Food was delicious. The flour tortilla was amazing. Had their steak and their Barbacoa for their proteins. . 1099 for two tacos, good size tacos, not those mini street tacos. try it out. Also had their chips and salsa was very delicious. read more

I like their take on the steak burrito. This is a build as you go concept. For the burrito, they'll start with a fresh made in store flour tortilla. The steak has a nice marinaded flavor and you get a healthy portion. Add the other ingredients and your choice of salsa/sauce and you're on your way. The steak bowl is nicely done as well. If you go with the bowl, get that tortilla on the side. It's a good one. Nice concept. Clean restaurant. Excellent crew. read more

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I really enjoy Cafe Rio and keep coming back because I love the food. However, I've noticed a recurring issue with portion sizes. On several occasions, when ordering a salad, the amount of meat and toppings added has been extremely small, leaving the portion feeling incomplete for the price. What has been frustrating is the inconsistency. There is an older gentleman who works there who always prepares the salads generously and makes them look like the portions customers expect. When he serves me, the salad is full and satisfying. However, other employees, particularly one younger employee, seem to add much smaller portions, especially when it comes to the meat. I understand portions need to be controlled, but the difference between employees is noticeable and makes the experience inconsistent. I love Cafe Rio and would continue recommending it, but I hope management can address the portion inconsistency so customers receive the same quality and value regardless of who prepares their order. read more

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My boys and I come here for taco Tuesday. We like the shredded chicken tacos. The servers are very nice and work quickly. The tortillas are homemade and absolutely delicious. They have a great selection of drinks too and you can even customize your drinks with the flavor pumps they have. They have a chill type of ambiance here too. We really enjoy this place. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Menu - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Well, I gave this place another chance after previous bad experiences, and they once again disappointed me and ripped me off. I ordered queso and chips at $6.49. The queso came in a tiny container the size of a salad dressing container, whereas in the past it was more like half a pound -- or before that, a pound. I could not believe their gall at providing only this tiny container. I also ordered a regular size salad, and the ingredients were low quality, such as lots of iceberg lettuce. The last time I gave this place a negative Yelp! review, some so-called manager responded on Yelp! and promised to make it right, but never did. I bet they do the same thing this time, or totally ignore this review. Prove me wrong! read more

Great food and service, friendly employees, clean and organized are the reasons I'll keep coming back. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - The Nachos with beans, pico, salsa, enchilada sauce and green onions - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Staying at the nearby Hyatt Place for the night. It's very close and easy to walk to behind the chevron station and it's the next building. YUMMY made to order food. It was a Saturday night about 5:30 pm. No line. Pleasant work staff. The food was really good. It's an order at the counter, pay, then eat place. Has tables. read more

Food was pretty good. I had two enchiladas. One with steak in a flour tortilla, the other, shredded beef in a corn tortilla. I also had rice, beans, and nacho chips with guacamole, salsa and Pico de guyo. It was good. Until I noticed the server was touching food, cleaning rags, the register and cash money. WITHOUT EVER CHANGING HER GLOVES! Totally gross. There went my good meal. I read a review that said Cafe Rio Mexican Grill was a cross between Vatos Tacos and Taco Bros. NOT EVEN CLOSE. I frequent both of them. I give them five stars. I would give them ten if I could. I would not give Cafe Rio more than 2.5. I do not recommend this place. read more

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This is a good spot I would of give it 5 stars but the price is a lil high so I gave it 4 because of the price. But the crew is very nice and just good people. The food taste good as well. read more

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Confused about the bad reviews. Yes, it's chipotle quality food. So I'm not expecting fine dining food. I ordered the salad and it was hearty! Upon first look of the menu, I thought damn it's a bit pricey for a salad but when I got the food, I understand why. It's far bigger and heartier than any salad you would get at Chipotle or similar establishment. Came with a good hearty amount of meat. Flavor was good. I ordered it online and food came out on time for pick up. This'll definitely be back. And $1 for a kids quesadilla?! Can't beat that anywhere. read more

