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Marcy Ave (J, M, Z)
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I haven't eaten here yet, but my roommate brought home a fish taco for me to try one night. Warmed up in the *microwave* it was one the best fish tacos I've ever had. Can't wait to dine there for myself and try it fresh.
7/26: 1: they don't deliver as stated here. 2: they ran out of fish on a weekend... sad. :(
I know it's closed, but i needed to get this in there:
$8.50 for guacamole with chips
$8.50 for guacamole with chips
$8.50 for guacamole with chips
that's all.
I feel like it's a pastime of people from California and the Southwest to complain about and tear apart all Mexican food on the East Coast. I don't deny them that right as I'm sure I could put everyone to sleep with my rants about all the "southern" restaurants in the city. So...I've never been to California for more than 12 hours, been once to the Phoenix airport, been to Dallas twice and have never been to Mexico. And I never ate "real" Mexican food during any of those brief vists. So my opinion of Bonita may not be worth much. But...I gotta tell you that the chiloquiles I had was fuggin' DELICIOUS! Just the right amount of spice, fresh onion, cilantro and queso fresco on top of perfectly scrambled eggs on top of tortillas soaked and baked in a ridiculous green sauce.
I'm as gringo as they come and I loved the living shit outta this brunch.
My GF got pancakes that came with a ramekin of chocolate sauce. Really good as well.
I dunno...I may not know Mexican food from my ass but I do know when delicious things are in my mouth and this was one of them.
Theoretically I can make a burrito
Theoretically the chef at Bonita can make a burrito
Realistically we got jipped.
A bland review about even blander food.
Thanks Bonita for keeping me full off of the Mole and Chips - Obviously Salt is the only spice you know ........Speaking of which can somebody pass it please...... and no no I don't want that tap water you're trying to pretend is filtered in that already opened glass bottle.......thanks ::fake smile::
Great atmosphere, really friendly service. The nachos are excellent and so's the sangria.
Last time I was there some crazy drunk girl came in yelling about bread and cheese. if you want those things, don't go there. It's a mexican food restaurant.
A south side Williamsburg Mexican eatery, which is unsurprisingly shuttering in mid-August. I've eaten here about 6 times, each time feeling satisfied but only to a point of being reminded that Taco Bell is Taco Bell and this is, well...something just above. The sparse menu does offer local and sustainable meats, and the burritos and tacos are an average meal. This place does best with it's specials, or just the fish tacos. A large burrito filled with any of the meats only rivals that of a Chipotle, albeit without the assembly-line watchdog effect.
The pricetag not too steep, this is a place that need not disappoint, but only if you're not just there to mourn the Taco Bell dog with a bit more humility.
I feel that if you're going to have only a few things on your menu then they better be great. We decided to have brunch here and no one was pleased with their food. I had the molletes which were nothing spectacular. My girlfriend and our friends had the burrito, enchiladas, and the tacos and they were all sub par. These are all simple dishes and they didn't even get that right! The pitcher of sangria was very small and they don't have a liquor license, so forget about asking for a margarita in a Mexican restaurant.
I would not waste my time with this place!
So, the food was good but really small portions and not worth the price.
I think they only had 2 or 3 waiters on that night. At least I hope that was the issue because our waitress was the worst.
It took a little while before anyone asked us if we wanted a table and then when we got one no one came around for about 10 mins. When the waitress finally did we asked if we could hear the specials and she said "oh you didn't get them yet" ...well obviously not, you're our waitress aren't you? and this is the first time you came over to us...so im going to go with no. Then she rattled the dishes off in spanish without explaining what they were. So we obviously weren't getting the speicals that night.
(I got the tostada [$7] and my friends got chicken taco and fish taco [im not sure of the price but I know it was something like $9 or $10? also you can get one itsy bitsy baby burrito for $11 or something. So stupid.)
Also, I ordered a second sangria that never came.
The waitress asked if I had gotten my drink yet (after about 15 mins of waiting) and I said no, and she said she would get it for me. I saw her walk by our table with a pitcher of sangria but she never brought me any. And then we were charged for that second sangria, of course.
all and all the it was tasty food but not worth the issues with the waitstaff. After my friends and I left we were obviously still hungry so we hit up the levee to alleviate our hunger pangs with their free cheese balls.
