Calaveras - Mexican restaurant in Lee's Summit - 219 SE Main St, USA

My husband and I went to Calaveras during their holiday pop-up bar. We had never been before, and let me tell you the food was PHENOMENAL. It’s been awhile since we have had food that tasty. Service was great considering how busy the joint was. We spoke to the manager, Sara, to tell her know how great of an experience we had. She was so kind! We will definitely be back soon! 10/10 would recommend.

ONLY getting 2 stars due to the Christmas ambience and fast service. The food here was awful. They charged for chips after the first round and the salsa tasted like marinara sauce. It was not fresh food and the meat/seafood tasted off. The queso tasted like velveeta and the guacamole tasted like the ones you buy from the plastic tubs at the grocery store. The drinks were also really lackluster and overpriced. The average amount per person was $34 for low quality food and drinks. I would not recommend this place to anyway and will not be going back.

We went for my daughter in laws birthday. We were told we were booked in the snow globe room. Waited quite a while for a table and then we were seated in the main room. When I asked about the snow globe room, I was told the entire restaurant was a snow globe. So I’m wondering why people that just walked up were able to be seated before we were?? On top of that we were called a day before and were told they were either canceling or moving our reservation!! The food was meh! We had to ask for silverware a couple of times. The server was nice but slow. Our first round of drinks came in to go cups. Second round were in glassware. Why? No clue. Portions were small, especially the guacamole. $8 for about 1/2 a cup and no chips with it. They gave us 2 baskets of chips when we sat down. The 1st basket had about 10 chips. I asked the server what was in the red and white burrito; he truly did not even know what it was. When it came it was 98% rice and 2% beans. The queso on top was good. My husband said the pezole was delicious. The quesobirria were boring and and extremely small portion. To quote my son said this food for the price is a scam. My husband had Mexican dip, only ate 1/4 because the meat was very fatty and tough to bite through. Street parking. The bathrooms were clean. To add insult to injury, due to the portion size - paid a lot of money - and we are all hungry. Been there, done that, don’t need to go back.

My husband and I went here for our anniversary dinner. It's an absolutely beautiful restaurant. The staff is super friendly and the service was great. The food and margaritas were delicious! The guacamole was the best and freshest I have tasted. The queso with corn was good, too. Get the black and white burrito, you won't regret it. It's huge! My husband loved his birria and pork belly tacos. The hibiscus margarita was really good. We will definitely be back.

Smoke Brewing Co., married couple Lanni and Josh Edwards have opened their second location just a few doors down from Smoke. After five years of success in Lee's Summit with their brewery and BBQ, they have created a great date night spot. Calaveras (which means skull in Spanish) is hard to miss right now in downtown Lee's Summit. Snowglobe, a holiday popup has taken over the decorations in a great way! The colorful glow of holiday cheer can be seen from across the street when you park. The restaurant is large enough to easily seat 45 to 50 guests, but I would recommend making reservations as they do have walk-in seating, but it's tight. Being so new, the restaurant was flooded with people when we visited. I described Calaveras as dark and moody, which lends great to a date night spot. I was excited to hear that the executive chef at Calaveras was Josh Laufketter, who was the sous chef at Bluestem. I had the pleasure of meeting Bryan Arri, the bar director who made us all custom margaritas. I was raised on Mexican cuisine from the day I was born, and I will have to give it to Calaveras their food is different and elevated, just enough to draw attention to new and creative dishes. The chips and salsas are all house made and very flavourful. The staff was very friendly, the drinks were good and the food was even better. We will absolutely be back several more times! I think that the Edwards have a hit on their hands and wish them all the luck!

Upon entrance I was met by kind and courteous staff who instantly made me feel welcome. The seating was great and the atmosphere was very nice. I didn’t go here with the intention of writing a review but I knew I had to rep this establishment shortly after being seated. The waiter arrived with fresh/warm chips and delicious salsa. I’m pretty picky about my chips and salsa and these were perfect! I ordered the street corn for an appetizer to my appetizer. SO good!! Just the right amount of all the ingredients. Queso Blanco with chorizo and corn was next and it was bar none the best I have ever had. Excited for every bite! My drinks came out super fast, my waiter was very attentive and kind. The decor was so nice to look at. It seems no expense was spared with customer appreciation in mind. Very well done Calaveras, I tip my hat to you and your staff, keep up the exceptional work!!! Big shout out to Bevan and Amy for making my experience here so great, I’ll be telling everyone I know!!!

Such a fun environment that was way over the top! The food was unique and the black and white burrito was earth shattering! It was so tasty we will drive out of our way to eat there again!

I visited during the Holiday Pop-Up- and was so glad I did! The Birria Empanadas are DIVINE! It was so much fun and delightful- so appreciative of the service since I didn’t have a reservation at that time, but absolutely worth it! 😄