This is a place I don't always think of when I am deciding where to go eat, but every time I go, I leave satisfied and my Tex-Mex craving is satisfied (for a day or two anyway!). I also go in thinking I'll try something different, but I always end up eating fajitas, which is their trademark. The set up of the place is good-plenty of fairly open tables and some booths. The service is decent and the place is clean, so good marks on those counts. I highly recommend the steak and Parilla (moderately spicy small shrimp) fajita combo. Good sizzling meat (cooked to order) with basic fixings like pico, guacamole, grilled onions and a grilled jalapeno. Cheese and sour cream are extra, which is odd. The rice is very good and they've changed their beans to more of a standard refried variety-they used to be soup-like in a cup. Kids meals were decent sized and looked appetizing and were enjoyed. I almost forgot, the buttery, foamy, garlic sauce that comes on the side with their shrimp dishes (fajitas as well) is out-of this-world! Freshly made flour tortillas are plentiful-wish they'd make some corn ones as well! Overall, a good place in a very good restaurant area. read more

I never have a bad time at Uncle Julio's, and I never leave not full. I went w/ my bff who had never been before, so automatically that meant we had to go... We both started off with Swirls, which are margaritas and sangrias frozen and blended together. We didn't care for them (because we love sweet drinks), but this is my mom's fav (and she likes more mellow not sweet drinks). So we exchanged our drinks from something I made up, a strawberry-peach frozen margarita.... DE-LIC-IOUS. I ordered my usual, the chicken enchiladas with red sauce, and she got the fajitas and the crab meat guac for our appetizer. She seemed to love both. And even though I don't really like seafood, the crabmeat guac was awesome. There was so much food left from her fajitas they looked untouched when she said she was full. So if you're in the mood for fajitas, make sure you come with a couple hungry friends who can help you eat it. Overall, we had a great time, our service was good, and food was even better, just how I like it! Making a reservation is best for this place! read more

Uncle Julio's - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

Wow, I was not expecting to see many less-than-flattering reviews. I guess the management should take note (hint, hint) that the service fluctuates wildly. This is not 100% authentic Mexican food, but definitely is far more realistic than the average Mexican-themed restaurant. Frog legs? Check. Quail? Check. Tamales? Check. Cool brunch options other than huevos rancheros? Check. My family really enjoyed the ambience and the genuine heat in the hot salas and three-pepper guacomole. We also loved the fresh tortillas - so much better than you can buy in the store. I had the chicken tamales; my uncle had a platter of something wonderful; and my mom and aunt shared the chile rellenos. Everyone was fat and happy by the end of the meal. read more

Staff was not welcoming. Waited 40 minutes for someone to clear our table and ask what my family would like to drink. I have gone to Orland Park location and have had a good experience! Great service every time I've been at the Orland park location! I would not go to Lombard location ever again. The Manager seemed like she did not know what was going on, did not know how to handle a busy Friday night, and was rude. read more

Nice little Mexican restaurant. Big parking lot in shopping mall. Outside sitting is first come first serve. We got margaritas of course! Raspberry was delicious and strong. Strawberry tasted like it had fresh strawberries and the skinny one was not very good. They give you tons of light chips with dip. You can ask for spicy dip too and they will bring it for free. We got fajitas which are large enough to split the one portion. The flour tortilla is thick and fills you up quick. The salad has good lime dressing and is large portion as well. All in all, okay Mexican place. Great service. read more

See all

The ambiance of uncle julio's hacienda is a homey tex-mex party. The best thing about the food is they have a strong appetizer line-up. Each table gets a basket of tortilla chips made within the restaurant (1 basket= 2-3 people) and cup of some excellent roasted pepper salsa. Aside from the salsa, you can order some creamy, well seasoned guacamole made at your table among some other types of dip that were probably just as good. When our entrees came around, I was surprised to see that they appeared to be cheaper looking than the awesome appetizers. I was right. Flavors were good but one dimensional and most dishes come with a side of beans that I didn't care for at all. The service was decent but our waiter looked pretty frantic running around past other servers. I went to the bathroom about 20 feet from my table and I probably saw over 10 servers on my way there. I think they'd make an excellent catering company. read more

Uncle Julio's - Some wonderful fresh guacamole garnished with diced tomatoes, onions, and cilantro that I already mixed in. - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