Bonita used to be an old favorite of mine. I love love love the manager. He is awesome. However, for the second time in the past 2 months I have called for a pick-up order and they told me they "aren't doing that tonight". It's pretty frustrating and I don't get it. La Superior will be getting more of my business I guess.
I do love their fish tacos and pork specials. It's unfortunate they are so undependable.
I had heard great things about Bonita's from a fellow Southern Californian, so perhaps my indifference to this restaurant was due to the slightly above average expectation to be slightly and somewhat blown away.
The ambiance worked. A little homey, but the music was way too loud and I am hard-of-hearing.
My friend ordered steak tacos and neither was she overjoyed nor disappointed.
I ordered a special for the evening, quesadilla de tinga de pollo, which is one of my favorite Mexican home-style dishes, along with tacos de rajas; both, when prepared with love, are simply tasty party-in-the-mouth events.
When the quesadilla appeared I was a little confused. A flour tortilla it was, stuffed with chicken, layered with a lot of shredded lettuce and sliced raw tomatoes.
The chicken tinga was watery. I could taste a bit of what makes tinga special, which is the combination of the smokiness of chipotle and tartness of tomato; however, it was a watered down version of it. I really do not understand the preparation either. It seems they just heated up a tortilla and stuffed it with the unnecessary overabundance of shredded lettuce, sliced raw tomato and heated chicken without even grilling it as a quesadilla.
The sangria was good. It was nothing special. Sangria is supposed to be a cheap way to get guests at a party drunk by using cheap wine, brandy and fruits. When I order it at a restaurant, I usually hope the traditional recipe is tweaked in some way by adding fruit besides, or in addition to, orange and lime, or throwing in a little fizzy seltzer or cava--kind of like a glorified tinto de verano. The sangria was fine, nothing special.
The service, too, was fine, but nothing special.
I will try this place again in the near future to see if it knocks down La Superior from its No. 1 position as my favorite sit-down Mexican restaurant in Williamsburg.
I miss Matamoros.
the music is so loud. it actually detracted from my enjoyment of the meal. My date even agreed with me.
look, if you either have to shout to get heard or whisper loudly into their ear, something is wrong. this isnt the club
the food is delicious and it specializes with eco friendly farms and farmers
we had appetizers and entrees-- no desserts. the food was FILLING
the menu is simple-- in a good way. more about food/flavor focused rather than bombard you with different choices
they have these SUPER cute little gum chews at the end of each meal. we ended up trying to launch them into each other's mouths. but that was a nice touch that was very cute and actually did make me feel a little less irritated by the UNUSUALLY LOUD MUSIC
Going to Bonita after 5 glasses of wine: dangerous. Mixing spicy food with that much alcohol is never a good idea. But that's my transgression, not theirs.
The ceviche de camerones was awesome (and spicy), but would have been better with pulpo. The plantain strips that came with the ceviche were crispy (and spicy). The pork nachos were tasty (and spicy)--they're no longer on the menu, but our waitress ordered them for us anyway. The guacamole might be the best restaurant guacamole I've ever had (and spicy), even without the tomatoes of my desires. The only non-spicy things that we had were the chips & the flan, come to think of it. I enjoy the spicy, but this was substantial.
Pretty good Mexican food. Friendly casual vibe. Portions are a bit small, but I'd argue that's a good thing (makes you feel less guilty about devouring a whole basket of tortilla chips).
I had the fish tacos which were pretty filling (lots of salad on top) with a tangy sauce. My friend had steak tacos which were good but skimpy.
Food is the idea itself, unaware of the world of phenomena, existing ideally outside the universe, apprehended not in Space but in Time only, and consequently untouched by the teleological hypothesis.
Nothing to be done.
very sad to hear Bonita is gone, so many good meals....
The service was great.
Best Flan EVER!
Maybe in this city this is considered good Mexican. Unfortunately, if you're used to good Mexican, you shouldn't bother with this. The truck that parks up the street is better than this. Chicken tacos were greasy and flavorless and had literally NOTHING on them besides the chicken and some sauce. Sour cream, cheese, lettuce, where are you? (I'll give you a hint: not in my tacos.)
