On the Border

The staff was friendly, the place was clean and neat and the salsa was good. Other than that, it’s not even your typical Mexican restaurant. It’s too americanised and the food is not tasty. The chili rellenos tasted like a ball of fried grease and the tamales were like paste. PLEASE don’t waste your time or money. IF YOU LIKE REAL MEXICAN FOOD… don’t bother going here.

While this is a chain, service during our visit was EXCELLENT!
WE started off with margaritas and an app and order entrees each. While the restaurant was slammed and tables needed to be bussed when we first walked in, they were quickly seen too. Staff was on their game, was impressed.

C– on the food. Been here 3 times. Each time, dinner or drinks were wrong. Soft shell when hard were ordered, black beans instead of refried, salt when no-​salt on the ‘rita was ordered x2, Cinco de Mayo, closing at 9:30, won’t let us in. Can’t get a Margarita, even though it wouldn’t come as ordered. Hopefully someone else will take this mess over. Hasn’t been a decent Mexican place/​bar in circle area of Towson since El Rodeo closed.

Very clean, courteous service, and okay food. We came on a Tuesday and were sat immediately. They gave massive chips to eat while we waited. There was some confusion with my son’s order, but it was quickly and politely fixed. Sadly I wasn’t crazy about the food, it was too spicy for me. Others in my party liked it though. Tuesdays are Taco days and you can get them for $ 2. They also had decent happy hour deals (though I don’t drink and can’t attest to the quality of the drinks). I would check it out if you dig Mexican food!

Great happy hour specials. You start off with endless chips which is enough to keep me happy. 4 dollar margaritas are yummy and they have a super tasty mojito. My friend and I split a queso which was delicious and for 2 bucks is a super cheap appetizer. I ended up getting a salad and it was huge! I felt like it was never ending. I would definitely recommend this place for dinner or a happy hour. I will definitely be coming back, I just wish it was closer. Maybe they will put another on in the DC metro area ;)

For a Mexican chain, my expectations were not high… Better than a typical TexMex chain restaurant.
Unfortunately, my expectations were not met. We ordered the sampler appetizer.
The taquitos were burnt, the nachos with refried beans had no flavor and quesadillas had hard cheese with limited chicken.
Ordered the Margaritas with only the sugary mix to fill the taste buds.
Two stars for:
Nice enough folks and flavorful salsa to get you through the door.
Bottom line is, On The Border, missed the mark on freshness and flavor. Especially when thinking of what the essence from «The Border» really is.

My girlfriend and I have been regulars at this restaurant for several months, and we love coming here for your happy hour margaritas. My girlfriend is from California, and her driver’s license is in a vertical orientation (she turned 21 last year, but her license is still valid for another year). The waitress refused to accept her license as proof of age, stating that this restaurant has a policy to refuse alcohol service to anyone whose license is in a vertical orientation. We complained to the manager, who likewise refused to accept her ID. This policy is absolutely ridiculous, since dozens of states allow a vertical license to remain valid for several years after a person turns 21.
I understand the need to crack down on underage drinking and college students trying to use fake ID’s, but instituting an arbitrary policy with no legal basis only serves to ruin the experience of honest customers like ourselves. We will not be returning to this restaurant.
2 stars because the service and food has always been pretty good, but discriminating against law-​abiding younger customers with valid legal identification is not cool.

While the servers were friendly, and the chips and salsa were tasty, these were the only worthwhile things at this restaurant. Don’t get the chicken tortilla soup. It was so salty I couldn’t eat it. Even the manager commented how awful it was and said,“that’s the way they make it.” If even the manager can’t eat it, why not change the recipe?!?
I had to hunt for the chicken and mango in the chicken mango salad. The dressing was about the tastiest thing in the salad.
I was not impressed at all by this place. It’s near the Cinemark Theatre in Towson, so it probably has a decent dinner crowd. I’ll try somewhere else the next time I’m in the area.

The biggest plus to this specific «On the Border» is location. Being located right near the theater, right in front of the mall makes it set in a prime location for lunch, happy hour, and dinner.
You have to remember that this is a chain restaurant. With that said, the food is ok, in fact, most of the time, it’s pretty good. I think what this location lacks in is good service. It seems, as you would expect, most of the servers are college students. With that said, some times, things such as «effort», «service», «quickness», and «friendliness» sometimes get thrown out the door or lost.
Interestingly enough, I don’t necessarily have these same issues when I go to the canton location. Either way, at this location, you’re initial interaction with the service is through a «hostess» who normally just asks you with a stone cold face «how many?». Rarely do I ever get a «hello» or «hi how are you?». From there, they get menus and you follow them to your table/​booth.
At times, it can take a few minutes to much longer to get a glass of water, to chips and salsa. The last time I was here, a random server, just threw our chips and salsa on the table and simply just walked away without even saying a word. It turned out to be just another server and not our actually waiter. Regardless, it’s the first and lasting impression.
As I said, the service is mostly college students and you definitely experience their lack of caring at times. At times, you’ll see them more engaged in talking amongst themselves than their customers. Items such as not recognizing that drinks need to be refilled and/​or food items need to be cleared because they’re preoccupied goofing off.
This isn’t always the case, but it definitely happens and has happened to us when we were there.
Regardless, they get three stars for their food, taco tuesdays specials and happy hour items.
I prefer the Canton location as I seem to get better service there, but this location does have a premier spot, especially if you’re looking for a quick dinner before or after a movie.

