Cactus Republic

Much needed bite to eat after networking function next door so Mexican drew us in as we were looking for something tasty yet affordable. The staff member serving us was challenged to be accommodating as my friend can’t have onion in anything! So the quesadillas it was for her (with tomato NO ONION) after lengthy conversation to ascertain she was originally charged for the TOMATO ONLY but when questioned thankfully the charge was removed — whew — mission achieved! I had the enchiladas with pork (as I can eat everything) which were nice & we enjoyed a Blue Tingle with our meals. It was a chilly spring night but apparently the burners had been removed so we sat inside but have to say it was still cold & noisy — perhaps that’s why the music was turned up so loud?

We went on a Friday night. I’ve been there before and their food was okay. My wife states it was her favorite restaurant until tonight
We timed it. It took over 30 minutes to get two burritos. The burritos were empty and smaller than ever before. There was hardly any rice, or steak in our burritos.
The staff were friendly, and very polite. They apologized for the wait. But over thirty minutes for just two burritos is pretty poor service.
I am for sure never getting food from here again when there are many better alternatives bear by that are much better priced. Just go to the Burrito café or Guzman y Gomez. Don’t waste your time.

Dined here after watching Wicked. We came with a huge appetite as well as high hopes for a nice meal, unfortunately it was not as we had expected. Despite having a nice location and cool mexican décor, the food was simply boring and overly priced. I ordered the meat nachos, which were surprisingly small, oily & bland. My partner ordered the chicken burrito; chicken tasted like boiled chicken, rice was bland & the guacamole was mock. Our search for rica mexican comida will be continued. Sigh.

Not a good experience. You would expect an establishment from such a busy area as this to have it together but Cactus Republic do not. The bar staff did not know what alcohol to put in our drinks and when we asked for water they gave us children’s plastic cups and when we asked for real glasses we were laughed at behind our backs. Considering that this food is certainly not as cheap as its many competitors and the fact that they promote their bar staff yet they do not know how to make standard drinks I am left to wonder if anyone goes here twice. The food was not horrible, and by comparison certainly their best asset, however nonetheless bland, poorly portioned and simply not all that good.

I always look at this place when I’m walking around South Bank and say to myself, I’ll have to stop here and have a bite to eat but for some reason or another I never have. Well I’m glad that finally changed on Saturday night. After spending an hour trying to decide what to have for dinner we eventually chose Cactus Republic and I was glad I did. I had the slow roasted beef cheeks with coleslaw on a bun with matchsticks (polenta coated chips) one daughter had the fried chicken and another had nachos. We all enjoyed our meals and even though it was extremely busy we were served promptly and our food was bought out with not too much of a wait. Prices are fairly reasonable too and it looks like a great place to have a few drinks with friends.

Margaritas, tacos, and burritos were good (we’ve had better but these were decent) and the place is conveniently located.

We enjoyed the food at Cactus. The stuffed jalapeños were done differently than I’ve ever had before and really enjoyed them. The Mexican fries are also awesome.
I enjoyed their nachos, which was a surprise as I tend to find nachos pretty poor in Oz.
I’ll eat there again when in Brisbane.

These guys have a great location, right in the middle of Southbank. This might give you a bit of trouble if you want a seat, and it’s not exactly a quiet, romantic location, but that’s okay with me.
I find these guys are a bit more flavoursome than some of the popular chains, and while I’ve been here a few times now, there’s still more things I want to try on the menu.

I’m a big fan of Nachos! I’ve tried nachos in 5 different places in Brisbane, but the ‘Grande Nachos’ in this place is the best for me! I always come back here for Nachos. The grande can fits 2 – 3 people with very affordable price $ 12 – 14. I like how fresh the veggies in the nachos and it taste so good! Believe me!
If you come for Nachos just 30 minutes before it close you may not get them because they some times running out of the nachos ingredients. So come early!
It’s a nice place to chill too during winter because they have the standing fire heater outside next to some seating area.
I often order the margarita as well. I like it actually but sometimes it’s abit too sweet. I like more sour but not that much.
I’ve never tried anything else other than nachos. So if any of you find something good, please let me know. I keen to try other things! Thanks :)
PS: This 4 stars rate based on their tasty nachos since I’ve never tried other food.

ordered a burrito, this was one of the worst decisions I have ever made. for starters the burrito was sloppy. way to much sauce which made it fall to pieces. you would think with the sauce it would make for a tasty burrito, you would be wrong! this was one of the worst burritos I have ever had. it was tasteless and lacking any Mexican flavours. I’m sure McDonald’s could of whipped something up nicer than this. couldn’t even eat all of it.
ordered some nacho chips aswell. they were not too bad. quite a nice seasoning on them, but unfortunately the guacamole that came with it resembled something on the clearance shelf at Coles.
really the only good thing about cactus republic is that the service was good. the girl behind the counter explained everything perfectly and helped us a lot.
overall DO NOT come here. make the trip to decent Mexican place or swing over to olé if you don’t want to travel far.

