Manuel’s

This is a solid spot to start an evening on 6^th street.
The food is high quality — the drinks are… ummm. ok — nothing special really.
The service is great and the atmosphere will lend itself to either a bridal party or a romantic dinner — your choice.
I had the fish tacos. I thought that they would come out assembled, but they weren’t — not bad — just different. My only concern was that the fish itself was not seasoned very well and fell kinda flat on the palate. I tried some of my partner’s fish and it was delicious — –maybe I just ordered the wrong thing. The salsa was fantastic — we went through 3 baskets of chips and 2 orders of salsa.
All in all — not bad.

Upscale, sit down, Mexican restaurant that has the best black beans I have ever had. Creamy and yet firm, I could have eaten a salad bowl full. If you’re looking for basic tacos and chimichangas go elsewhere. There are some ‘standards’ on the menu but mostly more inventive dishes. Chips are tasty and thin to the point of not standing up to the guacamole. Many in my basket were broken which is my only complaint. Service was excellent. Nice options available on the lunch menu. I wasn’t able to indulge, but I’m guessing they make a great Margarita.

Ok so I walk into this restaurant (being from the Amarillo area) thinking this place is a joke and they probably don’t even know what real Mexican food is.
I was crazy wrong. This place has AMAZING food. I got the chili relleno en nogada per the waiter’s recommendation. It was a chili relleno with pork, almonds, and raisins. I thought it would be horrible. It was the best relleno I’ve ever had (sorry Amarillo). I was very impressed and would definitely get it again!

I had a $ 50 gift card; I went in for happy hour; they had discounted prices on appetizers & drinks.
My bartender, Austin, mentioned I didn’t give you the discount on your last two drinks… why?!? It’s was still happy hour prices, I felt like they took advantage of me as a result of a slow night.
What a waste.

I have been to both locations of Manuel’s. Tonight was my first experience eating at the S. Congress location. Jackie was my server and she gave fantastic service! I ordered the shrimp enchiladas and they were pretty fishy so I sent them back. No big deal, but I wouldn’t recommend them. However Jackie was very accommodating and quickly brought over what I replaced it with. I highly recommend the chicken enchiladas with the suiza sauce. I also had the Mango Daiquiri, very good! The manager even came over after the shrimp situation and she was very nice as well. Great experience.

Three of us tried this eclectic looking restaurant. It has a warehouse feel with brick, very high ceilings and hard surfaces. A bar is prominent in the room with tables essentially placed along the adjacent brick wall.
We were concerned about noise but asking for a quiet corner we were placed at an edge of the room and conversation was comfortable.
Starting with the quesadillas with mushrooms the dish was very tasty, nicely prepared and the mushrooms were wonderful. Very enjoyable. I went on to have the grilled yellow fin and it was excellent. The fish was cooked just right and the sides were perfect with it.
The drinks were good, very much the Margaritas. I happily had two.
Everything about this place exceded our expectations. A good establishment and I’d go back again.

Food was amazing, the service was fantastic!
Traveling for a work conference to Austin and I hadn’t researched where to eat, which I usually do because I’m vegetarian. Found this little gem on Congress Street downtown. The waitress was extremely helpful in her suggestions for vegetarian options. Upon her recommendation, I chose the Enchiladas de Espinacas — sautéed spinach and onion with cheese in flour tortilla with salsa verde. It was amazing! Such fresh food and great flavor. My bill was only $ 15. They provide free tortilla chips and fresh salsa too.
All the staff thanked us for our patronage when we were leaving. Everyone was so nice.

We were walking around downtown looking for a place to eat and came across this place which was pretty big and had a good amount of customers so we decided it must be pretty good. The waiter was friendly and nice. He gave us some recommendations and helped us decide what to order. We decided on one of the restaurant’s specialties, Juan’s ceviche, for an appetizer and ordered the Enchiladas de Camarones O Jaiba and the Suizas Enchiladas. The food was nothing too impressive despite our waiter’s enthusiasm about the menu items. The salsa tasted like it came out of a Tostitos jar and the ceviche had little flavor with a hint of spice here and there. The Suizas Enchiladas tasted better than the restaurant’s specialty Camarones but wasn’t anything special. The vibe was nice with the music and dim lighting but other than that, there wasn’t much to convince me to come back.

The inside has a very cool ambiance and the bartenders were friendly and on top of service. Free chips and salsa, of course. I didn’t care for the salsa, though. It was very tomato-​heavy and comes in a dish that seems a bit small. The margaritas were great, though. The signature (I believe it’s called) was good. Even better at happy hour!

This place has consistently underwhelmed me every chance it gets with very upselly waitstaff and weird upcharges. All would be forgiven if the food was good, but it is pretty inconsistent with that too. A few weeks ago, had really decent beef enchiladas with an egg on top (the sauce was still weirdly chunky but at least tasted good) and yesterday it essentially consisted of dry unseasoned shredded beef, melted tortillas and a fairly ghastly sauce that contributed nothing tasty to the dish. Thank god for the salsa on the table. I have to say that the ceviche has at least been reasonably decent at most times, landing them firmly in the A-​OK category… but go elsewhere if you have a choice.

