Los Panchos de Charly, Downtown San Diego

There are magazines published by Community Magazine in San Diego that have coupons for several restaurants within the central San Diego region...Uptown, Downtown, and now some Coronado restaurants are featured.

The latest version of Uptown hardly has any good downtown restaurants that Dave, my lunch partner in crime, and I haven't tried but yesterday we thought we'd try Los Panchos de Charly on E Street between 4th and 5th Avenue, since it's just a few blocks away.

Most of the coupons are usually "Buy 2 beverages and one entreé, get the second entreé free". The coupon for Los Panchos was for $5 off when you buy 2 beverages and 2 entreés. We assumed this was because the restaurant might be related to the drive thru taco stands that have bargain but good Mexican food, so the prices would be such that giving a free entreé would be too deep a discount.

AHAHAHAHAHA.

Not. Even. Close.

I will accept responsibility that I didn't look at the menu posted outside the restaurant. We were seated, our drink order was taken, and we were presented with the menus. All "platillos" were $13 and up. For lunch! No wonder there was only one other person in the two story restaurant. We were eyeing the burritos which were in the $7-$10 range, and noticed the "add $2 and make it a combo with beans and rice". Dave had a carne asada burrito combo, I had a shredded beef chimichanga combo. The waiter asked the hostess if those qualified for the coupon and she told him yes.

We got our food and it was very average. I would pay these prices for Ponce's or Old Town Mex, but for tackyland in the center of the gaslamp, not so much. I'll credit the place that their salsa roja had a good zesty garlic bite to it, and the tomatillo had a nice kick. Their rice was perfect and the beans were better than you'd get at a taco shop, but not the best. My food was good, and Dave and I only made it halfway through our plates before we were full. Still, I could've had the same meal (or better) at Pokez, albeit with slower service, for less than half the price.

When 'la cuenta' arrived, there was no discount. The waiter apologized and said that the hostess said the manager instructed them that the coupon wasn't good for the combo. Now this is where I have a problem with semantics. The coupon said "entreé", we ordered "combos" and the restaurant was now contending that the coupon was only valid on "platillos".

I asked the hostess about it and then confronted her, that we were only going to pay the $20 for our meals, not the $25.36 on the receipt. I'm sorry, it's hard enough to justify a $10 lunch, and that's not even including the tip which we still intended on leaving. After asking for the manager and her reluctantly writing the number down (and claiming the discount would come from her wallet), she agreed to honor the coupon, we paid our $20 and handed the waiter his tip and were on our way, but absolutely certain that neither of us will ever step into Los Panchos de Charly again. I mean, unless someone else is buying, in which case, I just might say yes.

I also thought I would note that the busboy looked no older than 15 years old and at 12 noon on a Monday, I couldn't help but think he belonged in school, not sweeping floors in a huge restaurant that had as many employees as patrons. My recommendation to Los Panchos: Create an affordable lunch menu or don't even bother opening until happy hour. And my recommendation to you- walk a few extra blocks up to Pokez for your downtown Mexican food fix. Just call in your order 15 minutes ahead.