I literally worked down the street from this place when it first opened up and as much as I drove pass this place many times I was never interested. I saw all the great reviews but it still didn't interest me. We finally decided to give this place a chance and I'm glad we tried it out. This place kind of reminds me of Chipotle. The way they build their food and just the way they do things inside. I don't know if I would say I like this place better than Chipotle, but I do know this place is just as good. I've come a couple of times now and I would definitely come back. They don't skimp on food portions, so if you're really hungry this is a good place to go. I ordered a burrito and it took me 2 days to finish it. The salsas are a hit and miss. I don't like sweet salsas so one of them is sweet. I can't remember which one it was... sorry guys. Their meats were flavorful and I'm still kind of shocked that it was better than I expected. The facility is clean and each time we visited the employees wore masks and I saw them changing out gloves. Parking doesn't seem to be an issue, but we didn't go during rush hours so I could be wrong. If you haven't tried it yet, you should give them a chance. The tortillas taste homemade and I absolutely love homemade tortillas. read more

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Temu version of chipotle. Orders are never on time. Tastes bad. I will never eat here again.

I no longer live in Delano/Bakersfield area, but my family is still here. When my husband and I come to visit, we stay at the Hyatt off Coffee, and Cafe Rio is right next door. When I used to read blogs, the LDS/Mormon bloggers who lived in Utah always mentioned Cafe Rio and sang its praises. During this visit I finally was able to try the Utah Mommy Bloggers' favorite "Mexican" restaurant. I came on a Wednesday evening around 8pm. Plus points for being open late (10 pm) during COVID. Many businesses close at 8 or earlier, but I was happy to see that Cafe Rio stayed open late. I didn't realize it was a Chipotle style place. You choose what you want (salad, tacos, burrito, nachos, etc.), choose your protein and sauces, and add your toppings. The wait wasn't too long at all; I ordered nachos. Like Chipotle, you get to watch the staff make your food. Unlike Chipotle, the staff members were not stingy with the toppings. I didn't get charged extra for guac or wanting shredded cheese AND queso. Score! In addition to fountain drinks, there was a range of other drinks to choose from (horchata and teas). I opted to dine-in instead of walking back to eat at the hotel. I was initially skeptical because the cheese wasn't melted and I wasn't sure if the toppings were going to reach all of the chips, but in the end, I worried for nothing! The warm queso, beans, and chicken melted the cheese and all my chips got hooked up with toppings. Yay! While Cafe Rio isn't authentic Mexican, I don't think anyone comes here for authentic Mexican food. I like a variety of options and the ability to customize your food the way you want it. The ingredients are fresh and flavorful, and I was surprised at how well I liked my food--especially the chips, shredded chicken, and queso. The next time I'm in town I will try a burrito or salad. In my opinion, Cafe Rio is about 100% better than its competitor, Chipotle. Sorry, Chipotle! Thanks, Cafe Rio! read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Nachos - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

THIS fake business manager who responds to everyone's negative reviews never does anything to make up for the bad experience. He is like a robot, just responds with an apology and a promise to provide something to make the customer happy, but never responds again after that to the affected customer. Let's get this shady and petty place out of business where they belong. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

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Super cool place. Walking around 3:45 the place was slow. The temperature was a perfect 70 degrees. I sat in the shade and my wife sat across with the sunlight shinning on her through the glass. Very clean. Ynnuen was polite and nice. We ordered the steak salad with tortilla with melted cheese as our bowl. The salad dressing was amazing! We order another dressing for $1 and it was worth it. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Steak salad... feeds two!! - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

2 hours before close & you're out of a lot of the staples to your business. No queso, no pinto beans, I'm surprised you weren't out of tortillas!!! Mediocre food & rude staff. Why do you hire people who act like they hate their jobs? Jeez read more

No good service and they should let the customer know of what they are getting charged for!! Also, pay more attention to what your customer is asking for not what you want to put in the meal remember that the customer is the one paying for that so if they say extra give them extra! I said more cheese light on lettuce he did the totally opposite. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

I give Cafe Rio a solid four stars. They are definitely and upgrade from Chipotle. The homemade tortillas just compliment whatever meal option you are going to go with. I went with a carne asada burrito with green salsa and melted cheese on top. Very good food, fast service, great friendly staff, good prices and great location. read more

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I'm a fan of the chicken and barbacoa tacos. that said, workers was very rude after my wife reminded the worker preparing her food, (1:00pm or so) that's not how she ordered it. Worker changed the food but with a major attitude banging things around in a huff. my wife manages a restaurant in town and gave a heads up to the worker that she knew the manager at Cafe Rio so there might be a conversation later concerning her customer interaction skills. We also tried the nacho platter. It was 50% small, broken chips, meat was dry, the cheese was a hard plastic by the time it came from being prepped to sitting down at our table. Love the tacos but the nachos are definitely on our ban list. ‍ read more

