Banditos Cantina

my brother had me call Banditos yesterday since we were on the cell phone talking to each other. he was still driving his car. anyway, the phone rang off the hook. my brother had said that he drove through Pearl Ridge several times this week and noticed that the door to Banditos was closed.
I went on Unilocal before I called my brother back and read the review from Bill R. that confirmed it: Banditos is no more. RIP Banditos.
hopefully this place can reopen as another Mexican restaurant in the future?
(it is a good location and spacious inside afterall)
*****5 stars for all of my experiences at Banditos, which have been great.

Unilocal Challenge 365 # ⁹²⁄₃₆₅
i happened to be in the Pearlridge area yesterday and craving for mexican food. I could not remember the name of the restaurant I originally started looking for so my lunch partner suggests we go to Bandito’s. Now then, I’ve been to Bandito’s time and again and felt it was a place to go for guaranteed «decent» or «acceptable» food.
I will preface my next comment by saying that Bandito’s sits close to an area that is military concentrated (Pearl Harbor, Hickam).
So Happy New Year to the Military. Sign says «NO MORE MILITARY DISCOUNTS» and the second notice taped to the face of the menu says ‘$ 1.00 FOR SECOND BASKET OF CHIPS AND $.50 FOR SALSA“
I’m thinking WTH??? How much could a basket of chips and salsa cost the restaurant? Cancel the military discount? Shameful when the majority of your patrons are the military folks living in the area… They support this place !!! What was management thinking???
Now for the food– I’ve had better by far but it was a convenient place since I was there and couldnt remember where I was trying to get to and been to Banditos to know I will at least have ok food and defnitely a great caddy maggie. Well sad to say this was not the case this go around. Enchiladas looked like the shrank and the taco salad definitely shrank.
Service? They really try. In fact, the service I received counts for 1 of the 3 stars I’m giving them.
Oh parking? Ample parking and that counts for another star which leaves 1 star for the management of this place…
Watch out Bandito’s! This Hispanic community has definitely grown in the State of Hawaii and as such, many more mexican eateries… Military folk may find other places to eat just as easy…
ok, I’m off my soapbox now…

It was my first time and last time here. It’s slow on Monday nights, so slow that only one waiter and server is needed.
The service was alright, the waiter or server not once came to refill our water.
The prices are decent but the food is defiantly not worth going back for. The salsa and chips were great. For our entrée I got She’s a Hot Tamale with Mexican rice and refried beans while my boyfriend got steak with grilled vegetables. The Tamale was nothing exciting, I’ve had better. The Mexican rice was really bland and cold. The steak and grilled veggies were horrible, there was no taste /​flavoring at all.
Overall, defiantly not eating here again. If you’re craving Mexican food go to the Mexican restaurant in Kalihi.

Unilocal 365 Challenge #86/​365
Wanna feel like you’re in the midst of the «Three Amigo’s»? Then, go to Bandito’s Cantina to experience the atmosphere.
However, you will not hear anyone dancing or singing, «My little buttercup» but you will have chips and salsa as you wait for your food.
I usually order the enchiladas while my honey orders whatever he is craving.
Note: If you want authentic mexican food, you’ll find a limited selection on this island (see Fiesta Mexican Grill)

My wife and I went a few weeks ago. Got seated quickly, waitress was nice/​friendly and the food we ordered was came out to the table fast.
The chips & salsa were fresh and good. The entrees was huge and very good. Looking forward to going back.

So my family and I went back and were very disappointed. The food was their usual, and we were all fine and happy with that. The ribs were still delicious and the fried ice cream was still amazing, but much to my disappointment the service was TERRIBLE. Definitely one of the worse service experiences I have ever had. We had an older caucasian gentlemen, maybe mid 40’s early 50’s.
Maybe it was because my party consisted of myself, my 3 younger siblings (16, 18, 21) and my 3 children (4 – 8) and he just thought we were a bunch of kids too unimportant to give good service to, IDK. He seemed to do fine with all the surrounding tables, but for us? Definitely not.
He was rude, missing most of the time, and seemed irratated when we asked for something. When I tried to order (I joined the group a little later) and had asked to take my order, he simply walked away, and came back 10 minutes later. Not once did he refill any of our drinks or waters, we had to wave down one of the poor ladies who seemed to be picking up his slack. It’s been a while since I experience such poor customer service. Service like that is just uncalled for and downright offending, especially if you are a paying customer.
Needless to say: I WILL NEVER EAT HERE AGAIN.

I went to this restaurant twice and that is it. I will not be going back. The only reason why I went to eat at this establishment is because I was attending going away parties. I always got the taco salad and it was okay. It wasn’t something that I’d get excited over and go back. It’s been over 5 years since I’ve eaten here.

I find it strange that there is no host/​hostess at the door. Although the restaurant is not very busy, they post a sign at the podium by the door. When you walk in, the employees are all talking story by the bar. No one greets or really acknowledges until they bring the menus.
The waitress was really sweet and was accommodating. I didnt have to wait very long for my food or drinks. They just recently stopped giving unlimited chips and salsa, but I love the food here. Their Mexican Pizza is sooo good!
Overall its a decent place to come and eat decent Mexican food.

I read a lot of bad reviews about this place but I never tried it so I gave it a shot. Actually I was pleasantly surprised. Its not great but ok. Honestly, if the place has been around for that long it must be ok or run by the mafia. I’m pretty sure its the former.
I liked the chips. They came warm, fresh and free. The salsa was interesting. I know it wasn’t fresh but it kind of tasted like a tomato sauce. I liked it. Pretty sure a lot of people from Unilocal would complain about that but whatever.
Now what was surprising was the Carne Asada Burrito. It was huge with a ranchero sauce. Kind of reminded me of turkey gravy. Of course another thing that some Unilocal would complain but I don’t care. I was hungry after working out and it tasted good. Now, the steak was surprising. Very tender and large chunks in my burrito. Most times I am used to strips. I thought it would be chewy but it was pretty good. It went well with the sour cream and Guacamole.
Finished off the meal with Fried Ice Cream. I’ve had better. The Crust tasted a bit stale and the ice cream tasted more like Ice milk.
Service was great and friendly. Filled my drink constantly.
Ambiance. A bad western movie.
Overall I would be a bit iffy to recommend but I guess I would say I recommend it with some prejudice would be the best way to put it.