The Cuckoo’s Nest

Great dinner tonight. I had the special, Tuna Chimichurri. Everyone at our table of 14 was happy!

Dined here for the first time in 2 years and won’t be back. The chimichanga I ordered came with cold, dry, tasteless rice and cold what-​looked-​like pork and beans. These two foods covered about ¾ of the plate. The chimichanga rested on a large bed of shredded lettuce, making it look much larger than it was. The beef inside was dry as a bone and I could find no other ingredients to go along with the beef. I wanted to know the diff between a chimichanga and an empanada. The waitress said there was a glossary on the menu, which included NO description of the chimichanga. There was also no description of fajitas, perhaps we should have known that already. Quesadilla was also missing from the scant glossary of terms. My fellow diner ordered a Mexican pizza, when she picked up the first slice, the entire conglomeration of toppings slid right off the «crust». Hoping to turn the experience around, we ordered what was described as warm toll house pie. It arrived ice cold. The waitress returned it to the kitchen where it no doubt got a zap on high in the microwave. This dismal experience cost me 16.99 and 4.99, for a total of 22.00 outrageously overpriced dollars. Never again. PS, tried to submit giving a rating of zero stars, but the system would not accept that, so I had to assign it a very reluctant 1, much more than it deserved.

The atmosphere was impressive light hearted and fun. The bright colors and wall decorations gave a Mexican happiness feel. The food wasn’t as great but still worth the trip. A great party atmosphere and more then decent tacos/​wings.

I want to love this place. Atmosphere is fun. Friendliness of staff is hit or miss. Margaritas are skimpy and not very good, even the top shelf ones. Food is just ok. It was much better in years past. I wish I could find a good margarita on the shore. Coyote Blue (Higganum?) is the best but not convenient and often packed.

Definitely some of the best Mexican I have had on the East Coast and reasonably priced. Definitely try the brunch, it is incredible and they have EVERYTHING! Margs are delicious too, I love them because they aren’t too put syrup in them.

For the past 10 years we would not go there after the experience we has there. When we heard it was under new management we decided to give it another try. I am glad we did. Great food, very good presentation and the service was second to none. We have since been back 3 times and have not been disappointed. Next time our family comes back to Connecticut we plan on treating them to a dinner there. Am so glad we gave them another shot.
PS the home made Salsa was so good we bought a pint to bring home.

I’ve been here before having lived in the area for 20plus years I’ve never been impressed and tonight was no different.
I had nachos but they had American cheese on them. Not just any American cheese but cheap kraft singles American cheese.

We were in the area and looking for a spot for dinner. We hadn’t been to Cuckoo’s Nest in a long time and saw some negative reviews on Unilocal.We always had a good meal there so decided to ignore the reviews and we weren’t disappointed. We sat on the patio, had a lovely server and totally enjoyed our meals. My husband had a beef grande burrito and it was huge so he took home the leftovers. I had the shrimp tamales which were FULL of shrimp and excellent. I also had the jalapeño infused margarita which I highly recommend if you like spicy. We both needed ‘to go’ containers so when our server brought them out she asked us if we liked the chips and salsa. We told her ‘of course’ so she brought us a to go bag of chips and container of salsa. If you are in the area this is worth a stop.

I would have to say this is the Best Mexican restaurant I have ever been to outside of Mexico. Fresh ingredients, superb tasting spices, and everything prepared just right. Service was excellent, the outside patio was wonderful, and very good margaritas. We had the steak fajitas and I had the Chimiganchas and prickly pear margarita frozen. The place was packed but we were seated right away, chips and salsa right away, and drinks within 5 minutes. Very attentive server and bus person. Very clean. We will be back.

Discusting stale chips and worst food ever! Overpriced, dont waste your money here please!