Was craving a salad (kind of out of the ordinary for me) and decided to go here! Cafe rio is nostalgic to me. I would go here all the time when I was in Utah. The sweet pork barbacoa is definitely my fav protein here. I rarely stray away from the salad- go half and half with their dressings! This time we tried it with the corn tortilla and would definitely just stick with the flour tortilla for the future. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Salad! With sweet pork barbacoa - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Service was just okay, Taco Bell is better and I'm not a fan of T.B. Had a burrito that lacked flavoring and had a bad taste . read more

I've been here a couple times. This time it just seems like it has been lowering in quality. The food arragement is pretty messy. As you look around the kitchen, it's noticeably messy. There doesn't really seem to be a proper structure in order to provide good service. It's just meh. Does have a lot more potential though. Chicken is bland. Steak is great. The queso is really good. None of the salsas are necessarily that spicy. I imagine things would taste a lot lot better if they properly measured portions for the day. Work needs to be done because it has more potential! Hoping it glows up. read more

Good luck in line! Slow service. The workers laughed among themselves as we all we waiting in line. DOS: 10/12/22 at 1700. Will not be back. read more

I waited over 30 minutes in the restaurant for my online order while they expedited other online orders that had been placed after mine. No one informed me for over 30 minutes that the store was out of carne asada and Chile roasted beef. I ordered grilled chicken on my tacos, I was given shredded chicken. I ordered my tacos on corn tortillas, they were made on flour tortillas. And I ordered guacamole and received none. I understand the workers were stressed but one made the comment "we shouldn't answer the phone anymore" to which the other replied "this is the worst day ever". I have been going to the restaurant which is just around the corner from my house for 5 years but this experience has soured my opinion so greatly I don't know if I will ever return. read more

WAY BETTER THAN CHIPOTLE!! I'm shook! Not sure why I'm just now discovering this place but so glad I did. So much flavor in the meats, my favorite is the sweet pork barbacoa! And the veggies and sauces are delicious, taste real fresh. One of my new favorite places to have a burrito. My husband got the Enchilada Style Burrito and I got a regular one with cheese on it. So good. Definitely eat here if your thinking about it. Service is good as well! Wish they could dine in! read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Enchilada Style Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

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Yikes I ordered from Cafe Rio for dinner the other night and it was just a train wreck. Got the food home and it was lukewarm which was unfortunate but far from a deal-breaker. The deal-breaker was the 2 large hairs in my wife's salad, as soon as she took the plastic top off you could see them right on top, she wasn't going to eat that. I called and let the manager know what had happened and the response I got was "I'm not saying I don't believe you but we have very strict hygiene standards here." What the actual crap? You have high standards but there is hair in our food that you're denying now? I never asked for a refund or anything I just asked the manager to talk to the prep staff and address it and I was met with that BS attitude and response. We'll never visit again, that was beyond frustrating and their lack of concern over the issue just escalates it. read more

I Frequented Cafe Rio weekly when they first opened here in Bakersfield. However, it's been awhile before I have been back until last night (July 19). As soon I as started ordering my food, there was this guy who made my green enchiladas whom was super cool, nice and kind. Actually, all the males that were working last night were cool, funny and had a sense of humor. I've never experienced this at Cafe Rio. Everybody was just down to earth and these guys either had some decent home training or some really good employee training. I'm leaving 5 stars for my experience with the team members last night. read more

My grandfather in-law introduced us to this chain down in Long Beach quite a few years back. Boy did he love a bargain, and when he found out about their taco Tuesday deal 1.99 back then 2.?? Now, but it's still a steal! All their meats are good especially the Pork Barbacoa and the shredded roast beef! Im a huge fan of the burritos enchilada style and their nachos. And my husband loves their tostadas too. Hand made tortillas right in front of you and a complimentary nino quesadilla for the little ones. Try the amazing queso and a mini tres leches cake or key lime. No regrets. read more

