Food was fantastic, service was was excellent, atmosphere was cool. Just a real find in the Mt Hood area.

Great authentic Mexican. Don't miss the Margaritas and guacamole! Very fun decor and outside seating in the sunmer.

This really hit the spot! My husband and I finished a hike and were hungry for an early lunch. The weather was amazing so we sat outside. We were given menus almost immediately and we ordered the salsa starter which came with 6 different types of salsa. These were amazing, I couldn't pick a favorite even if I tried. I also got a pineapple jalapeno margarita which was delish, and worked really well with the pineapple salsa. I went back and forth on what to order but eventually decided on 3 tacos. One of them, the soft flour taco, was a mistake (it was super bland) but that may have been on me for ordering it. The other two I ordered, the fish taco and al pastor, were great. The service throughout was great and our server made sure we had everything we ordered and more than enough water. read more

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This place exceeded any expectations I had. Talked away in the back corner of a strip mall and grocery store area. Ambience was amazing. Staff was great and the food was incredible. Cheese encrusted Birria quesadilla was off the charts and the chicken nachos were incredible. This is a must stop coming or going for the mountain. read more

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Food was excellent and if you think the price is high wait until you see what's on plate! Our waitress (Tori) was fantastic and full of life. The restaurant had both indoor and covered outdoor seating with plenty of tables. read more

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The food here is wonderful! Honestly a lot of dishes are on the spicy side but we enjoy that part! We usually get the salsa flight, it comes with 6 salsas? Service is always on point! The restaurant is clean and very inviting. One of our favorite spots tucked away up in Welches! read more

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Probably spendy for the area -- but we're still in the nether regions of the Mt. Hood ski resort, so I guess that's to be expected. Unlike many other places we've tried in the vicinity, Chicali Cantina has legit food and drink on the menu. It's located in an unpromising-looking strip mall space whose interior is surprisingly both classy enough for a grown up date and casual enough for a date with kiddos. For those who are sophisticated about such things, note that tortillas used are factory, not house, made. We don't happen to be too picky b/c we come from the east coast, where Latin and South American food still hasn't entirely caught up to the West Coast and very few places serve homemade tortillas. My shrimp taco was made with a blue corn tortilla, griddled until warm and fragrant, which I found both visually and gustatorily pleasant. Shrimp was well seasoned, well grilled, garnished with commendably fresh cilantro, lime and radish -- on the small side for anyone who cares about such things. (I often find small shrimp to be sweeter and more tender, so this is not a ding at all in my book.) I would do the shrimp taco again! The Pardner had the chicken enchiladas platter, which was adequate if not standout. Two enchiladas came with a decent amount of non-dry chicken, salsa verde (probably from a jar), and heaps of rice and refried beans, all standard issue and neither notably good nor bad. A spicy pineapple jalapeno margarita was NOT too sweet, much to my happy surprise, plenty sour from lime juice, and packed enough grown-up punch that I can't complain. Calling out: (1) nice servers; (2) the comfy couch / lounge seating to the back; (3) the outdoor patio, which must be gorgeous in warmer weather; (4) the clean all-gender bathroom (though there's only one for a sizable restaurant); and (5) the healthyish menu for dogs. We would be glad to come for the happy hour specials someday. :) read more

finding good food while traveling might be my favorite part of the adventure. Being from Houston we have some great Mexican (and texmex) restaurants. so I was blown away to find some in the mountains of Oregon. Great guac with house made chips, the best Chile relleno I've ever had, and vegetarian beans! So many places make their beans too salty and loaded with meat. Not needed as a side in my opinion. read more

Chicali Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

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The carne asada and carnitas were great but the chicken was awful. Like mushy and almost pulp like.

My family of four's go to order is the street taco platter & a couple different types of guacamole with chips. Everything is always so good (and fast even though they're always busy)! But seriously, try the different kinds of guacamole they make. :) read more

Staffing is a challenge just about everywhere I wouldn't fault any place for that but here the service is confused and disjointed. The food is just ok. It looks Mexican but tastes American. Flavors are more on the bland side. read more

Love Chicali, never disappoints! The biria is amazing. Everyone we bring with us loves it. Best Mexican food in Oregon.

A Hidden Gem in Mt. Hood - Chicali Cantina Chicali Cantina is an absolute gem we were lucky to discover during our trip to Mt. Hood. Tucked into the corner of a small shopping area near Thriftway, this unassuming spot serves up some of the best authentic Mexican food I've ever had--and that's coming from someone who normally avoids it like the plague! We stopped in as a thank-you to my husband for driving 1.5 hours each way to pick up our son from a week of volunteering with Scouting America's Order of the Arrow Arrowcorp. I wasn't expecting much... but I was completely blown away. The food was absolutely delicious! I'm still salivating. The shrimp taco with spicy orange sauce had me audibly "mmm-ing" with every bite. The birria taco, especially when dipped in the rich, savory consommé, was nothing short of heavenly. The carne asada nachos were perfectly layered, delivering crunch and flavor in every bite. The cheesy enchiladas melted in my mouth, and the burrito? Absolutely ginormous--in the best way. Easily two meals in one, but so good you'll want to keep going. While waiting for your food, you get to explore and enjoy unique art pieces displayed throughout the space, adding to the welcoming and vibrant atmosphere. It's the kind of place that feels warm, genuine, and thoughtfully curated from the moment you walk in. We left with full stomachs and a new favorite spot. I told my husband on the way out: "This will definitely be our go-to stop whenever we're in Mt. Hood." Do yourself a favor and don't miss Chicali Cantina. It's the kind of spot you'll be craving long after you've left. read more

