Roja Mexican Grill

17010 Wright Plz.

The Shops of Legacy

Omaha, NE 68130

(402) 333-7652

http://rojagrill.com/

Roja is one of my solid, go-to happy hours.  I love eating my body weight in their great chips and salsa while drinking discounted margaritas.  A pro of Roja’s happy hour:  it’s offered everyday from 3:00 to 6:30, BUT at the west location Drinking Buddy and I visited, happy hour is offered in the bar area only.  This is a definite con for me and for a more detailed explanation of this opinion, please see my Railcar review.  Anyhow, Drinking Buddy and I arrived early enough on a Saturday to snag a seat in the bar area. 

Roja Happy Hour Menu

Usually service is spot on in this location; however, during this happy hour excursion, our server was not as polished as Roja’s servers usually are.  “Serving Guy” (not trying to be dismissive but I’m gonna have to call him this because he never introduced himself) gave me the impression that he had just been promoted from bus boy and was still a little rough around the edges.  But ya know, Serving Guy was working hard and it’s difficult to dislike someone who delivers snacks and alcoholic beverages.

Just like at any self-respecting Mexican restaurant, chips and salsa were promptly served; however, Serving Guy was a little too quick on the draw and was in our faces before we had time to peruse the menu.  To buy a little time, Drinking Buddy and I both ordered the house margarita on the rocks with salt.  Now, it’s evident that these happy hour margaritas are made in bulk because it’s hard not to notice  the pre-filled containers stocked behind the bar, but the Roja margaritas are tasty and a good value at $3.50.  Furthermore, after several visits through the years, I’ve found that the margaritas are consistent at both Roja locations.

After delivering our drinks, Serving Guy was chomping at the bit to get our food order.  I’d like to take this opportunity to point out that no one was waiting for our table, the restaurant was not slammed with customers and we were not lolly gagging or dilly dallying, Serving Guy just must have been uber efficient or wanted to get rid of us.  Anyway, Drinking Buddy and I ordered Nachos Especiales with beef and chili con queso.

While we were waiting for our food order, Serving Guy, brought more chips and salsa and took another round of drink orders.  This time I switched it up and ordered a frozen strawberry margarita.  Just like the house lime margarita, this beverage tasted refreshing, but the machine where the product is stored is viewable from the seating area and gives off a gas station slushy vibe, which may or may not cheapen the chic aesthetic of the bar area.

Roja Strawberry Margarita

Our nachos and queso arrived.  I’ve noticed that the new nacho trend is having the nachos come to the table with each chip already built.  I’m from the old school generation where chips come piled with all the nacho fixing and each diner built his or her own chips.  Not sure how I feel about this new trend, but feel free to sound off your opinion in the comments!  The nachos had good flavor, but they were a little greasy and some fell apart because they had been prebuilt. 

Nachos Especiales with Beef

On to the chili con queso.  Drinking Buddy ordered this before I check the menu description.  In my mind, I thought we would be served a rich cheese sauce with chunks of savory beef chili.  However, Roja’s chili con queso means queso with chiles mixed in.  To enjoy the beefy queso goodness I was envisioning, the happy hour goer must order the deluxe chili con queso.  So all I can say about this appetizer is that it was just o-queso.

Chili con Queso

 As usual, Roja’s happy hour delivered a solid good time with consistent drinks and filling appetizers.  The service stumbled a little, but there was really no big misstep that left me seeing red. 

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1814 N 144th Street Stonehenge Center Omaha, Nebraska 68154 402-493-4743 http://railcaromaha.com/ The Railcar has a great happy hour for a few reasons: #1 the start and end  times of 3:30