Zona Rosa

Went there for brunch with my fiancé (around 11 AM on a Sunday), first time at this place. No line up, place was maybe 30% full. Sat inside at the table at the back right corner. A little squished. The décor and music created a nice ambiance. Food was decent for me, I ordered the Blue Corn Quesadilla Scramble. My fiancé thought the food was overpriced for what you get, he ordered the Chile Relleno Con Huevo. The water provided tasted funky. I noticed another person posted a picture of the TDS content of their water being way over the normal levels. Service was decent.

Great place to go. Very small so make sure to make reservations. We made them and people came in and they where told they where full for the entire night. I see why this place has great tasting food and staff is amazing.

This place has been on my list to try for awhile, and decided to finally try it out after seeing it mentioned in a KQED’s «Bay Area Bites» article. I made a reservation through OpenTable for 6:30 for two of us. We were seated as soon as we got there, but this place is tiiiiiiiny and fills up very quickly as the night progresses. The service was good (there are two waiters for the whole place), and you can see the chefs working back in the kitchen which I really like.
What we ate:
Guacamole: We ordered it without the bacon and pistachios and it was very good. It seemed like everyone else in the restaurant ordered it with!
Empanadas: These were also very good, but we were disappointed with the size of them for $ 11.50. Probably wouldn’t get them again.
Enchiladas de Albondigas: This was my boyfriends dish, but I did get to try some. Basically, it’s two cheese enchiladas with two very large meatballs on the side. The portion was huge, the meatballs were delicious, and I was told it made for very good for leftovers the next day.
Pasilla Chile Relleno: Very different from the Chile Rellenos that I’m used to, but it was so good! The chorizo and butternut squash together really made it a unique, tasty dish.
Horchata Ice Cream: This was probably my favorite part of the night — I would come back here just for this! Definitely tastes homemade.

Mindi his the best manager ever, she always welcome me, and give me the best service. The food his 5 star service, very yummy.

The salsa trio was delicious. The shrimp tacos were also very tasty. The restaurant is small and cozy. The staff is friendly.

I loved this place very much. It’s very small, so make sure you have reservations before going. Nonetheless, most everything about the place was positive. My only complaint is that the waitstaff really weren’t all that friendly, but I’d definitely go back a few more times before I let that actually bother me.

Discovered this cute restaurant with the panda bear who claims to be the food king. Came in without a reservation on a very cold Saturday night and was seated outside of the restaurant because they claimed that the restaurant was fully booked. They handed us the menu and 5 minutes later they invited us inside where a table was available which is very nice of them.
Looking at the menu, the prices were above average for a Mexican restaurant. We ordered four cocktails and they were definitely delicious; some sweeter than others. For food, we had the bacon guacamole, three salsas with chips, Callos/​Costillas tacos, and the amazing pumpkin fritters/​horchata ice cream for dessert. The flavors were nice but if they added another kick of spiciness into it, that will be perfect. They served every thing in small portion which is nice to not over eat. Writing this review already gave me a craving to go back. Yum, defeintely coming back!

Best meal we’ve had in San Jose. The food is perfectly prepared, they use fresh ingredients and have an interesting menu. The service was fast, friendly and very accomodating. I would like to eat and live here full time :). Very tiny place, so make sure to reserve a table. I recommend the blue corn enchiladas and the Avocado wedges.

I wished we lived closer so that we could go all the time! Tres salsas was a fun way to start lunch and the ricotta empandadas were a delight. The real stars were the entrees — my wife loved the carne asada, it was perfectly cooked and the best prepared steak she’s had at a non-​steakhouse. The chicken enchaladas were also fantatsic, the masa tortillas and spiceful sauce are still lingering on my tongue. And very good house made chips!
It is a very small restaurant which felt crowded in a cool way, but it’s not a spot for a «quick bite.» Excellent service though, our server gave very helpful recommendations.

Decided to go with hubby for a date without the kids. It was so delicious! We really enjoyed the food and service. We went without a reservation so we sat outside in the cold but they had heat lamps. You have to try their banuelos for dessert! It’s so good! Stay away from the drink with raw mulled jalapeños. It’s spicy beyond belief, not refreshing at all. Can’t wait to go back and try out their other dishes!

I’d come back for the costillas tacos. The chimichurri tacos were just as exceptional-​if you’re a steak lover.
Glad I ordered the two chile chavela-​got my buzz going ;)
Service was prompt and he made recommendations while explaining the menu.
A quaint gem, party of two-​four would work. I could see where more than that would become an issue but if you’re bringing a big group there are plenty of other restaurants to choose from. Come here on a date to enjoy the food with someone that appreciates a unique menu.
Next time on the list for the boyfriend and I is the almond horchata!

