Botanas II Restaurant

I revisited this restaurant recently and wanted to say everything was delicious. I don’t know if they have someone new cooking or it was a fluke but everyone in our party was very very pleased and the food was much better.

Love Botanas II and we visit at least once a week. Friendly staff and nice layout. I personally like sitting at the bar. It’s a large U shape so there is lots of room. They have a great happy hour daily where you can get lime or strawberry margaritas for 4 bucks. Taco Tuesday’s or Thursdays are 2 $ tacos! Food menu is identical to original Botanas. They have added some new things recently including some speciality cocktails and table-​side guacamole. The new mojitos are made with fresh fruit and are super yummy. The new Pina Colada is also amazing! Try them out, you won’t be sorry!

While in Milwaukee for a few days, a friend who lives here brought me to Botana’s2. This is a hidden gem as far as I am concerned.
They seemed a little empty for 7pm on. Friday. But the restaurant is a lot bigger than the parking lot. We were seated quickly and our waiter was very attentive.
I ordered number 45 or 46, the big chimichanga with chicken. It was very good. The food was also brought to our table very quickly. Barely had time for chips and salsa. If I lived in Milwaukee, I would definitely recommend and return to this restaurant!

Other than convenience of location, this restaurant doesn’t have much going for it.
First, there are no free refills on sodas, which is just ridiculous. Especially when you consider that their free salsa that comes with the complimentary chips is on the spicy side.
The tableside guacamole was delicious! However, the guacamole that came as a side accompaniment to my fajitas was abhorrent — pretty much like the crappy guacamole paste Jimmy Johns uses. It was almost like it was cut or mixed with sour cream, or some sort of crappy filler. It was absolutely not «authentic,» or «100% real» guacamole. If you are going to get guacamole to dip your chips in, get the tableside guacamole!
The margaritas are extremely strong. If you are looking for a place to drink and get trashed, these margaritas will definitely do the trick. However, if you are looking for tasty margaritas that you want to drink more of because they are so delicious, this is NOT the place!
The rice was mediocre. The chicken fajitas were good. The chips were good.
Ultimately, as a whole, this place is just mediocre. With all the truly fantastic Mexican restaurants the Milwaukee area has to offer, this place just really falls short, and your time and money can be better spent elsewhere.

Amazing Mexican food, good margaritas and location, friendly staff. I’m here all the time

Absolutely, positively, and unequivocally the worst Mexican food we have ever had. We happened to stop during happy hour, and thankfully indulged in a couple of margaritas that eased our pain through this experience.
Being as it was happy hour, we opted for the tacos on special, along with a cheese enchilada. Food came quickly, but the size of the tacos was more appropriate for a toddler than two adults. Upon taking the first bite, it was discovered that they tasted worse than they looked. The beef honestly tasted like someone browned ground beef and let it sit in plain water until serving. Bland isn’t the word for this. Tasteless, odorless, is more like it. These were what amounts to a carbon monoxide equivalent in taco form.
I decided to mash up the corn hard shell taco in the cheese enchilada in order to make some form of taste out of what was in front of me. What happened then was, I left the restaurant with nothing but the taste of burnt shells in my mouth for the greater part of an hour. Basically, the meal could have been better cooked by a child.
And it doesn’t stop there. The women’s restroom was a total disaster. There was toilet paper strewn over one of the stall doors, with a whole room on the floor under one of the toilets. Whoever was placed on bathroom duty that day was obviously too lazy to open the toilet paper dispenser because each stall had whole rolls placed on top of them, instead of inside them. And of the three sink basins available for use, only one of them had a functioning soap dispenser. I’m not talking like I tried two of the three, I’m saying the they were completely broken and in disrepair. For being a fairly new remodel, I’d expect more out of such facilities.
Perhaps they should expend more time and energy on the food and restrooms and less on the televisions.

Bland food, bad service (can’t do more than 4 credit cards), pushing drinks hard, collecting receipts with tip while we were getting up trying to leave. I don’t really feel like I need to leave much else, it was just not worth going.

Excellent Mexican food at a budget price. I had a taco salad and it was the biggest salad ever I had enough for another meal but it was so good I could not stop. I think I gained 10 pounds that day.

Most places are mortified if an order doesn’t come out right and bend over backwards to make things right (and then some). Not this place.
Service really took a nose dive here. My last experience makes me unlikely to go back anytime soon.
First, we waited and had to flag down somebody to get our waitress, as nobody even took our drink order. The waitress turned out to be a lady that was standing not more than 10 feet from us doing nothing but looking around.
Then, my food came out wrong. I had to argue with the waitress that what I ordered was something they even did. Then she tried to charge me a surcharge. (Been here dozens of times, never had a problem with this order before).
The check showed the incorrect food, so I don’t think this was the kitchens fault.
If there’s a change in policy or an up charge, I expect to know before my food shows up. Getting served something I didn’t order after an already rocky start to a meal, and then having to ask to speak to a manager is not my idea of a good time.
It’s a shame that the service stinks now. We generally enjoyed coming here and it’s close to home.