I met one of my big wig friends downtown for lunch and Manuel’s is one of his office’s favorites. That was my first clue that it must be good because he and his peers can eat WHEREVER they want. If you know what I mean.
I don’t recall ever being there before so this is a first time visit review.
Cool little joint and it was lively but not loud.
Parking was… a challenge. But I’m sure most of the lunch crowd are folks who work downtown (like my Frost Tower Friend).
They have a great lunch menu with a lot of choices. Not limited at all.
We both had the chicken fajita lunch special and it was darn good. The chicken was tender and a bit spicy. The black beans were awesome including that dab of garlic butter (I think) right on top.
Service was slow though. I’m not a stickler for that but I noticed because it’s a place full of power people who are busy and need to get in and out. I got the impression they didn’t have a clear system generally based on FIFO (First In, First Out) which is important during weekday lunches for most people. Minor, minor complaint because our server was courteous and kept our waters topped off and checked on us. Just didn’t get to us very efficiently at first and I noticed some other folks apparently experiencing the same issue.
It wouldn’t prevent me from returning for lunch. Especially since I had to buy this time and my big wig buddy owes me one. It’ll be fine if I cash in by way of Manuel’s.

Located in downtown and walkable from most hotels. Authentic Mexican music fills the air as you walk in. One side as modern type art on one wall and the other shows exposed stone. Not sure if its original or faux.
I opened with their signature margarita which was most enjoyable with a fresh lime taste. Chips and salsa were brought before the drink arrived. Chips were ok and the salsa tasted very tomato heavy, but finished with a little heat.
For my entrée, I selected the Black Drum fish. I never even heard of that fish, not had it. It is a mild tasting white fish and enjoyed very much.
I tried one of their local pale ales, «Rio Blanco». Smooth tasting with a strong finish.

I am almost always here during happy hour. Its 4 – 6 pm daily fyi including Sat and Sunday!
Ceviche is normally $ 15 but only $ 7.50!
I get a half order of nachos which I love here because they use black beans and white cheese!
Enchiladas are all really delicious. Margaritas are small but yummy.
Bartender Patrick is excellent!
It can be loud if there large parties/​tables so be prepared for that.
An old school spot but still rocks!
Oh and, the live music during Sunday brunch is a nice touch. Mellow, Latin tunes not too loud.

Good modern Mexican restaurant. Not the best Mole I have had, but good. The sopes were the best of the night. Excellent margaritas and other cocktails.
Very nice modern interior.

Little-​known gem in downtown. Much bigger on the inside. Lunch portions come quick. Food is excellent. Nice enough for clients, or a date.

The Driskell recommends Manuels for some good local Mexican good. They did not disappoint!
Manuels is a nice dinner place, larger inside than it looks from the outside.
I was greeted and sat right away, and was brought chips and salsa, yum :)
I started with the tortilla Soup, which was a fancy presentation, and was DIVINE! Tender chicken, creamy broth, yummy yummy yummy! It was perfect!
For dinner I had the enchiladas with salsa verde and suiza, again these were heavenly. Stuffed with perfectly tender beef and smothered sauce. My only «complaint» was the rice, just not my style. It seemed like white rice cooked with whole peppers. I just don’t really love peppers so yah.
I loved my dinner at Manuel’s and the service was great.

I have to admit I’ve never seen the appeal to Manuel’s. It’s an Austin tradition that I can do without. Some how I get dragged here every couple of months and I always leave disappointed.
So many better Mexican places to eat at in Austin.
Shitty margaritas, bland salsa, not a huge fan. If you do go, drink bottle beer or whiskey/​tequilla neat so they can’t hose your drink.

Experience started out so-​so, but ended well. The guacamole is a bit blah as was the margarita, but our meals were excellent. I had chicken enchiladas with the salsa verde sauce. It had a nice kick to it and great flavor. My husband had the shrimp tacos and the shrimp was spicy and seasoned in the best way.
We happened to mention it was my birthday and our server brought out a chocolate lava cake with ice cream to help me celebrate. Even before that service was great. Nice experience overall.

A great and filling but light lunch. My friend and I got the pork stuffed zucchini (Calabacita Rellenas) and it was fantastic with fresh guac, black beans and rice cooked with peppers.
The free nachos with salsa were pretty delicious too! Exactly what I was craving!
Oh and our server? Great enthusiasm. He definitely added to the experience.

Shout out to Erik! He made our experience better. The food was wonderful, the service was better!!!

Great service, atmosphere and food. Loved the Tortas de Papa y Masa, the Sopa de Tres Chiles, the Chile Relleno de Elote and anything with the mole sauce!
Found their margaritas to be quite addictive too. Great location in central Austin.