Walked in behind another group and we both stood there while the hosts looked at each other for five minutes. Upon being seated we asked to switch to a booth and the host seemed annoyed. Sorry for making you do your job buddy. Our waitress was the best part of the experience. She was attentive and very good at her job. I asked for the steak that came with my meal to be cooked well done and apon arrival it wasn't. I ordered fijitas and for some reason tortillas were not brought out with my food so I had to wait for the runner to go get them while everyone else at my table began to eat. The food also took forever to come out. They weren't even busy so I am confused as to why it took so long, about 35 minutes. read more

Uncle Julio's - "well done" - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

I'm only giving two stars because our waiter Jorge was awesome. It was the worst experience ever. So we had reservations and they sat us immediately. They tried to put us in a booth but it was super uncomfortable because my husband is 6ft tall so we asked for a table. The host sat us at a table against a wall and there was literally no room for us to even pull chairs out. The other table was so close to ours, and the people sitting there were heavy set. So there chairs were sticking far out to where we couldn't pull our chairs out. Then I asked the manager JOSE to be moved again, & I explained the situation, I was telling him how their was not enough room to pull out the chairs because of the wall and people next to us. I told him it would be too uncomfortable. His response was "that's going to be anywhere though" like are you kidding me?? I would LOVE TO SEE HIM AND HIS FAMILY CRAM INTO THAT TABLE AND EAT COMFORTABLY. Then we got our new table, all is good. Then our food comes out, and it's cold. Jorge was busy sitting a family of what looked like 10 or 12. So he was super busy & my husband suggested we just eat it since it looked like we weren't going to get his or any other service person attention anytime soon. I clearly stated in the reservation I would like a dessert for my daughter as a surprise since it was her birthday. But nope. All we got was the check. It was frustrating over all. Very bad experience. A waste of $100 read more

I like this place, mainly because of the drinks though. I've been here more than a dozen times at several different locations. Lombard, however, is the one I frequent most often. Positives: the drinks here, They have a variety of margaritas and a decent selection of beers. The Frozen Swirl margarita, which is an Uncle Julio's classic, is actually worth the hype. They have the chips and salsa on the tables as part of your meal, which is nice. Service has always been great here; the staff is attentive, friendly, and checks back frequently. Food is pretty solid. There are shrimp tacos here that will blow you away. The grilled fajitas are also pretty good. One thing that confuses me about this place, and maybe it's just the Lombard location and I've never paid attention to the other places, but there are no burritos here? Very odd for a Mexican place... Less than four/five stars because this location is always jam packed. Plan on waiting about an hour on weekends and 45 minutes on weekdays for a table. There is the option to sit at the bar, but that's not always feasible in groups of greater than two. Additionally, and this probably goes without saying: this is a "chain" Tex-Mex place. You're not going to get totally authentic Mexican food here, but the decency of what is served and the general vibe of the place make up for it. read more

The menu sucked, the bus boy did more than the server and was tipped $20 for all his help! I won't be going back to hand Lombard location anytime soon read more

Is there a way to give a negative review? Waited outside for food for over 3 hours for pickup before food was finally done. 3 hours and 20 min late. Service was nonexistent. Only reason that I didn't off myself while waiting was talking with the 20+ other people who also waited 3+ hours for their food. Food was pretty good. But the fact that they did nothing to help their customers that waited out in the cold for their food instead of being able to be home with their families makes this a no go. So if you have hours and hours of time to waste sitting outside with strangers during a pandemic then this is your go to. If you are like most people who would rather have their food at the time they say they will have it done. DONT GO HERE read more

I had my 17th birthday its great,but do to covid on chocolate pinata with fruit and other small desserts inside am sure by the time covid gozzo they will bring it back read more

This is an excellent restaurant! Great food and drinks. I recommend Daniel as the server. Real down to earth cool server. If you're down for Mexican; this is the spot. read more

Went there on a Wednesday evening, and everything was lovely! The food was extremely good and came out very quickly. Our server Daniel was kind and efficient. Steak fajitas for two was perfectly cooked and portioned. read more

I tried the Uncle Julios Hacienda in Lombard today. I was pleasantly suprised that the food was so good. I had the following: Guadalajara $ 21.99: 10-12 Count Shrimp, stuffed with cheese & jalapeños, wrapped in bacon and the mixed steak & chicken fajitas. It was really good! The shrimp were cooked perfectly. The bacon was crisp and not greasy. The chicken was flavorful and tender. The beef was cooked medium and was also very flavorful and tender. The meal also came with guacamole, pico De Gallo, tortillas, salsa and chips. Well worth the price! The service was great as well. I sat at the bar and Dan was my server. He remembered each if his customers 1st names and kept my water glass full. Keep in mind that their food does not have the depth of flavor of a truly authentic Mexican restaurant. But it is still very good Americanized "Mexican" food. If you are in the area, give them a try. read more

