We've been coming here about 14 years. There's been a lot of changes, a remodel , an update to the menu. I think they finally got it right. The food is really good. One of my favorite things is the chicken kale rice bowl. The chicken is pretty good, but to be honest it needs a little bit more seasoning. The star of the show is the kale. I'm not a huge kale fan, but the stuff is fantastic. I know what you're thinking- it's kale, calm down. But this stuff is magic. The Carnitas burrito is really good too. Great margaritas. Wouldn't change anything. read more

Haven't been to Rio Grande in many years. Used to go all the time back in the day. It was nice to see they remodeled and gave it a fresh makeover, because it used to be pretty run down. The strawberry margarita was always my favorite. They cut you off after three, but honestly, since they've changed the recipe from what it used to be, I didn't even order more than one this time. It really lacked the strawberry flavor it used to have. The queso tasted more like 7-Eleven nacho cheese than anything good. The guacamole was still solid, but I guess it's hard to screw up avocados and spices. I had the shrimp and crab enchiladas, which were fair. Nothing special. Everybody else felt their food was just okay too. Really disappointing for what Rio used to be. Service was good though. That's about the only reason I'm giving this 3 stars. read more

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Sunday early afternoon on the rooftop was a nice experience. Not too busy and two of us were seated right away and our waiter was quick and attentive. We started with a couple of tasty Big Tex Margaritas made with Cuervo tradicional silver, orange liqueur, fresh squeezed citrus. Lunch included fresh guacamole with crispy warm chips, baked Chile Rellenos, carnitas tacos with a side of rice and black beans. The Rellenos were topped with spicy green chili sauce and were delicious. The tacos were a bit dry but better with picante sauce. Overall it was a pleasant experience and we'll be back. read more

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Love this place, especially sitting on the rooftop. Had the quesabirria quesadillas last time and they were delicious. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Quesabirria quesadilla. Very good! - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

Based upon the other reviews I had low expectation, but I was pleasantly surprised. I am always looking for a good chili relleno, this one didn't disappoint. Fresh, hot, crisp, and flavorful. The tortilla soup was fantastic. They have a great verity of Margaritas and the atmosphere is open and with a modern Mexican restaurant vibe. The service was a bit off, maybe that contributes to their lower overall average review. They are pretty busy and prob rely on CU for a lot of their staff, so have a bit of patience and you may enjoy a decent meal. read more

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Best Mexican restaurant I've been to in the states. Growing up on the border of Mexico my bar of good Mexican food is extremely high. Rio Grande's guac, skinny marg, and carne asada all blew me away. Their chips and salsa are also top tier. I cannot BELIEVE they only have 3.5 stars on here. They're 5/5 in my book. Staff is also very friendly and efficient. Highly recommend. read more

This place was packed on a Friday night by 5:30, so I was happy we had reservations. It's a big place and pretty loud inside, but I can see why it draws the crowds with great chips and salsa, picture perfect guacamole, and solid standard dishes like enchiladas, fajitas, and tacos. I don't think you could go wrong with anything on the menu. Also, the skinny margarita was really tasty! There was easy and free parking in the ramp across the street, and after dinner we walked a block over for a scoop of gelato and had fun wandering into the fun shops and bookstores in the neighborhood. read more

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Food was delicious, steak was tender veggies had just the right crisp to them. The Chili Con Queso wasn't anything special, wouldn't waste my money on it. However we really enjoyed the chips and fresh salsa. My wife ordered a frozen house margarita and it was not very good, horrible tequila. It's a neat place with outdoor seat along the road and also seating on the rooftop, rooftop seating was closed for a party which was a bummer. Our waitress was extremely busy so the service wasn't all that great. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Skirt Steak Fajitas with Rice and Black Beans - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

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It's always a fun time at Rio's with great food, good vibe, and excellent margs! This is my go-to Mexican restaurant!

Returned to Rio Grande a few years later and was disappointed in the quality of the food and slow service. We stopped in on a Saturday early afternoon, service was noticeably slow (I feel bad because they must have been short staffed) but we waited an especially long time to be waited on, checked in on, and served. It took away from our experience overall. The food was also lacking in flavor, it was not how we remember from our last visit. This is a huge restaurant, with a big bar area, two-story dining rooms as well as a rooftop seating area. I imagine it gets very busy during the summer, or for special events. We may have just been dining during a downtime. read more

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Service is good, atmosphere is nice, the rooftop is amazing, but the signature margarita is....not good. Not good at all. I'd go back if I'm in the area but I probably won't go out of my way. read more

