Mission Cantina

I was browsing Instagram maybe about a month ago, and I stumbled upon a ridculous photo of food, and by ridiculous, I mean I sent my friend an angry text asking where on earth she had consumed this beautiful meal, upon which she cackled evilly (that part is imagined) and replied “Mission Cantina.”
I’m from California so I am super pretentious about real Mexican food (although if you’re actually from Mexico, I’m sure you think I’m stupid) so I am generally quite skeptical of Mexican food anywhere other than California or the Southwest…or Mexico. But as I started asking around about Mission Cantina, people would generally respond along the lines of “UGHHH Oh my gosh SO good” or “You haven’t been??!! Are you kidding?!?!” They were also telling me to go around 4:30 or else the wait would be at least 30 minutes to get a seat, because the place is relatively small and always packed.
So on this beautiful 80 degree day, my two friends and I drove five minutes to this mythical Mission Cantina. Even though we got there at 4:45, we still had to wait about 20 minutes – very telling of the success and quality. We ordered the famously delicious drinks while we waited (a non-alcoholic spritzer for me because I drove – so responsible) but then we were finally seated in a very colorful, warm booth.

The food and drinks were SO good. We started off with chips, guacamole, and salsa. All of the salsas, particularly the dark red one, were fantastic, and of course, the guacamole was perfect – not too bland and the perfect consistency. For my main dish, I ordered Chicken Enchiladas with Refried Beans. Even the side salad was tossed with the most delicious, garlicy dressing. If you are in the Amherst area, this is definitely one of the best places to go eat. It’s especially the perfect place to go as it gets warmer. A little bizarre but one of my favorite parts was the bright blue table top. Anyway, it was such a good, fun dinner with two good friends. Mission accomplished.