Very tasty! Would definitely go back again. We stopped by for a late lunch during Christmas week…read more The lunch rush was over, but they were still busy with holiday shoppers. To drink, my husband had a Modelo. I tried the strawberry margarita. It was a bit sweeter than I'm used to and may have preferred a salted rim to sugar, but it was good. After our meal I asked our server about one they call the Flu Shot and I think I'll try that one next time. The chips were fresh and crunchy. Great corn flavor. I wasn't a big fan of the salsa but my husband liked it. A self-appointed burrito connoisseur, my husband was delighted by the significant variety Rancho Chico has to choose from. He chose the Express Burrito with ground beef. When it was brought to the table, we were both amazed by the immense size. The plate on which it's served is large and, you can see in the photo, it went all the way to the edges. I tried the sauce and it was quite tasty. He enjoyed the whole thing - literally! I ordered the Mariachi Bowl with steak - a truly beautiful dish. The steak was impeccably seasoned and delicious. I tried to eat all of the components separately, but quickly found the best bite was created by stirring everything together. I couldn't eat it all and was quite happy to bring home leftovers. I love trying something new each time we visit a restaurant, but I'm not sure how I will avoid ordering this one again and again.

For starters I am from Arizona.. so I'm a bit picky about Mexican food. I've seen this place all…read moreover my feed recently so I ordered a few things because I was really craving a specific kind of food and Rancho Chico did not disappoint. So the whole reason for the order carne fries w guac.. Oh My Goodness I ate almost the whole plate (ok more than shoveled into my mouth) before giving myself a stomachache..(WORTH IT). It had everything I wanted a little spice and some amazing queso. We also ordered pollo con queso (my spouse is basic but he said it was DELICIOUS). We got some carne asada street tacos and the churro cheesecake (we may have fought over this one! So good!). The carne asada was super tender and those salsas were so good!! I was not expecting the green to have as much of a kick as it did but it made me sweat a little, the red was fine but I don't normally go for that kind anyways my kid enjoyed it a lot.

Two words: authentic and fresh Two more words: local family…read more One word: OUTSTANDING! This is a wonderful family run restaurant across from the tire center near the Parkade in Cedar Falls. They serve authentic street tacos and authentic birria tacos and quesadillas that make you realize that the taste of Southern California cuisine resides within the area. And their homemade guacamole is also top notch. If you're anywhere near the area, you should definitely try this gem. Most highly recommended!

Excellent vibe and atmosphere. Best quesabirria tacos I've had in a long time. Very friendly…read morepeople. Great lunch spot!

Stopped in for a quick lunch on a Monday and they were really busy but got me in and out in a…read morehurry. The service was super fast and friendly. The complimentary chips and salsa weee still warm and the chips were thick but had a rapier good flavor. I had the fiesta enchiladas and they were really good. The rice was moist and the refried beans were nice and creamy. Great Job!!

The food was plenty full and tasteful. The sauce was good and the chips were good. The only reason…read morewhy I am leaving a three star is because the pricing.. these days everybody is trying to save a dollar and everything is seemingly more expensive so I chose a less expensive mail. The menu indicated.$14.99. When I receive my bill, I noticed I was charged.$15.99. The server said that it was because I chose a cheese enchilada and it was a dollar more expensive than the beef or the chicken.. given these times when meat is way expensive, I found that hard to believe that cheese is more expensive than that. Also, I don't remember seeing it on the menu so I reluctantly paid the extra dollar when I was trying to keep my bill with the tip under $20 as I am on a budget and it is splurging for me to eat out..

Chilito's is my favorite Mexican restaurant in the Waterloo area. Everything tastes so good. I…read morealways order fajitas or the fajitas tacos. The portions are large, so I have leftovers to take home, or sometimes my husband and I will share a meal. Rice and beans come with most meals and are so good. Their margaritas are delicious, but potent - so watch out :) If you go there on your birthday - you get a shot of top shelf tequilla and they take your picture and sing to you. It's so much fun! We've been doing take out during Covid - although they are open for dine in. It's always fast service and orders are always accurate. I highly recommend this place.

Did not have any fajitas without pineapple I'm not saying that it doesn't taste good. It's just…read morethat I'm not used to that. It must be one of their unique dish ingredients.. the service was good. The chips and salsa were good but we still have the same problem with the pricing. Oh my God do not buy a soft drink or a tea, etc. from them they want four dollars for a soda, which is the cheapest food item that they pay for in their overhead and with only two refills allowed seems a little stingy and they're trying to make some money off of that obviously so the best bet is just to have some water and by the way, the cheapest fajitas on the menu or $20. I'm not from around here. I'm visiting so I'm thinking that there must be a lot of rich people in this area to be spending these high prices at these local restaurants.

