No, I've never been to Mexico or Texas as the other reviewers have so I can't compare, but Tia Helita's serves great food regardless of how "authentic" it is. The stewed beef in the burritos is tender and tasty and the chips & salsa are fabulous. I also had the best fish tacos ever just last night. The ambiance is a bit dated and cheap, but if you are going for the food, who cares? I've never had a waitress who was less than attentive and friendly. This is where I bring family when they come in to town to visit and it's the place they always request to go back to. read more

Not all that. I've had much better and far more authentic Mexican cuisine elsewhere. Hell, even Taco Bell is tastier! The chips were oily as could be, dripping in oil. Gross. The cheese enchiladas were soggy and tasted like they were encased in nothing but oil and processed cheeses. I've never eaten anything very good there, although I must admit that I've eaten there more than I have cared to since I have relatives that thoroughly enjoy this place. I have no genuine idea why, however, they do love Golden Corral, so I guess there is no accounting for taste. I understand that it used to really be "something" back in the day. I don't honestly know what happened, but it's certainly past its heyday. The food is super oily and greasy and it's also given me serious indigestion as well. It is fairly inexpensive, though and they do have a large menu from which to choose. Service is extremely spotty. Be prepared to wait for the check to hit the table. read more

After a rather disastrous outing at another mexican place 20 minutes south- my wife and I were ready for something good. I have to say we were impressed. The service was excellent, the food ( we had tamales and enchiladas) was great. No complaints unlike some of the other reviews. I will agree that the appetizer menu was missing a few things like ceviche like most Mexican restaurants in Mexico. Worth the trip? You won't be disappointed! read more

Tia what ? Used to be the place in the area. Needs an update. I remember eating there 10 years ago. It was the best. Quality and staff has taken a nose dive. Clean it up. Hire authentic cooks and revamp your recipes. 6.2 out of 10 stars. That's the review. read more

Love this place. Best Mexican food ever. Homemade chips and smooth salsa. The rice and wet beef burritos are really good. Nachos are a big serving of there own to share. I come back here every time I visit family since I can't find any other place like it. Family owned and operated which makes the food some days spicier than others but at least you know your not getting it from a can or bottle like the chain restaurants. read more

I like mexican food. I have been to a number of Mexican restaurants. Ive even been to Mexico. And I like this place. I dont get the negative reviews. I've been here 7-8 times and had carry out probably another 10 times. I thought the food was great. And the lunch deals are the way to go. For the price of a McDonalds meal deal, you could get a great lunch to go. read more

My favorite food is Mexican, authentic Mexican. I have eaten food cooked by a local woman on the beach in cozumel. Tia Helita is the best Mexican food I've had inside this country. I regularly drive 50 miles to eat there. read more

they have the best chips and salsa and really fast service :) they have good tostadas too

This used to be my favorite Mexican restaurant, but I do not think it is as good as it used to be. I love their wet burritos with stew beef, but lately they do not have as much flavor. The chips the other night we're cold and didn't seem as fresh as they usually are. The salsa had no flavor. Normally it's a little spicier which I like. read more

Came here for lunch after the Michigan state bowling tournament. It seems pretty authentic. Drinks are good. Service was a 3/5. We had a group of 10. The wait staff seemed bothered by us. Not sure that I would come back here. read more

Authentic Mexican at its finest! The food is great, drinks are great, service is great. All around a good time. The seating layout is very unique and offers privacy; I enjoy it. I usually order a few à la carte tacos, which are always made correctly and fresh. The chips & salsa is to die for; I don't live far from the place so I often swing in just to take a order of chips & salsa to-go. Margaritas are great and priced fair! Give it a try, I recommend 10/10 read more

Went here with my dad today. I'm not the biggest fan of Mexican food, but I'm a young adult who'll eat just about anything if you put it in front of me and it doesn't start moving. xD My dad had the Ground Beef Wet Burrito dinner, while I got the Steak fajita dinner because I'd been eating chicken all week. We also ordered a plate of their wings. Wow. That's all I can say. The wings were tasty, cooked right, and the skin was crispy and crunchy as it should be. My steak tasted GREAT! It was well done, which admittedly makes you lose some of the flavor but was seasoned so well it came out fine and smiling. The Spanish rice and re-fried beans were also delicious. My dad enjoyed his burrito and LOVED the wings especially, and we got another order of them to go. If you are in Flint and starving and want good food, by all means give these folks a try. read more

Chicken Nacho wasn't so good. Shrimp Taco was really good. Chips are the bomb! Definitely will go back for the chips!

