Margaret's Cantina

04/13/2008 Posted by doublechoc

Margaret's is not your typical greasy tex-mex place. If you want the usual chicken enchiladas for $2, go elsewhere. The great part about Margaret's are the fresh ingredients, the unconventional cooking style, and the delicious drinks. That is why it is more expensive than the corner tex-mex, but it certainly isn't outrageous. Sure, it is crowded on weekends and after movies, but that is because it is good! If you want to avoid lines, go early or late on week nights. The service is friendly and quirky, the decor is original, and you will always find regulars there. I love it, and it is a part of my regular Chapel Hill/ Carrboro restaurant rotation. The shrimp quesadillas are awesome, the veg options are good, and the sangrias are delicious.

Pros: Food freshness and versatility, ambience, parking

Cons: (Avoidable) long wait at prime time on weekends

03/10/2008 Posted by chapehillfoody

Margaret's is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Chapel Hill. Amazing fresh ingredients, my favorite is the shrimp quesadilla with grilled peppers and guacamole. But the margaritas are to die for, with great fresh juices and good bartenders... gotta check this one out!

02/08/2008 Posted by attyp

Fine place for an out of the way strip commercial location, but avoid the crowds waiting for or coming out of the Chelsea and Timberlyne movies.

08/13/2007 Posted by clancy82

I recently ate at Margaret's Cantina and both my boyfriend and I LOVED it! We recently moved to the area and had yet to find a great Mexican/Southwestern restaurant. As a vegetarian, I was very impressed with their veg-friendly menu. I ordered a soft taco with tofu and the Mexican Chef Salad (basically a taco salad). The food and service was wonderful. Only downside was it was pricey--but worth it.

Pros: Great Food and Service

Cons: Pricey

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

05/03/2007 Posted by dandan14

The good news is that it is a quaint little setting and less greasy than most mexican places. However, the prices are quite high, and the flavors are really nothing to get excited about. We had the nachos ($7), the chicken fajitas ($17), and another small chicken dish ($11) -- none of it was worth going back for. (As a side note, I asked if mushrooms came on the fajitas. She said that shouldn't be a problem. Of course I later found a $2 charge for them on my bill. Sigh.)

02/10/2007 Posted by ilovefajitas03

I will never go back! I was so excited to try Margaret's and it was a huge disapointment. Its really over priced. You have to pay for chips & salsa. The tables are too small. The service was terrible. We showed up at 5:00 on a Saturday. Not long after we got there a really long line formed. I don't understand what they were waiting for. It was terrible! I ordered chicken fajitas. They tasted like dirt or maybe grass. There were only a few pieces of chicken, the rest was onions & rice. They charged for more tortilas without informing us. Everytime the waitress asked if I wanted a refill on my coke she sounded really annoyed like I better not say yes. When we said we wanted to order dessert she said she was too busy. We felt like they were trying to rush us out. Our bill was $50 without alcohol. We could've had 4 times the quality of food for 1/4 of the price at a better Mexican restarant. The experience was so bad I created a citysearch account just to complain. If you really want to try it out, don't go on a Saturday night. Its not worth the wait.

Pros: Interesting variety of greek and mexican (my two favorite types of food)

Cons: Everything else!

11/24/2006 Posted by jstodder

Had poor service twice. The first time I can overlook and give a second chance, but I will not go back a third time. Food came out cold both times and the server barely visited our table. They are slopping southwestern food how long should it take? My expectations are not unreasonable I am a culinary school graduate and have worked in the restaurant industry for many years.

Pros: Prices

Cons: Everything else

05/14/2006 Posted by rossmck

Margaret's feels like a neighborhood restaurant. The prices match (they're reasaonble), and lots of families eat there. Since we live near it, it is our neighborhood restaurant, and we eat there a few times a month. The food is consistent, more interesting than the standard Mexican fare, and the service does well for a high turn-over sort of place. It's not a special event meal, more every-day fare, but as every-day fare goes, it's first rate.

Pros: good food, good value, nice servers

Cons: busy at times, short wine list

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

03/12/2006 Posted by aggiebp

When we pulled up and saw the crowd, we thought we had found a good restaurant. TINY waiting area. Does have a nice ambience and good margaritas (but not big and not much alcohol for $5). Paid $3 for chips and salsa. My date had 2 cheese and onion enchiladas with rice and beans($8.50). The rice and beans were excellent (brown Spanish rice and black beans). The enchiladas were extremely wide (read: overstuffed) with a ricotta-like cheese. Didn't taste Mexican/Southwest and he didn't like. I had the same dish with 1 shrimp and 1 spinach enchilada. Spinach had little flavor. Shrimp was tasty. Spicy sauce on the enchiladas was not spicy; it barely registered. Very small tables; you probably shouldn't come with more than 4 people that would be pushing it. Overall, fresh and interesting choices but not enough flavor or the wrong kinds of flavors; we won't go back.

Pros: Ambience

Cons: Wait, Small tables, Cheese enchiladas

03/10/2006 Posted by cnc4040

Our below ave experience: Whenever you wait 10 min or longer for your drink order to be taken, the service cannot be good. Prices are high for the types of dishes/amount of food. You want extra salsa? You pay for it(?). Once you try the salsa, you'll be disappointed. A $5 nacho plate = a small amount of reg, greasy melted cheese and chips. No unique flavor/very plain(you can make in the microwave @ home). The chicken taco plate ($8.50)= boiled white+dark meat with NO salt/seasonings, taco shells bland/tasteless, crumbled/fell apart b/c they were saturated(w/water). Black beans=a can. Rice=ok, but you could make the same @ home. For these prices, you're to expect great service and good quality food. The food and overall experience was so bad, we complained to the waitress & will not return.

Pros: nice interior, good location

Cons: tasteless food, substandard service, overall bad experienc