Looking for good, affordable Mexican food in Lancaster? I'd choose this place over nearby Mariachi's any day. Why? The prices are comparably better, the staff is friendly, and the food feels a lot lighter on my stomach than the brick that Mariachi's always seems to deliver. The people that work here are very friendly. My dad goes weekly, sometimes with a friend, and they ALWAYS remember them as well as what they order! Not all of them speak the clearest English, though, but I deem that a seal of authenticity! Don't see exactly what you want on the menu? Ask for it! I usually get a single chicken quesadilla with rice. The plate is always completely full and steaming hot when it reaches me; it's just the right amount of food. And for how much? Something like $4. You can't beat that! My dad usually gets the buffet, which has a bunch of different options. He and his friend even like their wings, which is surprising for a Mexican restaurant. The buffet also comes with a dessert item - sopapilla, a fried tortilla with cinnamon sugar, with optional honey to drizzle on top. If you ask, they will put a scoop of vanilla ice cream to finish it off! :) Their complimentary salsa is DELICIOUS, made fresh, and can vary in spiciness depending on the batch that day. The chips that come along with them are light and crispy. Best ones I've ever had. Overall, if you're a Lancaster resident, I'd recommend you give this place a try. You may just become a regular! EDIT: And to address the naysayers - let's remember here that we're talking about cheap Mexican food in Lancaster, SC. You're not going to get 5-star quality, but that doesn't mean it isn't tasty! read more

The Food was amazing and hot, specially a item I got from the buffet, I don't know what it was called but it was noodles and grilled chicken and it did not disappoint, also the chips and salsa was spot on and last but not least the wings and pico was so delicious, the service was great as always great staff, also the restaurant was clean and a very organized bar for the buffet. read more

La Chalupa - The Mon-Sat - Lunch Buffet - Mexican Near Me - Lancaster, South Carolina

Delicious, cheap pricing, clean and plenty of food. Great service. Excellent spot would recommend any time instead of ordering Mexican. 10/10 read more

Best place I've been to since moving to the area! Thanks for all the great food and service..

Food always good and very fast. Prices have gone up over last few years but guess par for course. Mexican used to be the less expensive option but not any more. But I'll keep going cause it's GOOD! read more

The food is always fresh and delicious. I drive all the way from Clover South Carolina to Lancaster just to come to let Chalupa the waiter is wonderful. His name is Flaco. Well, that's his nickname. Actually, this is the only Mexican Buffay I have ever been to very rare to find. read more

We LOVED this place and will definitely be back when we are in town. The buffet was fantastic. Great food, great service, and we had a wonderful experience. read more

Hands down the best Mexican restaurant in town. Cleanest, friendliest, and freshest! Never disappointed and the manager/owner is always on point making sure every guest is satisfied! read more

Went in with friends and we had a really good time. We ate from the buffet and the food was fresh. They have made upgrades to the facility and it is nice. The food and service was good, we will go back. read more

went here after church with pastor and his wife at their invite. had the buffet. it was just ok. they have the typical mexican cuisine. but it gave me indigestion and the normal places I eat do not have that effect. I was just not really impressed by the whole thing. i didnt eat that much and have no idea how much it cost because the Pastor was going to pay for mine and my daughter but it seems that another church member picked up the ticket for him. read more

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Great brisket, Mac and cheese, shrimp, and toast. Didn't care for the greenbean casserole or bbq beans. Ribs were too tuff. Would not get those again. Service and atmosphere were great. Will be back for the brisket. read more

Horrible experience. Could not communicate with anyone in English. Finally sitting down to eat I saw 2 different cockroaches on the floor that I had to step on rite under the tables. Extremely dirty facility. Poor customer service. The people there in the morning are extremely rude and off-putting. I'll get my tacos elsewhere from now on read more