A little smaller than the original location but the food and service is just as outstanding!…read more Our takeout order consisted of The Barria Torta Sandwich and a Street Tacos and Barria Ramen Combo! All very good! The Torta Birria has guacamole on it that I normally would not order on my food but this is making me a believer! A little sparse on decor but it's bright and clean!

The food was great quick service and everything was great and served with quick and easyread more

Great service Great ambiance…read more Great food. Mano took care of me and helped me with my selection. Carne asada and chile relleno Plus caddy margarita.

Full disclosure: I'm a Mexican food snob. I spent 20 plus years in Texas and most Mexican food in…read moreIowa is bland and lacks authentic flavor. That's why I was EXTREMELY surprised to find authentic Mexican food at Chapala in Waterloo. It's a family restaurant that is now 18 years old ...and the recipes are from the kitchen of the grandmother of the owners. The chips and salsa are made on premises and they're very tasty. There's a ton of luncheon specials in the $9-12 range. And the food is REALLY tasty. I had the fresh steak quesadilla with the grilled fresh veggies and it was the best Mexican plate I've had in Iowa in the last five years. Top notch food. Top notch friendly staff. And they even carry Mexican Coca Cola and Mexican Pepsi. Most highly recommended!

This is an amazing Tex Mex place. The food is delicious and the portions are very large for what…read moreyou pay. The homemade salsa (free), chorizo queso dip, and burritos are all a must try.

I cant say enough great things about this place! ONE the food is incredible! Ive been going there…read morefor years tring somthing new everytime and there has yet to been a thing i havent liked. From the margs to the burria fries it is a must stop location . On top of all of this the owners are great! They will help you with eveything you need and will adjust your meal ( depending) for whatever you want or dont want. Stop here if you are driving through or make the drive to this great establishment.

My go to for Halal Mexican food, it has changed a lot of over the years and has new additions…read more Sadly my favorite workers are top dawgs at the other locations and I miss their hands on the dish plus they knew how I like everything.

The three of us were there for the first time last night. We mixed up our orders with Tacos,…read moreQuesadilla, and a Burrito...all three were good portions. All three could be "customized" with choices of toppings...all of us were very satisfied with our choices. The three tacos were ordered as the Combo...one steak, one pork, and one chicken. The Quesadilla was the Pork and the Burrito was the Steak version. The gal taking our orders was very friendly and helpful in taking our orders and making suggestions for us newbies. The chips served with the meals were very good but there was no salsa...I should have asked about getting some but the chips were good regardless. The place could use some help visually as it was pretty sparse on any decor...but the value is good and we'll be back!

The service we received today at lunch, September 27, 2025 was so overwhelmingly incompetent and…read moreinept, you couldn't pay me or the other members of our party to ever consider coming back here. I can't comment in the food, because after how long we'd been waiting, and how many times our server messed things up, we had to leave to get back to our conference at UNI. We finally had to request to get our orders in to-go boxes, and when they arrived at the table, half of what we ordered was missing. What was in the to-go boxes was pretty much the ingredients just hastily thrown together. It took our server TWELVE MINUTES (!!!) to total up and prepare the bills for five small orders. It's the first time I left a restaurant on an empty stomach, and we had been there for an hour when we left. Our server and the manage repeatedly reminded us that it was only that servers third day on the job. That doesn't excuse taking twelve minutes to ring up orders, leaving half the items off our orders, and it getting to the point where a party is so frustrated that some opt to go hungry and leave rather than wasting even more time waiting around. The incompetence of our server was sobering, I'd rather have had someone cold and curt over someone who obviously could not handle the job. There were only seven other tables when we were there, how will she handle is when it's a packed restaurant on a game weekend?? I hope that if others experience this poor of an experience from this server, that management gets it that she's probably just not a good fit for working in a restaurant. Lastly, we were offered 10% discount cards for if we came back. That felt kind of insulting. After some of us not even getting our food, and the extraordinary, sustained dysfunction of our server, they should have at least offered a complimentary meal card.

The mint mojito was perfect and the mole chicken delicious!! Service was great and the restaurant…read moretemperature was comfortable. I'm looking forward to trying the shrimp with avocado...

Huge portion sizes, great prices, excellent service (as for Olivia!). Got a paloma which was…read moredelicious and not sweet (a plus in my opinion), and huachinango frito. It was ever so slightly over done but still delicious. Chips were warm, salsa flavorful.

This is our absolute favorite Mexican restaurant! Their burritos are VERY large, and full of sauce…read more The street tacos are perfect! A big portion of meat and super tender! The service has always been kind and quick! Such a cute atmosphere and always a great temp!