Zocalo - Latin American restaurant in Charlottesville - 201 E Main St Unit E, USA

This was some of the best food if not the best food i’ve ever had. the jack cheese fritters were absolutely incredible. Our waitress Nahida was amazing as well. the strip steak was cooked to perfection and so was the seared duck my husband got. It was a great experience all in all

All I wanted was this song request. And yet the DJs act like they’re in Ibiza. You’re not above us. You could’ve given into my request at one in the morning when barely anyone was here but no, you let your pride get in the way. The bar service there were only two girls working New Year’s. God helped them on the volume. They did amazing shout out to them. I couldn’t tip them enough. Life is short and I get that you cling to whatever you need to but those working the music/DJ stand get over yourself. The ones that keep you alive are your fans and I am not a fan of any of you that work here. I make a lot of money and I work hard for what I do and when I spend money I’m ready to spend it on those who are worth it. But today not worth it on the music side. I might as well have been at a cosmic bowling event.

We just left after an hour and a half waiting on our entrees. No one checked on us; no one stopped by to let us know where our meal was. We arrived 20 minutes early and offered to have a drink at the bar. “No we have a table ready.” Then, we sat for 25 minutes before anyone even stopped by the table. Meanwhile, people who came in after us were waited on. I asked to see the manager after an hour and a half and still no meal. Her “excuse” for poor service: we ordered an appetizer. Too many “hip” staff and not enough people who care about their work. The worst part was the manager wrongfully saying we were rude to the wait staff. WORST DINING EXPERIENCE EVER!!! We will never eat there again and will post where we can how bad our service and experience was. Worst part: it was our anniversary and less than 3 weeks ago, midweek, we ate there. Service was slow, but not like last night. Not sure how this young lady got to be named manager—no customer service skills at all. Ridiculous that you spend over $150 on such a pitiful dining experience. Who owns this dump?

First time we came here, we got the duck breast. It was in the middle of the first pandemic winter when they served their food with plastic utensils and plates. The duck breast was so hard to chew and I really didn’t enjoy that. Two years later we came back and ordered the same duck breast dish with normal butter knifes—they are still as hard to chew. I have no problem with medium rare duck but what we were served was rare. Had to ask our server—who was really nice and attentive —to send the meat back in the oven for a couple more minutes. It came out better. Do not recommend. The watermelon salad was great—light and refreshing. The salmon entree would’ve also been great—if the portion size was 1/3 of what it was. This isn’t to say that their portion size is unreasonably big, but the fact that grilled salmon + cheese + cream was just so greasy that I had a hard time stomach it in the end. There was so much oil that was left running on my plate afterwards. We are not likely to come back again.

Atmosphere - 5 Service - 5 Food - 3 Value - 4 Really great take on Latin food, though it is very clear they are erring too far on the side of caution in terms of spicy level. I needed more heat, it needed more heat. For $30 on the special entrée, I expect less “mass market appeal” practices. As for the seasonal bourbon spiced apple cider cocktail, it was very good BUT it absolutely should have been served hot. For these reasons, the food doesn’t get top marks and the value follows suit. Otherwise, a great place for an upscale dinner with excellent service and beverage options. Subsequent visits: The duck is repeatedly (on more than one occasion) seared on the outside and completely raw on the inside. Unbearable to chew, possibly not sanitary. Be sure to ask them to do it well done, they will default to something they call medium rare but that is misleading.

Each menu item including the cocktails were perfectly flavorful, creative and passionate towards Spanish and Latin cuisine. The atmosphere was relaxing and intriguing, utilizing dim lighting and a modern design. The appetizer was a seasonal beet salad with both golden and red beets plus arugula. Main was the scallops with fried plantains, each bite just as rewarding as the first. If you can handle spicy I say skip the mojito and go straight for the mezcal old fashioned because it had the perfect bite and balance of flavor from smoky, spicy, sweet, and tart.

It was not a pleasant experience. I was with a group of friends, and I asked the waitress if they had michelada, and she said “oh, I don’t have enchiladas”. If it’s a “Mexican restaurant,” at least they should know the difference. I also ordered a tequila, but she didn’t mention the price, so when the check came in, I was surprised that she gave me the most expensive tequila ($32 per drink, versus any other drink on their menu which are $8 on average). Ultimately, the food was good, but I wouldn’t go back.

I've visited Zocalo on multiple occasions, and they consistently provide great food and service. Everyone is friendly and helpful. I also got a reservation for my family during graduation weekend, and the pre-set menu offerings were, as with the rest of their menu, phenomenal. I cannot recommend Zocalo enough.