I forgot to take a picture of my steak and my brunch mates food. I wish I had because the food looked just as delicious as it tasted! I ordered just the steak without any rub. Not only was it cooked perfectly but it was thick, juicy, and utterly delicious. Service was amazing. Family run business and you can tell staff really cares about the customers. I also really appreciate that everything is made fresh that day. No freezers so they do not have any flash frozen foods that they throw in a microwave and call their own. Nope! Not here. Every single thing is made fresh and they donate anything left to those in need. The prices were reasonable too. There is outdoor seating which is great and inside is a little bigger than the outside would lead you to believe. There is also parking across the street if the parking lot is full. I definitely plan to return. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

My friend recommended this restaurant when we stayed in Las Cruces, and we are so glad we listened to his recommendation. The place was packed on a Friday night, so you know it was going to be good. The food was delicious, and came out quickly. If it was warmer, I would have loved to sit outside on their patio. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

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Great New Mexico food. That red chili sauce was tasty You can get breakfast or lunch with Green or red chili. Love it. read more

Once we sat down, we were given a bowl of chips and salsa. While enjoying those, we ordered our tacos and burritos. We liked that everything was not oversalted so that we could actually taste the food itself. I appreciate the portions for the price as well and felt we got a good value. The service was pleasant. The only thing I didn't like was that after we ordered, we noticed that other people had other foods on their tables... and it occurred to us that there was another menu, maybe a bar menu that we were never offered. Not purposely, but I really wasn't interested in tacos and burritos but would have really liked the nachos or other items on there, so it was a missed opportunity to get something I really wanted and had a more enjoyable experience. read more

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Pretty sure the foodgasm made people feel uncomfortable! The sausage sandwich is, by far, the best thing I've put in my mouth, in a very long time! The fries are crispy and damn near perfect!!! Service is freaking ON POINT! I'm so happy my fellow Yelp peeps pointed me in this direction! Everyone has been so kind and amazing. I swear every single person here has stopped to chat and just been so freaking nice! I love when flying solo, people make time to chat! This is a must ! read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - I'm sitting with all of my friends on the patio! - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

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Wow, great little hole in the wall. I had the sausage and green chili burrito. Just perfect. Velvet had the bean and cheese burrito. She loved it. The tortillas were homemade a n d the salsa was kick ass! The queso was also homemade with green chilies. Cold draft dos xx. Good margarita. Service was excellent. read more

On Sunday, my wife and I were going to an indie movie at the historic Fountain Theater in Mesilla invited by a friend of ours. We decided to meet our friend for lunch before the movie. My wife chose Chala's where she had been to with some friends. Mesilla is a beautiful NM historic village located next to Las Cruces with several restaurants that cater to visitors. Chala's is a hidden gem where locals go. The place is small and on a Sunday for brunch, we had to wait 30 minutes to be seated which we understood. As we sat we told the server that we were in a hurry because we were going to a movie at 2. Her name was Lorena who quickly took our order and she mentioned that she was going to make sure that it came fast. The place is simple with a small well stocked bar with a dining patio up front but we chose inside due to the hot weather. The prices are reasonable. No loud music so it was a perfect spot to enjoy a conversation with our friend. Our friend ordered the enchiladas and my wife the same topped with an egg as the menu stated. I ordered the Blueberry Crème Pancakes that were epic! When we have friends from out of town we usually take them to Mesilla, so now for me we have local restaurant to take them. read more

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Didn't the like flavors or the food. Not our style. Bland. The chips and salsa were good but we personally won't go back.

Chala's was recommended by our hotel staff so we decided to try it. We ordered their pork chop special. It was very thick-cut bone in pork chop, very juicy and delicious. It came with potatoes and vegetables. Their steak fajita was really tasty too. Very juicy cut of steak with all the fixings; perfect with flour tortilla. Save room for dessert because their tres leches cake was really tasty and it was big enough to share between the two of us and then have leftover. Enjoy! Highly highly recommend!! We will be back when we're back in town. read more

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Excellent food, & awesome customer service! Pancakes are a must! Sarah is super! Can't wait to go back!

