Ask for the manager Keith. He was so nice and took care of our larger rowdy group.
We showed up last minute with the party of 20 and even though they were busy they found a way to accommodate us and get us into the restaurant in less than the time we were quoted. The food was great the service was great and the margaritas were the best part of all. I had something called, "cactus juice" and it might've been the best margarita I've ever had.
On Mother's Day we had 130 reservation .we did not get  seated till 2 . When were seated they put 8 of us in a both! We finally got a table, but when we went threw the Buffett , half of the trays were empty . You could not cut the prime rib with a knife! I called the next day I called and all she said is I'm sorry! I told her I was going to write a review and she did not care!
Review Source:Staff is terrible. The waitress we had did not know anything about the food. Maybe she was new, but that just means they need to train their staff better. After taking our order, we rarely saw her again.
We also wanted to take our kid's ice cream togo and she said they didn't have togo cups or plastic wear. Um....yes you do because we got it from another wait-staff.
Fail.
I have only gone for the Sunday brunch, so this review is specifically about that experience. Â I thought it was amazing, and a great value for the price. Â I went with a group of 6, which included a teenager and a 6 year old. Â
The variety of choices at the all-you-can-eat buffet style brunch is really varied. Â You can have regular breakfast fare, or carving board selections (delicious roast beef, by the way), or Mexican food. Â There is also a really nice dessert section.
If you want mimosas or bloody mary's you can add that to your meal (all you can drink) but if you are not into drinking, you don't have to add that additional cost.
The servers were all pleasant and we were seated without a wait, which was surprising since the food was so good. Â I think that based on the Yelp reviews, maybe this place had some problems in the past, but honestly, I'd definitely recommend the Sunday brunch, especially if you have friends/family in town and want to make it easy for everyone to have a nice variety of good food.
We've been back twice since my last review and they are still having serious issues with service. The food is pretty good (especially the Fajitas), but when the restaurant is not full and you have to wait 20 minutes for your second round of drinks (beer and wine ...nothing fancy!) and another 20 for dessert, it's just not acceptable ....especially since there are more options now in the area.
Review Source:I have been here twice. The first time, the food was awful-- Not "gag reflex" awful, but definitely not worth the price paid. The second time, we showed up to no hostess. The manager sat us later, and forgot crayons for our little one. 15 minutes, and no one asked to take our order. We left.
Review Source:We have been to this location twice in the past 3 months. If I would've reviewed it after the first time, I would've been hard pressed to give it any stars. However, the food we ate was fairly good both times we went, despite the fact that the service was truly lacking.
On the first visit we sat in the middle of the restaurant and my young daughter was injured when the bench seat she was sitting on fell off and she landed on the floor. The waiter was in no way apologetic, and my husband had to hunt down the manager on his own to let him know what happened. Even after alerting the manager, we felt as though no one seemed to care. My daughter was sitting there crying and no one, not even the manager, asked if she was ok. Additionally, the food took way too long to come out, and the wait staff was no where to be found. On both visits we came after the lunch rush when the restaurant was fairly empty, so there really wasn't any excuse for poor service.
Based on the service alone, this restaurant would get zero stars, but I gave them 2 for the food and drinks that we enjoyed. There are definitely better Tex Mex restaurants in the area with markedly better service, so we now frequent Maudie's instead.
The family and I stopped in here the other night and I have to say it was horrible on every level. Â If you are considering eating here, do yourself a favor and cross the road to Maudies instead. Â
Also worth noting the weird tall skinny lady who kept hovering around the dining room. Â I assume she was the manager, but we felt like at any moment she was going to snatch away someone's dalmatians and try to make a coat out of them.
The Breakdown:
Strike 1: I liked the warmed salsa idea, but it lacked any sort of kick one would normally expect from Salsa. Â As a native Texan, bad salsa just rubs me the wrong way. Â Its like going to a seafood place and being served a frozen fish stick. Â If your market is TexMex, put some effort into getting it right. Â It's not like it's hard to find a good salsa chef in Austin. Â You'd have a harder time finding a cook in Austin that can't mix some up...
