Red Mesa Grill-Traverse City

Happy hour and food is amazing. Happy hour Mon-Friday 3-5 😋

Atmosphere: 5

The happy hour margarita was so good I took a little salt on my lip home with me lol.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The restaurant was clean and inviting, and the staff were friendly. We also liked the homemade tortilla chips (at least we think they were homemade) — they were good.

Unfortunately, the rest of our experience was disappointing. We had a party of five but were sat at a cramped four-top table, with my chair stuck at the end. We had to move stuff off the table to make room.
This was uncomfortable, especially once all the dishes arrived. The restaurant wasn’t busy and had plenty of other tables available, which made it more frustrating.

Service was slow, though our waitress was kind and attentive — it was clearly the kitchen that held things up. On top of that, we had to pay extra for chips and salsa, which are usually complimentary at most Mexican restaurants. The salsa itself tasted store-bought. My son’s beef taco had the texture and flavor of leftover pot roast, and my chimichanga was soggy, with chicken that was dry and bland. The rice was not good (I've had better from a box), and the refried beans had a strange smoked flavor. The guacamole tasted old.
The other dishes were not good either.

To make matters worse, an employee was sweeping the floor with a broom right next to diners while people were still eating — very unappetizing.

This was NOT authentic Mexican food, and sadly it was the worst I’ve ever had. This was not a inexpensive dinner either. For the total cost, we expected much better. The food quality and overall value just weren’t there. Unfortunately, we won’t be returning.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 1

Service: 3

Pretty disappointed with the food and service. I got fish tacos and they should have called salsa tacos. I doubt there was an ounce of fish between the two tacos. No one checked back after serving our food which is a 10% downgrade in tip right off the bat for me. Don’t bother with this place. There’s much better places in town.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Has always been one of our favorites. Had the beef enchiladas last night. It wasn’t edible,

This place used to be one of our favorite upnorth restaurants. It was horrible. You no longer ger free chips and salsa. The waitress was rude. The food was bad. I had heart burn all night. I love spicy Mexican food, and I used to love this place. No longer on my list of restaurants to go to. The salsa is still very good, but now you need to pay for it.

So delicious! Would definitely go back. Marg, queso, salsa and meal were all great!

Food: 5

Recommended dishes: Steak, Queso, Salsa and Chips

Great food. Great service.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Waitress was irritated upon our arrival. Sat at the bar…. A cockroach crawled across the bar toward me. Good was cold and bland.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

The food was your average mex food. Not as good as I remembered. Disappointing overall. The hostess was clueless - she clearly did not want to be there. Cleared tables sat empty for 20 min as the lobby was packed with people waiting. They were understaffed. We did not see a waitress. The bartender took our order and did a great job. He was hustling all night for sure.,

Food was to be expected at any good local Mexican restaurant. Service was very good.

Pretty good food. I had the shrimp and Chorizo enchiladas. Nice spin on enchiladas. I also ordered the fried ice cream. Beware, it has jalapeños in the chocolate sauce but it was very good. 2-4 people can share it. I was by myself and there was plenty of seating, but I was informed that there would be a 35 minute wait. It was a Monday night! I felt like the host at the door was giving long wait times to discourage persons from staying. 12 people came in while I waited my 20 minutes and 9 of them left because she told them that the wait was 45 minutes plus.

Fun dining experience with outstanding service and vegetarian food selection. Yummy homemade chips. Generous portions.

Great place to eat!

Our waitress was not very friendly, but the place overall seemed to have an okay vibe. There was a ton of dust and cobwebs hanging from the decoration above the table that was super offputting. Of our party of three, the only good dish was the steak quesadilla. The Carribean shrimp tacos were bland, and the carribean chicken quesadilla had more pineapple than actual meat. The reso margarita was warm and had an off taste that was likely from the warm sour mix. I'd maybe give it another try for fajitas or something i knew was cooked fresh, but it did not hit the spot the first night we got into town.