Terrible food. It was clearly microwaved -- the beans were scorching hot in the middle but dried out around the edges. The chicken came covered in a sauce that tasted more like gravy than anything Mexican-inspired. They really need help with authentic Mexican cooking. I will not return or recommend this place read more

Food is good as well as a good portion. Ambiance needs updates. The people are friendly.

The food is delicious. The staff especially Kelsie in the Lava Lounge. The owner is a total jerk. He has no people skills and does not treat his patrons well. We have a nice group that gets together every Friday and he goes out of his way to make sure we feel unwelcome. read more

Rudy's is the BEST Mexican food in the Cedar Valley for the past 20 years. Service is smooth and fast. The food is hot and fresh. The beers are cold and plentiful. The little puppets hanging from the ceiling ate creepy, but fun to talk about lol. Prices are higher than most Iowa restaurants, but well worth it. Thanks for another wonderful meal read more

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I guess if you want non-authentic Mexican food, go here. Fast service, good aura, but I would not eat here again.

For a great taco and some of the most unique decor there is no place better than Rudy's taco. I would tell you about the decor but that would ruin the suprise read more

The food is always fresh and hot. The margaritas are incredible. Great service and atmosphere too. read more

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Rudy's never disappoints. The food is always fresh and delicious. Wait staff is great and margaritas are incredible! read more

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I have not been back here in 15 years. We came to visit and had to stop. It was even better than I remembered. You order at the counter, got our drinks right away and the pick where you want to sit. We got our food quickly. I ordered a taco salad and it was amazing! Larger than I was expecting, fresh and delicious!! read more

Very expensive,...the man at the counter that i assume was the owner.. was childish and rude and sighed the whole time i was trying to choose, i finally just picked something as he tapped loudly on the counter, I could not get a straw...asked if I could buy one as I didn't understand. How cheap can u get? 2 meals, 2 drinks and a hot dog was over 40 bucks. Was one restaurant that I looked forward to going when I come back home. Not now,!! Gaurantee I and my family will never ever go again and I will let everyone I know what they have become there. read more

Not my kind of place. Not very clean. I left n I never was served after sitting for bout 15minutes found out u have to go up n place ur order. That was a turn off n the premises was just not very cleanly so I left. read more

Great food, generous portions, and friendly staff! What a great value. Good beer selection from local brewers.

Awesome black bean pizza! Very easy to make vegan. The sauce and veggies and everything were just perfect! read more

Rudy's Tacos - Vegan black bean pizza - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

Unique place- don't let the marionettes hanging from the ceiling scare you off- the food is fresh made and servings are large. The ice cream cooler seems out of place but who doesn't enjoy a few scoops of ice cream, the kids love it! I haven't gotten creative with my order, I stick with tacos- chicken, and they are delicious, but it is named Rudy's Tacos after all. read more

Rudy's ambiance cannot be beat. The Chicken Combo is a weekly favorite for my husband and me. They also have a great craft beer, cider, and mixed drink selection (via Lava Lounge & Beer Hall) as well as many different hot sauces to try. They also carry local favorite, Hansen's Dairy ice cream, and usually have about 6 flavors to choose from. read more

This was an overpriced place that serves tex mex that has been watered down taste wise for those who 1. Haven't been outside of Iowa to try Mexican food in other states/countries. 2. Don't have any friends that are Latino. 3. Doesn't season their meat beyond 1 shake. 4. Thinks hot sauce should really be mild sauce. The sauces in the squeeze bottle where not flavorful at all, like really? It had no heat or anything to it. They have hot sauce in a bottle on the table that looks to be some outsourced type of deal, they were okay. But the two in house ones were weak sauce. The tacos here not well seasoned and had way to much lettuce on it. The enchilada wasn't that great either, I just had an awesome on the day before so I did have a high standard in mind. All of the combos are over $10, tacos are just below $3 and the enchiladas are almost $5....Yeah I've had better for much less, not sure why they are higher than most places. So if you want to spend about $15 on three items and a drink this is your spot. Keep in mind this is tex mex, think about every fast food joint you hit up that serves tex mex, it doesn't come close to these prices. read more