Uncle Julio's - Guadalajara platter - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

I hadn't been to this restaurant in probably five years. And there certainly was a reason why I had returned until now. I would've given it one star but our waiter was very nice. I ordered a shrimp dish that had six butterflied shrimp that look like they cut off the part and left about an inch if that, of shrimp attached to the tail. Between the six shrimp you might've gotten about to normal large shrimp. They look like they were hacked off. Very disappointing for $22. Tiny scoop of guacamole,Some diced up tomatoes and thankfully since I asked for double beans cause I don't like rice, I made a meal out of the beans which to be honest with you were not really refried beans. Very very disappointing. Since I am recently recouping from surgery I accidentally hit the menu on my drink and spilled it all over. Do you think they would've even asked me if I wanted another one even if I was to pay for it the least they could've done was say do you want another? But no. Good place for people that have no idea what Mexican food tastes like. And I must say it was very hard to hold a conversation with friends because it was so very loud in there. No plans ever to return here. There are so many other decent Mexican restaurants around the same area where at least you feel like you ate something. read more

Wow, I never ever write reviews and this is called. As my family walked in today to enjoy our monthly outing we chose this restaurant. As we arrived this looked at us as if we are invisible- Then they told us they were cleaning a table- and never did. We stood there and nobody came- TALK About DISCRIMINATION!!! I have never thought we would be treated like we were invisible, lied to and ignored for NO REASON. My 6 year old even asked why other people got seated after they walked in after us. They will not get our business because my children watched this in action. Pure disgrace for mankind and LOVE . As we left they just stared at us- like a bad movie and we continued to walk out in turn they never even said anything in return. The drama needs to stop and judgement is upon us all. God bless. read more

Yummy chips and guacamole and steak bowl, my friend enjoyed the enchiladas, a little pricey but still quality food

Server Oliver was super attentive and nice. Made our anniversary dinner great!!! Thank you !!!

My first time here was great. I came from out of town and wanted to go somewhere close. I sat at the bar and the bartender was busy, but attentive. Her drinks were great, too. Love the Spicy Margarita!! The food was delicious. I got the shrimp tacos with rice and beans. I would definitely come back. read more

Uncle Julio's - The swirl - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

See all

Our visit was such a disappointment., First the place was jammed packed. If you're looking for social distancing you won't find it here. The service was beyond slow. After the long wait for our food everyone was ready to just pack it to go and leave. I ate two bites of my chicken enchiladas and almost passed out bcz of the saltines. We didn't take advantage of the 10 dollar take home special for fear that it would take another 5 years to get. We tried our best to give a little grace to the waitress bcz she was an older lady but I'll never go back here again. read more

I went there with my sister on My Loving day My Birthday July 3rd the food was very good. I'll love to go back. read more

Uncle Julio's - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

I really wanted to like this well decorated and energetic chain in my family's hometown, unfortunately I left wanting more and feeling overall slightly disappointed. I will say we got there early afternoon on a Holiday and we're seated before our projected wait time which is always a nice plus. Once we were seated we were promptly served drinks and chips and salsa too. We ordered some table side guacamole for an appetizer which was honestly my favorite part of my whole meal and is always entertaining to watch. It was good but also didn't pack any spectacular flavor to it. Between the four of us I had the grilled fish tacos, there were two orders of various enchiladas, and a fajita platter. The fish tacos were decent at best. I may be a bit of a fish taco snob, but these just didn't have great flavor, the dressing they claim is on the tacos was severely lacking, and the seasoning on the fish itself I didn't love. The enchiladas seemed to have alright reviews and the fajita platter seemed fairly average. The restaurant was also freezing the entire time we were there. Literally people at the tables around us looked uncomfortably cold and it was nearly 80 out. Unfortunately that only added to a less than stellar dining experience. Despite the service being pretty legit and the waitress being very friendly, I would not recommend coming here for authentic Mexican food when there are so many other options nearby and readily available. read more