Hard to rate when you find something in your food that shouldn't be there! Stepping inside I was put off by the strong smell of cleaner like Lysol. Place was clean but I'd rather not smell such a strong chemical smell in a restaurant. I stayed because the reviews are high. I got a burrito with chorizo, chile and potato and it was very tasty. I was planning to come again but then found something inside my burrito that isn't food! See photo. Yesterday was Halloween and it looks like something from Halloween that melted. Ugh! Coffee was not good. Service was good. read more

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Service was quick but was allocated to outdoors because I had my dog. Too hot for her in the car, too cold for me in the patio. Salsa was chili hot but carne wasn't. It was too cold to enjoy my meal or people watch. Won't be eating here again read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Cha* corn boats - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

Oh ye gods and little fishes, do I recommend this place! I used to live in Las Cruces, and there were only two or three places we'd go for Mexican food. One closed (turned out it moved, but we haven't been to their new location), dropping our preferred places to two. Then my wife learned of Chala's and we tried it. Proverbial love at first bite. Excellent chips and salsa, then our food arrived. And it just got better from there. The salsa is perhaps a bit on the hot side for some tastes. I'm not going to talk about specific dishes, as everything we've had there was simply excellent. I will mention their burger, photo attached, which was amazing. I did speak with the owner/mother of the chef, we had a great conversation about how the restaurant operates and how everything is made fresh - including baking the burger buns in-house! Great food, we're semi-regulars - only semi as we live 90 minutes away. Do expect your food to take a little bit of time coming out, this is not a fast service restaurant. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Their burger, I don't know the name of it on the menu. It is a monster and amazing good! - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

Real mid. The food was kinda gross though it was a reasonable price for the plate. Service was fantastic from the waitress, ambience was mid, the woman sitting across from me looked like my mother so I took away a star for that. Got sat next to kids that wouldn't stop screaming. Don't suggest this place I'm not coming back. Taco boys is so much better. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Grill - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

Awesome service, good drinks and tasty (if unspectacular) food. Very clean and well run. Nice spot for a meal. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Menu 1 - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

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Food and service was great, I love the Sunday brunch and they have the best steel cut oatmeal!

We were in Las Cruces for the night and chose at Chala's for dinner. It took a minute or two to be greeted, but once we sat down, our server was attentive. They offer both indoor and outdoor seating, but it was too hot for outdoor this time. The exterior windows all have iron bars across them, and the interior has wood accents throughout. The kitchen is visible through multiple interior windows, which is something I appreciate. Chala's offers a nice serving of chips and salsa while you peruse the menu. The chips were cold, but the salsa had a nice (spice) heat to it. I ordered a bean and cheese burrito with green chile queso, and my partner ordered vegetable tacos. My burrito was amply sized and filled with refried beans and cheese. It would have been bland without the chile queso and salsa. While still warm, it likely stood a few minutes before being delivered to the table. My partner enjoyed his vegetable soft shell tacos, but did not eat his beans (warm, not hot). Overall, our experience was ok. If we try it again when we're next in town, we'll try other menu items. read more

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Three of us returned our plates to the kitchen because the food was served cold. When they came back after a long while, the plates were hot but the food temperature was unchanged. The green chile sauce tasted salty and chalky. Overall, it was like eating leftovers from somebody else's fridge. Not the first time this has happened. Avoid! read more

A Mesilla hidden gem, Genuinely top notch spot Class & casual Prices too low to Believe it's true, cocktails for $6, full tap. The food was phenom Came w/ chips & salsa, Choices are A la cart-a Decor was tasteful, Modern & minimalist, Staff was attentive. read more

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This place was a local find while in town. Very homey feel inside with cute flowers decorating the table. Our server was well versed on all the menu options and informed us on the specials. I got a strawberry marg which was good but a bit sweet for me. We also got the mimosa flight which was great and refreshing. The loaded fries were great for an appetizer (we got a half order). The cuban sandwich was smokey with a great depth of flavor from the mustard. My hubby got the pork chop with grilled kale which was insane. So tender and juicy and smokey at the same time. Also took some tres leches to go, the salted caramel combination was fabulous. read more