What can I say...LOTS! first off this isn't Tex-Mex or traditional Mexican either. We've always referred to Rudy's as I-Mex "Iowa Mexican" they do a wonderful job creating their own style of cuisine. They source locally, supporting local family farms. Great food, Margaritas are incredible. Most of the patrons have been coming here religiously for years. The flow of this restaurant is amazing! even if there's a line going out the door. By the time you're through ordering you'll have a place to sit. Don't let long lines scare you away. We lived in Texas for several years. Mexican food on every corner. All our friends and family that visit always request a trip to Rudy's. The Beer Hall, Lava Lounge and Guerrilla Brewing Co. all under the same roof! Providing an incredible selection of craft beer, old school cocktails and high test beer brewed right on site! Make a night of it, don't eat and run! read more

Rudy's Tacos - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

This used to be my favorite place in town. However, quality has declined as of late. I always get 3 hard shell tacos, fries and a Pepsi. Sometimes the tacos are extremely soggy to the point you can't eat them, so I send them back. Sometimes they are delicious the first try. The prices are a little steep for the so-so quality. It is $15 for me to get 3 tacos, fries and a Pepsi. That is because it is $3.75 for a side of fries, but I think they are worth it! I would recommend this over all, but be cautious. 3 Out of 5 stars. read more

Rudy's Tacos - 3 tacos and fries.., $16.90 for this? A little expensive for tacos but it's worth it - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

No. Just no. I ordered a chicken salad supreme and he ordered tacos. My salad sucked. To start with, the shell was ridiculously greasy. And the chicken was pretty flavorless. Mostly, it all tasted like the soupy beans that comprised most of the salad. He said his tacos were okay. Nothing special. We also ordered guacamole and chips. Big regret. I would say that they used about 20x as much lime juice as necessary. You couldn't taste anything else. Seriously, it made me pucker. When we asked if this was normal (because I am hard pressed to believe that anyone would like that), she told us that it was always heavy on the lime. Our meal for two without any drinks was $29 and change. It wasn't worth half that. Steer clear. Please trust me on this. You WILL regret it. read more

Rudy's Tacos - Beans. So many beans. - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

I was finally able to eat at Rudy's Tacos! The place has a great atmosphere and unique decor. Here's what you do: Wait in line to order at the register. Sometimes there can be a HUGE line, but it goes quickly and speaks to the popularity of the place. Once you've ordered, you can go pick a table. There is wait staff who comes around and fills your drinks. Your tacos arrive, and you devour them! The tacos were huge. They aren't like the little ones. They are full-sized tacos. They reminded me a lot of tacos we would have at home as a kid with meat, cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce. They aren't authentic tacos, which is fine, but just know this going in. The decor is the coolest thing about this place. There are hundreds of marionette puppets hanging from the ceiling! You have to check it out. read more

So...I'm from the Chicago area (obviously), which means when someone mentions getting Mexican food for dinner, I automatically jump to street tacos with carne asada, al pastor, or fresh fish; I think of homemade corn tortillas within a little restaurant run by a family, who are all speaking Spanish as they fill orders. Again, I'm from Chicago, so I set my expectations too high, and needed to realize that I'm in Iowa. This place is more American than Taco Bell! I ordered three beef tacos (I had a feeling once I saw the college kids working behind the counter). The tacos had ground beef, which was seasoned and pretty good, and then a mound of lettuce, cheese, and tomatoes all on three huge flour tortillas. I ended up just eating the filling, as I am not a huge fan of flour tortillas, and they were about the size of mini pizzas. I also had an order of chips and salsa. I'm pretty sure the salsa was canned, but the tortilla chips were pretty good. My fiancé had their "large combo," which comes with a tostada, enchilada, two tacos and a burrito, plus a side of rice and beans. Again everything was ground beef or chicken with shredded lettuce, cheese, and tomatoes (not onions and cilantro). I tried the rice and beans, and they were nothing special. This place is also expensive considering you're getting food you can make with a box of "Old El Paso" seasoning and shells. My three tacos and his robust meal was $40.00! Yes, you get a lot for your money, but it is kind of pointless when I can make the same meal with a microwave. Again, this is Iowa, so if this is the closest to Mexican they have, then I get it. However, I have been spoiled with the plethora of authentic options that Chicago has to offer. read more

Great food and friendly and unique atmosphere! We ordered a hard shell taco and tostado with guacamole. It was a lunch so didn't order a big plate. Most of ingredients are locally sorced and very fresh. Will definitely go back for a dinner combo and margarita read more

It is Rudy's, you are going for what I call Wisc/mex. everything is great. The puppets from the ceiling to the 1950s tables, the place is just all a around great. Rudy's has a great vegetarian menu. (No to be confused with vegan). Black bean burritos are awesome and so is the veggie chili. read more

Rudy's Tacos - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

Always consistent entrees, never had a problem with my meal, it is always tasting wonderful. We like many of the menu items and the ice cream, just wish they offered locally churned Hansen's ice cream again instead of the commercial stuff. read more

It's always clean and the staff is friendly. The food is just OK but they give you a ton. Price is alright.

