Garcia Brogans opens

Great stuff!!!! We went as soon as they opened. The Guiness Beef Stew was fanastic, I will be having that on many a cold evening this winter. The menu is priced extremely reasonably, the food is tasty, the decor on both sides is very relaxing and comfortable and location? It's an A+! It took 2 minutes door to door to get there and for those of you who don't live that close there is a whole garage of secure parking! Welcome to the neighborhood guys!!!!!!!!

Hi GG; Where on Middlesex? I was about to write about a pet peeve and see if any other bloggers are annoyed. Why do waitstaff - high end rest or good cheap eats - clear dishes even if one or more diners have not finished? I am a slow eater and I enjoy my food! Please do not make me feel like I have to rush to finish, especially when we (6 of us) are the few ones in the rest.

I second Chris' remarks. Great food, great value, and the one place in town nobody can complain about finding parking!!! It's not some wierd cabbage burrito fusion, though I'd try it if it was! It's one menu with 2 sides, just liek the bar. If you're in the mood for a cozy pub go to the left, if you're looking for an airy open mexican setting, turn to the right when you walk in. These guys obvisouly know what they're doing. Welcome to the neighborhood fellas, you'll be seeing a LOT of Peter Rollins in your establishment!

I also agree with Chris the Guiness Stew is fantastic. I also stopped in just to give it a try and look around. Great bar atmosphere on the irish side and open and colorful on the mexican side. I was told that the majority of the furnishings were imported from the respective countries. I also tried the sopes and the tortilla base was fantastic. I will def be in this new establishment often.

Jeannie-
re: "Why do waitstaff - high end rest or good cheap eats - clear dishes even if one or more diners have not finished?"

When I was a waitress (like a million years ago) we were always taught to clear a table as diners finished items. This gave people more room & meant we didn't have a massive pile of plates to clear all at once when everyone left- especially handy when things were busy and we needed to turn tables over quickly.

Although it will probably be a while until I'm back in Lowell, I can't wait to give this place a try!

I think Jeannie unfortunately interjected her rant about ther world situation in general into a specific discussion about the new Garcia Brogan's (very good place). I have no problems with her rant but you have to be careful lest people think you're criticizing a place you haven't even been to. Just for the record, Garcia Brogan's did NOT prematurely take away my plate of delicious food, they did it at just the right time.
-Rollins

Sounds good, can't wait to try it. Do they have anything interesting on tap or just the usual suspects (guinness, bud, bud light, miller light, corona, sam adams, sams summer, blah, blah).

Went last night after work for a quick dinner. Homemade tortilla chips & salsa were AMAZING. Had a grilled chicken avacado salad (i think that was the name of it) and it was delicious & refreshing on such a hot day. Waitstaff was very friendly. 1 semi-complaint....it wasn't busy when we arrived & the waitstaff was just standing around waiting. Is is possible to just have 1 or 2 out until it picks up rather than having them stand there and watch? STILL...won't stop me from going again. Like I said...AMAZING.

I know what you mean about the people standing around making you feel wierd, unfortunately that seems to be simply par for the course if you go to any restaurant in the first few days it's open. You have to remember NONE of these people have worked in the facility before so there must be plenty of training to be done, right? And normally I'm sure, as anywhere, they'd be encouraged to "clean" in their down time, but again, as the place is brand spanking new there can't be enough of that for everyone to go around. I'm pretty certain that amount of staff was probably everyone they have more for training versus being there in case they got slammed. I'll have to try that salad next time!

Just what I've noticed along the way as I'm usually in a big hurry to try new places.

Rollins

I can't wait to try Garcia Brogan's. I work and live near by and have been watching with anticipation. I am so psyched that the neighborhood is coming together. It is so exciting!

