Cantina Carnitas

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#47 of 150 Restaurants in Hitchin£, Mexican, Vegetarian friendly

+44 1462 423686+ Add website

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Hours

Tue

15:00 - 21:00

Wed

15:00 - 21:00

Thu

15:00 - 21:00

Fri

15:00 - 21:00

Sat

9:00 - 21:00

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Ratings and reviews

4.0

128 reviews

#47 of 150 Restaurants in Hitchin

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

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PRICE RANGE

£5.00 – £20.00

CUISINES

Mexican

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options

meals, features

Location and contact

31 Bucklersbury, Hitchin SG5 1BG England

+44 1462 423686

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Is this a Mexican restaurant?

Yes

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About

Founded on Bucklersbury in 2011 – Cantina Carnitas saw two guys with a big idea and even bigger appetites for burritos establish their very own Mexican street food adventure. We are passionate about creating amazing food with authentic and fresh produce. Combine this with a relaxed, friendly environment and you have what Cantina is all about. From everyone involved at Cantina – we hope you enjoy our life-changing burritos and humanitacos.

PRICE RANGE

£5.00 – £20.00

CUISINES

Mexican

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner, Drinks

FEATURES

Takeout, Seating, Serves Alcohol, Table Service, Gift Cards Available

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4.0

128 reviews

Excellent

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Average

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Terrible

Mike T

Hitchin68 contributions

Great Mexican food at very reasonable prices

Oct 2020 • none

We ordered online using the Burrito club, easy to use with time slots if you order before midday. Food arrived on time burritos were great and very large, sides really good especially the chips. We really enjoyed the meal delivered on time to our home at a very reasonable price for the 5 of us so can highly recommend.

Written 17 October 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Yum

1 contribution

Quality in decline

Oct 2020 • solo

I have used Cantina Carnitas for almost a year now and the food at the start was lovely. The chips were crispy and had a nice spicy powder on them that added great flavour to an already nice chip. The chicken and other ingredients were great and I never worried about receiving any ‘bad bits’. Unfortunately, the quality of product in my opinion has decreased in recent times. This may be due to the opening up of a new kitchen to meet higher demand, but it seems with this growth the quality is diminishing. It appears to be so hit and miss now, on the odd occasion you receive the lovely food that brought you to Cantina’s, however, increasingly I find myself being disappointed. The chips are now thinner and not cooked crispy and the nice spicy powder appears a thing of the past. The chips were lovely and golden with very minimal black and green bits of potato on show, but now the chips seem riddled with them. The price of the food itself is rather high, which I did not mind paying for the quality, but I now find myself out of pocket by £4 for a box of chips that is sometimes barely half full. In terms of the burrito, I find myself checking every mouthful of the chicken now as I have had some hard and stringy bits in some recent ones and this is quite off putting. If you’re looking for a Mexican takeaway that has the potential to be great then Cantina’s is the one. However, I would suggest that they take some time to reflect on the quality of food they are providing during this period of expansion as this is what made them so popular in the first place and I feel is being lost.

Written 7 November 2020

AvidEater

4 contributions

Amazing Food- Awkward Service

Aug 2020 • couples

My boyfriend and I stopped in to Cantina Carnitas for a bite to eat and were welcomed by a really friendly member of staff. We ordered, left for 15 mins and I returned to collect. Unfortunately, upon collection- with the kitchen windows open due to the heat- I could hear the kitchen staff very clearly explain how our order of miniburritos meant we were getting “ripped off” and that despite the servers intervention of “but her and her boyfriend are happy” was met with “well tell her and her childish boyfriend to grow up”. Whilst I appreciate this was all in jest I found the experience awkward and unprofessional. As always however, amazing food- just a reminder to close those kitchen windows or be mindful of customers waiting just outside them.

Written 7 August 2020

Robo

2 contributions

Be warned, new cowboys on the block

Oct 2020 • couples

I tried ordering with these yahoo's through 'Just Eat' for 2 people just after 10.30 this morning. After initially accepting my order for delivery at 12.40 I sat down with the other half highly anticipating a lovely Mexican for lunch. 20 mins before said delivery I recieved a rather un-welcomed text that told me that my order had be cancelled, no explanation, no nothing? I decided to contact the restaurant directly using the gmail response service. A little while later I recieved a short, abrupt rather rude reply telling me that they couldn't fulfil my order due to them being 'under staffed'. No offer of a later time slot nor any invitation to visit them at a later date. A word of advice from a potential customer. If you can't be bothered to take a not so cheap/substantial order from new customer don't waste said customers time by advertising food you don't have through Just Eat. Rant over.

Written 30 October 2020

hornby76

Hitchin159 contributions

Amazing Mexican Food

Jun 2020 • none

There really isn't enough words to say how tasty this food is. We had the Burrito, Nachos and a Bowl. All were epic in size and taste. Can recommend! You can eat in or get take out via Just Eat or directly (they deliver). Note, because it is so amazing you often find it books up through Just Eat. SO book early, book direct.... You can also buy their sauces via their website!

