On The Border Mexican Grill

My husband and I had just returned to town after a week-long trip and were incredibly hungry. We had heard about On The Border offering endless tacos for $10.99 to $13.99, so we decided to give it a try. The hostess welcomed us with a smile, and our waitress, Kelly, was very accommodating. We mentioned it was our first meal after returning, and without us even asking, she prioritized our order so we could eat sooner. The food was delicious, and Kelly took excellent care of us. We will definitely be returning soon!

Upon arriving, I parked in the Del Taco lot, as there have been frequent break-ins near the eatery lately. As I approached the entrance, a guy popped out and exclaimed that the tacos were terrible and that Del Taco was better. I was a bit surprised by his outburst and later learned he was frustrated about the wait time. Once inside, I faced a 10-minute wait for a booth but opted for a table with no wait at all. The restaurant had a nice western decor (check out my photos!). I was quickly served water, chips, and salsa. The chips were wafer-thin and quite large, maybe a bit too large, and the salsa was light and smoky—definitely tasty! My waitress, Tiffany, introduced herself and I mentioned I had a free queso check-in from Yelp. I ordered the endless tacos but learned that for an extra $2, I could add brisket and southwestern chicken to the available ground beef and chicken tinga tacos. Tiffany was attentive, checking in frequently, and we had a friendly chat—she’s truly an exceptional waitress, one of my top favorites! While I appreciated her attentive service, the initial order of two tacos took an unreasonably long 15 minutes. I suspect this was to keep costs down. As for the tacos, the brisket was just okay—dry and not very flavorful, resembling more shredded meat than real brisket. The southwestern chicken was decent, with a bit of nacho cheese sauce, but not impressive. The chicken tinga was average, but I really enjoyed the ground beef taco; it had much more flavor and juiciness. I had planned to eat 10-12 tacos but only managed 8, mainly because they piled on a lot of fried onion strings, which I ended up removing from the last two tacos. Who puts onion straws on a taco? That’s definitely a sign of an inauthentic Mexican restaurant, and I guess it’s to fill you up too. In retrospect, I wouldn’t bother adding the extra $2 for the brisket and southwestern options; the ground beef and chicken tinga were more than satisfying. Tiffany made my experience worthwhile; she checked up on me, was ready to take additional orders, and her friendly demeanor made my visit enjoyable. While I think Chevy's offers better non-authentic Mexican food, I still want to explore more of the menu here. The food may not have been exceptional, but my server was fantastic, so I’ll definitely return to try other dishes and request Tiffany. If she’s your server when you visit, you’re in great hands!

However, the hostess seemed a bit confused about whether or not they actually offered happy hour; she even had to ask someone else to confirm it. She then mentioned that she had worked there for a long time and was unaware that they had a happy hour. Alright then. A little tip for diners: with a Yelp check-in, you can get a free queso dip, which is actually pretty good. The happy hour menu was printed on a table card, but it was nothing to get excited about; the deals felt pretty limited. Our waitress was unfriendly, and despite the lack of crowds, she barely interacted with us. Instead, she seemed to rush by our table, which was frustrating. We all ordered different tacos, and honestly, they were underwhelming. My brisket taco came with stringy beef and cold fried onions, and the tortilla was cold as well. Paying $4 for such a lackluster taco, especially one that’s cold, hardly qualifies as a happy hour experience. Most of us picked at our food, and no one had anything good to say about it, including the drinks. I left a generous tip for the waitress in hopes it might improve her mood, but I don’t plan on going back anytime soon. There are far too many other places in town that offer much better happy hour drinks and food.

Typically we have a great experience at our Favorite Mexican Restaurant, but unfortunately this time we had a bad experience. The manager on shift tonight (5pm on 11/24) did not honor a coupon that we found on Retail Me Not. We have used coupons here before without any issues but Heidi, the manager, would not permit us to use coupon. I used the Retail Me Not App hundreds of times before without any issues. I am posting a picture of the coupon she would not honor. It was very disappointing. 2/26/2020 We were actually done with eating at On the Border because the manager never followed through on our last yelp review but tonight Jessica blew our experience out of the park!!! She always delivers phenomenal customer service and works hard to keep her customers happy. The management team at On the Border owes you big for doing service recovery with us. We hope to come back soon and dine with Jessica again!!!

Fast service, friendly workers, and solid food. I recommend coming here on the weekdays between 3-6 for their happy hour menu. Discounts on beers, pitchers, and shots, along with a portion of finger foods and appetizers. Very nice feel in the restaurant. Great for bigger parties if you want to have drinks and watch sports games. Outside patio is nice as well, during the warmer season. Try their signature queso bowl. Along with their OTB mixed drink. If you can't decide on what to order, their border sampler allows you a taste of chicken quesadillas, steak nachos, and chicken flautas. served with guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo and original queso as well. Come hungry and you'll leave stuffed.