The Painted Burro - Harvard Square

What a great deal -- $21 (as a rewards member) for all you can eat tacos and appetizers! Though the quality of the food wasn't mind blowing, each taco was unique and pretty tasty. We definitely worked to get our money's worth, and we definitely left with a full and happy stomach.Their service was quick and attentive, but the most noteworthy part of our dining experience was the interior design. The restaurant is a spectacular work of art and I'd recommend walking around and taking a trip to the restrooms just to admire the lovely setup!

Okay, disclaimer: me and a group of friends came for the Mucho Mania deal, but DAMN was it worth.First, parking in Cambridge is always a nightmare but the area itself is lovely. The restaurant has fun, funky vibes and we were seated very quickly. And we had a great server (I think his name was Jesus?) and he had fabulous nails and awesome recommendations.Drinks were a must. I got the Beautifully Ordinary. It was definitely beautifully strong - not ordinary whatsoever.Double stack tacos were good, but I really loved the corn ("cholo" esquites). Nachos are a non-negotiable and the empanadas are also worth a spot at the table.Tbh, with a price like this, you can get a sample of everything!!I think the deal is ending soon (like, by the end of August) so hurry and enjoy!

TLDR: food is subpar, service is horrible - very rude manager.I have never experienced such disrespect in my life. I made a reservation online for the patio. Then I called to confirm that at this location, there is a patio and dogs are allowed. They said yes. Once I arrived, the manager said dogs are not allowed on the patio. I said my dog is a service dog and he proceeded to claim that "service dogs are required by law to wear a service dog vest in Cambridge" and therefore, we couldn't sit in the patio. Not only is that untrue, it's also a violation of the ADA (American Disabilities Act). By requiring that my dog wears a vest, the manager was requiring me to basically signal to everyone that I am disabled.He ended up "making a one-time exception" and allowing us to sit in the patio, but it left a bitter taste on my mouth (even worse than their food). When I explained to someone at the front desk later that they had violated the ADA and were discriminatory, they stayed quiet. Clearly, they have no care. They're clueless and heartless. Plus, they opened themselves up to a lawsuit...Lucky for them, our waiter was really sweet. She's honestly the one good person there and deserves a raise. She even brought my dog a makeshift water bowl.The food was meh. Some of it is premade. The guac is bland, the lemonade is powder, and the quesadilla was premade and then they just heat it up.10/10 do NOT recommend. It's a shame because it was beautifully decorated, but full of ugly personalities. Perhaps it's called the painted burro because it's run by a bunch of burros.

This review is solely for the Weekend Brunch!If you love Saturday or Sunday brunch then The Painted Burro is for you! The endless food, attentive service, and wonderful ambiance did not disappoint on any level. And for $25/person the delicious food we had came at an amazing price tag.Everything we ordered was delicious! And we ordered a lot! We had huevos rancheros, chilaquiles, brioche french toast, kale salad, breakfast sandwiches, pancakes, papas frites, tortes, and cucumber salad to name a few. If we weren't so stuffed, we would have worked our way through the entire menu. I highly recommend this brunch if you are in the Harvard Square area.

Came here for dinner not realizing it was "Mucho Monday." We didn't fully understand what it was (essentially all you can eat with an added charge if you want to tack on a full-sized entree) and unfortunately as a result we didn't realize everyone would be automatically charged for the all you can eat menu. One member of our party ordered an entree thinking he was opting out of the "Mucho Monday" option, when in reality it's adding an entree cost to the base Mucho Monday price. We didn't realize it until after leaving, otherwise would've clarified with our waiter, who was very nice. I view this partly as our fault for not clarifying further with our waiter from the beginning to understand what Mucho Monday actually entailed. The space is cool, comfy, and chic, and feels very much a different restaurant than the space's former occupant, the Border Cafe. We enjoyed most of the menu's offerings, with the highlights being the beet salad, Baja style fish tacos, and carnitas taco. The zucchini croquetas and tuna ceviche were great too. The Buffalo cauliflower taco was my least favorite of the evening, as the cauliflower was still a bit raw and didn't taste cooked. All that said, I'd come back, especially now that I've got a grip on the Mucho Monday situation, which is a great bang for your buck if you're looking for tacos and apps.

Trendy decor and delicious tacos! I got the steak taco with rice and beans. The taco was delicious! The rice and beans were good and seasoned well but I regretted getting them instead of a second taco.

I came to the Painted Burro with a big group for brunch. I've been to their Somerville location before, also for brunch. You really can't go wrong, since it's just $25 for "bottomless brunch." Given it's Boston, that means all you can eat, but not all you can drink! The menu is quite extensive, with lots of tacos, traditional breakfast items, and Mexican dishes. Make sure to get there on the earlier side, because the kitchen closed earlier than we anticipated.The space is really nice and I'm sure it could be a good date spot in the evening. There's also lots of seating, including a downstairs area. I'd definitely come back again for brunch!

Best cocktails in town, amazing and very eclectic menu that's delicious. Love their bottomless brunches.

It was a weekend when we were near Harvard square so we decided upon Mexican. We sat at the bar where I ordered a hamburger. I had never had one with a Mexican twist. They were out of rolls so I went with a swordfish and a shrimp taco. The shells were soft flour shells. They were definitely small. I order beans and it was a smart move as I was still hungry after the tacos. The beans were filling made with black and pinto beans.The room was well lit with lots of natural light. The bad was white stone while the room was painted white so there was a nice ambiance. The decor made me feel I was at a Mexican restaurant. Based on the size of the portions I had to mark down the number of stars.I found the menu limited as they just had tacos, enchiladas and hamburger.If I was in a pinch, I would go here but otherwise I would explore other restaurants at Harvard Square.

I went to the painted burro yesterday for my friend's birthday dinner. I've been to the place a couple of times over the past year and have always raved about it and introduced so many friends and colleagues to it. Sadly, the food quality seems to be dropping, but the ambience is great, so we continue going there giving it the benefit of doubt.Wouldn't be the case anymore as their service hit a new low yesterday when a server came to clear our dishes and accidentally spilled my entire drink on me. She was super apologetic and came thrice to my table to apologize and I told her very calmly each time that it was absolutely okay and it was just a mistake. It was nice of her to bring me a new drink once I got back from the washroom after cleaning myself up, since I'd only had about 2 sips of my spilled drink. But it took us by surprise when our waitress got our check in the end and had charged me for both the drinks. When I very calmly told her that you've charged us twice for the drink and if she could remove it, she replied back very rudely, almost yelling that "it was you who ordered the second drink and I'm not removing it. You spilled it on yourself. Talk to the manager. I'm not removing it - it was your fault." I'm usually the calmest person in the group, and I get that you might not know the story, but there's a way to talk and you don't cross your limits, be it with customers or waiters. She went inside the kitchen and we ended up talking to the manager, telling him it was the server who spilled it, and he went back inside to fact check as the server was inside. I'm sure he got her version as well, as another waiter came out with a revised check removing that extra drink. Of course, our rude waitress never came out of the kitchen. No apologies for the rude behavior from her or the manager. No decency of owning up to your mistake after wrongly and rudely accusing others.Simple advice to the team - BASIC training of your employees on how to talk to people. Might save you some customers.