Las Manitas Restaurant

My wife and I are longtime Austin residents and we love Mexican food. We bought into the hype and tried Las Manitas on three occasions, once at breakfast and twice at lunch. We won't be returning. This restaurant has bland food, indifferent service, and above average prices. There are many excellent Mexican restaurants in Austin, but this is not one of them. It's probably not even in the top 20. Do yourself a favor and find your way to Matt's El Rancho, Curra's, Trudy's, Casa Garcia, Manuel's, Maudie's....all far superior in every way to this overrated establishment. Pros: If you happen to be stuck downtown, it's convenient. Cons: Crowded at lunch, no parking, poor service, average to below average food more

If you are told that this place has great food, it is just a myth. Basically, this place is popular with politicos...mainly of the Democrat variety. The food is just not that good. If you are visiting from out of town, please don't judge TexMex by what you get here. I recommend instead visiting Mat's El Rancho or Polvos (my personal favorite). If you are free market capitalist or a small business owner, you'll want to stay away from this place and go support someone who is truly trying to make it as a small restaurant owner. The sisters who own this place reached the end of their lease and it was not renewed because a hotel was being built. That is a shame except that they own a building about a block away. They also own 5 buildings in town worth over $1 million. Despite all that, their friends at city hall created a downtown business loan program just for them and then made them a $750,000 loan that after 5 years of $4500/mo payments is forgiven (so long as they are still in business and have continually employed 15 fulltime employees). The city essentially gave away $600,000 to the sisters. Small business and small restaurant owners in town were very upset by this. I am upset by this. Libertarians are upset by this. Free market capitalists are upset by this. Heck, even liberals and many Democrats are upset by this. I will never eat there again...even if invited by some of my Democrat friends (which is really the only time I have eaten their mediocre food anyway). more

This restaurant is a favorite among the downtown crowd, and while the food is good, the portions are small and the prices are a bit much considering what you get. It's also a shame that the owners worked with city politicos to secure a $750,000 forgivable loan (after 5 years of payments, they'll pocket the remaining $500K+ and owe nothing more). The ""loan"" is to relocate their business to another building they already own (the lease on their current location was not renewed). It's an unfortunate waste of public funds when a successful business such as Las Manitas should have to obtain financing like every other business through banks and the SBA. Suffice it to say, I'd think twice before patronizing this establishment in the future. I sure will. more

I love this place because it's small and cozy, though very crowded on weekend mornings. And because the food reminds me so much of the home-cooking that my abuela used to make. Muy autentico. Pros: Delicious, authetnic mexican food Cons: parking, crowds more

We went for a Sunday brunch. I had the migas especiales and she had the pastor plate. We're both big fans of both migas and pastor, but we were underwhelmed by both plates. I'll start with the migas: Except for the overpowering mushrooms, they were bland. The serving size was a little small, and the black beans were cold. At least the tortillas in the migas were crunchy. The pastor plate: The serving size was very small. Half of the serving was fat, some in big chunks, and the whole thing was swimming in grease. It was also very bland. By far the worst pastor I've ever had.\r \r As for things I liked about the restaurant, the corn tortillas were very good, and the service was quick and helpful. Ambiance was nice, but they should really consider replacing the collapsing seating in the back.\r \r Overall, I was very underwhelmed by this restaurant, some of it due to the hype this place gets. Honestly though, there are much better mexican restuarants out there like Polvo's. I'll take good food over good service any day. Pros: Homemade tortillas, quick service Cons: Bland food, small servings more

Don't go here for great service or the atmosphere. That's not what this place is about. It's about the food and it is authentic Austin original. I cannot emphasize enough how amazing the Enchiladas Zacatecanas are. Seriously, they're unbelievable. The only negative is that they are a ""special,"" so you can only order them two days a week! Yes you might have to wait at this restaurant, but since when did that become a negative? Most good restaurants have a wait! Pros: Food! Hint :it's seat yourself, so be aggressive and grab any open table. Cons: hard to find parking downtown of course more

Las Manitas brings back cheerful memories of early Saturday morning breakfasts with friends. The tacos were wonderful. Our coversations can also be of the artwork on the walls or the politics of the day. The owners, Libby and Cynthia are great people not just for their food but for their commitment to the community. I no longer live in Austin, but the memories still linger in me. Pros: Everything is great. Cons: Sometimes parking but not always. more

