On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina

YUM. Great food and great service. Love the chips, guac and fajitas.

I ordered Mahi it was too salty, short on staff, my waiter is too busy attending others i waited 10mins for my check

Just terrible service. we went in last night and it took forever for someone to take our drink and food orders. our bar drinks took more than 30 mins and our food more than an hour on a Sunday night when the place was half full. every table in our area spoke to the manager at least once. Once we did get our food it was mediocre at best. several items were burnt and some even incorrect. after an hour wait. I’m not sure how this location is still open.

This is one of the friendliest places in town. The staff and management are always nice and accommodating my special orders and willing to go out of their way to make it right on the rare occasion when its not. They always serve FREE chips and salsa, which is nice because many places charge a few dollars for it, but not at OTB. The portion sizes are generous for the price and the drinks are fantastic. I particularly recommend the happy hours. What I like best about this place is the service. It’s one of the main reason why I return, well, besides the FREE chips and salsa, but hey! They genuinely seem to care about your visit and enjoyment and you don’t often get that at other area restaurants.

I used to love On The Border. I was just there on a Saturday night at 730 and our party of 4 was able to be seated right away. I thought we were in luck but I soon found out why. The service was bad at best. It took forever to get a server to come over to take any drink orders and when she did she forgot to put in our Margaritas. I would give them a pass if they were packed but they were not busy. The food was OK but not as good as it used to be. I doubt that location is open much longer. it’s too bad.

Wait staff and management did the best they could I’m assuming. Portion sizes were childlike but adult priced. Shorted us three set ups on a table of six and they came to us cold. On top of that it look like everyone around us was complaining of the same issue. What happened to On The Border???

I don’t know what’s happened to OTB but they’ve really fallen off since the last time I ate at one. Ordered on the web, two items, TWO. And they forgot one of them. The place was dead when I went to pick it up, it’s not like the cooks were in the weeds. Shame on me for assuming they check the orders before they go out. They must have slopped the food into the styrofoam containers and salsa cup because there was salsa and sauce dripping down the outside of both. This was my first experience w/​this location. It was also my last.

Waited 25 minutes for dinner and my food was burnt and cold and my fiancé was cold and his refried beans werent edible. Wont go back.

First off food was average you can probably get better quality food at freaking taco bell, the customer service was horrible. We were waiting for hours! not literally but you get the point. It took forever to get everything and to top it off our waiter had a horrible attitude, and expected a good tip after we left and as we were leaving because I felt his performance was below average I tipped him low and he gave me and my fiancé a disturbingly «mean» look. I felt threatened! I will definetly not be eating there again ever! nor will I recommend this place to anyone, I am so appalled. If I could give half a star I would but I can’t so this place is getting one star and even that is too much.

Amazing happy hour. (All day on Sunday’s– perfect for football games). Great margs. Great food including the chips and salsa.

Went during happy hour with my daughter, we sat outside – kinda windy but whatever, waiter was friendly, ultimate fajitas and swirl mango/​strawberry drink was amazing! My only complaint was we didn’t get the appetizer until AFTER our entrée had arrived but he apologized and gave us a discount. We ate & drank for under $ 45!

The food portions are amazingly huge, the pictures on their menu are a fraction of the actual size you will be getting. Over all extremely fresh and delicious Mexican cuisine. The wait staff are very kind and down to earth. If you’ve never been to on the border you need to try it. I guarantee you will enjoy it.

I love this restaurant. The food is always great, the wait staff is usually very attentive and I love the salsa, spicy and fresh. 5 stars everytime. We dine here about twice a month.

Just needed a quick bite to eat before our movie started… I ordered the chicken tacos from the low calorie menu and the husband ordered the triple enchilada meal. The margaritas were fantastic and only $ 4 for «all day» happy hour, or maybe it should be named «happy day». Anyhoo… FYI for the cook… if you place corn tortilla soft tacos on a plate with liquid (from the sauce?, beans?, idk)…the corn tortilla will fall apart and this is no longer a «taco». I had to cut up my tacos and eat them with a fork. And the tortilla ended up soggy. Also, there was a delicious garlic cilantro mixture that was only placed on one of the tacos in a glob. I woulda liked it on both of the tacos! It was yummy!
Service was OK, nothing to write home about. We may go back, but mostly because it’s so close to the movie theatre!

I’m not a huge fan of chains but the boyfriend and I came here before seeing a movie hoping that it would be a quick meal. We sat at the bar and met a very nice and social bartender who was great. We each had a drink and I ordered a chicken fajita taco and a chicken tinga tostada, both were delish. The boyfriend had a chicken tinga taco and a spinach and mushroom enchilada. He wasn’t a huge fan of the enchilada but everything else was great. I really liked that they have a «border smart» area of the menu that helps you see the lighter but yummy options to choose from.
I can’t give it a 5 because it’s a chain… and I’m just not THAT big of a fan of them… but we’ll put it on the list of places to consider when we’re in a hurry! :)

We went to OTB for a late lunch on Veteran’s Day because O’Dano is a Veteran and they were offering a free meal. The waitress was very nice and attentive. They serve chips and salsa which were good but the salsa kicked a little too hard. O’Dano got 3 crispy tacos and thought they were great. I got 2 empanadas, a tostada and a pork tamale. The empanadas were good for the first few bites, then they got a bit boring. There was a cheese dipping sauce that came in the smallest dipping cup I’ve ever seen, and I tried dipping my empanada in it and it didn’t fit. So I went in for the pork tamale, but it had a super strong smoky chipotle sauce that I didn’t care for. The tostada was funny because it was heaping covered with lettuce & tomato. My expectation of cheese was smashed when I got a teaspoon of what resembled blue cheese sprinkled on my mound of lettuce. When I found the shell it was wet, probably because of all the lettuce! Between the lettuce and wet shell were the same flavor of meat that was in the empanada, and refried beans that were on the plate. The beans and rice? No way could they be freshly cooked, no way! I brought them home with me so I can give them some flavor. Bottom line, it’s better than fast Mexican food. However, I gave them 3 stars because it’s so cool they are honoring the Veterans and O’Dano liked his meal.