It’s actually a very sad evening for me to have to write this review. I have been coming to the Nest since day 1 when Jim first opened the doors 38 years ago. It used to be my very favorite restaurant. For decades, we ate here once a week in the summers. Over the years, my family and I have eaten here literally hundreds of times. While the place was Jim’s we never had a bad meal. Everything was truly top-​notch.
Once he retired and sold the business, it was a quick beginning to an end. Things began to go downhill slowly. They have, without a doubt, hit rock-​bottom.
We’ve given them a few shots since the turnover, but tonight was the last one.
We went in to grab an early dinner (4:30) after a day at the beach. When we walked in the EMPTY Cuckoos’s Nest, four different people walked by us standing at the door and said, «we’ll be with you in just a second.» Three minutes later, one of them finally decided she could be troubled enough to seat us. She hemmed and hawed over the decision of where in the entire EMPTY Godforsaken place she was going to seat us. She actually had to call the manager over to make this monumental decision.
So, she leads us around the serpentining restaurant to the most undesirable table in the whole place. It’s a table right outside the bar that really shouldn’t be there at all. It sticks out into the path of heavy traffic, and one sits there, one is going to get bumped into constantly throughout their meal. On the rare occasion when they actually offer us this table – like tonight – we always refuse, and point to one of the empty booths along the wall just adjacent to it. She got very flustered when we asked to move. It didn’t matter, after 38 years of tacos, nobody is going to seat us at that table.
She took our order and was friendly enough, but not too swift.
The sangria came out in glasses with mostly ice and a few sips of sangría.
The nachos came out burned, rubbery and gross. This is the first time in 38 years we have actually left nachos on the plate!
When the meals arrived, they were wrong. I ordered a beef taco and a chicken enchilada, which she repeated to me. Instead, I got a beef taco and a cheese enchilada.
Everyone commented when the food arrived that it didn’t smell good. And, it was actually smoking!
First, I picked up the hardshell taco. When I did, the bottom fell out, along with all the «beef.» The beef smelled gross and tasted grosser. The plate of food, in general, spelled a lot like Alpo. When I tasted the beef, I found it to be as gross as it smelled. I didn’t finish it.
I ate the skimpy cheese enchilada.
I had a side of refried beans on my plate that were continuing to smoke throughout the meal, and the intensity of the smoke increased when I stirred them with a fork. Clearly, this entire plate had been in the microwave. That’s why the taco shell was soggy and the beans were not only refried, but also re-​heated. GROSS! I didn’t eat them. After one forkful, I was done.
One of us ordered a beef burrito, which didn’t actually look that bad, but the problem was the same: the beef inside was just plain gross. I’m posting a picture of a burrito from which only about two forkfuls were eaten. Again, the first time in 38 years food was left on the plate or not brought home to be eaten later.
We all shook our heads in disappointment with the service, the food, and the demise of what was once an empire of Mexican cuisine in CT. Poor Jim would be so disappointed if he knew what happened to his restaurant. It is truly a shame to see the end of an era, but that is exactly what we saw tonight. After 38 years, we, too, are retiring from the Cuckoo’s Nest.
To the new owners, as I mentioned in my previous review, an age-​old adage: «if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!» You guys destroyed this place, and it’s really a shame.

Bad bad bad so bad! I went out to dinner with my 3 kids– 80.00 and it was so bad.
Street tacos — you get 3. The chicken was dry and crispy. The pork tasted like it came from a can. I didn’t even taste the steak since the other two were bad and cold.
The chips and salsa were fine.
Kids didn’t like their meals either.
Ordered the lava cake for dessert. It was dry and also bad. Store bought absolutely.

No matter how many timers we have been to this place, it is never a disappointment. Seated right away and drinks in a flash. The specials sounded awesome tonight but they weren’t for me this evening. Had the Jerk Chicken and it was great. Angel went with the soft tacos and said they were delicious. Had a special treat tonight. A baby bird fell from its nest and the staff made sure it was put back safely in the nest. Bravo…

Stale chips, weak cheap margheritas — food was iffy. Coming from NYC where we have real Mexican food, this was as far from that as I’ve ever had. If you like the idea of BBQ tacos soaked in BBQ sauce you will perhaps like it here. All I’m gunna say is you’d be cuckoo to eat dinner here. If you must go stick to happy hour and the bar menu.

I have been coming here since I was a kid. I think the chips and salsa are top notch! The nachos are terrific and they will put on them whatever you want and even burn the cheese– exactly how I like them! Food overall is very good. Staff have always been accommodating. And there’s music Thursday’s. It’s very kid friendly and overall it’s a fun place to go. I always come here for nachos when I’m back in town. Just happy to see this place still in business after all these years! Rock on Cuckoo’s Nest!

Everything here as far as food is concerned comes off of a commercial truck. Nothing is fresh and nothing is really Mexican. This is a food factory for the masses with a good times appeal on an otherwise desert of chain restaurants. It serves a purpose.
If you want sustenance and not cuisine, you will be happy.

This place is always high on our list of places we must visit whilst out at the beach place for one reason: the blackened white fish.
The chips and salsa are a great start as the salsa is actually spicy. Cuckoo’s doesn’t serve up any of that watery stuff that makes me question why people are even calling themselves a «Mexican» restaurant.
From there your food isn’t super authentic but that isn’t required to be super delicious. Ever been to Chipotle? Point proven. To maximize deliciousness potential, order the blackened whitefish. Any fish at all is actually a good bet. Tonight our table had one order of the blackened white fish (pretty self explanatory), sesame encrusted seared tuna (wasabi sauce was amazing), and the fish tacos with mahi mahi (surprisingly large amount of fish). We all went home with full bellies and smiles.
Other important items:
Expect about $ 15/​pp for entrees
I’ve never had anything but good service
For any old school Westbrook people– the A/​C is still functioning and a fantastic addition to this place
I will continue to return annually
Blackened whitefish

To quote Unilocal’s two stars, «A-​OK.» The service was friendly and speedy, and the food came out super fast. The place was large and felt clean. It had a huge bar, too.
The food, however, was very basic and none-​too-​spiced. The chicken burrito was average but hit the spot. The complimentary chips were very standard, but the salsa was almost like runny tomato sauce. They have a literal basket of hot sauces, but unfortunately one of the bottles had the top missing and was crusted over on top. Very unappetizing, unfortunately.
Overall a very basic Mexican-​style restaurant, but pleasant service and a fine atmosphere.

