Puerto Mexico - Ariba ariba!!

Wispy Wonder · Post by **Wispy Wonder** » 27 May 2007 19:55

Sydenhams new Mexican............ it's fantastic

Just thought I'd say that the missus and I went last night (Saturday) and had our best night out in Sydenham for ages. The food was great (and reasonably priced), the staff are really friendly and the atmosphere was suberb. Like half the other customers, we ended up sitting there wearing sombraros......... And here's a first for Sydenham - it has a cocktail menu that extends beyond the lethal combo of lager and cider!

Better still - although the upstairs isn't open yet, according to the manager it's going to become a tapas bar with salsa dancing, hopefully by next weekend.

Give it a go - it's such good fun

W. Wonder

goonerchamp · Post by **goonerchamp** » 30 May 2007 19:24

I have to agree - I have just got back from a quick meal and it was great - I did try to blag the sombrero - but to no avail - I'll defo be reccomending to my friends and going back at some point soon

Savvy · Post by **Savvy** » 31 May 2007 12:41

.... a Sombrero, really ? Oh now I'll never get my husband to go. I won't tell him but he reads this forum and is bound to find out.
If you're reading this hon - I think the man was JOKING !

goonerchamp · Post by **goonerchamp** » 31 May 2007 18:56

Yeah - it was a joke - not a hat to be seen anywhere -

Wispy Wonder · Post by **Wispy Wonder** » 31 May 2007 19:58

Joking - oh no I'm not. Maybe they only come out at the weekends but there were a plenty of us wearing them on Saturday. It wasn't obligatory but after a few cocktails it was hard not to join in.

W. Wonder

goonerchamp · Post by **goonerchamp** » 31 May 2007 21:18

No - not just a weekend thing - distictly remember wearing a hat yesterday 6:30 on a Wedensday evening !

ms_pink_princess · Post by **ms_pink_princess** » 1 Jun 2007 13:48

Does anyone have the number for this Restaurant? It looks yummy and I can't find it online ANYWHERE!!!

Ginge · Post by **Ginge** » 1 Jun 2007 14:20

Try 020 8778 1222, its their old number.

robotfish · Post by **robotfish** » 1 Jun 2007 14:58

It was closed last night. We went for a drink in the Dolphin's garden...and that was closed too.

Still, they were having a pub quiz in the Dolphin, so it wasn't all bad.

goonerchamp · Post by **goonerchamp** » 2 Jun 2007 08:18

Can confirm - i have a card from when I ate there the other night and the telephone number that my old mucker Ginge has provided is the same as the one on the card - BBQ later ginge?? (lets pray it don't bloody rain !)

ms_pink_princess · Post by **ms_pink_princess** » 2 Jun 2007 11:49

Thank you Ginge & Goonerchamp, you have saved me from enduring the long walk down there to get the number ha ha!!

I will hopefully go there next week and report my findings, MEXICAN STYLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

goonerchamp · Post by **goonerchamp** » 2 Jun 2007 20:23

Princess - glad to have been of assistance - just got home from ginges bbq walked past and the place is rammed - tuck in sydenham tuck in !!!!!! (yeah I have been on the juice

)

Ginge · Post by **Ginge** » 4 Jun 2007 10:53

I too still need to get down there, Gooner did tell me on Saturday (after 20+ beers) that the service was slow but the food was lovely.

Jules · Post by **Jules** » 4 Jun 2007 11:42

I went on Saturday with a few friends, we had a great time. The food was fantastic and the cocktails went down well !!!

Just a word of warning to those who haven't yet been. They only accepted cash or cheque with card. No debit or credit cards. Don't know if that is a permanent thing or just till they get themselves sorted.

ROBOTFISH : They had a gas leak on Thursday, so that's why it was closed.

randomv · Post by **randomv** » 4 Jun 2007 13:12

At the risk of sounding like a party pooper.....I too went along on Saturday evening and, well, it was alright, but by no means great. Compared to other Mexicans I have been to, I thought it a bit overpriced - or at least underportioned. I have never managed to finish a serving of fajitas before, but did so easily here. The food was tasty enough but I did go away a little disappointed. And at £20 a pitcher of posh margherita...well it was nice but I'd never pay that again. Great atmos though, can't fault that. All in all, we will definitely eat there again, but we won't be rushing back
Just one question though: what's the deal with the upstairs? The menu says customers get free entry to the upstairs tapas bar...since when was entry to a tapas bar not free anyway?! and what's up there?! Ok that's two questions..