The food is very salty. Maybe so you buy more liquor. The rice is butter… and does taste anything of Mexican rice.
Salsa is decent. Chips were stale. Fish was game-​y. Tasted like a fresh water fish.
The people are über nice. But food is horrible.

This restaurant has really gone down hill. Everything i ordered looked canned and or not fresh at all
The tacos were pathetic, i could make better at home. The sauce on the enchiladas had to be from a can.
Taco Bueno would have been better food.

The OTB in Kansas City remodeled their location last year. Its pretty nice and colorful! The menu has gotten a few new items, even items that are «Border Smart» which are lesser calorie items. Happy Hour is good too. Sun-​Thurs its from 3 – 7 and 9 – 11. Fri is only 3 – 7. And there isnt anything on Saturday. The drinks on happy hour are great. Some of the appetizers are small but its only because its only $ 2-​$ 4, so obviously you are not going to get a giant portion. Sooo keep that in mind.
They just started serving BRUNCH on the weekends. They open at 10am on the weekends now for Brunch. Brunch is from 10−2pm, unless they happen to run out of the brunch items it might end earlier. I like the brunch, the breakfast tacos are awesome! Little spicy, be careful. $ 2 mimosas for brunch too! The menu isnt huge, and its NOT a BUFFET. So dont expect to choose from 30 items! Think people are confused with that. It is a nice selection.
Everyone is friendly. Servers work so hard and do their best! When it is busy, it is so crazy. I feel sorry for the servers sometimes because they work their butts off and sometimes dont get very good tips. I noticed that they do not add gratuity to large parties. I talked to a server one time who served a party of 15, I asked her if they add gratuity. She told me they do not! I heard the table say she did great and loved her, but overheard them say they will tip her only 15%. Thought that was kind of rude. They are LUCKY that they didnt have to pay more if gratuity was automatically added on. **If you go there and are in a large party, TIP YOUR SERVER GOOD, NO EXCUSES!**
But OTB is still great! Try the new items and they also have espinaca dip now!

I usually do not review chain restaurants, but I was pleasantly surprised on a recent visit to On The Border, a Mexican restaurant chain found many places across the country.
I decided to go because I was havin’ a hankerin’ for tacos that evening and recalled hearing the TV commercial about their «Endless Tacos». I am not usually a fan of «all you can eat» restaurants and promotions because I tend to to just that … eat all I can… AND MORE!
It was a Saturday night and the place was packed, but only had to wait ten minutes for a table. I was greeted by Kelsie, a lovely and personable young lady who just graduated from Northwest Missouri State and is planning on becoming a registered nurse… BRAVO Kelsie!
I ordered a house margarita, the Guacamole Viva!, and Endless Tacos, but being rather busy it took ten minutes or so to get my margarita. It was tasty enough, but a little «light» on alcohol for the price.
Kelsie arrived shortly thereafter with my Guacamole Viva! which she prepared tableside with two ripe avocados, a little salt, fresh cilantro, diced red onion (I would have used white onion), a splash of lime juice, and chopped tomato. I am «The Guacamole King» and famous for my delicious guacamole. A guacamole purist at heart, I normally ditch the tomatoes (usually a filler in restaurants to make it look like you are getting more, but paying mostly for the much cheaper tomatoes), use finely chopped white onion, and added a clove of garlic or two. Guacamole Viva! was good nonetheless, but the chips (and salsa) that came with my meal were too thin and broke half the time I dipped… very unnerving!
The Endless Tacos come with spanish rice and beans, black or refried. You get three (your first go-​around) and get to choose from three meats, ground beef, shredded chicken, or pulled pork (carnitas for you non-​gringos). You also get your choice of tortilla, corn or flour, soft or deep fried. I chose two ground beef tacos in fried corn tortillas and one pork in a soft flour tortilla. I also dispensed with the rice, knowing that I was not going to waste a bit of room on the cheap «filler» and go for the gusto with the tacos … AND I DID!
The beef tacos were excellent, coming with plenty of meat, some shredded cheddar cheese, and a small amount of lettuce and tomato on the plate (for all three tacos — more tomatoes required!). I added some refried beans, guacamole, and salsa to the beef tacos and they were excellent! Unlike Jalisco, which I reviewed a week or so back, the taco shells remained firmly in one piece, a sign of an expert taco maker and the way I prefer them.
The pork (carnitas) tacos were also very good. The meat was bountiful and cooked just right, there was a little cheese (I would have liked a bit more), and the tortilla much larger than the corn and toasted just enough to remain pliable, but soft enough to contain the beans, guacamole, and salsa I added.
In all, the meal was very good and I ended-​up getting seven tacos. You should know that after the initial «three» tacos, subsequent «endless tacos» come only in pairs of two, so my second order was a replica of the first, but I only ended-​up getting two beef tacos. I had to order the other pork taco later, but when it arrived there were two, so I took home the seventh taco along with the extra guacamole fro lunch the next day.
I must say that the highlight of my meal was Kelsie. She was sweet and attentive, following up just enough and not too much to make my meal enjoyable and stress free. Best of luck to you Kelsie in your nursing career! If you are as good a nurse as you are a server, your patients will be in very good hands!
CombatCritic gives On The Border 6 BOMBS OUT OF 10 … BOMBS ARE GOOD!