Loved the food it was sooo good. The entire staff is very friendly and welcoming especially the guy with the green hair super cool and professional. Definitely recommend this place read more

For was... ok. Like my grandpa would say, "it will make a What else I noticed is the employees break table is RIGHT at the front door!!! Drinks, half eaten food.. Really??? Management NEEDS to give them a place to relax, and have their area AWAY from customers! Not only does this table give the impression of lazy employees, it gives the impression that the store is NOT clean.. This is not an employee issue, it is a management issue, and their respect of the area and people they are over seeing and giving to customers! read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Mexican Near Me - Billings, Montana

Ordered 3 bean burritos with no cheese. Each burrito was only given 1 scoop of beans. I was later informed that it was the GM that was on the line starting the orders. She should have known better! Vegetarian burritos always get two scoops of beans. The food is good, of course, that's why I came in...... I was charged for 'extra chip strips', I did not ask, nor was I given extra chip strips. I was also charged for the scoop of Guac, which is supposed to be free for vegetarian burritos. I was refunded for the Guac but not the chips, and no attempt was made to make it right on the fact that each vegetarian burrito only received one scoop of beans. The manager that refunded me the Guac informed me that the person starting the order was the GM and 'she would know'. This is all new to me!! It seems there is extreme lack of training for the cashier here, and who know why the GM would do what she did. It doesn't make sense that Cafe Rio would make changes to give certain food preferences LESS food for the serving. Especially since it would probably take like 10 scoops of beans to equal the cost of one scoop of meat. It's incredibly irritating and frustrating going to this particular chain of restaurants because I feel like most of them have to be told, by me, the customer, how it's supposed to work. Makes me not want to go to cafe Rio at all. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Vegetarian burrito with no cheese - Mexican Near Me - Billings, Montana

Convenient location, good food & unlimited horchata. No complaints. Staff were friendly I like my burrito enchilada style

I have been here several times when it's busy and when it's slow. In short, it's a gamble. Sometimes the food is AMAZING and worth a 5 mile detour to get. Menu has a a lot of good options and they come with great sides. Other times I could have gotten better food at a gas station. This tells me it's a staff issue. Which....sometimes is super friendly and helpful, and other times has an attitude. Inside is just a standard looking seating area. Drive thru has a weird setup, but it works (when they are not blocking it). It is worth a risk if you are in the area. Good luck! read more

See all

Wow what a disappointment! Most all the staff are on their phones. Got my order the lady checking me out can't put her phone down to ask me if I would like a drink! Just one table has a man at it but not a single table clean to sit at. So gross. Trash everywhere. I won't be back. read more

I haven't been to Cafe Rio in years and really missed it and was so happy to find this place. I went with my usual Pork Burrito. Few things to note: - there was too much rice, more then I remembered. - the pork was way to sweet. More sweeter then I recall. Overall, outside of too much rice and sweetness of the pork, I enjoyed the food. Wish they would expand to midwest! -- COVID update - limited seating inside, they used the dining chairs to block off the ordering area so you'll be forced to form a single line to order. read more

Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican - Mexican Near Me - Billings, Montana

I ordered an online catering order for 10 to be picked up at 4:30. I came to pick up and they had no record of order. I pulled order confirmation and had to wait over 30 minutes to get my order. The order did not pull correctly and I did not get what I had ordered and paid for. This is the second time I have had this issue ordering catering. I won't make the mistake of ordering catering through Cafe Rio again. read more

This place is FILTHY. There was garbage all over the floor food slopped everywhere on the serving counter and the drink station.

The food is tasty. I got the tacos with sweet pork and shredded beef. Very yummy. The place is super dirty. What is strange is how many reviews that talk about cleanliness yet the place is still filthy. Management is not listening to its customers. The drink bar was out of almost everything. Weird. Anyway. People were friendly and the food is tasty. read more

The drive thru service was literally the worst I have ever experienced. And I am 50. Steer clear. This business deserves to go under. I honestly and literally was stuck in the drive thru for over a half hour with only 2 cars on front of me. There is no excuse for this. read more

Your employees suck. zero personalities and extremely unaware of their surroundings. chips are stale and soggy. Steak quesadillas both came with no steak. what the fuck. If I could give no stars I would. read more

