Viva Mexico

I grew up in the western US and have struggled to find good Mexican or Tex-Mex anywhere in the UK in the 6 years we've lived here. This was the best. My wife even grudgingly admitted that the guac was as good as hers. Wish we lived closer!

We have both eaten here a few times now, and we love it, the authentic Mexican feel to the restaurant along with very pleasant staff and quick service. I have ordered different things every time we have been and really enjoyed the food, good presentation along with a good portion of food. We have sat on the top floor and the bottom floor and both were very nice. I love the old pictures and the good feel to the restaurant. I would highly recommend it to anyone and we have. One of the biggest things that we found was the menu had Gluten Free boxes next to what we could order which makes things a lot easier for us. If you want a nice romantic meal for two, or you want a party of people going to out for a Mexican in Edinburgh Viva Mexico is your place to go.

I recently had such a good lunch at Viva Mexico that I took a big party of customers (i'm sales rep) out for dinner at Viva Mexico (in the middle of the Edinburgh Festival - August 2010) as I wanted somewhere I knew could provide good value food and service and something a little different on the menu. Despite it being their busiest couple of weeks in the year their service was excellent and the food was exactly as good as it always is. Many of my customers commented that they had a really good time and enjoyed the food immensely. I went back there again with some friends for a birthday party (they had arranged it this time as it was a favourite place for them - they knew it was a perfect place for a party, yet with the personal service and intimacy you only achieve in better establishments). I should really add here that, although I have been twice now for parties and it is a great place for parties it is probably even better suited to couples and small groups as it has a really warm intimate ambiance with candlelit tables. I had the stuffed chillies followed by Mole chicken (chilli chocolate sauce) - much, much tastier than it sounds! I had read about Margarita madness and have to say after having two parties at the restaurant lately their margaritas rock!! Very good and not too sore a head due I guess to the good quality tequila! I almost forgot to add a word about the puddings. There is a 'homemade' Flan Especial and a Chili chocolate cheesecake on the menu that I know for a fact are made my the restaurant owner's mother and the owner respectively and they are both absolutely fantastic if you are a fan of deserts you will love these. I heartily recommend this place right down to its authentic decor adding to the ambiance. A fun place for parties or a more quiet and intimate affair upstairs or in the front room can be achieved thanks to their clever use of space.

10/10 I'll be back :-)
Ian (Bristol)

Very disappointing meal at Viva Mexico. Went in a group of 13 - booked table for 8.45pm. Meal started off okay - the girl that served us was very nice and helpful. The food I would rate as slightly below average. Not at all authentic and very 'out of a packet' ish. I think the use of chilli powder should be substituted with fresh chillies and the tinned/jarred jalopenoes/jellies replaced with home-made. Potato wedges are very easy to make home-made, yet theirs looked like the frozen oven-baked version. A lot of the plates arrived with dried up refried beans which looked particularly unappetising. Also, be warned, they do not like you to stay too late. We tried to order a bottle of wine at 11.05pm and were told they couldn't serve alcohol after 11.00pm although they hadn't informed us of this when we booked/arrived. I think they just wanted to finish up and go home as the male waiters were very short and off-hand and they started putting out the rubbish while we were still sitting there. Not really what you expect in a city centre restaurant during the Festival. We spent a large amount of money on mediocre food - we won't be back.

The best (and oldest) Mexican restaurant in town...

I just dropped in for a quick lunch as I heard that they had a good lunch menu, well priced and perhaps a bit different from all the other dull lunches on offer around the city centre.

I had the Tortilla soup followed by chicken enchillada, preceded by a cappuccino.

I was blown away by the soup - Jamie Oliver has recently been on TV talking about how good mexican soup was and this was definitely the case, absolutely delicious. I was so pleased to have taken the server's advice.

The coffee was great too. Lots of Edinburgh eateries let themselves down by their coffee - this place does great coffee!!! I found out that the beans come freshly roasted from a specialist local coffee supplier.

And of course I have to compliment all of the staff (I was served by three different people throughout the meal) and they were all attentive, friendly and knowledgable.

Last but not least look out for the cool (and very traditional) model mexican market stall in the restaurant window - lots of people were taking photos while I was there.

5 * review and I will most certainly be visiting again!

Ian

Out of the many Mexican restaurants in Edinburgh where I've eaten, I've only returned happily to Viva Mexico. What I feel sets it apart from the slap and dash of others is that there is a strong, family feel about the place.
The haberdashery is very old school; hand sown cushions on the rickety wooden benches and chairs; flags and memorabilia cover walls and shelves; photographs, paintings and posters of movies, Zapatistas, family members and landmarks. To some, these things can be an annoyance (who wants to sit on a creaky chair or wobbly bench?) but to me it serves only as a reminder of my trip to Mexico with my school.
To stop this becoming an essay, here are my main reasons for loving Viva.
1) Nachos. The nachos here are the best. Hands down. Where most pubs/bars/ restaurants get it wrong is that they put a measly bit of cheese on to some dorito chips and cover it in salsa, guacamole and cream. there is nothing worse than soggy, bland nachos. The nachos at Viva always get the balance between cheesy and crispy goodness. Even without the extra cream or guacamole, I'd happily munch on 20 plates with just a bit of salsa. By the way, the guacamole and salsa here rock.
2) Margaritas. Again, I've never had a margarita done as well here anywhere else. It comes down to what I'm told is freshly squeezed lime juice and triple sec - some places add cointreau, coincidentally I find them to be overpowered by the tequila.
3)The vibrant family feel.
4) Fajitas! I used to be vegetarian. For years I shunned meat for ethical reasons. Then in my penultimate year at university I threw out my moral compass and said "we're all gonna die some day, might as well enjoy myself while I can!" The next time I went to Viva with a group I ordered the steak fajita. The seasoning reminds me of my family's Picadillo (which being veggie had meant 9 years of not enjoying it) and made my mouth water before it even reached the table. You only get 4 tiny tortillas which I was not at all happy about (all that meat with nothing to pack it into?) but I was stuffed after the third tortilla. Yum.
The consistency and lack of diversity in the menu are detractors. Sometimes the food is way too salty, sometimes the enchiladas are soggy, sometimes the margaritas could give you heartburn from the copious amounts of lime juice. As for the menu, I'm not at all convinced by the desserts, surely Mexico has better to offer than apple pie or vanilla cheesecake? But staff ARE accommodating when you tell them there is a problem and the flan is always a good choice.

I've been here many times over the years but Friday was the last. The staff were fine, presentation was fine, but the food was exceptionally disappointing.

Restaurant prices should not bring microwaved meals. Our food appeared within seconds of ordering and left a pool of water when I finished. The beef was cheap and stringy, this had nothing to do with authenticism, it was just of a very poor standard.

Anyone who considers nachos as traditional mexican food needs to do some research. Not impressed.