Ginge · Post by **Ginge** » 12 Jun 2007 07:58

This is quite possibly the worst Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. Both of the courses we ordered were cold, the chicken was pink and the chips were undercooked. We were sat upstairs even though there was room downstairs and they couldn't work the air con so it was a pretty sweaty and uncomfortable affair. To top it off we noticed when we left that we had been charged £20 for 2 diet cokes and 2 bottles of beer and a mysterious £10 extra charge on the food bill. I don't normally check bills which is bad I know, but I do generally expect them to be accurate. I shan't be returning.

PS I don't expect to have to explain what a side dish is to the waiter either.

Paddy Pantsdown · Post by **Paddy Pantsdown** » 12 Jun 2007 09:13

Mrs P & I have mixed views. We went shortly after it opened. It seems the experiences vary!

The food was good and reasonably priced. So was the booze. Ideal for the young if they make it during 'Happy Hour'. The sombreros were fun. Mrs P would have liked one too. Pity the chocolate desserts were 'off'.

Our meal was spoilt by a pair of chain smokers who came and sat right next to us. Roll on July 1st. The service was appalling. Our waitress knew very little English. After much prompting we discovered she came from Turkey. It took a full six reminders before we got our Sangrias. The bill was several pages of pure fiction. I wrote out what we actually had and it came out considerably cheaper.

I presented this to the Manager. He looked remarkably like the guy who ran the place before it came under 'new management'. Normally I would expect a restauranteur to apologise effusively with the usual excuses. After all I presume the objective is to get us to go again. However after standing there for a full 5 mins while he carefully went through all the papers pounding a calculator he, without a word (perhaps he speaks no English too?) he handed it back. It was for 40p more than I had totted it up as ... oh well I paid it and left.

So mixed messages. OK to eat & drink after July 1st as long as you manage the service and double check the bill as I note we are not the only ones to have issue there. Also surprised that the bill is not a till print out. Must be a nightmare for any auditor.

We need good fun restaurants in Sydenham. Its a good format. They need to attack it with a little more panache and sort out the service issues.

PP.

mummycat · Post by **mummycat** » 12 Jun 2007 11:45

This is similar to the experience we had at the weekend!

Reminding the same waitress 3 times for my beer, to which she just nods.

A long black hair in the complimentry olives; no chain smokers around, but why was the ladies loo seat up and not flushed everytime we went in (I have 2 young children so you can imagine!)? There were only 3 ladies on the premises!

One of my family ordered a Becks from the Beer menu and it arrived - a non-alcoholic version. We asked for a different beer, but due to a lack of English spoken by the staff we were told we ordered Becks and this is the only Becks, Sir!

I thought my fajitas were very tasty. Some of my party ordered steak but they weren't asked how they like it cooked, so there was some disappointment.

The bill took an age coming, the Manager was counting it out on his abacus in the corner. We'll give it another try if we're desperate, but we'll stick to our favourite, Gurkhas.

GLOBAL THINKER · Post by **GLOBAL THINKER** » 12 Jun 2007 12:05

We went to PM on Sat with 4 kids / 3 adults. Ribs were great, but the pork chop was incinerated, chips a bit soggy, chicken wings a bit soggy. Waitress struggled to understand our order and a beer we ordered wasn't available. Oh and back to the 4 kids thing they only had 1 high chair

.
Why spend money refurbishing? They need to step up gear or will lose valuable repeat custom. I went once when it was a Turkish restaurant, didn't return.

Greg Whitehead · Post by **Greg Whitehead** » 13 Jun 2007 09:15

Ah...Puerto Mexico. What an abomination. Turth be told I went to PM in it's previous incarnation a great many times and thoroughly enjoyed it but then I've always been rather partial to Meze. There's not a chance on Earth that I will ever step foot in that renovated (ahem) place.

Do they really think that we need the gaudy colour scheme currently beautifying the area to explain to our limited brains that it's well, Mexican? As far as I'm concerned The Dolphin has moved the 'High Street' on a thousand steps and Puerto Mexico has sent us back again another milliion!! Just looking at it makes my eyes bleed. It's the same owner as the Turkish (the old ice-cream man) and I would love to wish him well but as with 90% of the business on the whole High Street I'd rather they went under - yes, boarded up business' are preferable than the fare currently on offer. Do they just not get it? I walked up and down the High Street on Saturday during prime-time (as it were). Can anyone guess which business' had anymore than one customer in? They deserve everything they get the shop-owners we have in the main. I'm sick to death of doing the assault course of dodging their nasty wares as they spill out ever further onto the pavement but perhaps that's another thread.

Back to PM, am I the only person who thinks a few sofa's slung here and there, a restrained refurb and a coffee machine and hey presto! Another thriving ABC1 business and the coffee shop we have oft dreamed of?

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Puerto Mexico - Ariba ariba!!

Puerto Mexico - Ariba ariba!!

Muchios Thankioyous