La Frontera

My wife and I wanted to experiment going out to eat with our brand new, 6 day-old son. We've been to La Frontera many times before, but not in a long while. My experience in the past had always been pleasant and timely. We dined close to home at the Sandy location at 61 West 10600 South.

The Atmosphere 4/5

I've always enjoyed the over-the-top stereotypical Mexican decor of this place. Even though this is a strip mall unit, they've managed to find the room to fit a spacious dining hall dressed up like a wild west corral and saloon. They have recently cheapened the look, however, with poorly displayed laminated printouts of the latest so-called specials. 

The Service 3/5

Neither my wife nor I could hear our server. The music wasn't loud, our baby was silent throughout the meal (yay!), and the server's accent wasn't even that terribly thick. He simply spoke so quietly that, standing right next to me, we could not understand a word he said. We found ourselves directing the conversation from context and visual cues alone. 

The server was prompt and otherwise helpful, but we couldn't help the feeling that the restaurant had begun "nickel and diming" us. I don't recall them ever charging for chips beyond the first "complimentary" bowl or the horchata not having free refills or costing a whopping $2.75 a glass. 

The Food 3/5

As my wife is pointing out in the photo, the sour cream was served in a plastic tube which proved difficult to open as it had no "open here" slit. This made us laugh. The plates were both accompanied by the usual warning of "careful, the plates are hot." I have found this to mean the plates are very, very warm. Today, they were scalding. Literally. I actually burned my arm and my wrist trying to enjoy my meal. My enchiladas were a molten liquid of cheese and flavorless sauce. My wife's chimichangas were filled with fine ground beef with less flavor and worse texture than last night's proverbial casserole left-overs. The final straw was the beans and rice. I've had more spice out of a can. It felt like they'd boiled out any desirable character from the whole plate. 

Conclusion

As I mentioned, I've been to La Frontera many times at many locations, but after my surprisingly unpleasant experience, which had nothing to do with my new-family experiment, I fear they might be on a path for decline.