El Gato Cantina
| Address: | 169 Church St, Burlington, VT 05401, USA |
| Phone: | +1 802-540-3095 |
| Site: | elgatocantina.com |
| Rating: | 3.8 |
| Working: | 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
A
A Private User
Fresh, authentic Mexican food with great service! Burlington was really lacking in the Mexican food scene, so I was curious to try El Gato. It was probably the best Mexican Ive ever had! The food was fresh and delicious, ranging from what youd expect (burritos, enchiladas, nachos) to really authentic and creative dishes like grilled corn on the cob coated in chile powder and crumbly cheese, vegan seitan tacos, and a taco with savory mushrooms and the traditional herb "epazote." Tacos come in authentic corn tortillas, which is really the only way to have them. Service was prompt and friendly both at the bar and in the dining area. They have creative margaritas there (e.g. jalapeno) but I like the house margarita. It comes a little too sweet for me, so I requested less sweetness and the result was the perfect margarita, which is something you can rarely find! I love the ambiance which is full of warm colors, neat cat-themed artwork, and lighting at just the right amount of dimness. I honestly dont understand the negative reviews that are out there. This place is great! I wholeheartedly recommend it and am looking forward to eating there as often as possible. For full disclosure, Ive also posted this review elsewhere (tripadvisor, yelp, google) because I really want this place to survive so I can keep going there...
DA
David Kent
Disappointing. While waiting in the foyer I went to the bar for two drinks. The waiter said he would bring them to us. Apparently he forgot. I have a bad Hip and asked the hostess for a booth vs a hard seat chair. When we were next to be seated and no one else was waiting we were shown to a table. I asked to be seated at one of the TWO EMPTY BOOTHS and the young lady apologized and said she was unable to seat us there but we were welcome to wait for a booth. I could not get a rational explanation as to why, just that she couldnt. This made no sense. We took the table as we had waited 20 min. and shortly thereafter she seated parties in both of the aforementioned empty booths. I dont know what kind of seating system you have but it needs to be changed! The chips and salsa were outstanding. The taquitos were good but over cooked. All three of us thought the RED sauce was too strong and overpowering the flavors of the food. Too spicy as well. . We lived in Tulsa and Denver so you might forward this info to your Chef....we have experience with great Mexican food. Its a great location and nice ambiance but clearly you have some work to do to make it a really great Mexican Rest. for Burlington. Dave
CY
Cynthia Jane Burrill
The good: Nice decor although music should be much louder and margaritas were pretty good! They appeared to have a real skirt steak cut in fajitas, although by no means cooked to perfection. The manager on staff discounted our meal due to our honest answer about how we liked it, even though we said that was unnecessary. Needed mucho helpo: We ordered fajitas because we figured they couldnt mess that up, even this far from Texas. They succeeded in messing it up, however: 1) tortillas ice cold and only 4 per order, which we split between two people. 2) everything else seemed dead: no sizzling plate and even lettuce and guacamole was old. 3) definitely never order the shrimp here. 4) service ultra slow even though restaurant half empty on a Monday night . . . We swore after the last few times, never to go there again, but we gave in for a desperate attempt at Tex Mex cuisine in Vermont. We are now reconfirming our oath.
A
A Private User
Nine of us went for lunch. there was only one other table of three. Our food took forever. Then finally the waitress brought out 2 meals..........then we waited........and waited....then 2 more meals came out..after setting these down the waitress turns to a table of 3 that came in and started taking their order!!!! After a few minutes someone from the kitchen brought out our remaining meals. Mine was stone cold. I ordered the shrimp camaron taco .tasteless, and the taco barbacoa (slow roasted mystery meat). The barbacoa meat was mushy textured similar to something out of a cheap can of hash and the flavor forgetable. they were both served together on a plate the size of a cup saucer and the juices of each comingled around the plate sliming the taco. The taco had a funny off taste I have never had before. None of us will be going back.
AL
Alfonso Villegas
We came on a quiet Sunday afternoon. The chips are thick and crunchy. The salsa is nowhere near spicy. I recommend adding a bunch of the Cholula sauce they have on the table. Makes it way better. I had the taco salad and added carnitas. Fiancé had the El Gato burrito, with a margarita. Nephew had a quesadilla. The taco salad was not what I expected, but yummy and simple. The carnitas are pork morsels with a bit of a char. My nephew was very pleased with the quesadilla. I tried it, and it was good. The burrito was nice. Fiancé liked it, but thought the tortilla was too doughy. Nevertheless, it was good and had a bit of a spice. Last, the service was great. Rebecca served us. She was charming and on point. The drinks and orders were prompt and there were no mistakes.
A
A Private User
Our friends suggested we all try a "new" mexican restaurant. They called ahead and stated we would arrive at 7:30p.m. We arrived 20 minutes early and were never seated until 8:00p.m. The excuse was that there "wasnt a table right for us". Several groups small & large came in after us and we were the last seated. The only offering for the wait was a free guacamole dip ~ great but not all of us like guacamole dip. The waitress fawned over us the entire time ~ I wonder how the service would have been if we had been seated on time. Our friends were mortified that they had suggested the restaurant not to mention feeling badly for the wait (which was not their fault). The menu is quite limited. Needless to say, my husband and I will not every dine here again.
A
A Private User
El Gato is by far and away the best Mexican, if not any genre, food in Burlington. The atmosphere is great, as are the the staff members. Ignore the reviews who complain of the slow service - this is only a result of the highly sought after food. Also, the reviewer who made the comment about El Gato hiring COTS people and whatever else is totally wrong. This is not by any means the atmosphere created here, and I have no doubt the owner would never do anything like this. I assume this person is the owner of another local restaurant who El Gato is driving out of business. The special corn is amazing and definitely worth a try. Try El Gato! Youll love it.
DO
Donavan Aja
was expecting a real Mexican meal got one much worse than what taco bell could of served me.Had the enchilada plate was horrible mexican red sauce tasted like a barbecue sauce ,now the rice was really pathetic minute rice with a tasteless something on it minute rice ? come on now how pathetic I will never return here ever ,oh yea to top it off waitress screwed up order and really screwed up the check do your self a favor skip,miss,drive by,walk by but do not stop here to eat anything, oh yea the Margarita was as pahetic as the meal total waste of money and my time.Frozen mexican foods at price chopper are better and cheaper .Old El Paso now Rocks! .
