The Adobe Cafe

All of my friends hate eating here except for me. To Hell with them, I love the tacos. Monica is a fantastic host and waitress. This location has much better food than the Passyunk one.

I went here almost a year ago and was not impressed. I went with a group of people and it took forever for the food to come which was weird because there was hardly anyone else in the restaurant. I had chicken fajitas and the food was bland and flavorless. I can make better Mexican food at home. I will never go back there and waste my money.

One of a kind salsa from the start of your meal, followed by a super tasty margarita? You could stop there and have a great happy hour at Adobe. I’ve ordered via Grubhub as well as frequented the restaurant for brunch and dinner; I have never been disappointed with the quality and quantity of food. The portions are massive and make for great leftovers the day after. Service is incredibly friendly but tends to be slow when busy.
When ordering online, the prep time is the fastest among restaurants on Main and Ridge. I particularly enjoy their nachos with chicken, skinny margarita — super strong without the sugar overload — and their gluten free menu, which features delicious homemade corn tortillas.

Food took almost an hour and a half to get here and it was cold and soggy. On top of that there was only like half the nachos they usually serve. Usually love this place but they dropped the ball this time around.

I couldn’t even consider giving TAC a 4.5. I haven’t been here in just about 10 years. It held up to all my memories. Let me start with the filet migon steal tips, and mayo sauce are amazing.
Had the two big apps. The calamari was really awesome, lightly breaded, not chewy at all, and had good dipping sauce. The seasoned French fries were like crack. The side of nachos were also good. Probably would have been better. Had we not eaten the entire basket of chips and salsa they start you off with. The wings on the one sampler were a good sticky, slightly spicy wing but really good.
The main meal my GF and I got fajitas her steak and me chicken. Both were really great and big portions. Oh, so for $ 35 for 2. Two entrees, and a pitcher of margaritas is like a steal. I will definitely be making the trek back there soon.

Some serious lip-​numbing going on. Salsa is very tasty. And has a nice little burn after a few minutes. Just the way we like it! The $ 35 special word well for us. Fajitas for me and Burrito (red&green) for my husband.

Very good. Never had a bad meal here. Wings are unique and excellent. If it’s nice out, request the patio. Great atmosphere.

I would not really consider this good «Mexican» food. It taste better than taco bell but not by much. I will give credit that they are both fast and generous with their portion size. Their menu does try to give plenty of choices and the prices are not offensive. When I asked the members of my dinner how they enjoyed their food, their responses were, «not terrible, just edible.»

I really love the atmosphere of this restaurant. The decorations are fun. The patio is great when it’s nicer weather. The food is creative. It’s definitely not your typical Mexican food, and I would hesitate to put it in the Mexican food category at all. However, I really enjoyed my meal there. I ordered the flautas with potatoes. The portion was huge. I also loved the margaritas. My friends and I split a pitcher and it was awesome. This is a great spot for something different!

Nice local place but a weird setup. If you want to sit outside you have to go iside thru a small maze to ask to sit outside. Yet the bar is right near the other door. Service is OK food is OK. Beer is cold so they have that going.

As far as Mexican food goes I was not impressed at all. Not sure if this is fair or not but I normally judge a Mexican restaurant on their fajitas and I have gotten them twice here and both times the meat was room temperature and didn’t have a lot of flavor. The service was ok nothing special that made me feel comfortable to want to come back. I tried it twice wasn’t a fan. Test it out to see if you like it but Mexican food wise I wish there was something else around

Decent food — not impressed with the portobello fajitas at all.
Horrible delivery service — Had to walk a block to meet the delivery man bc he refused to look for my house

Not sure why everyone keeps posting about how «weird» this place is. When I walked in I was half expecting ghosts to fly out of the walls or something. It just looked like a normal restaurant to me. I had the seitan fajitas, which were delicious. The free chips and salsa are great. the salsa has just the right amount of spicy kick to it.
Me and my friends got a pitcher of sangria which gave 3 of us 2 glasses each. It was a cozy little place with good food and good service. I would go back.