Visited Rio Grande on a quick stop in Boulder to meet friends in town for the game. The rooftop seemed busy and inviting, so we put our name in for a 4 top. We grabbed a seat at the bar to grab a quick drink while we waited and were not even looked at in the few minutes we sat waiting. Luckily enough, our table was ready quickly and we went upstairs to be seated. The service was okay, as expected for a busy restaurant on gameday. The drinks were decent (and had mocktail options that were superb!), ordered a Strawberry Margarita Mocktail, Frozen Mango Margarita, a few different beers, and some High Noons. The mocktail was fantastic, and the mango Margarita was pretty basic. We ordered the Guacamole, Rice and Beans, and a Steak Quesadilla. Guac was pretty basic with no seasoning, but chips and salsa were good (not enough chips to finish the huge plate of guac so it was a waste), Rice and Beans were pretty good, and the Quesadilla was like eating gummy cold cheese with a few pieces of Steak. Mentioned the Quesadilla to the waiter and he said "well that's what a quesadilla is like". Would recommend for drinks and starters, but not for the rest of the menu. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Guacamole and Strawberry Margarita Mocktail - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

Tonight's dinner was another one for the books! Came to Rio Grande because it was recommended by the locals and it didn't disappoint. Started with a watermelon margarita, which was on their Specials menu. For food, I had the shrimp empanadas and they were soooo good. Our server recommended them. For dinner, I had the crab and shrimp enchiladas and it was a great meal. It was the perfect setting for our group. Can't wait to go back! read more

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Our largish party went for Sunday brunch. The food and service were great. We liked the variety of the menu. The tostada was great as were the huevos rancheros. No one in the party complained about anything. The cocktails were great as well. Heads up -- the "baby" margarita is really small. The bar area has a cool vibe and has been renovated nicely to fit an eclectic Boulder vibe. The Rio also offers a happy hour from M - F. We plan to try it. read more

Sadly having to update this review - overall the experience wasn't great. The service was subpar, the food was mediocre at best, and I'm not feeling so well post meal. The tacos were awful, the tortillas were wet and soggy? It was very bizarre. The steak was gray, the shrimp were chewy. The rice wasn't flavorful. Majority of my food was left on the plate. I don't see us coming back anytime soon. It was nothing like our first experience here. read more

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Have had many good meals at Rio in Boulder, but last night was a disaster. The waiter submitted the wrong order, and the food was horrible. The enchiladas where undercooked and the whole plate looked like bean soup. The chips at the table looked like the scraps you get at the end of a bag. At least the water seved at the table was decent. Hope this isn't a new trend. read more

Service: sweet and attentive. Accommodating and friendly. (We sat at the bar) Ambiance: excellent bar seating and fantastic bar stools. Music is solid and the patronage is great (lots of locals) Food: my husband and I always split the chicken and veggies fajitas and it doesn't disappoint. I would love to see humanely raised beef/poultry and milk products here (like Snooze)-- so that is why I have only four stars read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Tortillas - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

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Putting aside for a moment that everyone knows "The Rio" has the best darn old-school margaritas in Colorado, it seems all my local peeps think the food is a second-class citizen to those yummy margs. I'm here to definitively say the Grilled Steak Fajitas are the absolutely unequivocal best steak fajitas I have ever tasted in my life! Oh yeah, I said it... and it just so happens to be true. First off, there are no gimmicks here. The plate does not come out sizzling to wow guests with its fresh-off-the-grill theatrics, but incredible fajita ingredients you shall certainly have. The marinated skirt steak is always cooked perfectly with a beautiful char on the outside and juicy on the inside. The meat is so delicious all by its lonesome, I generally eat the second half of my steak with none of the fajitas fixings like it's a premium chop at Peter Lugers in NYC. It comes with a vibrant medley of grilled onions, green & red peppers, simple Mexican rice and black beans, plus wonderfully detailed additions like fresh house-made flour tortillas & guacamole make the dish. I also love the perfectly thin chips & house-made salsa. So if you're near one of the various Rio locations in Colorado, come for the margaritas, but stay for the fajitas! read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Steak Fajitas - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

Litteraly worst restaurant experience I've ever had. Do better. Food was exetremly average, service was horrible, and rude staff.

This place has been a favorite for decades, so when we come into town we love to eat at old favorites. Wow have things changed in a remodel. The service, however, was incredibly terrible. The floor was dirty as someone swept, but didn't have a dust pan. The server didn't come by for 15 minutes after we sat down and she never came back after the food was brought to the table until we went to the bar to order another round of drinks. The food and drinks were as we remembered, but the service was the worst. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Food swept but not cleaned up. Dirty floor. - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

The service was terrible, the food was bland. The waiter spilt salsa all over my dress and wasn't very apologetic about it, and continued to be rude to my entire group the rest of the night read more