Billings shuts down for the 4th and food options become quite limited. Literally, almost every restaurant was closed and after a day of travel, I was beyond hangry. I was looking for anything open at all. When I drove past Cafe Rio and saw a few cars in the lot, I thought I might have a shot - success. I ordered the tortilla soup, a side of queso with chips and a soda. For $15, that seemed high to me. Ordering was a little confusing with a lot of people working, but little communication. The soup was warm, but not hot, and I wasn't thrilled with it. The queso was better and has quite a kick, which I like. I tried a taste their specialty lime juice, which I immediately poured out. It wasn't my taste, but others seem to love it. Overall, this restaurant needs a deep cleaning from floor to ceiling. It was dusty, the dining room wasn't super clean and it made me worry about what I had just eaten. read more

See all

Girls working were very nice and made our food just as we wanted. Food was amazing and the place was clean and inviting.

We got in late. But this place was just a short walk from our hotel so we headed here before they closed. Parking lot seemed large enough. I've never been into this chain before and wasn't quite sure how the ordering went. I ended up just ordering a couple tacos and a soda (Coke products). The tacos (w/carnitas) were just OK...lacked flavor. The salsa lacked flavor too. Being a sorta fast food joint, meant the place was a little untidy. For me, I've had much better tasting Mexican food off of nearly every food truck. So I'm a little disappointed but it was still decent. Maybe my tastebuds were expecting better. You should judge this one for yourself. So I'm going to be fair and give them 3 stars. read more

We used to frequent Cafe Rio in Utah about twice a month. We saw that Cafe Rio was here in Montana too, so we went in and ordered dinner. I normally order a quesadilla with sweet pork and the chili lime rice inside. I asked the gal that was making my order if I could order it that way and she said, yes, we'll put the rice in during the second station of the meal line. What I got was rice flopped on the top of the quesadilla. I told her I wanted it inside, she looked at me like, "what do you want me to do?" The gal working in the second part of the meal prep make my husbands' meal wrong, it's as if she was in lala land. I was done! Not going back. Last night my husband asked if we wanted to give it a second chance because we love love the Sweet Pork. I said, okay. The gal, Navaeh (Spelling), was awesome. She listened to what I wanted, and she did it with a smile and a positive attitude. I cannot say the same for the gal next to her who seems she was more interested in the young dudes in line. My husband asked for hot salsa, she completely ignored him, LOL! read more

Late in the afternoon, after driving across half of the State of Montana, I checked into a motel in Billings, got comfortable, and comtenplated what I wanted for dinner. That was simple, as Mexican food was on my mind, as I hadn't enjoyed any fine Mexican cusine in several days. Before checking into the motel, I had noted a nearby Mexican restaurant - Café Rio Mexican Grill - and since it was within an easy walk, Café Rio was my restaurant of choice this evening. My visit happened a couple years ago, and I'm just getting around to posting on Yelp. Sorry for the delay... As you enter the restaurant, you make your selection from the menu, posted at the left of the photo, and then you enter the "Disneyland style" serving line until you reach the counter, place your order, and watch the staff prepare your meal, before your eyes. The menu is posted at the side of the serving line. Actually, it's pretty compact, and offers only a few choices. When I walked in, I was a bit puzzled, as this wasn't what I was expecting, but then I took notice and actually did something that I don't do very often - I read the menu - and then I was able to decide on my entree. Two tacos, rice and beans sounded good to me. Note the "ristras," dried chili peppers tied together, that decorate the restaurant, and give it a "southwestern" feel. After you figure what you want to order, you get in the serving line, place your order, and the friendly staff will make your order, in a matter of a couple of minutes, right before your eyes. The order makers are on the "front line" but you can see the kitchen staff in action, in the background, as the kitchen is completely open. I ordered two tacos, along with pinto beans and rice, and the girl assembled my tacos, before my eyes. All orders come with a cup of guacamole, which is a great touch. Veggies, olives, cheese and everything else is in trays, and you tell the server what you want on your taco and that's how it's made. All orders are served in round, aluminum pie pans, which make take-out dining, or in-house dining equally convenient, and keeps dish washing to a minimum. I ordered two carne asada tacos, pinto beans and rice, and received a complimentary cup of delicious guacamole. I can't vouch for the Mexican authenticity of this dinner, but it wasn't "Mexican fast food," and it was delicious, and really made my evening. The tacos, beans and guacamole had a little "kick" to them, which was just enough to make them taste great, yet not enough to offend most sensitive taste buds. You have the choice of corn or flour tortillas - usually I order corn - but tonight, I ordered flour tortillas, and I'm glad I did. The tortillas were fried, which were thick, puffy, juicy and had a very "nutty" taste. The flour tortillas were amazing! For garnishes, I had the gal dress my tacos with lettuce, cheese, onion and tomatoes - not at all "authentic" Mexican - but I was in Billings, Montana, which is a long way from Mexico. Tonight's dinner was delicious! The meat is moist, juicy and delicious, the vegetables are fresh, the salsa is made in-house, the staff is friendly, the price is right, and you will have your tacos made, before your eyes, just the way you want them. What's not to love about Café Rio Mexican Grill? read more