The ambiance is great. The waitress who took our order was great; we were getting take out and she even offered me a glass of water while I waited. It's a lovely place. It's a shame that the food is sub-par and overpriced for what you get.
edit: forgot to mention that no sides come with your food. So you'd better be expected to pay if you want chips with your burrito.
Guacamole and Chips gets 5 stars. Nachos 5 stars. Everything else: 4 stars. Wait.... LIME AID: 5 stars!
It's reasonably priced, the fish tacos are amazing, the service is always good, the wait is usually not too long, the atmosphere is authentic, and you'd be hard pressed to find more authentic mexican in this city.
Mexican corn: AWESOME.
I'd give it 5 stars if it was a little cheaper, or didn't make me feel like I was going to burst after I ate it. I can't go here everyday because the food is SO heavy, and that's the only thing keeping it from having an extra star.
It's a place I love to take tourist friends and family, since it's so unique.
Bonita is now closed. You might try La Superior around the corner.
Went there for a late brunch and it was just okay. I had the chicken enchiladas, he had the chilaquiles with scrambled eggs. We shared an order of chips and guacamole.
Okay, the guacamole was really good. Awesome, in fact. And the chips were great and the service was sweet and prompt and the outdoor seating was cute, even if the nauseating smell of hot garbage kept wafting over. Hey, it's eating outside in the summer in New York--it's going to happen. You get over it.
But the red sauce they used on both the enchiladas and the chilaquiles was super oily, like scary oily, and not as spicy as I'd hoped. It was flavorful but not anything amazing. The enchiladas themselves were made right but I could have done with a side of rice and beans or something to soak up all that grease...
His chilaquiles seemed like a much better deal for the money and I think he liked them but overall, I wasn't terribly impressed. Maybe it's better if you come here for dinner, but Bonita isn't a place I would actively seek out. It's good for New York Mexican food but nothing special in the grand scheme of things.
Pork Tacos - A Haiku
Three little tacos
They are porky little things
But there's too much salt.
This is one of my MOST favorite restaurants in the 'hood. Sergio (the manager) is amazingly sweet and will take good care of you. The fish tacos are off the charts and the corn appetizer will make you weep its so yummy. I also love getting the chicken tostadas - eating one there and taking the other for lunch the next day ;)
Great sangria too.
Not your typical cheese induced rice and bean concoctions, so incredibly fresh!
I stopped by here on Saturday with 5 others for lunch. It was really cool that we were able to be seated right away as it had just started to rain in addition to it being quite humid for late September.
We all ordered either tacos or burritos (fish, chicken, pork)...and beers with our food. They also had Micheladas and Cheladas for a buck more than the beers were....I ordered a Chelada to help myself cool down since I sweat profusely....
My pork burrito was great and my lunch-mates also enjoyed their choices...I was also able to try my neighbor's beet salad which reminded me that I should eat beets more often...
There's nothing like the simple pleasure of good Mexican food and cold beer. The sole reason there isn't 5 stars is that I would've liked a choice of goat, lamb, tongue or something in that vein in addition to the three choices listed above.
I'm originally from Texas so I'm kind of a Mexican food snob. Bonita isn't 100% authentic but it is pretty darn good! Got it for lunch today for all the people at my work and we all enjoyed it. I got the veggie burrito which was big. My boss got the veggie tacos and said they are the best. The salad also looked really good.
My work decided that we might have to make a once-a-week trip to Bonita because the prices are in our budget, the portions are big, and the food is cooked fresh and ready fast.
No delivery right now, but I think they are going to do that soon.
If Bonita were a real person, she would be a beautiful Mexican girl with thick flowy brown hair, rolling out fresh tortillas, hand-grinding mole by the sea shore ... I think I'm in love with Bonita. I think of her everyday but I know I should resist ... *jealous bf alert*
My fave Mexican spot in Williamsburg (and possibly the whole of New York - I like it better than La Esquina and Mercadito) ... As staples, I look forward to eating their corn, enchiladas and tacos. The taco soup ain't bad either - a lime-y chicken soup that is both comforting and zingy. Brunch items are equally tasty and you should not be scared to order their specials as they have hardly ever disappointed.
