The lunch special burritos were the choice for everyone at our table... Veggie, green chili, red chili and shredded beef... We all agreed they were all delicious and most went home with leftovers. Good classic Tucson Mexican food and good value Service is friendly and at a relaxed pace. read more

Food was either too bland or too hot. Sour crème was served frozen and quac. Was all salsa and little avocado. Chips were not fresh. Average at best. read more

Came here for lunch and was not disappointed...been wanting to come here for along time but the hours on the restaurant are incorrect. It is open 11-9 Mon-Sat and 11-5 on Sundays. I had chicken chimi lunch special (came with rice and beans) and it was very good. Hubs had the carne seca plate and he said it was like was wonderful like how mom used to make. We ordered a side of guacamole for about $6 and we'll worth it. It was a good suze serving and good accompaniment with salsa. Took half the chimi home. read more

Service was great. The cinnamon tea was excellent as was the cheese crisp. We added one after we saw one at another table. The food was also great. If we lived closer to the area we would definitely be regulars. read more

Always a favorite. Grew up on their #9 combo and still the best Fideo, Beans and Ground Beef Patty Tacos in town. The green chile cheese crisp is always a must as well. read more

I'm not a fan of Sonoran Mexican food, but I will say that their taquitos were delicious and they are quick to serve.

This place has been around for decades. I used to come here as a kid and I can remember the cheese taco. I had one today and it is amazing. Beef tacos were just like Nana makes. The vide in here is very Nanas house and I'm glad they're still around to share it with my family read more

A couple of years ago my mom and I found this place by chance. We have been here a couple of times. The food has always been very good with large portions. We have been here mid week and on the weekend, I would highly recommend the weekday since it gets busy around dinner time on the weekend. read more

Best cheese crisp in all of Tucson! Service is always great, but get in early, they close at 8pm

SEXUALLY HARASSED MY WIFE If I could give this place zero stars I would. My wife went there with our son after his baseball practice at the park down the street on my recommendation. What a mistake. She has prior trauma and left the restaurant shaken and crying and called me to tell me about it. Instead of grabbing the menu from her he caressed her entire hand and asked her what her name was. Then he sat in the corner and stared at her the entire time they were there. And he even tried hitting on her as she left with our son. I called and the "manager" said it was most likely the GM before she started back tracking. She flippantly told me that all she can do is apologize like I was wasting her time. Last time I was there the food was below average. Now they have employees making guests feel uncomfortable to the point they are crying. What a sad state for a restaurant with the kind of history this place has in Tucson! I will be contacting some people I know to get an article in the Daily Star and whatever else I can do to make sure people know what they are getting into there. read more

Delicious chicken mole and chile rellenos! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Nice ambiance and great service.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We will be back to try the chilaquiles! read more

We've been going here for decades! Staff is friendly, food excellent. Best molé in town.

This food sucks. I have lived in Tucson for 25+ years and this place is one of the worst ive eaten at. The meat is dry. The prices are expensive. The staff is unintelligent. (Im sure all family) read more

GREAT old school food like nana makes for the holidays!! I married into a Mexican family and my wife's cooking is top shelf. She brought me here for the first years ago, just like her parents had done for her when she was a little girl. These people still take great pride in their menu prep and the results bring big happy smiles! read more

It's been way too many years since we've eaten at Karichimaka. Of course it's been awhile since I've been back to Tucson. Grew up nearby so Karichimaka was a place my parents took us to often. They are still in the same location that we visited in the '70's and I am certain in the same building since 1949. It's not modern, it's not big, but the food is excellent! Chips & salsa were good. The salsa was excellent. I could taste the tomato and the garlic was perfect to create a spicy fare that wasn't overpowering. Okay, Chile Relleno was fantastic! Very light outer batter, chile was tender and the cheese filling was not runny. The beans were PERFECT, the way they are supposed to be, almost creamy. The rice was tasty too. Wife got the Chicken Burro. I had a bite. OMG, the chicken was fantastic too. We've lived in Texas too long where they haven't learned to properly season their meats (if it's seasoned at all). My wife was very pleased. Mom got the carne seca enchilada. All she said was, "Oh gosh, that's the real stuff!" She's lived here since 1956 knows her Mexican food. Dad's red chile burro was pretty good too. He was busy eating instead of talking. So glad we were reminded of Karichimaka from friends when we said we were heading to San Xavier. No matter what, if you're looking for authentic Mexican food, Karichimaka is worth the drive! read more

One of our favorite place to hit for some quality ramen. Hubby adores this place. Wish one was closer to our place.

