Great environment, fun people watching, good food and drinks! Service excellent! Go for a birthday celebration!

Service is excellent. Menu has a great selection. Dining room is loud with music but warm and welcoming. The food is what keeps me from coming back here more often. This is my third visit in since they opened. I ordered the *fresh* guac small. It's not fresh. Creamy baby food avocado is not fresh. The salsa is a bit salty but good. The chicken tortilla soup - again salty, with chicken and the barest bit of roasted corn, topped with WAY too many tortilla strips. Especially when half of the strips were stale or hard as a rock. Do the cooks smoke? That would account for the saltiness. Also ordered a chile relleno à la carte. The breading was too thick but the chile was good. The cheese was a bit odd but fine. I didn't care for the green sauce on the side. I pulled off the tortilla strips, chile breading and did my best with what I had ordered. Just another visit to remind me why I don't come here. ‍ read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Lunch feast!!! - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

been a regular for several years , bartender , who's served me around 20 margaritas, looked at me and barked " closed " when I entered... nice , actually the hospitality at this establishment has slowly diminished. . I always tip over 20 % . There were 6 - 8 people half way through their meals at the bar. I was just killing 15 minutes before my bus came. " I'm so sorry, but unfortunately we are closed for the evening " would have sat better . I would have been gone before anyone else left. not cool . I'm having a marg at TAQ. and this place doesn't realize you can't let tamales sit and steam for 6 hours. I'm friendly and respectful and polite. Been in the hospitality industry since I was 16 ( still a server). the second bark of "Closed!" prompted this review . and want to add that some white people are fluent in Spanish , and have perfectly fine listening skills. read more

Stopped in during a Galentine's small business crawl (they were part of our passport card). Wasn't busy at all around 1pm on a Saturday. This shocked us a bit but it was negative zero for the windchill....could have had a huge influence on the # of customers walking around downtown AA. None the less, this place was GREAT! Reminds me of a smaller Mesa if you've ever been to Royal Oak. Except the bar is WAY cooler (they have swings!). Margaritas galore. Delicious food. Great prices! read more

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The food is pretty tasty here and the free chips and salsa are really good. This is more of a place you want to visit on your way to the bar as it is quite loud and a younger crowd, but it's a lot of fun. read more

Great vibes and yummy tacos! Came in for lunch on a weekday with a group of 10 and this spot was a great choice. Beachy, tropical atmosphere (with a swing bar like you'd see at a resort), and fun music. Not many people at the time we went. Menu is large and there are a ton of options to suit everyone's tastes. I got the Tacos Mexicanos which gives you a choice of meats. To keep it simple since we were a large group, I did half carne asada and half pastor. I'm pretty sure I could've gotten 4 different ones if I had wanted to. These came with the traditional onion and cilantro on corn tortillas. Plus pineapple salsa for the pastor and red and green salsas served on the side. The dish also came with rice and beans. We also got some apps for the table, and my favorite was the elote queso dip. Definitely more queso than elote, but the combination was fun. Generous portion - I ended up eating half and saving the rest for lunch the next day! read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Tacos Mexicanos - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

what happened to this place?? 2 years ago i gave 5 stars and thought it was the bomb diggity. My son's girlfriend was in town and wanted some great mexican food and i immediately thought of this place. i didn't even recognize the place. it seemed sad in there. service was meh. food was not good. the only good thing was the margaritas. Did ownership change? what the heck happened? i'm just sad. read more

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The food was absolutely amazing and the staff are sooooo kind, I would recommend this restaurant

Super fast service and a huge menu. Our food was very good and portions were generous so the price point was worth it. Pretty loud and crowded inside but that's with most Mexican restaurants. read more

I really enjoyed my meal here. My two guests also really enjoyed their meal. I had two chicken enchiladas. With rice and beans. My son had a wet burrito filled with a lot of pork. It was fab..i would definitly go back. read more

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My wife discovered it was margarita day so we decided to try Chapala based on prior reviews. We arrived around 3:30, right around shift change so we had a little time to chat before getting down to business. Our server was very attentive and friendly. The margaritas were nicely presented amd were pretty strong. For dinner my wife had beef fajitas and i had shredded beef enchiladas. My wife really enjoyed her fajitas, and thought the flour tortillas were really good. My enchiladas with beans and rice were ok, typical for what you would expect. The atmosphere was lively, but could use a little refreshing as it's its a popular spot. We enjoyed our visit and would certainly return in the future just to have a margarita and sit on the swings at the bar! read more

