Location: 2015 Ayrsley Town Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28273
Enter the food void of Ayrsley, where the restaurants range from terrible to decent, with a heavy emphasis on the former. Ayrsley is a beautiful neighborhood, with its own movie theater and many stores. For some reason it has attracted a collection of bland, commercialized eateries, Salsa’s being no exception. Although, it has some redeeming qualities, every time I come to Salsa’ Mexican Grill in Charlotte, I am reminded of its mediocrity.
The Good: I am taking great liberties with the word “good” in this section, it really should be labeled “the OK”. I have had dinner here maybe five times, sampling numerous items. There is nothing on the menu that I crave, but the Carne Asada isn’t bad. The steak was seasoned well and when you add shrimp it’s a decent low carb option. The Fajitas are also pretty good, but no better than the standard fajitas you get from most Mexican restaurants. The service in the restaurant area has always been acceptable, or at least I didn’t have any issues with it.
The Bad: Many of the items on the menu totally miss the mark for me. As with most Mexican restaurants the meal starts with complimentary chips and salsa. Complaining about free things might be a little harsh, but the complimentary salsa is terrible. There is no spice and it is as if someone purposely removed the flavor from it. Moving on to the appetizers the meal doesn’t get much better, the calamari was awful, greasy and burnt. The Salsa Fiesta platter, was tasty in a cheap Chili’s sort of way, but it really was of low quality. Also, at almost $16 the dish is way overpriced. Staying on that theme, most of the menu items are overly expensive. On one occasion we spent over $100 on drinks and appetizers alone.
Moving on to cocktails, they are also a disappointment. A Mexican restaurant should have top notch Margaritas, but Salsas falls short once again. Full of sugar, every drink had me wondering if I had order off the kids menu. You couldn’t taste the alcohol in the majority of them. With the price per drink well over $10, they should have the decency to make you feel the effects. Ordering a double vodka and cranberry put us back another $16.
While the service at the restaurant is acceptable, the bar service is slow and frustrating. There were times when I waited for a drink, even though there were three people behind the counter and only a few customers.
The Ugly: Salsas Mexican Grill represents many of the things I hate about Charlotte area restaurants. Overpriced, commercialized food and a depressing atmosphere. It is as if they are creating a menu based on what peoples idea of Mexican food is, not on what is authentic. The decor is cheesy, the food taste of the low quality, and it is highly overpriced. There is nothing genuine about Salsas, instead it is cheap Americanized Mexican food, which to me is the Ugliest thing about this place.
The Verdict 4.5 out of 10 Skip it: Although a couple of items save it from a lower score, there is very little reason to visit this establishment. In the area there are other, cheaper Mexican restaurants that have more authenticity than Salsas. I would look elsewhere to find better food.