Both the inside and outside have been nicely renovated for a fun atmosphere. Parking isn’t the best (small lot with a weird angle to it, but I haven’t been there when it’s been crazy busy, so it hasn’t been an issue for me).
The prices are fair and quality of food is good. Their tacos el pastor are great and much cheaper than our old spot El Fuego.
The guac is pretty bland and their regular margaritas on the rocks are not very good. Very blah/​generic taste with not much alcohol. We went there Saturday for happy hour and was not impressed with it. Maybe it was just an off day? I thought I remember enjoying the margaritas much more last summer.

Quick? Yes. 10min from oredering to table felt like a quick flip. No one came to check on us after our food was served. We needed napkins since we had kids with us. Never saw anyone until the bill was served. Felt and tasted like McDonalds served mexican style.

Waitress barely spoke English and either forgot my drink or didn’t comprehend what I ordered. Guacamole was good, but that was the only thing that was. Rice was strange tasting, beans were plain. Chicken flautas were «blah» tasting! My daughter barely ate her steak chimichanga because she said it tasted strange, also. She agreed that something was weird with the taste of the rice.
This place is going downhill fast, not planning on coming back!!!

Dude! Botanas II!!! If you are a fan of Botanas I you will love Botanas II.
The menu is nearly identical. Myself and my main chick order the same thing every time we go there. I’m sure the rest of the menu is really good but I can’t not get those Mexican Tacos. They are perfect. The one difference between I and II is that at I they always give you this sauce with that dish and at II you’ll get it 50% of the time automatically and the other 50% you have to ask for it.
Do ask for it. It makes the dish so much better.
The chips and salsa are still incredible, the parking lot usually has spots available. No man in a shed, which is too bad, but they don’t really need it being on Howard and not on 5^th.
Tons of seating, really fast and friendly service. It can get loud but who cares, it’s fun.
I wouldn’t give this place 5 stars if it didn’t deserve it. We love it. We probably go 2 times a month. The only real competition for the Botanas restaurants is Swayz. Otherwise it just doesn’t get any better.

Disappointing. I really love their main location, but this one leaves a lot to be desired.
We sat on the patio. Terrible idea. They have a bit of a bug problem (not really their fault, though) and the noise from the airport is really terrible.
Love the enchilada soup. Just like the original. However, the rest of the food was really mediocre. Terrible guac and the chicken had no flavor. The rice was super bland, too.
The service was slow, too. The food came really fast after we actually got to order, but then we waited nearly 15 minutes after we finished until we had to flag down another waiter to get a box and our check. Not impressive.
Plus, I find it a little weird that EVERYTHING has a disclaimer on it. «Park at your own risk!» and «We are not responsible for bugs on the patio!» and «Stay off the grass and flowers!» and «Don’t climb on the leopard!» We kinda made a game out of how many we could spot. It seems like management is terrified of getting sued.

Botanas II is located in a pretty quiet, residential area. It’s great because parking is easy.
There service was fantastic. Our server was attentive, and we had several other people check in to make sure everything was going well. I asked to order a vegetarian chimichanga. It wasn’t in the menu, but they made one with cheese and grilled vegetables. It was delicious and was served with rice, beans, sour cream, and guacamole. I’d definitely go back!

I have never seen this place in this area as far as I can remember until now so it must be relativity new and I went over not knowing what to expect. First off the lot was just about full at 2pm on a Sunday so that was a good sign. As I walked in I was instant greeted and shown to my table while she got on a radio and alerted someone I was being seated.
The chips and salsa came right away. The chips were warm and the salsa was not chunky like I like but it was good and had some heat to it.
The place was very nice with tile floors, rich wood and colorful walls with a mural. On my way to the table I saw the nice bar and and said I would sit at the bar instead and she got on the radio again to notify someone of the change.
Service was kind of annoying because before I could settle in and relax my server was all over me for my order and I told her to give me a few minutes and then she asked if I wanted a drink and I said again in a few minutes, let me look over the menu. I wanted to see if they had some special drinks for this location but no bar stuff on the menu.
One thing caught my eye on the menu and that was # 27 milanesa and I had a lime margarita. The margarita was too thick to drink right away and it was good.
The food came quick, see my pictures. # 27 is a thin breaded steak, beans, rice, pico de gallo, guacamole and corn tortilla garnished with lettuce and tomato. I like to taste everything separately before I dig in. The breaded steak was tasty. The rice was cooked perfect, firm and not mushy. The beans were good and on the thick side, I hate loose beans. The guacamole was outstanding because it tasted very good and very smooth and creamy. The pico de gallo was so mild that maybe thats not what it was. The corn tortillas were warm and good. The plate was probably the absolute best Mexican plate I have had because of the quality and the combination of items. Wow this place has moved to the top in the category of the best Mexican places in Milwaukee.
Overall the whole experience I had was wonderful and the food was great along with outstanding service. This is a great Mexican restaurant with outstanding food and I would definitely go back.