So I'm gonna keep it short & simple. This is, in my opinion, the best Mexican food I've ever had. I always get the shredded chicken wet burrito (at lunch time it's even cheaper) and it's so yummy. Don't even get me started on the guac They have the best Mexican rice. There's a guy who's been working here for what seems like forever, he has a neck tattoo (idk his name) and he is my favorite there. He makes that place, he runs that place!!! He's amazing. So nice, great personality and so fast at serving. I always recommend this place to someone who wants Mexican. read more

My fiancé went there a couple weeks ago ,and was seated in a quieter away from everyone, little room with three tables. That really made for our Friday date night more romantic. We ordered a dinner for 2 which was great, service was great, drinks Yum . The chips were homemade but we're a lacking of seasoning salt the salsa was very liquidity hard to dip. Other than very good and homemade chips read more

Loved this place! I haven't found any outstanding Mexican restaurants in the area, so I thought I'd pop into Tia Helita's despite its 3 star Yelp rating. Everything was perfect! Relaxing and super cute atmosphere, great service, good margaritas, and good food! The prices were awesome as well! Will definitely be returning soon! read more

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I tried this with my girlfriend last night. It was the first time I had been there. She's a lifelong area resident so she's been here a lot, and knows what she likes. I decided to try the Golden Tacos. They are deep fried flour shell tacos with chicken, lettuce and cheese. I have NEVER had chicken tacos like these. The chicken was shredded chicken from a can! Gross. All I could taste was the solution the canning company packs the chicken in. I would have expected some sort of grilled chicken from a Mexican restaurant. Taco Bell chicken is WAY better than this. For the price, it was totally not worth it. Also, what Mexican restaurant doesn't give you chips and salsa for free? Those are appetizers here, and cost extra. read more

Family favorite for me over the past 34 years. Our favorites are the enchiladas, nachos and drinks. Chips aren't free, but these are "homemade" fresh daily! Not frozen and out of a box! Great food, service and atmosphere. Any issues with good quality promptly resolved. I've read comments below about "salty" stew meat, if you don't mention the problem, it can't be corrected. They are a great family run and owned business. Always a pleasure! read more

We LOVE this Mexican restaurant. You can't get better chips (always super fresh) + homemade salsa and guac that's fantastic. My go-to is the cheese enchiladas and my husband's is the taco's reynosa (no longer on the menu, but you can request them -- steak, grilled onion, cilantro, and cheese) cooked with a medium shell. I love that you can request your tacos soft, medium, or hard. Everything is always fresh and delicious. I could eat here several times a week and never get tired of it. So good! read more

I always smells so good, but that's where it ends. Zero taste, zero spice, like they cook all the taste and flavor right out the roof. I've tried numerous times always disappointed, will not be back. Mexican food for those who do not know what Mexican food is. It your want good mexican food, try Mija Los Ponchos Fenton Rd. Their Grande Burger is good, but who goes to a mexican joint for a burger. read more

I have been here a few times, and have never been particularly impressed with the quality of the food, nor the service. The burrito I most recently had was sub par, and just tasted bland and overwhelmed by the old tomato paste they pour on everything. The wait staff took forever to bring out the food, and it was cold. There are much better Mexican restaurants near by. I have friends who always talk this place up, but I'm not sure why. read more

The food is decent, but there are a couple better Mexican restaurants in the area now. The place is kid friendly and has good liquor specials all the time. They do a good job with take-out. read more

Been coming to this place for ever since I was born pretty much. The food is amazing! Love the homemade chips and salsa and the burritos are out of this world! Will recommend this to everyone that loves Mexican food! read more

My favorite Mexican restaurant in the area. When we lived out of state and came back to visit, we had to eat here. My sisters do the same thing when they come back to Flint. Everything on the menu is great. read more

I have been going to this restaurant for many years it is my favorite mexican restaurant in flint. The food is always good and fresh the service is excellent and the prices are low. If your looking for some good authentic mexican food I highly recommend eating here the atmosphere is great and so is the food. read more

The only redeeming thing was the chips; the salsa was so bland it was basically a non-food. My daughter ordered tacos, which she wouldn't eat because she said the meat tasted "funny". I ordered the cheese quesadilla which was two flour tortillas and cheese, no sides, no veggies, and rang up at $11.50! My husband got steak tacos, and was disappointed that the "steak" is actually beef stew. This was our first and last visit. read more

What do I love more? The magaritas (so many flavor choices!) or the food? I don't think I can choose!