One very weird place this is…
I had a late Friday lunch here with a friend and have no plans to return. On the positive side, the servers and bartenders are friendly, accomodating and pleasant. That’s it for the positives.
This restaurant is on a residential street and clearly was once a house. Maybe parts of it still are; I don’t know. It’s very large, but as another reviewer said, it seems only 1% of the place is in use for business. There is a small, covered patio for outdoor dining, and then the main room with a bar and that is where everyone seems to get seated. There is no décor to speak of and the place looks shabby but clean inside.
The food? Definitely not what I would call Mexican. Chips (served fresh and warm) and a very good salsa are free with the meal and in my estimation, they were the only decent part of the meal. My friend had a vegan burrito ($ 13.50) and I had a shredded chicken burrito ($ 14). Both meals came with a large side of «Spanish» rice which tasted like Rice-​a-​Roni and a big pile of somewhat mushy vegetables which included a small, overcooked end of an ear of corn, some limp kale, a lot of julienned zucchini and something else that I could not identify. No seasoning and very little taste. The burritos are a decent size but the flour tortillas were thicker than any I have ever encountered. My burrito consisted of a lot of boiled, shredded white meat chicken with no seasoning whatsoever and a few stray white beans. I have never encountered white beans in Mexican, Tex Mex or Southwestern cooking. Kidney beans, turtle beans, black beans and pinto beans have all been the type I have had occasion to eat with Mexican food; the white beans were just bizarre. And tasteless. Fortunately, the server brought a very large (think Easter size) basket of various hot sauces to the table, so utilizing them and the delicious salsa, I was able to add some taste to my food. My friend made no comment on her burrito. It was large, came with the same sides as mine and she ate it all.
We did not have any alcoholic drinks so I cannot comment on them. I can see no reason to go back here ever again for any reason. I have a feeling that one cannot get decent, semi-​authentic Mexican food in Philadelphia but I have not given up trying. Certainly you cannot get it at Adobe.

I’ve been to TAC in South Philly a bunch of times. I was excited to check out the NW extension.
This place has a really weird vibe — not bad, just… weird. Or odd? I dunno. My date and I got there as they opened for brunch — we were the first customers seated. It was important that we sit at the bar because Ghostbusters 2 was playing (which looked like it was from a VHS tape, complete with horizontal banding and 80’s commercials.)
We place our orders and time just started to go by… other customers are seated, place orders, get served, and we’re sitting there, 40 minutes later, with occasional communication from the staff like «Sorry not all our chefs are in yet.» Alright. Maybe they have dedicated vegan cooks? No big deal as it was a sleepy Sunday, and sure enough I needed to hear Bobby Brown sing «Too hot to handle, too cold to hold, they’re called the Ghostbusters and they’re in control. Had em throw a party for a bunch a child’n, while all of the while slime was under the build’n. So they packed up, regrouped, got a grip, came equipped
grabbed their proton packs off their back and they split, found about Vigo, the master of evil. Try to battle my boys? That’s not legal! (O e O).»
I’m glad that movie was on because I think the place is haunted. All of the customers were seated in 1% of this enormous fucking house. There are all these dark rooms and caverns on the way to the restroom. I do not recommend bringing young children here. But the seitan fajitas that finally came out were bangin. Tofu fingers? Not so much. I should have known better (very bland.)
But the best part of the whole experience is that we didn’t realize that the bartender and server were identical twins until we were wrapping up. The idea of one guy changing outfits every 5 minutes would really add to the experience. Recommended.

I ordered the tofu tacos for delivery. The packaging was excellent and the food was great