The food has a different flavor than most of the Mexican restaurants in the area. The flavors are simpler and somehow feel more honest, more like you’d get at home. The enchiladas and chimichangas were delicious, with melted cheese and tender meat throughout. The chicken enchilada soup was amazing. I’d come back just for that. I also love the fresh tomato and red pepper flavor of the table salsa with just the right heat. The black bean soup and tamales were good, but I didn’t like them as much as the other dishes.
The décor of the place is pretty cool. Its colorful without being cartooney. I like the night sky painted ceiling in the back dining room, and the colorful lighting in the bar. The large open space, tile floors, and basic chairs give the back rooms a little bit of a cafeteria feel though. but the hand painted murals help to offset that. They have two huge flat screens facing the bar. One was tuned to sports, one to the Disney channel (genius for family dining with small kids).
The service was great. Our server Crystal was always available in the distance, ready to come over with a simple gesture if we needed anything. (Granted, the place was pretty slow at the time.) Everyone else was good too, but had kind of a scowl. Cheer up guys!

We live pretty close in Bay View and were looking for a new hang out since Hector’s on Delaware closed. This place is always packed since the opening. It’s in the old Patio space. I was hoping they would have a Friday fish fry. Since they didn’t I opted for the Caldo de Camaroon. I asked the server if it was like ceviche but he said no. When it came, it was exactly ceviche but hot. I also had the Poblano Mole chicken. The sauce was good but the chicken was overly moist. It was as if they were holding it or warming it in broth beforehand. Beans and rice were great. The hubby had the chimmichanga and a tostada. Both were delicious. All in all it was a good lunch with a $ 6.00 margarita thrown in. I know we will visit again.

Botanas II reminds me of when the original Botanas opened before the food and service went south. I wasn’t expecting much but I was impressed.
The guacamole was kind of bland so I added some salt and their salsa and then it was perfect. The salsa they serve actually has a nice kick and good flavor. We always ask for a side of green salsa which is typically spicier. They told us this time it was free and next time it will be a charge. The green salsa came out piping hot in a big bowl… confusing…stick with the regular red salsa.
My friend ordered the steak fajitas and it came out with a big portion of steak that was very tender unlike some other places. The combination platters were good and the meat had good flavor. Rice and beans were very typical but not dry.
The place was hopping on a Monday night so expect a crowd for some time. They are very busy so don’t expect your food in 5 minutes like other Mexican restaurants. Which is good because it means they are trying to make it fresher vs. scooping it out of a trough. Also, get here for happy hour because they have half off margaritas from 2pm to 6pm!
Botanas II isn’t the most authentic Mexican restaurant but the food and service were good enough for many return visits. Also, it doesn’t hurt that they installed huge curved flat panel TV’s. Ladies — The first bathroom on the right has a surprise picture on the door which I have uploaded. It doesn’t leave much to the imagination :)

I feel that you can’t take the first review of 1 start on Botanas II as truthful review since the restaurant wasn’t even open at the time — Grand Opening to the public was March 2^nd and the first review was done on Feb 20^th.
The menu, the quality of food is still the same, the quality of the margaritas are exactly the same. And by same — I mean «AWESOME»!!! I had the Milanesa de bistec and my wife had the taco salad. Both accompanied by 2 blended strawberry margaritas.
The differences, II has a more fresh open space. Their bar area is larger and much more customer friendly. 3 flat screen TVs — two of which are at least 50 inches curved. The bar area you can actually sit comfortably at the bar or at bar table tops and have a margarita or meal while enjoying watching any sport that is on TV. At the original restaurant, the bar area is used primarily for waiting for a table and cramped, hard to get drinks, etc.
The service was a little slow but hey they just opened and their new staff is still training; so I’ll cut them a little slack.
Happy Hour Special:
Monday to Thursday from 2 pm to 6 pm
½ price lime and strawberry single margaritas and $ 10 all you can eat ground beef tacos.
I am more than happy to welcome to Botanas II to my neighborhood. It sure beats driving down to 5^th and National… I can just walk now.