Abelardo's Mexican Fresh is one of my favorite places to eat in Ames. You receive homemade Mexican food--made from scratch! Even the condiments are homemade. The tostadas (sandwiches) are warm and full of flavor. If you like something spicy hot, choose the chili sauce (red). The green sauce is mild but still tasty. Treat yourself to a Mexican soda (I like Mango). And the homemade churros with Bavarian crime are cinnamon sugary goodness! The young women who run this place really know how to cook. Their food inspires you to be a better person. Always clean, the food actually makes you feel better and the portion sizes are generous (enough to put in the fridge for a snack later). Abelardo's Mexican Fresh in Ames is one of the few places, perhaps the only place, you can order genuine homemade food with a drive-thru! read more

This is a review of ONLY the cheesecake chimichanga. It's best to try this while out with one or two friends. Oh, SOOOOOO. GOOOOOOOD! I would have taken a picture, but I got it in the drive through and by the time I got home, it wasn't as pretty. Share it, if you can. It doesn't look that big, but the taste is huge and half of one is enough for anyone. It's $6 plus tax and very worth it. There's carry out, dine in or drive through at this location and delivery, if you have DoorDash. Friendly staff. Lot parking. Good prices. It's not really fast food, more of eat in food, delivered fast. Clean. MarcyDiner'sTantrumScale 5/5- NoScreamingKids. This desert has chocolate on it. Two thumbs up. Next time, I'll stop and take pictures. read more

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For starters, I wish we could do half stars on here lol. I'd give them 4.5/5, only because there were no indications of spice level on the surf and turf burrito; it was crazy spicy. The burrito was good, but WAY too spicy for me. The birria tacos were phenomenal though! So were the taquitos. All of the staff were really nice and they were very efficient too. We only went through the drive-thru, so I can't say much about the inside. We're definitely going in next time though! read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Birria tacos - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

Each location is different. The Ames location is clean and delicious. Though I've only been in a few times the man giving me my order always remembers me. That's a nice touch. For sure get the jalapeños and carrots. They are great and make for a spicy afternoon snack. read more

I know people know about Abelardo's but I've had food from 5/6 others and nothing hits as good as the Ames Abelardo's been eating here for the past 3/4 years and never ever missed. Have tried different ideas on the menu and they are all good. Great late night food. read more

Great place for fast, authentic, and tasty Mexican food! Better than any fast food taco you can get in Ames. I'm picky with tacos because I'm Mexican, but the food here never disappoints me. Employees are kind and quick. They are open super late, which is a huge plus. read more

The food was amazing! Came out quickly. Was friendly despite showing up late at night.

i ordered chips and queso and they gave me super watery milk and too many chips for such a small portion of ' queso ' read more

Someone tell me where the flavor is cause I couldn't find it Thanks for being open for us late eaters tho

Great menu- very fast service. Liked the chips and salsas free with a meal. Very reasonably priced. Party of seven and we all had leftovers. Not fancy- very casual. Can't wait to try more items on the menu. Huge flour tortillas and very fresh. Glad they are here. Very spicy salsas! read more

If your looking for that true California Taco shop place. This is for you. Authentic sauces and ingredients. I just wish I found it sooner.

San Diego standard found in Ames. Burrito California made so good even the pico included doesn't make it soggy. It makes my heart light and stomach ecstatic to find Dolores Robledo's classic made right in the Midwest. This is what I am homesick for when I want a burrito. Service and atmosphere are also familiar. Fantastic! read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Salsa bar. Includes limes and spicy carrots - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

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This is the best for Mexican food in Ames!! Must get the nachos!!!!!!! A recommendation for all!

foods great! I usually go through the drive thru and the serve is good, they get my order out quickly!

We have had nothing but great food here. They have a great deal on tacos on Tuesdays and it's super hard to pass up!

Fast Food Mexican place. I liked their stuffed peppers nice & big. Their Sauce tray with all different options is overwhelming. THEY ARE OPEN 24 HOURS. That's the best part. I have been there thrice in 1 week. The people working there are kind & polite. Their CHicken Fajitas had veggies in it so I was upset & hence 4 stars but overall the portions are big enough for 7-8$ read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Chicken fajitas - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

I decided to give them another try. The burritos and tortas aren't extra greasy and gross - or maybe they changed things up. They're pretty delicious. read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Fish taco and chips and guacamole - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

I wasn't expecting too much from a drive-thru authentic Mexican restaurant, but I was very pleasantly surprised. It took no time from ordering to driving off with our food after sitting through a line for 15 minutes at a different restaurant to get a chicken nugget kids meal for our son. My burrito was huge and they didn't scrimp on the queso. My husband's burrito meal was large, as well. Price was reasonable given the amount of food you get. I'm excited to try their breakfast burritos now! read more

Very bad experience. First burrito I ordered (veggie) was inedibly sloppy and cold. I politely asked if there was any way I could get a refund or another burrito and, to their credit, was given a fresh carne asada burrito. I was hoping to enjoy it, but it was just bad. Only steak and rice that was not mixed together in any way at all. Incredibly dry and chewy steak. I would advise against choosing Abelardos when looking for a good burrito. read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Carne Asada Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

