Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit

I love this place they always have a mariachi band playing. Fresh, spicy, not oily and 7 out of 10 on very healthy. Friendly, some English spoken and helpful. Me & Kale came here 1^st to visit our friend Eric from Kale’s childhood. Great stopping point for a drink too!

Best ceviche and cóctel de camarón en Atlanta. Most authentic. Legit. And so many different options of ceviche. My favorite are the fish, shrimp and mixed seafood ceviche. The place is so so so so so so so delicious. Omggggggg delicious. Before you even order you get a free tasting of ceviche and it’s perfect. Just the right amount of limey citrus tang, and no fishy taste at all. The ingredients are fresh. The cóctel is to die for. The portions and perfect. I just love it. The drinks are also good sized and yummy. I’ve had the caldo de mariscos as well, a tomato based mixed seafood that is chock full of shrimp, mellijones, truta, and squid. I’ve never been during the time of the mariachi band… actually yes I have. It was awfully loud. Like hurt your eardrum loud. But the food… I’d go in the non busy hours without the band and ate in perfect peace.

If you are looking for authentic Mexican seafood, this is the restaurant to go. They serve big portions and the food is delicious. Every time we dinned here with my family we have a great time. However, there are two things I don’t like about this restaurant. One, they only take cash. And two, the band that plays on the weekends is too loud. If you wanna try this restaurant I would go early when is not too crowded and the band is not playing. Last time I was there I took my Russians friends to this restaurant and they loved it. I hope you enjoy the food as much as we did. My favorite plate is the stuffed seafood pineapple with melted cheese!

Definitely different than your standard flare of Mexican restaurants. I have never visited a Mexican seafood restaurant or the Mexican coast. With that said the fish was really tasty. I had the red snapper with ranchero and it was delicious. I also loved the habanero sauce, (not for faint of heart), once I burned off all of my taste buds in my palate I became well acquainted and acclimated to the ferocious goodness. The margarita I had was good as well. The mariachi band wasn’t too overwhelming and entertaining at best, but after an hour I started to develop a headache. I would definitely come here again. YES, the ceviche is good and it’s Mexican style and it’s FREE. I would rate the service as OVERWHELMING in lieu of what other posters experienced. I was constantly asked what I wanted to order almost every 8 minutes and I’m not kidding. I was on the phone with a friend and even she asked «How many times are they going to ask you want you want?», I felt slightly rushed.
I’m VERY thankful for the previous Unilocaler reviews and tips. YES, cash only and YES, you’ll probably be the only gringo in the place. All fine with me, but some may not be prepared.
There was also a language barrier between the bartender and I and the «irony» is I spoke Spanish to her and she still «retrieved» the manager. I’ve spoken Spanish many times in other places even in Mexico and people understood me. This was actually kind of humorous.
I shall return and I will try other pairings.
Worth a try.

FOod was good. Large plates. Music invasevily loud and took forever to pay. They have ONE register for a large restaurant. If in a group bring cash, they are not as good splitting bills.

It was great service! It’s a little pricey but very good all there dishes are big so go on a empty stomach for sure or you can definitely share a plate. Over all this place is great to go with family and friends.

Traveling to ATL for business. We found this restaurant by mistake. Wish we had a restaurant like this in DC. Try the grilled red snapper.

La mejor Comida …-,.
The Best Mexican seafood since i was at the beach in Can Cun and Puerto Vallarta. It is real México in Atlanta!

I felt ripped off. What I expected to be a $ 30 meal was double that.
The cerviche appetizer was a very nice, generous appetizer given out complimentary.
I think the server took advantage of me. We were discussing the $ 18.99 Red Snapper dishes but somehow I got the market price snapper when the bill came which was $ 35.
I asked for the oyster appetizer and pointed at the $ 10.99 deal but when the bill came, I guess I had got the grande for $ 20.99.
Definitely ruined my meal which I thought was pretty good for $ 30. For $ 60? No way! Now I’ve got to worry about getting in trouble at work for blowing my meal allowance.
If you go, be careful.

