Tico

Nope. Visited with a group of 4 for lunch and see no reason to go again. We pretty quickly ordered a round of drinks and some food. There was one vegetarian option aside from soup, so I got edamame tacos which were good but not $ 9 good, and small. I asked our server for a straw 3 times, and when he finally brought one 20 minutes later, I realized how dirty my glass was (particles were even floating). About 45-​hour after ordering, our margaritas finally made it to the table. I ordered a margarita with mango and raspberry, but oddly it was a regular margarita with some strawberries in it. One of my lunch-​mates realized they mixed up our drinks, so I asked the server to come over. Even though my friend’s drink clearly had the mango and raspberry in it and mine just had strawberry (which my friend ordered), the server stuck to his guns that I had the right drink. I paid $ 13 for a small margarita that I did not order and missed out on the one I wanted. Overpriced, slow, disappointing. Try somewhere else.

Went on a Friday night and had no problem getting a table. This is a pretty big place and seems easy to get a table inside without a reservation. The drinks and food were all pretty great. We got pitchers of sangria which were very good. They were great about making substitutions for vegetarians so I really liked that. Great service too.

The service at this place is lack luster. The food was serviceable. The amount of spice obliterated the other flavors in the chicken tacos. The Tres Leche cake was good. The value for cost just isn’t there and I won’t return.

Maybe it was an off night, maybe it wasn’t…
We came here to celebrate a friends birthday, in hopes of good drinks and great food too… well…we only got the latter part. Drinks were not good. Too sour or not sweet enough, lacking a kick, over priced and just… no.
Food on the other hand. AWESOME. Mac n cheese, DELICIOUS. Fried Cheese, AWESOME. Fish tacos, finger licking good. Dessert… I’m drooling just thinking about that peanut butter, banana, and chocolate gelato split.
Service was slower than slow. IMO, it wasn’t as busy as the waiter made it seem. He wasn’t around when we needed him. When we did flag him down he went off somewhere else for a long time. He never took plates or finished drink cups away. Service was just so bad. He had an apporunity to make a table of 8 people very happy and want to go back, but I can honestly say, I don’t think any of us will be back there again. Sad because those tacos were so good…

Food: 4 stars, very good but there need to be fewer spicy options. The steak and octopus were excellent. Service: 0 stars. Seated, waited on, brought drinks then never saw our server again. Waved down another person, asked for more drinks, and by the time we got them we had finished our dinner. When we asked where she was the new person said «I think your server left. I think I’m your server now.» We nicely mentioned that we had hoped to have the wine with our steak. No comment. Would’ve been nice to at least have comped the wine. Would’ve complained to the hostess except she was one of the people we tried to flag down for ten minutes. Totally clueless. I’d go back and sit at the bar because I really enjoyed the food and drink but this place has to get it together.

Amazing!!! Everything we had was delicious. The service was also great. I would highly recommend everyone try it out!

The food wasn’t bad, but it was incredibly overpriced for what you get. We had to leave and go to another restaurant to actually eat enough for the night!
The waiter was pushing «THE BEST» drinks in the house as a special for us (Mango Sangria), which arrived weak and practically tasteless.
All said — we are not coming back here again, and will go to other restaurants in the area first before ever considering dining at Tico again.

Everything we ate was spicy (is there a reason why buttermilk needs to have a kick?). The meatballs, the green beans, the tacos. Spice is fine for some variety on a menu, and with certain items, but when almost every dish is overwhelmed with heat, it demonstrates lazy culinary effort; the true taste of foods is sacrificed, and any need for balance of flavor is lost when everything drowns in spiciness and everything starts to taste the same.
The manchego cheese bites were essentially akin to mozzarella bites. One spinach salad had pine nuts and the other didn’t have any. They apparently forgot our tacos until we reminded them. The women’s bathroom seemed unattended to.
Too bad. The small plate concept is great and there’s an interesting variety of items. Just poorly executed, and drowning in spice (heat).