Written 13 June 2020

Stassie ZK

1 contribution

Not a Mexican cuisine actually

Sept 2021 • couples

We’re just back from Cantina Carnitas. Honestly, this was the most disappointing Mexican I’ve tried and I’ve tried enough to be able to compare. I’ve had Mexican cooked by Mexicans, US American chefs in San Diego, other Mexican restaurants in Europe and this just didn’t taste Mexican. The main ingredients were there. The chicken was mushy, not crispy. The tomatoes for the guacamole were too watery, the guacamole itself has acidic aftertaste - still in my mouth btw. The sour cream wasn’t actually cream but some white unidentifiable sauce. The garden atmosphere was nice and before tasting the food I’d been planning to organise a birthday party here. My husband liked his burrito as he was hungry but admitted it’s not real Mexican. After the failure with the tacos I ordered nachos to finish my wine with and to check if the taste will be better. Nope. The same sloppiness. Besides, the portion of nachos is 1/3 of what people usually serve when they say nachos. Not coming back here. Prefer Taco Bell actually.

Written 25 September 2021

jay b

37 contributions

Not the best

Feb 2021 • couples

For 9 quid my burrito was small. The chicken inside was large chunks. It lacked guacamole and cheese. The flavour was OK but not the best. The naked burrito was Better with clearly more guac and cheese. However, it did taste like a home made burrito (not in a good way) from a random place like a chip shop. As a adult male this did not fill me up, IMO tortilla and el picante are better options. El picantes burritos are probably twice the weight of this one albeit a bit of a drive.

Written 13 February 2021

Kate P

Hitchin5 contributions

Slightly disappointing

Feb 2022 • family

Our reservation, which had been made in person on-site two weeks before, wasn't in the diary, however we were seated immediately but only because there were spare tables. Service was slow throughout the evening, and drinks that were ordered didn't arrive. One of my mushroom tacos was so acidic as to be inedible and my beef taco 'caramelized' on the underside to the point of a bitter burnt taste. The brownie dessert was a pleasant enough rich cake, but absolutely not a brownie, and with no accompaniment - no cream or ice cream. We've had much better here on previous occasions.

Written 2 February 2022

Miles2run

Kimbolton1 contribution

Amazing service with attentive

Sept 2020 • none

Amazing service with attentive and knowledgable staff. The decor is spot on and the garden really well done for the type of food being served. Then there’s the food. A poster on the wall boast “life changing burritos”. So it must be great right? I mean, life changing great. Nope. Pretty far from it actually. The sharing tacos all looked identical, just a brown paste of meat and a garnish of onion and chopped herbs. The burrito was a bland mash of beef, rice, red cabbage, avocado and beans with a ghost chilli mayo. No salt apparently though. No heat neither. No real flavour from any of those elements actually, just a homogeneous mash of things not really doing each other any favours. I was so excited to try this place and as a head chef myself, had pretty high expectations I suppose, but this was so far removed from anything “life changing” that I could possibly imagine. Come on guys! You got the location, you got the decor nailed!, you got the service and the staff perfect. Taste your food, season it and don’t be afraid of a little chilli! This could be so so much better. The margaritas were spot on though.

Written 10 September 2020

Burger2013

St Ippolyts37 contributions

Average but potential to be great

Apr 2022 • friends

I’ve had a takeaway from here and now also eaten in. I love the style of restaurant and menu is great. It’s just a shame that the fillings of the burritos are luke warm which really lets it down and the food needs more attention to the flavours/spices . The service in the restaurant also isn’t great with mardy table staff, which is a shame as the general atmosphere of the restaurant is pretty cool. It has the potential to be great but they really need to work on a couple of bits to bring it up from average.

Written 17 April 2022

Joe

Stevenage17 contributions

In & out in under 30.

Nov 2022 • friends

First of all I don’t tend to write bad reviews based on service as I’ve been in the hospitality industry for 10 years and don’t normally agree with the stick some servers get, however I’ve decided to make an exception for this one. I’ve been to this restaurant about 5 times and always had a great experience hence the extra star but this review is solely based on my recent experience which is certainly a strong 0 star. I’d like to point out that the food is absolutely stunning. Best Mexican food for miles and very well priced…. But that’s where the positives end abruptly. Recently I went on a Sunday lunchtime and have never received service like it. We booked a couple hours before arriving which was an hour before they closed (bare in mind they’re only open for 4 hours in total). We was greeted by a girl at the till who seemed in disgust that we only booked a couple hours prior and told us repeatedly that she could seat us as long as we ordered immediately. The fact she knew we had a booking makes me wonder that if it was such an inconvenience for them why didn’t we get a call prior saying they weren’t willing to accept us… would’ve certainly saved us the trip to Hitchin. So before my friend had even taken her jacket off we’re rushed for an order. Good job I know the world of Mexican food fairly well so I didn’t need to look at the menu for more than 6 seconds. Needless to say I let this slide as I’m not normally one to complain, I just simply don’t go back. The second part is the reason I forced myself to actually write this review. While we were eating our server couldn’t get out the building quick enough, she could train for the olympics with that speed. She was stacking all the chairs, moving tables, sweeping under our feet and just constantly looking at our table to see if we’ve finished (bare in mind the food only arrived 5 minutes prior). If only the service was normally this fast, the only difference being their motivations coming from their shift finishing soon. In and out in under 30 minutes which I must say is a Mexican meal scoffing record for me. The service is always questionable however this time it was appalling and I couldn’t believe how inconvenienced the staff seemed and how fast we were ushered to order and leave. Joe

