"Milagro Taco Bar writes...
This festive corner spot dons hardwood floors, copper accents and terracotta-hued walls. It claims a clientele of neighborhood dwellers and Mexican-food aficionados devoted to star chef Frank Bonanno. All relish the mind clouding margaritas, impressive Mexican beer selection, friendly staff and authentic street eats and innovative Mexican plates."
*Edit: Apparently, Frank Bonanno's partnership within Milagro Taco Bar had recently dissolved. If I were him, I would definitely have them take my name off the website.
Dear Frank Bonanno: if you're going to put your stamp on something, you better be damn sure it lives up to the hype or you're just another sell-out.
Milagro Taco Bar was probably the worst restaurant experience I've had in Denver. I'm not picky. But, I am a serious foodie and have a certain expectation of a restaurant that Frank Bonanno (Mizuna, Luca d' Italia) lends his name to. Although it's name contains 'taco bar', which would give it a sense of simplicity (or trendiness), it's hard to contemplate the fiasco that ensued on our visit.
We got a last minute Thursday reservation around 7:30. Upon arriving, our table was empty, but took atleast 15 minutes to be 'set up', so we took to the bar for a round of drinks. Upon being seated, we recieved water and chips and salsa. Another 20 minutes passed without even being acknowledged by a single server. So, Pete went to the bar to order another round of drinks and to confirm that our center seated table of 8 actually had a server assigned to it. After a little management pow-wow, they decided to send us a server, a free round of drinks and a round of tequila shots. We ordered our meals and were told our order would be hurried along.
After being seated at about 7:45, our dinner was served at 9:15. The entire time, the best service was from a bus boy.
I've worked in the restaurant business for 10 years and the question I repeatedly ask myself when I got out to eat is: What did they do to make me want to come back? Sometimes the food is so good it overlooks bad service. Sometimes exceptional service overlooks mediocre food. Sometimes it's an intangible that draws you to the space. In this case, it was none of the above. The food was awful. I had a combo plate (taco, burrito, enchilada). The enchilada sauce was bitter, obviously burned and without proper seasoning. The barbacoa was stringy and tough, the rice was maybe Zatarain's or Uncle Ben's, the green chile had no spice, and the taco was soggy. The presentation was also ill-fated; My burrito was stacked on top of my enchilada! The atmosphere reminds me of the Pink Taco at the Hard Rock in Vegas or a Carlos and Charlie's in Cabo--nothing 'miraculous'.
The thing that bothers me the most is that the entire time not one manager came over to apologize. The restaurant was less than full so they certainly were not that busy. It's a case of someone not caring. Managers should know everthing that goes on in their restaurant--from the dining room to the kitchen to the bathroom to the parking lot. Communication and attitude is a reflection of top management and someone up top definitly fucked up. Do you really think that a free round of cheap tequila and no apology is going to make me want to come back? Maybe the tequila would make us forget our experience? Regardless, I wouldn't go back because I can get better Mexican food for half the price. It just disappoints me that they didn't even try. We were a table of 8! Probably the largest group in the whole joint! That's 8 people x their network that you've lost! I try to give restaurants the benefit of the doubt because it is one of the most difficult industries, but show me something!
Damn! Cheap tequila makes me angry...Atleast give us shots of Patron!
