My husband and I just experienced Palmar for the first time this morning. I'm so glad i didn't Yelp it first as we probably wouldn't have gone after reading through some of these opinions.
Our server greeted us genuinely, and provided us with great service the whole time. The food was....simply delicious! My husband ordered an Al Pastor taco (as he does at every Mexican restaurant we try. It's his "test.") Once or server asked him if he wanted it "street style," i knew we were in for a treat. My husband just about inhaled it. He also ordered a Migas plate and i got a breakfast taco and a chicken fajita taco. Everything was seasoned perfectly. Not too salty, not too bland. Just plain scrumptious. Even though were were the only ones there, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit. Before he was done with his food my husband had already planned what he was going to order for next time. Lol
The music was a nice variety and you gotta love the hand-painted murals on the walls.
Did i mention there was a full bar??
Overall, everything was wonderful.
Today was my first visit to Palmar. The building is underwhelming inside and out. I really just wanted to try the breakfast tacos, but couldn't pass up the eggs a la mexicana. Homemade tortillas are thick and slightly fluffy. Eggs were cooked well as were the potatoes. The refried beans had more flavor than most places. The chorizo my wife ordered was good and not greasy. I got a bacon, egg, and cheese taco on the side. It was better than most places. The cheese was generic, but it was fine. Bacon was well cooked and crumbled into the egg. Overall the food was above average. We were the only people there, so I can't really comment on the service.
The orange juice was interesting tasting so I only too a few sips. They took it off the bill. When we left I realized it might have been a mimosa.
This is another place that deserves NO stars, but I'll give one, just because the karaoke is good!
We have been going to Palmar almost weekly, for over a year on karaoke nights and occasionally for breakfast.
I have to admit that when we first started going, our friends warned us not to eat there and on occasions when those friends join us, they eat somewhere else first.
The food is bland, often cold, and overpriced most of the time, but if you play it safe with the nachos you might fare well. Quite often they're out of ingedients to make regular menu items.
The bathrooms are filthy and there is usually either no hand soap, no toilet paper, or no paper towels. On one occasion I found rodent droppings in the toilet paper (stomach turning...and yes I have pictures!) an oversight I can only hope, luckily I have not seen that again. I was not amused when the kids were playing with one of the creatures under our table.
I have tried to overlook all of this because Byron runs a fun karaoke show that we now have made many friends at! In our two most recent visits, we waited at least half an hour to order a drink and even then we had to go to the counter to ask for it and after an hour and a half we still had not recieved our food. We ended up leaving and ordering pizza the first time and went to Sonic the second time. Funny thing is we ran into the server that was working at Palmar the week before.
I must add that the entire time we have been going to Palmar the service has been friendly, but lacking proper training and execution. I also must say that I personally would blame it completely on poor management. My observation is that the manager hires young kids with no experience and throws them to the wolves, so to speak, then fires them when they can't keep up with the huge crowd. We have witnessed him treat the staff rudely and he has treated us rudely on occasion. My other observation is that one cook cannot keep up with all of the orders being placed, which I also think is purely poor management.
We thought so much of the karaoke and prefer to keep our money local, but when you keep going somewhere hoping its going to get better and then leave hungry, disappointed, and mad because you never got your dinner and the manager doesn't seem inclined to repair the problem or is just plain rude about it, thats when its time to stop trying. They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result and this is what we've done almost  weekly for over a year. The results have not changed, so enough is enough.
My advice, if you're looking for great karaoke and don't care if you ever eat and are not thirsty this is your kinda place. If you're hungry, stop at Taco Bell on your way to Palmar or be prepared to go hungry!
My boyfriend and I went here yesterday because everything else in Buda is closed on Sunday. I came expecting to be disappointed (the decor leaves something to be desired), but surprisingly, the food was pretty decent and our wait staff was awesome.
We started with salsa, which was fantastic. We also got queso, which was basically just melted Velveeta. I guess that's sort of what queso is supposed to be like, but I much prefer salsa with chopped up onions, jalepenos, tomatoes, etc in it.
For the main dish, I ordered shrimp enchiladas, which were pretty good. They were a little bit bland, but I enjoyed them. My boyfriend ordered the chimichanga, which he said was good, although it did come with queso (melted velveeta) on top which I think  kind of gross.
My biggest qualm with Palmar's is that their menu has way too many items. It is kind of intimidating to look at!
On the whole, I would say this is a fairly standard Tex-Mex. There was nothing wrong with the place, but nothing really stood out either.
It was Easter Sunday, and our dinner plans had been foiled. I opted to drive my mother around Buda until we found something that was open. A-ha! Palmar was. I'm pretty sure the building used to be a warehouse or hardware store of some sort but... meh. I don't judge a restaurant based on the decor. It was clean; that's all I need.
We were the only ones inside the restaurant. Normally people will take this as a bad sign. I remained optimistic. There was only one woman working the front (and possibly cooking).
The salsa was decent. The guacamole is good but I'm pretty sure it's just mashed avocado. I eat avocados straight so that's fine with me. I ordered crispy shredded chicken tacos and my mother ordered chicken fajita tacos. DELICIOUS! The tortillas are obviously homemade. I am usually wary of getting chicken anything at a restaurant (unless it's fried) because half the time it's bland and has no seasoning. I have no idea where this chicken came from (heaven?) but it was delectable.