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Food is great! Margaritas are pretty and delicious. Staff is friendly. We will definitely be back. read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Strawberry margarita - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

My son and I went to eat when I picked him up from school. I was craving Mexican and this place didn't disappoint! We ordered a botana to split and it came out very fast and the cheese on it was amazing!! Our drinks were excellent and the service was quick and the staff is very polite. The space is quaint and the bar has swings .... Which I thought was awesome. My son didn't want me to go on them. Check them out, you won't be disappointed! read more

The one star is for decent ambiance and location right in downtown Ann Arbor! The quality of food and service both really have a lot of opportunity for improvement. Not sure I will go here again. The quesadilla veggies were burnt, the Chili renelo unfortunately was very disappointing in taste as well. read more

Happy Hour Margaritas... Exciting. This was our second time and much like the first time service was slow, rude and yet the restaurant was dead. We sat at the bar and watched as the bartender stood around, talked to other patrons, come down to use the computer which was right in front of us and again walk away. The front of house and other back of house employees were also standing around. Someone eventually brought chips, we thanked him but he didn't even speak to us. After a little bit longer we decided to leave and go next door for drinks. If you can't put your customers first you shouldn't be in business. read more

The food was delicious, the servers were excellent at their jobs especially for them to accommodate a large party with some in our party having dietary concerns they were able to get each order correct, totally satisfied. This restaurant was an excellent venue for our St.Patty's Day party and thankful for the Owner Dalia for a great event!! The ambiance here made me feel like I was in Mexico I loved it and didn't want to leave, must try if you're in Ann Arbor! read more

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I have had food from Chapala before, however there was a hair in my food. I had door dashed because I was at work at the time and when I called the restaurant the manager was very dismissive and just like it was no big deal. read more

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I've been here 3 times in the past year and have been disappointed every time. The people are nice but the food and drinks are sub-par. I wish it was better because I love Mexican food. The place is loud on a busy night as expected. read more

So bad. Very similar to airport food. Fun environment but food is blah. You can find better. read more

This place is my favorite Mexican spot in AA. I just love the vibe and the servers. They have a nice outdoor seating, bar area, and lots of tables inside. The food is so good! I'm obsessed with their complimentary chips and salsa. I like their fajitas as they have a nice Smokey taste. I got the Baja shrimp tacos and they are so good. Overall food is great and fun birthday spot as well. Would recommend! read more

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Came here for lunch the ambiance is very lively reminds me of being in key west or Cozumel. Definitely a good place to get drinks if that's your thing. The service here was excellent immediately chips and salsa came to the table. Interestingly each person gets their own salsa, which was very good. Chips taste homemade hot and fresh. The Baja shrimp tacos where loaded shrimp fried perfectly you get three giant tacos very filling. The Birria was excellent love the green salsa and the consume dipping sauce goes perfectly with the taco. A real solid place for Mexican in AA. read more

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The food was just okay. The service was really good! The ambiance was cooler upstairs but we got seated in the basement. I'd recommend coming here for drinks maybe. read more

Stopped in spontaneously on a random Friday evening and stumbled upon this place! Great music and atmosphere! Staff was super friendly. Food was absolutely great! read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Hibiscus margarita - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

I'd primarily done takeout here but a few months back I was able to enjoy a dinner outside on their patio with a friend and what a wonderful dinner it was! First off, we came on a Friday night so it was BANGIN', but we were able to put our name and number in and they told us the wait would be about 45 minutes and they'd text us when we were up next. Great! My friend and I were able to walk down Main Street a bit and browse in a few shops before heading back for our meal. We secured a lovely picnic table outside which was perfect for a breezy late summer evening. Now, when I say patio I really mean "part of the sidewalk adjacent to the parking spots on Main Street." but really this did not bother me. The place is festive inside and out, with fun beachy type decor inside and colorful banners and brightly painted picnic tables outside. Because I had previously only done takeout I had not enjoy any of their cocktails so this time I made sure to try one, particularly their Chapala Colada which was a pina colada served in a coconut. So delightful and perfect for creating some FOMO through photos. My meal, to no surprise based on my previous experience, was great. I went with the birra tacos and they were excellent. For dessert my friend and I split the tres leches cake and WOAH. What an unexpected fun presentation! It came on its very own colorful serving table (almost a mini version of our picnic table, haha) with a few little cupfulls of whipped cream on the side. A really memorable dish and recommended for a special occasion for sure. We weren't celebrating anything ourselves but there's nothing wrong with treating yourself to a lovely dinner, drinks, and desserts any old time of year! And Chapala is a great place to do either. read more