Well, it was amateur night at Tico last night for sure! Our waitress refused to serve us drinks, despite seeing our ID. Two forms. She ‘wasn’t comfortable’. How about ‘wasn’t professional’? A 24 and 28 year old who provide two forms of identification really shouldn’t be an issue. I felt less comfortable tipping after that, but did it anyway. Is there a manager who could’ve helped you out? Were the dates too small? Need some reading glasses? Having provided a legal driver’s license should have put the issue to bed, and then a second ID doesn’t do it? How about this interchange:
‘When did you graduate from high school?
2009.
Are you sure it wasn’t 2010?‘
Am I sure I know when I graduated from high school? Are you sure that’s how you want to approach paying customers? Let’s dissect this math:
Graduated in 2009 + 7 years — I’m 24 if I graduated at the age of 17.
Graduated in 2010 + 6 years — I’m 23 (22 at least) if I graduated at 17.
If I was 15 when I graduated in 2010 I could still possibly be 21.
Did our wait staff graduate from high school? Because the math game was pretty weak there.
The food was fine. The lamb belly was pretty good, after they brought the pork belly by accident. (It was also good) They later charged us for both even though they promised they wouldn’t before they brought the check. Must be that funky math again.
If you go, don’t forget your birth certificate.
Booooo Tico! Boooooooooooooo!

My girlfriend’s company rented out Tico on Saturday night for a celebratory party and dinner. We had an awesome time — great music, strong drinks, and delicious food.
As soon as we walked in, a server offered to take our coats. I saw 2 tables set up with appetizers including salmon ceviche, raw oysters, and shrimp cocktail. Throughout the cocktail hour, there were servers walking around with so many different kinds of finger foods — bruschetta, arancini, falafel, and quesadillas (just to name a few).
For drinks, we had full open bar. Despite a crowd of over 50, the bartenders remembered everyone’s drink orders. I was drinking Makers Manhattans and Kristina was having Hendricks Sodas. Our drinks were strong and they kept them coming (protip: take an Über).
For the seated portion of the evening, we had shredded cabbage salad, roasted cauliflower, grilled green beans, mac and cheese, and salmon. Everything was delicious and there was so much of it! All you can eat salmon and mac & cheese was a dream come true for me.
For music, one of Kristina’s coworkers made a playlist in Spotify. The sound system was really loud and the strong drinks lead to a lively dancefloor. No need to hire a DJ.
Desserts included the tres leches cake and bittersweet chocolate tart. Kristina’s company is working on a treatment for Diabetes, so I was the only person housing dessert. More for me!
The staff was working hard throughout the night and they seemed to be having a good time as well. Even when I went to get our coats, they were still smiling. My only regret is not having any cash on me to leave a tip.
Another benefit to hosting your event at Tico is that they are in the same building as The Back Bay Garage. Parking was $ 10 and we didn’t even have to set foot outside (a plus on a chilly January evening).
If you’re looking to host a private party in downtown Boston, I would absolutely recommend Tico.

Came here for brunch last Saturday. Our server was attentive, & knowledgeable of each plate.
I had the Soft Scrambled Eggs, which were bland, but still tasty. I was expecting the crispy potatoes to actually be crispy, but they just soft fingerlings. No big deal. My girlfriend and I split the shishito peppers, crunchy manchego cheese, & hamachi crudo. All were delicious. The pomegranate dip the manchego comes with is to die for!
For drinks, we each had the Rise & Shine, very yummy. We also split the pineapple Tiko bowl, which is basically a scorpion bowl style drink. It was okay. When we ordered the Tiko bowl, our server brought us a complimentary plate of the Roasted Cauliflower, which was our favorite meal of the morning!
The only downsides to our experience were 1) having to wait to come in. We arrived at 11:30 on the dot, but still had to wait 5 – 10 minutes for them to open the door. Normally I wouldn’t care, but it was cold & snowy, and a few other people were trying to get in as well. 2) They advertised live music, but there wasn’t any. This was one of the reasons we chose Tico, so we were somewhat disappointed.
Overall experience was great, and would definitely return here.

Came here on a Tues night post yoga and were able to get seated right away. The food was actually super good– I say actually because I walk by this place a million times and think «hmmm that is like a less good Barcelona…» I also have been to the DC Branch which is way more fun vibey than this one but we still gave it a go.
The food was great:
+cabbage dish was great
+carrots were so good!!!
+the ceviche with tuna was really good
+the mac n ‘cheese was awesome.
Overall I am giving a star off for two reasons: the price point is a little too much for the value. For 2 people for just 4 little tapas it was still 60 bucks which is insane. Also, our waitress was so strange. She took away our food without us being finished so we had to complain and be like «we actually wanted to finish that…» we did get comped for another entire plate of carrots. It was nice they did that but why did the waitress swoop in like a bald eagle and steal our plates before we were even done? WTF?
Will be back– liked this place a lot.