Mistake #1: Deciding to eat out on Valentine’s Day.
Mistake #2: Coming to On the Border with an empty stomach.
My husband and I decided that Mexican food would warm us up on a frigid Sunday afternoon after seeing a movie. We stopped over at On the Border– just a few steps away from the theatre entrance– and were seated immediately. Our waiter was friendly and attentive; we got our chips, salsa, and beverages in a timely manner, and was given a few moments to look over the menu. For 2 hungry guests, everything sounded tasty, and the restaurant smelled amazing.
As for the atmosphere, it was inviting and comfortably contemporary. I loved the old mattress spring light fixtures, and our view into the open, clean kitchen. The complementary chips & salsa were tasty, too. So far, positive review…
We ordered our food, and waited about 5 minutes to get the queso appetizer/​dip– just okay, and similar to something I could get from a jar.
The the entrees arrived: my husband opted for chicken fajitas, and I ordered a combo platter with a fried & stuffed avocado (it sounded different, so I jumped for it), and a chicken enchilada with a side salad. The salad was the only decent thing I tried!
Unfortunately, my husband’s fajita platter consisted of the smallest chicken breast we’ve ever seen, and a handful of undercooked peppers & onions (for $$!). My stuffed & fried avocado was also quite small, cold, and stuffed with– what appeared be– already-​been-​chewed chicken. The same questionable protein filled the limp enchilada sleeping on my plate.
Nope. This just wouldn’t do.
The manager was attentive and polite, but tried to crack jokes with us, when we really just wanted to leave and head across the street to Nando’s Peri Peri. He also used the, «It’s rush week and we have a lot of college kids working for us,» excuse. Nope. It wasn’t your service, it was your food.

The bartender was more concerned with hanging out with her friends and the manager than actually helping the customers at the bar. We waited 20 minutes to place the drink order and had to wait for the check.
The only reason for two stars was because the food was decent and brought out in a timely fashion.
We’ll find somewhere else in Towson to be ignored, perhaps the drinks will be better there.

For awhile, this was my favorite happy hour spot because I loved the $ 4 frozen margaritas, the free chips & salsa, and the $ 2 apps. However, my last few visits have made me take a break from the restaurant because it’s not as good as it used to be. The margaritas don’t seem to have much alcohol at all anymore. The food I received was ok but it wasn’t as good as when they first opened. It seems like they got off their game quite a bit.

On the Border is an epic choice for lunch. On Tuesdays, you can get three chicken tacos with beans and rice for $ 7. On Wednesdays, you can get the chicken fajitas for $ 8 with all the sides to go with it. Any time you can get a delicious lunch for under $ 10, it’s reason to celebrate. Truth be told, I’ve never been here past the lunch rush so the value may take a slight dive. Surprisingly enough, they don’t pack out at lunch. Mostly likely to Towson’s restaurant overload.
I’ve probably been here 10 times and the food is always consistent and delicious. We usually have groups of 5 – 10 and the waiters usually serve us quickly. You can do mobile pay as soon as you get your check and this really speeds up the transactions. Meaning we don’t need to wait for our server to process 10 transactions. Without mobile pay, I might say service is slow but it’s not their fault we have a larger group. Case in point, mobile pay is a game changer and really enhances the experience at OTB.
Of special note, they have delicious salsa on the spicy side. They are not shy about refilling your bowls either!
All in all, if you want delicious Mexican food in the Towson area, come here!

Your average chain tex/​mex. I had the fish tacos. The taste was just okay. It had way too much coldslaw and the fish was way greasy. I also had a margarita that I couldn’t even tell if it had any tequila. The service was pretty good although difficult to get the bartenders attention sometimes. The bar area is way small and poorly designed for a new restaurant. I won’t go back to this place the food wasn’t worth the calories.

I felt like a margarita after work tonight so I went to the bar at on the border. I ordered the house margarita and it was horrible. It tasted like artificial lime slush. I was going to order food but the bartenders were too busy making drinks for the rest of the restaurant and probably spent less than 10% of there time tending to the bar. So I left with no food and no margarita.
I am definitely never coming back there.