Amazing! Great atmosphere, service, and the food was out of this world!!! Haven’t had Al Diabla Red Snapper this good since I was in Mexico!
I will be back, VERY soon!

Thank your Pappadeux’s for being an hour wait!
Looked on Unilocal for Seafood closeby and found THIS gem!
I love the fact that you step in this place and you are the only non-​Mexican face in the place. This means its true Mexican food and not the standard rice and beans joint. The place was so loud due to the Mariachi band, but the kids loved it and it added to the ambiance. The menu was mainly in Spanish which again added to its awesomeness.
We sat for a while going through the menu and were presented with a wonderful appetizer on a hard shell that was great, but that salsa that was there to add to it? Be careful, HABANERO salsa! We had no clue that it was what it was and allowed the 5 yo to get some. Needless to say… HUGE mistake. All of us tried a little and the wife and I enjoyed it in small tastings.
the food came and was AMAZING! I had the Snapper and my wife the halibut, my daughter had shrimp tacos and my son shared. I have to say, not ONE of us was disappointed! We have a NEW favorite in the area.

Some of the best seafood I’ve ever had and I’m very picky with seafood. We got an order of small ceviche and the family platter with fish, shrimp, lobster, etc. It was huge and enough for 6 people plus some. The music is loud, but that’s a typical thing in authentic Mexican restaurants. Closest seafood I’ve had to compare to what I’ve eaten in Cozumel. Great place, just be prepared to talk loud over music!

Had my first visit here a couple of days ago. Panida A. has been raving about their seafood soup for years so we finally had a chance to check this place out. It’s located in the Aldi shopping center on the corner of Buford Hwy and Clairmont Rd. I didn’t know what to expect but figured at least they would have great ceviche. You’re served complimentary ceviche on a crispy tortilla. It was great. I should’ve ordered a larger portion of shrimp ceviche for my entrée but I was craving bacon so I ordered the bacon wrapped shrimp. Wasn’t the best dish I’ve ever had but I was starving and made the best of it. The bacon wrapped shrimp were over fried and way to crunchy for my liking. I did like the rice that came with the entrée and the fries. Who would’ve thought that at a Mexican seafood restaurant, they would serve delicious, crispy fries?! The random bed of iceberg lettuce with a slice of orange and red onions was interesting, especially since it didn’t come with any dressing. Luckily, they had Ranch dressing so I made it work.
Beware, the servers speak very little English so you’ll find yourself speaking very slowly and pointing at the pictures on the menu. You have to have a lot of patience with the wait staff but if you know what you want, then it shouldn’t be an issue. There was a mariachi band playing the night we went and I was told it’s a regular occurrence. If you don’t dig this type of music then this may not be the spot for you. I’m not sure I’ll return here again unless others are interested in checking out a new place but my company made up for the lack of taste and service.

Two things to know about this place which other reviewers have highlighted already:
1) Mariachi — fun, but loud! Prepare to shout with your dining companions in order to be heard.
2) HUGE servings. Huge.
I remember thinking, «I need to eat light tonight. Perfect, a seafood place. Just what I need.»
One giant margarita, a ceviche tostada, a plate of shrimp, fish and octopus covered in melted cheese, garlic bread, and a pile of french fries later… so much for «eating light.»
I always thought melted cheese and seafood seemed like a bad combo, but it seemed to work in the dish I ordered. I can’t remember the name unfortunately but it was delicious. I was tempted to try the whole fried snapper but the fresh catch is quite pricey so I decided on cheese and scrimps instead.
Our service was great the night we went, so we didn’t experience the issues others have mentioned. It was a weeknight, however, so maybe that makes a difference.

