As a native Californian relegated to the East coast, I've given up trying to find amazing Mexican food. No one quite gets it right... But that said, I've managed to make do in between my visits back home with some very solid bets.
I was really happy with Tinga, the food was very fresh and the portions sensible (Not too big, not too small). Our server was nice, tho a little all over the place for the lunch rush on a Sat. To me that's understandable.
Also, our server found out that it was our first time there and that we were new to the area. Few minutes later, one of the owners came by, said hello, introduced himself and welcomed us. Then he sent over a free order of guac for our table.
In the world of restaurants, that is a lost art... For that alone, we will be back!
I wrote a rather unenthused review of this place a while back based on a few dining experiences between about 2001-2006. Fast-forward to 2013 when my craving for mexican food that didn't have the word "bell" in the title overwhelmed me and despite previous experiences of bland food, I ordered from Tinga.
Since then I've ordered from Tinga more than I care to admit. I never dine in, only get delivery but the food arrives promptly, it's fresh and good quality. No blandness. So while it's still a far cry from authentic mexican food, Tinga is certainly satisfying my mexican food cravings.
We had a bad service experience - 1 hour wait, order never put into the kitchen, asked several times, nada. Â I wrote to the owner who did not respond. Â Adios Tinga! Â Recommend Tito's Burritos in Summit and Morristown, Picante in Springfield, and that place in New Providence - Don Jose's?
Review Source:Mexican in NJ is usually a big sloppy mess. This place is really good -- I've been to all 3 locations (Millburn, Montclair & Westfield) and they're totally consistent. Fresh tasting ingredients, not greasy . Great burritos, rice & beans, nachos, chicken tacos, & fish tacos. Service is extremely friendly & helpful.
Steer clear of kiddie balloon nite -- it's a nitemare of hyper children & lazy, non-supervising parents
Very good & fresh Mexican food. Â The staff is really friendly as well and the service is quick. Â This place is "kid friendly" which means everyone turns a blind eye to their kids for the duration of their meal and it's not uncommon to have a pack of children running around the place. Â It's BYOB. Â I was kind of hoping they'd have their liquor license by the time they re-opened.
Review Source:Delicious, amazing California burrito, best guacamole in NJ, perfect beans and rice. A great place to take kids on Tuesday night, when there are cheapo specials for families. I am bummed that the Millburn location has been closed for so long. I mean, seriously, that hurricane was like a hundred years ago. And that was my favorite of the three locations. The Montclair one is excellent but very crowded and it's brutal to park in Upper Montclair. And the Westfield one is simply too small to get comfortable. Millburn was just right, but you'd think Katrina scored a direct hit with the amount of restoration they've been undergoing.
Review Source:I am surprised I have yet to review this place.  There are only a few Mexican joints around so we came here for a quick lunch.  Bland and very uninteresting food.  Portioned for dieting Millburn house wives.  It's OK if you have a hankering for Mexican in town and do not feel like going further.  It isn't terrible, but could be better.  They do have $5 burritos though  =)
Staff was pleasant and very helpful.
I've only checked out their lunch menu, but so far I have been quite impressed. Â The service is good, the prices are very reasonable, and they have a solid vegetarian menu. Â I'd recommend them to anyone in the area looking for a quick bite and I hope to check out their dinner menu with my wife at some point in the future.
Review Source:Our 5 year old daughter calls Tinga the Rice & Beans store and loves to come here because the waiters are so friendly. They are extremely kid-friendly, have two nights with even lower than usual priced kids meal (Mon and Tue), and bring in a balloon artist on Wed. They have many other special nights and occasions such as Cinco de Mayo and Day of the Dead.
The food is decent - very burrito based. They've added more appetizers in recent months. They also added table service in the last year which makes things easier with kids.
It's BYOB and they will even make you a frozen margarita if you bring tequila.
Delivery/Take-Out Review.
Co-workers and I frequently order from Tinga. Â It's nice that they deliver. Â They have a great lunch menu (can't beat $5 burritos). Â Also, a good vegetarian selection. Â The $5 lunch burritos come with a side salad- a plus!