Strike 2: We started with two of the "Signature" Prickly Pear Margaritas, but despite being the same exact drink, it was very clear that 1 was all tequila and the other was all mixer. Â Neither was edible. Â We sent them back, and watched the bartender dump them both into a blender, mix them and send them back.
Strike 3: Crappy and unresponsive service. Â We sat with our drinks for 5 minutes waiting for the waiter to come back. Â Then once we ordered, our waiter brought my wife a completely different entree than she had ordered.
No thanks, Iron Cactus. Â From now on I'll get my Tex Mex at Manuel's, Santa Rita, Maudies, or El Arroyo instead.
I guess that I should have read Yelp before we ate here. Â We live close and have eaten both lunch and dinner here with no complaints. Â We went tonight and the service was absolutely terrible. Â Not only was the service bad, but then the wait person was trying to remove our plates the minute.we put our forks down. Â I believe the fist time in my life that I have left a zero tip and then complained to the mgr.
Review Source:We came here for a special dinner from my daughter who was just a super patient at the eye doctor down the road. Â Iron Cactus had been one of my favorite restaurants years ago but since coming to the Hill Country Galleria - I have not been "wow"ed and have been less likely to come. Â However when faced with the option of going downtown or staying closer to home and the grocery store - paired with the daughter's plea to eat at the Iron Cactus - I caved. Â
I guess the problem came when the waitress figured out my 2 girls and I are not big eaters. Â They can share an appetizer and be will not finish it. Â As for me. I was there for the chips and Margaritas.
So we ordered our food - the crab cakes tasted as if they were out of a box and the quesadilla was not terribly great. Â But still we were here to celebrate and not complain. Â
Then the waitress asked to box up our food before the kids had even eaten their first slice of quesadilla. Â --- Nothing is more maddening then being rushed out the door. Â Instead of getting upset - I ordered another maragarita hoping she might get the point. Â No such luck. Â The minute the last quesadilla was gone and my margarita was still full she asked if we needed dessert. Â And then handed me the bill promptly. She cleared the table - too the chips and salsa to boot and we never saw her again. Â It was not quite the leisurely diner we had come in for. Â Â So now days we need to eat 4 full plates to feel as if we are worthy to come in to your restaurant?
I am sorry we had not ordered more food. Â I am even more sorry we had decided to go there.
We'd been to Iron Cactus once for lunch and once for dinner and had no complaints. The food was good and the service fine as well. Seems like the third time was the charm and service was so bad I was waiting for candid camera to come out. We literally had to find someone every time we needed anything. The waiter kept making excuses and blaming everyone else and even after the manager promised the service would get better "from here on out," nothing improved. There is obviously an issue with management, so although we like the food we won't be back.
Review Source:Hate to do it, but two stars is the verdict. Everything went well until the end when the waitress abandoned us for a large party. Could not get her to take the credit card to pay our check, even after waiting for 25 minutes twiddling our thumbs. Excuse was that they cut a bunch of people loose for the evening, and she thought the manager was going to close out our check. Â Was cavalier about the problem and absolutely did not want to take any responsibility for the lapse in service. After having to physically walk the credit card over to her, looked back over to the large table and she was still attending the large party 10 minutes later. She saw us glaring and finally had another server run the ticket. It was 35 minutes between the time we finished our meal, and the time we could leave. Will NOT be dining here again, which is unfortunate because the food was pretty decent.
Review Source:Walked out today at brunch due to terrible service. My husband and I were sat and after 10 minutes hadn't even got water. The restaurant was less then 1/3 full and was offering a buffet for brunch. To make it worst when we left no one even tried to find out why. We will never be back.
Review Source:Other reviews make it look like the restaurant is working out some service issues. I didn't have such an experience.
I thought the food was really good. Cocktails were terrific (and imaginative). Ambiance was a bit open (I like smaller restaurants though, so I'm biased).
I think it's a great place to go for dinner or just drinks. I also like that it's near the movies for before or after.
The family and I dropped in one late afternoon this spring for drinks and appetizers on the inviting covered patio, lured by the shade and the classic rock. Â Judging by the drinks menu, this place has made a career out of the margarita. Â My husband deftly ordered something deliciously complicated that was recommended by the server, but I spent a good while studying the full two-page array of choices and was actually visited by a friendly roving bartender for a tutorial, before I finally gave up and ordered something safe: a beer. They offer a decent variety on tap.