See all

My girlfriend and I eat here every week but that might have to stop. Ever since the new guy wearing the "Trainer" hat has been working up front he cares much more about singing the nacho song than giving the customers a fair portion or being even semi hospitable. Ordered double rice and he barely fills the spoon halfway once. Order fire grilled chicken and he grabs four tiny pieces and puts them in. He's just rude. Went from the one chain you could get a good salad to just a mediocre salad with an unbelievably rude staff that is clearly sick of him as well. Hoping he leaves, if not, probably won't be back nearly as much. He's a tool, ever since the remodel he has had this place running significantly worse than before. read more

I am comp disgusted with how I was treated after I was very clear abt what I wanted then that messed it up then had the audacity to walk away from me when I apologize for have them remake but over all I'm completely shocked bc I have not once had a bad experience with this establishment and I was beyond surprised I don't know if it's new star that's causing this issue but it was honestly the worst experience I've had in billings been for years read more

Definitely a cheapskate owner. They don't make enough food. So you have to wait 30 minutes. And if you order online, forget about it. It'll still be another 30 minutes from the time they said it would be ready. Then they put almost no meat. That's happened multiple times to me. They do not care about the customer at all. read more

Veggie nachos had no veggies just gross amounts of cheese and beans. carne taco so tiny and sad. Tough meat covered in lettuce does not a taco make. 35 dollars for what?? Don't waste your money. read more

Skip the Pork Barbacoa Burrito. It tastes like someone spilled the sugar bowl in the filling. The whole order went right in the trash. We ordered from Uber Eats so couldn't send it back. The restaurant failed to include the extra guacamole for which we paid an up charge. Very disappointing . read more

The service was awful. Placed an online order it said it would be done at 7pm. By 7:30 they hadn't even started making our food. My husband finally went to the front of the line and asked about our food again. He was then told that they will get to the online orders when they get the line taken care of. My husband stood there and told them him and other lady that had an online order was there before everyone in the line and he wasn't moving until they both got their food. They made the 2 online orders. After getting home and pulling the food out of the bag they made wrong and the other food was cold. There were no managers there. It was the worst service and experience. read more

Mathis place has always been one of my favorite fast food places. And one of my favorite Mexican places. I'm almost always pleased with the consistency from location to location. With tat being said this location on King needs a complete cleaning. The lobby is OK, but the kitchen is a filthy disaster. read more

Rude staff. Watched several employees blow or touch their noses and not wash their hands. Ignored for online orders, and taunted by employees when we decided to leave. read more

Usually my favorite place to eat. We walked in and very few people in there and no line no waiting which would normally be a great thing. We walked up to where you order and the girl behind the counter was busy with a phone in order apparently because there was no one else in front of us. She never looked up or acknowledged we were even there. We waited patiently for a few minutes no one else in the acknowledged us either. We turned around and left. Apparently phone in orders take precedence over walk in customers! Might be awhile before we try again. read more