Hangin out with my Aunt and her two friends for dinner at Uncle Julio's in Lombard, IL on Monday, June 27, 2022. As soon as we sat down nice crispy warm chips and salsa were delivered to our table. My aunt and her friends ordered the original margarita cocktails; I ordered the frozen swirl margarita cocktail which was amazing. The meals were the steak bowl, enchilada dinner, two beef taco dinner and the three steak taco dinner with a side order of habenero shrimp. Everyone enjoyed their meals. Noel our waiter was very nice, I think he had more tables than he could adequately attend to. Although the food was good; it took quite a while for us to get it. I asked one of the waiters that was walking by if she could check on our order. The young lady came back to the table with our meals apologizing for it taking so long for us to get our food. It also took a while for us to get refills on the chips and dips and to order more drinks. read more

See all

I visited uncle Julio's for Father's Day. Looking forward to getting out for some good Mexican food. Waited 40 minutes, which was ok. Seated outside which was expected due to COVID 19 concerns. Waited 20 minutes before any service. Had to flag a waiter down who finally got us some water. Had to replace a dirty fork and then they finally brought the appetizer about a minute before entrees. In Fairness, the second waiter did work hard to help us, but why did it take that? Most of all the food was below average. VERY limited and too basic of a menu. The biggest issue is the terrible service. We heard other tables complaining also. It got so bad it was comical. The comped the appetizer after I told them to but they really should have comped the whole meal. If they had, I might give them another chance. As it is, I won't go back there. read more

My future mother in law and I went there to get dinner tonight and I'm so disappointed. My mother in law had the bacon wrapped camarones and the shrimp was super dry. I ordered a mama Julio's nachos and I can't believe this is what they serve for nachos. The chips weren't even the same as the ones they brought out for free (which were really good). The chips tasted like the ones from the gas station with a little less salt. I can't believe this is what they call Mexican food. read more

Uncle Julio's - Nachos - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

I was SO EXCITED to find this Tex Mex restaurant on a business trip from New York! I went to the restaurant twice in four days. It started in Dallas with several (but not many) locations in the US and has all of your standard Tex Mex affair: queso, fajitas, enchiladas, chimichangas, etc. The fajitas were delicious with thick, juicy pieces of chicken and plenty of onions. They skimped a little on the bell peppers. The flour tortillas are made on site, my absolute favorite. On two nights with two groups, the queso and guac bowls were licked clean. For apps, dinner, and drinks for 6 we spent something like $160 which, coming from New York, blew my mind that it could be so cheap. The only complaint is the margaritas, which are made with margarita mix. What a disappointment! They weren't able to make a classic margarita with tequila, lime juice, and orange liqueur. Really sad situation that would be so easy to fix. Skip a margarita on the rocks and order a Swirl instead. read more

Rude service, mediocre overpriced food. We came for brunch on Sunday and were supposed to be a group of 10 people. Unfortunately we had a lot of last minute cancellations and wound up only being 6 - we were upfront with the staff about this, though. Someone who looked like maybe he was a manager came by and acted very rude about this and took away one of our tables... even though the restaurant was 75% empty? Normally I would completely understand, we didn't need all the tables and other people could be using them... but not only was the restaurant mostly empty, the manager was extremely curt with us as though it's our fault our friends cancelled. Our actual server did not seem very experienced and the service was very slow. We ordered off the brunch menu - first thing I noted was that all the dishes are like $12 and they're all vegetarian. Adding meat was something crazy like $6 more... I don't see any reason why quesadillas made with eggs and potatoes should cost $12.... my point is the food is over priced and absolutely nothing special. Our server also mixed up pretty much every body's meals, drinks and checks. Overall pretty poor experience - will not repeat. read more

The service here was poor today! First, I ordered a Mango Margarita on the rocks and it tasted like pure salt and there was nothing Mango about it! I then ordered a glass of Sangria which was very good. Once my entree finally came (45 minutes later) my fish was undercooked! (I ordered the fish tacos). Needless to say, that ruined my entire appetite! I mean, I couldn't even bite into the fish as it was tough and still pink inside. How disgusting. I will NEVER come back! read more

We had heard from several people that the food here was overpriced, but I did t find it to be that much more than comparable Mexican restaurant. We were promptly seated and ordered margaritas. They were very sweet and I couldn't finish mine. We both ordered combo platters. They came with a good portion of food. Neither of us liked the watery beans. Food was pretty good, but nothing spectacular. read more