Las Manitas is one of the reasons I regret moving away from home. There's nothing like it anywhere for food, atmosphere, service, people-watching, solitude amidst hubbub and anything else you need or want. If you don't eat at Las Manitas you haven't been to Austin. And no, I don't know\r anyone affiliated with the joint! more

We went with a local family and had breakfast on the patio. Breezy and fun. The waiter was helpful as we made our selections from the extensive menu. I made the mistake of ordering two crispy tacos. Piled high with fillings, I could have easily been satisfied with one. Others felt the same way. We had plenty of good food. Orders were promptly taken, service was good, sauces were spicy and flavorful, and we just enjoyed our Mexican breakfasts at the picnic table on the covered patio. more

I like this place a lot. While the service isn't always spot-on, I have never had rude or unfriendly service here. They get the job done, and generally quite quickly. The atmoshere is a little bare-bones as well but pleasant, especially the patio. The tortillas are my favortite part, nothing short of delicious. I also love the liquidas (pineapple is awesome) and fresh squeezed juice. The bad side? Despite the rating, the prices don't match the bare-bones experience. Breakfast for two can go upwards of $20 if you go for just a few extras (which is a must due to small portion size)... Pros: mmmm tortillas, pleasant atmosphere, quick service Cons: too expensive, sometimes overcrowded more

This place get's crowded fast - but the food is well worth it! Pros: Good Food, Friendly, Good Salsa Cons: hard2findparking, crowded fast more

Not sure what the hype is about this place. Food is decent, but service is bad. Understand the place is busy, but so are plenty of other downtown eateries and the staff still manages to give the impression they appreciate your business- not here. Call ahead on orders if you just want something to go, otherwise you could be standing around for 30 minutes. more

I have had breakfast tacos, these are tantilizing delicious meals with only fresh homemade ingrediants. The lunches are standing room only, if you get there at 11:30. The shrimp enchiladas are the Friday special, be there at 11:15. It is clean yet ethnic with original artwork on the walls. The staff are effecient and accomodating even though the english is broken. Latin is a synominus with Passion, there is passion in every bite of Las Manitas food. Pros: authentically delicio, inexpensive, convenient to downtow Cons: parking, waiting for table, casual more

Real Mexican food, real good. The cleanest kitchen in town. Pros: authentic, delicious, wholesome Cons: bad parking more

This is nands down the best Tex Mex breakfast in Austin. The coffee is awesome, and so are the juevos. Sat am is the best time to relax, have some migas, watch all the cool people, then head down to the Austin Angler down the street to walk it off. What a way to start the weekend. Pros: GREAT COFFEE, good people watching more

pretty good mexican food and quick and efficient service. not the best mexican food i have had but i did enjoy it. excellent value too. decor was lacking but that did not erase this restaurant from my list. Pros: super service, decent food, inexpensive Cons: not much decor more

I have lived in Austin for more than 20 years. I just tried Manitas for the first time several months ago and then again recently. I wish I hadn't given it a second chance. It's not that the food is bad, but with Curra's, Fonda, El Arroyo, Polvo's etc., why would you want to eat food that doesn't even taste as good as Taco Bell? I put Manitas at the bottom of the Tex-Mex food chain. Pros: location, fast Cons: BLAND food more

This is one restaurant that still feels like Austin. The service is what it needs to be. These people are running a busy breakfast/lunch restaurant. It isn't supposed to be a ""romantic"" dinner place. They get your food out VERY quickly and it tastes great. It is laid back and comfortable and it is the one place I can get a breakfast taco that isn't dripping with grease. Pros: food, value, location Cons: parking more

Have been to Las Manitas several times for breakfast. Will always avoid the weekends because of the crowds and worse than average service. Am somewhat startled at the reviews that indicate this to be ""authentic interior"", and so on. It's really just Austin tex-mex with small portions but for gourmet quality prices, a tad bit exploitive for my preferences... folks, La Fonda San Miguel is authentic. If you're the ""rad, hip, trendy"" type, well, you keep right on eatin' there. They need you. Pros: downtown, coffee good, not pretentious Cons: very small portions, poor parking more

The service was lousy, the ambience nonexistence, and the food only decent. For as much hype as this place recieves, i expected better. I would not have minded the lack of ambience or even the RUDE service if the food had been as ood as I heard it was, but it was not. Therefore, I DO NOT recommend this place to people and I beg you not to recommend it to out-of-towners either for it will give them a bad impression of Austin dining. more