Great Mexican place around the area. Food is seasoned great, portions are large, and the staff is quite friendly. The lunch deals are great and you can't go wrong with any of the choices. Even the non traditional Mexican dishes are amazing as well. Surprisingly, their appetizer wings are very crispy and tasty. read more

We love this place! My family has been going here for years. My boyfriend and I can't get enough of their chips and salsa, and their homemade cherry coke is the best! read more

You either like this place or you hate it. I love the chicken enchiladas and their chips and salsa are the absolute best (but not free). My husband doesn't like their food (but he does love the chips and salsa). He says it's bland, but I pile the salsa on top of my enchiladas, so I guess I wouldn't know. :) read more

Ok Mexican food -- not very authentic as it turns out-- dark ambience. I prefer Puerto Vallarta down the road in Grand Blanc.

Excellent food and service. Highly recommend them for great Mexican food. If there was a downside it would be the size of the parking lot and sometimes on a weekend, it is hard to find a place to park. read more

I'm from Texas. Love Meixican Food. Love Tex-Mex even better. Not sure what the blue hell they're serving in Michigan. I've been there twice and probably won't go back. My standards may be a bit high on Mexican food, but only because it is my favorite. The service here has sucked both times. The last time people were not getting their food at several tables and were PISSED! But overall, i just didn't like the salsa, or the food. Very bland and typical of what you might find in a Swanson Dinner. Notw, if you've had problems with your digestion or constipation, you need to eat here. Order the sampler and it will clean you out before you go to sleep that night. For some, before you leave to go home. Oh, what do I like..La Mexicana 4 in Waterford is the best Mexican I have had here. read more

As a lifelong lover of Mexican food, one of my favorite qualities of this cuisine is that no matter where you go, the combination of cheese, beans, rice, meats and tortillas no matter how simple is generally decent if not delicious, right? No. Enter Tia Helitas. They have managed to find a way to combine these simple ingredients in a most disgusting way, totally over seasoned with salt. Both meals that we ordered were equally disgusting (I can't think of a worse meal that I've had in recent years) To add insult to culinary injury, the meals were priced a few dollars more than the average (and much better) Mexican restaurant! Please save your tastebuds and cash and go to any other Mexican restaurant. Whichever one you choose, it will be much better! read more

Tried this place for the first time and will not be returning. Waitress was rude when we asked what certain menu items were. I paid extra to have cheese on my main dish was charged the extra amount even thou it did not come with the cheese and the waitress then told me that cheese wasn't an option on my dry burrito only wet burrito? U have to pay for chips and salsa. Chips had a weird thick seasoning on them that no one in my group liked. Dishes were wimpy with a couple tablespoons each of rice and beans. Bad food, bad service. How did this restaurant get voted best of Burton 2012? I will not be returning. read more

Overall, just OK. Everything we ordered that had chicken in it reminded me of something..... then it hit me! It all tastes like Campbell's chicken noodle soup, seriously! Salsa was meh! Nothing special. Isn't mexican food supposed to have to seasonings and spice? This is all pretty bland. service was friendly but found it to be a little slow. Won't be back, my favorite is still the mexican restaurant in downtown Flushing!!! Oh, salsa and chips don't cost extra there! read more

The food was horrible comma and service slow and rude. The chips and salsa were very disappointing for being a fennec Mexican restaurant

Our entire family has eaten at this wonderful "family's" restaurant for over 40 years and it's just as great now as it was originally. It's real, it's cooked with dedication and love, and they are an awesome family. My dad would go directly back in to the kitchen way back when Mary was still cooking, and miss his entire dinner because he was so busy talking! I hope this family carries on its wonderful cooking traditions for years to come! Anyone who hasn't eaten here is missing out, and anyone who finds fault. ..has no taste. This is most definitely not fast food..... read more

Mexican food is my favorite. I've never disliked a Mexican restaurant till I came here. I really tryed to like this place, just didnt happen. I walked in and was seated promptly. The place wasnt very busy. Service sucked. It took awhile before someone came over. A guy took my drink order and then the waitress came over and didnt know someone else took the drink order. I got my drinks. Waitress brought over the worst chips and salsa I ever had. I bit into the chips they were like thin layer of cement. Hard as a rock. I asked the waitress if she could bring me chips that werent so hard and stale. She brought me the same kind of chips. I guess she didnt listen. I ordered steak tacos, it was like a shredded beef? When did steak turn into a nasty shredded beef. This place was gross nasty and disgusting. I could find better food in a garbage dumpster then this place. Taco Bell is gourmet food compared to this nasty s--- hole. read more

No, I would never go here again. The food is overpriced, and definitely not authentic. The margaritas are weak, and taste like sweet and sour mix, that has been watered down. Bought an extra shot of tequila for the same price as the drink itself. The bartender apologized, and stated she would discount my bill, but never did. Anyway, I paid my tab, walked out... and never to return. There are plenty of other great Mexican restaurants in the area, and I certainly will not try my luck with this place ever again. read more