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A pretty typical taco shop from the perspective of my present home state of Arizona. A great addition to the Mexican food scene in Ames from the perspective of my boyhood home in Iowa. Definitely a good use of the old Long John Silver's location. Are those the old seafood shop booths I'm sitting in? Not sure. They clash with the Mexican theme, but they sure are comfy. Contrary to what a couple of other reviewers have indicated, the restaurant seems clean and well kept. We ordered three combo plates this day, all costing less than $8. We sampled chicken, shredded beef and ground beef. All were good. I'm not a huge fan of the salsa bar. Two red sauces, neither packing much heat, one green and one avocado sauce. All kind of generic. The quality of the meats, the rice and the beans, however, were great. You can opt for bottled Mexican Coca Cola, the kind sweetened with cane sugar, not high fructose corn syrup (sorry, Iowa). Don't forget to try the other bottled Mexican sodas and the horchata! A drive thru is also available for a quick meal to go. Open 24 hours a day, a huge plus. read more

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Definitely a hidden gem. The birria tacos are heavenly. Haven't had anything bad here yet. Not sure how the rating isn't higher for them. They are also very quick making the food. read more

Probably the most authentic Mexican burrito in town. Very fast, tastes fresh. Just double check your order because they often forget guac on my veggie burrito order. The Horchata here is delicious! And they give red and green sauce with your order upon request. read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Large iced Horchata - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

Good spot for quick and inexpensive Mexican food! I highly recommend the California burrito or their steak tacos! The quality of the ingredients used are not amazing but for the price, you can't beat it. It's one of the few good spots for a quick bite read more

Great Mexican food fast and friendly service, not too pricey, the salsa is very spicy hot but it's okay

This place is always a great hit! Asada burrito smothered in cheese will always hit that mexican craving. Top it off with self serve sauces! In expensive for what you get! read more

I've now been to abelardo's twice and have mixed feelings. On my first visit I ordered a carne asada burrito and it was very good. The burrito contained just steak, pico and guacamole. The steak was well seasoned. The portion was very large for the price. I was very pleased. We waited in the drive through our first trip which did take quite some time. It was probably about 20 minutes in line. If you're in a hurry you should call ahead or go inside to order. If I had written this review after my first trip to Abelardo's I would have given the place 4 stars. Sadly, my second visit was not good. The restaurant looked empty so we decided to order inside rather than at the drive through. This time, I ordered the pollo asado combination plate (#21) and sadly I could barely eat it. The chicken was very dry, hard, and over-cooked. Worse, it was bland. The rice was also over cooked and bland. I cannot recommend this dish and would recommend you avoid it. The restaurant itself is a bit of a dive, but the interior is clean and tidy. I was a little startled, however, to see an employee move from mopping the floor to packing our order (handling the to go containers, not the food) without washing her hands or putting in gloves between the two tasks. Then again, I'm a germaphobe. The salsa options are plentiful but they could use some work. I love supporting small, independent businesses but there are better options in town. read more

This spot is a late night craving for me. They are fast and cheap. My husband and I think it's authentic Mexican food; not Tex-Mex. I'm a sucker for their rice and bean burrito, I think it's about $3. read more

I always enjoy seeing new restaurants in Ames. This town definitely has plenty off good restaurants of all types and when a new place opens up I'm typically pretty excited about trying their food. When I heard that Abelardo's was going to be opening on Lincoln Way in the old Long John Silvers location I was thrilled as I love good Mexican food. I had heard about Abelardo's via a few others that had eaten at other locations in Des Moines and Ankeny. Both people I had talked with told me the food was pretty good, so naturally, I expected a good meal at this location. To describe my experience best, I would say I was disappointed. I didn't really enjoy any one part of my visit there. I give it two stars because the menu has a nice selection. There are quite a few items to pick from so basically every one will find something that appeals to them. That was a good start. The good ended there. First off - the food took almost 20 minutes to get to the table and the place was not busy. I was hoping it would be worth the wait. Not so much. I've had fresh authentic Mexican cuisine before and this just wasn't good food. The ingredients weren't high quality at all. I ordered a chimichanga with red sauce on it and a side of refried beans with chips and salsa. The salsa wasn't very flavorful and tasted like it came from a jar. The chips were okay, but how hard is it to make good chips? Not sure if these are house-made or not. My chimichanga was delivered to the table lukewarm. The red sauce had no flavor, nor did the ground beef filling. It was a good thing it had sour cream with it, because that was about the only thing I ate with real flavor in the whole meal. Refried beans are by nature bland, but these were as bland as I've ever had. It wasn't a good experience. However, seeing as Abelardo's was new to Ames I thought I'd give them a second chance and come back after they'd been established and had time to work out any issues they had. My second visit was not really any better than the first. They did improve the amount of time between order and the food arriving at the table considerably. It was busier and the food got to me in about 10 minutes, which is perfectly acceptable for that kind of cuisine. However, it was still bland, still low quality and still pretty bad. I probably won't be going back to Abelardo's. I just am not impressed with the food. The service is alright, the menu is nice, the place was pretty clean and the food arrives pretty quickly. I just didn't think it tasted very good. read more