The food menu is less complicated, Tex-Mex all the way. There are some non-meat options, which I appreciate, and plenty of meat-based ones, which the rest of the family appreciates. Â The food was decent, though I could have done without the cream sauce. Â But for me, the most pleasant part of the afternoon was just sitting on the patio, drinking, snacking, and listening to the music.
Our server was very friendly and helpful, and we were disappointed to overhear a female employee giving him crap about not working fast enough. The place was fairly full; maybe they need to hire more servers (and figure out a way to keep the good ones). We left him a fat tip.
Service was terrible. Â Hostesses were clueless as it took us over an hour to be seated although they seated every other smaller group behind us. Â Waiter was obnoxious to my 70 year old father in-law. Â Saw the asst. manager and hostess get chewed out by at least 3 other groups. Â Zero customer focus. Â If this was my place I would fire the whole staff or at least train them a little on customer service.
Spent $200 to be frustrated all night.
This place is just flat out bad when they get busy. Â Spend your money at a place where customers are appreciated not here.
Bad, Bad, Bad.
While we tend to go to the Bee Caves location, I have been to the others around Austin and have never been disappointed yet! Â I could go on and on about the brunch and bottomless mimosas... holy yummmmmmm!! Â I absolutely LOVE the salsa and could sit at the bar enjoying their delicious margaritas and chips and salsa everyday. Â In my opinion, it's the BEST in all of Austin, but I know that's subjective! Â ;-)
Review Source:Wish I could give this one a better review. We were regular, once-a-week customers over the past few years, but over the past few months the food quality and the service has really gone down. We tell the managers and staff and receive either blank looks or promises to do better that have never materialized. We're crossing this place off our list for awhile. There are plenty of other great places within easy walking distance. I would recommend checking out one of those instead.
Review Source:We went on a Sunday night and the place was pretty empty. The waiter was very, very nice and the food was...terrible. The chips were greasy, chewy and stuck together with way too much salt and we laughed that a Mexican restaurant is in trouble if the chips are bad. My chicken flautas were chewy and almost cold and my husband said his (beef wrap or something?) was barely edible. The tea was expensive although it stayed full. I made my daughter order broccoli (so she could have the ice cream that came with her meal) and she said it tasted like fish. I had to agree. It was bizarre. Needless to say she didn't have to eat it. On a happier note, they did make a killer corn dog for my son. I won't be going back to a Mexican restaurant to order a corn dog for my two year old though. Awesome location. I hope they improve...and fast!
Review Source:I tend to like more grassroot type establishments and here's why:
The salsa was a good, uncommon recipe - heavy garlic, blended/purée type that is cooked, a nice start. Being tired and in the middle of the day, I opted out of having a cocktail or beer, but did review the selection and it's a pretty standard offering. I also happened to notice the nicely setup dessert tray that they strategically place in the walk towards the seating area. I did not have dessert, but the display was impressive.
So here's the meat and potatoes: I ordered the Travis burger, basic burger. My companion ordered the Stacked Enchiladas. The enchiladas looked delicious! Burger looked good too, but I was a little perturbed that the broccoli I order, in lieu of fries, was placed on the plate with my burger to leave my bun soggy. Nothing worse than a soggy bun, and a cardinal rule in restaurant 101. The burger was cooked properly, but was obviously frozen...big disappointment. I tried some of the enchiladas and they were good besides the poblano pepper inside it that was crunchy and raw.
Aside from the food, which I understand is a constant variable in places like this, the service was also in need of pointers. Our server was very nice, but her skills were rough. The restaurant was not very busy at all, yet our drinks, including water, were near empty before being replenished. She was great about asking us if we needed more chips, but failed to also notice we were also out of salsa. When checking on the table, she also did not recognizing that the chips were not being eaten and still failed to notice the empty salsa. Not a huge faux pas, but an eye roller nonetheless.