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I have gone a couple times and tried something different today. The skillet queso was phenomenal! Can't believe I hadn't tried it before now. I also got the Smoked carnitas hash. Do yourself a favor sub out the peppers for green chile. Omigosh awesome! read more

This place was well worth the stop. I was interested in several items off the menu, yet after taking the waiters advice I was stoked!!! Seriously this pork chop was unbelievably delicious!! It's brined and smoked and then seared and is full of flavor. It was cooked to perfection and absolutely a delight to eat!! I licked that damn plate clean!! I will stop here the next time I am driving through! read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - The pork chop dinner special - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

I always come here every time I'm in town the food and servers are amazing however the kitchen staff needs to do better. My whole family got their food and it took 30 minutes for them to make my pancakes right and when they came out they weren't even fully cooked and had hair in them. They comped the meal like that made me feel any better. Why was I waiting 30 minutes to get uncooked pancakes. This also happens everytime I come they ALWAYS mess up my pancakes and I have the patience but today they get 1 star. read more

The food was good but not stellar. I was tempted to order the enchiladas, but with the word grill in the name, I ordered the ribeye, and my husband ordered the steak fajitas. These meat dishes could not compete with the A Mountain burger we had the first time we came here a year ago. The sides (mashed potatoes and calabacitas) were good with the steak. The server, Sydney, was friendly and attentive, The ambiance was pleasant and although the restaurant was busy, the noise level was acceptable to engage in table conversation. Even with it being busy, the server was able to time the food delivery well even with a full restaurant. read more

This is a place we usually come to for breakfast very often, they have always had excellent food and excellent service. Very fast, communicative, and respectful. However this time that wasn't the case, we had waited to order for an hour just to have to go into the restaurant and ask for our server. Now we have been waiting to get our food for the past hour almost two hours and there has been absolutely no update. I understand being understaffed with a full restaurant but this is absolutely ridiculous. read more

Good food excellent service and the ambience is super comfortable, friendly and warm.

Service was great and the food was absolutely amazing! We did their specials pork chop- Mahi Mahi and smoked brisket. Would definitely recommend and we will be back! read more

THIS REVIEW HAS BEEN MODIFIED: A BIG THANK YOU to Chala's owner who responded so graciously to my 4 STAR review, so I am modifying my comments to reflect my new understanding. As I expressed to him, I have been preparing Mexican food at home for 50 years, and was taught how to prepare it by my in-laws who operated a highly successful Mexican restaurant in Northern California for over 30 years--always fresh, never any shortcuts, always delicious. I've never added shredded lettuce to my guacamole, and so was really surprised when my appetizer came with it, and I assumed, automatically, that it was a cost-cutting measure, due to the current economy. Turns out, Chala's has been preparing it that way all along. It just goes to show you there is more than one way to dice the chile! I am open to new experiences and I also love to return to the places with the sabores I love. I hope you will all enjoy Chala's BBQ, support their business, and savor their cuisine as much as I do. read more

I came over to visit NMSU and had a friend who was willing to catch up over dinner. I wasn't super hungry so I decided to move with the bean burrito while my buddy got the gorditas. Immediately, the salsa and chips were super good. The spice was very bold but still flavorful. Almost ate my weight in that. The atmosphere was very off. The restaurant almost looked like the lights were off inside because the overhead lights were so weak compared to the natural light coming into the place. Not to mention the bathrooms are in a separate building outside. Seemed like a mom and pop style spot but lacked the mom and pop taste. The bean burrito was very bland. I even got it smothered and i was met with a lukewarm cheesy topping that added no flavor. I was honestly super underwhelmed with it but my buddy said the gorditas were pretty good. I will hopefully try again with something they are known for but this serving makes me give a 3 star. read more

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Our server was pretty nice. The host (maybe the owner) wasn't that friendly and looked annoyed. Food wasn't good. We ordered guacamole (plain but salty), grilled veggie (the best dish of all we ordered), cheese burger with green chili and side salad (nothing special), sausage burger (recommended, but so salty and fries were burned) read more

Smoked carnitas hash with a galleta and green chile jam, smothered Christmas is the best breakfast in the world. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