WARNING!!! PREDATORY AND DISCRIMINATORY BUSINESS PRACTICES AT WORK HERE!!! Never in my life have I been treated with such disrespect and inconsideration as a customer or as a human being. This business, and its staff, have absolutely no regard for customer rapport, satisfaction, or (most importantly) health and safety. Yesterday evening I placed an order with this restaurant, as I've done many times before, and, just like every time before this, encountered issues with my order. However, last night was the WORST and FINAL experience I've ever had with them or any restaurant for that matter, BAR NONE. Firstly, I'd be remissed if I didn't mention the steadily rising prices that this establishment continues to alter at their convenience and their blatant over charging for side items that are relatively inexpensive and are typically included at EVERY other Mexican restaurant. Secondly, what they did to me last night was, not only, wrong but it was unprofessional, degrading, abusive, discriminatory, and ILLEGAL! it was an extremely clear violation of my civil rights. As a person that suffers from serious stomach conditions, I am always very particular with my order. When I placed the order over the phone, the woman (Maria), tried to manipulate me into paying extra for chips that are supposed to be included with the order of queso dip, then she asserted that, in order to receive commonly included sides (SC, lettuce, PDG, & cheese), that I would have to pay an outrageous weight fee in addition. I agreed to pay for the side fixings and, very specifically, asked for the burritos on the vegetarian menu as they're prepared plainly. When we arrived at the restaurant, the order was incorrect. All of the sides I'd asked for to be placed in separate containers were piled onto the burritos and smothered with hot sauce, something I cannot eat as I have a serious ulcer. I expressed to them, with tact and patience, "I apologize for the misunderstanding ma'am, but I ordered the vegetarian burritos, not these, can you please remake the order" I also conveyed the importance of this being due to medical reasons and the woman (Maria), instantly gave me an attitude and stormed off into the back to have them remade. She came back out with the new order after about 10 minutes and, again, it was incorrectly made. This time, there were no toppings and the burritos were smothered in cheese and hot sauce. I, again, reiterated my original order and expressed that I have a medical condition. She then starts cashing out other customers and gets on her cell phone and blatantly refused to acknowledge myself or my husband when we asked if she was going to remake the food correctly. After a few minutes of trying to get her attention, she takes the food from the counter WHIPS it into the bag and tells me to get out of their restaurant and refuses to honor the order altogether. On top of willfully disregarding my health and safety, she continues her degrading behavior by calling the police to have me removed from the premises simply for refusing to leave until she honored the order. To be clear, I was not being disruptive, disrespectful, it threatening in any way. This was an egregious civil rights violation and they WILL be held accountable for such. I reiterated several times that I had a medical condition and they showed no consideration for that whatsoever. As a disabled Veteran and former Military Police, I find their behavior to be abusive and discriminatory in nature and it did violate civil rights laws. Please do not eat here anymore. They constantly over charge their patrons and they do not care to make accommodations for medical conditions which IS their responsibility, being a business whom deals with food preparation. Thank you for reading this very long and sordid story and I appreciate any support from the community. I understand the importance of supporting small businesses such as these, but I also recognize the importance of holding businesses responsible in situations where they behave in an abusive manner. Thank you again. read more

Wonderful restaurant with a downhome atmosphere. The food is always delicicous, including the food on the buffet. Ask for Juan!! He's the best. read more

This is my favorite Mexican Resturaunt EVER!!! I live in Columbia now and me and my mom will meet there, yes I will drive over an hour to eat here. They're buffet is my dream, unlimited quest, tacos, and fajitas. The staff is always super nice and friendly, buss tables frequently and stay on top of refills! This place is the best and definitely deserves a lot more stars. read more

Food and service was awesome and I love the the Texas Nachos and would recommend anyone who loves Mexican food to come out. Great for families and they even have a fresh buffet to enjoy as well. So many different items to try and indulge in as well. They have a full service bar as well. If you have a chance to come by and enjoy a meal please do so read more

Food was great but no one working knew the wifi password and i was there for a dinner meeting. Could not use my Ipad.

I've been coming to La Chalupa for at least 15 years and it has been consistent in it's quality all that time. They serve Tex-Mex fare, burritos, tacos, nachos, etc..., but also offer a nice change of pace with spinach burritos and spinach enchiladas. They will also customize your order. Want cheese sauce instead of tomato on that burrito? No problem! They also have an impressive buffet. They have the best iced tea I think I've ever tasted - honest - and I love a good iced tea. The staff is always friendly and quick to refill your drinks. Definitely one of my favorite Tex-Mex restaurants. read more

Love this place! Food has always been good at a great price. I took a star away because some times the servers are a little slow, they are always friendly but could be a little faster on service. read more

