Bright Dawn

We moved to the area several months ago and had considered eating here a few times, but were deterred by some of the negative reviews. To those reviewers: fie on you, and a pox on your houses! I wish we had ignored those reviews and tried Ixtapa sooner!

Service was very friendly and efficient, the place was nice inside (basic cantina decor), etc. And the food was really enjoyable!

I grew up in the Southwest, so I know what really good Mexican food tastes like. And our food was delicious.

I'll be realistic, though. It's not on par with the best restaurants in San Antonio or Southern California. But neither are 99 percent of the Mexican restaurants in the US. When it comes to Mexican food, I'm hard to impress, and I was impressed.

I did notice that negative reviews tended to be of meals that were delivered. I wouldn't order Mexican food delivered. In my experience, it just doesn't travel well. My advice is to go there. There's plenty of parking nearby in a metered lot behind the building. It's also pretty convenient to bus stops.

I had a combo with enchilada, chimichanga and taco. Got different filling for each, and it was all good. I especially loved the barbacoa taco.

One sign a Mexican restaurant cares about quality--the beans and rice were great. In a blah Mexican place, they'll basically just be there to take up space on the plate. Theirs were well spiced, seasoned, and cooked perfectly.

I'm looking forward to trying more dishes there.