Entree salads are good and their tortilla bowls are so yummy!
Not a huge fan of their house dressing (says vinegarette, more creamy than I would like.) Â Also, when you order delivery, you have to buy the chips that are normally free when you eat in the restaurant.
I went in to buy a basic chicken burrito. Â I had to drench it in sour cream and salsa because the meat was bone dry. Â This place is a rip for $8-9 for a burrito that sucks. Â I figured the taqueria would serve a much better product. Â I'd say that it is pretty sad when i have to say that i would rather eat at Taco Bell or Chipotle before I'd ever come here again.
Bottom line is that this place blows...also the artsy fartsy staff can stuff it. Â It is Millburn and not Brooklyn.
ehhh I have mixed emotions about Tinga. It's definitely better than some restaurants around but I have had way better Tex Mex before. I feel like every time I try to go here they are closing too.
BYOB - yay! My somewhat/kinda-bf and I got IDed. I am 23 and he is 24, but I have a Jersey license and he has a NY ID. Mine was accepted, his was 'let slide.' haha he was kinda ticked about that. I was kinda ticked bc we were told that our appetizer would come out at the same time as our entree because the kitchen was closing in 10 min. Was this a courtesy or a scolding? I dk. I mean whatever. I don't expect much but we ordered Jalapeno Poppers. There are 5 of them. If they had come out first we would have eaten them in 1 min. anyway. It's not like they were spicy at all.. the chipotle mayo was spicier actually.
We got the Blackened Catfish Tacos and the Shrimp Burrito. I liked the Catfish Tacos better. My Shrimp Burrito was huge and good, but it doesn't come with any sides, I'm not really complaining because I only ate half of the 12" burrito but it did kind of look plain on the plate.
So yeah Tinga - def good, but I've had better.
This place is not bad. They give you a good amount of food with your order...However, this isn't Surf Taco. Â I ordered the 2 tacos with beans and rice. The taste wasn't bad. I just feel like this place can do better. Eating lunch here is great. The best thing about this place is that waiters are nice as hell.
Review Source:Their BBQ ribs are delicious. Â Tons of meat, great sauce.
Hot wings are eh. Â They're a weird sort of spicy... when I put it up to my nose and smelled it, it made me cough. Â The blue cheese sauce was really gross and artificial tasting.
Also got a chicken fajita. Â It was loaded with really juicy chicken breast but there was barely any cheese.
Service sucked, and way too many little kids running around.
Ok local place to grab some Mex. Â Go for the food, not necessarily the actual dining room experience. Â Walk in and you're seated by a hostess, but then you have to get up to place your order at the cash register, then go back sit down and then they bring out your food to you. Â First time, it wasn't that intuitive. Â And then do you tip? or not? Some do, some don't. Â Special requests get missed (or ignored?). Â Seating configuration could be better - if you're seated on the sides, you're fine. Â But if it's busy and you're seated in the middle, you are kind of right in the path of the cash register - to which everyone needs to go to make their orders, and the door. Â They could use a divider/diverter to create some sense of contained space by the front door. Â
But how is the food? Tasty. Price? $6-8 for most items during lunch. Â Warnings? Their buffalo chicken burrito is HOT. :-) Â Â Would we go back again? Yes.
This casual BYOB restaurant located on Millburn Avenue features freshly made TexMex cuisine for lunch and dinner at reasonable prices.
Food is made fresh-to-order and served in gigantic portions. On my most recent visit, I had the Mexican taco salad with steak. The salad was served with a generous portion of tender steak, some token pieces of romaine lettuce, plenty of pico de gallo and practically a quart of tasty guacamole, in a crispy tortilla shell. Â Tinga is also well known for their enormous 12" burritos stuffed with plenty of tasty ingredients. Â For the calorie conscious, Tinga offers whole wheat and 8" burritos.
Tinga puts an interesting spin on the usual BYOB policy. Â The restaurant features non-alcoholic frozen pina colada or margarita mix on the menu.. Bring Your Own Bottle of rum or tequila and they'll blend it up for you.