I really hate calling people out on Unilocal,but I have to completely disagree with Angela H’s review. It seems pretty clear that she doesn’t have the context to review this restaurant and believe me context is everything. Now, this isn’t the best Mexican seafood restaurant I have ever had– but this is one of the better places in Atlanta.
If you have never been to a Mexican mariscos restaurant this is not your average Mexican food or restaurant. They are loud, usually only carry seafood (sorry non seafood lovers), take time to cook the food, and yes the food comes with garlic bread– a typical staple for Mexican seafood. I hope I am not the first to say that not all Mexican food is the same– not all is tex-​Mex. And I am sorry Angela, but it seems like you wanted this to be Tex Mex.
Now for the actual review: This place is awesome. It is loud, has multiple bands playing, serve big drinks, and have great food. Is it the best seafood you will ever have? No. But it is pretty good for a landlocked city? Yes. Delicious ceviche, mixed grill, and margaritas.
I’m from the West Coast and totally miss real Mexican food, and for now, this will be the place that I will go back to.

I was visiting Atlanta and came to this place twice during my visit. One major attraction was that they have live mariachi. Coming from a Mexican background I was excited as I live in Florida and it’s not very common.
The 1^st time I came the service was not as great. I was sat at the bar by the hostess since I was alone and waited for service for a long time. I thought it was the bartender that was ignoring me but apparently the bartender only makes drinks and does not serve food. Eventually someone noticed since I was there for awhile and came and apologized. (I think it was the lack of communication from the hostess to the waitress staff… Although it wasn’t busy, it could be that she was having an off day). I give them still 5 stars because of the food, music and they fixed it.
They give you a welcoming ceviche tostada. I had a margarita and ceviche platter which was really good.
The second time I went I asked for a table and the experience was much better. My waitress Catirin was very attentive and nice, she checked on me often to make sure everything was good (refills). I had the fried red snapper with a side of avocado slices and it was outstanding. If you are in the area and want some good fish and great ambiance… This is your place. Make sure to ask for Caririn!

Let me start by stating that I’m generally NOT a fan of seafood. With that being said, I do like consuming some delicious sea creatures, including shrimp and lobster. So although my initial reaction to Daniel B.‘s UYE invite was «hmmm… I don’t know…,» I decided to suck it up and give this place a shot!
A group of 12 of us arrived around 7 pm on a Wednesday evening. Since they don’t have a large-​enough table to accommodate all of us, they had us sit at multiple tables. Basically, I ended up sitting at the «overflow» table of four because I wanted to sit with my buddies Duy V. and Anson I., the UYE newbies.
From reading the other reviews for Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit, I knew to expect complimentary ceviches, which contain cilantro. Of course it contains cilantro, this is a Mexican restaurant. Although I was 95% sure they wouldn’t be able to «make» me a cilantro-​free version of the ceviche, I still attempted to ask if they could provide some sort of substitute. The server who brought the ceviches could not understand a word I said. Dang. I had to muster up the few Spanish words I could think of… «No cilantro, por favor?» I think she laughed and walked away. I didn’t know whether that was a «Haha, too bad, you silly girl» or «Oh, I understand what you’re saying and I’m just going to walk away now.» Needless to say, I did NOT end up getting a cilantro-​free ceviche.
Not wanting to miss out on all the ceviche fun, I literally scraped off all the «bigger» of the teeny tiny pieces of cilantro in the appetizer. Why? Because it was tasty! Plus, I was killing time while waiting for the server to first bring us menus, then later bring our drinks, food, and checks.
The menu is intimidating, not only because most of it is Spanish, there are a lot of options. I do know how to speak a tiny bit of Spanish, but not enough to know what all the seafood words meant. Sure, there were translations here and there, but overall, it’s difficult to figure out what’s what in the menu. Definitely ask for an English-​speaking server if you need help with the menu.
* Frozen Strawberry Margarita — Apparently, the regular size (which I had thought I ordered because I didn’t specify otherwise) is $ 5.99 but the «large» size, which they actually served, was $ 8.99. It was certainly huge, but I did not ask for the large. (Fortunately, the server adjusted the price for me on my bill.) The margarita itself was pretty tasty and definitely strong. I would recommend it, but be sure to specify which size you want (NOTE: I did not see any size options in the menu).
* Bacon-​wrapped Shrimp ($ 11.99) — I ended up ordering a shrimp plate which consisted of bacon-​wrapped shrimp served with salad, garlic bread, rice, and fries. (Unfortunately forgot to take note of the Spanish name. Oops.) And the bacon-​wrapped shrimp was basically that and nothing special. I couldn’t really taste any special seasoning or sauce, just bacon-​wrapped shrimp. It tasted okay (what ISN’T good with bacon?!), but I kind of wished I had gotten a different shrimp dish. The garlic bread, while weird to have at a Mexican restaurant, was pretty good, and the fries were crispy and tasty. I thought it was really odd that the salad comes with no dressing, and you also get an orange slice.
While I realize that we were a «larger» group than they may be used to serving, service was absolutely terrible. It was probably about half an hour or so before I got my margarita once I had ordered, and my food was served almost an hour after I had ordered it. When my table was done and wanted our checks, it took another 20 minutes for the server to bring our checks and even longer to process payment. Ughhhh…
Overall, Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit gets 2.5 stars for their «A-​OK» Mexican food and tasty frozen Strawberry Margarita, but their «Eek!» terribly slow and unfriendly service. I probably won’t be going back.
[Review 024 of 100]

Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit is a Mexican seafood restaurant that opened early 2013 on Buford Highway. It’s located at the Crossroads Village shopping center at the intersection of Buford Highway and Clairmont Road, next to the ALDI supermarket. «Mariscos» is Spanish for seafood and La Riviera Nayarit is a 200-​mile stretch of coastline along Mexico’s western coast.
It’s hard to tell from the storefront, but the restaurant space is cavernous. It’s built to handle large families, big groups, and parties. There are aquariums, a bar, a multitude of TVs playing various Mexican programming, and live music. I believe there is live music every day of the week. The music includes performances by a traditional mariachi band, complete with guitar, violin, and trumpet. The atmosphere is casual and can be festive and LOUD due to the music.
This restaurant is quite authentic and a majority of the staff and clientele are Mexican. Some of the staff do not speak English, only Spanish. It obviously helps to know some Spanish if dining here, but you can get by without it since the menu has English translations. Some Mexican families come here for a nice night out.
Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit serves Mexican seafood dishes that are popular along the country’s Pacific coast. The seafood includes fish (marlin, red snapper, tilapia, mojarra), shrimp, octopus, crab, lobster, mussels, scallops, and oysters. Seafood dishes include cocteles (cocktails), salads, ceviches, tostadas, empanadas, caldos (soups), zarandeados (grilled fish dishes), colas de langosta (lobster tails), and patas de jaiba (crab legs).
Expect to spend in the $ 15 – 25 range for most single entrees. Raw oysters on the half shell are $ 8.50 for a half dozen and $ 13.50 for a dozen. Portion sizes are huge, so be prepared for leftovers.
Note: This restaurant does not have much, if any, in terms of non-​seafood dishes. Also, if you are allergic to shellfish or crustaceans, the selection is limited. However, you can request certain dishes to exclude ingredients you may be allergic to.
The presentation of the dishes have a bit of «wow» factor to them because of the enormity of everything, from the plates of food to the drinks. Food is served on jumbo-​sized plates and beverages, like the sangria, are served in colossal glasses. It’s funny to see customers’ expressions when their drinks or plates hit the table («whoa»). Pina coladas are served inside real pineapples, as are some dishes, such as the «pina» dishes (photo:
). It all adds to the fun of the experience.
Each customer gets a complimentary small ceviche. On the menu, it’s called Ceviche a la Riviera Nayarit. It amounts to a citrusy blend of fish (marlin), carrots, tomato, cilantro, and cucumber served atop a hard tortilla. It is so fresh and delicious that I think it’s worth ordering in a larger size as an entrée alone.
Chips, salsa, and lime wedges are also provided to each table, free of charge. The salsa is legitimately spicy. It’s not over the top, which is a good thing because while I love spicy food, I still like to taste and enjoy my food. The salsa goes great on many of the foods, most notably the ceviche. Try it out. Unlike most other salsas, I don’t recommend this one on plain chips.
Of the entrees, I’ve tried the Huachinango a la Riviera Nayarit ($ 16.99). «Huachinango» means red snapper. The restaurant cooks and serves snapper in a variety of ways. I had mine pan-​fried whole, bones, head, tail, and all. The fish is marinated in a house special sauce and topped with sliced, cooked purple onion. Sides include a small green salad (iceberg lettuce, tomato, raw purple onion, cucumber, an orange slice), with rice, a buttered roll, and French fries. It’s a lot of food, but most of it are the starchy sides.
From head to tail, the cooked snapper is maybe a little over one foot long. The fish is crispy and tasty. The flavor is more savory than expected and I recommend this dish if you like fried fish. The best thing about the fish is that it has already been cut up into bite-​size pieces that easily detach from the bone. So, if you don’t like dealing with small fish bones, there’s no need to worry about them here, for the most part. The sides are ordinary and unmemorable. I’d prefer more snapper meat than anything.
Service is okay. All the servers wear headsets, which looks cool, but I don’t think it speeds up service. Checks can be easily separated for large groups and surprisingly, automatic gratuity is never applied, regardless of group size. Reservations are generally not required nor accepted because of the restaurant’s high seating capacity and current demand. Still, it never hurts to call ahead just in case you have a large party.
Overall, Mariscos La Riviera Nayarit is an A-​OK Mexican seafood restaurant.

