(Disclaimer: coming from Chicago where authentic Mexican food is abundant, we are biased). In a veritable desert of good Mexican food, so far Chela's is the only oasis we have found in Ann Arbor. The tacos are quite good and cheap. For vegetarian options, the potato taco is particularly tasty. Their guacamole is good (a little bland, but I like natural taste of avocado) but the chips are pretty bad. As for the tamales, the cheese & pepper one was good but the fruit tamal was a little cold and not very good. Overall a reasonably priced, reasonably tasty option. read more

A little hideaway Mexican place, tucked away in a strip mall. Outside it looks bad: hardly any parking, enough potholes to swim in, but it's not their fault. Inside, there's plenty of seating but maybe too much as there's a lot of "excuse me" maneuvering here. Staff is nice and the ordering is straight forward. This is absolutely a lunch place, and their special will run you about $9 for 2 tacos of your choice, beans, rice and a drink. The chorizo taco could have used some seasoning and came off extremely dry. I don't like salsa, but I had to put a couple of cups on just the one taco to make it edible. The fish taco was better, but still not very good. I may be spoiled growing up in Mexicantown, but it came across as more copycat than original food fare. I did see tamales and elotes on the menu, so I'll probably try that next time I get a craving. read more

As a San Franciscan, I'm pretty well versed in taquerias. Swung by Chela's after my family in Ann Arbor convinced me it was worth trying. WOW. By far the best Mexican food I've tried in the midwest. Holds a torch to some of the best in California. I'd especially recommend the Barbacoa and the flan. the Orange hotsauce and guacamole were perfect compliments! read more

This place is awesome and I'm super fortunate it's right down the street. Any of their pork tacos (especially the chorizo) are amazing. The salsa that comes with the tacos is a really nice addition as well. read more

So much food for not very much money! For the two of us, we got 3 tacos, 1 torta, side of beans, side of rice and chips for $17. The food was fresh and the man who was working the counter (I assume he is the owner) showed us which things were in which box when our order came up. He was very friendly. We didn't have to wait long for our order. I really liked the chorizo taco. The beef was a little dry for my taste. I thought the rice was yummy but would have liked it better if a little heat was added. The beans were delicious. I highly recommend Chela's! :) read more

I was so happy to see this restaurant at Top of the Park! I've always wanted to try but their location is so far that I haven't gotten the chance. Super glad I got a taste today! Ordered two barbacoa tacos and one chicken taco, a chicken tamale and a Mexican corn on the cob, all of it was fantastic! The barbacoa and chicken were super tender, and the corn on the cob was the best thing I have ever eaten. I will definitely visit their restaurant soon. read more

Chela's - Chicken tamale, chicken taco, barbacoa taco, elote - Mexican Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

WARNING---DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CAR in Chela's lot and walk to Townie's brewery EVEN though you eat at Chela's and EVEN though their patio APPEARS shared. Do NOT leave your car in their lot after closing time. We ate at Chela's on their patio. My daughter decided to get a beer at Townie's Brewery (behind Chelas with shared patio). Chela's closed at 9 and our car was towed at 9:08. 5 star rating is for FOOD ONLY. read more

The service is excellent. Friendly and fast. The food is not bad and very fresh, but nothing to shout at the top of your lungs about. I am a huge flavor person. I don't completely understand when people think bland food is AMAZING just because it is local or fresh, but to me, bland is bland. I experienced the food on the blander side here. But it's cheap. Good little lunch spot! I'll have to try some more of their menu and hope to be impressed. read more

Solid cheap veggie tacos in this casual lunch spot. Decent jamaica, but if you want horchata you pay extra. This place desperately needs a salsa bar. A huge omission. read more

Great service! Here's why I gave this restaurant 2 stars: I had really high expectations coming here based off the Yelp reviews. The reviews definitely over hype this restaurant. Walking in, I appreciate the small, "hole in the wall" type of restaurant, bright colors, etc. The place was packed late on a Saturday night too. My boyfriend and I both got the fish tacos and two different types of tacos that were recommended to be the best by the worker taking our order. He was awesome and super entertaining! The prices are very reasonable as well. Food quality was extremely poor. The fish tacos you could tell were frozen and barely warmed up, they were still cold. The other tacos lacked flavor and they were also cooler. Some of the tortillas were stale too. Overall was super disappointed and probably won't return due to this :/ read more

