Pulido’s Kitchen & Cantina Reopens - A FWF Review
Pulido’s Rendering (Image Credit: Pulido’s Website)
Fresh ambiance, fresh margaritas, and a refreshing re-addition to the neighborhood.
Ever since the abrupt and less-than-graceful exit of The Original Mexican Eats from its long standing Camp Bowie location, the Arlington Heights, Monticello, and Alamo Heights neighborhoods have had a hole in their Tex-Mex hearts. Sure, there are popular spots like Mi Cocina, Uncle Julios, or even Papasito’s Cantina a short drive away, but when it comes to down-home, locally owned Tex-Mex joints, we’ve been out of luck.
That is… until earlier this month.
As an Arlington Heights local, I’m embarrassed to say that I never visited Pulido’s prior to their recent reopening. The original location on Pulido Street (tucked in near Railhead Smokehouse, Flying Fish, and the semi-new Dutch Bros Coffee), opened in 1966 under Pedro and Dionicia Pulido. In 2023, the family announced that they’d be closing all locations. Soon after, The Westland Restaurant Group (JD’s Hamburgers, Margie’s Italian, Westside Cafe) partnered with the family to renew all 5 locations. We originally wrote about Pulido’s reopening in our blog: 10 Fort Worth Restaurants and Bars Opening in 2024. And while the opening date might have been just a few weeks off, they have officially reopened the doors of the Fort Worth location of Pulido’s Kitchen & Cantina.
Outside Pulido's Kitchen & Cantina
While I had not had the chance to see Pulido’s prior to it’s renewal and renovation, my close friend I went to dinner with had. The first thing any past regular would note is that they kept the integrity of the overall authenticity. As you approach the free standing building the first thing you’ll notice is a nice face lift on the exterior of the building - including the fresh new logo and branding that fits well into the Westland Group’s overall vibe. One thing right of the bat that we can mark as a huge win for Pulido’s is their parking situation. While The Original on Camp Bowie was a struggle to snag a parking spot (or park in the neighborhood when you inevitably gave up on looking for 1 of their seemingly 10 parking spots), Pulido’s has a decent parking lot with ample parking on the street as well.
Looking back at old photos and talking with my friend as we walking into the space, the renewal and brightening of the interior space was noticeable. The bar space is immediately to the right as you enter and has a welcoming feel to it - somewhere you could easily pop over for a marg and a plate of enchiladas after work either solo or with a friend or spouse. “Easy” would be my first word to describe, in the best sense of the word. No fuss, just easy to pop over and grab a spot at the bar.
A photo collage from the Pulido’s of past
The new Pulido’s artwork ties in the closeness to the railroad (Image Credit: Pulido’s Team)
The main indoor dining area is to the left as you enter the front doors. You’re greeted by the host stand who ask your preference on seating - table or booth. To the left of the host stand, there are a few branded Pulido’s hats - all of which looked killer with the new branding (and placed on Richardson rope hats-styled hats… for my hat aficionados out there). Because we arrived on a Friday evening at almost 8:45 (a late evening in Fort Worth during the summer slow season), we had a choice between the two seating options and chose a booth.
The booth could best be described as cozy. The refreshing ambiance has a nice air about it where the space feels open, but warm at the same time. It’s a tiny detail, but even things like the sconces that surround the room add a great overall lighting and environment that feels like your local go-to spot, but isn’t so overly bright it doesn’t feel like somewhere you want to sit and stay a while.
As we settled into our booth, we were promptly greeted by a smiling face and asked about our drink orders. I grabbed a frozen House Margarita (my staple), and my two friends got the rocks House Margarita and the Spicy Margarita with chili-infused tequila. For some background and context, I like to think I have a decent pulse on the margarita landscape in Fort Worth and have a high bar for my frozen margs - needs to be plenty of lime, but not so much it makes you pucker. And it can’t be overly sweet because then it just feels like a dessert. Even down to needing my frozen marg to stay frozen as I nurse it over time. The Pulido’s frozen marg checked all the right boxes and I’m thrilled to head back for my regular Friday night marg there. For $9, we’ll mark this as a huge win for the neighborhood.
The Frozen House Margarita at Pulido’s Fort Worth
The service was lovely throughout the evening - we had about 2-3 different folks checking on us through our meal. One of which shared that she had worked at this Pulido’s location back when she was in highschool and had just returned with the reopening after working at another fast-casual spot in town for years. She was thrilled to be back, which is very encouraging to hear from staff working in restaurants these days.
For our meals, we shared an order of the Queso Pulidos - a sizable bowl of queso topped with ground beef, pico, and sour cream. It may have been that we were eating late and had large appetites (but more likely just the reality of the dish) - this queso hit the spot more so than most. For main courses, I got the Chicken Tacos Al Cabone. As someone that normally gravitates towards an enchilada plate, I wanted to mix it up a bit this evening and was greeted with a mouthwatering set of 3 chicken fajita style tacos wrapped in warm fresh tortillas with a side of rice and refried beans. Leftovers were nonexistent at the end of the meal. One of my buddies got the Soft Chicken Taco Dinner and the other grabbed Caballero Platter, which I will be adding to the top of my list to try next time. The Caballero Platter consisted of a perfectly medium rare skirt steak topped with a cheese enchilada with a side of Mexican potatoes, charro beans, and guac. My mouth is watering just writing about it.
At the end of it all, my tab tallied up to 1/3 of the Queso Pulidos, my frozen House Margarita, and a very filling plate of Chicken Tacos Al Cabone. After a 22% tip, my total was $36.91, which in this day and age feels like a huge win as I walked out of there full, content, and happy.
With what has felt like a huge gap in my own personal craving for a locally owned, go-to tex-mex joint within quick driving distance, Pulido’s is an exciting re-addition to the neighborhood. I look forward to spending many a Friday nights with my wife, friends, and neighbors enjoying a frozen margarita and great food.
Pulido’s Kitchen & Cantina is located at 2900 Pulido St, Fort Worth, TX 76107 and is now open for lunch and dinner service Monday - Thursday from 11am until 9pm, Friday - Saturday from 11am until 10pm, and Sunday from 11am until 4pm.
Pulido’s is Fort Worth Founded certified.