Came with a bunch of Unilocalers for Daniel B’s Buford Hwy UYE series (thx for hosting!). There were about 13 of us there across two tables.
FOOD
All the dishes are essentially the same except for the meat. The entrees all come with rice, salad (no dressing), garlic bread, seasoned fries, and meat. The dish I ordered (Pina a la riviera nayarit) came with shrimp, scallops, octopus, crab, bell peppers and mushrooms in a pineapple bowl. After a few bites, I was already a bit sick of eating the same flavors over again — mostly because the seafood wasn’t fresh. However, a plus is that the portions are huge! Not a single person finished all the food on their plate.
SERVICE
Let’s just say the service runs on Latin American time, so they were taking their sweet time with things like bringing out extra water, the checks, and to-​go boxes.
ATMOSPHERE
Overall, I do like the simple but colorful décor. They even have a mariachi band that comes out to play though I’m not exactly sure how that works. BUT I would almost recommend not going when there is a mariachi band unless you’re on a bad date and need something to fill the silence. The are super talented and good, but as Marty J says, «That was fun for like the first 20 seconds.» And then the rest of the evening you are screaming at the top of your lungs just trying to get you friend across the table to hear you.
Three stars for A-​OK!
[44 of 100]

Good food, great atmosphere and prices are decent too.
Definitely a culture shock if you are not a Mexican, otherwise it’s like walking into the streets of Mexico with the Churro vendor, live Mariachi band, balloon blow up lady and flowers for sale (they don’t pester you but they are there if you want to buy some).
If you go on a Fri-​Sunday expect to take 30 – 40 min to get seated, 40 min to get your food and even more to get you check and get out. It’s worth the fiasco and its expected since that’s the busiest days and the only times they have live music.
Do try the alcoholic pineapple in a pineapple drink!
We tried the: naranjada (giant homemade soda/​fresh squeezed orange drink), fresh oysters on the half shell, and seafood soup. No one was disappointed. We especially loved the free started they give a tuna tostada with yummy goodness.

La comida es muy buena, las porciones tambien, los fines de semana tienen mariachis y banda, las cuales cobran por cancion, el ambiente es agradable, un buen lugar para ir con la familia, les recomiendo camarones a la riviera, que no son picantes. Cuando te sientas te sirven una tostada con marlin, y una salsita de habanero. Lo unico que no me gusto fue que despues que ordenas, se tardan mucho para llevarte la comida a la mesa, y me fije que no fue solo mi orden, y cuando pregunte por que se tardavan, facilmente le hecharon la culpa al cocinero, bueno si decides ir a la rivera de nayarit, ve con tiempo.