The tacos are authentic Mexican street food with quality beyond compare - especially the burritos, tortas and fish tacos that will fill you up for sure. But the quesadilla? Pass on it. What an embarrassing waste of $6. read more

Had the loaded carne asada burrito. The loaded part doesn't cost extra and includes some guacamole, which is nice. It tasted okay. Could've been bigger for the price. Also, they really skimp on the chips. I got literally 2 and a half pieces of chips with my burrito. Come on man. Chips are so damn cheap. read more

I often run across restaurant servers, managers, and even chefs who have disconcertingly little knowledge about what is in their food. Not so at Chela's. The staff can usually tell you what exactly you're getting. Anyone with allergies or special diets will appreciate this. This place is tasty, cheap and fast. I've only tried the tacos so far, but I think they're pretty great. They're simply dressed with onion and cilantro, and you apply your own salsa. The salsa is available in single-serve plastic cups that bum me out because it's a lot of waste and there is no recycling. Service: I've been about ten times and have had one mistake on an order, which was quickly and happily corrected. And we got to keep the mistake taco. Vegans: The black bean tacos and veggie tacos (ordered without cheese) are both completely vegan. However, the potato taco, which seems like it'd be okay, has milk in it. Based on my limited survey in town, this is pretty standard. read more

Every time I go to Ann Arbor I ALWAYS stop by Chelas! Hands down the best Mexican food I have ever had!

Chela's is one of my favorite taco places in Ann Arbor. It's cheap and super authentic and fast! I had the fish taco and would highly recommend it. It is simply grilled and very fresh. I also had the guacamole and it was delicious! You can tell it is homemade with the chunks of smashed avocado. The meal was very cheap and extremely filling. I got the large chips and guac and my friend and I were unable to finish it along with the tacos but they kept for a couple days after. The fresh limeade is also to DIE for!! The seating outside is perfect for a sunny Ann Arbor day so would recommend making a trip when the weather is nice enough to sit outside. read more

Great food for a very fair price! You can get tacos, tortas, tamales, and burritos for a great price. It's always busy and they have great desserts like the flan. This place is worth a try and I think they have the best tacos in town. read more

one time a boy took me here for lunch--I panicked and ordered the first thing I saw. really good quesadilla. not so good boy !

Stopped by here while visiting Ann Arbor because it had mostly great reviews. We were very disappointed. Everything was dry and bland. Tried four different kinds of tacos, my husband had a burrito, son tried a tamale and we got guacamole. We were all confused about why people like this place so much. read more

Generally average Mexican fare. Had a veggie burrito and some of a barbacoa type burrito. I don't know if it's because it isn't "authentic" but I find typically burritos are too mushy and these were bland and no exception. They needed something crisp like crisp peppers or other textures beyond a pile of sludge made up of rice and cheese and meat. The squash in the veggie burrito wasn't helpful in terms of texture, and didn't tolls much for flavor, so that was disappointing. I wouldn't decline this place if someone asked to go there, but I'd never pick it again if I had the choice. read more

Delicous authentic Mexican cuisine. The tamales are some of the best I've ever had. Please try their signature sauces for your tacos and tamales. My fav is the med. It has a delicious taste. read more

We love Chela's! We always go to the original location, and the tacos and tamales are cheap and delicious. Everything else has been good too - though a little more expensive. read more

Love it! I love a great authentic taco.The corn shells were perfect! the chorizo filling was SO good. The yellow and green salsa were delicious. I loved that the owner and his family were all there. He even played the acordian for someone's birthday party while we were there. Great authentic good and a lovely environment. read more

