Latest Reviews
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Very friendly staff, most authentic Mexican in chch. Fun salsa nights and great live music.Atmosphere is a tad on the shady side, but that would add t…
Lister Fiend
Alvarado’s Mexicana Cantina
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the place smelt horrible and the table cloths seemed unwashed for a million of years! it was very dusty which kept me sneezing thewhole time. when i w…
Dankie Gig
Alvarado’s Mexicana Cantina
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After waiting over 30min for drinks and an hour for food we were told it was because they were busy. There was only 1 other table who were obnoxiously…
Greg Holland
Alvarado’s Mexicana Cantina
About
Alvarado's Mexicana Cantina is open for Casual Dining. Alvarado's Mexicana Cantina serves Mexican dishes. Incorrect or missing information? Make a report, or claim the restaurant if you own it!Details
Feature List
takeaway availablelive musicoutdoor seating
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7 Reviews on “Alvarado’s Mexicana Cantina”
Very friendly staff, most authentic Mexican in chch. Fun salsa nights and great live music.Atmosphere is a tad on the shady side, but that would add to it’s authenticity.
the place smelt horrible and the table cloths seemed unwashed for a million of years! it was very dusty which kept me sneezing thewhole time. when i went to the toilet, i saw a little bit of the kitchen and it was nasty. there were sauce/dirt on the walls and lots of junk of the sides. most unhygienic restaurant ever! will never go back to this disgusting place. plus, the food and the manager scares me.
After waiting over 30min for drinks and an hour for food we were told it was because they were busy. There was only 1 other table who were obnoxiously loud. The food was disgusting which was expected for the dive it is in. The service was shocking as at the end we asked for the manager and the woman said she was the manager and didnt care at all about how our experience was. Very poor service and worse food.
We had to wait forever for the menu.It did not help that there was only one cashier slash staff slash bartender on a weekend lunchtime. Ambience and interior design quite lacking perhaps the place gets livelier in the evening but it does needs more light during the day. All three mains were below my standards for Mexican dishes though the portions were big which had to be bagged later for reason already mentioned. The saving grace were the desserts as they were delicious. Also, the lone ranger er waiter was very friendly despite our initial long wait for attention.
Very pleasantly surprised with the quality of meals we received here. Very authentic too when compared to other Mexican offerings in the city. Well decorated and interior and friendly staff. Would definitely go back.
Bit surprised by the amount of negative reviews on here. I’m no Mexican food expert but my family really enjoyed our meals and also found the service friendly and efficient. I had the lime infused steak which was excellent and lots of extra bits which are missing at some other CHCH Mexican restaurants. Yes the lunch service appears to be done in the bar which won’t be to everyone’s taste but the evening service area is colourful and inviting.
We went to Alvarado’s for lunch on a cold wet weekday this week. We were the first people there except for the folks playing the pokies. The area we entered didn’t look like a restaurant. It turned out to be the bar. So we pushed through the bar’s saloon doors under the archway marked RESTAURANT, walked down the hallway and promptly found ourselves in the Men’s room. An elderly couple walked in half an hour later and did exactly the same thing! We were informed later on that the restaurant only opened for dinner. There was no one around when we arrived at noon. No bar staff. Place was cold and empty. A waitress finally showed up but was on her mobile talking to someone about getting a pokie machine fixed. By the time we were given menus, we had waited 28 minutes. It took us 21 minutes to get there and 28 minutes before we could place an order.We ordered the chicken chimichanga and the chicken burrito and they tasted exactly the same. Nothing fantastic about them except the chips. Chips with burritos? Unheard of! Yet, they were the BEST thing about the dish. I think they had garlic salt on them. Best chips ever.We had churros for afters but they were nothing to write home about. Below average stuff. The consistency of the churros was erratic. It was light in some places and kind of congealed in other places. The ice cream was pretty good, though, with the strawberry coulis on top.There seemed to be no heating. We kept our coats on throughout. There was definitely NO atmosphere, no welcome, and very dim lighting. We wanted to sit where we wouldn’t see or hear the pokie machines but you could hear them throughout the bar. It was very galling. The place seemed dingy and dirty and the side of our table was broken with the plastic seal around the table peeling off but covered by a table runner.We couldn’t wait to get out of there and have no plans to return.