We eat here about once a week. Usually ok. Today the rice was hard, completely uncooked. The beans were half cooked. We told the server thinking they would make us a new one. She had a deer in the headlights stare and said " thank you for letting us know. After a some we seen they fixed the problem but made no attempt to give is new burritos. We ditched the lunch and are on our way to subway. Never will i come back with such poor customer service skils. There was absolutley zero empathy for our unedble lunches. Im going to call the credit card company and attempt to reverse the charges. read more

went back after another bad experience. employee got my order wrong so I told her to please change it and she told me I'm gonna have to deal with it and tossed me my incorrect order and basically threw my change. no one should go here. terrible people. read more

service is ass. just some kids that don't give af about your food, and can't keep up on sauces so you have to pick a different one. last time I'm going there. read more

Not feeling very safe from their covid 19 procedures. Sneeze guards up but no masks on the food prep staff. So, since we can't hear each other through the plexiglass they are shouting over the food they are preparing for me...that can't be safe. Spittle Particulates settling all over the meal I'm about to eat. Apparently they are concerned for their staff (that's good) but not so much about their customers. I am sure they are not allowed to work if they aren't feeling well but that's no guarantee that they aren't contagious. Face masks should be required for food preppers. Won't be back til the pandemic is over. read more

I had a carne asada burrito bowl. It was good however lacked flavor and I wasn't able to pick up the burrito to eat it, so I had to eat with the fork. Got horchata as a drink. It was everything. read more

This is a good place to get your Mexican Food Taste Buds happy. The location of Cafe Rio has all the Parking and is within close range of additional stores. read more

See all

Cafe Rio has been going downhill which is so sad! you can't get cheese now without paying an extra dollar per taco (I'm sorry a dollar per taco?!!). The Taco Tuesday price has has gone up now to $2.49 or even more if you want the steak; and the amount of meat has gone down. if you ask for dressing, they give you a cup and charge you. We don't get anything but meat and cheese and the meal ends up being ridiculous. You're going to end up losing loyal customers when you should be trying to keep ones that have been still coming during this crisis. read more

Very unclean, poor service. Dirty kitchen and uniforms. Food dribbling from one tray into another.

Why offer curb side pickup when you are going to make me wait 10 min just to go inside to tell you I am waiting for my food. Isn't that why you offer curb side pick up... so that I don't have to get out of the car? Don't have a program if that's not the service you offer. read more

The customer service was terrible to start however that is not the main reason for the low stars it's because the food was terrible. The rice was crunchy and the beans were hard the only good thing was the sweet pork meat. Lastly it was disgusting with food and what can only be described as slime is everywhere. In all do not eat here. read more

We usually get the sweet pork tacos. Best pork around, and the hand made tortillas as amazing! A family favorite

Love this place, if you want lots of quality food this is one of the best places in Billings to get a quick bite. The sweet pork is to die for and on top of that they have kind and accommodating staff! Can't say enough good things about this place! read more

Truly one of the nastiest meals I've ever eaten. Service and cleanliness equally horrible.

My excuse for eating somewhere 2 days in a row is that I'm making sure it was good as I thought and not by luck of the night. Reason for a 4 and not a 5, personal choice I personally like old school carnitas, [for our taco bell lovers grilled pulled pork] Im not a fan of sweet pork. The chili beef they hit out of the park, and for me I bounce back and forth from wet and dry burrito. Their hot Red Sauce was 2 below medium but plenty of really hot bottled heat to add. But it was very flavorful. The green mild was real mild. The Taco was totally opposite to what I like, and they pulled the flavors together and was best I had in a long time. What brings what they make above the run of the mill taco joints beside far above average flavor is that they have fresh hand made tortillas made in front of you. Reminded me of dining at the old town cafe in San Diego,Ca. Now I'm ready to try the rest of the Mexican dining in town, here is my pre Yelp rating warning, if you can't match or better then Cafe Rio you wont like my reviews. Now to be fair to our readers, my Mexican food tastes come from years southern Calif. and I can tell you right now what we all get isnt close to what you get in Mexico, totally different. And to my sister yelper from Texas, I have read your reviews, your a great food judge, except your flavor buds are from texas and you have tex-mex. I personally like tex mex, but I still feel if I want chili con carne on top of something it will be a hot dog or Macaroni lol. But after reading all your reviews I would take your recommendations on places. Now here is one thing that takes away a star beside the carnitas, when things are extra don't be afraid to let that be known a little better. All and all yelp fans, give it a try first time went at 6pm long lines but worth the wait, second time went a 11am and you still had people just not as long of a line. read more