It's like a clean version of all the Mexican restaurants in Venice. I'm always scared there was live animals under the table but not here!! Service was kind and attentive. It's pretty inside with little twinkle lights everywhere. The food was really good. We judge a Mexican restaurant by their refried beans. These were just right. I had a tostada and the BigMan had chile rellenos. He said they were done just the way he likes them. No drinks as I overserved myself the night before. Good, thick chips.
Drew B.
Lares on the Rocks with salt and sour. Its been a long time since we've eaten at and old favorite. The Carnitas & Shrimp Diablo set the standard. We went on a rainy Saturday night and wondered what the weather would do for dining. It was pretty empty downstairs & plenty of tables to choose from upstairs. No one sitting at the bar. Started of with Margs, one house $10 one skinny $13. The skinny looked like IT was on a diet. The glass was only partially filled with almost 3/4" of head space, nada mucho. My wife noticed immediately and tried to address, but only got an explanation that it was "the same amount of tequila". Poor way to handle the dissatisfaction. Mine was full OF ICE. These are three sip drinks and all the servers are quick to ask if you'd like another. No Thanks The chips are great, small biwl but good service to refill. The salsa is mild, somewhat watery. OK. We decided to share the Shrimp D, now $28. Yikes, yet these are the time$. The shrimp were dried out, smallish and tasted fishy. My assumption, prepped well in advance and not made to order. The sauce was still spicy and deliciousNot what I remembered. Not worth it. Two ala cart tacos $4.50 were excellent.
Isabel A.
I came to Lares for a dinner meeting with key members from a local organization. The place was busy, indication of a good sign of business but was extremely disappointed with the service from the host. The "manager"-Jessie indicated that our party of four, had no room for three more guests. Despite having seats available at the communal table, he rudely pointed out that we couldn't sit in the empty chairs available. We asked politely about space upstairs but he didn't explain why it wasn't possible rather than being polite with our out of state guest and key members from a local organization. I am all in for supporting local business and especially in the pico neighborhood. I was disappointed with the manager, with the service and the quality of the food. It was my first time in this restaurant in over 30 years and I will definitely will not be returning at all
James Wan
A local favorite for Mexican American fare. This westside restaurant is tucked in on Pico Boulevard looking like a tavern from the front facade. Large windows adorn the front with an interesting upstairs view.Open for lunch thru dinner with nice late evening hours for the weekend crowd, this can also be a new drinking hole for some really decent Margarita fixes. Order a Cadillac and sometimes you may find whoever made your drink may have had quite a heavy hand.I just love how the house salsa placed with chips at every table is not made for just the gringos. The kick is how salsa should be, and the rustic thick chips really made scooping quite nice.As for their entrees, everything is traditional Mexican American. The Enchiladas are made well with seasoned stewed chicken and covered with your sauce of choosing served with rice and beans. Everything is seasoned on the lighter side, but I appreciate not getting a salt bomb like some other places.Other usual items of Tacos, Burritos, Asada Plates, and even Ceviche will be the usual standards you may know. Everything is finished well, served on hot thick plates, and hearty.If your visit is for a nice evening, do give the upstairs dining room a try. They have done a good job. There is even a 2nd bar area on the second level. Some evenings are packed and there is a reason because they have a good neighborhood following.Parking is street/meter with a small parking lot in the back alley with stacked parking.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Mike T.
Very nice atmosphere has upstairs and down stairs bars reasonable prices great food never needed a resavation
Mary A.
The communication at this restaurant is challenging unless you speak Spanish! Furthermore, the quality of the food is subpar. I've never experienced such low-quality Mexican cuisine in LA. We visited for the live music advertised to occur Friday-Sunday. Despite being seated upstairs and being assured that the band would make their way up and to every table, we only heard them briefly downstairs for about 10 minutes and never saw them come upstairs! Save your money and avoid this place. Fajita was too dry and low quality. It cost $33 because we wanted combo. The mole is literally melted chocolate you ask for medium carne, you will get it well done because apparently it's been cooked and warmed up to your order! Good luck communicating issue about your food!
Raul A.
The food is sub par at this restaurant ,service is good ,ambiance not bad ,but the price doesn't equate for the food
Laura Aguilar (Dreamzland)
Nice chill location. Drinks were good and food was
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
AD-VENTURE
It's good, its fun but needs to focus more on customer service.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
David Mendoza
Huevos Rancheros are my go to breakfast item! ? Delicious!
My son brought me to celebrate my birthday. I've passed it for years, but this was my first time trying it. Charming atmosphere, pleasant crowd, good service, clean, very fair prices, and the food was really good. The only challenge is parking. I'll definitely be back.
merideth Ault
the atmosphere was lively, and the food was good. i liked the drinks too.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christina Jones
Delicious, my personal favorite is the shrimp a la
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael A.
One of the worst Mexican restaurants I've ever been to. 2 margaritas cost me $99.00. Their shrimp ceviche was chopped up shrimp and pico. There are SO many other places in the area, do not waste your time here.