I decided Chela's is just not for me. We've gone a couple of times, and the food has been bland and boring each time. The first time, we thought maybe it was just an off night, but we went again and it was the same. The carne asada was chewy and the chorizo didn't taste like anything. We ordered avocados in our burritos, and we got one maybe two thin slices each. I get that it's free, and that's cool, but I'd much prefer to pay extra if it meant a substantial amount of avocado. I guess if you're after quantity over quality, then this is the place for you, but I would much prefer to drive down the block to Taco King. read more

It was our first time there. We had the daily special. Barbacoa taco and a tamale. Came with rice and black beans. Food was very fresh and good. The tamale batter was ample and thick. Best tamale that I have ever had. Beans were barely lukewarm, we requested a switch out and apologetically received a bowl of piping hot, black beans. They forgot the guac. And we had to go back up and ask for it- otherwise Chela's would get 5 stars. If you're wondering if the food is fresh....there was a nonstop line coming in and out of the door for takeout! We could not believe how busy it was on a Thursday night. The cashier with the deep voice was very helpful and friendly. read more

The person who answered the phone was pretty rude then just hung up w/o giving me a price and or/ proper closure. and the beans that came with the lunch special were black beans and just completely not what I expected, I thought I'd get Frijoles as it is a Mexican restaurant. overall the food was OK. read more

Great tacos, friendly staff. I tried the Al Pastor, the chipotle chicken and Barbacoa. All good but loved the Barbacoa taco the best. Cheap, and delicious. read more

What can I say? I love this place. Such amazing customer service and it's sincere. The food is outstanding. The hot salsa is so freaking amazing. They need to start selling it in jars. I wish they would use cotija cheese on their elote but that's just a preference. I'm from Chicago so the elotero was something that always came down my block. read more

Our first choice for standard mexican snack takeout. Having a bar right out the back door is a huge plus, because the bar allows brought-in food. read more

I've been here a couple of times and have had the tamales and guacamole both times. Both were very tasty I'm not usually a fan of pre-made guacamole but this one was pretty good. The tamales were very tasty. My friend had the burritos both times and he loves them. I'll be back to try the other items on the menu. read more

I got two carne asada tacos and one al pastor taco. They were very dry and had no flavor. Unfortunately ! Because I was really looking forward to good Mexican food. My husband had the carne asada burrito and he said it was just ok. Won't be back. read more

......not as good as people praised it to be, really not worth the money and appetite, unless you are just hungry and don't care at all.

This is the most unorganized establishment that I have ever been to. You order food online expecting to get what you paid and asked for and they some how mess up every order. Out of 6 orders, 5 were not put together correctly and one order was missing. The employees were very rude over the phone and even when I arrived to pick up the missing order they were still extremely rude and STILL very confused. You can tell right away that there is no communication within the kitchen. I arrive expecting my food to be ready for me to grab and go and I still somehow have to wait 5-10 extra minutes for the messed up order. I will not be ordering from this place again. The hassle of driving a total of an hour back and forth for mediocre Mexican good is not worth it. Do not recommend to anyone. read more

My new favorite restaurant since Ive moved to the area. They have not failed me. My whole family is hooked, great customer service, great food, clean establishment. Everyone needs to experience them asap. I loooooooove them! read more

Fast fresh food, that is cheap. The fish tacos are a steal.

Amazing a la carte taquería and stellar customer service. I had a loaded barbacoa burrito, chicken tamale, and guac and chips - all excellent! I'm only now regretting all of the Chipotle I've eaten . read more

This is a great find! A small drive from downtown but great food and really nice staff!! Absolutely worth trying!! We had burritos, tacos and a quesadilla, all were fantastic!! read more

Best, most authentic tasting tacos in Ann Arbor. After moving here from San Diego, I was worried about the taco scene. But, Chelas definitely exceeded my expectations. Get the al pastor tacos! read more

I have eaten at all their locations. Great fast food, lots of safety precauutions during COVID with carry-out at the Maple Rd location

The food here is solid and consistent. I also appreciate the friendliness of the staff. They recently expanded their layout so the seating area is larger. This is a nice choice for dine-in or takeout. read more

The owners and staff are awesome! They're really nice and welcoming and the food is great! The burritos, tortas, tacos , and elotes are my favorites! read more