Cantina Southwestern Grill - Layton

Occasionally, an experience at a dining establishment is so poor that it motivates an individual to spend the time to write a review, in the hope that it will help others avoid the bad experience. First of all, if you haven't visited this restaurant, the food is sub-par by any standard beyond fast food Mexican. If you have eaten anything authentic, anything from California or Texas, or any of the good restaurants in salt lake (Red Iguana, Lone Star Taqueria, or even Cafe Rio, etc)...don't bother considering this place. There is no flavor to the dishes, no spice, nothing unique...its just bland and disappointing. Second, the prices are OUTRAGEOUS. Fajitas, which don't have close to the amount of meat you would get anywhere else (even Chilis) are $19! The simple burrito plates and taco plates vary from $12 to $16. If they are going to charge high end prices, they need to actually back it up with some good food. In the part I was in, I tried fajitas, burritos, tacos, and enchiladas...the results were consistently poor. Our meal for our family of five was $71 before tip. Be prepared for that. Last, they engage in some pretty interesting practices not listed or spelled out anywhere on the menu. Namely, the number of entrees at the table must match the number of people. If not, you will be charged for an extra entree if everyone ate chips and salsa. This was told to us after everyone was eating chips and salsa. There is no price listed for chips and salsa so, believe it or not, you will pay full price for a kids entree if your 2 year old eats a single chip but doesn't have a meal for themselves! Please do yourself a favor, save yourself some money and head over to Cafe Rio or Chipotle, the food is better tasting and much more affordable.

Occasionally, an experience at a dining establishment is so poor that it motivates an individual to spend the time to write a review, in the hope that it will help others avoid the bad experience. First of all, if you haven't visited this restaurant, the food is sub-par by any standard beyond fast food Mexican. If you have eaten anything authentic, anything from California or Texas, or any of the good restaurants in salt lake (Red Iguana, Lone Star Taqueria, or even Cafe Rio, etc)...don't bother considering this place. There is no flavor to the dishes, no spice, nothing unique...its just bland and disappointing. Second, the prices are OUTRAGEOUS. Fajitas, which don't have close to the amount of meat you would get anywhere else (even Chilis) are $19! The simple burrito plates and taco plates vary from $12 to $16. If they are going to charge high end prices, they need to actually back it up with some good food. In the part I was in, I tried fajitas, burritos... read more

I went to this place because my boyfriend saw that the reviews were so great, and we were just looking for somewhere to get some good Mexican food in Layton. We are both from Boise, and came down for the weekend for a relaxing weekend. At first everything seemed nice, and great but it very quickly was completely mortifying and belittling from both our waiter and the manager himself. I ordered a margarita and my boyfriend got a beer. I'm 23 in two weeks. As soon as I was ID'd he went to a rant about how young I looked, how Idaho was a hick town because we used to have a drinking law for 19 and over a long time ago, and how Utah had their own law about people born in 92' or 91' (he couldn't remember which). He took my ID and I at first went with it because I didn't want to make it a thing. His manager comes out and starts quizzing me on the personal information on my ID, and makes me feel like a criminal for simply ordering a margarita. I've never had any issues this bad that I was unwilling to stay at a restaurant for the service, or even necessarily the food. I would never give money to a place that is making up their own laws, but mostly somewhere that makes the customer feel that they are being belittled. This was taken too far, and then some. Lastly, I say "making up their own laws," because oddly enough an employee at our hotel, who has upheld a liquor license with proper training in Davis County for 12 years, was not only surprised to hear about this, but also recommended we seek a complaint higher up and also said that she questioned going to or recommending Cantina to any other hotel patrons.

I went to this place because my boyfriend saw that the reviews were so great, and we were just looking for somewhere to get some good Mexican food in Layton. We are both from Boise, and came down for the weekend for a relaxing weekend. At first everything seemed nice, and great but it very quickly was completely mortifying and belittling from both our waiter and the manager himself. I ordered a margarita and my boyfriend got a beer. I'm 23 in two weeks. As soon as I was ID'd he went to a rant about how young I looked, how Idaho was a hick town because we used to have a drinking law for 19 and over a long time ago, and how Utah had their own law about people born in 92' or 91' (he couldn't remember which). He took my ID and I at first went with it because I didn't want to make it a thing. His manager comes out and starts quizzing me on the personal information on my ID, and makes me feel like a criminal for simply ordering a margarita. I've never had any issues... read more

Occasionally, an experience at a dining establishment is so poor that it motivates an individual to spend the time to write a review, in the hope that it will help others avoid the bad experience. First of all, if you haven't visited this restaurant, the food is sub-par by any standard beyond fast food Mexican. If you have eaten anything authentic, anything from California or Texas, or any of the good restaurants in salt lake (Red Iguana, Lone Star Taqueria, or even Cafe Rio, etc)...don't bother considering this place. There is no flavor to the dishes, no spice, nothing unique...its just bland and disappointing. Second, the prices are OUTRAGEOUS. Fajitas, which don't have close to the amount of meat you would get anywhere else (even Chilis) are $19! The simple burrito plates and taco plates vary from $12 to $16. If they are going to charge high end prices, they need to actually back it up with some good food. In the part I was in, I tried fajitas, burritos, tacos, and enchiladas...the results were consistently poor. Our meal for our family of five was $71 before tip. Be prepared for that. Last, they engage in some pretty interesting practices not listed or spelled out anywhere on the menu. Namely, the number of entrees at the table must match the number of people. If not, you will be charged for an extra entree if everyone ate chips and salsa. This was told to us after everyone was eating chips and salsa. There is no price listed for chips and salsa so, believe it or not, you will pay full price for a kids entree if your 2 year old eats a single chip but doesn't have a meal for themselves! Please do yourself a favor, save yourself some money and head over to Cafe Rio or Chipotle, the food is better tasting and much more affordable.