Uncle Julio's Mexican Restaurant Review - Durham, NC

8030 Renaissance Parkway

Building K, Ste 885

Durham, NC  27713

(984) 329-2900

Exterior View

Interior Decor

We decided to try a franchise restaurant that is new to our area called Uncle Julio's Mexican from Scratch. The one we visited is located right outside The Streets at Southpoint Mall in Durham, North Carolina. The Raleigh location will open on July 30th and it's located in Crabtree Valley Mall. Most franchise restaurants average three out of five stars and this one is no exception. Overall I give it three stars but the waitress was so horrible I have to lower it to two stars.

Hubby & I visited on a Saturday around 2 pm. While the restaurant was busy we were immediately seated at a two-person booth near the bar as shown above. Larger parties were waiting for a table. The atmosphere is very festive. The weather was quite nice that day, so they had the doors open near the bar and the outside tables. It was nice to have some fresh air, but not be in the sun. Near the outdoor tables, they had the heat lamps turned on, so strange on a day around 85°. It's a large and busy restaurant, so it's quite noisy. We were surprised that you can't order from the less expensive lunch menu on weekends. We found the menu confusing and when the unfriendly waitress finally showed up she was of no help. I'm sure they have lots of customers who are visiting for the first time since this is a new restaurant yet she didn't offer any assistance with the menu. She brought out our drinks and some chips and some strange dark brown salsa. Neither of us was crazy about its mild odd flavor. It would have been nice if she had told us what it was made with since I'm sure they get many confused looks by their new customers. Reading online, it says it's made with burnt tomatoes, onion, jalapeno, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and cilantro. The chips are extremely thin and crisp, we loved them. Some customers complain that they break when you dip them into guacamole. Take a look at them below. We would have ordered some guacamole if it hadn't been so expensive. $7.29 is so pricey for a small guacamole appetizer and $9.99 for a large, wow. It's $12.99 if you want it made tableside. I just read online that you can get a free serving if you sign up for their loyalty program. 

Complimentary Chips & Salsa

Fajita Quesadillas $14.99

Fajita Skirt Steak $21.79

I finally decided to have the Shrimp Fajita Quesadillas which is described as "sautéed onions and Monterey Jack on flour tortillas with sour cream and fresh guacamole". Check them out above. I asked if they come with green peppers and the waitress said I could add them on. When I ordered I did not ask to add them on, but she ordered them that way. I got the impression that anything extra would incur an extra charge and I've read reviews that confirm that. So I was annoyed when it arrived with green and red peppers. Red peppers give me heartburn. I pulled open the quesadillas and found only one to three very small shrimp per triangle, another disappointment. Some pieces were mostly cheese which would be fine if they weren't charging a whopping $14.99. It's only discounted $1 for lunch on weekdays. It was served with two small balls of sour cream and guacamole another disappointment. Hubby ordered the Fajita Skirt Steak. The steak while tender and cooked properly had no spices, not even salt so it lacked flavor. It's certainly overpriced at $21.79. It's discounted $5.30 at lunch on weekdays. The margaritas are small portions that are overpriced ranging from $8.99 to $13.59. They offer Chocolate Piñatas for a whopping $25 and $30. I would have loved to order one of those for fun but I would feel so guilty paying that much for some chocolate, churros, and fruit! I refuse to be ripped off, it's clearly way overpriced. Perhaps if you had a large party and shared it one could justify paying that much money. 

We found our waitress to be inexperienced, unfriendly, unhelpful, unkind, annoying, irritating, unattentive, snooty and lacking a smile. She oddly acted like she was doing us a favor being our waitress. It was so bad in the beginning I almost asked a manager for a different waiter. If management had given us any attention, I would have. Yeah, it was that bad. Worst I've had in a very long time, maybe the worst ever. She made me want to leave, but it was a long drive and I was determined to not allow her to ruin our afternoon. That's the other issue, management who was constantly passing our table ignored us. I'm sure we had an annoyed look on our faces which should have been addressed. They didn't even notice we didn't have cutlery. We had to ask for drink refills, chip refills, napkins, and cutlery and for the check. I was especially annoyed that she didn't ask if we wanted a box to take home our leftovers. The waitress brought us our check but didn't give us any instructions on how to use the self-checkout tablet nor did she mention that she would bring out a receipt later. We had never seen a self-checkout tablet before so it would have been nice if she had kindly mentioned it and gave some quick instructions. 

There were employees constantly walking back and forth past our booth, so I don't recommend sitting in the strip of booths next to the bar. There is another dining area over on the right, ask to be seated there. Not to mention, we didn't have enough table space for all our dishes. 

All in all, it was an unpleasant experience so I do not recommend this restaurant. Franchise restaurants the majority of the time tend to be disappointing. I keep having hope only to be let down. They use to be so enjoyable, now management and inexperienced staff have ruined them. What's your favorite restaurant in the Triangle? Be sure to check out my other restaurant reviews, but clicking on "Restaurant Reviews" on the above menu or by visiting my Pinterest Restaurant Reviews Board.

Have a PEACEful Day!