The one thing that irked me and the reason I only gave them 2 stars and tipped 15%, not our usual 20%+ was because when she addressed our table, she did it from across the dining area or from another table behind my line of sight. As a former server, very long ago, I quickly learned that many needs of your table can be identified with visuals and eye contact. You can see when beverages need filling, when food is not being eaten and when eye contact is made and your table needs something. There should be no need to yell at your table sporadically - ever. I am not a high maintenance customer and my expectations are fairly low, but the level of service these days is something that is what makes you money in this industry and it seems some servers don't get this basic concept. Serving is one of the hardest position I've ever had in my life and the rewards are only what you make of it.
Overall, I would rate this place along side any other TGIMcFunsters...good for a cup of coffee and dessert after a movie if the mom and pop shops are closed. If there's a local taco truck open, your money is better spent supporting them.
_
My response to Gary, the manager:
Gary,
I appreciate your response, but it seems a bit insincere when I see the same type responses on the other comments. You obviously have multiple issues in your store when your average rating is "1 star".
After reading a few of the reviews, I can see that the majority of your issues lie in your service. I will not be back anytime soon because until you work out the kinks, it's a waste of money.
I respectfully recommend you implement a training program for your staff and work with them to get it right. As a manager, you know you are only as good as the people who support you.
I wish you luck in the restaurant business and will be back when the stars go up.
Best regards,
Melissa
This Iron Cactus gives you more of what you aren't looking for. Â Something extra.
First, let me say that my wife and I enjoy the 6th street location every once in a while. Â We've had some great and not-so-great service, but they also did a great job hosting a party we held there. Â So they get the benefit of the doubt. Â This review is not about the entire chain, but this specific location.
We ate an early dinner on a Wednesday night. Â The restaurant was nearly empty and we were seated at a booth. Â But the table had a little something extra--sticky spots that may or may not have been salsa. Â Let's say it was salsa. Â Extra sticky!
The waiter took our drink orders and put down some paper drink napkins on the table. Â The napkins were stained. Â Let's say they were stained with salsa. Â Extra stains!
Both of our black cloth napkins had stains on them that were decidedly not black. Â Let's not talk about what they were. Â More extra unmentionable stains!
I ordered ceviche, it was fine (I think, but it's only been a few hours). Â My wife ordered vegetarian fajitas because, well, she's a vegetarian. Â But while eating the fajitas she suddenly got a big hunk of steak. Â Bonus, right? Â Er, no. Â Extra vegetarian steak!
The manager apologized and they didn't charge us for the fajitas. Â Instead they just charged us for my ceviche, about $9. Â I paid it, but that's a bit tacky over that many screw-ups. Â And she did give us a card for maybe a free appetizer next visit (yeah, not gonna happen). Â Extra lame attempt to save the experience!
Maybe this was just a cluster situation. Â All I know is that I wouldn't go back unless I planned to clean my own table, bring my own napkins, and cook my own food. Â At which point I may as well stay home.
There may be several Tex-Mex restaurants within a 10 mile radius from this Iron Cactus, but this one by far offers the best lineup of dishes and drinks in the Lakeway/Bee Cave area. There are only a few places that I've visited that can live up to its hype and I have to say that all the great things I heard about this restaurant's margaritas are completely accurate. I recommend any of the flavored margaritas. I find the mango margarita truly refreshing. I'd check the others like the agave tequila as well. It is a bit pricey, but it's worth a shot! (pun intended).
Additionally, the appetizers and entrees I tried were all fresh and burst with flavor yet didn't feel heavy in the belly. Don't get me wrong, portion size is very generous. What I mean is that the dishes feel light in the stomach and I credit that to the freshness of the ingredients used. No need to bring the antacid unlike other Tex-Mex restaurants I've been to that may have delicious dishes, but also causes major heartburn. I highly recommend the tuna ceviche, lobster tacos and tableside guacamole. They'll keep you coming back.
I didn't get a chance to try the various desserts on the menu except for the flautas that was covered in cinnamon. Anything with cinnamon usually makes any dessert taste even better (see Seinfeld Cinnamon Babka episode). If dessert isn't your thing, you can always visit the Amy's Ice Cream next door.
This Iron Cactus is in an ideal spot especially when there is a concert at the Galleria's amphitheater. It is great for families with children. Happy hour is typically a margarita party with moms in the Lakeway area in attendance. Fun!
