There's this Mexican restaurant in my town, or "Mexican" restaurant (because it's not really Mexican food), and it's right across the junior college, so of course there's plenty of traffic there.
It's probably one of the stingiest joints in my whole county. First off, the meal comes with no chips or salsa. Unlike many good Mexican restaurants, and even most not-so-good Mexican restaurants, at least their meals are equipped with chips and salsa. However, this said restaurant does not have that. You have to buy the chips and salsa for a few dollars with the burrito/taco/dish of choice, and you have to pay an extra dollar to refill the salsa if you want another, which is absurd.
Second, the burritos cost about $6-$9, which sounds typical, but that's typical if it includes chips and salsa at other restaurants. The burritos and tacos are described as being bland and with a "dog food texture." Many reviewers on Yelp say that the burrito tasted as if somebody poured all the components of a burrito and put it in a blender and then poured it into a tortilla. One woman said it tasted like dog food texture (mentioned above) and some described them as "skimpy, shitty meals" and that some of the dishes were more like "snacks." Also, the burritos and tacos are fairly small in comparison to most of those that of other Mexican restaurants in my town, if not planet in general.
Third, they use AMERICAN CHEESE for the cheese in their dishes. In their chile relleno, they used Kraft cheese-type product as their cheese instead of a Mexican cheese, or any other cheese like swiss, mozzarella, Parmesan, jack, cheddar, whatever, would be better. It just looks gross.
Fourth, they have Styrofoam plates and plastic forks and knives for your meal. Not real plates or real forks and knives, like most restaurants, and to top it all off, they have small chairs that are described as feeling like you're "in elementary school again" when you sit on the tables to eat your meal.
Fifth, you have to pay for soda refills. Not necessarily strange or too cheap, except in a Yelp review a mother said her son went to the cashier and asked if he have a little bit more soda (probably an ounce or two) and the cashier, with a sarcastic tone, replied with "Sure! One dollar!" The mother said her child felt embarrassed and mocked at in the restaurant by the snooty remark of the cashier.
Sixth, the restaurant itself is depressing looking and they only repainted the outside as if it were a way to make it more appealing. People in Yelp reviews were like "repainting is not enough, food needs serious work."
So really, how stingy does this restaurant sound? Not just stingy, but it sounds pretty bad. I ate there once or twice, last time was apparently in December 2011, and it was nothing special and I'm not sure why anybody would eat there over other good Mexican restaurants a few blocks away from said restaurant. It's extremely Americanized and the food is borderline shitty, and very very overpriced. My friend said he would never go there unless forced at gunpoint. Also, the people who own the restaurant are apparently not even Mexican or Latino, but of Jewish or Russian descent.