My only complaint is that special requests don't seem to make it from the point-of-sale counter back to the kitchen. On both visits, I've specifically requested no cheese on my entree -- and both times, the entree came out covered with or dripping with cheese. If you have any food allergies or specific issues with any ingredients, I suggest picking a different entree - or a different restaurant.
Finding street parking in Millburn can be challenging, but there's a commuter lot around the corner from the restaurant. Tinga's service is similar to English pub style -- order your meal and pay at the counter, then grab a table and wait for your food to arrive. Â Service is quick and attentive -- after dropping off the entrees, our server stopped by the table once or twice to refill our beverages and make sure we were happy with the food.
I have been to this restaurant twice and had a burrito both times. The first time I went was in Westfield, NJ and the food was absolutely amazing. I haven't had a better burrito in my life. But the second time we ordered takeout from the Montclair, NJ restaurant and the food was not even warm. The drive from our office is not too far and I was disappointed.
My suggestion would be here for a sit down. You get the full experience with hot sauces, chips and your choice for your dish. I personally have only had a beef and bean burrito but anything coming out of that kitchen looks amazing. If you sit further in the back you can actually watch the food being made which just adds to the experience.
Great times and make sure to bring friends!
The parking situation sucks at the one in Montclair and Westfield; you'll either be parking in the street or a paid parking lot. But the food is definitely worth it. Get there early because it gets pretty busy on the weekends.
My office is a few doors down from Tinga and I love Mexican food so every few months I would give it another "chance". Â The atmosphere is just OK. Â Most of the tables are small and pushed close together. Â The ordering procedure is cumbersome; you order at the register but a waiter brings you your food (what to tip?, what if I want something more?). Â My first time there I ordered a Brisket Burrito, I was about 80% through when I realized I had yet to see any Brisket. Â The Manager was standing there so I called him over and he said he wouldn't do anything because I ate too much of it (big mistake for him - as I said I work next door and could have been a great customer). Â
I realized the few more times I went in there that all their Burritos are 90% "rice" with a very small amount of Beef, Chicken etc. Â Mexican [fast] food should always be reasonably priced. Â Tinga is ridiculously expensive unless your ordering off the limited Lunch special menu.
The last time I was there I ordered Shrimp Enchiladas and Black Bean Soup and I was in a hurry so I got it to go. Â There was a big sign at the register that said "soup was $1.95 with each meal". Â I got home and saw they charged me $3.25 for the soup! Â The Shrimp Enchiladas has 2 small shrimp (but plenty of rice!). Â The soup was tasteless. The total for my fast food Mexican lunch meal was $19.10. Â OK, my bad for not learning from my mistakes!
This place is all about selling food with the cheapest possible ingredients at the highest possible price. Â I'm really surprised they get away with this.
Now as a previous San Diego (close to the border resident) Â I hold a high standard for burrito expectations. Â However first and foremost, i almost did not make it inside due to the hellish parking situation. Â Once inside it's definetly a small intimate vibe. Â I had heard good things about their sweet potato burrito and decided to go with that. Let me tell you, these are huge burritos! Mine was very tastey and original - and ps the salsa was outrageously yummy! Â My boyfriend got a huge guacamole burrito and it was very flavorful as well. Â The black beans and cheese made a great combo of tastes!
I will definetly go back, hopefully when parking spots are more available!
If you want amazing (and I do mean stupendous) tex-mex food at amazingly low prices, go to friggin Texas by all means. Â (There are precious few other reasons I can think of to go there...) Â But if you are lucky enough to live in Jersey, and you don't think On The Border is a place you would wanna spend any quality time, try Tingas. Â You will get a fresh, solid meal prepared from whole ingredients at a really reasonable price. Â Their Spinach burrito is one of my favorites and so are the Catfish tacos. Â Plus their quesedillas are solid and the chips and salsa are pretty good also. Â For truly amazing Mexican in jersey, there is Casa Maya in Meyersville if you wanna make the trek, but if not, try Tingas. Â Another great thing about Tingas is that it is located right in downtown (in fact, all the Tingas are located in pretty cool downtown areas)...so after you have dinner, you can go for a walk or coffee or a drink.