I am completely obsessed with this adorable restaurant! From the moment you walk in you will fall in love. Everything from the dish wear and presentation to organic ingredients is perfection.
The drinks are delicious, the food is amazing and the service is outstanding. I definitely have to thank my boyfriend for finding my new favorite spot.
They have breakfast options too!

Where do i begin? First off, this is a VERY small place, But the décor and use of space makes it feel less crowded and a lot more intimate. Now my standard for how good a Mexican restaurant is going to be is by how good the guacamole is. Most places are ok, and not really worthy of praise, but this place blew me away!
Their guacamole comes presented to you in a stone bowl topped with pistachios and then taken to the next level by having crispy bacon stabbed all around the bowl. Add to this a large plate with a generous amount of fresh chips made in house, not bagged like other eateries, and you have more than enough reason to come in!
For my main course i had the carnitas tacos. The menu said i get two and i was almost tempted to buy more seeing that most places i have gone to will have «street tacos» that wouldn’t satisfy a hungry child, let alone a ravenous me. When the came i was glad i had not ordered more as these were substantial!
The meat was seasoned and cooked to perfection and melted in your mouth. every bite a wonderful reminder of why i stopped in! To top it off the price was perfect at $ 25 dollars with tip.
Do yourself a favor and stop by! you will only leave happy :-)

You know in the commercial, where they talk bout that beautiful destination but when you get there nothing was what it seemed … that happened to me when I came to Zona Rosa. So many brilliant reviews and temping picture. a picture says a thousand words but it can never depict the taste.
I made an rsvp for lunch with a few coworkers on a Tuesday. Doing so was quick and painless — so I recommend. We’ve all heard and seen such great things about this place it was hard to contain excitement. The bacon pistachio guacamole looks out-​of-​this-​world-​delicious but unfortunately the taste was bland and left you wondering whether you should’ve gone to Chipotle instead… The guac was the worst thing of the day, so don’t worry, up we go! A coworker and I split the steak tacos and the costillas (braised baby-​back ribs). Sensible choice to split so that we can taste the different flavors — however to get full off of the tacos menu, I’m pretty sure we’d have to order all the different kinds of tacos. The service size was definitely NOT enough. For $ 11 for two tacos, you would expect to feel some type of way after, but the only way we felt was unsatisfied and hungry! The flavors were pretty good… but not $ 11 good. I’ve had $ 1 tacos that were probably more on point. It was more gourmet than usual with chimichurri and cold slaw, but I definitely didn’t think it blew my mind. The flavors did not spark fireworks in my mouth — it was good at best — could definitely be better. On the other hand, one of my other coworker ordered the carnitas BLT and that thing was HUMONGOUS! It was probably as big as his face. comparing it to our two tacos, I would say that we definitely ordered the wrong thing. My boss ordered the carrot soup and it was delicious! It came with two flavorful meatballs — I would recommend this! AND it was only $ 5. So overall, this place wasn’t ZOMGDELICIOUS like the pictures screamed, but it wasn’t bad either. However — for the price of what you’re getting, I probably would never come back. There are certainly many places you can go around the area for something more delicious and filling without having to put that big a dent in your wallet.

The high prices and the smaller portions are really getting in the way of enjoying my meal. We stopped by for a late lunch and ordered the salsas with tortillas instead of chips. The salsa saucers were really small and we immediately asked for another. The tortillas looked fresh and tasted hand made. Really good! Two of us ordered the taco plates. The chicken are $ 11 and the salmon are $ 13! I asked if they came with some beans and rice and was told they did not, but that they were really big. They were not really big. :-/​Instead they were really small for $ 5.50 per taco! My friend got the veggie enchiladas. They were very tasty.
The water was served in a recycled glass jar, super cute, except they were a bit dirty. I’m very sensitive to sights of unclean glass. I’m almost positive it’s tap water. It tasted like ol’ San Jose’s tap. I asked for a lime to help cover the taste and sight of the less than pleasant looking glass.
I am very glad I tried this place. I’ve been wanting to, for a long time. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be back.

Go for lunch. I’m sure you’ll have a better chance at getting a table sooner if you go for lunch rather than dinner since the restaurant’s so small.
My margarita was good, a little watery, but still good. The chips and guacamole– outstanding! My husband and I shared the chicken enchilada dish– outstanding as well. Service was good too. We’ll be back.

