Tortuga’s Cocina

So sad this place is closed but when open it was amazing. Never had a bad meal there!

Tortuga ’ s has reopened as Aztlan Mexican Grill. Fresh ingredients. Tasty margaritas. Waitress was very friendly. Food was delicious.

Holy. Yum. Some of the best Mexican food I’ve had, but it’s a little off-​kilter. On a positive note, we were seated right away despite not having a reservation on a jam packed Friday. We could be seated immediately if we chose to sit at the bar next door, but then we weren’t served water and weren’t able to give our food orders for a while.
But when our food did arrive — so. Good. To get a feel for everything I ordered a combo plate with a combination of meat and sauces. The pork was glorious. Chicken was a wee bit dry but not terrible. Mole sauce was OUTSTANDING.
Luckily, another Unilocal review gave us a heads up that it was cash only. That should be a bit more common knowledge when you first walk in. Nonetheless, worth the tasty meal. Wish I could give 3.5, but I’ll go to 4.

Awesome food! I don’t know what they do to their chicken but it’s heavenly! Everything is homemade, fresh and deliciously executed. Friendly staff. Salsa excellent.

Quick review of one of my favorite restaurants in town. Whenever I visit Lambertville, Tortugas is a must. This visit I was pleasantly surprised to find a new and completely vegan meal on the menu. The vegan burrito! A huge burrito stuffed with sweet potato, rice, black beans, roasted red pepper and vegan cheese. It was topped with a very hot chipotle sauce. I cut the heat with the amazing guacamole. It was by far, my favorite vegan meal I had this weekend in Lambertville. Thank you Tortugas for offering this awesome vegan meal!

Great food and wonderful service. In particular, I recommend the Mole as it’s the best around. The patio is a great place when the weather is cooperating and the interior is also equally welcoming.
They have an agreement with Mitchell’s Café next door so you are able to get beer, margaritas with your meal.

Lets start by saying that by calling ahead to reserve a table for four, out request was met with mixed emotions. The hostess said it was possible but upon our arrival we were informed it was not possible to sit together or rearrange two tables next to one another to create seating for our party of four. The bar tender was not able to create mixed drinks, nor were we allowed to order drinks through our waitress even though we were seated in the bar room. Our appetizers were excellent, with good portion size, although the quesadilla was more of a open faced sandwich interpretation.
Of our four entrees; one order of chicken fajitas was fair, while the other resembled World War II shoe leather that had spent a remarkable amount of time in the trenches, filled with a rotting foot, the third entrée was a Calafornio burrito (I am still unsure of what qualifies a burrito as «Calafornia»), also there were hints of nutmeg and cinnamon in the burrito which detracted from the overall quality, the fourth entrée was altogether an unremarkable enchillada.
I would not recommend this restaurant nor would I return.
+1 Authentic dingey mexican feel
+1 Portion Size
–1 Poor bar tending
–1 Poor reservation service
–1 Absymal, obnoxious loud children
–1 No refill on chips and salsa

This place is very casual and relaxed. If you’re a needy customer that requires a lot of high-​end attention you should just move along. If you’re just looking for awesome Mexican food, good portions, and friendly service; then this is a great place to go. I just visited last Saturday with my girlfriend. We were starving and just saw the sign at the bottom of the street. Everyone was eating outside, but it was starting to get chilly so we went inside and had the place to ourselves. It was a great experience. The owners daughter did a good job at seating us, bringing our drinks, and asking if we needed anything. The waitress was very friendly and sweet. The servings were huge and we had enough to take home for a snack later. The pork was especially good.

My husband and I went there today for lunch and we sat at a table for 20 mins before we even got menu’s. Then after looking at the menu, we realized that we were about to spend 16 – 23 dollars for lunch. The prices are ridiculous and service sucks. Tortuga’s is attached to this weird little bar, not friendly and the service is the same. SUCK!

This place was amazing. I love Mexican food, and the food here was among the best I’ve ever tasted. The pico de gallo was to die for. The portions were fantastic, and all for a reasonable price. I got the California burrito. Delicious! I give an A+.

