Las Manitas Restaurant

04/29/08

Charged for tap water

by snicktx at Citysearch

This place is good, but it's expensive for what it's worth. We were charged for chips and for tap water. Bizarre.

• Pros: food is decent
• Cons: no margaritas, expensive

10/17/07

Okay food

by trencherman at Citysearch

Tastes okay--which is damning with faint praise, considering the many, many great Mexican restaurants in town. A little pricey. Small portions. So, why the hype? I honestly couldn't tell you. Maybe it's because it's downtown.

• Pros: downtown location
• Cons: Just okay

06/09/07

ABSOLUTELY NOT RECOMMENDED !!

by clayii at Citysearch

I have never written a review or complained about a restaurant, but this place is so overrated that I feel compelled to warn others not to patronize the place. I can't get the "Rate It" indicator to work, but this place is ABSOLUTELY NOT RECOMMENDED. After several unsatisfactory dining experiences at this restaurant, my wife and I vowed never to return. This was a couple of years ago. Last week we had friends visiting from Denver. They had read some glowing review of Las Manitas in a travel guide and insisted on eating lunch there, in hopes of seeing a celebrity. We decided to be good hosts and take them there for lunch. It was every bit as bad as we remembered. The service was extremely poor bordering on rude; it seemed as though they wanted to get us out of the place as quickly as possible. The food was served luke-warm, except for the beans, which were cold. We were never offered refills on our drinks. Did I mention that the silverware was dirty? Oh, and the food was extremely bland, not to mention expensive for Mexican food. Our friends seemed baffled by the great review they'd read, and the below average quality of the food. They asked if this was really the best Austin had to offer. I resisted saying "I told you so," and assured them that there were many better choices in town. The next day we took them to Manuel's, and later in the week to Polvo's, both of which were great. With so many excellent Mexican restaurants to chose from, I can't think of any reason to eat at this over-hyped greasy spoon. By the way the only celebrity we saw eating there, if you can call him a celebrity, was our Mayor. Not worth it.

• Pros: After trying it several time, I can't think of a single "Pro"
• Cons: Rude service, bland marginal quality food, dirty eating utensils, loud, no ambience, no parking....

06/07/07

Overrated, Don't Believe the Hype

by texmexgourmet at Citysearch

My wife and I are longtime Austin residents and we love Mexican food. We bought into the hype and tried Las Manitas on three occasions, once at breakfast and twice at lunch. We won't be returning. This restaurant has bland food, indifferent service, and above average prices. There are many excellent Mexican restaurants in Austin, but this is not one of them. It's probably not even in the top 20. Do yourself a favor and find your way to Matt's El Rancho, Curra's, Trudy's, Casa Garcia, Manuel's, Maudie's....all far superior in every way to this overrated establishment.

• Pros: If you happen to be stuck downtown, it's convenient.
• Cons: Crowded at lunch, no parking, poor service, average to below average food

08/22/03

Call Ahead

by laila at Citysearch

Not sure what the hype is about this place. Food is decent, but service is bad. Understand the place is busy, but so are plenty of other downtown eateries and the staff still manages to give the impression they appreciate your business- not here. Call ahead on orders if you just want something to go, otherwise you could be standing around for 30 minutes.