Chicatana Fine Mexican Cuisine

Mexican food is pretty consistent in what you get, and most dishes are gluten-free. So I was expecting a good time and meal - it was hard to surprise me. Yet I was surprised. The guacamole was fantastic. The margaritas were amazing with fresh lime juice (we do skinny margaritas that end up being tequila and lime juice only - no triplesec or agave).All the different tacos were amazing. The waitress was super friendly and helpful. And the place was well decorated and fun. As normal the chips have cross contamination, which I risked, but otherwise this is a very gluten-free friendly place.Definitely coming here again.

Stopped by for a late dinner here today because I was craving Mexican food. Ragz got his usual Tito's and Lily had the mango margarita. The marg was yummy but sadly missing the salt rim. We started with the fried potato balls and these were so yummy! Very soft and perfect texture. Lily had the Spinach and mushroom quesadilla which was surprising so good! Forget the store bought ultra processed tortilla - they had this slightly thick, very rustic looking masa dough fresh corn tortilla that held the filling together and it was omg amazing! It was also a huge portion size and we couldn't get through it all. The sauce on the side was yummy too.I had the fish taco ( very tasty, but lacking a little seasoning), the cauliflower taco ( average) and the chicken tinga taco. The green salsa on top of the chicken tinga def stole the show and I would take a bath in it if I could. It was absolutely, insanely tasty and left me wanting so much more!Ragz enjoyed both his Al pastor( very juicy) and carne asada tacos. In the spirit of being adventurous, we tried the buenolos, which were topped with little Mexican ants ( restaurant namesake) and these were so so good! The dulche was sweet and sticky, the ants crunchy and the buenlos slightly sweet - made for the perfect bite and perfect ending to our delicious meal! I can see why Tom Seistsema named this place his restaurant of the year!I'd love to be back another time! Also a note about service- our server was super sweet ( Camille), but a little busy and there was def a bit of a wait.

Amazing food for your moneys worth. Sad the pescado taco didn't have more sauce. Non-alcoholic drinks also yummy. Decent amount of seating. The inside is heated as well as their outdoor seating. Service was nice. No reservation, just walked in and got seated fairly quickly.Street parking nearby.

Food was exceptional, especially the langosta taco and the passionfruit ceviche. Service was a little odd- my server took my plate away after delivering 1 wrong taco instead of just bringing me the new dish. Also took plates away too quickly. Overall though, awesome experience! More affordable DC dining with great drinks and gluten free options.

I live in Los Angeles, so Mexican food is easy to find (that's an understatement, huh?!)D.C. on the other hand, Mexican food is not as abundant (and much of it is Latin American-flavored.) Don't get me wrong, I love Latin American food but it's not Mexican food.So, discovering Chicatana was exciting!I found the dishes inventive, well-executed and very tasty! Everything was good, there were no "so-so" dishes. However, if I had to name my favorites, the passion fruit ceviche was amazing and I loved the delicate flavors of the pollo mole.Service was good - especially the kid that works there (he must be about 13), he was funny when I asked him how old he was "16" was his reply (no way, bro.)Be sure to take your time and order as you want. My dining partners had been there previously and ordered everything at once, and it all came at once. That's fine if you're starving or need to get in/out. If you're dining, then order a few items at a time and enjoy the experience.If you explore the back area of the restaurant, you'll see the bar - take note, they have some EXCELLENT tequilas - not the George Clooney crap. Try some Cazcanes or Caballito - sip it, don't ruin it with mixers.Next time, I'll try some ant or grasshoppers, lol.Loved my first visit to Chicatana - 5 stars!P.S. I chatted with one of the chefs briefly and he told me the pollo mole recipe was a family recipe - loved that!

Finally tried Chicatana and it's great - solid 4 stars. Narrow restaurant inside - 5 or so small tables along one wall, bar seats in front of the open kitchen/bar on the other. A covered/enclosed patio out front.We walked in on a Saturday and sat at the bar. Menu is straightforward - we ordered drinks which were all good and priced well. The flavored margaritas were stiff. salsa verde was delicious. also started with an order of esquites (solid, rich, could use a squeeze of lime), shared a shrimp and carne asada quesadilla (thick dough, very substantial, overall decent), and had the passionfruit ceviche (good quality fish, fresh passionfruit used, but needs more acidity the marinade is very sweet with sugar added). Then we had tacos (pastor was the favorite, lengua a close second, asada was good, carnitas was salty). Pretty large and messy on corn tortillas. To wrap things up we had the whole fish which was good with the adobo rub. For dessert, the bunuelos were great. Will be back to try the rest of the menu

I came here on a couples date and had a great time. Just a last minute night time run to D.C. type move. Weather was great and we actually ate outside, which is rare for me. Customer service was on point, these guys were on top of everything every step of the way. I tried the Carne Asada, Lengua, and Camaron A La Diablo. I liked the Lengua, but i'm used to El Salvadorian style lengua tacos. I would still get them again though, IYKYK. The Camaron A La Diablo tacos were absolute fire though and stole the show with one bite. The Llegal Old Fashion was okay, but i really enjoyed the Cantaritos. Overall, we had a really good time and enjoyed it enough collectively, that we were all in agreement that we should come back in the near future. I'm usually the one showing people new spots, so it was cool to be taken somewhere and enjoy it.

Service: Super quick. The server we had was amazing and everything came out timely. Ambiance: super causal / after work vibe Food: The corn was really salty but I still ended up finishing it. The steak and shrimp taco was just so so. I would definitely try something else. Hibiscus margarita - my group got the pitcher and it was just okay to me. Woke up with the worst hangover ever and I wasn't tipsy so that's interesting.I know there are some people who are going to love this spot but as for me coming from El Paso Texas ... I expect more for my food.

If you love authentic Mexican, this place is a must try! The servers are friendly and the vibe is a perfect date night spot. The location is super small and simple, but the dishes pack bold flavors and colors. My absolute favorite was the shrimp taco. It's tossed in a creamy, spicy sauce making it delightful. My husband's favorite was the fried fish (pescado). He also had the langua (beef tongue). That was yummy and tender. Unfortunately, we weren't huge fans of the carne asado or al pastor. Both were lacking in flavor. Our drinks were equally perfect and not too sugary. I had the passion fruit mojito and he had the mango margarita. He ended with the passion fruit flan which was so fresh and delicious. I had the churros which were perfect. I will be back!

Chicatana offers a happy hour menu on M-F from 4-7pm (their website has the happy hour menu). Select tacos are $3 each during happy hour. We got to try 7 dishes plus delicious passionfruit flan for dessert for just under $100, what a deal! We chose to eat outdoors on their covered patio, because the indoor space is very narrow and feels a bit cramped with bar seating and a couple of 2-top tables along the wall. There's a QR code on the table with a link to order, but we preferred to order from a human server instead. For the happy hour menu- We ordered the al pastor (yum), carne asada (yum), and cauliflower (ok). The classic margarita was $8.My husband and I also ordered other items off their regular priced menu. For starters: We got the gorditas de Chicarron (which was just OK for me), brussels sprouts (yum), and esquites "corn." Seeing the ants made me a bit squeamish, so I pretended they weren't there. We got one entree as well- the milanese de pollo, which was a delicious chicken sandwich. I appreciated that the ingredients were top notch, for example, the pineapple in the tacos was a fresh slice. Since we don't live in the neighborhood, it's a one and done restaurant for us, checking it off Washingtonian's top 100, doubt we'll be back.