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Dropped by for the brunch on Saturday. Brunch is 2-5. Amazing deals to be had Cast Iron nacho. $7. Good amount of protein. We did shredded beef. Tasty Poblano cheese fries. $9. Large plate of fries. Cheese sauce is good. Fries could have been a little crisper Salsa flight. Regular menu gets you 6 for $10. Today had a special. 6 salsas for $7. A nice selection. Love the Smokey morita and pineapple serrano. Margaritas aren't cheap for the size of glass. Service was super friendly and accommodating read more

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Fast service, Delicious food, Cozy interior! Came here during happy hour on a Thursday afternoon. The $3 salsa trio was such a good deal and it was great. I had three tacos. The grilled matcha shrimp was my favourite. Second was the carne asada street taco. Last was the queso birria taco. They were all great. Too bad I'm not from around here. Otherwise, I'd be a regular customer! read more

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Excellent tacos, salsas, and margaritas. Left happy and full. Fun little date night spot read more

Chicali Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

I'd like to say this place was good but I have to operate on a consensus with the rest of my group. They seemed poorly organized and unable to handle even a slight rush. The service was friendly but slow. We put in the order for chips and salsa and a beer two or three times. My parents got the nachos with chicken and weren't very happy with it. My partner said the chili Rellano tasted old. I got the vegan burrito (much later than everyone else as they said they took it to the wrong table and had to make it twice). I was very happy with my dish tho and my dog enjoyed her pup patty. read more

Chicali Cantina - Dog friendly patio, staff, and menu-items. - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

We stopped in for drinks and happy hour food. Fun beautiful cantina where staff is friendly and grub is tasty. If you ask Ali nicely, she might take a selfie with you haha...FUN MEMORIES. read more

Chicali Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

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I've eaten my fair share of Mexican cuisine. From LA, NY, SF, OAK, SEA, MIA, CHI, DAL, HOU, SAC, and of course POR. This place takes the reigns as one of the best. Not only was the quality amazing, but the portions Service was amazing and we were VERY obnoxious after our snowboarding trip. I will be rerun again! read more

Sad to say, this will be our last time driving from Boring to enjoy a dinner at Chicali. We are repeat customers who have written "rave" reviews in the past. However, shortly after we discovered Chicali, the menu changed and the food was never quite the same in our opinion. But it is hard to beat their Cadillac Margarita with the exception of Margarita Factory and Jefe in Lake Oswego. We are full-time caregivers for our disabled, non-verbal daughter who has both Down syndrome and Autism. She is considered an incapacitated adult in the state so she receives 24-hour caregiving support via medicaid. She cannot even independently access water to stay alive, so all caregivers are trained to bring fluids to her lips every 30 minutes and much more. Because of our level of care, our daughter appears much higher functioning than she actually is. Tonight, we drove our daughter's new medical transport van that we picked up this morning to Chicali for dinner to celebrate her new ride. Our daughter has a medical condition where she cannot leave home without having access to a toilet. Her new medical transport van is the only vehicle on the market that has a bathroom at the back of the vehicle large enough for 2 people. Because of the switch to a new vehicle today, we forgot to load up our daughter's wheelchair. We panicked when we pulled into Chicali's parking lot when we realized this, because, due to behavioral and mobility issues, our daughter rides in her wheelchair at all times when out in the community. A wheelchair also provides our daughter with a significant amount of security and behavioral control and reduces aggressive behaviors towards strangers. We sat in the new van for a few moments trying to figure out if we should walk her into the restaurant and have her sit at a regular chair or leave. We decided to give it a try, so we unloaded our daughter, and with one of us on each side of her, we escorted into the restaurant. The only other time we have taken her to a restaurant without her wheelchair and had her sit in a regular chair, she became very anxious and kept getting up out of her seat, wanting to leave. So, we had to eat quick and leave. As we started walking our daughter across the parking lot, we saw our favorite server getting something out of her car. She hollered over, "nice van!" We told her that is was new and that we had forgotten our daughter's wheelchair - something the server has always seen our daughter in. Once inside the restaurant, we tried to scope out the best table, which is not easy to do even when our daughter is in her wheelchair. We decided to sit outside, so we could leave quickly if our daughter could not maintain behavioral control because of some "trigger." Going out to dinner with a severe autistic, non-verbal individual is extremely stressful and takes a significant' amount of pre-planning to make it work, and even then, many times we have had to leave before or during a meal. We chose a table in the corner outside that we thought would be out of the way with a quick escape route. As soon as we sat down, we realized that there were misters spraying water to keep people cool. Our daughter is very hyper-sensitive to lots of things, and we feared that the sensation of water lightly spraying on her skin would upset her and cause her to stand up and want to leave. We asked our server if the mister above our table could be turned off. She said, "no." She didn't take the time to explain that all misters were connected, and that she couldn't just turn off the mister above us, etc.. We, in no way, wanted to interfere with other's enjoying dinner, but the server didn't take the time to tell us she could move us to another table or tried to solve the problem. She lacked any compassion at all, and made no effort whatsoever to help us get more comfortable outside or inside. When my husband (age 69) ordered his Cadiallac Margarita, the server looked at me and asked if I was driving. I told her honestly, "no." When my husband received his drink, he could tell that it was not made the same as all other servers had brought him in the past year or more. This is the second or third time that this particular server has asked us who was driving, and we don't appreciate it. We are not 20 somethings. I turned 70 last week and my husband is 69. If he was ordering his 3rd margarita, maybe she would have had the right to ask who was driving, but not for his first drink! The very first time we were at Chicali, we, with our daughter, met the owner as we were leaving. We told her how much we enjoyed her restaurant! We told her that we loved the chips and salsa, but especially, the incredible margarita! SHE THEN TOLD US THAT SHE INSTRUCTS ALL OF HER BARTENDERS TO MAKE THEM "DOUBLES." We have never forgotten that! We told her that we are happy to pay a lot, and drive further, for a great drink if it is a good one! read more