I have a parking pass to park my car in the Early Garage. Last night as I was going to my car, there were a group of Garcia Brogan's employees congregated at the entrance inside (not outside) of the garage smoking. I literally had to pass though a cloud of smoke to get by them. To top it off, I watched them put their cigarette butts out on the garage floor and leave them there. Are they allowed to smoke inside of a city building? It's a really nice and clean garage and this will certainly destroy it. I only write this in hopes that the owners of Garcia Brogan's will read this and educate their employees on how to be a good neighbor.

That being said. I'll be at Garcia Brogan's this weekend sipping on a margarita!

Tried Garcia Brogans tonight with a party of 7. Had a mixture of Mexican and Irish dishes - all well prepared and presented. Two members of our party had the Bailey's Chocolate Cake - both said it was decadent. Prices were good - pleasant atmosphere - music was a tad bit loud but we just talked louder. I definately felt that they had too many people on staff though......and they just stood in a line at the back - did seem a little creepy. But all in all - a great take....surprising though that it was not busier.....only 3 tables at 7pm.....perhaps the location - or the "local color" that was hanging around outside.

Outstanding addition to the JAM district! Great atmosphere, waitstaff and food, all for a reasonable price. I definitely will be recommending G and B's!

i went last night with some compadres. The ambiance was nice, but it was quieter than expected for a new place. We started off with some nachos that were good. Mixed reviews on their guac and salsa. I got the chicken avocado salad, which was good and refreshing. A compadre of mine got the beef tacos and was thoroughly disgusted by them. He took one bite and couldn't stomach another. He asked another friend to try it. He confirmed that the taco was extremely bland and dry and didn't feel good going down his throat. Thumbs up on the refried beans and steak however. The veracruzana white fish and rice was bland yet edible, unlike the beef tacos. the waitress was fine. She wasn't the most attentive and cut me off while i was ordering my drink and therefore didnt even get me what i asked for. Overall, it was a decent experience, however we all agreed that we would only go back to drink on the Irish side!

I went there Friday and was very put off by the "folks" hanging around on the sidewalks around the building. 2 of them asked for money, 1 for a smoke (I don't smoke) - if they hope to succeed in that neighborhood then they had better urge the city to "clear the decks". I will say that as we were leaving a police car pulled up (I think they were getting take out) and the mere sight of the patrol car emptied out the "local color" in seconds.

Why oh why would this place not have a real website with more than "coming soon" and an email link for employment opportunities?

When I see raves like those in these comments, I want to see the menu, see a map, see a couple of photos of the place, and maybe a couple of paragraphs about how the owners decided to do what they do.

This kind of lapse makes me wonder about the intelligence of the owners/managers who presumably want their new place to be a success...

Instead, you get this: http://garciabrogans.com/

Argh!

i also tried garcia brogans, went with a party of 13 and would say 3 of them ate there meals, to me they dont give you a good size portion for the price,and thought drinks were kind of expensive.music was also very loud and the rest.was ice cold had to keep taken kids outside.they also have way to many waitstaff feels like they watch you while you eat.and the smoking in the garage,its disgusting people who dont smoke dont want to walk through a cloud of it before their meal. if they want to be a success they need to hire new cooks, cut down on staff.

Went this past weekend. All in all it was pretty good although #2 on my pet peeve list (#1 is simultaneously bringing apps and entree out) happened - had a side dish of rice that was stone cold. I remember a quote from a Federal Hill (Providence, RI) restauranteur who was being interviewed by a local newspaper and he was asked if having two levels in his restaurant presented a problem with keeping food hot. His reply? "If we can get men on the moon, I can keep food hot going up one flight of stairs". Food for thought, so to speak.

The rest of the meal was quite good (the beef burrito - fried and HOT); my partner had the fish and chips which were also good. It'll be interesting to see how this place takes off. The "Irish side" looked like a great place to hang on a Sunday watching football. We shall see......

Jabby,
I couldn't agree more. The Irish side is all about Sun. morning over easy. Plus they will have sessions. perfect go-to when its 0 below.

