Mission Cantina has some really spotty reviews on Yelp. Every time I felt like going, I would visit their Yelp page and change my mind.

I had originally wanted to brunch at the STK rooftop but my sunny day turned grey and sprinkly, so I had to think on my feet. Where to go, last minute??

Having not much time to think or plan, I nearly literally pulled Mission Cantina out of my ass.

I knew immediately I wanted to try their new Green Chili (or is it Chile?) burger with melty mozzarella and feta. It did NOT disappoint. I loved that the green chilies were fermented and I loved the cheese crispy stuck to the bun. A truly fantastic burger.

The Crab Rangoon was just ok. I mean, it was fried, so it was better than ok. But not much crab going on. And not much blackberry in the blackberry dipping sauce.

“Ah, eventually you do plan on having dinosaurs on your dinosaur tour, right?”

The Fried Chicken burrito was overpriced and also just ok. I mean, I’ll eat even bad Mexican food and this, by no means, was bad. It was just ok. No burrito should cost $20 with tax. Also, the whole “fried” aspect gets lost inside a burrito, where the chicken coating was sog central. I should have gone with the Chinese burrito so I could have probably been disappointed an entirely different way.

The burrito also came with the world’s worst “tortilla chips”. Someone fried a corn tortilla a week ago, then rediscovered it in the back of the fridge, licked it completely to remove every ounce of salt and then broke it up into tasteless shards next to our burrito. An empty space would have been far more appreciated than what we were presented with.

The margaritas were tasty and strong, which I DID appreciate.

The servers were friendly enough but also quite aloof. They were both dressed in their hang out clothes and their demeanor and interest in serving customers expediently perfectly matched their ‘Video game marathon in parent’s basement’ outfits.

172 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
b/t Houston St & Stanton St
Lower East Side
(212) 254-2233
missioncantinany.com

Crab Rangoon – $7

Fried Chicken Burrito – $18

Green Chili Cheese Burger – $18
Fermented Green Chili peppers, mozzarella & feta