I've only been to this location once but I was pleasantly surprised with my experience there. The chips and salsa were good - not amazing. I don't know what people are expecting. It's chips and salsa. It's a palate prep.
The waiter was friendly and make a mexican martini recommendation (cazadores). I took his recommendation and it was SO GOOD. To this day, i'm still trying to find a mexican martini that rivals theirs.
We ate their tacos al pastor - again, it was a hit. The meat was perfectly seasoned and cooked. The corn tort wasn't too thin or too thick. It didn't fall apart when you took a bite. I'm all about the little things, ya know?
I recommend you go if you love mexican martinis. Sit on their patio, have a cazadores mexican martini and enjoy the view. That in itself is worth the trip out there to Bee Cave.
What a huge disappointment. At lunch today, I had Soup & Salad which consisted of a VERY SMALL cup of tortilla soup and a lousy (and tiny salad) and my father had a salad with strawberries and nuts ( and complained not enough fruit) and we both had iced tea and it came to $28 bucks including tip -- and neither of us left full.
A friend of mine already told me not to bother, but sadly I didn't listen. I'll know better next time.
Positives: nice ambience and the service was good.
Negatives: I can't taste ambience, and the food was poor in quantity, quality, and price.
Geez. Â People have been really harsh to this place. Â I actually enjoyed my quick trip here. Â Here's the story:
So my band, The Vintage 15, played a Christmas show at the outdoor amphitheater directly across from Iron Cactus. Â During our break, my bandmates and I walked over to Iron Cactus to have a quick drink. Â
The owner (or manager) of the place recognized us as guys in the band when we walked up to the main door. Â He greeted us, introduced himself and immediately sat us. Â He then told us any drink we wanted was on him! Â How nice! Â I ordered a bloody mary (which was delicious) and sat by the fire pit with friends and enjoyed the hospitality. Â I will definitely be back.
First the Stars Food: Acceptable (1/2). Service: Acceptable(1/2). Atmosphere: Acceptable (1). Price: slightly high (1/2). Will return: Occasionally (1/2). (failed the tea test)
Just three stars and could have dropped had we not eaten outside.
Lunch outing. It was a nice day and we decided to dine outdoors. This was good/bad. Good it was a beautiful day and eating outdoors was a nice treat. I was glad that there was ample outdoor seating. Bad? The flies invaded at the end of the meal. Nothing I can REALLY fault the establishment with. Outdoors = Sometimes nasty critters. I can deal with that.
It was another, "not too hungry" lunch outing and I had the Queso Compesto. Not a good choice on my part (I cant believe I ate that much Cheese!) The dish (appetizer) was actually fairly good. What really bothered me was the SMALL portion of chips. ..... Ok you go into a mexican / tex-mex restaurant what is the first thing you expect??? Chips and salsa -- and plenty of chips! Not only did we run out of chips for our salsa, I also ran out of chips for my queso. The server was nice enough filling our tea 3-4 times -- but never refilled the chips????
They failed the tea test as well -- $2.49 for tea? Come on restaurants it cost you at most $0.10 per glass. Don't overcharge for TEA!
There are two really good things at Iron Cactus: the chips and the salsa.
Maybe I would have liked this place better if we had chosen to sit outside or drink Margaritas but it was just meh. Our server had just about zero people skills, which I don't even understand since she's in the SERVICE industry. Nonetheless, she wasn't unpleasant. But totally meh. The manager didn't seem like she knew what she was doing either.
I had the fiesta salad, which was fine. Nothing spectacular. We had the Mexican Shrimp Cocktail to start, which was actually good. The shrimp were plump, the mixture was seasoned well and had good consistency. I even liked those special tortilla chips it was served with.
Anyway, that's about it. My bf didn't like his fish tacos one bit. Said it tasted like the oil had burned when they were cooked. Meh.
Not opposed to going back, but wouldn't suggest or get excited about it. At least the downtown location has a view. The elderly and those with kiddos would do better here except for the absent service.