It's like a clean version of all the Mexican restaurants in Venice. I'm always scared there was live animals under the table but not here!! Service was kind and attentive. It's pretty inside with little twinkle lights everywhere. The food was really good. We judge a Mexican restaurant by their refried beans. These were just right. I had a tostada and the BigMan had chile rellenos. He said they were done just the way he likes them. No drinks as I overserved myself the night before. Good, thick chips.
Lares on the Rocks with salt and sour. Its been a long time since we've eaten at and old favorite. The Carnitas & Shrimp Diablo set the standard. We went on a rainy Saturday night and wondered what the weather would do for dining. It was pretty empty downstairs & plenty of tables to choose from upstairs. No one sitting at the bar. Started of with Margs, one house $10 one skinny $13. The skinny looked like IT was on a diet. The glass was only partially filled with almost 3/4" of head space, nada mucho. My wife noticed immediately and tried to address, but only got an explanation that it was "the same amount of tequila". Poor way to handle the dissatisfaction. Mine was full OF ICE. These are three sip drinks and all the servers are quick to ask if you'd like another. No Thanks The chips are great, small biwl but good service to refill. The salsa is mild, somewhat watery. OK. We decided to share the Shrimp D, now $28. Yikes, yet these are the time$. The shrimp were dried out, smallish and tasted fishy. My assumption, prepped well in advance and not made to order. The sauce was still spicy and deliciousNot what I remembered. Not worth it. Two ala cart tacos $4.50 were excellent.
I came to Lares for a dinner meeting with key members from a local organization. The place was busy, indication of a good sign of business but was extremely disappointed with the service from the host. The "manager"-Jessie indicated that our party of four, had no room for three more guests. Despite having seats available at the communal table, he rudely pointed out that we couldn't sit in the empty chairs available. We asked politely about space upstairs but he didn't explain why it wasn't possible rather than being polite with our out of state guest and key members from a local organization. I am all in for supporting local business and especially in the pico neighborhood. I was disappointed with the manager, with the service and the quality of the food. It was my first time in this restaurant in over 30 years and I will definitely will not be returning at all
A local favorite for Mexican American fare. This westside restaurant is tucked in on Pico Boulevard looking like a tavern from the front facade. Large windows adorn the front with an interesting upstairs view.Open for lunch thru dinner with nice late evening hours for the weekend crowd, this can also be a new drinking hole for some really decent Margarita fixes. Order a Cadillac and sometimes you may find whoever made your drink may have had quite a heavy hand.I just love how the house salsa placed with chips at every table is not made for just the gringos. The kick is how salsa should be, and the rustic thick chips really made scooping quite nice.As for their entrees, everything is traditional Mexican American. The Enchiladas are made well with seasoned stewed chicken and covered with your sauce of choosing served with rice and beans. Everything is seasoned on the lighter side, but I appreciate not getting a salt bomb like some other places.Other usual items of Tacos, Burritos, Asada Plates, and even Ceviche will be the usual standards you may know. Everything is finished well, served on hot thick plates, and hearty.If your visit is for a nice evening, do give the upstairs dining room a try. They have done a good job. There is even a 2nd bar area on the second level. Some evenings are packed and there is a reason because they have a good neighborhood following.Parking is street/meter with a small parking lot in the back alley with stacked parking.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Very nice atmosphere has upstairs and down stairs bars reasonable prices great food never needed a resavation
The communication at this restaurant is challenging unless you speak Spanish! Furthermore, the quality of the food is subpar. I've never experienced such low-quality Mexican cuisine in LA. We visited for the live music advertised to occur Friday-Sunday. Despite being seated upstairs and being assured that the band would make their way up and to every table, we only heard them briefly downstairs for about 10 minutes and never saw them come upstairs! Save your money and avoid this place. Fajita was too dry and low quality. It cost $33 because we wanted combo. The mole is literally melted chocolate you ask for medium carne, you will get it well done because apparently it's been cooked and warmed up to your order! Good luck communicating issue about your food!
The food is sub par at this restaurant ,service is good ,ambiance not bad ,but the price doesn't equate for the food
Nice chill location. Drinks were good and food was
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It's good, its fun but needs to focus more on customer service.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Huevos Rancheros are my go to breakfast item! ? Delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Love eating here foods great service is
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chips and Salsa
My son brought me to celebrate my birthday. I've passed it for years, but this was my first time trying it. Charming atmosphere, pleasant crowd, good service, clean, very fair prices, and the food was really good. The only challenge is parking. I'll definitely be back.
the atmosphere was lively, and the food was good. i liked the drinks too.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious, my personal favorite is the shrimp a la
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
One of the worst Mexican restaurants I've ever been to. 2 margaritas cost me $99.00. Their shrimp ceviche was chopped up shrimp and pico. There are SO many other places in the area, do not waste your time here.