Lomas Verdes

As someone else mentioned, this is the only restaurant close to Portage theatre, so I guess they have location going for them for people attending things there. The fajitas were pretty good (although they seemed a bit generous with the black pepper), but there were several other problems we had when dining here that means I'm not going to be coming here again and won't recommend it to anyone.

The service was a bit slow - there was us and one other table in the restaurant, so it shouldn't have taken that long for her to come take our order. When she got there, she didn't seem all that friendly, either. We both ordered chicken fajitas, one with no tomato or cheese. When she brought out one order, we figured that just meant the other was being cooked separately to accommodate the request... finally, after 5-10 minutes waiting for the second one to come out, we asked her how much longer it would be (since we were going to the Silent Film Society's presentation of Phantom of the Opera, and didn't want to be late). She was surprised that we had two orders. Was she not listening when we ordered the first time?... it was very specific! If we had ordered just the one without tomato and cheese, it would have been wrong anyway since mine came that way. One other thing to note, which probably isn't a big deal to many people but should be mentioned, is that they don't have flour tortillas. She brought out corn ones and since I don't like the corn ones, I asked for flour. No dice.

I ordered a cheese quesadilla as an appetizer since it was so cheap. I didn't expect it to come out with the fajitas instead of before, but no big deal. What was a little more bothersome was that the cheese in the center wasn't fully melted (you could still see shredded cheese in the center, instead of the gooey mess of cheesy goodness it should be), and honestly it was cold. I guess that's why it's an appetizer, to be brought out before the rest of the food is cooked.

When the second entree was brought out, we asked for the check since we noticed it was taking several minutes for the other table (still only the two parties) to get theirs. Ten minutes or so later, when she was busing the other table... we asked again, since she hadn't brought it to us. I guess it was a good thing we didn't just leave our cash, because she overcharged us. She brought us a check that had what we ordered on it, but no prices; I had figured out the total in my head based upon what we ordered (two orders of fajitas, a cheese quesadilla and a can of pop that I wouldn't have ordered if I'd known it was in a can), and according to what the prices were on their menu, it should have been about $20. She charged us about $23.

Needless to say, if I really *have* to eat something before going to another Silent Film Society event, I'll either bring a sandwich or stop at the Burger King down the street.

The ONLY reason I came here was because I was going to the Portage Theater and they were directly across the street and I didn't want Subway.

I ordered a steak burrito because they don't serve barbacoa ;-(

I only get rice, beans, cheese, and meat in my burritos. She said rice was $1 extra. Get the fuck outta here!!! Ofcourse I declined the rice.

I then asked her how much for just a bag of chips(no salsa) she looked like she was just thinking up a number for me to pay. She said $1.50. Even though that price was ridiculous, and I saw her taking the chips out of a plastic storage bin, and not a heating table, I still bought them.

My friend asked her how much for bottled waters and she looked again as if she was just making up prices. She said $1.25.

She rang up our order and when I told her the price she quoted was too high she started to argue. She finally took out her calculator and after adding everything up she realized that we were right and she had miscalculated. She gave us a shit eating grin and said she wouldn't charge taxes on the meal. How about giving me the rice that I asked for? That would have made me much happier.

The meal wasn't bad, the flavors were OK. But not worth the arguing, crazy prices, or the waitstaff 101.

If it wasn't for the fact that it was right across the street from my destination and I wasn't in the mood for subway, I would have never come in, and after what I experienced I will never come back.

The main attribute is that this place is directly across from the illustrious Portage theater and is literally the only restaurant in a two-block radius. That neighborhood is depressed and I don't know how they stay open, unless they get major turnover from The Portage.

The decor is Mexican taqueria dive-retro. Oh sombrero-wearing man leading a donkey poster, 1984 called to say hello and I've missed you.

The waitress/counter lady is all smiles and genuinely friendly, like an aunty who wants to fill you with food!

The food is simple, fresh and tasty. All the ingredients look like they walked in from the farm just this morning.
The guacamole is AMAZING and ultra-fresh, like mi abuela used to make.
The service is fast and your water glass will be refilled like clockwork.
The orchata tasted authentically homemade, not powdered.

Dinner for 2 with drinks was under $15. It's BYOB too, so bring your fancy or slummy drinkies as you like.
I want more!