Extremely slow service, waited 30 minutes to receive appetizer and then almost another hour to receive food that was not good. Nice people but severely understaffed.

The staff was pleasant. The food is good. I didn't love their empanadas but the fish tacos, I came back for with a friend the next night. They have a tasty salad with pancho crusted goat cheese. I think is worth a try!

Quaint space in the art museum area. Great food. Byo will be going back

Isabel was the perfect place for a snowy night. Great view of the park with the snow coming down. Food was fine as always. Miss the complimentary chips and salsa at the beginning but understand why it was eliminated. Tortilla Soup was perfect on a cold evening.

Garlic on the shrimps was burned. Enchiladas so so. Tequila mixture was excellent

I love this place. Small neighborhood gem. The food is consistently good. The service is great.

We had a party greater than ten so they knew they could charge 20% with bad service. Took an hour for them to take our order though we asked multiple times. Took advantage of us.

We had another good meal at Isabel's. The food is always good and the atmosphere is pleasant. Nice view out to the park. Had an excellent salad with goat cheese to start. Greens were fresh, dressing was tasty and the goat cheese was wonderful. Pork and chicken tacos were good. We will be back. It is priced fairly and the BYOB makes it very reasonable.

We had a party of 8 for Sunday brunch, and everyone enjoyed their food and experience. The only dish that didn't really work was the breakfast guac, which quite salty and admittedly an odd choice for a brunch entree. Everything else was wonderfully presented and nicely spiced.

A friend recommended Isabel's for dinner, so my partner and I went there with a bottle of wine in hand, hoping for the best. And that is exactly what we got -- the best! A superb meal (I had the carne asada tacos, and my partner had the carne asada burrito) was had by all, and we left contentedly filled to the gills. What a lovely find. We will definitely be going back to try some more great food.

Service was very bad, but food was really good. I was not greeted upon arrival and actually had to walk behind the counter to get someone's attention so that I could inquire about parking. Server was extremely nervous, she made us feel a bit uncomfortable with her energy. Other than that, the food was amazing, hot, fresh, and even better reheated the next day.

Incredible service & delicious food. The guacamole is to die for and the Mango margarita mix is perfection. Do it!

I went to Isabel on a Friday night and the place was pretty full. They only had one waiter for all the tables inside and outside so needless to say we didn't get any attention. We weren't in much of a rush but waited for the check for a half hour before I walked up to the front to make sure he didn't forget. The food was average at best. If you ask me it's a bit of a rip off to pay $12 for a pitcher of margarita and still bring the tequila yourself. I would never go back.

Nice little place in a great location across Kelly de from Art Museum. My chicken tinga was very good and the fish tacos were uniquely interesting. Carne asada burrito were good but not like those at El Limon and the beef tips had a flavor more Asian than Mexican. Guacamole had too much onion, but the salsa was tasty. Very pleasant int the corner window table, but my wife's Mother's Day meal she found to be nothing special. Cool Mexican soft drinks for the kids.

It was delightful as usual. Crab cakes were excellent. Service is warm and friendly. Almost every seat was taken but wasn't too noisy. Great neighborhood restaurant.

4Mom

My favorite place ever. Love it for brunch and dinner. Fantastic food. Never a disappointment. Only made better by being BYOB

Kind of a last minute reservation and things went very smoothly. Had a mixed seafood dish with a spicy broth....not too, but it had a nice kick. My wife loves the chicken Nacho's, and since it is a BYOB, easy on the wallet. Go here for brunch as well, and the food is always fresh, tasty and prepared well.

Pleasant, casual byob in less-frequented part of Fairmount. Good crispy cod tacos. Few other diners that night and we got good service. I've been there a couple of times before I would go again.

I've eaten at Isabel's twice in the last two weeks. Once for brunch and last Saturday evening for dinner. I had a lovely experience both times and my guests did as well. Food was very good and reasonably priced. The servers were friendly and attentive. The view from the restaurant on a snowy night wonderful. I will go back again soon.

We frequent Isabel often and this occasion they disappointed a bit. It was a very cold evening and when we entered the restaurant was essentially empty. When we asked for a warmer table we were advised that there was a very large party coming. Our server then focused her attention on setting up for that table rather than us, We are regulars, We deserve better attention. We will return but it was disappointing. Food was great but customer service is critical.

Loved it here! Went for Valentine's Day, excellent food for reasonable prices- definitely would return!

Waited a long time, first to order and then to be served. Food was very mediocre. Server was pleasant enough but not efficient. Kitchen came up short also. Too many other places around to go back.

food was fantastic, but there was only one waiter for about 15 tables. Everything was up to speed with only 3 or 4 tables filled, but it took a really long time for our check to arrive and then be paid.