Cuckoo’s Nest — «Serving Mexican and Cajun» cuisine since 1976!
What they serve, is neither Mexican or Cajun. It’s a horrible mashup of burned, scorched, under seasoned foods, combined with uniformly low quality ingredients, executed with a complete and total lack of culinary skill. Quite frankly, it’s SHIT ON A SHINGLE. The food is really, really, horrible. How a place like this can stay in business is a mystery to me. It’s dirty, old, and because the patrons are apparently all retarded, the menu includes a «Glossary» at the bottom of the page to explain what the vastly complicated and creative dishes include. Terms like «Burrito» and «Taco» are explained ad nauseum.
According to the Cuckoo’s Nest, the menu included several authentic «Mexican and Cajun» dishes like:
ROCKEFELLER SOUP cream soup w/​spinach, mushrooms &
shrimp, topped w/​croutons & cheese
BUFFALO WINGS (7) hot & spicy, served w/​celery sticks &
bleu cheese dressing
GAZPACHO cold & spicy tomato-​based soup w/​cucumbers
HAMBURGER ½ lb. w/​lettuce & tomato
CHEESEBURGER ½ lb. w/​lettuce & tomato
w/​bacon, add 1.50
HUMMEL HOT DOG
GRILLED JERK CHICKEN Jamaican jerk-​spiced
boneless chicken breast served over white basmati rice
w/​a jerk black bean sauce
DELMONICO STEAK the same cut as our Cajun
Steak, but without the spices, served w/​a baked potato &
a salad
MONTERREY SALAD lettuce, tomatoes, garbanzo
beans & shredded cheese 8.50
How these are «Mexican or Cajun» I have no idea. The menu was starting to look like a Greek Diner along the New Jersey Turnpike. Linguine has no place on a «Mexican or Cajun» restaurant menu. Seeing that and other non-​Mexican dishes on the specials board at the front door was the first sign that things were not going to be «authentic»
Always hopeful, we walked in, were seated, and debated running for the door. Unfortunately, hope won out over the obvious reality we had walked into a tired disaster that would have made even the saddest Taco Bell a better choice.
The serving staff had the 10,000 yard stare usually associated with PTSD combat survivors or those emerging from a Michael Bolton/​Kenny G concert. Eventually a waiter named Pedro, Pablo or Rodrigo wandered over to get our drink orders. He was unable to elaborate on the daily «specials» and unable to discern a Bud Light from a Dark Ale. He promptly disappeared after taking our dinner order and was nowhere to be seen for the next hour.
We sat there, on a picnic bench (yes, seating is on a picnic bench) with our empty drinks, in a deserted back room trying to get someones attention to just pay for the drinks and get the hell out of the place. Eventually Pablo/​Pedro/​Pancho wandered back into the room with the dinner order. Naturally, the food was cold, he forgot our requests for extras like jalapenos, glasses of water, guacamole, etc. When we mentioned this, he seemed to lose his grasp on English and wandered off in the direction of either the parking lot or the kitchen.
The food? Well, you know where this is going. It was uniformly awful. I’ve never seen carrots, eggplant and zucchini incorporated into fajitas as sides. The chicken looked like carefully squeezed out dog poop and tasted similar. The «steak» consisted of flat, square, slabs of meat that were clearly trimmings or waste byproduct. They even managed to serve stale tortillas! Amazing.
We grimly ate our way through as much of the meal as possible. It was late, and at this point we both kind of made a joke about how really and truly awful the food was.
We paid up and got the heck out. The Cuckoo’s Nest is almost certainly the WORST dining experience in Connecticut.
Food — zero
Service — zero
Décor — zero
Value — zero
Taste — zero
Ambiance — zero
Cleanliness — zero
The Cuckoo’s nest is awarded the rarest of all awards «The SEVEN ZERO’.
RUN AWAY FROM THIS DISASTER.

I went here tonight on a whim with my boyfriend for dinner. When we were brought outside to the patio I thought cool, neat décor, kind of authentic feel… that’s where the good thoughts ENDED for me.
Our waiter Rodrigo, took and brought us our drink order. A while later he came back and took our dinner order — pretty simple — chicken and steak fajitas and shrimp and steak fajitas with a side of jalapenos and another draft beer. About a half hour later we caught him and asked where the beer (a Bud light draft) was — he hurried out and brought us back a dark ale (not Bud). Another 15 minutes later he brought us the «fajitas» (or their version of them).
Here it goes — he forgot the side of jalapenos, he forgot one of the sides of sour cream/​guacamole. The protein in our fajitas was barely spiced — BLAND, the tortillas were stale, the protein (steak, chicken and shrimp) were tough and barely edible, AND there was barely any cheese. It was so awful it was almost funny. Also the veggies in fajitas are always peppers and onions right? Ours had carrots, zucchini and barely any onions and NO peppers whatsoever.
All around it was absolutely awful. We will never go back and it cost $ 60 PLUS TIP — UGHHH — they should have paid us to eat that — I wouldn’t feed it to my dogs. It is pretty horrible when Chili’s and On the Border beat an actual Mexican restaurant hands down, no contest. Next time I will just stay home and have a PB and Fluff.
I would give this negative stars if I could and am adding it to my list of restaurants that will ruin your night.