My dining partner and I tried out this new restaurant a few nights ago. We were very excited when we walked into the place. The decor is absolutely fabulous! I certainly didn't feel like I was in downtown Lowell. However, like a few others have commented, the local 'color' kind of detracts from the atmosphere. I ordered chicken fajitas and my partner order chicken enchiladas. I have to say I was very disappointed in the fajitas. I have never tasted anything so bland in a Mexican restaurant! My partner's enchiladas were better, but still nothing to rave about. We were also disappointed that we weren't served chips and salsa...kind of an expectation when you are eating Mexican food. We did notice that several other tables received chips and salsa and decided it must be an appetizer on the menu. However, on our way out the door we checked the menu and it is not listed as an appetizer. After a brief conversation with the hostess at the door, it seems as if this is something you can ask for (if you know to), but you will be charged for it...not sure of the price. The service was also very slow. We were one of 4 tables in the restaurant and it took us over 30 minutes to get our meals. However, with that being said we do realize it is a new restaurant and they are working the kinks out...and we are willing to give them another try in a few weeks. This time perhaps we will try the Irish side of the menu. I do hope this restaurant is successful because it is beautiful inside and would be a great addition to Lowell!

Had an overall positive experience here on Sat night. Arrived after the rush, close to 9pm, wife and I sat at a high top on Irish side. Waitstaff was attentive and friendly. All the beers were of the boring type you can find anywhere, but they did have 2 surprises - Presidente and Leffe. The Leffe was surprisingly good. I'll be going back for that alone. We asked for chips and salsa, the salsa was in a tiny useless container but the waitress kept bringing back more. We had 1) salad w/ steak tips and 2) chix avacodo salad. Both were OK, but not great. The issue was the lettuce was 98% of the white crunchy (non-green) type. Chix and Beef were well prepared though. The Irish side looked great, the Mexican side looked nice too. There were a lot of nice details in the decor, nice effort by these guys. Next to improve the minor issues reported here and it's as perfect as could be expected.

Went to Garcia Brogans tonight.........was very disappointed that they did not have the Baily's Chocolate Cake that people were talking about........they only had cheesecake. If you're going to feature something - then you should at least have it available.

I went with my husband and was seated right away which was nice. I then waited almost 20 min for a server to come along which is shocking since there was nobody dining besides us. Our server had no idea what he was doing and smelled like cigarette smoke. I was dumbfounded at the lack of professionalism at this place. The fact that it's their first week running is no excuse to ignore your customers and deliver poor service. The food was less than average and the drinks also seemed a bit off.

We went there on Saturday night & sat on the Irish side, which seemed quite a bit busier than the Mexican side. Really nice decor! Things aren't going to be perfect the first week of opening, and our server apologized several times, particularly for the slow wait for our drinks & our meal. I had the Beef Burrito, and though I enjoyed the burrito, the rice was bland & sticky and the refried beans were almost like a puree...hopefully, this will improve. Otherwise, I was pleased to see such a nice space in the neighborhood & hope that it will bring more like businesses to an up and coming area. Would definitely try again.

Hi GG

Went last night and like everyone else waited 15 minutes before anyone came over and 30 min to get a beer. They don't have a drink menu and our server had no clue. I don't know who hired the staff but there wasn't a sense of urgency when they were beset by a large amount of customers. The owners had no idea that a front page blurb in the Lowell Sun was going to cause the influx. Maybe it's the owners who need training. They even shut down the kitchen for new orders for 20 min. (where's Chef Ramsey when you need him).
Okay, off my rant. The server did apologize for the wait. The decor is excellent, the food was very good and the prices are more than reasonable. Once they iron out the service problems this place could be a cornerstone for this area of Lowell!