This is one of my favorite places to eat in the Cedar Valley. I love their hard shell chicken tacos. Chicken is creamy and tasty, and cheese, lettuce and tomato are always fresh. My kids especially love their shredded cheese and always ask for extra Service is usually pretty good. Relaxed, sort of funky, sort of sivey environment. It's worth noting that this place is not trying to be authentic Mexican food but rather some tasty Tex Mex style tacos. I personally love it. read more

JUST CUZ IT"S LOCAL DONT MEAN ITS GOOD I got one of the platters or something. I don't really remember, I think I asked one of the young homeschooled hipster tweens working in this building (I think there are a couple hipster/homeschoolers who work at the bar next door too) what was good here and they mumbled back "cat gifs" or something so I WENT WITH THE PLATTER (or some smorgasbord of taco related items) and prepared myself. Let me back up a bit here before I go any further... I had heard nothing but good things about this place and was extremely excited to try it out. But I was a little put off by the way everyone was talking to me about Rudy's Tacos in the exact same way... "Oh. my. gerd. That place is ridiculously good. You'll love it. They use all local products too btw." or... "Rudy's!!! Ahh man that place is tight. Really great local flavors going on there." or... "it's local" Catching on yet???? I mean, don't get me wrong... I think supporting local vendors and businesses is cool and all, but why were all of these people feeling the need to say that to me rather than that the food was awesome or tacos were crazy delicious? And so the plot thickens. Anyway... I wait in a booth for my food and I'm noticing all the cool stuff they have for decorations and everything and at this point I'm like yeah! This place is my new spot! This momentum built even further when I saw they had like 4 different hot sauces with cool logos and designs... Youre winning me over Rudy (pretty sure this place is named after the classic Sean Astin underdog movie, someone back me up on that). \ Then my food arrived. Uh... everything was just bad. I don't know how else to describe it. It just wasn't good. It was bland. The meat wasn't spicy or spiced in general. The cheese lacked flavor. Those sauces I was telling you about before? They were just like... whatever, not really that flavorful. Plus I had to go ask for a refill on my water like twice. (Do they teach you nothing in Hipster Homeschool?!) I've never been back and don't really plan on it. I wanted to like it so bad, but it just was not good. Period. But if you get your rocks off by eating a bland flavorless mish-mash of tex-mex food surrounded by a bunch of Zooey Deschanel wannabes, I guess you might like it. Did I mention they use local ingredients? read more

Tuesday is the enchilada special included are two enchiladas beans rice and garnish if you like. very tasty and this will fill even the biggest apatite all fresh and tasty... read more

Not so Mexican If you can't say anything nice.....then I couldn't write an accurate review for Rudys :( Definitely not Mexican food. No real flavor to anything. Got forks with our tacos ?!Decor is something Robert Irvine from Restaurant Impossible would have a blast with. I think Rudys was great 20 years ago but short of a massive facelift to the dining room & food we won't be back. read more

Rudy's Tacos is a small midwestern chain of fast food taco joints. At most locations the food is a decent, a couple steps up from Taco Bell but still a step or two behind more formal Mexican places. Thankfully, Rudy's has flexible franchise standards, because the Waterloo location uses their own recipes and fresh, local ingredients. The result is a startlingly unique take on standard Mexican food. Everything is prepared to saucy, cheesy fast food specifications, but the ingredients are gourmet quality. On top of this, Rudy's is home to Iowa's best beer bar. Or, actually it's a pair of beer bars, and between them they have about 18 craft and import taps and a wide selection of rare and Belgian beers. The decor is fabulous, like if John Waters and Andy Warhol had a baby and that baby grew up to be a cracked-out interior designer. The ceiling of the main dining area is covered in dozens of creepy marionettes. One of the beer bars is like a breweriana museum. read more

