Cantina Catrina in Dadeland Mall Foodie Restaurant Review
Written by Teresita Blanco (The Artsy Sister)
Last weekend, we ate at Cantina Catrina. We always pass by that restaurant whenever we go out shopping.
After reading the menu, we finally got curious enough to go eat at this Mexican restaurant. The first thing worth mentioning is the look of the place.
It is themed after Dia de Los Muertos. It has a lot of fun skull decorations. In the front of the store, there is a statue of Catrina’s ghost, welcoming you to her Cantina.
Her skull form has a bit of a Frida Kahlo vibe. I would imagine that this is what Frida looks like in the Mexican after life.
Around the shop, there are other decorations here and there. It gets an A plus for ambience. Now, it is time to talk about the most important thing, the food and the service.
The look of a restaurant is irrelevant if it has terrible food or service. The service was good. Our waiter was attentive.
He gave us a pitcher of water for us to hydrate ourselves as much as we needed to. In other restaurants, you need to ask for water. The first thing we ordered where the drinks.
I had my usual soda, mom had a Margaritta and my brother a Virgin Pina Colada. Mom’s glass had a fun skull shape.
She said that it was pretty strong. This shows that they are quite generous with the Tequila. So, if you like your Margaritta strong, Cantina Catrina is the place to visit. Instead of bread, you get free Tortilla chips with two dipping sauces.
The chips were fresh and extra crispy. For appetizers, we had the Guacamole with Trufa. It came with more chips. It was really yummy.
After getting overstuffed with chips, we were finally ready to order the main course. I had cheese Quesadilla, my mom ordered the chicken fajitas, and my brother had Carne Asada Street Tacos.
It was all cooked to perfection. I am just salivating while remembering the awesome food that we had. I tried my mom’s fajitas.
They were pretty good as well. I would have tried my brother’s food, but he ate it all before I had a chance to ask.
At the end of our meal, we somehow managed to save enough room for dessert. We ordered a Flan.
You can judge the quality of a restaurant by the flans they make. It looks simply, but flans are a complicated dish.
If not managed properly, you end up with a bit of a bland, tasteless mess. The flan was pretty big.
Big enough to share it with three people. The dulce the leche sauce combined well with the creamy taste of the flan.
It was the cherry on top of the experience. With the drinks and the dessert combined, we ended up paying 130 bucks for the three of us.
This works just as well, because in this economy you can’t eat anywhere without spending 100 bucks.
So, if you ever get hungry while in the Dadeland Mall, do give Cantina Catrina a visit.
Main course wise, it was better than the Cheesecake Factory.
I know this because I have eaten in both places. It isn’t enough just to have good desserts and appetizers.
Cantina Catrina is a positive experience from beginning to end.
I think I ranted enough about Cantina Catrina for one day.
I tend to rant when I actually like a place.
My name is Teresita Blanco, the very hungry Artsy Sister. Bye, bye and God bless.