Was just there the other night. Again, very busy. Service was a four, but the food a 3.
I decided to try a combo platter. While I enjoyed the chicken tamale, the shredded beef and ground beef was too salty.
I feel this place has better quality when they are less busy.
We didn’t order any alcohol beverages from the adjoining bar in the front of the bldg.
The last time they charged me 16 a drink for a golden margarita. Shame!

We went here for Mother’s Day but didn’t realize that they took reservations. We were happy to be able to be seated right away. I ordered the Chili Rellenos and liked it. Hubs ordered the Calamares, which was sautéed squid in a spicy ink sauce and he loved his. Daughter ordered the Pescado Acapulco and liked it a lot. The favorite of meals was the Calamares. Service was friendly. Will definitely return when in the area.

I am giving this restaurant 2 stars because of the poor service from start to finish. That being said, the food is very good. Creative Mexican using very fresh ingredients. We were a party of 7 and chose a variety of menu options including 2 specials, steaks and enchiladas. All were very good. Definitely worth going for the food.
Now, for the service. It was poor. We had reservations for 8pm. We arrived early and checked in. Due to being busy, the hostess told us they couldn’t take us early. That was fine, so we settled down in the bar. At 8.15pm we checked with the hostess who said our table was still occupied but it would only be a few more minutes. We asked if we should just eat in the bar, as we were sitting at a table and she said «no, it will be just a few more minutes.» At 8.30, we again checked in, as she never came to see us. Our table was still not ready. She offered no apology, no chips and salsa, etc… Finally, at 8:45, we were seated at our table. The waitress came by, glanced at our table, saw some of us had drinks from the bar and stated «So, you are set with drinks.» She promptly turned around and walked away even though at least 4 people needed drinks. The next time she returned she was ready for us to order, not the other way around. The rest of the evening’s service was lackluster at best.
So, go for take out… the food is very good. Too bad the front of the house does not match the kitchen.

Found this place while craving some good Mexican food during a self-​guided winery tour through Bucks County this weekend. My date and I were both craving some good Mexican, and decided to try this place despite the mixed reviews. We’re definitely glad we did, because we both agreed that this is some of the best Mexican food we’ve had in quite a long time! Not sure why one reviewer said that when they came here, they couldn’t tell they were eating Mexican because their food lacked spices and seasoning, but I suspect they may actually have gone into the wrong restaurant… I won’t pretend to be an expert on authentic Mexican cuisine, but I can honestly say that both of our entrees were absolutely delicious, well cooked, and wonderfully seasoned. The green sauce probably stole the show, and basically went well with EVERYTHING (we were seriously tempted to ask our waitress if we could get a jar for home)!
Both of us had a variation of the combo platter. I had a hard taco, enchilada, and tamales with ground beef and chicken; for my sauces, I had one with the green sauce and two with the chipotle sauce. not sure what else I can say. The hard taco was deliciously crisp, the tamale was moist and held together nicely, the enchilada was cheesy and hot and delicious. To my surprise, I also enjoyed the side of seasoned rice, which I normally don’t like.
The downs?: The refried beans admittedly left something to be desired, but perhaps just a little salt would have gone a long way. I’m afraid I can’t say much for the chips and salsa at the start; they weren’t bad, just not particularly good either.
Full disclosure: I am all about the food in this review. This was definitely not a chic or trendy atmosphere, but this is not what me or my date were looking for. The place was nice enough, and we enjoyed the outdoor seating in this fine spell of weather we’ve had recently.
If you’re looking for some delicious, inexpensive, and well-​rounded Mexican food in Bucks County, I’d say here’s your stop!