Short answer: good and would go back
Long answer: we called ahead because we didn’t have reservations and were hoping for someone with Mexican food, a good margarita, and a place that could accommodate a toddler. Steve answered and was very nice ! First impression was good and that’s a gold star!
He said we don’t have Mexican food, we have Latin –American inspired plates that aren’t authentic but we are proud of that — honesty
He said we have a spot that has a booth on one side for your child and you can come on over. Accommodating
We were just a block away and our table was ready for us. Even though they were getting busy ! It was still a little early for the evening crowd (eating with a toddler means eating at the senior citizens hour)
We ordered fish tacos and pork tacos both very good! (Note: only 2 tacos per plate so I wish I would have ordered more!!)
We also the sweet potatoes. This was my favorite dish we tried… absolutely delicious !!!
In addition, we had roasted beets and the Mac n cheese. Both were good but not amazing. They did offer to leave out the Jalapeño peppers for our Little guy which was nice. I wouldn’t have known to ask for it that way.
It was all small plates. Nice for sharing and being able to try many things with out over eating!
I also had the blood orange margarita … YUM, and the hubs had a Moscow mule. He really liked it. So, good food and drinks … That’s a few more gold stars
Finally everyone was very nice and the service was fast … I call that five stars !!
As far as price … 5 plates and 2 drinks was about $ 87. Not cheap but we figured that going into given the décor, retail space and the neighborhood.
For us, being able to enjoy a nice dinner and have our little one with us while traveling is always a good thing!

Friends who live in the greater Boston area recommended this place. It must have been solely on their love of margaritas, because the food wasn’t a highlight for me.
I’ve been to a few tapas places and their is typically a variety to pick and share. The menu isn’t extensive. I went for Mac & Cheese and the tacos thanks to my fellow Unilocalers!
My server was terrible! She left us for long periods of time, ignored us and when I asked what was in some items she wasn’t helpful. I wish I knew there was bacon & onions in my food so I could have ordered with out instead of having to pick it out of my meal. Yes, I could have sent it back but it took 40mins to get and I wasn’t willing to wait.
On the bright side dessert was amazing! Check out my pictures to drool!

Came here for a small co-​worker get together. Being all busy, I was the only one who arrived on time and everyone was at least 45min late… Thankfully they weren’t super busy but I was very relieved that everyone wasn’t (at least didn’t act) annoyed by the fact that I was taking up a 6 people table for so long by myself.
This place served nicer Mexican tapas style dishes along with a few main entrees.
Kampachi ceviche — 1 of the favorites of the night, fresh, light, well seasoned
Tacos — had fish and chicken, both were ok but I’ve had better elsewhere
Octopus — pretty good, tender but not too soft
Roasted cauliflower — loved the seasoning they put in here, a huge hit we ordered 2
We also ordered 3 desserts to share, can’t remember them all but the tres leches cake was the standout for me.
Solid place, a little pricey for the amount of food but nice environment and not too busy.

Not bad but also not my favorite place in the area for lunch.
They have some great tapas dishes but it never really filled me up. It is a nice place for having a large group, and not focusing too much on portion size.
They seem to have a good tequila selection but I have not tried it.

I had a fairly decent experience at Tico, but there were some things that rendered me unable to give it the 4 stars I think the experience deserved.
We can with a party of 10 and ordered the $ 55/​person tasting menu. It came with five plates each of 6 tapas (that I can remember, anyway), one entrée, and an assortment of desserts. It was a lot of food, and all of it was quite tasty. I’m a little bummed because I was eyeing the actual menu and really wanted the mac n cheese, which we didn’t end up getting. I would almost come back again just to try that.
Our tasting menu started off with a cabbage salad, roasted peppers (apparently one in ten are spicy and I was the (un)lucky one that got one of the spicy ones…), cauliflower (delicious with bacon bits!), calamari, chorizo, and beef tacos. The entrée was sea bass I believe, which was good and I don’t even like fish normally. The only dessert I tried was the tres leches, and I’m a huge fan of tres leches so I was very content with that.
All in all, a nice experience, though the food did come out in slow waves. We were in no rush and the waiter was extremely nice and attentive.
Our table had ordered four pitches of margarita, of which I only tried the skinny margarita made mild. It was really good and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would.
But the one negative that I couldn’t get over was the fact that the whiskey sour I got here was literally the worst whiskey sour I’ve ever had in my life. I love whiskey sour – it’s my go to drink when I’m not throwing back long islands at a club. And they somehow just managed to make it so bad that I couldn’t drink more than 2 sips of it. It was so goddamn sour it was unbelievable. That YouTube video of the baby trying a lemon for the first time? Yeah, I was making that face, but with no happiness and willingness to try it again afterwards.
I would come back to try the regular menu (meatballs and mac n cheese in particular), but avoid the whiskey sour here at all costs. Please.

