Camino Real - Virginia Beach

10 Stars!!!!! Without a doubt, one of the best restaurants out there. I've been coming here for 23 years and have never had a bad meal! The staff are friendly and excel at ensuring a great dining experience...

I visit this restaurant frequently, but for the first time, my food had a different flavor. I'm not quite sure what it was, but it had an odd taste, even though I ordered my usual dish.

My sister and I were out running some last-minute errands before Christmas. We were both really hungry, and since she was craving Mexican food, we decided to go to the nearest restaurant, which...

There's an older gentleman who usually works the bar, and he soured my experience tonight. I don’t live too far away and eat here at least a couple of times a month. A while back, while I was sitting at the bar, I asked him to make me a piña colada margarita. I realize that's an unusual combination, but it's what I wanted. Instead of just making it, he tried to convince me that a margarita shouldn’t be made with piña colada mix. I asked, “Says who?” He eventually made the drink, which was excellent, and ever since then, it’s been the only drink I order when I dine here. Tonight, after working a 12-hour shift, I didn't feel like eating in, so I ordered takeout over the phone and requested a piña colada margarita with my order. When I arrived, he started making a frozen piña colada. Once the ice began blending, I asked if that was my drink since I always order my margaritas on the rocks. He replied, “Yes, you asked for a piña colada.” I clarified that I specifically ordered a piña colada margarita (emphasizing "margarita"). He once again insisted that I only asked for a piña colada. At that point, I was frustrated and didn't even want the drink anymore. From a customer service perspective, it should have been viewed as a misunderstanding, but he seemed more focused on being right than actually listening to me, even though I always order the same drink. Additionally, when I got home, my tacos were soggy because they had already been assembled instead of keeping the ingredients separate for me to put together. I didn't think I had to specify that I wanted hard tacos to be unassembled, assuming it was common sense, but as the saying goes, common sense isn't always as common as we think.

Compared to other nearby Mexican restaurants, this one didn't quite measure up. The food was tasty, but the portions were on the smaller side. The service was average, but our server appeared to be quite indifferent. While that was manageable, I found it off-putting that they began closing and cleaning up much too early, even turning on the lights like they do in clubs to signal that it's time to leave.