Written 29 November 2022

Annie C

2 contributions

Used to be our favourite but seems to have lost what it had

Jan 2023 • couples

This used to be a favourite of ours but I’m not sure what’s happened, it seems to have totally lost what it had. I guess there are new staff since I last visited, which is fine, but the management clearly haven’t inducted them well as they had no clue what the new menu items were/how they compare to the standard menu, and some seemed to lack any hospitality / customer service skills. One server in particular was talking to customers about her terrible day and how there was a disaster in the kitchen the second someone had sat down- it is a really inappropriate way to communicate with customers inside a small restaurant when all customers can overhear you. One customer had to ask her why she was shouting when she knelt down next to their table and started chatting to them mid meal (for no apparent reason). She was being unnecessarily loud and condescending to customers, and having read another review regarding a member of staff being condescending and calling people darling I knew it is the same server who ruined the atmosphere this evening as I felt exactly the same. There is also apparently no alcohol for two weeks to which there was no communication prior, although we was told we should have got a message, which is contradictory to an Instagram post announcing new specials with cold beers and new margaritas? I then had to tell the server they sell virgin margaritas when he seemed confused what I was asking for, as it is on the menu and I have had them before. He was very polite and I felt bad he has been clearly thrown into working without being properly briefed on the menu. The new Birria quesadilla was lovely but very small- I had asked if this is the same size as the regular quesadillas and was told it would be, so was left hungry and having overheard there was a disaster in the kitchen I didn’t feel like ordering anything more substantial. My partners burrito was cold when we got it having waited quite a while for the food. It is a shame as the great vibe which this place had just isn’t there anymore.

Written 13 January 2023

Matthew B

Thank you for your detailed review highlighting a number of issues that you encountered on Friday evening. I look forward to sharing this with the team so we can go forward positively and ensure they have the confidence and knowledge on the restaurant floor. Kind regards Matt Bean

Written 15 January 2023

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Rachel Smth

4 contributions

Disappointed

Sept 2022 • friends

Honest review, I came here a few weeks ago really excited, and felt really let down, presentation and look of the food is amazing, it looks like it’s going to taste amazing but it really didn’t. The fried chicken had absolutely no flavour to it, I don’t know whether we went on a bad day but sadly I wouldn’t bother returning to find out, both the chicken and fish in batter was so plain compared to other local fried foods chicken George, favourite fried chicken, due to the no flavour in the meat/ fish most of the tacos tasted the same as the sauces were so similar, I would of liked to try the burritos to see if they were any different but I doubt it, chips also just shop brought mccains as I saw one of the guys coming out the basement with them, not great. I feel if they improved the flavours it could be a great place!

Written 2 September 2022

Swifty1973

Letchworth Garden City3 contributions

No concept of customer service

Oct 2022 • family

Placed order via GoGetters who’s front page proudly advertises ‘Cantina is Back!’. Sadly, this does not appear to be the case, as having placed my order in the morning, I received a late afternoon update, advising ‘we have had a call from Cantina to tell us they will not be open for deliveries with us this evening’. Not the first time I have had issues placing delivery order with this restaurant (last time direct). Suffice to say, won’t be bothering again. Plenty of other eateries in Hitchin, who understand the concept of customer service!

Written 15 October 2022

Emma C

1 contribution

Waited over an hour and we were forgotten.

Aug 2023 • couples

We've been here a lot and we absolutely love the food. However this time was absolutely awful. We ordered at 7pm and didn't get our food until after 8. The restaurant was not busy, we were told they had a lot of go-getters deliveries to do, which I understand. However we then found out that our order had not even been put in their system so we had waited that long for no reason. After all this we did get our food which was good as usual, but we asked for a 10% discount since we were forgotten about and the waitress told us her supervisor said no. This would be a tiny discount of under a fiver and would have been enough to get us to come back and try again. Unfortunately, due to the greed of this supervisor they have lost two loyal customers. The waitress was very stressed and overworked, we told her that none of this was her fault. We will find somewhere else next time.

Written 3 August 2023

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