Man I want to give this place more stars but I can’t! I was soooo optimistic about coming here; the Unilocal reviews and photos made this place seem like an experience I HAD to try.
I made a reservation and it’s a good thing I did, this place is TINY, but at first glance and no wait for our table it seemed more romantic and special. Our waitress and all other staff we encountered were all friendly, delightful and pleasant.
If I had to just rate their cocktails it would be a flying 5 stars EASY, they are wonderful! Full of delicate and balanced flavors and really outgoing spins on all of your typical bar items. Hints of ginger, coconut, fresh mint, all entice your senses. I was super excited for dinner.
We ordered the three salsa appetizer and their guacamole. Aside from some of the salsas being spicy and the bacon in the guac, they were lacking more intense flavors that one might expect from Latin food.
Our entrees arrived, and it was more of the same. Beautifully presented with great service but the flavor they looked better then they tasted for sure.
Our total bill was over $ 200 I wasn’t impressed with the taste at all. Real bummer for such well plated food.

My husband and I tried this restaurant recently for breakfast on a Saturday morning and it was really delicious.
The space is small and intimate with seating both inside and outside. We sat outside because we had a stroller and there was really no room inside to make it work, but that was ok because the weather was nice for outside.
I had a breakfast quesadilla and a side of the mashed potatoes and street corn, with a Mexican hot chocolate too. My husband ordered a meat and eggs dish that I have forgotten what it was, but he really enjoyed it. He had the house coffee which was spiced and sweet with cinnamon and a real treat.
The flavors were traditional and tasty. The portions were small but that is ok. The chips were especially fresh and good.
I enjoyed trying a new place and really enjoyed the quality of the food even if I couldn’t seriously gorge out on a big meal. The prices are decent but can really add up if you do a few of the small side dishes.
The service was efficient but not overly sweet or involved.
We also tried one of their house made sodas, a delightful surprise of fruit juices with a dash of jalapeño that turned the drink into something truly different and awesome.
You can tell this business is a foodie place with thoughtful chefs and they have a classy and solidly good intention with their menu and food.
My only complaint is the fancy way they put the sour cream on my quesadilla because it was impossible to use my hands to eat it which would have been nice for me.
Recommended for vegetarians for sure!

Well, I had to go back around the restaurant to pick-​up some wine at J Lohr… I was debating between the Thai restaurant nearby or Zona Rosa…
I wanted to set my opinion on that place so I went back!
I update my review only to rate is 4 stars (please see my previous, older review for more details). Food is very ‘modern’/fusion, fine, good. I insist on the fact that portions are a-​bit-​too-​much-​on-​the-​small-​size but heck… taste and quality are there!

This is «different» mexican food. Can’t quite pinpoint it but perhaps upscale mexican food is the right way to describe it. Prices are quite high especially for the size of their dishes. Don’t expect to come here to get a jumbo burrito and endless free chips/​salsa.
You have to pay for chips/​salsa. Which is an outrageous concept to me. They are homemade chips but they were really greasy. You get three types of salsas. The orange one had a smokey bbq taste to it that I didn’t particularly like but my dad and sister did.
I ordered the pollo tacos. You get two tacos, one tortilla each. So it looks fairly small and if you’re a big hungry dude it probably wouldn’t fill you up. Thankfully I wasn’t really hungry in the first place. The chicken was interesting… they were coated with sesame seeds. There is also kale in the tacos. I’m all for healthy food, really I am. But I feel weird about healthy mexican food. You want to go all out when you eat Mexican food.
Otherwise the flavors were mostly good. I don’t really like sesame seeds so I got tired of the flavor by the second taco.
The restaurant itself is TINY. I mean you could listen in on every single tables conversation. The poor waitress practically has to suck it in to scoot in between tables. I hope they don’t get dinner rushes because I’m sure every party would have a 2 hour wait.

Definitivamente voy a coincidir con las otras personas.
La comida es RICA pero no DELICIOSA. Tuvimos que pedir sal para la mesa por que los platillos la necesitaban.
Los precios definitivamente muy caros para lo que se ofrece.
Los tacos de Camaro con 1 camaron cada taco por $ 14.00 es un NO NO.
Lo chistoso es que los tacos de Chimichurri tienen carne para hace 3 tacos.
Chilaquiles y el guacamole estuvieron bien. Vino y Cerveza. El lugar muy bonito y acogedor. El personal atento y muy agradable. Definitivamente regresare al restaurante pero primero deben de ajustar los precios y dejar el salero en la mesa.