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Oliser is waiting on us, he's a good waiter, a people person for sure. He took care of us. The upper floor has more tables, the first floor is mostly bar area. There is larger party space downstairs too, so I am told. Ordered a guacamole, chicken flautas with everything on the side and beans only on the side and chicken quesadilla. $40.28 The guacamole is good. The hot salsa is habanero salsa, it's good some real kick and burns your mouth a bit afterwards. The chicken quesadilla was good, the meat is tender and flavorful, it's not too cheesy either. It doesn't come cut for you here. The quesadilla was a bit runny from the marinade on the chicken meat, which made the tortilla a bit softer. The chicken flautas aren't too and, super meaty. The corn tortilla shell isn't as crispy as I like it, but still tastes good. read more

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Stopped in a bit after noon on a Sunday. Not many people there, though Chapala was filling up by the time we left. We were waited on quickly, and received cheerful, attentive service throughout our visit. I ordered the Catalina Baja salad with chicken. The strips of chicken breast on it were excellent, with a tangy but not overpowering. The creamy catalina dressing was rather thin, though the black bean salsa gave the salad a nice flavor. Avocado chunks were ideally ripe. My wife got a 4-taco platter, 1 chicken, 2 carnitas, 1 beef. She though the chicken was best-it was likely the same chicken that was on my salad. The carnitas she found a bit weak on seasoning. The beef she took home for a workday lunch, so the verdict on that is still out. I did sample the refried beans she got on the side and found them very creamy. Overall a satisfying visit. read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Tacos Mexicanos platter - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

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Good Mexican spot in Ann Arbor. Complimentary chips and salsa which were good. We ordered the monster burrito and pollo Jalisco. The monster burrito is big and filling. My husband really enjoyed it. I had the pollo Jalisco and liked it. The beans were good. Service was good. Music was a little loud but they have plenty of TV's to watch sporting events etc. We would definitely return. read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Pollo Jalisco - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

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Food is good ambience is fine. The people are really the best reason to come here I think that the actual serving of the food could be done in a better manner when you're sitting in restaurant for example not doing things using plastic containers of any form or fashion, regardless of the style of food that it is fresh is always better. read more

Wish we liked this place more. I'll start with the good, though! The ambiance is great. Super cute place, good music, and swings at the bar - adorable. The food, though ... it's just good. Not bad, not great. We ordered El tropico, the fish tacos (says grilled on the menu, but arrived fried), chicken flautas (chicken was a bit dry), and coconut shrimp - didn't finish it. Service could use some improvement. Our server sat a hot cast iron plate in front of our kid, without warning it was hot and he burned his hand. When I mentioned that typically a server would announce the plate is hot, the response was "why would they touch that part?" .... I don't know, maybe because they're 8 years old?!?! That was it - nothing else done to make the kid feel better. We gave him ice from our own cups of water. At minimum, an apology would have been nice, rather than blaming the kid. Cute vibes, but would not go back! read more

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I used to really love going to this restaurant with my family. The servers were sweet, the food was amazing, the atmosphere was BEAUTIFUL and the murals were so pretty. I dont know what changed as of recently, but when my family and I went yesterday I was genuinely so sad and disappointed with how our food came out. Before we were ever served, we were not given silverware (which isnt too big of a deal rlly, it happens) but when we were asking for it the server was pretty sassy. We didnt care too much about that, but when the food came out as one of the most bland, tasteless dishes I was just sad. Ive been taking culinary courses for the past four years, so Im pretty confident I know what canned white chicken breast is. My tacos locos had absolutely no seasoning and was so dry i could hardly swallow it. My sister and boyfriend got the chimichangas, we expected two thin long chimichangas as we remembered from our past experiences, but they instead got one CUT IN HALF chimichanga again filled with presumably plain white chicken breast (some HUGE unshreaded chunks) and some sauce. AGAIN we decided it was disappointing but we would just choose to not leave a tip, only to find out about an UNDISCLOSED NECESSARY 20% TIP ON PARTIES 6+!!! our crappy serviced, shitty food, and unconsensual tip ended in us spending $120 and still being hungry when we left. I truly am disappointed, this place used to be really good, but now I wish I ate at home. oh and while im remembering, they up-charged us a dollar for a dish i asked to come "as is". I never even wanted the rice and beans. The nachos also came in a much smaller portion, and really the only things we liked were because we were so hungry. read more