I always appreciate the wait staff and Chala's small deck for outdoor dining. Food was good, not great, presentation was weak. Service and support staff were exceptional as always. Credit Card Surcharge: Hidden in the receipt is a credit card surcharge. I find this hidden charge annoying and it discourages me from returning. Personally, I appreciate transparency not "hidden fees" added to my bill without my knowledge or permission. read more

Chala's Wood Fire Grill - Carnitas breakfast hash ~ Sunday at noon Weak presentation - taste was "good, not great" Value was high at $10 - Mexican Near Me - Mesilla, New Mexico

Wanted to find a good place to eat for lunch and went to Chala's. Got there and was seated quickly. Our server Amber was very friendly and answered questions we had. I recommend going there. Atmosphere was nice, staff very friendly and so were the customers sitting at their tables. I had the best hamburger(pictured) and my husband had the carnitas tacos (also pictured) a bit dried, but overall was delicious. Pictured are the desserts we took to go.. Biscochos and German Chocolate Cake!!!! read more

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We had a bad experience here before but wanted to give a second chance. Well.......It was simply put, bad. Our server acted like she wanted to be any where but at work. She answered questions sarcastically, never refilled drinks (not once) and to be specific the only time we saw her is when she took our order and brought our drinks initially. The carnitas I ordered were awful I maybe had 3 bites. There wasn't a manager to attempt to speak to. This was our last visit. Very disappointing experience. read more

Disappointing. Flavorless rice and beans. "Vinaigrette" for the salad was mostly oil and flavorless as well. However, the service was very good. read more

Well I was actually looking forward to a Woodfire Grill; and we ordered fajitas. They came off a flat top I'm almost sure because there was nothing wood fire in the flavor. Very nice service but just marginal food. Well actually the service was not that great in that we only ordered one dish to share and we ended up getting to dishes. Usually fajitas are so large in quantity that we thought we would have more than enough food. But rather than argue with the waitress we just want to head and kept our order as is. I will definitely tell you this is just average. There was no flair or definition to the spice. Just salt and pepper. At least it was fresh but it certainly didn't taste like a Woodfire grill and I certainly wouldn't be craving any more to come back to. It'll do in a pinch but that's about it. read more

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We went to this location for dinner while visiting some friends in Las Cruces. The place was busy, but not crowded. Originally, we were going to sit outside, but one of the bussers suggested we go inside as the mosquitoes were getting bad. Our server was named Connor and he did a terrific job! I personally ordered the steak salad which offered both the rabbit food and some steak the restaurant was famous for. The citrus vinegrette dressing was spectacular, as was the Brown Ale. Most of the other parties had steaks, some big enough to share and the overall experience was excellent. We were the last people to leave the the restaurant. I would definately recommend to anyone! read more

When I first visited Chala's Wood Fire Grill both the food and service were exemplary. My last two visits were to pickup food. We order chicken tacos today. They were dry, not warm, and simple radishes hardly give them any flavor. They need a little sauce with Cilantro, Sour Cream, Garlic, and pinch of Peppers. Also we called in our order and was told 20 minutes. We arrived on time. My friend went in and told me the waiter kept walking past her or taking other people who arrived later to tables. When she asked if he could help her, he ignored her and then finally got the order. She was told they were out of rice and substituted french fries. Mine had 2 servings of refried beans. The website listed the tacos at $8. They charged $12 each and should have reduced the price on the one without rice and also told us the rice and beans were extra. Disappointing! Don't believe I'll return. read more

Our meal started with a huge bowl of fresh made chunky chips and salsa that had a nice kick. We had the smoked pork chop garnished with a kale and chard mix on roasted potatoes. It was very moist and tender and had a spice rub. The chicken fajitas were also perfectly cooked and moist. The side of beans were nice and thick and the tortillas were hot. We came early just before the 5:00 dinner menu and shortly after that the restaurant started to fill up even though it was only a Thursday. I would definitely come back when we are in town again. read more

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This is a quaint restaurant that was pretty busy on a Wednesday night. We start with drinks and the server told us ingredients were missing and couldn't do this and that. No sugar coating whatsoever and it seemed like you're limited to bottled drinks to be safe. We order ribeye and pork chop. They tasted wonderful and that's where the stars go to. read more