Cafe Mexicana in Cork

My family and I were traveling through and hoping for a little hit of authentic Mexican flavor. With a motto like “a taste of Mexico” and “authentic Mexican cuisine,” I was optimistic. After all, I’ve lived everywhere from the East Coast to the West Coast of the U.S., spent a few years in Texas (for context, not a fan of Tex-Mex), and even crossed the border into Mexico a few times—so I was ready for something familiar. Unfortunately… this wasn’t it. I’m honestly not sure what part of Mexico this food claims to represent, because the flavors didn’t match anything I’ve had. It tasted a bit more like if an Italian and a Mexican got married, raided the pantry, and stirred spaghetti sauce into the beans. My daughter, ever the food philosopher, argued it was actually Indian fusion. Either way, it wasn’t quite the experience we’d hoped for. Maybe we should have stuck to the little taqueria we saw down the street. On top of that, the service left us feeling a bit invisible. We don’t drink much, so after we were seated and our food arrived, we basically didn’t see anyone again for about half an hour—no water refills, no “is everything okay?” Meanwhile, other tables around us were getting checked on regularly. And hey, we’re a fun family! We would’ve happily chatted. Oh, and the glassware… yikes. One of the glasses had stuff stuck to both the outside and inside. When I asked the waiter for a clean one, he just walked over and swapped it from another table. I couldn’t help but feel bad for whoever got stuck with that trade. All in all, Café Mexicana has a cool vibe, and maybe it hits the spot for some. But for us, it was a bit of a letdown. Here’s hoping the next stop on our travels serves up a little more of the authentic flavor we’re craving.

Great friendly service and our meal was delicious

Bold flavors, great vibes. Loved the quesadillas!

We came here for my wife's birthday and it was a fabulous experience. Such a buzz all evening in the restaurant. The staff were five star, all really friendly. The food was phenomenal and the overall experience was fantastic. We will be back very soon!

The food was decent and filled me up. Servers didn't speak English so that was a barrier but we made due. We did have to ask for a few things a few times cause the servers were talking away but if your hungry it'll feed ya.

Incredible food ... Tidy, cosy little spot with friendly staff and a great varied menu. I'll be back as there was plenty more I wanted to try.

I love the micheladas from this place, every time I go to Cork now, I stop by.

We had drinks and spicy nachos both were excellent

Absolutely fantastic! Came here for my wife’s birthday whilst having a weekend away in Cork and everything about Cafe Mexicana was spot on. Food, service, atmosphere all 10/10. The prices are very reasonable too. We would definitely return when back in Cork.

I’m the kind of person who always tells my friends about good places, and that’s what I did after going to Cafe Mexicana. The service was great, the food was really good, and the drinks were delicious. I really liked it!