My 2nd experience with this restaurant yesterday was NOT positive! A few weeks ago we heard that Don Jose's had reopened so my daughter & I went running over to try it out. The salsa was just as good as it was before but the cheese enchiladas were disappointing. The original Don Jose's cheese enchiladas were the BEST in the Valley. When I ordered a Togo for my husband I was told that they weren't doing "To Go's" yet and I would have to put it in the Styrofoam Togo box MYSELF. Yikes! The owner maybe didn't think that there was a liability to his customers by doing that themselves as the plates were steaming hot and I could have burned myself! I scooped the food from the STEAMING plate being very careful not to burn myself. BAD IDEA!
And then there was yesterday. We attempted to go again with some friends of the family. We all "grew up" with Don Jose (including my Mom who ate there once a week when she worked at Anita's back in the day) and thought this would be a great restaurant to meet at. My sister, daughter & I were 45 minutes early to the restaurant . To our SHOCK the owner would not allow us to be seated because our "party" was not all there. There would be 7 of us and he would not hear of it! Hum...there were two big tables sitting there empty. I told the owner that were were tired (just having finished the Willo Home Tour in downtown Phoenix and saving our appetite for Don Jose's) and would be ordering our drinks and a cheese crisp to hold us over until the rest of the girls came. Nope...would not let us be seated and were told "that we had to think of him!"
We then went outside and called the rest of our party and told them that the NEW OWNER would not let us sit down 45 minutes early so we would be going to "Manuel's" on 28th Street & Indian School to meet. There we WERE SEATED, spent $85 for the 7 of us PLUS $20 for additional takeout. Sorry NEW OWNER...you missed out on our patronage yesterday and forever! That negative voice and attitude better change because negative publicity travels quickly and in these challenging economic times that is financial suicide... no matter how you try to imatate something that can NOT be reinvented!
Take it from a "wise Latina" your customers ALWAYS come first!