The interior of On The Border is quite spacious. They have booths as well as tables near the bar where you can seat yourself.
The staff was exceptionally friendly from the time I walked in until the time I left. The waitress I had, whose name I completely forgot, was very patient and efficient in checking in on our table.
As far as the food, I personally would not purchase a full meal from the main menu. The food is good but the HAPPY HOUR makes me happy. They have 2 happy hour times, 5pm-​7pm as well as 9pm-​11pm. They’re menu is phenomenal for happy hour. They have choices of small dishes from $ 2-​$ 4. For example, mini cheese quesadilla’s, which is what I ordered, that came with four slices of quesadilla. Quite filling in my perspective. They serve mini enchiladas, chimichangas, bowl of guacamole, bowl of queso, etc. for under $ 4. They also give free chips and salsa which helps fill you up.
But the main reason I come here is the drinks! I ordered a large house margarita, I think that’s what it’s called, for only $ 4, and yes it was large.
So in other words if your craving something good and cheap come here for happy hour you will not be disappointed and make sure you order a house margarita! The largest one ;)

Staff here really sucks. My boyfriend and I sat at the bar and got to hear all the hot gossip about which employee did what and where. Additionally, I got to hear some waitresses talking s about their customers. I mean, I get it, I waited tables for a long time but saved my smack talk for outside, not at the service bar where customers can CLEARLY hear you.
Anyways, I got the taco salad which was alright. What’s up with their guac though? I had a teaspoonful amount that was essentially just smashed up avocado with no seasoning to speak of. My boy got chicken fajitas but was planning on ordering the $ 10 version not the $ 15 version he was served. I guess he should’ve noticed there were two options, but maybe the server should’ve asked which he was referring to and not assumed? IDK.
Will def not be returning to this location, we prefer the Canton one.

Brand new to the Towson mall block, along with BJ’s and Bobby Burgers. A Don Pablo/​El Cholo type of Mexican dining, but with a modern and updated feel. Full bar at the door with TVs for sports fans, huge clean dining area, ample seating for family situation.
Service was polite, attentive and speedy. Kalyssa (probably spelling her name wrong, forgiveness please) made sure to inform us of happy hour, prompting the order of a very good (super sweet) Mango Margarita and 3 dollar quesadila (sp). Win. Had rancheritos enchiladas. Delicious. Surprisingly tender steak situation. Boyfriend ordered borderless burrito and has been working on it for 2 days now. Good sized meals for the price. Got out of there for under $ 40 (before tip).
Great little mainstream chain spot. Will be headed back for more.

Went here for lunch with a friend of mine. We were enjoying cocktails at the bar and also enjoyed the steak fajitas.
What we had…
Watermelon margarita was defiantly interesting it tasted actually like a real watermelon and not that overly sweet jolly rancher watermelon taste. However for me I did not enjoy the drink it had a awkward taste to me. Kinda like the water melon she’ll was grinned up in the mixture as well.
My friend had the tequila martini and tasted like a straight shot of tequila she had to get more mixer to enjoy the drink.
I also had the cactus pear margarita which I found to be very unique and flavorful.
The steak fajitas were very tasty and came with an appropriate amount of toppings to build a delicious fajita.
I have also stopped in for happy hour during the late night hours. I have to say the happy hour is very nice 5 dollar coronaritas and other specials for 3,4 and 5 dollars. They even offer snacks to accompany your drinks which is nice to just nibble on!
I will go back.

I went here tonight for dinner with my family to celebrate my sisters birthday. I was pretty apprehensive — the only thing I had ever heard about On the Border generally is that they have some of the most fattening and unhealthy dishes of any chain restaurant in the country. But tonight we were celebrating so I threw caution to the wind and ordered without giving the nutrition stats that I read online much thought. Unfortunately, I left wishing I didn’t decide to use this as a cheat meal.
The restaurant was packed all night and was very, very loud. We had a rectangular table for 6 and it was difficult to hear from one end to the other. We were also seated right next to the kitchen, which is kind of open, and the cooks and waitresses were talking and laughing pretty loudly — not a big deal, but distracting when your table is literally 4 feet away.
The real problem was the food. I ordered the brisket tacos, which came with pepper jack cheese, fried onions, and a side of jalapeño BBQ sauce (although the sauce was really just regular old BBQ sauce — no spice, no kick, no nothing.) The brisket had decent enough flavor but was pretty dry, and overall it was extremely salty. It came with a side of rice and beans, and the rice was similarly dry and salty. The whole dish felt very heavy and sodium laden. I will say that it was a lot of food, but that would have to be the prevailing concern for this dish to be worth it.
For my sisters birthday a group of waitresses came out and announced her birthday, sang, and then gave her a free order of sopapillas for dessert. It was really nice, except for the timing — my grandmother was still eating her dinner when they came out and decided it was dessert time. The sopapillas were pretty good, although I’m not sure if they were supposed to be hot? They were definitely cool (not even lukewarm). It came with 2 sauces — honey, and a chocolate sauce that I am 99.9% sure was straight up Special Dark Hershey’s syrup.
Overall I was disappointed in the food, not thrilled with the atmosphere, and I feel extremely bloated. If I ever came back to an On the Border I would consider giving their light menu a shot, but I don’t know that this will be any time soon.