Strangely enough, both times I have been to Tico have been during Boston Pride. The restaurant is located a block from where I like to watch the parade so I don’t have to stumble too far whilst inebriated and covered in beads and glitter. Brunch/​lunch fare both times has been good enough to provide me with the fuel I need to power through the rest of the day (including the inevitable mess that is the Chandler Street block party), but not quite fabulous enough to elicit a snap or two of delight.
I started with the sweet corn, which my waitress recommended for being refreshing. Laced with jalapenos that made my brow sweat, the dish was anything but. Crispy Mexican fried chicken came out next, and although the meat was moist and the skin was crisped beautifully, nothing stood out to indicate what exactly made it «Mexican.» The french fries that accompanied it, however, were on point. Better still were the breakfast nachos, which, at $ 13, were a relative steal. They come loaded with wild boar chili, guacamole, black beans, scrambled eggs, bacon, and sour cream, and if that doesn’t sound incredible to you, then we probably shouldn’t be friends. Sadly, this dish belonged to my boyfriend, and he was not feeling particularly generous that day.
Pitchers of margaritas were watered down and heavy-​handed with the lime – and this is coming from someone who doesn’t really even like tequila – so while the drinks didn’t keep the party going, at least the live music did.
So while I’ve enjoyed both my experiences at Tico, I probably won’t be rushing back anytime soon. I’ll probably wait until Pride next year when the parade is coming to a close and my stomach is demanding sustenance to soak up the booze.

I’ve never listened to Often by The Weekend while eating dinner, but maybe I should do it often…
Went twice in one week! I was early for the Unilocal event so I got a drink at the bar and then came later in the week for dinner.
The first time my friend got the Moscow Mule which was super fast because it came from a tap, but he said he couldn’t taste much vodka, but the ginger beer was nice. I had the blood orange margarita and it was delicious. Blood orange everything is delicious, but this was extra good because of the balance. I want more salt on my rim though. Bartender was nice and quick for the margarita too even though it was quite busy (especially for a Tuesday).
The second time I tried the spicy margarita which was really spicy, and went really well with the food. Almost too spicy, but it hit that level and stayed there. I tried so many things and they were all great, but the main things I got were the lobster and avocado taco, fried cheese and fried olives. I didn’t get much lobster from the taco, because it was made more like a lobster roll, I think it had mayo but I can’t say for sure. I thought it would be chunks of lobster and avocado mixed, but if they wanted it to be like a lobster roll, use the avocado instead of mayo. I want to eat that now… The cheese was great and the sauce was perfect – its pomegranate! I would not expect cheese and pomegranate to be good, but it was. The fried olives are pan fried, not deep fried like I expected, but they were still great.
Service was really nice and quick. We asked for things to come out as they were ready, which I recommend.

Delicious! Just attended a Unilocal event at this location and got to sample brunch @ night. Everything was super delicious.
I tried the Nutella French toast which was delicious, sweet without being overwhelming.
The calamari was standard, good but nothing special…
The breakfast taco was delicious in flavor but a bit dry. I have a feeling this was due to the servers running around offering small
Plates and not the flavor itself. Super yummy!!!
The virgin Bloody Mary was made especially for me (thank you so much!!) and was super yummy. I can’t wait for a few months from now when I can choose the full option, but it was a great Bloody Mary!
There was also a serano ham mini sandwich that I loved. I’m not usually a ham fan so I was impressed.
The atmosphere was very fun, funky mexican! The décor was very swag and downtown Boston. I loved it! Definitely a fun place for a date night or a pre-​shopping excursion with mom on newbury. Can’t wait to go back already!