Ok - let's take it from the top... Stopped in on a quiet Monday night and sat at the bar. I'm immediately served chips and a roasted pepper salsa - thumbs up on the salsa, definitely my favorite. Chips were hot too - of the "thin" variety, which was fine by me. Main reason for stopping was to seek out a frozen margarita. This place is part of a chain, so I'm expecting the 7-11 Slurpee frozen version and my suspicions were correct. I decide to order a "swirl" with Grand Marnier. This is a frozen marg with red sangria poured around the outer side. Then a scooped out lime half is plopped atop the slurp and a shot of Grand Marnier is poured into it. So I dumped the shot into the rest of the drink and enjoyed it - in fact, I ended up ordering two. Now for dinner... not really a huge variety, most of the offerings are a type of fajita. I ended up getting the "Laredo" which is a chicken/steak combo fajita with two enchiladas that are stacked. I'm curious to see how they plan to "stack" two rolled enchiladas - well, they "cheated" and didn't roll them. A queso sauce over the top was a good tip from the bartender. The fajitas were good - but definitely more "Americanized" than Mexican. And honestly, at $21.99 it's a little pricier than what I would expect to pay for a similar dish at alternative, independent Mexican restaurants with more authentic food. Finally - the bartenders - James & Mike. Two good eggs - attentive service, sociable and friendly. At one point I mentioned a Yelp review at another restaurant and both kinda commented, "oh, so we're on stage here". Too funny. So here's my take. Worth a return trip for the bartenders and maybe even the slurpee margaritas. But as food goes, what I had wasn't all that special and it seemed to come with somewhat of a premium price. Three stars. read more

It was tasty but kinda expensive for Mexican food and not that big for portions .. loved the dessert tho . Made it all worth it . read more

Uncle Julio's - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

Taco Bell on steroids. Go to the Old Orchard (Skokie) location if you want slightly better food and drinks. Service was horrible as well. It took forever for our food to arrive and the order was incorrect. Two stars for effort, our waiter was nice, but that's the only positive thing I can say. read more

Love having options for inside and outside! Delicious homemade guacamole tables idea. El Jefe is the best margarita. Service attitude and timeless was not great! read more

Uncle Julio's - Ellen Jefe - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

Had a horrible experience. Service was sub standard at best, the food order was incorrect, and came out at various times. so we sat with the fajitas and had to ask the busy server for the tortillas. It was unfortunate that we were celebrating my sons birthday. Will not be going back, bad experience read more

My husband and I had a place we had a memorable experience of bad food, we laugh about it whenever we pass by that place. Today we have our new low mark for future reference. - The rice was uncooked and dry; my fish taco? The worst I've ever had. A $2 street taco would have been better. To be fair though, the chicken fajita was nice and flavorful. read more

I love this restaurant with all my heart and have for years, however at my last visit I found something I just cannot unsee, there was a bug in the middle of our salt after using it and i am disgusted. After approaching the manager about this situation he offered us just to get another bottle. He responded and said "oh that's not good" and proceeded to walk away. He had someone else return a salt can to us and continued to walk by our table not apologizing once. After this experience I am very taken back on how this kitchen is run and how sanitary it might stand. Next time you go just be aware of the food and condiments you may be using. read more

Uncle Julio's - Mexican Near Me - Lombard, Illinois

See all

I have been really craving Mexican food for about a month. Tonight I thought I would finally get my fix at Uncle Julio's. What the heck happened to this place? I used to come to UJ regularly as I worked practically next door. They had good food, really good chips and salsa, and great margaritas. Tonight was the new UJ's I guess. I loved the steak enchilada/burritos they used to have. Great steak, cheese on them, good Mexican steak flavored. Apparently the don't have them anymore! So looking for a steak thing, I got the steak tacos. The steak was good steak but zero Mexican flavor, sauce, spice, whatever. Heck, the didn't even give me any hot sauce for the tacos. I almost poured on the salsa that came with the chips! This place has gone down hill fast and I used to love it. They are still busy as heck, though. Not sure why. And the place isn't inexpensive, either. Not outrageous but clearly not worth it. While keeping the Mexican name and theme it seems they gave up on the Mexican flavor. They are about as authentic Mexican as Taco Bell. Save your money. Go buy a bottle of Jose Cuervo margaritas and then run through the Taco Bell drive through. You'll be better off! read more

I visited this establishment yesterday craving some authentic Mexican food...I placed a to go order and the customer service was horrible when I went back in to pick up my food which was not all that great either. First and last time! read more

This place is so loud that it is impossible to enjoy a meal between four people. The music is loud and no one is listening. It is impossible to have a conversation. The food becomes irrelevant and hard to appreciate. read more