Having just moved to town and loving all things that have to do with Mexican food I was thrilled about tortuga’s being pretty much in my backyard.
We went in on our first night in the new place and we were pleasantly surprised by the food, not your traditional Mexican but good none the less. Cooked with the heat it needs, both entrees were very enjoyable and the rice and beans were spot on! As for our overall experience, we didn’t make reservations and ended up at the bar in Mitchell’s the creepily decorated old bar attached. And while Mitchell’s seems to be popular among some folks, I’m quite confused as to why. The bartender was not pleasant in the slightest, to anyone for that matter, and it took 15 minutes to get a drink.
Needless to say we haven’t stopped eating tortuga’s, we just get take out now :)

They are behind the Michelle bar. Tortuga’s cocina is a cute place with outdoor seating. The service was quite pleasant and they seem to accommodate large parties fairly well (the 6 people + 2 children family table next to us).
We were hungry and just wanted to grab a bite before leaving Lambertville, without too much expectation we had the chicken mole and fish tacos. While I’m not an expert of Mexican cuisine, the food was fine (even if it is «Americanized») with nothing much to complain about. The fish tacos were a little bland and the mole sauce while tasty could use a bit more spice. But overall it was a good meal and we enjoyed it.

This is not just delicious… it’s OMG delicious. Got a groupon and went on a great early summer evening in June. Honestly, it was a little hard to find, but it could just be because I let my companion handle the GPS…
We sat outdoors. There were 3 or 4 other groups already there when we sat, and by the time our food came all of the tables were taken. The outdoor space is quiet and peaceful, but honestly not really much to look at.
The salsa/​pico de gallo was fabulous-​there was a kick to it, but not so much you can’t taste your dinner. The chips were great as well.
We each ordered something different and planned on sharing. I got the fish tacos. They were great! The fish seemed fresh and was well cooked. The wrappers were sturdy and did not fall apart as I ate them, despite the liquid from the taco. The fish probably could have used more seasoning, but it is what it is.
My companion got the enchiladas jalisco. FABULOUS. That’s really all i have to say. The meat was perfectly cooked and seasoned, the blend of flavors worked well together and the presentation was nice as well.
This is definitely somewhere I will return to!

This is the best Mexican restaurant I’ve ever been to. Erin, the owner is always on hand to ensure a great down to earth experience. We’ve brought our kids and parties of 15– and as long as you have a reservation you have a table waiting for you. My favorites are the specials but don’t miss the homemade tamales– made from scratch daily. Place is totally kid friendly.
And the bar rocks too! Love the margaritas!

(Second edit December 2014 the food had no flavor whatsoever, it made me think it’s on par with Mexican day at a school cafeteria. Salsa was overwhelmed by lime juice, red sauce was probably Old El Paso, and the table next to us was examining the box of Goya flan mix for allergens but seriously you serve Goya? This probably explains why the restaurant was 50% empty at 7:30pm on a Saturday night, sad to say)
Note they also switched to cash only recently! Which it would be nice to mention when someone calls for a reservation even though they have an ATM in the creepy bar.
(edit August 2014): companion went back recently and reported the food has not improved, absolutely bland, lukewarm, Americanized meh)
Solid middle-​of-​the-​road (Americanized) Mexican food. Service can be a bit spotty, they don’t attempt to hide the fact that since everything is pre-​cooked, it only takes like 5 minutes for entrees to appear (heat-​and-​serve) but it’s still quite tastey and my Mom craves it all the time. (For me, it’s a nightmare trip down indigestion alley) but we still enjoy it.
I’m writing a lot of reviews right now, and had dinner there tonight I am a bit more soured on the place than usual. The waitress brought me the wrong drink, the busboy/​runner brought some extra napkins that were dirty, the entrée was wrong (I ordered cheese chili rellenos, one had pork and one had, well, nothing — it was just a poblano pepper battered with no filling woops! The rice and beans were cold.
I don’t mean to sound harsh, because we do continue to go back on a regular basis every month or two, and in fact I’m contradicting myself to say that I do enjoy it most times.

Great Food, they have everything that you would expect, and do a great job preparing it!!! We were surprised by the Calamari, as it was not fried, but served in a squid ink Mole. It was amazing!!!
The Carne Asada is pretty awesome!!!