Review Source:I'm from Texas, too, and Tinga's is not it for me. Â Some sorta Jamaican/Southwest/wimpy combo food but not what it claims to be. Â Draws lots of families with kids. Â Go to Qdoba's at the SH Mall for more authentic Mexican food. Â Yeah, it's part of a franchise but it's fresh and delicious and you can have as much or as little spice as you like. Â Much, much better than Tinga's.
Review Source:I absolutely adore Mexican food, but I do not like the food in this place at all. Â I've given it a couple chances, and it just doesn't do it for me. Â It is clean and family friendly but I can't get into the food. Â I agree with jesse G. about the place in Springfield has better food Picante on Morris Avenue. I forgot about that place, it is very good.. Since my taste buds are wired differently than Tinga fans, to give you a taste of what I like, my favorite Mexican include Jose's Mexican Cantina in New Providence or even Qdoba at the short hills mall, Carlos O'Connor's is great in Red Bank, and On the Border in Paramus.
Review Source:This is by no means great Mexican--it's actually quite poor. Â Probably a good place to go with kids. Â The delivery service is particularly bad, as the food is generally cold by the time it arrives. Â For a significantly better Mexican restaurant, go to the little place on Morris Ave in Springfield near the Little Fins or whatever that pet store is. Â That place is awesome good and worthy of the 5-star reviews Tinga is receiving (if only I could remember it's name I would gladly offer such a review).
Review Source:Love Tinga when I don't want to cook! Â Everything's made fresh and you can really taste it. Â Excellent for kids - noisy and casual so you don't have to hold your breath hoping Junior doesn't try to do magic tricks with the white tablecloth. (note - crayon marks wipe RIGHT OFF the booths with a baby wipe! ;-) ) Â Would be great if they offered milk for the kiddos. Â
Fresh, tasty food. Â Great service. Â Reasonable prices. Â Warm crowd - ended up chitchatting with others each time we've been. Â BYOB for a margarita. The mix is delish.
This place is great Mexican!! Â Also nice for parents because it is so kid friendly and the service is fast. Â You order your food at the register yourself and they usually have the food to you in less than 10 minutes.
I am a big fan of the Tinga Burrito.
Not the place to bring a date if you want to be romantic.
This place is great for quick, kid friendly tex mex but it's also pretty obvious that they've got vats of stuff in the back, throw it in a tortilla & serve it. Â Not bad tasting but not authentic & no great flavors. Â Once my mother ordered a rib sandwich & they gave it to her with all the bones still in it! Â Childrens nights are a great deal & overall a nice place for takeout if you're really hungry, large portions but not somewhere id wanna go too much or for a nice night out.
Review Source:I looveee Tinga's. I live out of state now but always make sure to go while I'm visiting my mom. My favorite is the BBQ chicken or pork burrito, with the sweet potato casserole burrito coming in at a close second. I also love the build your own nachos/quesadilla menu because I love combining ridiculous things and knowing someone else has probably done it before me so its not so weird. I wish it wasn't BYO, but I do appreciate the margarita mix you can get there, especially when combined with happy hour prices.
Review Source:I am so happy to have found Tinga! I am from Texas where there is a great mexican restaurant on every corner and it's my favorite food. Not only do they have awesome mexican food at Tinga they also have barbecue which is the other Texas food I miss so much. The icing on the cake is that they deliver! Mmmmm quesadillas, their steak fajita meat is the best! <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tingausa.com%2F&s=5406a7dd7f0c6ec263ef56326fc4537381495ae332b53ba152439c2321e95171" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.tingausa.com/</a>
Review Source:Tinga is a staple for us. Â Very family friendly, not only because of the staff, but because of the atmosphere. Â Our 2 year old always does well here. Â The blackened Catfish Tacos are good, as are the enchiladas, and yes, the chips and salsa! Â I believe they have kid specials on Tuesdays, also.
Review Source:
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,607 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,970 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,306 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,905 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,983 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
