Labeling Warsaw’s Cardoso 520 a Mexican restaurant might be selling it short. While Mexican dishes are part of the menu, you’ll find much more varied fare than at other typical Mexican restaurants. With house specialties consisting of stir fry, salmon, steak and paninis along with pastas and burgers that would give Oak and Alley a run for their money, you might just end up ordering something different from your original intentions.
Setting
The interior of Cardoso 520 hasn’t changed much in the 10 plus years I’ve been visiting. Through numerous iterations, the restaurants has pretty much remained the same no matter who is calling the building home. The main dining area is in the front with more seating and a large bar in the back. There is nothing fancy about the setting but it works.
Service
I have been to Cardoso 520 three times recently and have never had bad service. It’s been exemplary, actually, with smiles aplenty and helpful feedback about the various dishes on the menu. It’s one of their strong points, like the employees actually care that you have an enjoyable experience. I appreciate that.
Food
You know when you go to a restaurant and you can tell that the kitchen has put some time and effort into the food plating and presentation? First impressions are everything, a fact not lost on the kitchen staff at Cardoso 520. It’s fancy enough, along with being neat and clean. It makes a statement – “This is as a harbinger of what you area about to ingest … and it’s going to be good.”
The food menu is where I struggle labeling Cardoso 520 a “Mexican” restaurant. While Mexican fare does dominate its breakfast menu, you’ll have to go all the way to the lower half of the back side of the menu before you come across traditional Mexican dishes. Before that, you’ll encounter salmon, paninis and various burgers and pastas. And that’s after fighting off the urge to order whatever the delicous-sounding special is that greets you at the entrance.
I’ve had their tacos and their burgers. Both have blown me away. Not one person in any of the groups I’ve been there with has walked away less than impressed. When you have managed to please everyone, that is saying something.
Drinks
If there is any fault I have with Cardoso 520, it is their drinks. I’ve been spoiled by the margaritas at La Troje so Cardoso’s were a little disappointing. We stick with beer now when we visit but if Cardoso ever decides to spend some time building a proper cocktail menu, I’ll be the first one to try it out.
Conclusion
I’ve eaten at a lot of restaurants. Besides having to do it for this blog, it’s kind of our family’s thing – we enjoy eating out. As such, it’s always a little disappointing when you try a restaurant for the first time and you walk away umimpressed. With Cardoso 520, that couldn’t be further from the case. Every time I leave there, I can’t wait to go back. That’s how your first experience at a restaurant should always leave you – wanting more.
It’s hard to stand out in the restaurant business but Cardoso 520 has figured it out. I can’t wait to go back and if you visit, I know you’ll feel the same way.
You can get social with Cardoso 520 on their Facebook page.
Tags: cardoso 520, kosciusko, mexican food, restaurant review, warsawThinking about visiting Kosciusko County? Consider your own island or one of our lakefront resorts!
