Critic's Review
I try to do thing this time of year that require really nice, low 80s weather, and going to Hollywood Beach when it's too hot or too cold is very unpleasant. I thought it was going to be one of those days, but it turned out getting up to 89 degrees and it was hotter than I expected.
I figured I'd better find an inside place with A/C to eat, but there aren't very many of those, and most of them are pretty shabby. So I settled on Mamacita's; they don't have A/C but they have those misting things along with some monster fans that will mess your hair but will keep a good breeze going also.
Most people were just having drinks outside, but I sat up in the "dining room". It's basically a tent, but it has an open-air feel and you can't complain about the view.
I ordered an Iced Tea; iced tea was made for 89 degree weather, and pondered the menu. A server brought me an can of Arizona; I didn't want a can of sugar. I sent it back and just got ice water. The menus that they have listed on their website and in various other places have nothing to do with the menu at the restaurant. I ordered a combo which consisted of a Chicken Enchilada, a Chile Relleno and a steak Taco for $13.95.
I sat for about 10 minutes, and then someone brought over some chips. Kind of strange to wait so long for chips. The salsa is hot; no choices here; not bad with fresh chips.
Music here is authentic Mexican; all in Spanish. Yo no se Manana, Grupo Carnaveral. Very festive. When they put the food down I though they had forgotten something.
I didn't detect the miniature chile relleno in the middle There was nothing outstanding or bad about the food; largely unseasoned; both the steak and chicken weren't seasoned and the chile relleno wasn't particularly cheesy. Overall it was plenty of food, maybe a tad overpriced but when you consider that you pay $5 for a bad hot dog at Jones Beach I can't complain about it.
When the server returned with my bill they didn't bring back the card. Other than that, a fairly eventless encounter.
Mamacita's. I wouldn't go out of my way to come here, but on this strip it's one of the better choices.