I've been here once before and thought they made decent food. I like that the food is local and generally fresh, and I LOVE that they have a great selection of beer. So many places in the Cedar Valley only offer the Bud/Lite, Miller/Lite and a few misc watery beers. Not Rudy's (or their bar neighbors - that's another review). I can get a good margarita as easily as a good beer here and I'm thankful. My only glaring - REALLY GLARING - disappointment was when I attempted to have dinner there on Friday night at 9pm and the kitchen had just closed. Seriously? Who closes the kitchen at 9pm on a Friday night? Especially when it's in the same building as two bars, right across the hall from everybody? Apparently Rudy's... read more

Excellent house salsa! Yes, you have to pay for the basket of chips and salsa...but it's well worth it. They will bring you refills. Even just a simple taco here is a feast. Highly recommended. read more

Rudy's Tacos - Menu - taken on 7/22/17 - Mexican Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

Always on my list of places to stop when I'm in Waterloo. Fresh, local, delicious. Great beer selection to boot! Check it out. read more

I am a nacho junkie, and it started with Rudy's Tacos. I used to work and live down the road from this place. If you are not sharing, and not a complete glutton, l suggest the half order nachos because they are so filling. But Oh, so good. I have eaten at the location many times but mostly take-out. The decor is original and freaky so: I really like it. Although, I know of friends that hate it, I like originality. Every time I am in my hometown area, I get some Rudy's Nachos. Yum. read more

A pretty good place if you want Tex-Mex style Mexican food. It's not authentic obviously. I've gotten the enchiladas there multiple times and it's very bland meat wise. It's not seasoned whatsoever and I have to drown my enchiladas in hot sauce for some flavor. It's also kinda pricey in my opinion but overall unique decor and pretty decent food. read more

I have heard so many good things about this place that I finally decided to go and check it out for myself. I regret that decision. The food was tasteless, no flavor at all. The staff were very friendly but not worth the time or the money for that garbage. Don't waste your time if you actually like tacos. I will never go there again. (* the dolls hanging from the ceiling are super creepy , not why the went with that decor *) read more

We stopped for lunch on our way through town. We like dinner style kitsch and Ruby's fits the bill with 50's style dinner tables, chairs and booths. Add in about 450 Mexican style puppets hanging from the acoustic ceiling and you've got enough to keep you occupied along with the other middle-aged locals enjoying lunch conversations. I wouldn't call this truly Mexican, rather a version of 60's or 70's Iowa-American inspired Mexican. There isn't a "lunch" menu, so unless you order ala carte, plan on $13-$18 per person without drinks. I had the 1/2 Chimi and hubby had the small combo (which he declared was a misnomer). Our lunches came with a small iceberg lettuce salad without dressing, refried beans and rice. Seasoning on both menus was mild to none except for the canned sliced jalapeños, but I expect every one who frequents here knows that. The service was very friendly with drinks filled frequently. We came at 11:30 on a Friday and the place was 30% full. By 12:30 when we left there was a line 15 people long waiting to get in. Go figure, I guess kitsch a thing in Waterloo. read more

I wanted very much to love this place. It's locally sourced, absolutely cutely decorated and the type of people I like, seem to like it. The food is not even edible, though. It's insipid and pretty dang far from Mexican food. I've gone back repeatedly, trying to find a menu item I like, but it's all bad. read more

The food is over priced. You can get an authentic Mexican meal just a block away at Three Amigos a lot cheaper. Three enchiladas was almost $17. A specialty dinner with steak and bacon wrapped shrimp that was delicious at Three Amigos was less than the 3 enchiladas at Rudy's. We will drive past Rudy's the nweext time and go to Three Amigos. read more

Best TexMex out there. It's simple, extremely fresh. A good amount of the ingredients are local. The restaurant is uniquely decorated with retro wall hangings and a few hundred marionettes dangling from above. Not to mention the 50s kitchen tables. I always go simple, 3 hardshell beef tacos with lettuce cheese tomatoes onions jalapenos and black olives and a bowl of rice. Try "Barry's house salsa" and some guacamole. Fun fast fresh. A cedarloo gemstone. Stop in lava lounge or beer hall for a very unique retro drinking experience featuring an excellent beer selection including Belgians on tap and in bottles along with other imports and micros. A very impressive spirit collection as well. Best margaritas and Moscow mules in Iowa. Many other signature cocktails too. Bartenders are friendly and knowledgable but don't take any crap from unsavory customers. read more