In short, this is a local, independent, non-​pretentious neighborhood restaurant! You will get really delicious food and friendly service in an older building. While some staff are seasoned and knowledgeable, you’ll find newer staff, while pleasant, are definitely green in their skill set. If the place is packed, service may be slow. Unlike a huge chain, they don’t have a pile of greeters and wait staff just standing around. Also unlike a huge chain, no one will recite from memory the required «up-​sell sales pitch». Be thankful for independent business, support the good ones so they survive, and have a little patience when things get hectic.
For the detailed review, feel free to keep reading…
Now residing in the Roxborough /​Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia since early 2015, I am fortunate to have many local, small and independent restaurants and bars from which to choose. One of my newest favorites is the Adobe Café (I have been here at least 8 or 9 times in the course of 5 to 6 months). The restaurant with bar is in a nondescript location right a midst the neighborhood residents. It’s a casual and comfortable spot where it appears many folks are long-​time regulars. I have yet to actually dine in the dining room, instead choosing the bar area (same menu). I am guessing they have been operating for 20+ years and the owners have 1 other location in South Philadelphia.
They are self-​described as South Western Cuisine, but many would also consider it Mexican. The extensive menu features many options of Quesadillas, Enchiladas, Burritos, full entrees and lots of appetizers. They also feature an entire page of Vegetarian choices. Some of my favorites (I’m still discovering new favorites) include the Vegetarian Quesadilla, the Steak Tips, Fish Tacos and Chicken Burrito (it’s huge). I keep promising myself I will soon try the Peanut Butter Pie for dessert.
The Adobe Café features 2 main dining areas, the bar with lots of tables for seating (plus about 8 at the bar), and an outdoor dining area. The full bar service of course features plenty of Margaritas and Daiquiris, as well as a large selection of Frozen Drink specialties. Plenty of beer choices, but a limited selection of wines (but very reasonably priced). As I add other reviews of my neighborhood spots, you’ll find most offer a very basic selection of wine.
Thinking this mostly served neighborhood residents, after speaking with other patrons (a huge benefit of sitting at the bar in any restaurant) is many come from other parts of the city to dine here, which speaks volumes for the quality. The staff appears consistent, and they are all friendly and welcoming (though some are very «green» at their skills). If you try the Adobe Café (or any local neighborhood restaurant), keep in mind they are imperfect which in parts makes them unique. Every month, on the 4^th Thursday the Adobe Café does a benefit night with a significant portion of the proceeds going to the charity of the month. It will likely be extremely busy, so if it’s your first visit, don’t go on charity night as they almost always have an amazing turnout (as they do for other community events). Independent restaurants are the opposite of most chains — which is why I love them. As soon as you are seated, free chips and homemade salsa are served (and you don’t need a rewards membership to get them). Prices range from around $ 8 to $ 16 for most appetizers and entrees.
They feature Karaōke on Saturday nights in the bar area, though I have yet to attend. Otherwise, there is a jukebox in the bar (I really am not a fan of these unless a staff member can manipulate them), or often one of the TV’s is on with sound. There is actually free municipal parking in the lot across the street or just find a spot on the street (it’s still a bit easier to do up the hill in Roxborough than in Manayunk). If this was a chain with the same review, they would get 4 stars, but small business cannot compete with big corporate chains, so 3 cheers for the bonus star!

Came here last Friday for a friend’s birthday dinner. I called two weeks ago to make a reservation since they don’t do Open Table (whomp, whomp), and I needed to make sure that they could accomodate 10 of us (they could). We arrived and were taken to the back room, where a round table was waiting for us (great for a birthday dinner). We were brought chips and salsa, and I am not kidding you when I tell you that the salsa was the best part of the meal — spicy and simply amazing. It took a few minutes to get water, and we promptly made orders for margarita pitchers. The margs took a while to come out, and I must say they were a bit on the weaker side. Our server, Tiff, was very pleasant and accommodating, if not a bit inattentive (we’re a party of 10 — just because you autograt us doesn’t mean you should avoid us, just saying).
My real disappointment with this place lay in the food. I ordered chicken tamales with black beans, and while the beans and rice were good, the tamales were seriously lacking in flavor (underspicing is a sin in my book). My friends had burritos (average), tacos (best thing at the table while still not being overly impressive), and quesadillas (average). Everything was basic Mexican food, and despite being in our price range I simply expected more. Eventually I’ll try out the South Philly location since Unilocalers tend to prefer this one.

While the ladies who came out to help with our service were fantastic and extremely friendly, the food wasn’t much to rave about.
The menu tries very hard to be accommodating to a lot of different palettes, but I think if they focused on the basics and perfected them, this place would be fantastic.
I got the Carne Asada and it was extremely sub par for the price. I feel that my second choice enchilada would have been a better pick.
Do want to give this place another try when the weather is warmer as the location begs for outdoor seating, but until then, I’ll be getting my Mexican cuisine elsewhere.

Good food, good atmosphere, and an all around good choice! My girlfriend and I went to the Adobe Café for date night about 2 weeks ago. The Atmosphere was great, the food was tasty, and though pricey I feel it was of good value (large portions).
We arrived around 5 and waited less than 10 minutes for a seat.
I ordered the duck burrito, and she chose the chicken fajita. The fajita was hot and served with a lot of sautéed veggies.
The duck burrito, was out of this world. Duck is one of those foods that’s hit or miss. Its either perfect, or totally gamey. This duck was cooked perfectly, and as a result the burrito was saviry, texturally perfect, and not greasy. The rice to meat ratio was spot on, I hate a burrito with too much rice. The guac was decent, though a bit plain, and the chips were the thick delicious homemade kind.
We each had a margarita and they were delicious as well. My girlfriend and I will definitely be back, and would recommend this place to our friends.