Stopped for lunch on a beautiful Saturday. Seated immediately in a bright airy table with views to the street. They brought house-made chips n salsa right away. We added a second special smoked salsa we found creamy and flavorful. Weren't very hungry (hey, we're old). So only had a single chili relleno for her and huevos rancheros for me. She loved hers and doesn't usually like Mexican rice, but discovered someone's abuelita must have taught them how. It is very flavorful and not too dry. Eggs cooked perfectly for me with excellent fried potato. I added some house salsa (not too hot, gringos) for a terrific brunch. Topo Tico makes a great non-alcoholic sparkling water to pair with your food. Friendly efficient service made a visit to this Boulder staple worth the money. read more

The service was so bad that I didn't even want to try their food. Bartender simply ignore my friend and I at the beginning, we were waiting for a larger group of fiends, never offered water, we ordered two beers and they were served just lake meh... not a coaster, not a napkin and not a word. After our friends arrived, we sat at a larger table where different waiter attended, I ask for another beer and pay with a larger bill, he asked if I wanted the change back and I replied, yes please, he returned with only a partial amount of the change and did not said a word, I waited but it seems like he just made himself entitled to a large tip, more than 20% of the value of the beer. I did not said anything as for not to make the rest of the party uncomfortable, so I just finish my drink and got T H out of there. Never again will I set foot on that place! read more

First time at Boulder operation. All went well. Chile Rellenos were good. Nice Margarita. Good service and environment. Parking garage across the street. Prices were decent. Short review with no complaints. read more

Dustin, here is a screenshot of the email I sent you on January 11th. Please refer to my original review. I forwarded you the email in the screenshot today January 26, 2025 read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Dustin, here is a screenshot of the email I sent you. - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

The food was amazing, but the silverware and metalware said otherwise. The silverware has spots of food on them, and the knives had crust in between the ridges. As for the metal plates, they were eroded and had rust spots on them. I recommend coming here if you just want to takeout or pickup food. read more

Great ambiance, with roof top and stylish large interior (that's why we continue to go with the family). High prices which is expected of downtown I suppose. The food is always C-/D+. It's in the recipes not the cooks, all recipes are less inspiring.. it's as if the executive chef has no experience cooking Mexican food and doesn't bother tasting it. Chips have always been worst around (think oversized bag from Costco, cheap white corn), enchiladas lack sauce and have no spice to the meat, burrito falling apart dry with shredded lettuce, green chili that is way loaded in flour, etc. Service is always slow every time, it's a mix of a large venue and order ops (kitchen far from seats and oddly organized) . They need better food running, bussing system because you'll have to go to the bar to get more water, refills, drink orders. Sorority party at the hostess stand, needs some instruction, it's always an odd intro.. No eye contact, never"welcome in", always more then one just standing and fumbling on where in this gigantic empty place to seat you. read more

The food was great (a little slow to make it to the table), delicious margaritas, service was also good. It was about 5p.m. on a weekday and it wasn't busy. I sat in the bar and enjoyed the open windows. I'll definitely be back and will probably have the fish tacos again and the carnitas! read more

Strawberry margarita was the worst I've had! The waitress offered to get me another drink but would probably taste the same. They were cool about refilling the chips and everyone got a big container of water. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Strawberry Mini Margarita - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

I wanted to love this place but a few things stood out on a recent lunch to just make me think it was just ok. The restaurant was clearly understaffed. Our server was nice but disappeared for stretches. She even told us four people called out in the am. So while sympathetic to worker shortages it really did impact the experience. The chips and salsa ordinarily would make all things good. But it took a while to get it and then when we did the chips were surprisingly bland. The margarita was not bland was a big hit. A good portion, the frozen drink certainly made the wait a little less painful. The food did come out promptly after we were finally able to order though our server forgot to bring us utensils. The chicken enchiladas were a good dish to get. Full of flavor. Thankfully when we did get the bill, we could pay by cell phone so we didn't have to wait longer. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Margarita - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

Alexi was amazing tonight! We had a business dinner and she as so attentive with her service. We have arrivals over a 39 minute period and she was always right by when a new person arrived. The food was so delicious. Light, fresh, and flavorful. The ambiance was enjoyable, too; not too loud, great lighting, and we were seated slightly away from the restaurant since we had a larger party. I appreciated this and loved that our noise and group wasn't impacting other diners. read more