Went last night with a party of 3 total. The place is beautiful inside but we were all severely disappointed. No one was seating people but luckily we enjoy sitting at the bar. We sat on the Irish side and the bartender (girl) was noticeably in the weeds. To the point where everyone had drinks but she was so discombobulated that she didn't know what to do next. Grabbing anyone that walked by to run her food. It took a bit for her to come over to take drink orders and they don't have a drink menu. Don't even have a wine list yet. We ordered- bowl of beef stew, Reuben, chicken avocado salad. The stew came out in a cup because we later found out that is how she rang it up. By the time it was changed out for a bowl we were halfway through our entrees and it was COLD. By the time it came back hot, we were done with our entrees. My Reuben was fine, hard to mess it up. The chicken avocado salad is a bunch of iceberg with sliced chicken- not very exciting. The salad dressing was bland and they gave you about a teaspoon of it. They don't have rollups- we were given a stack of cocktail napkins. The beef stew was over seasoned and tasted like a big old packet of McCormick's you can buy at any grocery store. We were not impressed at all and doubt we'll go back.

A group of 7 of us went on Saturday night.

The Irish side atmoshere is cool. However, we waited far too long for our drinks and our food, and had to send several things back for various reasons.

I would like nothing more than to see this place succeed, but they have a LOT of stepping UP to do.

I was there over Labor Day weekend party of 4. There weren't many people in rest. We sat on the Irish side which is really nice — Mexican side OK, drinks seemed like it took unusually long to receive. For dinner we tried beef but, had no flavor.
Prices aren't too bad but they need to fill plates a lot more and add some flavor to the food. Esp.the Mexican menu. Garcias has been open for a few weeks now hope to hear better reviews or we wont be trying it again.

We went for lunch on Saturday. The Guiness Beef Stew was very good, tender tasty . The service was great . Our server was very attentive and pleasent.

I must preface what I have to say by saying that I am very happy that GB's has moved into my neighborhood. I am a resident of the JAM district and think that the owners did an absolutely STELLAR job with the interior of the place. With that said---I continue to be disappointed by multiple aspects of Garcia Brogan's. Admittedly I tend to be a very "passive" and "easy" critic of restaurants/bars...especially ones in my neighborhood that I want to see succeed....but GB's continues to drop the ball. I have been to GB's about 10 times now. I think that is a very good reference point...seeing as they havent even had their official grand opening yet. Although they have made some positive changes to the food/menu....they still cant seem to compute some basic things. My father and I went in the other day and were surprised to see that they are now CHARGING extra for rice/beans w/ mexican dishes. In a bad economy, with a restaurant trying to establish themselves, talk about a way to infuriate your customers...by charging an extra $4.99 for rice/beans with a burrito , tacos, enchiladas etc. I have never ever been to a restaurant (mexican or not) that didnt include these staple side items with the meal. To make things worse....GB's WAS offering rice/beans with all their mexican dishes...and actually changed the menu to make those a separate charge. Terrible business/gouging if you ask me. Also....guacamole is always offered by the waitresses/bartenders w/ food....but they leave out the fact they charge you $2.00 for a DOLLOP the size of a butter dollop on top of a shortstack of pancackes at IHOP. I have heard so many people complain about this. In most places it is .50 cents or free. If you are going to charge $2.00...you better offer a bathtub full. All the extra charges, average food, very poor service, weak menu offerings etc really have me disappointed. It is an unreal location....and as I said I've been ten times and plan on continuing to go until they get things right (b/c for the sake of this neighborhood we need them to succeed)....but c'mon...show the customer some respect....pay ATTENTION to them...dont charge them $5 for rice/beans...whcih are staples on all mexican dishes etc. Realize 8.99 burrito looks okay on the surface, but add rice/beans/guac and you are talking about a $16-17 dollar plate. Paying that much...it ought to be perfect. I love GB's...the atmosphere etc....but they really need to get some things in order. I've been on damage control since they have opened trying to quiet the critics b/c I want it to succeed...sadly....they (owners) arent doing much to quiet the critics themselves....prices went up, quantity went down etc.