Uncle Julio’s Fine Mexican Food came to Old Orchard mall September 1st. It is located by Barnes and Nobles inside the east portion of the building that once housed Wilde and Green.

The opening of this restaurant was one I had been anticipating with high hopes since I saw its coming soon sign this past summer. At first, my high hopes were met and exceeded.

The greeters were pleasant and funny. The restaurant had five rooms for seating; each one was spacious as well as well-lit and well-decorated. The vibe of the place was exuberant and fitting for any setting from a family dinner out to a date night. The guacamole was also made in front of customers’ eyes, which I thought was an added treat to the experience.

One of the larger rooms that was close by the kitchen let onlookers watch the food preparation. The tortillas were particularly fun to watch as they went from little orbs of dough to fluffy, light tortillas.

All of Uncle Julio’s food is fresh, void of MSG, and, as my waiter informed me, this particular Uncle Julio’s is unique in that they make all their food from scratch.

Based solely on the atmosphere, the food, and the novelty of Uncle Julio’s, I would rate my experience fairly high. Unfortunately, they made frequent mistakes elsewhere.

The chicken fajitas came to the table lacking the guacamole, the frijoles, and the rice. However, once I informed one of the waiters of this, they were quick to bring all three of the missing items in much larger portions than the portions that normally came with the dish.

I was pleased and made myself a fajita, but after taking a few bites, I left for the bathroom only to return with my food missing and already swiped away. I was shocked and disappointed, but once again they were quick to try to amend the fault by promising me a taco. This time, however, the food did not come promptly. I was given the bill before I got the taco, and found that they had charged me for the taco as well.

As I waited to get another bill with the proper change and this extra taco, I looked around and saw other customers growing irritated with the wait staff as well.

I eventually got the taco and the proper change, and I left, feeling disappointed, but knowing I may come back again.

Although they were slow to give me the right bill and the extra taco, despite being packed, they were especially speedy in every other instance, and the food really was delicious. The wait staff also appeared mostly young and inexperienced, and considering this is their first week open, I’ll cut them some slack and hopefully over time their performance will improve.