Donita’s Cantina

From the minute we entered, we knew it was going to be a treat. With a full house on a Saturday evening, and many of the locals dining, a local convinced us the wait was worth it.
Every aspect of our dining experience was excellent from the personal attention of the owner, to the friendly wait staff, the energetic atmosphere, and not to forget the fresh homemade food.
The homemade black blueberry cobbler was «to die for», and combined with the homemade cinnamon ice cream made for a perfect ending to some excellent authentic Mexican entrees.

This is so not Mexican food. I think the chips were tostitos from grandmas Xmas party last year and if I’m not mistaken the the salsa was Old El Paso. The chicken tacos were foster farm frozen diced. Totally Mexican food out of a can. It was tough to sit through. Thank god for the Happy hour Margaritas.

Had a lot of different menu items, I had the special which was an blue enchilada that was good. It was Arts Weekend so everything was crowded, but the staff seemed to deal with it well. The Margaritas were good, I don’t usually get them by the pitcher, but it seemed to work out well here.

Some of the best Mexican I have had. And quick competent service. Very good prices. What more can I say.

Before I begin, understand that I am from San Diego, California. A part of the nation considered to be a Mecca in terms of Mexican food. While on vacation, we were exploring Elk Ave at night and we all started to get a little hungry. We stopped in to Donita’s looking for a nice little Mexican meal for dinner and there was a special going on with margaritas. Nice little place, sort of crowded and loud. Service was alright, although the waitress seemed a little annoyed before she even got to us. I ordered some chicken tortilla soup and a taco salad. My girlfriend got the same taco salad and her mother ordered a bowl of the same soup. They gave us chips and salsa while we waited for our food, it was alright. Definitely not in my top salsas. They brought our food and forgot the bowl of soup until we reminded them about it. The soup was actually pretty good and was definitely the highlight of the meal. The taco salad was delivered in a giant shell which clearly had not been cooked long enough and still had some oil all on it. I couldn’t finish it all and honestly, I preferred not to. Not authentic at all. If I was ever in the area again, I might grab a bowl. of soup to go, but I wouldn’t order anything else. Especially for the price.

Avoid this place unless you want to be chastised. Went in for dinner and drinks, sat at the bar waiting for a table. Wife ordered a frozen margarita, was told she shouldn’t order frozen and loudly chastised for doing so. So went with recommended Rocks, he the asked her which tequilla she liked and was chastized loudly again for her choice. So we ordered his recommended special margarita which turned out to be a watered down overly sweet concoction. We paid for drinks and left. The bartender is an arrogant ass.

It was the only place open late so we gave it a shot. I can’t say it’s bad, just weird. The server convinced us to try the special which was an enchilada with butternut squash and peanut sauce, Mexican fusion anyone? It was odd, very sweet but not bad. The chips were obviously a grab bag of leftovers, some were round, some strips, and some triangles, at least they were warm… The salsa was meh with way too much cumin. The server, yes there were 3 for our table of 2, were nice but overly chatty. The crowd was very loud and rowdy. It wasn’t all bad, but I wouldn’t recommend coming here.

The highlights of this quaint colorful mexican restaurant is the service. As soon as you walk in the staff make you feel like you are at home. We were immediately greeted by a friendly server asking us if we’d like to sit at the bar or in the dining room. The bartendar also welcomed us into his domain. We decided to sit in the dining room with just a few other occupied tables (it was 9 p.m. and during the off-​season).
Our server sat down at our table and after some small talk explained the menu and the specials of the night. Throughout the evening she kept our drinks and bellies full while also answering any questions we had about the town and restaurant. We bonded while discussing memories of our travels to Florida and our time in Colorado. Anything we needed was immediately provided.
The margaritas were very good and strong like you would expect a «marg» to be. They were not the huge fishbowls of a drink you might find at a Denver mexican restaurant so I had a couple! I can say between the drinks and a down-​home small town experience I left in a great mood!
I had the chili rellenos and shredded beef enchilada plate smothered with a spicy green sauce accompanied by black beans. This was nothing like the mexican food I am used to finding in Denver but I welcome a change from time-​to-​time. My friend had one of their specials smothered with a smoked chipolte sauce. I can only speak to the sauce since he let me scoop some from his plate and it was quite good… better than good actually. I asked for a side of it myself and sadly enough since it is made from scratch daily they were already out of it by the end of the evening when we came ordered.

The food was delicious, and the drinks generous. Service was a little slow, specifically the hostess getting to us and getting us seated, but they were pretty busy with a bunch of large parties. The waiter was really friendly and not overly attentive. We would definitely go again.