Really good Mexican food. Four stars for what I'm used to but five stars for Ames. Everything seems to be made to order. Had the taquitos and a fajita burrito : both dishes very good. Tasty guacamole. And the best part? Drive through and open 24 hours. read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Menu - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

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Their food is really good I always get the vegetarian burrito excellent there so that is excellent their help and drive-thru is pretty fast and very nice read more

Abelardo's Mexican Fresh - Mexican Near Me - Ames, Iowa

My first impression was poor, as was my second, and third. The food is basic, not particularly flavorful. After trying standard menu items, I thought maybe the magic is in the ala carte menu: Chile relleno, the smallest, most pathetic relleno I've ever seen. Tamal reasonable. Rice overpriced. However, what I really did not like was the service. Halfway through ordering I got out cash and change, at this point the cashier stops ringing up my order and tells me the total. I hand over exact change and pay. Only later did I see that the cashier did not enter my entire order in the computer. I got the correct food, but someone is not being honest. read more

Great food! I ordered the super burrito which includes your choice of meat, rice, beans, pico de gallo, sour cream and when they bring out the big boy ITS HUGE. I couldn't finish it alone. It's so good and their selection of salsas are great! The cashier was very nice customer service was great. Thanks for the good food!! read more

If you want a burrito that isn't just all rice and beans, I would definitely recommend this place! The price is cheap, while the portion sizes are good. I would recommend trying the Diablo burrito and the horchata! Only issue that I have is that it's not on campus! Haha P.S They also participate with this app called Hooked, and you can sometimes get 20% off of your menu, which is HUGE. read more

Decent enough, but ffs Abelardo's. Sending a delivery order out without tossing in some hot sauce is just irresponsible.

For those familiar with Taco Time (in Ames) or Tasty Tacos (in Des Moines), I think that's what this place is going for, but mixed with a sit-down restaurant. The menu is limited. Most dishes are not well described on the display. The woman behind the counter was fairly uninterested in her job and gave us incorrect information regarding the content of a dish. She later made sure that I was ok with the actual contents. I'm not all that picky about my meats. The environment is abysmal. The backroom still has fish decorations peeling from the walls from when it used to be a Long John Silver's. Music being played was current hip hop with dirty lyrics. Families beware. Napkins were hard to get hold of. Otherwise the in-restaurant sauces were on par with Taco Time (right down the street) Prices were pretty high for "fast" food. Meals run from $8-12. I could pay as much and have a full sit-down experience with free sauce and chips. I'd rather go to Taco Time, and I'm not really a Taco Time fan. read more

Abelardos is a Mexican "fast casual" restaurant that took over the Long John Silvers establishment via a quick paint job. The interior is literally a Long John Silvers setup with red and green paint. Service is decent at best. I've eaten at this location four times this week and the quality and accuracy of orders is entirely dependent on who is on staff when you come in. Some of the staff have a basic grasp of English and confuse orders. A simple chorizo combination became a (very little) chorizo and eggs breakfast platter. The drive thru crews late at night have better accuracy, in my experience. As for their demeanor, it seems that everybody that works there has better things on their mind than servicing customers. The kitchen staff plays a satellite radio incredibly loud on uncensored rap stations, despite there typically being children in the dining area. Staff mill about the counter and converse with each other very loudly about how they hate working. The food itself is largely hit or miss. Carne asada and carnitas are good, probably their best items. The chorizo is tasteless and could easily be cheap breakfast sausage for all I know. The seafood is terrible. They never de-vein their shrimp, so it ends up tasting gritty. Chile relleno was awful as they didn't take the seeds out of the chile, ruining the meal. The guacamole has the consistency of pudding and barely tastes like there's avocado in it. Their churros are extremely dry. Burritos are 99% filled with rice, lettuce and pico de gallo, so you're getting almost no meat despite paying for it. The best item I had here was a basic order of carne asada tacos. I haven't been particularly impressed with anything else on the menu. Prices seem a bit high for what you get. A simple order for two people cost me over $20. I could get two basket meals at the Culver's across the street for less money, and I know the staff there will treat me well. This place is definitely catering to the late night crowd, and it will find itself in lucrative business if it focuses on that demographic, but their dine-in service needs a lot of work. read more

Excellent authentic Mexican food. Extremely kind staff and super efficient. Definitely recommend!!

My friend and I tried Abelardo's last night for the first time and we were less than impressed. She got the carne asada plate and I got the sausage egg breakfast burrito. Neither of us even ended up eating what we ordered and it all went in the trash. Both burritos were far from the "salivating" reviews we read on here. The rice is bland and she said the beans tasted like plastic. The breakfast burrito was dry and everything in it was over cooked. Horrible experience. We try everything once but we won't be trying it twice. read more

Wow really disappointed American Mexican food.... why!! I will say the carrots jalapeño mixture was delicious. The salsa bar was Soso. Owell I'll keep looking.. got to be good Mexican food here somewhere:-() read more

Soooo good!! Must stop when in Ames. Authentic Mexican food that really is fresh and delicious. I got the steak nachos and it was great!!! I will be trying the fajitas next time I stop by. read more