All in all, Bonita provides me with the *spritz*, the limey, refreshing goodness I need once in a while. If you need that spritz too, Bonita is your woman.
soleeeeed, but can't say it was the best ever, decent for NY i s'pose.
my first michelada...think there was some cholula in there, YUM
had the (roasted) chicken in a green sauce w/ rice & beans & tortilla on the side. not a typical version but forgot the name. huge portions, very saucy. finger lickin.
grilled corn w/ cheese & hot sauce, cannot miss w/ this. BYO floss.
white sangria was just ok.
It's hard to write an objective review when the manager looks like your mom and the food reminds you of grandma's home cooking....
Bonita delivers simple and delicious comida for decent prices. Home-made tortillas. Great moles. Fresh chunky guacamole, awesome fish tacos and amazing huevos rancheros! The salsa verde is divine. Oh and the lime soup... Order a michelada! Yummy.
Sorry I'll stop gushing now. I can't help it. Now I'm starving.
Hadn't been to a Bonita in an age despite living 1 block from it. The past few times I have been, I found the food very bland and not worth enduring the atrocious youngun loser patrons this place attracts.
Anyhow, I tried it last night after a long absence and ya know what... it was really yummy. We had the old fave- guac and chips. Guac was good and actually had a little kick. Very Nice. I had the special, Chile Rellenos- a green pepper roasted with pork, rice and veggies inside. It was super flavorful and I loved it. They had some super crazy specials going on.... baby goat slow cooked in a bag? Woah. The friends had fish tacos- which used to be my standard. I sampled them last night- very good.
They source their meat (i believe they buy live animals) from a local sustainable farm and use this for the restaurants in the Diner mini empire. This is a huge plus in my book. I will go back.
note: again- there is no full bar. Folks don't seem to know what a full bar means here on Yelp. They have beer and wine only (try the sangria).
I actually feel a little bad giving any place a one-star review, but Bonita deserves it. And I'm specifically giving them that review based on their horrible, watered down, over-priced sangria, the fact that they do not provide chips like every good Mexican restaurant in NYC and their tiny, flavorless, boring tacos.
My full review on Tacos Por Vida: http://tacosporvida.wo...
I know there are 60 reviews, but the haters write so well that it's important to balance them out.
Listen up haters, I know it's probably not the authentic amazing mexican meal you had during your stoned mezcal hazey days working with the zapatistas (or helping the government raise bonds) - whatever, it's pretty yummy for the price.
Sweet salsas - verde, a super smoky red, and an uber spicy pickely mixed one. Cocktails with a serious kick and best of all - the Michelada - which is like a beer bloody mary (beer, lime juice, salt, horseradish, pepper, secret stuff).
The prices are pretty decent and we took four friends here who can be foodier than thou and all of them were delighted to get tanked and eat some serious brunch. It's hard to really stand out at brunch - I mean huevos are huevos - but there special broth poached eggs are pretty unbelievable.
So stop hating and accept that your waitress is a cute soon to be rockstar/graphic novelist waitress and your taco is $4 more than it is at the back of the deli and enjoy! it's a pretty gd place to eat - and after all the trouble you had in chiappas, you deserve a good michelada today.
The quest for good Mexican food on the East Coast never ends... but we've always had decent luck in Brooklyn. Stopped by Bonita for post-beer lunch, and maybe it was because we were famished, but the food was pretty good. I ordered the $9 pork tacos (recommended by our waiter) and the meat was real tender and tasty. We did try the $4 Mexican corn, which was a little too charred.. decent but I'd probably not get it again (not when there is far superior corn at Cafe Habana for almost half the price). The beans didn't look cooked enough, nor were the plantains, but the pork made up for it. Everyone else seemed happy with their burritos, and with the meal averaging at around $15 a person, hey that's not bad at all.
Nice chill vibe as well. And they have my fave grapefruit soda. Yes, they do.
It's mexican but its classy. It's huge, but affordable. It's small but comfortable. And it's delicious. Please try the mole, and the pork burritos, and the guacamole, and the carne asada. Oh and the chicken and lime soup, and fish tacos...okay try everything.
Damn I haven't been there in a while. This is making my mouth water.
Dear Pico de Gallo,
You are no salsa.
Please stop showing up on menus as salsa.
Thank you.