Best thing about this place is happy hour. Â Half price appetizers and $3 margaritas and beer. Â Discounts on other drinks, too, including well drinks and OK wine-by-the-glass list. Â My wife and I typically get a couple of appetizers and drinks, which is more than enough to fill us up.
This is not a tex-mex place. Â If I had a hankerin' for enchiladas, I wouldn't go here.
They should change the 2 star rating to:
"Meh I've experienced WAY WAY WAY better"
Great location, food is HIT or MISS. I've been here many times because someone else wanted to go. (NOT MY FIRST CHOICE) and every time it's hit or miss. The warm salsa is amazing, so fill up on that because you never know what your meal is going go to come out tasting like. Most recently we got the chipotle glazed salmon, with herb broccoli and lime cilantro rice. Sounds pretty good eh? NOT EVEN. The glaze was weak, the fish tasted fishy, and the broccoli tasted like nothing, as well as the rice. Bland city.
I also got the Chicken Tortilla soup, it was good to my surprise, smokey and creamy. However the tortilla topping was god awful. It wasn't even crunchy it was chewy and stale so I ended up taking the topping off and crushing the fresh-ER tortilla chips they serve over my own soup. The lobster tacos are also good, anything else is a gamble.
But is it a gamble worth paying for? Most likely not. It only helps if you have REALLY good company..and then there are only so many times you can put up with it.
It's first year of operation at the Galleria, the Iron Cactus was very hit or miss. They seemed to have worked out the kinks and I usually dine here about once a week. The great news for me is they have a GLUTEN FREE menu and it is very extensive. I am a raving fan of the sirloin skewers with shrimp. They come on a bed of tasty cheesy corn rice with grilled veggies on the side. I usually avoid the rice as it is kind of fattening, but this dish is a serious winner for me as well as their grilled fish tacos, tuna ceviche and fajitas. The margaritas aren't near as good as the ones I make and the price is rather steep, so stick to the cerveza. The outdoor patio is great for people watching especially when they have live music in the adjoining amphitheater.
Review Source:I met a friend here today for a glass of wine and after looking at the menu we decided to order some appetizers.
I ordered the least expensive glass of Cabernet on the menu (7.00) and while it was not the best it was ok since I was not willing to shell out 10.00 for a glass of wine at 4PM. My friend had a frozen Margarita that was good and we shared the Ahi Tuna Ceviche and Habanero Shrimp Cocktail both with large chunks of Avocado and the shrimp had a good amount of heat that was a nice change from the typically sweet sauce. The chips were fresh and not too greasy but my friend salted them and I am not a fan of salt (my Mom salts chips also so I am used to it:). I loved that the salsa is served warm as I HATE cold salsa.
We sat on the patio and were the only other occupied table so I would have expected better service but then it was an off hour. Or maybe our server was nervous because my Pup was under the table and they are not officially "dog friendly"? I looked at Jennie's Dog Friendly list and do not think they are. So, thanks for serving us and not kicking my Pup out.
I have been debating between 3 and 4 stars and am rounding up for the wonderful experience mainly do to the awesome cool breeze and I imagine it would be even better if it was cold enough to light up that fire pit!.
The food at this place was the worst food I've ever had.
The chips had mold on them
The steak kabobs had ZERO seasoning. it was like meat and vegetables. not even salt. I had to salt the crap out of it.
for being a fancy place, and charging like it, the food was the worst i've ever eaten.
go get some popcorn and a pickle from the theater next door, you'll be more satisfied.
I just went to this Iron Cactus location for the first time this past Saturday. Â It was busy and we had about a 20 minute wait. Â The firepit outside made for a pleasant atmosphere while we waited.
The hostess jumped the gun a little with seating us and we had to wait a little longer even though she told us our table was ready. Â We didn't mind much since the bar was near by and so we stocked up on some margaritas, which were pretty good.
Their chips and salsa were tasty. Â I especially enjoy the warm salsa. Â We ordered queso with guacamole & steak...scrumptious! Â For my entree, I had the Chicken Chile Relleno and it was delicious. Â The service was nice and we had a great time overall.
I would definitely recommend Iron Cactus if you're looking for a good meal and pleasant atmosphere in the Hill Country Galleria Area.