We went to the Rio for our senior prom and made a reservation for a large group. Unfortunately there was an event maybe a bar crawl or something so there was a lot of people there but that was honestly not that big of a deal. When we walked in there weren't enough seats for all of us and a couple had to sit at another table and ended up leaving which is what we should've done. The problem we had was that we ordered our food waited quite a while which is reasonable considering the big group we had, but 1/4 of the plates came out and the people who received their food had completely finished their plate by the time the next round of food came out. The food was extremely mediocre very bland. The server spilled salsa all over my friend's dress and was very unapologetic about it. I felt bad because our server was taking care of us and a bunch of other tables at the same time. The last round of food came out after half of the group had given out their cards to pay. Thankfully they gave discounts to those who waited so long but my friend just had them box hers up so we didn't have to be in there longer. We had split checks which yes can be a lot but there should've been people helping this server out or not have had her serve us. She brought us all individual checks and didn't merge any of the ones who were paying for more than one person so had to go back and fix that which took a long while. She didn't say much to us at all and roller her eyes frequently when we asked for help or just ignored our table in general. They had messed up something with the order because there were items unpaid for and we were trying to figure out who still had to pay but everyone had. They were trying to get us to pay for food that one we didn't order and two we didn't receive. Overall it was the most stressful and frustrating experience I've had with a prom group and at a restaurant in general. There were zero apologies given besides from the hosts. I downloaded the yelp app to write this. Thanks! read more

This has become my most favorite restaurant in the whole Boulder area! The Chili Relleno with spicy tomatillo pork sauce is amazing! The use a pretty large chili, tons and tons of cheese, and it can be baked or deep-fried crispy. I'm amazed that it is naturally gluten-free as everything in the restaurant other than churros. Another exceptional dish is there beef fajitas. The beef practically melted in my mouth and I'm not huge on beef. The vegetables were thick and still somewhat crispy and so sweet! I am told they do a very good job on their margaritas as well although I do not drink, myself. It is where we chose to go for our 35th anniversary and to go for my birthday every year. Every server we have had there has been adorable. And when a sauce is spicy, it is actually spicy, but not at the expense of flavor. Rio Grande wins! read more

Wasn't the best experience. I'll start by saying the vibe was great on the rooftop. A fun place and looks like a good place for a beer. I'd stick with just the beer though if you're reading this. The compliments end there. I ordered the tacos while my wife got the enchilladas. The tacos were actually worse than Del Tacos I had earlier that week. The steak was average, but the mahi mahi was actually fridge cold and I couldn't finish it after a bite. My wife felt the enchilladas were okay. Trying to leave also took about 15 minutes before we could get a check. For a week long Boulder trip, only place that really didn't live up to expectations. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Tacos (steak and mahi mahi) - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

The manberry margs are pretty great, but Rio has definitely fallen in quality over the years. They charged $1.70 for that little scoop of sour cream And Another $1.70 for that little scoop of guacamole read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Carne Asada Burrito with sour cream and guacamole - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

I have been going to the Rio Grande for years and the food was much better before. It is a waste of such a beautiful building to serve such bland tasteless food. The other star was for the service, our waitress was good. The enchilada sauce was like it came from a Chef Boyardee can. The chips were stale, the chicken was dry and flavorless. Plastic tasting cheese and a big bill to boot. One less place to take out of town guests when they visit Boulder. read more

Service was ok. Food was a 3, margaritas were a 5! Chili rellano was a little too breaded but other wise good. Nachos were ok could use more cheese and the queso was fine. Definitely a good happy hour place. read more

This place was good. I liked the rooftop seating and the inside is huge. There is almost too much space in this restaurant. It is a bit pricey, but very typical for Boulder it seems. There is a lot of wait staff here but service does not seem super organized. Food comes out very fast once you order tho. My tacos were very good and the other meals look good also. Not the best Mexican food I've ever had but I definitely would come back and get the chicken and sausage taco again because it was so good. read more

Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant - Mahi mahi taco, carnitas taco, chicken and sausage taco - Mexican Near Me - Boulder, Colorado

The service was really great here and the ambiance was great too. The ambiance was what made us go into the restaurant as well as the decent rating. As a group we had various things off the menu, but the meat all just tasted really unseasoned. It just wasn't very good. We left feeling quite disappointed about the food. read more

Came here on a Monday night with some work colleagues, one of whom had remembered this place from when he was here visiting a short bit ago. We were feeling some good Mexican and we certainly picked a great spot. The three of us were seated right away. Ordered up some chips and salsa, including the really hot stuff. Also ordered up the chicken and sausage fajitas. I couldn't believe the size of the fajita plate. I couldn't even make an actual fajita as I didn't want to fill up on the tortilla. The sausage was by far some of the best sausage I've ever had anywhere, hands down! Wow! Chicken had a great flavor to it and was grilled to perfection. Rice and beans were good too along with the vegetables. Atmosphere had a good vibe to it. Service was really good. We had parked across the street in a nearby parking garage and were definitely a bit surprised when we were leaving the restaurant at around 7pm as there was an abundance of homeless population just loitering around in front of the parking garage. That really has nothing to do with the restaurant itself and in no way impacted the score, just something worth noting. I would certainly come back here when visiting this area again. read more

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