Jump to content
Chapala.com Webboard

Ajijic Tango


Wookie

Recommended Posts

Today we arrived at Ajijic Tango at 1:20 p.m. which was 10 minutes before the lunch special was supposed to be over. The waiter asked us what we wanted to drink and we asked for the lunch menu. He brought the drinks but not the lunch menu and told us that it was now too late to order lunch since it was now 1:35 p.m.

Okay, lesson learned ... so I ordered the "new" green salad which was supposed to be mixed greens, broccoli, apples, goat cheese with raspberry salad dressing. I ordered this without broccoli. I also ordered the soup of the day which was lentil soup.

The salad: there was no goat cheese to be found, the mixed greens were old/limp/bitter, there was one (1) very thin slice of apple and they added large, fibrous ends of asparagus .... and I don't mean the good end. The salad was not edible.

The soup: first it came cold. I sent it back to be heated and then found that it was full of uncooked fatty bacon. I literally could not take a bite without getting this fatty bacon in my mouth. I picked out a lot of it but then just gave up.

No, I did not get the owner or manager as we were with friends and I did not want to make a scene which was what happened the last time someone at our table had a bad meal and asked it to be replaced at this same restaurant. The waiter did pick up a plate full of salad and a bowl full of soup without asking whether or not I wanted a to-go box ... I am sure he knew I didn't. I am so sorry that this restaurant seems to have gone really downhill and we won't be back.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One can get pretty damn tired of having to speak with management at restaurants around here. The only places it does any good at all, are places where they are always asking anyway (like Just Chillin'). Wait staff that don't ask are not being trained properly.

I used to register my disappointments/complaints etc., but eventually got tired of doing that when return trips showed no improvement. Now I just vote with my feet. Tango has been going downhill for some time, while the prices continue to rise, and I've complained enough there about appetizers, temperature, undercooked vegetables (that one for as long as I can remember, even when I beg them to put a better cook time on them). I still love that huge ribeye they serve, but the price is now also much much more than it used to be.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I usually do let management know when a meal is this bad ... however, like I said, the last time we were there a friend at our table did just that and was told in no uncertain terms that his steak was just like it always was .... even though he told them that it was too tough to chew ... which it was because we all tried a bite. I am not inclined to go through that kind of hassle. By the way, the "new" salad is $82.00 pesos! We will go elsewhere.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest bennie2

i was there about 3 weeks ago. ordered the samething i have had for years. passable. not great. there were some changes which i noticed. maybe a cheaper butter in the mashed patatoes, maybe w/soy oil. the chicken was smaller for sure didnt appear as appertizing either. service was excellent. weekday @ 6:30pm. i would go back just to get a break from cooking.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, and while I used to enjoy their food, I only went because my Mom liked it. I can't pay those kinds of prices for salads. It would have to be a pretty amazingly fresh and full plate to even consider it, and based on Luke's description... meh. But slainte, you really like the steak at Tango's, and are willing to pay the price, and there's nothing wrong with that. But would you pay 82 for the salad? I used to be okay with the ribeye steak price, but between the over-crowded seating, the noise, the failing appetizers, and the rising prices for everything (and I agree the chicken has shrunk and is now often over-cooked there), I just won't go back. The steak at Arileo comes close, and it's so much more relaxing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Computer Guy: 82 pesos is $5.21USD approx. and my get cheaper as Iranian Oil destroys the Mexican oil industry.

You just cannot compare prices to NOB... you need to compare them to like-minded restaurants in the area.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, and while I used to enjoy their food, I only went because my Mom liked it. I can't pay those kinds of prices for salads. It would have to be a pretty amazingly fresh and full plate to even consider it, and based on Luke's description... meh. But slainte, you really like the steak at Tango's, and are willing to pay the price, and there's nothing wrong with that. But would you pay 82 for the salad? I used to be okay with the ribeye steak price, but between the over-crowded seating, the noise, the failing appetizers, and the rising prices for everything (and I agree the chicken has shrunk and is now often over-cooked there), I just won't go back. The steak at Arileo comes close, and it's so much more relaxing.