Wow really rich and complex sauces and flavors at this Tucson institution. They have been a destination for locals seeking authentic Mexican cuisine for southern Arizona. We ventured in for lunch today and had some amazing Chili Relleno and Red Chili beef and cannot wait to try another section of the menu. Thank you for the delicious food read more

Good God and good service reasonably priced!!l recommend this restaurant and plan to go back myself.

I have never had good service at this restaurant. One time we had to leave the money for our bill at the cash register after waiting over 5 minutes for someone to come and take it I have not returned in the last 20 years and will NEVER, NEVER go back. read more

A family favorite of ours for decades... The food is delicious and the family that owns and operates are wonderful people that really make you feel like family when you dine there. read more

My new favorite Mexican restaurant! Actually I went here sixty years ago, but I was not as into Mexican food at the time.The food is wonderful,service is great ,and price is extremely fair. They only offer patio dining and take out for now, so if it is windy or inclement weather you may have to order from their to go window. You get a real feeling like you are part of the family here, and the patio atmosphere is perfect! You may be lucky enough to see some of the local wildlife on the other side of the wall. With some of my favorite Mexican restaurants closing in the last year it was a real treat to rediscover this gem! read more

My favorite Mexican restaurant, period. My family has been going here for over 20 years now and it still has the same owners. Great food, great service and worth the drive. Albondigos soup is cooked the classic way, mmm, mmm, good. Don't forget Sopaipillas for desert! read more

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I judge a place by their beans. It is a basic dish that can have nuances and layers of flavor if done correctly. If they are bland then I really wonder about the skill level of the kitchen. The beans were very good. That makes me think that there are many menu items that are probably very good. It's hard to make every dish with a high standard- that's just a reality. The rice was good - I finished the serving. My burro was red chile. The tortilla was soft but nothing special. It is just the wrapper so it neither contributed nor detracted from the burro. The red chile was fine. Not super flavorful but not bad. The meat was tender and there was no hint of greasiness which I appreciate. My lunch buddies felt the same about their dishes- they were fine but not the best in town. I'm sure if I returned I would find items on the menu which are excellent. This place has been around for decades so they must be doing something right. I have only eaten here a few times. It is not on my list of favorites BUT I can see why people like it. It would be a great place to stop for visitors who might not be used to the spicier and richer flavors at other old time local favorites. There's not abundant choices in this area so it's great for those in the vicinity or on your way to San Xavier or Green Valley and Tubac. As I can recall, the food is consistent. Every staff has more challenging days or sometimes even a bad experience that they are trying to overcome. On my visit I found the staff to be somewhat lacking. They weren't exactly rude but not friendly, not welcoming. Little eye contact, zero smiles, very limited responses when questions were asked, and fairly slow. This may be cultural (?) or personality (?) so it may be that I am not accustomed to this type of service. It was hard to leave 20% although I know that they work hard to get the tables served. I hope that they have better days. Again, they are a successful business so if this is their style the regulars must not mind. Overall, it was a decent meal with service that did not enhance the dining experience. The distance is too far for me to return often but I wouldn't reject it as a choice. read more

It is the best for Mexican food Seriosuly recommend this for people who come in out of town and wants some home made flavor of Mexican food please go try the sweet tea is to die for aswell !! Recommend it ! read more

I love this place! Been going here for years! I love the location because that little stretch of Mission Road still has the look of a rural road. Their food is delicious and the service is so fast it's almost unbelievable but no way is their food read more

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT EVER. In our quest to find the perfect taco in Tucson, Karichimaka definitely will go at the bottom of the list. We wanted to order a special dinner for my sister's birthday and this place always looked interesting as we drove by. Also, because of the pandemic, we were wanting to spend our money locally. We have been trying to deal with locally owned businesses so this seemed like a good choice. We were wrong. As you can see by the photos, the food looked awful. But worse than that, it was truly inedible. It was a $40 meal for a family, but it was so awful, 4 adults didn't even eat it. (The dogs however ate the meat pucks). I contacted Karichimaka the following day, with pictures, telling them of our disappointment. I asked them to contact me, but never heard a word. That pissed me off as much as the bad food. I have NEVER left a negative review before. I was hoping to give them an opportunity to make this right. But, since they didn't have the courtesy to reply to my message, I decided to share my review here. read more

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A great restaurant. Family environment and great food. Service is wonderful and food comes fast.

