Garduno's Margarita Factory

05/24/08

Overpriced to pay for the oversize by Susan W. at InsiderPages

Contributor at Insider Pages

I have been to Garduno's several times and found the prices to be high for the quality of food. Definitely not the best Mexican in town - and very pricey.

04/23/08

best service, food and ambiance, all in one package

by stevebackofen at Citysearch

stopped in this amazing place last friday night, just by chance and was overwhelmed by the ambiance the food was terrific the wait staff and managers where very accomodating and helpful, food was very delicious and fresh, service was top notch. i would definitely recommend this place to all of our friends.

• Pros: live entertainment, speedy service, and friendly staff
• Cons: had to wait for a table

03/29/08

Out on the town...looking to impress...

by melville1812 at Citysearch

Took our family from California out for a night on the town. We really enjoyed the atmosphere. Great food...

02/09/08

Better off at Chevy's

by kris10mlwong at Citysearch

If you're on vacation, you're better off stopping to eat at Chevy's than Gardunos'. The food was not fresh off the buffet. The decor was hideous- like a vegas hotel with giant horses and psuedo-latin flair. We by chance stopped there since it looked like a big place but this was a poor choice. This place is for teens birthday parties and margaritas after work only.

• Pros: Convenience
• Cons: food, atmosphere

02/12/07

Mediocre chain Mexican - Awful Service

by sftravel at Citysearch

After seeing the rating of this restaurant on Citysearch on vacation - we were excited to try it out. The rating couldn't be farther off. The food was bland, standard Mexican - like any mall chain in America. But it was the Scottsdale service that really stood out - it was awful. The waiter dodged our questions and upsold us to a more expensive Margarita when we mentioned we wanted ice in the margarita - yes they charge extra for ice. He refused to tell us the price of maragaritas when directly asked, and when my wife ordered a happy hour maragarita from the bar - he happily charged us 75% more without a mention. Every request was either dodged, not answered or not fulfilled. Juan's frequent lame attempts to upsell our every move were sleazy and discouraging. This is not a restaurant we would recommend - nor return to. Juan #10290 also felt free to answer his cell phone on the dining floor and chat with other servers while / prior to taking our order. I've rarely received such awful service in any other restaurant in the U.S.A.

• Pros: The building was decorated nicely and parking at the strip mall was easy.
• Cons: Service, waiters, wait-staff, deceptive upsell policies, food, attitude.

09/07/06

Mexican Food Las Vegas-style

by wandjust at Citysearch

Garduno's is a huge restaurant, spacious, beautiful to look at. It reminds me of Las Vegas. Over the top, larger than life, lots of pretty things to look at, all the dazzling ambience helps create a nifty environment. It's an impressive space.

The food, while okay, doesn't remind me of anything but the kind of Mexican chain restaurants that serve the typical refried beans, rice, chips, salsa, chimichangas, etc. I've been there for regular meals, as well as the Sunday brunch. I've sampled quite an assortment of the food. Nothing I tried was bad, by any means. How can it be, with all that fat and cheese in it. But nothing really stood out in a way that could match the physical environment of the restaurant.

I thought the service was friendly each time, and the food, solid, good, okay. Nothing to write home about, but I would definitely take visitors and guests to Garduno's, just because it's so darn pretty.

• Pros: Beautiful restaurant, good service
• Cons: Food is ok, but nothing out of the ordinary

02/18/06

authentic at last

by cantinajohn at Citysearch

We found Gardunos by accident and what luck. The interior was amazing, hich ceilings painted with clouds and large horeses galloping across the sky.

We were greeted promptly and sat in a comfortable booth. The Margaritas were extensive in type and great tasting.

The best part was the food. It is hard to find authentic mexican food, all you get is bland beans and cheese cover with a so so sauce. This was just the oppisite. The food was flavorable with just the right amount of spice.

The service was above average. We loved it and will be back soon and often

• Pros: Great food, super margaritas, friendly staff
• Cons: hard to find , noisy

01/27/06

No way!

by sofia777 at Citysearch

The food was terrible!! Service was good and the best part about this place was the decor and margaritas, aside from that, I will never go back!

• Pros: Decor, Margaritas, Service
• Cons: Food

01/11/06

Worst Meal Ever

by jericoles at Citysearch

This was the worst meal I have ever had. We were told the wait would be 25 minutes. After 45 minutes, I asked the hostess how much longer it would be, and she said it would be another 25 minutes. After 45 minutes more (90 minutes total), we were finally seated. It took 30 minutes to get our food. Four of our meals were cold and two of them did not come as advertised on the menu. The food and service were terrible. The server in the bar was very good.

• Cons: Poor Service, Mediocre Food

07/04/05

Awesome Mexican Atmosphere--like Epcot

by stephie78 at Citysearch

We recently went to this great restaurant...really enjoyed it. As soon as you step in, you feel like you are almost at a themed event or something, reminded me of the restaurants at Epcot for Mexico...definitely gets an A+ for fun atmosphere, lighting, stucco walls, etc. It is sort of like the interior of Cheesecake Factory, but with a Mexican-styled theme. We were promptly seated, the staff was exellent, very friendly and thoughtful. The coconut margarita we ordered was AWESOME....the cheese enchaladas were too hot though, even with the milder green chiles and the food was average. This is a GREAT place to bring someone for a birthday, in fact while we were there the waiters came out and sang to someone with a huge, delicious looking birthday dessert. Yummm...great prices too.

• Pros: Inexpensive, Good parking, Atmosphere
• Cons: Taste not exceptional, Not very private, noisy at times

02/23/05

This place is great - must see!

by will_e_thompson at Citysearch

I was on a company trip to Scottsdale for Barrett-Jackson in January 2005 and saw this place on Citysearch, when my group of 6 co-workers were looking for a good place for some mexican cuisine. We found Garduno's, and we could not have been happier. The margaritas were incredible, with a huge selection. The food was impeccable, as was the service. We all enjoyed the atmosphere, including the all-female mariachi band. If I go back to Scottsdale again next year, I'm heading to Garduno's again. The bill was cheap, too!

• Pros: Great service, Great food, Great price