On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina Restaurant Review - Cary, NC

1102 Walnut Street

Cary, NC  27511

(919) 439-5030

Exterior View

Interior Decor

On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina is a franchise restaurant, you can even purchase their chips and salsa in some grocery stores. There is only one location in the Triangle, it's located across from the dead mall, Cary Towne Center Mall. Several restaurants in this part of Cary have closed over the years, but this one is still operating. They use to have a location near Triangle Town Center Mall in Raleigh, but that one closed awhile ago. We rarely frequent franchise restaurants, but when we moved to the area this was one we frequented until the day I got food poisoning for the first time in my life. It was so awful we stopped visiting this restaurant for my guess is six or more years. The other day we were caught in traffic and road construction so it took us what felt like forever to get to Cary. When we were passing I suggested giving it a try again. Hubby was happy since it was one of his favorite restaurants and we were overly hungry and tired of the long, stressful ride. I must say it's strange to visit a restaurant you haven't been to in a long time. They have remodeled since we last visited. Check out the decor above, that's the view from our booth. They have tables inside and outside. They are open from 11 am to 11 pm every day. The health score is currently 96.

It appeared that the hostess was missing so we had to wait for our waitress to seat us at a table. Once seated she took our drink order and quickly returned with our drinks and some chips and salsa. Check them out below, note that we had already dived into them prior to taking the photo. 

Complimentary Chips & Salsa

We hadn't had them in so long and they were as delicious as we remembered. Some were a bit salty, so those on a low salt diet may want to ask for some with less salt or try and tap and brush some salt off them. They are in between thin chips (Chuy's) and thick chips (traditional Mexican) in thickness. The salsa is really tasty, I'm always fishing for the pieces of onion. Its spiciness is in between mild and hot. You will need to ask for more salsa, it's a small bowl. Also, remember to ask for chips and salsa to go when you are paying the bill. They make for an awesome snack.

On the Border is currently having a great special that offers three courses for two people for only $22. If you can't decide what to order I recommend ordering that. Also, they have specials from Sunday to Wednesday. Join their rewards club to get free queso. While tempted by the three-course special, we wanted to order our favorites so I ordered the Fajita Chicken Quesadilla and Hubby ordered the Steak Fajita Salad. Check them out below:

Fajita Chicken Quesadilla - $10.79

Steak Fajita Salad (Steak & Onions) - $12.99

Steak Fajita Salad (Salad)

The Fajita Chicken Quesadilla is described as "fajita chicken or steak with poblano & onion. Served with fresh guacamole, sour cream, and pico de gallo". Note, it's under "starters" on the menu. It used to be listed as an entree and it's definitely large enough to be one. There were very little onion and poblano on mine. I really wish they would offer a larger serving of the guacamole, sour cream and pico. It's such a tiny serving, but it does keep the calorie count down. The chicken was tender and it was a tasty meal. I wish they would heat the plate since it cools so fast otherwise. I placed a napkin over my quesadilla to keep it warm a bit longer. Hubby's Steak Fajita Salad is described as "sizzling mesquite-grilled chicken or steak and onions topped tableside over a crisp blend of romaine, iceberg & cabbage, pico de gallo, roasted corn, fresh avocado, and queso fresco". Hubby's steak arrived sizzling and it was perfectly cooked with some pink. It was lacking the "mesquite" seasoning. The salad was so huge he couldn't eat it all, it was very fresh and tasty. The avocado was cut into to tiny pieces which were hard to see laying against the green lettuce in the dimly lit room. We both enjoyed our meals and we shall return again since neither of us got sick from our meals, a plus.

We had an awesome waitress named Sheila. She was friendly, extremely attentive and courteous. I noticed a couple of waitresses that weren't smiling and treated their customers like they were doing them a favor working their table. I highly recommend asking for Sheila so you don't get stuck with them. In the past we had issues with some of the staff there, so we got in the habit of asking for our favorite wait staff and they accommodated our request. During the less busy times, management appears to be missing along with the hostess, bussers, and food runners. These issues explain the low ratings customers give them. What's your favorite restaurant in the Triangle?

Have a PEACEful Day!