Food definitely trumps ambiance at Isabel - guac was great and scallops were well cooked / seasoned. Table side sangria was so-so but being a BYOB, not much to complain about. Not sure I would need to go again but definitely solid food for the price / byo.

Another good meal and pleasant experience at Isabel Food is interesting, tasty and well prepared. The Tortilla Soup was unbelievable. Really enjoyed the pork belly tacos. Nice atmosphere and view of the park/parkway. We will be back

Always a pleasure to eat at this neighborhood restaurant -- such a treat to be able to get such excellent food so close to home! Wonderful selection of Mexican food as well as other well executed dishes. Guacamole is outstanding -- pure avocado with no fillers! Terrific chilies rellenos and very special enchiladas in addition to excellent fish and she'll fish dishes. Accepts credit cards, but you can bring your own wine or tequila -- they will sell you a variety of exotic margarita mixes.

Fresh, fantastically-flavorful Mexican food. Both the chicken tortilla soup and the beef tips with rice and beans were excellent. My waitress was one of the nicest I've had anywhere in years. I'll look forward to trying some of their other delicous-sounding offerings on my next visit to Philadelphia.

We made a two-person reservation, however, when we got there, they did not seat us (even though there were open tables). They asked us to wait outside while a two person table finished up. After ten minutes of waiting, we left. Very poor experience.

It was a great place to eat. The ambiance was great.

hey - what a great find! we went for brunch and since it was a BYOB - it was great!

The place is super small inside an apartment building. We went for the dinner and ticket combo for the Penitentary. For the place being so small and barely any costumers the service was slow. Most likely would not go back.

Food was excellent, loved the BYOB margarita options. Service was a little bit slow.

Isabel's excellent food is overshadowed by its remarkably poor service. After reading many reviews on Yelp that described it as very slow, we decided to dine-in anyways. The Yelp reviewers were right. The server was very rude from the beginning, acting as though she were doing us a favor by waiting on us. We were made to feel guilty for every simple request. More importantly, the service was ridiculously slow: We waited 1 hour for our entrees to arrive, which consisted of 1 salad and the duck quesadillas. The restaurant was not crowded and the wait seemed uncecessary. Worse, they messed up a simple order and then tried to convince us it was no big deal so they wouldn't have to remake it. Lesson: Do takeout at Isabel's.

The lobster guacomole was an amazing delight, as was the skirt steak and beef tips. The people that work there are so nice. We can always depend on Isabel's for a good experience. It's great takeout too--brought their chocolate mousse tort to a dinner party and it was a big hit,

The food was mediocre, the service a disaster, so I advise going to any other Mexican restaurant in Phila. We went there for my wife's birthday and they ruined it. The server was snippy and incompetent. We arrived early for our reservation, but we did not see our appetizer until 1 hour and 38 minutes, and the meal took over 2 hours. The food was so-so. They offered some innovative dishes like corn truffle enchiladas with mole sauce, but the items we ordered were freezer burned like they just heated up frozen stuff in a microwave. The empanadas that took an hour and half to prepare were average -- they deep fry them rather than bake. If you go, take a cab because there is no parking. It is BYOB, and no nearby liquor store.

Food was good. BYOT(equila) was fun.

Before ordering, we asked for the dessert list. After being abandoned for 15 min we had to ask another waitress. We then ordered an appetizer and entrees, with instructions that they should not delay bringing out the entrees due to the appetizer. After 20+ min we asked if the appetizer would be out soon (we had to flag her down) and were assured "yes". 10 min more and it finally came out. 30 min later we asked about our entrees, and we assured they'd be out soon. 10 min later we were informed they could not make the entree with sauce on the side. So it took an hour for them to communicate that to us, which means that our food wasn't even started. Like I said, food was good but the service ruined it all.

I love the BYOT concept & their margarita mix is delicious. The food was good but not great...I would try it again based on the price and comfortable environment.

Isabel is solid neighborhood restaurant. Food is good, prices are very fair and atmosphere is pleasant. Outdoor sidewalk seating looking across to Fairmount Park and minimal car traffic. The staff is courteous and accomodating. Only place we could get in during the idiocy and unpleasantness of the much overrated Restaurant Week. They did have a special menu for RW but regular menu was available. We will be back.

We live in the Fairmount area and we have probably been to this restaurant more than any other in the city in the past year. It has become our "go to" place in the neighborhood, not just for Mexican food, but for REALLY GOOD food, particularly since they always have specials in addition to the regular menu that really are SPECIAL. On this visit, for example, my husband had a lobster pot pie, which he said was spectacular. Nice to have a neighborhood restaurant that is constantly trying to improve and vary its offerings -- makes you want to keep coming back to see what they'll do next!

best guacamole with gorgonzola i have ever eaten! grilled shrimp is fantastic