04/24/08

Casual Mexican fare in the center of Midtown

by chrismm78

Despite being in the center of Midtown and driving past this restaurant daily, this was my first visit to Zocalo. However, this visit almost did not occur due to reading the previous multiple bad reviews.

My visit was quite pleasent, and you get exactly what you go for: standard mexican food and good margaritas at a decent price. I am not sure what the patrons before me who were not impressed expected for a $10 a plate mexican restaurant?

I visited on a nice weather day, and the restaurant, which resembles an off-the-beaten-path mexican beach cantina, had all of its windows open for the evening breeze. Me and my dining partner started with a pitcher of house margaritas ($25), and an order of the homemade guacamole ($6), both of which were good. I had the chicken mole ($12), and my partner had the pork enchiladas ($12), again, both of which were good.

My only complaint is the "first basket of chips on the house" policy. When I drink margaritas I like to eat chips, and have never ran into a mexican restaurant that charges a per basket fee ($1.50).

All-in-all, I would definately return to Zocalo; good food, good margaritas, and within stumbling distance home!

• Pros: Potent margaritas
• Cons: Rather small, can fill up quick

09/02/09

not worth getting paid to eat here

by zocgohome

watch out! they change your bill after you leave!

and also, the valet parking is for expensive cars only, no handicap parking. there were empty parking spaces. nonetheless, i was turned down (with a handicap parking pass). a bentley rolled up and received a spot front row! i love jerks

• Pros: left me something to talk about
• Cons: not accessible, they add to your bill

03/25/09

Authentic Mexican Food in Midtown ATL

by FoxyBlanche

I love this Mexican restaurant in the heart of Midtown Atlanta. I adore the Taquitos Pollo which is covered in ceviche ... yummy.

My husband and I love Mexican food when we went to this Midtown restaurant.

• Pros: Fresh Mexican Dishes
• Cons: Sweet Tea could be better

08/20/08

Bad, Bad, and Worse

by fitconsumer

WOW- terrible food, prices, and service. No one in my party had a single delicious dish, the waiter was awful and the cheapest meal is over ten dollars. I was completely disappointed and will never return.

• Cons: AWFUL service, food and prices

01/17/08

They charged me for lettuce...for my taco

by notintoreviewsbut

I've been to the Zocalos in Grant Park and I've always had a great experience. It is more casual than the Midtown location but it's good food at a reasonable price. I went to the Midtown location and I was very disappointed. I paid a dollar for lettuce to go on my tacos...Do I need to say more because I can. I could talk about the service and the attitude of the manager. I wouldn't recommend it. The margaritas are pretty strong but that's typical of any regular Mexican restaurant and they won't be as expensive. I don't mind paying more if the food and service are good but I spent $30 on so-so tacos and two margaritas (not including tip),

Don't do it-

• Pros: Convenient (located at 10th and Piedmont)
• Cons: Poor service, over priced, valet parking that has to be validated, so-so food, not worth it at all

01/08/08

Poor customer service...rude staff

by mgkoefod

We went to Zocalo to have dinner with our family and my girlfriend is Vegan so we just wanted to get her tortilal shells with pico on the side so she could have something to eat while the rest of us enjoyed dinner. In the past this had not been a problem....a few weeks earlier we had a very nice young lady serve us and she brought my girlfriend her tortillas and pico...but this time was different. The waiter took forever to get to us and then we watched as our drinks sat on the edge of the bar for 10 min until he brough them to our table...this would have been understandalble had the place been busy..but it wasn't. He dropped off our drinks an ran and in another 10 minuits, came to take our order. When he heard my girlfriends request he said no...we don't have that on the menu...we explained how just 2 weeks earlier the waitress had brought this dish for us...he still refused. I went to speak with the manager and he was very rude and also refused.....needless to say we will not be eating here again. It is an unfortunate experience but when I ran it by some of our neighbors who eat there, they said that some of the waiters and the manager can often times be very rude.

Save your money and go someplace where they treat you well....we really enjoy places like Beleza..on Juniper and 8th....and even though Sweet Devil Moon is slow...they are super friendly and have $10 bottomless Sangria. There are plenty of places to eat and drink around town where the food and the service is great....it is too bad Zocalo is not one of them.

• Pros: Location is convienient
• Cons: Rudest service I have ever had

12/23/07

The real deal... finally,,,,,,,,

by lilpaolita

I am so glad my boyfriend talked me into trying "Zocalo" despite having read the last few reviews it got. All I can say is that being a born and raised Mexican living in the US for the past 8 years it was so wonderful to have some "authentic" Mexican food. After noticing some very typical dishes in the menu I made a special request for Mole Enchiladas the which was not only met but was probably the best I've had in a really long time, the margaritas were good, but it's hard to get those wrong! and the Queso Fundido appetizer was phenomenal. We also got "Flan" to go, it took us a couple of days to eat it but when we finally did, it was so much better than I expected. Authentic Mexican food is quite different from the "Tex-Mex" stuff most people are used to in the U.S. and that is the only explanation I can come up with for some people being unhappy with Zocalo, however I would strongly recommend keeping an open mind and just give it a try!!!! You may just be very very surprised. Now if you have had Real Mexican food and you know you like it, you will "love" Zocalo.

• Pros: Awesome food!

06/27/07

Will not go back

by midtowneater

Where should I start from? It is the Decatur location, first, only good thing: the server. Sweet guy, he was great. The rest: forget about it. Rude rest of employees, very bad margaritas, and very rude manager. If a customer complains about something in a restaurant, a manager should apology and try to get it corrected, instead of arguing with the customer and treating her as an unwanted customer. This is ABC of hospitality. Anyways, I and three of my friends ordered chips and salsa to start with, and received it in 20 minutes. It was sooo hot in there w/o AC which is no brainier to have it in Atlanta. (If you have AC and it is not working; it is even more shame) We had to move out side to get cool in the middle of summer. No apology for AC situation. Entrees were late and mediocore but I can not get over how bad Margaritas were despite of the premium price. I used to love the place when they first opened in Midtown and may still be good there. My biggest question about this place is why do you not take care of your biggest value, the customer and why do you argue with them? Decatur Zocolo is a mess. Will not return.

• Pros: location
• Cons: fod, drinks, managers

06/18/07

Diners Beware

by tiffnicky

This was the worst dining experience I have ever had in Atlanta. To start things off, our server was not friendly, almost rude. The salad that my mother ordered was presented well. But then she noticed that her tomato was moldy. When we pointed it out tho the server, she said absolutely nothing and took the plate away. NO apology, no acknowledgment. Then, throughout the dinner, she continued to reach over her without saying excuse me. When she began to clear the dishes away, she knocked a knife into my sister's lap (didn't apologize) and dropped my father's debit card on the floor (again, didn't apologize). Then the tres leches cake that they brought out for dessert was freezer burned. To sum it up, the service was horrible, and the food tasted like something that I could make in my own kitchen. I will definitely not return.

• Pros: Valet parking
• Cons: Service, Food

05/05/07

spices things up?

by donnyraymond2

spices things up?

Maybe by intestinal tract.

Overhyped joint with the usual midtown glib service, and the 'ritas are not good. Far from it.

This establishment is an affront to my sensibilities on about every level.

• Pros: there is more than one door for you to exit
• Cons: there is more than one door for you to enter