Your Bestie,
Sara*
Ouch! Went there recently and the service was pathetic and un-organized. Our food sat under a lamp for about twenty minutes. The waitress completely forgot about us.
Been there other times and the food has always been average. The atomsphere is cool (so long as the service is not life-ruining).
There will be no reason to go here once San Loco opens up.
so bonita has been a favorite mexican joint for a long time. their fish tacos are fantastic. clean and surprisingly light for fried fish. they have a deft hand at supplying full-flavored food without the accompanying weight of most mexican. the pork burrito is an exercise in simplicity- flour tortilla, pork, beans, a little cheese- it is exactly what it should be.
in the neighborhood round-up of mexican restaurants, the new mesa coyoacan edges it out in flavor, but this stand-by is still solid and better than almost any other mexican food in the city- it still shames dos caminos and rosa mexicana.
I lived in Colorado for the past 10 years - home to a gazillion immigrants from Mexico, and therefore also home to a ridiculous bounty of great Mexican food. I have very high standards for Mexican food, and I thought Bonita was good, but overpriced.
I had fish tacos ($7.50 for 2 tacos, nothing on the side) which were tasty, but how hard are fish tacos to screw up? Not that hard, really. I mean the problem is, the menu only has about 12 items and they're all really basic. Chicken burrito? Not hard to screw up. The flavors were good - possibly a little on the bland side, especially concerning heat. I didn't have anything, from the salsa to the tacos, that was the slightest bit hot.
I asked our server if the Chile Rellenos were crispy or soft (there are 2 very distinct types) and she looked at me like I was crazy and told me they were "lightly sauteed in a pan". What does that mean? Do they crunch or not? So I went with the fish tacos.
On the whole, it was tasty and the service was good. I guess I have to get over the concept of the amazing cheap Mexican food that I'm used to from Colorado.
Randomly ended up here on a road trip (which didn't involve NYC really)...
I don't have a lot of Mexican experience in NYC, I've always been told to avoid it (especially coming from Chicago, where we have a larger Mexican population and thus more good Mexican, apparently.).
The menu... very small, limited. There was a chalkboard of specials but I didn't bother to read it once I sat down because I couldn't... Entree-wise the menu consists of basically tortas, burritos, and tacos. I decided on a pork burrito. Friends' fish tacos looked really good.
The pork in the burrito was pretty decent. It was more square than rectangular/burrito shaped, but I like to eat my burritos with a fork anyway so that worked out well. It was $10, with no sides. I'd consider that above average in price from any other taqueria I've seen in my life, though this one is decidedly more hipster and gringo-friendly too. No chips and salsa given out at tables... No horchata. No iced tea, for that matter. Iced coffee though, was good.
I like the open kitchen.
Didn't have to wait and service was pretty good for us.
Chorizo, burrito, bonita! Sit at the counter and watch the extremely talented short order cook flip nachos sauteing in verde salsa while her help presses corn tortillas in the tortilla-press that looks a 100 years old. Sunday morning brunch here is fantastic if you've got the time to wait. It's not a great place for big groups, as there isn't much room or staff. I will be going back, and bringing friends to enjoy the food!
Bonita is steadily going downhill.
When I first started eating here 2 years ago, I thought I was in love. The have delicious Mexican corn, guacamole, my favorite beer, SOL.
They change the menu very rarely (which can be good and bad depending how you look at it) and the service is what really gets me down. It's turning into another flighty hipster disaster. Where you don't get recognized as sitting down for at least 10 minutes and good luck trying to get another beer when you've drained your first one.
The layout is pissing me off too. Those long tables where you're forced to sit cafeteria style with people you don't know. Maybe I'm just getting picky in my old age, but this isn't the venue it used to be....
One of my favorite spots in Brooklyn, I enjoy everything about Bonita. If you don't mind sitting very close to strangers, you'll enjoy the atmosphere. Everyone is very friendly, especially the wait staff, who are always great and attentive.
Obviously the main reason this is one of my favorites is because of the food. Guacamole? Delicious. Pico De Gallo? Delicious. Chicken and Fish burritos? Fantastic. Enchiladas? Yes... also delicious.
One warning, be careful of the hot sauce on the table. I tend to like spicy food and tried a decent amount of one of them (not the red, not the green, the other one). I did not enjoy it. Unbelievably hot.
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