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I have been wanting to try Cafe Rio for a long time and finally got around to it! I got a salad, and they put a tortilla underneath the salad which I thought was interesting but very yummy to tear up and fill with the salad. I got shredded chicken and the house dressing. The portion sizes are huge, making it worth the price. I made it last for 2 meals. The overall flavor was good. I do wish they had more topping options, but the tortilla strips on top added a nice crunch. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Salad - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

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Customer service was superb This place not very authentic Mexican dishes yet love that they have home made tortillas read more

We love guacamole on our items, so we've been let down the last 2 times here. Provided feedback, but they thought guac should be brown (looks greener in the photo for some reason). read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Awful guacamole - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

When I arrived at the location , the food look old and dry. Yes , I wanted to leave but hubby wanted it. The guy helping me was rude ! He had a really bad attitude and was mean to the other coworkers as well! I understand if you hate your job but don't take it out on the customers! If you want good customer service GO ELSEWHERE!!! read more

Don't call for take out! You get directed to a call center. You should use their app! It's so much faster and you don't need to give out your credit card info!!! The food was literate fresh off the grill! It was the best I've had at Cafe Rio. read more

I really like Cafe Rio and I'm actually surprised at the negative reviews. I just don't agree. The food is good. The tortillas are delicious. Their fresh lemonades are so yummy! Even their hot sauce selection is good! The veggies are always fresh and their house-dressing is super tasty. The restaurant is always kept clean (and cold haha) and there's always someone cleaning up after people leave the tables so someone else can sit. The service has always been great for me, no matter what time I dine in or order to-go. Their rewards program is pretty sweet too. Just download the app and start earning rewards for cash towards your next purchase. You can even scan the receipt if you forget to open at app at the register. Score! The one thing I don't like is the parking lot. I get it, the area is pretty congested so it was pretty much the only layout available but having only one way in and out all the way around the building is a bit of a problem for me. Otherwise, I like everything else! :) My favorite meats are the sweet barbacoa and the steak. The bee sting hot sauce is delicious too! 4 solid stars from me. read more

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Good was great but customer service was not that great. The young employees were busy chichatting rather than acknowledge that I was standing there waiting for them to wrap up their conversation. I asked for a receipt and the Cashier looked at me like i said something completely unheard of - then told me the printer was out of paper so I can't get my receipt. Managerd, you gotta train your employees better. read more

My first trip to Cafe Rio: The flavor was on point; however, the rice was not completely done...sort of hard...not soft like it should have been. My sister complained about the rice and received three free meal tickets. My second trip: The rice was soft but the flavor of the meat was off as if someone add sugar into something that should have been a savory taste. I couldn't enjoy my meal and had to toss it away. There will not be a third trip to this business. read more

I love all the food here , I first tried at LA my sisters is a manager , she invited me some food ever since I have to have at least once a month the piece of cakes 3 leches it's really good . read more

1st visit: Salmon tacos (2) for $7.99, surprisingly fresh & good. Probably because I was hungry! Used the $5 off coupon that was mailed to me, got free chips & salsa too, only ended up paying $3.21 for my entire meal 2nd visit: Came again 2 days later and got the steak burrito, was lackluster. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - 2 salmon tacos $7.99, Friday special - Mexican Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Unfortunate visit. I've been here 3 or 4 times ( usually because other people want to go), it's not bad food most of the time. I would have given it a 3 star on my other visits. But I think workers and management get very lazy and unhelpful when it gets closer to closing time. I understand that you can't go in at 10 minutes before closing and expect the world, but this store closes at 10 pm. I went in at 8:15, and they already appeared to stop filling items for their assembly line. I asked for a couple of things that were advertised and that they usually had, but the worker just responded with saying "yeah it looks like we don't have anymore". The cook was just standing in the back not doing anything. I then asked if I was able to wait, could some more vegetables be made, as that was the main reason why my wife wanted me to go. His response was to go back and look at the container that had the remnants of the vegetables and start to scrape the 1 piece of onion that was left and say, well this is all that's left. The cook inthe back even said " do you want me to put on more fajita vegetables? Obviously ignoring my question and the cooks question about making more. At that point I just politely declined the 1cm piece of onion and said that would be all. I just don't get why are we stopping prepare food 2 hours before you close. If you don't want to be open, just move your hours to close sooner. read more

First time here wife and I. Luis helped us. Very friendly and helpful. Food was amazing! Will be coming back for sure.