This place is the absolute worse Mexican restaurant I've EVER eaten at and will NEVER go back and would NEVER recommend this place to nobody, not even a stray dog. Where do I start. 1). The door greeter who seats everyone was not friendly. 2). The waitress (Brooke B) was worse than the door greeter. I asked if we could get the table cleaned since it still had dried food stains on it from the last guests and instantly the look on her face switched to being annoyed. Since this was our very first time there I asked if I could see the buffet to decide whether we wanted it or order from the menu. After seeing that the buffet had alot of meat that I didn't eat my husband and I decided to just order from the menu and the kids decided to eat from the buffet. 3). I had to find Brooke to let her know we were ready to order from the menu. 4). My husband's food was fine, but my enchiladas were room temperature as soon as it got to our table and the shrimp on my salad didn't look completely done at all. 5). After finding pieces of beef and chicken mixed in with my shrimp salad and informing them of it then discovering that the cook obviously didn't clean or just change skillets in between cooking other meals (like you're suppose to in the food business) they decided to take the price down rather than just taking the entire salad off of our bill like it wasn't that important while the entire time I'm thinking what if I were allergic to any of thoses meats. 6). To top it all off, all 3 of my children have been throwing up everything they ate from that disgusting buffet, and after checking reviews for this business once home, I realized I would have NEVER EVER convinced my family to try out this restaurant. Normally I always check the reviews for any spots we haven't eaten at but I didn't this time and don't know how or why I didn't think to do it this time. F me for that. Please please please DO NOT TAKE YOUR FAMILY TO THIS RESTAURANT! I realized later, after the kids began eating their food, my husband and I started looking around and realized how nasty and unsanitary this place was (1st red flag). No one was wearing gloves, no masks, no hairnets. Not appealing looking at all!!  I should have convinced my family to leave then. This business needs to be shut down asap! read more

It's a decent Mexican restaurant, they have a buffet which you don't find much in Mexican places. The place is a decent size so you won't have to wait to eat!! Give it a try if you're in the area!! read more

We go to La Chalupa on evenings when they book in Beau Beaumont as the live entertainment. I normally have the buffet, just for a change from what I normally do at Mexican restaurants. In truth, the buffet is OK, but not fantastic. I'd like to see them change out some of the selections in it from time to time for a bit more variety. But it is good, don't get me wrong. The menu dishes are your normal flavorful Mexican fare with generous portions. I dock a star because the servers sometimes are too slow getting to us with menus and refills, and I've had to hunt down silverware myself a time or two. They are generally busy on the nights we go there, since Beau is a draw, but the servers need to be a bit more on the ball anyway. They are always friendly and attentive once you do get their attention, though. LOL Neither the food nor the prices will disappoint you. read more

I never thought this would happen, but the completely disgusting slop that came out of this restaurant is not fit to be feed to your next door neighbors dog (you know the scary mangey looking one, that decides to have a 140 decibel conversation at 2:30 am every morning. The "food" that they serve makes Taco Bell look like a five Michelin star rated gourmet restaurant. The sad part is, I am really not exaggerating. The soggy, wet, bland crap they served is better suited for the garbage rather than human consumption. read more

Great restaurant & staff. I would highly recommend to others! Has option of buffet and ordering, also tables inside and out.

The food was fantastic and they have a really cheap buffet with some great stuff on it. The staff is friendly and attentive. Amazing margaritas too!! Would've been four stars but the bathroom was gross. read more

Love this place. Found a fly in my tea tonight though. Great food and service otherwise!

Been here several times love the buffet, friendly staff it feels like I'm at a friend's house with how friendly they are. Good food and good prices the only issue I have is the buffet is a little small with not slot to pick from, that's the only reason it's not 5 stars for me. read more

Server was pleasant. Got what we paid for. Good food at reasonable price The only thing is they should label the food at buffet so we know what things are. read more

My first Cinco de Mayo after turning 21 was here and it was much better then I could have ever expected. The line at Los Mariachias was out the door and they were charging a cover at the door. La Chalupa was busy, but not PACKED when we got there. It was nice to be able to pick a table further away from the DJ and enjoy drinks with my boyfriend. I did eat a quesadilla but their tequila made me forget what it tastes like! Definitely will be going back next year! read more

Talk about bad. Never like. Its really bad and don't try it but the staff is really friendly and they always refill your drinks and quick service, that's why its 2 stars. read more

La Chalupa is the only Mexican buffet that Lancaster has to offer, so that is definitely why it's still the place so frequently recommended over the nicer options that are a few more minutes down the road. I do love the ability to go to the buffet and build my own tacos, despite the fact that the options are a little more limited than I would like. The pineapple chicken on the bar is delicious and definitely worth a try. I think people love most about the buffet is that the queso is on the bar and you can take a simple cup back to your table for the chips or drown your entire plate with queso if that's what you prefer. I do steer clear of the salad bar, including the guac, purely because it looks questionable to me, but I always choose the buffet over ordering a small plate. Service has always been incredible here and drinks are reasonably priced. They did recently just add a large bar patio and enclose the old porch into a sunroom area so there is plenty of seating. It seems like the outside area could host fun events and I saw that they had great happy hour prices on beer. I do wish they'd clean everything up a bit, but I'm still going to return to La Chalupa when I'm back in Lancaster. read more

Love this place .. Good fresh food ... Service is okay ..the bathrooms are gross they need to be cleaned and maybe painted. They do need to change up the buffet sometimes read more