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I recently went to Chapala on a Tuesday (didn't even think about it being taco Tuesday), but luckily it wasn't too busy. I didn't realize there were taco specials until I left and saw a sign, but it was fine. I ordered the Veggie tacos and they were delicious! For almost $20 I was a little taken back by the price, but it came with four tacos, beans, and rice - enough for two meals. The only real reason I give them a four, not a five is because the music was SO LOUD. Like night club loud at hardly 5 pm. It was almost too loud to hold a conversation. read more

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Food was ok. Service was not impressive. Waistress was constantly bugging me asking if I was ready order back to back with out giving me time to look at the menu. staff did not seem friendly they just kept walking past the table looking crazy not smiling at all. bus boy came to grab stuff from the table without even speaking just standing there staring. Whole environment was weird and I wouldn't go back again or recommend to others. read more

Amazing service. Great food! Ambiance was also really good. Always something going on.

My friends and I went to Chapala after a rough day at work. The tasty, not made from mix, margarita tower turned everything around! We also ate shrimp tacos and a lobster quesadilla that were delicious. Giant lobster quesadilla was only $18! Our waitress was super nice and knowledgeable about the menu, giving recommendations. Highly recommend! read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Margarita tower - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Always a great time here! Our server Lucy was so great and very friendly! Their piña coladas are so fun and cute! A great place for a group outing or a chill date night :) read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Piña Colada - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

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I usually don't write negative reviews because i understand restaurants chefs to waiters put in a lot of efforts for every meal they offer. But unfortunately didn't have a very good experience with this particular restaurant. We ordered for a vegetarian taco , i requested to add fried avocados, she said that will be with up-charge of 2$ i was ok with that. And they serve 1 sliced avocado on the side. Taco were ordered in hard shell they got us in soft! Upon bringing to her notice she transferred from soft to hard. We requested to swap mushrooms in quesadillas with fresh jalapeño, again with extra 1$ we were pretty ok with that but unfortunately they didn't. The restaurant looks like pretty good with good reviews but turned around with the overall experience we had. Margaritas were called with tahini on the rim, they got empty glass with tahini on the rim for us to transfer. read more

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Great place with a fun and festive vibe! We sat at the bar and had a tasty meal and great margaritas, beautifully garnished like a work of art! Will return on our next trip to Ann Arbor. read more

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I went after hearing about it and seeing reviews. I always like great Mexican so I had to check it out. It was easy to find. It is always easier to park in the structure as parking can be difficult to find. It was a short walk to the restaurant and I was seated pretty quick. The waiter came and explained the menu and the drink. We were given nachos and sauce. I decided on a drink and the combo meal. My friend got the enchilada. The tacos were great. Seasoned well and authentic tasting. The margaritas were awesome too. I will definitely come back. read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Front and bar - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

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This place was excellent until recently, the service level has just tanked. We are regulars both dining in and ordering quite often from DoorDash. We ordered DoorDash tonight, which said their delivery would be between 16-32 min. The restaurant confirmed the order, including the delivery window. Over an hour and three drivers later, the restaurant actually HANGS UP on the DoorDash person trying to find out when the order will be delivered. They finally tell the driver it won't be ready for they don't know how long. Then why did you confirm the order??? Why are you even on DoorDash today if you're too busy? It's just disrespectful of people's time and money. Clearly someone in charge there has zero consideration for their customers. Guess we used to be regulars. read more

Full disclosure: This is one of the first Mexican restaurants that I have eaten at since moving from Austin, Texas so take what I say with a grain of salt. I ordered flautas because I missed Chuy's (in Austin). These flautas were different. The dish comes covered in cheese which is not my preference but I never ordered it without cheese so that's my fault. There was so much cheese I could barely taste the refried beans which seemed to be good. The taste of my flautas were not bad, there was just too much going on. My kids got the chicken quesadillas and they were huge! You get a lot of food for your money here. My husband got the pollo Mexicano which looked delicious. I tasted it and yum! This is the dish I will be getting the next time I come. Their house margarita was good and we enjoyed the Asada fries. There is a festive ambience with lots of people on a Friday night. Despite how crowded it was, we were sat right away. Our waitress was attentive and responsive. The service was great. We will be back. read more

Chapala Mexican Restaurant - Pollo Mexicano - Tacos Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

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