Benchmarking the quality to Aussie Mexican cuisine, Cactus Republic is mediocre at best.
The soft tacos were bland and the medium salsa w/​corn chips had a sweet and unpleasant carbonated flavor. I tried three different kinds of meat but they all tasted similar. Chips were made in house. Guac was was fresh and OK.
The El Dorado margarita tasted like it came from a pre-​made artificial sugary mix, which could be your thing if that’s what your after. Personally, I prefer fresh limes making up a good portion of the mix.
Service was also subpar. My food arrived 10 minutes before my partner’s food. Drinks came another 5 – 10 minutes later.
Maybe just a bad day for them. Unmemorable.

Cactus Republic is another notch in Brisbane’s every expanding Mexican belt. Unfortunately, Cactus Republic’s contribution could be done without, at least when it comes to food.
The menu is the usual fare of burritos, nachos, tacos and quesadillas. There are no departures from the norm here, and nothing overly inventive. If you’re not doing anything original in the food department, then the food has to be really good. This is not the case at Cactus Republic.
I bought a pulled pork burrito with a side of guacamole and chips. The burrito was ruined by the inexplicable presence of lettuce. Given the heat of the other ingredients, the lettuce was a wet and soggy mess by the time it reached me. Because the lettuce had wilted, the bottom of the burrito was quite wet and hard to eat. Lettuce and heat should never be mixed. Furthermore, the rice in the burrito was plain rice, which is standard for burritos in Brisbane. This would be acceptable if the rice was not the major ingredient (and still somewhat wet). It would be much nicer if they had used arroz instead of plain rice.
Cactus Republic have a schtick where they cap the cost of the extras on a burrito at $ 14.95. Unfortunately, like all caps, this one is meaningless because the price will go above this supposed maximum once you add the expensive extras like extra meat or prawns. While a nice gimmick, they’d be better served improving their burritos.
The guacamole and chips came out after the burrito, which somewhat defeats the purpose of having them as a snack or appertiser. The guacamole lacked flavour, and although the portion was generous, the guacamole is better at any other competitor, particularly Guzman y Gomez.
The one thing that Cactus Republic can be commended on is their extensive range of tequila and, in particular, mescal. It’s a shame the food was so very subpar.

Ay, caramba!
Have you tried their Chilli Con Carne yet? I ordered a small, when it arrived I realised it was massive! There was so much mince, beans, sauce, cheese and all the yummy mexican spices, I thought I was going to faint with happiness. So much food before me! I may have a sensitive palette compared to others, but I found the chilli in my ‘Chilli Con Carne’ to be… well… very very spicy. It burns, but in a good way. I did however have to ask for a lot more guacamole and plenty more sour cream to make it bearable to eat. Oh but it was so good.
I finished it off my meal with a Corona and topped up my evening with a yummy Sangria. Almost as good as the ones in Spain, I have to say. I will definitely be returning here next time in Southbank. It has a wonderful open atmosphere, relaxed but great service and the food is so generous. If you get the Chilli Con Carne I’d recommend organising to share with a friends as their small, is huge!

Brisbane is getting inundated with Mexican style restaurants. Seriously, I think they are breeding because I seem to find a new one every week. Cactus Republic has been open for a little while at South Bank, across from Max Brenner and has to be one of my favourites.
The food here is good and simple Mexican/​Tex-​Mex style. Nothing too fancy but definitely a step up from Taco Bell (I am somewhat glad that this chain has not made it to Australia yet). They also have an impressive range of tequila and mix up a rather nice margarita to go with your meal. The service was prompt and the food tasty and filling. Check them out if you are in the mood for some Mexican.

My mantra is «I live to eat», not the other way round, so I am a general fan of food full stop. However, I was bitterly disappointed after visiting Cactus Republic post-​beachside siesta.
After a tough day soaking up the rays, it’s easy to burn up a fierce appetite, and knowing that burritos are a sure-​fire stomach-​filler, this was where we headed. Myself and my two amigos opted for lamb, chicken and chilli chicken burritos, washed down with a typical margarita and Corona. There’s a large selection of fillings — including refried bean paste, black beans, meat choice and spice level.
Initially a tad put-​off with the somewhat impatient staff whilst we were deciding (there were only two other customers in the restaurant at this time), we were pleased to see our meals appear quickly. Chowing into the burritos, we all caught one another’s eyes and silently acknowledged what each of us were thinking — the burritos were luke-​warm, bordering on cool.
Maybe these three amigos are a tad fussy, but generally we expect freshly cooked food to be warm, at least. Even the substantial amount of chilli didn’t mask the chill of the burrito.
With it’s prime location near South Bank beach, it is sure to entice a lot of customers. It could have been a one-​off for us, so don’t be afraid to check it out. But you have been forewarned.

2011 was Mexican year.
With the influx of mexican restaurants that have propped up over the year
I was at first skeptical of Cactus republic (Yawn. another place where I have to spend $ 15 on rice and beans?)
BUT wandering over one boozy friday night I was won over by this little casa.
It’s simple mexican fair but done pretty well,
My burrito came promptly and was warm, delicioso and very filling.
The veggie burrito and corn chips also received two happy thumbs up.
The highlight of the night was discovering the $ 5 sangrias.
After a happy hour here me (and the sangrias) were ready to hit the town.
If you’re hangry (hungry and angry about it.) at southbank
I recommend you try out Cactus Republic,
It will have you saying MUCHAS GRACIAS in no time!