Next weekend I wanted to go again. My mother ordered the same thing, my step-dad ordered menudo, and I tried a beef chimichanga. The salsa was weird this time. It tasted bitter and was too watery. The menudo was way too salty. I misread the chimichanga description. I knew cheese was going to be put on top, but I foolishly thought it would be melted. It was queso... blegh... I scraped as much off as I could but my dinner really couldn't be salvaged. The queso made the fried tortilla really soggy.
I haven't given up on Palmar! I will be back - many more times. They served me amazing food once, and I know it can happen again.
I tried this place because I had a coupon (sorry, I'm one of those...). Â Anyway, we went in for a late lunch and the place was eerily quiet. Â No music. Â No air conditioning. Â No fan noise. Â Nothing. Â We were also the only people in the restaurant, which I took as another bad sign, but was still willing to give it a shot based on the time of day - around 3pm. Â We were not greeted right away, making it more awkward, and then waited way too long just to get drinks. Â I presented my coupon to the server, and she told me that they had cancelled their agreement with that company and wouldn't accept it - even though it clearly states there is no expiration date. Â We ordered a nacho appetizer just to give the food a try, but after waiting 20 minutes we decided it just wasn't worth it. Â I don't know if the food was good or not because we left. Â And won't be back.
Review Source:Oh Palmar, why have you gone down hill so much? I have been to this place a few times. Â The first time I went there, I tried to order chalupas. They told me they did not have any. I asked if they had corn tortillas, beans and cheese. They said they did. I had asked them if they had all the stuff to make them, how come they could not make me one. They would never give me a straight answer. I had been back a few more times and was pleasantly surprised that they had turned things around.
I went in to get chalupas to go. This place was packed because it was Karaoke night. That was not a problem since I just needed to get an order to go. I was ignored by the young girl at the counter and then the young kid who was working as a server told me he would come and take my order. He disappeared and never came back. I wanted over 10 minutes. No one ever came to take my order and I continued to be ignored.
The service at this place had been ok. It could be a lot better. You almost have to ask them to get you anything. You are better off getting the food to go. Thanks for wasting my time and forcing me to goto the Palms.
So far, I have tried several things here. Â I can only suggest the tamales, which are very good, (epecially with the green salsa!), the al pastor tacos, and the guacamole.
The red salsa is so-so, the service is extremely nice, but also slow. Â Order to go leaving plenty of time, or dine-in expecting a wait. Â But they do have a full liqour license, so the wait can be made enjoyable.
I don't like giving 2 star reviews but I tried this place twice and the second time wasn't any better than the first... On our initial visit, we waited 15 minutes to have a waitress bring us menus and water. She seemed annoyed we also wanted chips and salsa (kinda standard at a mexican restaurant). Another ten minutes later she took our order. About thirty minutes later, we got our food. Sadly, this was not the worst part of the night. We went on a Friday which happened to be kiddy karaoke night. It was horrible! Try enjoying your food with a six year old screaming the chorus of a Michale Jackson song over and over. Not singing, SCREAMING!
Our next visit was only slightly better The waiter was very sweet but he was the only one working and he was just way too busy. It once again took thirty minutes to get our queso. The food was very okay, not great and the service was slow. I had higher hopes since this place is close to home but I can assure you I will not be back anytime soon, especially for more kiddy karaoke!
Happened to be in Buda because all the hotel rooms in Austin were booked, great recommendation from the hotel staff! Â Went for dinner late and although the decor is a little sparse the atmosphere is good and the food is outstanding.
Everything was very fresh, I had the vegetarian enchilada and it was great, not too heavy on the cheese (as many other vegetarian enchiladas tend to be). Â The sauces were tasty but not spicy. Â No liquor license yet but apparently there are only three bars in Buda so far. Â Next time I am in Buda I will go back to this place!
--ok I have been told they now have a liquor license!
I've tried this place three times now for dinner, and to be honest I'm just not as a psyched about this restaurant as some of the other reviewers.
Though the staff is very nice, I have found the service to be extremely slow. Â The food is mediocre compared to Mexican Food you can get 10 minutes away in South Austin. Â The atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired. Â The prices are pretty standard for a hole-in-the-wall-type restaurant. Â What I DO like however is that it is BYOB.
So you probably think the last thing we need in the Kyle/Buda area is another Mexican restaurant. Â Well, too bad... you got one. Â It is in the building they once had a small hardware store in, followed by a BBQ joint. Â And it's a block away from the famous Garcia's. Â BUT, don't pass this place up without giving it a try. Â They have a $4.99 lunch menu with about 10 choices on it that gives you a good selection of your traditional TexMex fare - whatever your palate might be in the mood for. Â Today, I got a guacamole chalupa (small dollop of guac but still not bad), a crispy beef taco, cheese enchilada and beans & rice. Â I have to say, as much as I do enjoy Garcia's, I think their serving sizes are a little more generous at Palmar and their salsa was deeeelish! Â Service was quick too. Â They had a little play area in the back where it's perfectly acceptable for your kids to play while you wait for your food. Â (Just be sure to wash up before eating, if you know what I mean.) Â Overall, not a bad little place to grab a quick bite. Â Not at all fancy but then again, if you're looking to dine in Kyle or Buda, you're probably not the fancy type anyway. Â ;)
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