Ugly Tuna Saloona

Stopped by the Ugly Tuna Saloona in the South Campus Gateway a few weeks back, and I’m bored so I figured that I’d post a quick review.

I thought the atmosphere was pretty nice. It’s very similar to Adobe Gila’s (owned by the same people), in that it’s very casual (metal buckets holding the condiments), has a few flat screen TV’s, and has a central bar. There’s a small stage in one corner but it went unused the night I was there. The decor had a gulf coast feel to it with fishing nets hanging from the ceiling. It felt like they should have been playing a little jazz/blues music. Instead, they played some classic rock type songs that didn’t seem to fit at all.

The menu was very reasonable and the happy hour specials were decent too. My beer came in a plastic cup, which made me feel like I was at a keg party rather than a restaurant. Maybe a little too casual :?. Sandwiches were around $8, and entrees seemed to be in the $9-12 range.

I ordered some coconut shrimp as an appetizer. They were good, albeit a little greasy, and came with a nice tangy dipping sauce. For an entree, I picked the fish tacos(tuna of course). You can’t go to a place with “tuna” in the name and not order any! The platter came with three tacos LOADED with big chunks of grilled tuna, lettuce, cheese, and pico de gallo, with yellow rice and black beans on the side for only $9. I didn’t go away hungry! The tacos were a little wet, which made them a challenge to eat, but that’s pretty standard. The black beans were definitely the lowlight. They were full of black and green olives rather than the traditional cilantro and cumin. It made for some really sour tasting beans :x.

If you can look past the sligtly-off the mark music, plastic cups, and sour beans, Ugly Tuna Saloona provides some tasty food at a good price. It should fit in well among the college students, especially when they take advantage of the stage.

I’ll be back, but not after sampling some of the other offerings at the Gateway (Mad Mex and Pesto are next!).