flavor. The chips were unfamiliar and upsetting shapes, like they were bargain chips collected from the extra trimmings of higher quality chips. They lacked flavor and salt and were served in an equally depressing chipped wood bowl. The tamales were tasty, but I attribute that to my unnatural appetite for nearly all tamales regardless of quality. They were, undoubtedly, not made there, not fresh, and prepared from frozen. Those tamales are fine at my house on a lazy dinner night, but obviously, I expected more from a Mexican restaurant. I ordered carnitas tacos and a mini chimichanga. I was pleasantly surprised to see ample meat filling in my tacos topped with chopped onion and cilantro, a good sign in my eyes, although the lack of lime, salsa, and those prison style mono colored plastic plates they serve food on should have been foreshadowing enough. I bit hopefully into my taco, expecting slow roasted carnitas flavor and tasted a limey grey meat that left me sad and not wanting another bite. Social anxiety and how my momma raised me keeps me from sending back bad food, which I take full responsibility for. I ordered, I ate, I paid, and I tipped responsibly because that's the right thing to do. But every bite made me sadder, more hopeless about the next mouthful of food. I ate out of hunger, obligation, and spite because I'm paying for this meal, and momma didn't raise a quitter. It wasn't spoiled or inedible food. It was just bad. It was bland and worse than uninspiring, with no reprieve from any of the other sides. The beans were watery black beans, flavorless and tasting of soap...perhaps from the decades old plastic plate. At least it was clean, I guess .. The rice was no better. It was tepid and flavorless. I saved my pork chimichanga for last, as a hopeful bastion of deep fried cheesey goodness that could never disappoint because of its simplicity and the consistent satisfaction it usually gives me. It too, was sad, and surely made from frozen. I ate quickly and left most of the sides untouched. I wanted to wash my hands after touching the sticky tables and feeling an indescribable sulliedness, but I couldn't quickly see it from where I was sitting and wanted to have the least amount of interactions with our server. Another quick, awkward, and almost seemingly passive-aggressive interaction later to pay the bill, and I was free. When I got outside, I took a deep breath and felt deep in my soul, changed for the worse from having been there, to Hectors. Like eating their food tied a piece of my soul to that...

To start off I want to say this review has no reflection on the service - the server was great and the food came out fast. However, the food itself was not very good. The chips were about a 4/10; very bland and had that “cardboard” flavor some chips have. The salsa was about a 5.5/10. Not terrible, but again not a lot of flavor which could have been caused by chips. I ordered the “burritos” off the menu that come with 3 small burritos with meat of your choice and rice and beans. The burritos had less quality than frozen burritos from the grocery store, but you could tell the chicken was seasoned well (overall a 5/10); the beans we okay (6/10), and the rice was good (7/10). The best thing I got was a side of grilled veggies that were extremely tasty (9/10)! Overall, it just did not hit the spot. Everything lacked flavor besides the veggies. Also, there was 0 phone service in there, which since I was eating by myself made the atmosphere worse. Also did not feel like what I got was worth $20 (water to drink), but I understand food pricing and what it takes to run a business. Was hoping for a good, local, authentic Mexican cuisine nearby and this just...

When we first walked in we were never acknowledged, sat at the bar for about 5 minutes as the bartender (Ella?) drank tequila straight from the bottle with her mouth. She was “too busy” to speak to us. She put down chips and asked us what to drink. They did have anything in cans or bottle, she stated so we went with water. Took her 20 minutes to give us food menus when we asked her for them when she got us the waters. Fast forward to finally getting the food. The food was lukewarm and dry, VERY CHEWY. There’s “secret sauce tastes like you added a chili taco seasoning packet to a bottle of ketchup, which was terrible. There’s rice, beans, and meat Tasted like it had been sitting in a warmer all day, mind you it was 8pm on a Saturday night kitchen didn’t close until 9:30pm, plenty of time for fresh food….. I would unfortunately do not recommend this place even though I wish I could considering on a Saturday night there was a total of 8 people there and the only one drunk was the bartender. I support local small businesses but not ones that can’t see...