CG you echo my feelings. We used to eat at Tango often & once a week get takeout for our beef fix. The overcrowding is terrible. At least 10 + more tables so I was sitting way too close to the guy at the next table. It was uncomfortable for both of us. The price has gone up - the quality way down. I told David (owner) that & he just said that the Tapatios like the crowding. Apparently the expat customers do not matter. Tango is always packed no matter how we feel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest bennie2

tango is dealable when it is not crowded. 2 weeks ago it was about 1/2 full. when some loud expat people left it was pleasent. i dont go during peak hours. somehow i find a table where im not that close to people. food always used to be wonderful. the owners may want to save $, so the chicken is smaller & not presented well. been a year since ive had a steak. last time the salt they used had somekind of flavor enhancer, i got a bad headache. the meat didnt taste the same because of this. they raised the meat prices this year. its been more then 6 or years since i would go there on a weekend. thats off limits for me. as for salades, i wouldnt have raw food in any restauarant anywhere.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 10 months later...

Took a stroll down Colon/Morelos on Saturday evening to check out the "tourist restaurant area" street closure. Basically, we were looking for some breezes. The street was packed. Noe and Paco were playing in front of Telares, and while I dig his music, I can't enjoy a meal with it that loud. In front of Tango, there were three tables, one empty. Unusual for Tango, so we looked inside. About half full, again unusual for 8:30 on a Saturday night. The many fans enticed us. Haven't been to Tango for a loooooooooong time, for reasons previously discussed. Since it's still my favorite ribeye place, we decided to try it again.

Without the crowds, and with lots of circulating air, it was quite enjoyable. The ribeye's price has jumped to $279 for the large, from my last visit of $189, so I won't be doing that very often, but it is still the best steak around. Since my last remarks on Arileo, I feel that their steaks have gone to the dogs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 7/21/2015 at 6:39 PM, windstar said:

CG you echo my feelings. We used to eat at Tango often & once a week get takeout for our beef fix. The overcrowding is terrible. At least 10 + more tables so I was sitting way too close to the guy at the next table. It was uncomfortable for both of us. The price has gone up - the quality way down. I told David (owner) that & he just said that the Tapatios like the crowding. Apparently the expat customers do not matter. Tango is always packed no matter how we feel.

 

There's your answer.  The place now caters to the out of town Tapatio crowd.  I can't figure out how they could do this since one of our local board "experts" told us on another thread that Mexicans mostly go out to eat after 11PM as his justification for several of the noisy local bars masquerading as restaurants.  I'm even more puzzled by this given the places in San Juan Cosala along the waterfront which cater almost all to Mexicans close at something like 6PM.  Can't imagine how they stay in business. :)

I have to say that I am singularly unimpressed with the restaurants I've visited in GDL.  Crowded, noisy, pricey, and mediocre food.  I would have thought the big city crowd was more discerning than that but looking at how much they like the "new" Tango it sure doesn't seem that way.  They also seem to like that equally mediocre fast food stuff that has become ubiquitous in the U.S.

Anyway, let's just hope that Tango doesn't discover most of their clients eat out after 11PM and start staying open that late and blasting the neighborhood there with noise.  There's quite enough of that here already. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is the best in the area for service and food..Crowded,noisy and busy speaks for its continued success.. ..Keep the moaners away...Too many have been away from the USA for too long and have no idea what a decent meal cost and I'm not just talking about  "5 Star" restaurants. Tango would be a good 3+ star with VERY affordable prices NOB.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A 50% jump in the price of any meal is not indicative of anything other than price increases. The price of a meal in the U.S. has absolutely no bearing on the price of a meal here.

But just for your info, I was in Tony Roma's in Laredo this February and got their large ribeye. It was $12.99 with sides. So don't be telling me about U.S. prices.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...