Came here with a bunch of family. For lunch, the place is a little rough on the outside but the inside seems clean, a little dated but that fine. Service was of ok had to ask for chips a few times, but other then that it was good. Now onto the food. It was large and super yummy!!! I had a Chile Relleno it was very good. The beans and rice were also good. The prices were not bad and the portions were large. and the staff was nice. I would eat here again with a smile and a full belly read more

The food at Karichimaka's is always delicious. It is local and we go there as often as we can. I've tried many things throughout the year and it is all great! From the chips and salsa to flan for dessert, all so good. Meals that my husband and I enjoy are the rellenos( not very spicy but a lot of flavor), gorditas, shredded beef and green chili burritos, and don't forget the horchata. read more

You can't go wrong at Karichimaka. Great food and service. This restaurant is not noisy even when they are a lot of people. I highly recommend their chicken tortilla soup and quesadillas. read more

I have read the reviews on this place and it seemed like a really good place to come eat and I just tried it for the first time a few days ago and it was horrible. I don't know why they call this Mexican food but they ain't Mexican food and I don't know what kind of enchiladas those were and their Fideo is not Fideo It's basically Campbell's noodle soup. I do not recommend this place for anybody. I am always down to try Mexican food, but this place was just not save your money. I'm warning you. read more

Karichimaka Mexican Restaurant is an ideal Mexican restaurant. The service was prompt with a big variety of alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks. The menu is very varied & the food portions are big & delicious. I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you're in the mood for some delicious Mexican food. read more

If you like super bland Mexican Food (Taco Bell is a step up) with no taste or flavour, this is the place for you! I had a Carne Asada Burrito. Large pieces of unspiced beef wrap in a tortilla. The atmosphere wasn't particularly inviting either. However, the service we got from our server was very good, but that doesn't make up for the tasteless food. read more

This is a Tucson sleeper that has been around for decades. Sits quietly off Mission near where the city and Tohono reservation meet. The cheese crispy was a stand out. The rest of the food and service was good. read more

Day trip in Tucson where we got to hit a few spots in a few hours. First spot we hit wasn't that great even though we were told "it was so good". I entered the place with a totally open mind. I could tell though, it had had better days. The courtyard that has enough space for 30 tables and a live band was empty, completely bare. Inside, There were a few tables occupied by locals. No music, there was just the sounds of plates and forks once in a while. We all ordered from their Lunch special. I got the Chicken soup with rice and cheese quesadilla, my husband got a chicken burro enchilada style, our son went for the chorizo and egg burrito. Soup was oily and bland. I added 6 spoons of salsa to jazz it up. Our grand daughter would have made a better cheese Quesadilla (see pic). Chicken burro per my husband was disgusting (his own words). He said it tasted like salsa and ketchup mixed together. I took a piece of his chicken inside, and it tasted like boiled chicken. Our son loved his chorizo burrito! read more

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We really like this place. It's always super clean. The green chili chimichanga was flavorful. We also had a tasty cheese crisp. The chips are always fresh and warm and the red salsa is good. read more

Karichimaka Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Excellant Mexican food. Lots. Of chips. Also great chili cheese crisp. Service is excellant

Harley riding & started looking for some authentic local Mexican food. Rode past this place & cud smell the food from the road. Biggest mistake was stopping here. Ordered a tasteless carne asada & the worst can chili relleno. The asada was a tasteless grilled meat. The relleno was a big blob of fried breading with a canned chili and blob of melted cheese. Wat a disappointing experience. read more

The food here is consistently good. Enchiladas are delicious. The green chili could use a spice boost and more green chilis. The albondigas cured me of a cold, I swear! I've never had anything bad here. The wait staff is always attentive and pleasant. Always accommodating to any customer's wishes. Gene remembers our drink and food preferences every time. This place has been here for decades and always delivers. read more

I would always see this place when riding my bike on Mission and wondered about it, well many years later, we finally went to give it try! You can tell the place is very old inside, it's been here for more than 70 years! The crowd was local. There is a very loyal crowd it seems of people who keep going back. The owner who is in her 80's is still very involved, reserving tables and cashiering. Everyone was so nice, I got a nice, friendly vibe from everyone there! Service was great, and so was the food. My chili relleno was 2 squares, instead of a long chili with a stem - there was no stem - a first for chili relleno for me! The batter was extra puffy, and it was very cheesy, just about perfect! The beans were smooth and had such a good flavor, and the rice was fluffy with the right amount of tomato sauce and broth, I loved the salsa - there were little chunks with the skin - loved getting these perfect chunks on my chip! My husband's chimi was packed full of shredded beef! We were there early on a Friday night, and when we leaving the place was filling up! read more