03/07/09

Re: Violently ill

by KDoze

It really bothers me that people automatically say that a restaurant made them ill. What people fail to realize is that the food in restuarants is more likely safer than food you get from a grocery store. Illness can take anywhere from 2 hours to 48 hours to start showing symptoms. So unless the person who ate nachos from Manuel's didn't eat anywhere else two days prior to their experience, they can't tell if that was what actually made them sick. Manuel's is known and is proud of the fact that their ingredients are fresh and of a high quality, hence the reason it is a little more expensive than tex-mex. Try it out and you will understand what I mean.

• Pros: Good food, great service
• Cons: Parking. It's downtown

02/26/09

Excellent

by Gestrudis

Really are the best margaritas in Austin, and are unique in the half price happy hour, the service is very good, the food is very delicious, I congratulate the crab nachos

02/22/09

DON'T eat the nachos...

by maigrust

I was looking for a good Mexican food place to go to get some yummy margaritas and an appetizer or two, so I decided to try out Manuel's because I had always seen it and it has some good reviews. First of all the salsa was not anything special at all and kind of watery. The margaritas were not above average, and the house margarita tastes mostly like margarita mix. But worst of all I fell VIOLENTLY ill some six hours later. There were two of us eating but I was the only one who ate the nachos and the only one who got sick. I would never expect this to happen from food at a restaurant that has such good reviews by what I thought were trustworthy Austin people with good taste. So, in conclusion, if you truly know what good Mexican food is and should be ALWAYS, then do not waste your money or risk your health for this mediocre establishment that offers such carelessly and heartlessly prepared food.

• Pros: location
• Cons: poorly prepared food, salsa, margaritas

02/12/09

Superb

by MisoNikun

Visiting Austin and was sent to Manuel's Downtown by the hotel; SUPERB describes my experience there. The food was FRESH and my server was professional. I had a Chile Relleno stuffed with seafood and it was out of this world. This food reminded me of my visit to Playa del Carmen several years ago. I will make this my restaurant every time in town.

• Pros: with in walking distance of the hotel

02/08/09

Camarones a la Veracruzana were outstanding and a unique cucumber martini

by JCortes

I have been eating at Manuel's for about 10 years and every time I go there service is very good and food is just outstanding. For some wrong reason a lot of people think that Mexican food is very greasy and heavy in the stomach, but Manuel's food is very clean and light. Camarones a la Veracruzana are simply out of this world. When you take the first bite you understand why the price is a little high. I recommend to enjoy this savory this with a unique, refreshing cucumber martini made with fresh pressed cucumbers, lime, and my favorite tequila, Don Julio silver.

• Pros: food, service, drinks, ambience, location
• Cons: parking

05/20/08

In a word, Awful :(

by pwebb76

I am shocked to see that this restaurant does not have even more poor reviews than what it has received. My husband and I gave it a try yesterday as he works downtown and we wanted to give it a try. What's funny is everyone at his workplace had warned us that Manuel's was not that great, but we wanted to try it and see for ourselves. I have lived in Austin now for 9 years and I dare say this is the worst Mexican food I've ever encountered. The salsa is essentially tasteless. We had to giggle, because the chips actually tasted like crayons. How we remember the taste of crayons is beyond me, but evidently we both tried eating one as a child... and they tasted just like Manuel's chips! That is not good. My salad, which was baby spinach had grilled chicken on it was edible, but way overpriced for what it was. The service was lazy, so not even that could make up for the food. I usually only log on to Citysearch to praise my favorite local places, but I was so disappointed in this experience that I wanted to leave a review here letting people know that the only thing this place has going for it is the location. If you have an opportunity to eat in this area, pick some place else. You've been warned.

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Everything else. The food is overpriced, lacks taste, and the margaritas are weak. The service is flat out lazy.

01/19/08

Average Food, Cool Atmosphere, Overpriced

by phutch1980

I was expecting something out of the ordinary, something I couldn't get at Papasito's or Chuy's, but on the cuisine front, was somewhat dissapointed. Sure the location was great, and the decor was hip and fun, but the food was just so-so. I had the house specialty mole, which was good but not great. At 16 bucks for enciladas I was expecting something more.

So go for the hip scene, get a specialty margarita at the bar, but try one of the million other tex-mex gems in Austin for the food, this place is just average at best.

• Pros: location, hip scene
• Cons: average food, overpriced for value

12/27/07

Good food, but be prepared for a LONG wait

by m0nkeyb0y

The food is generally decent Mexican fare. Nothing to write home about, but most items are reasonably priced and are good enough. The biggest problem is the wait, and the wait, and the wait. Manuel's is coveniently located in the heart of downtown, so it's very popular with working folks after 5:00, and with revelers starting a night on the town. Rather than turn potential customers away or give realistic wait times, the host/hostess usually tells everyone coming in that a table will be coming right up. Don't believe it. Have a drink or three at the bar. By the time a table is ready, you will be famished and tipsy.

• Pros: Very popular, convenient downtown location
• Cons: Very popular, convenient downtown location. Expect a LONG wait for a table.

10/10/07

Apologies to the staff

by cacahuate

This is a customer service review since that was what stood out most during my recent visit to Manuel's with my boyfriend and another couple. The service and food were both very good. However, one of the people I was with objected to the preparation of one of his dishes and let the waitress know in the rudest way possible. The tone and content of his complaint was intended to make himself out to be an expert on mexican food (which he most certainly is *not*) and to make the waitress out to be someone who doesn't know her job. I was too stunned to say anything to him at the time (pretty sure it wouldn't have helped and might have made it worse). To her great credit, the waitress was very gracious and accommodating. So not only are the food and wine very good, the service is beyond professional and gracious.

09/25/07

Good food

by simi81

My husband and I went to Manuel's on a Sunday night. We were promptly seated, served water and asked for drink order. The server was back with our drink orders soon and we gave him the order for entrees. My mango daiquiri was really good. Our entrees were out within 15-20 mins of placing the order. I had enchiladas de mole and my husband had chili relleno, both entrees were really good. Overall we had a wonderful experience at Manuel's.

• Pros: Food