Donitas = apparently known to the locals as DON’T-EAT-US
Went here with a group on Saturday night… while the staff was very friendly, the food is TERRIBLE — overpriced and bland.
My husband and I ordered the steak/​shrimp fajitas. For $ 21.95, we got maybe 4 strips of beef [well-​done when we asked for rare] and 5 – 6 pieces of the worst-​tasting shrimp ever. Nothing was seasoned! The plate of cilantro/​guacamole/​cheese was sparse as well… definitely not worth the money or enough to share.
My friend ordered the tostada… and it came WITHOUT A TOSTADA SHELL!!! It was basically a mess of a salad. The rice that came with was both overcooked and under-​done at the same time [weird, I know]…again, tasteless and not worth the money.
We got in early enough for happy hour margaritas and each had 2. No one in the group could finish the 2^nd one [really heavy and syrup-​y] but left drunk enough, wondering if this is how they get people to eat their food??? Anyway, 8 people with a tab of $ 250 at a Mexican restaurant should have at least left satisfied, but this was certainly not the case. Please pick ANYWHERE else in Crested Butte to eat on your next visit!!!

Well we had sorta, kinda high hopes, but were pretty disappointed. The salsa is boring and kinda reminded me of a bad chunky spaghetti sauce and the main entrees consusted of what seemed to be canned hatch chilis, cubed chicken and tons of chedder cheese. Overall pretty disapppointed, definately go to the other mexican place in crested butte.

Yuck. The tacos were edible, but the fly buzzing around my table made me nervous about the salsa that was sitting open on the table before my arrival, and the beans and rice were downright gross– soggy and bland. Should have looked around town first.

Has always been a family favorite especially since it’s a block away. Get’s really busy but if you come early, there’s normally no problem getting in.
Great mild and slightly sweet salsa. Dishes are usually huge. Even the a la carte menu is enough to end up with leftovers. Stuffed sopapilla is definitely the way to go. Great selection of margaritas as well.

Friendly staff, chips and salsa were average. Queso was light and runny. The enchilada and taco dinner was pretty good. Margarita was too sour.

The fajitas here were excellent. We got the steak and shrimp fajita dish. One entrée is probably enough for 2 people unless you’ve just got done mountain biking!

I have been coming to Donita’s since the 80’s and it is always a fun experience. Now I am bringing my own kids to dine at the restaurant and the very friendly wait staff and owners ALWAYS treat us like family. The margaritas are always delicious, from the house to the daily special. The happy hour and Margarita Thursdays are nice to get more bang for your buck! I always go for the nightly special which is always awesome, and usually more authentic Mexican. The rest of the menu is always fresh, and more Tex-​Mex styled. I highly recommend Donita’s to anyone visiting Crested Butte and it is especially great for families!

Delicious food, good service. Definitely worth stopping in for drinks or dinner.

We eat here every time we visit CB. We have always enjoyed the food and the staff has always been pleasant, our dinner last night was no exception. Everything was good. Look your check over carefully, I’ve discovered errors most every time and it’s never in my favor.

Not too sure about the low ratings by other reviewers. We’ve been coming to Donita’s for years and are always treated like family upon arrival. The prompt service always comes with a smile and the hospitality always appears to be given to all of the patrons alike. The food is 100% dependable and consistent, and generously proportioned. If you’re expecting taco-​truck Mexican (which we like too), this isn’t the place. This is a sit-​down, family establishment. Standout menu items are the fajitas (which are fully customizable), the slow cooked shredded beef (mouth watering) and the home made cinnamon ice cream and salsa. I’d recommend Donita’s to anyone who is hungry and enjoys a welcoming and happy atmosphere.

We have been going to Donitas for 22 years. Sadly, the quality the past 5 years have been decreasing rapidly. The food quality is declining and the service has been terrible. Today, my wife had a giant black hair in her food!!! We brought it the attention of one of the female owners. Although she gladly replaced my wife’s meal, they didn’t really act like it was a big deal. My appetite was gone and it wasn’t even my meal. They didn’t even offer to comp the meal.
We have had the same male waiter the past 2 years and he is arrogant and «fake.». Last year he conveniently over charged our table of 8 exactly $ 100 dollars!!! I guess he hope that we wouldn’t notice it. This year, the same waiter charged us full price for happy hour prices. When he apologized, it was fake and arrogant.
We are really sad that we had to leave this feedback but we decided that the word needs to get out. We are disappointed we had to do this, but there are numerous other family owned businesses in Crested Butte that are going to get our attention.