La Palapa • Mexican Restaurant, Bar and Catering

My menu was covered in food, the food is bland, the waitress didn't even give us our change back, when I specifically gave her tip separate from the money for the bill. It's extremely rude to just assume. She was short with us the entire time. Also extremely expensive for little plates of food. It's nice to have 5 fries for a side never coming here again! Huge disappointment!

Absolutely the best Mexican food in Pittsburgh, we had enchiladas, tacos, tamales and everything was delicious… our waitress was karina with the blue hair she was amazing, she was so busy running around helping people but still made sure to keep checking on us, and made sure we had everything we needed… The atmosphere was great and the decor was so vibrant, nice portions of food as well… Definitely recommend this place, will be back

We recently stopped in to eat here the other day and our experience was ok. Our food and drinks were good and the staff was very efficient. It was just so hot in the main dining area, no A/C, no fan, not even a breeze from an open window! It made it very unpleasant to eat hot food in a hot room with no air circulation at all. Also, not sure why I was given a few french fries with my quesadilla instead of a salad as the menu had said. The pico de gallo and sour cream included with the meal were in tiny pill box-sized cups, and I was disappointed to see such small portions for the price. This restaurant also no longer provides chips and salsa like they used to. When we got here, we received a small basket of what looked like tomato-shaped onion rings and a bottle of hot sauce. So like I said our overall experience was ok, but I don't know if we will be back due to the small portions for the price and the A/C issue.

What an absolutely bizarre place. They are directly in front of the bridge so there is no parking. The wall decorations are haphazardly hung to the ceiling with tiny (too small to actually read) hand stamped sticker tags, like they are art. Seating is in multiple separate rooms. Nothing felt inviting, just jarring and distracting. It was like something out of an episode of bar rescue or kitchen nightmares.

My girlfriend and I stopped here to try their birria tacos. They were the best we’ve ever had. Couldn’t suggest a better place for Mexican cuisine in Pittsburgh. The staff are very friendly and the restaurant is very nice! Will definitely be back again

Fantastic dining experience in Pitt! Authentic cuisine and the service was remarkable! Would absolutely go a million times more!

I don’t live locally, but I make sure to come here every time I’m in Pittsburgh. It may be the best Mexican food I’ve ever had

I've been a long time fan of La Palapa, since they had a place in the Pittsburgh Public Market in the Strip. The food has always been amazing and then yesterday I (finally) had a chance to stop in to the restaurant to grab some of their incredible tacos, quesadilla, and flan. OMG - the flan was incredible (so was everything else). The quesadilla really took me back a few years. I think I ate at their stand in the Public Market nearly every day! The tacos were great too, so good that it was hard for my wife and I to share them lol. The decor in the restaurant was also really great. They have a bunch of authentic cultural pieces and really nice art, the light fixtures are great as well. The staff was really wonderful as well. I was greeted as soon as I came in, my order was taken immediately, and my food was out in a matter of minutes. If you want authentic Mexican food and you're anywhere close to the Southside be sure to stop at La Palapa!

Some of the best Mexican food you will find in Pittsburgh. Good selection, good portions, great and friendly service. Highly recommend LaPalapa.

The food and the ambiance were alright. I felt it was a little too simple for the cost, specially considering that I've visited plenty of other latin restaurants that were more affordable with better/more food. The staff was nice.

Good food. A bit pricey. It was not too busy for our visit, but the traditional Mexican music was a bit loud and that made it hard to understand the servers and bartender. We were looking for a mezcal bar; and while there was some, there was less selection than we had hoped for. There was a language barrier that might have added to our experience. Either way, for traditional Mexican food in the South Flats, it was worth the visit.

La Palapa wasn't as good as I was hoping. I wasn't really fond of the free fried appetizers they give you with hot sauce.

The tamales were pretty good. The chicken was dry and mostly flavorless, except for pepper. The rice was flavorless, too.

The sopapillas were great!

The employees were all very nice and the service was good.

If i could give 0 stars I would! Their food truck charged me for four orders of tacos instead of 3. When i caught it based off of my receipt, they apologized but said because the transaction went through, there’s nothing they can do! I want a refund! They ripped me off and openly admitted it! Pay attention to what they’re charging you!

Yes.

It was very good. I think the wheel shaped chips were delicious and very creative.
I got the pure definition of what an standard American would order, a boring taco with ground beef, cilantro, and onions. The service was amazing, someone was always making sure everything was okay. Overall, the service is good, the food is better, 5/5 would definitely recommend.

Edit: Mexican is definitely not my favorite kind of food but La Palapa at least made me like Mexican food more. I think my favorite kind of food is pretty much always going to be Indian though.

This is my favorite restaurant in South side. We always have a great experience plus good taste and quality food! We love Gina and Oscar. We will continue coming here. The birria tacos are delicious.

Good food, good service, and good atmosphere. I've looked for good mexican food in PA and this is the best by far. Dont hesitate to give them a visit!
They did a small catering order for my and my church for lent, where we had a feast day allowing fish, and their fish tacos hit it out of the park.

We had the best meal here on a Sunday night! We had a large group with a variety of dietary restrictions and we got such attentive and personalised service. They’re able to cater to gluten free diets beautifully, just let your server know.

Tacos are awesome. I like that they have some local craft brews.

I went back and had chile rellenos. Everything tastes so fresh.