Pancho Gringo
- Nearest Transit:
-
137th St (1)
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
2 reviews for Pancho Gringo
I went to Pancho Gringo last night, expecting to eat at Talay....I was very confused from the beginning as all the Talay signs are still there, but next to them there are sombreros, avocados....and a cheap plastic poster with the name Pancho Gringo.....me and my friend decided to try it after seeing from the menu that there was no more Talay there....
The food was ok, nothing excellent or that made me want to come back, it's what you could get for way cheaper price from any mexican restaurant in the neighborhood....
After dinner we moved to the bar, we asked the bartender what cocktail he would suggest....and we get served with basically a fruit punch.....
ok then we see a lot of people coming in and going upstairs, so we asked what's going on upstairs and they tell us they have a very nice club!
ok we decide to take a look upstairs then..........
it's very confusing, we didn't understand if the club and the restaurant are the same place or not....we tried to go upstairs but bumped into 3 staff members...well...far from professional and very confused themselves! first we are told to leave our coats at the coat check because they don't have one upstairs...so we tell them we just had dinner here and wanted to take a look upstairs, we didn't mean to stay long....so we are told from a "promoter" that he'll take us for a tour upstairs once he'll be done with a group that bought bottle service...and the "promoter" disappears...
we are left with sort of a doorman and a girl whose role I didn't get....we asked them if this club is "escorted" only or we could finally go up those stairs and see it....they both looked to each other in panic and asked us what did the "promoter" tell us....at this point it was clear to us that the club wasn't worth it and we left very disappointed.
We both live in Harlem and love to support the neighborhood, but I'll stick with downtown clubs.....real hot spots where they know what they are doing!!!!!!!!
too bad Talay is dead! Pancho Gringo won't go far like this.... ;-(
Three block south, there's an excellent BBQ joint (Dinosaur's). Two blocks south, there's a good effort of a local hot spot with live music with high priced food (Hudson River Cafe). And right next door, is what seems to be a recent success for a new local Italian restaurant (Covo). So why are the owners of Pancho Gringo (formerly known as Talay) have such a hard time creating a winning product?
To get to the punch... Pancho Gringo is a huge miss. Disappointing atmosphere (hung sombreros over Chinese dragon emblems). Slow service (the drinks came way after the guacamole which was the only worthwhile item on the menu). And disappointing appetizers and entrees. Tom Colicchio would tear them up. Pack your knives and go home.
If you're going to spend the money to put in a new restaurant in an up and coming area of West Harlem... Hire a good Chef. Hire some experienced waitstaff and bartender and put together a menu that stands out from the local and plentiful genuine Mexican restaurants. None of which the owners of Pancho Gringo devoted time and money to achieving.
The combination fajitas (chicken, steak and shrimp) was... sad to say the least. The shrimp looked like it had just been defrosted. You know, those little curled up shrimp you buy at the store. Not even grilled. And the steak... chewy. And the chicken looked like a fake grilled chicken patty. The ceviche tasted like it was cooked seafood served cold with a weak tasting sauce. The 3 of 20 some odd specialty drinks were unmemorable to say the least. And the dessert (Spanish Opera) was... unremarkable and disappointing. And to top it off, my wife was sick that night and the next day.
I will say that the guacamole was good. The chips were stale but the guac was tasty. The service, while inexperienced, was sincere. The manager was ever watchful of the obvious blunder of a restaurant happening before him.
Pancho Gringo, rework your menu. Hire a new chef. Expect more from your waitstaff - particularly at the hiring process. Taste your drinks before sending them to the table. And put some time and effort into your menu. This sad take on Mexican fair is not going to cut it.