When we arrived, I immediately noticed a small table stand menu with gluten free items listed, which is nice. There were 5 items listed (none of which were kid-friendly, and my daughter has a severe wheat allergy as well). When we asked if those were the only gluten free items available, they said those are the only 5 items they can guarantee will be gluten free and that everything else is subject to cross contamination. With that response, we thanked them kindly for their honesty and left.
I’ve been to too many Mexican food restaurants to have felt safe with that response. I would’ve then had to ask about seasonings, sauces, fryers, ingredients in corn tortillas (some places add wheat flour for texture)… and it just didn’t seem worth it, because I honestly wasn’t impressed by the place to begin with. I also feel like when someone says “we can’t guarantee no cross contamination” before you’ve even ordered a drink, it’s a way of saying “we don’t want to deal with this,” and no precautions will be taken. I write this review to say: visit at your own comfort level.
We’ve been eating at Mamacita’s for years, it’s a must-stop every time we visit the area. After dx with Celiac, we were pleased to learn that they have a GF menu, their chips are safe and so is the green sauce. (It’s all about the green sauce!)
GF options are limited but all of our recent visits have been good — staff are knowledgeable and careful with my order. Happy we did not have to give up a long-time favorite!
While the gluten free menu is really limited I felt confident that it was safe. The manager came over to our table to answer questions. We wanted to order something without gluten ingredients that wasn’t on the gluten free menu and he explained the risk of cross contact if we went off-menu which was very helpful and showed he understood what he was talking about. If you’re not celiac and not concerned about cross contact you will have more choices but there are several safe things and they seemed conscientious and careful.
They have a gluten free menu on each table and the food was good! The waiter didn’t understand my needs so I declined the Caesar salad (he offered to pick the croutons off) and the tortilla soup (when I asked what the ingredients were he said “chicken) that came with the Shrimp Brochette I ordered. That meal was superb!
I had a new server who wasn’t familiar with gluten, but they found the GF menu for me. The menu lists main dishes but not the sides that are GF. I ordered the carnitas with refried beans and rice. I asked if the refried beans and rice were GF and the manager came over and said they were GF. The carnitas were delicious, no reaction. I also ate the chips and salsa with no problem. The server also heated up my corn tortillas in the microwave to keep them separate from the flour tortillas. Overall I was impressed.
When I asked the hostess about gluten free options, she referred me to the manager. He followed us to our table & pointed out all the menu items that are gluten free. When the waitress arrived, she said the manager alerted her that I needed gluten free & asked if I had any other menu questions. I ordered chicken fajitas, chips & salsa. When the food arrived, so did the manager, to make sure I got corn tortillas. The food was delicious!
We were surprised at how many GF options were available beyond the 5 items listed on the tableside GF menu. Our watress Kaneetha was extremely knowledgable and helpful with GF options. She steered us toward the chicken fajitas (the beef marinade couldn't be vouched for as GF) with corn tortillas heated in the microwave vs the shared griddle. My carnitas were served with the sauce (not GF) served on the side. Our chips and salsas (regular and a sour cream/avocado one that was different and delish) and mains were some of the best Mexican we have had. Plus the margaritas (house & top shelf) were also very good.
Our waiter, Joey, was extremely accommodating! He was eager to answer any questions we had, and was very cautious about items that have the potential to be cross-contaminated (like the nachos). This restaurant experience was honestly the best I've had in regards to trying to eat safely. Chips & Salsa are GF, so I had that with chicken fajita meat, rice, and beans. Delicious! I highly recommend eating here.
The 1st meal of our trip. Visited the area for my milestone birthday and spent weeks researching 'safe' places to eat so I did not get sick.
Waitress was clueless. I was very specific on how my meal needed to be ordered and she brushed me off. I hunted down a manager and told him my concerns. He was very helpful, understood the severity of my situation and made sure everything in the kitchen was correct. Obviously he also corrected the waitress because she came back to the table to apologize and said she learned something new of how important it can be for Celiac's.
I had the carnitas with corn tortillas. No beans. The sauce they serve on the side is NOT gluten free as they thicken it was flour. Very good food and I did not get sick but I believe had I not questioned our waitress and hunted down the manager, I would have.
ASK, ASK, ASK! :)
Our waitress was so careful and double checked everything for us. I had a chicken fajita salad it was amazing! My mom had the shrimp bruschetta and that was also amazing! Huge portion sizes. They have six menu items they guarantee are gf. We didn't have a reaction so it was celiac friendly! 😊
Excellent service and food! No GF menu but manager was very knowledgable and explained what I could eat. He even doubled checked with the kitchen to make sure, and brought out two sauces for me to try for my enchiladas. Very impressed; will go back.
Really cute little Mexican place my friend recommended for me when she noticed most of the menu was gf. Waitress was awesome at answering my questions about gf. Had the signature salsa and chips to start. Salsa really good! I ordered carne asada it came with rice and side salad and fresh pico over the steak. Everything was so well done the dressing on the salad was amazing my friend and I both bought a bottle for home.
Their gluten free menu isn’t really gluten free. They list French fries, but they are fried with other things. And they list Cesar salad, but the dressing isn’t GF. It made me very wary of the other things listed. I pointed this out to the manager and they agreed to bring it up at their next meeting. I guess we’ll see how that goes.