This is a YUMMY place for brunch  on Sundays after Church- you get some REALLY AWESOME food and my kids love it all!  They have so much to choose from you can find something for EVERYONE! Â
Dinner is so YUMMY- and we love the patio too!  My kids love the "build your own taco" and it also comes with ice cream at the end!  BONUS!  During the day it is a fun place to go hang out w/ girls on the patio for drinks and let the kids run around on the grassy area!  This is a HUGE after school  outing that is fun- who says you can't have a margarita at 3:30pm?  LOVE IT!!!!!!
I think we may have hit the Iron Cactus at a bad time. We were there at 3:00pm for lunch/dinner, so it was pretty quiet. The service was off. I really am uncomfortable when the wait staff is loud and the main event. I really love service where the staff is friendly and helpful. Knowing about people's lives is not usually a negative, but I really hate it when the staff complains to us more than twice during a service. There was quite a bit of what looked like confusion among the staff, which is unfortunate considering the place was pretty empty.
Anyway, on to the food. The salsa was fabulous, and I love warm chips. Prices were very high - so up went our expectations. Our spinach artichoke dip was good enough - I did not get any flavor from the hatch, as promised in the menu (I love hatch peppers). The cheese was so creamy and yummy, though - and there were large chunks of artichokes (mmMmm). The lobster and pesto ravioli was good. The flavors were excellent, presentation amazing, and the vegetables were perfectly cooked. It was unfortunate that the stunning ravioli pasta had a weird texture and did not stay intact.
In the end, I would eat there again if it weren't so expensive (a $10 margarita and $14 Mexican martini - really?).
Award-Winning Tequilas, Mouth Watering Entree's, and a Cozy Hill Country Atmosphere= 4 Stars all the way!
I recently enjoyed my second trip to the Iron Cactus in Bee Caves and definately would keep coming back. Although it isn't the cheapest place to have a drink and a bite to eat, it more than makes up for it with service, decent ambiance, and a relaxing environment.
I ordered the lobster and pesto raviolli with jalepeno crusted crab cakes as an appetizer. My girlfriend ordered the cheese and mushroom stuffed enchiladas and both were cooked to perfection. The crab meat tasted fresh and was flavorful in every bite, the g/f's enchiladas were definately rich and overflowing with flavor. We both washed it down with a mexican martini and enjoyed their spin on traditional flan for dessert.
Few restaurants occupy the Hill Country Galleria out in Bee Caves. You've got Fish City Grill, Mimi's Café, Which Wich, and The Iron Cactus. Our last meal at the Cactus downtown was full of highs and lows. Would this new location make believers out of us?
The restaurant itself is quite trendy. It screams excess; but it fails to deliver anything spectacular. The patio is really nice and even with a north wind today produced a scenic view of the courtyard without making us cold. We relied on our favorite dish from a previous dining experience to start us off. The Pecan Crusted Crab Cakes hit the mark on presentation and flavor. It didn't make the final grade as it was delivered cold to our table. My objection of their signature dish (chicken relleno) already noted in the other review; we tried some new fare hoping to change their flawed image.
Jenny's Fajita Salad got good marks with fresh romaine, peppery guacamole, and well spiced chicken. The avocado ranch was quite tasty as well. My Jalapeno Pork Chop brought up memories of our last visit to IC. Recommended medium by or server; the chop arrived well done. The mashers were great as were the grilled onions and single whole cooked jalapeno that was the garnish. The broccoli was a travesty.
Our service today was borderline bad. We had to ask for chips and salsa when other tables got the starter as soon as they were seated. My tea glass was empty the majority of the meal. We asked for refills on the chips that never came. The manager spoke to us after I commented about the chop. I told her it would be hard even for me a well versed chef to cook a  1/2 inch chop medium on a grill. I also admitted that the crab cakes were cold when they were served. We weren't really looking for a discount; but she politely took my chop and the cakes off the bill.
Yelpers, I love the salsa and I think that would be the only thing that would make me return to the Iron Cactus. My advice is to forget the trendy nuances of this place and visit Rosie's Tamale House or El Arroyo which are just minutes away. You won't get the glitz and glamour; instead you get consistent straight forward good food.
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