Blu Toro Cantina & Grill

Reviews 4

JA

Jace Foley

Unbelievable experience. Both waitress and hostess "remembered" me from months ago during my only other visit. The waitress simply said, "didnt I wait on you before" and gestured you where I sat during my last trip, while the hostess commented on how much I enjoyed the dessert during my last visit (it is awesome btw). Now either Blu Toro only hires people with eidetic memories (Im very forgettable so I doubt anyone would remember me let alone two people), or they have a customer tracking system they actually utilize, either way, building rapport with guests makes them feel important and valued, that was certainly my experience. Getting to the point, again I ordered the Chips and salsa, they are fine, and I enjoy multiple salsa options, but as other have said in other reviews it is annoying having to pay for something that is customarily free, but its only 4 bucks so whatever... I was alone tonight so I decided to order on a budget. Normally, when I think Mexican I think fajitas, thats what I ate during my last trip to Blu Toro and they were solid, but they are also $20 and sides are al a carte, so I had to actually looked over the menu to find something more reasonable. Something I have never even considered ordering at a Mexican restaurant is a sandwich, but Blu Toro has a burger section. While some of the descriptions were appealing, the idea of a burger at a Mexican spot felt wrong to me, it was then I stumbled on the Torta. This is a simple steak sandwich with avocado, tomato, some kind of sauce, lettuce, and of course steak, but it sounded "Mexican enough" (its a "torta" after all) that I figured, "what the heck, its $11 and comes with fried potatoes and dipping sauce". Needless to say it was awesome, from the soft roll with a crunch from butter toasting, to the marinade of the steak, to the sauce, this sandwich was amazing. The potatoes were like American fries (Maybe Mexican fries) with peppers and onions fried throughout, and the dipping sauce was the perfect accompaniment. The staff was attentive throughout and even though I was full I came back for the dessert so I had to order it. I dont remember what its called but a brownie is served on a hot skillet with fried ace cream on top. When the server delivers the decadence to your table they pour a warm butterscotch sauce over the skillet and it instantly boils around the brownie, the worst part is waiting for it to cool enough to eat. Overall, I will be back to Blu Toro in the near future for another Torta and even though I dont need it, more tham likely another brownie. Excellent experience!

CH

Chris Kim

We started our meal with a 9 dollar plate of chips and the tiniest Petri dish of guacamole. The guacamole (I believe we picked the "Iowa" kind) had corn and chunks of chewy bacon it in, and despite the popular claims of bacon making everything better, this was not the case for this guacamole. We decided we were being hasty, judging a Mexican restaurant off its own version of a widely served, wildly reknown Mexican dip... so we moved onto the entrees. I had queso for dinner. Actually, what I had ordered was chicken tortilla soup. The soups consistency was so thick, it wouldve been better served as queso than soup. Dont get me wrong, the "soup" didnt taste bad - I tried thinning it with water without making it bland but didnt get very far. I also had a carne asada street taco. It was ok. It had a decent amount of meat in the shell - it just didnt have anything else. For salsa, I was given a choice of four. I asked for pico and hot and I was told that I may only have one. So I had me a taco of meat and hot sauce. It was a good taco, just not much to it. One of my friends got the steak fajitas and she liked it (as did I - I helped her finish off her plate) and my other friends kids shared a chicken and steak fajita (this place does not have a kids menu) and they enjoyed the fajitas as well. But we all agreed the fajita dishes were very very salty so prepare to flag down the staff for lots of water. One other child got chicken quesadillas. Shes a rather picky eater so imagine her surprise when she bit into bell peppers that were not mentioned on the menu in her quesadilla. If, however, you are not looking for quesadillas with nothing but chicken in it i.e. plain, this is not the dish for you. While the fajitas and our margarita shakers were good, for the asking price (my friends tab for her and her 8 year old came out to 60 dollar; 9 of that was the shaker so 51 dollars on just food. She spent 72 dollars that night.), the food - chips and guac, chorizo jalapeño rangoons, chicken quesadilla, variety of tacos, side of street corn, and two different kinds of fajita dishes - was underwhelming. Perhaps there are gem dishes hidden throughout the menu and we just ordered all the wrong things; however, based on my first encounter, I am not compelled to return any time soon. On an unrelated note, the one hostess with short dark hair and our waitress (uncommon foreign name so I forget...) were both lovely.

SU

Susan Miller

My sister,brother-in-law,and I were looking forward to trying a new Mexican restaruant.I was visiting my relatives in Des Moines.The Registers Review sounded like it would be a pleasant experience.We made reservations for their 2nd night.Our reservations were for 6:30 and we waited Im guessing at least 10-15 minutes if not more.We were seated and our drink and appetizer order taken.The margaritas came in cocktail shakers and when the other 2 people ordered a 2nd one the lid was frozen and they couldnt get the lid off.It was handed to the waitress and she I believe opened it or couldnt and took it away.The margaritas were good as well as the chips,queso,and salsa.That was the best part.Highly recommend for drinks and apoetizers.When the entrees arrived it was a whole differerent story.2 of us ordered enchildas.they were not fried but plain.You are given a choice of cheese or red sauce.We both chose red and it looked thick tomato sauce from a can.1 person ordered fajitas and the chicken was a very small chicken breast and in most restaruants you have enough meat to take home for a 2nd meal for the price of $17.

JE

Jeff Carpenter

Modern, upscale atmosphere. Prices were reasonable. Salsa choices were great. Drinks were very good. Salsa and chips were paid which is not unusual for a higher end Mexican restaurant. However, I was surprised by what I consider a petty charge of $2 for additional chips given that we ordered three appetizers that all should have came with chips. We ordered queso, salsa and guacamole (all three are paid selections) but were only provided one plate of tortilla chips. When those were gone (with none of our three paid appetizers even half gone) we were asked if we wanted more chips. We said yes. I was surprised to see a $2 charge for extra chips given that each of those three appetizers would have come with chips if ordered separately. We should have gotten up to three plates of chips before receiving an extra charge. Not a big deal on a $80 bill but nonetheless somewhat annoying. Between 3pm - 5pm it should be noted that they only serve appetizers and tacos. The full menu does not start until 5pm. Well definitely go back because it was really good.