Emiliano's Mexican Restaurant & Bar, South Side

Grade: C-

Superficial decorative flourishes disguise an otherwise pedestrian - even somewhat rundown - restroom. One of the sinks has no water pressure to speak of, but the other is quite powerful and offers good water temperature. The wall paint has seen better days. The biggest issue is that the door takes a very long time to swing shut, leaving the back of the person at the urinal exposed to the restaurant for a significant amount of time.

Also: this is a (quite good) Mexican restaurant. What's with the Miller Lite poster?

Coral Beach Cantina

Ste 310, 29350 Pacific Coast Hwy , Malibu, CA 90265-3970
Grade: A-


Coral Beach Cantina features a small yet comfortable and decorative men's room. There is little in the way of above-average convenience features, but it does include toilet seat covers and appears to be kept extremely clean. The pedestal sink and wood/metal mirror frame are nice.

Papa Gallo Mexican Restaurant

205 West Genesee Street, Fayetteville, NY 13066
Grade: A

First of all, my apologies for being away for so long. I was on vacation last week and am preparing for a big move in the next two weeks, so it's going to be hard to keep up with posting for a bit. I will certainly try, though.

Here's one I've had on deck since several weeks ago. Papa Gallo's men's room pulls off its Mexican-themed decor very well, especially with its wooden cabinet and backsplash. The sink basin and faucet are very nice, as are the wall tiles, mirror frame and light fixtures. There is nothing particularly special in terms of convenience - pretty much everything is manually operated - but it's a pleasant atmosphere nonetheless.

Also, the time-release air freshener is definitely working overtime. While I was taking a picture of the sink, it somehow managed to spray me directly in my eye.

Namu

215 Walton St., Syracuse, NY 13203
Grade: C+

With its decorative light blue and pale green wall tiles, the Namu men's room gives off the immediate impression of being slightly nicer than it ultimately is. Not that there is anything particularly wrong with the facilities -- they are clean but fairly standard, with everything being manually operated. The paper towel dispenser is mounted a little high for my liking. But yes, the tiles do add a certain charm.

La Taqueria

409 South Clinton Street, Syracuse, NY 13202-1240
Grade: B


Here is a nice little bathroom. It has a few minor decorative touches, including patterned wall tiles and some floral paintings that look somewhat like they belong on a grandmother's sweatshirt, and was very clean given how packed the establishment was during my visit. There is a strangely large number of doors -- there are two in addition to the entrance -- but they are painted a pleasant violet color and do not detract from the setting at all. The paper towel dispenser provides hands-free operation, which is always convenient.


There are really only two drawbacks here. First of all, this is a unisex bathroom and it is the only one in the restaurant. I could see this causing problems during their busier hours. Second, this is not the restroom to choose if you value peace and quiet while accomplishing your business. It is directly off of the dining room, and therefore very noisy (again, during peak hours).