I came here for my birthday for the first time. We had the queso, Mexican guacamole, salsa flight, fish tacos, chicken enchiladas, chicken tacos, and birria. I would definitely get the Mexican guacamole, salsa flight, and fish tacos again. The other items were okay but the ones I listed were the best, I would come back for those items. read more

Always amazing food and service at Chicali. It's easily the best restaurant on the way to the mountain. Highly recommend the steak and shrimp taco and the chili relanos. If you're into boozy things, their margs are good, albeit pricey. read more

Chips were fresh Margs were tasty Spicy salsa LARGE portions Very spicy enchiladas Tacos are the way to go read more

Service was attentive, but a little disorganized. Food was super tasty. I loved the chile verde enchiladas and my partner had some great tacos. Super cute decor too. read more

We loved the food here. The flavors were fresh and authentic. I had the meat burrito in a bowl and it was delicious. My wife had a tostada and it too was yummy. The crema was amazing. The decor is quirky and fun. Next time we'll definitely sit outside. read more

Hidden gem is an understatement! Having no idea what to expect from the parking lot, we were pleasantly surprised as we walked up to the restaurant and saw a very inviting atmosphere inside. Then we were introduced to the happier hour menu (2-5 weds-sun) and things got even better. We ordered the salsa trio, mini beef & cheese flauta, and the cheese encrusted quesebirria quesadilla to share based on our friendly waitresses recommendation. She assured us that there would be plenty for the two of us and she wasn't wrong! The salsa trio came with an amazing pineapple salsa that we inhaled, a smoky sweet red salsa that was unique in the best way possible, and a very tasty pico. The "mini" flauta was larger than I've had anywhere else and was delicious with the avocado ranch that comes with it. The crispy quesadilla was not the typical style you get at other places. The flavors were incredible! I also had two of their happier hour margaritas that were much better than most other places. As I told the owners, I haven't had Baja style food that good since I visited Cabo several years ago. We will absolutely be going back anytime we are in the area! read more

Chicali Cantina - Happier Hour Menu (Nov '23) - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

Food was good. We ordered their salsa tasting (6 different sauces for $10) and 3 of them we really enjoyed ( pineapple, orange one, salsa verde) while 2 of them were ok ( pico de gallo and creamy avocado) and one we didn't care for( red Smokey salsa). The housemade chips were good. I had the red chili enchiladas with shredded beef: generous amount of beef. Too much tomato in the red chili and not enough chili. The margaritas we ordered were ok, my blackberry one was delicious but the watermelon with jalapeño had not much flavor at all. And they were pricey at $16 a piece. Overall, nice dinner but not super impressive. read more

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This place is a hidden gem. We drive from Vancouver for their smokey salsa! Other items ordered: surf/turf taco, queso, birria tacos, a massive burrito and margaritas. read more

Had dinner a couple night ago. The staff was hard pressed with a full house of diners. Regardless of that, the food was excellent and serving sizes were large. Took home the leftovers for lunch and they were just as good day 2. It's not cheap, but noting is on the mountain. Highly recommend read more

Let me start with our server. Alley is, without doubt, one of the best servers I have ever had in any restaurant. Until now that post was inhabited by a gentleman in Bangalore, India at Paradise Biryani whose name has been lost in the mist of my memory and a young lady in Chinese restaurant. 2nd the food - very good, they nailed it. Exceedingly strong margaritas probably helped. 3rd the portions - way too big - almost unbelievably large. They fetched us more chips twice - we don't need them but we love them. 4th the prices - very reasonable for what you get. Forget Mt Hood - I literally asked for their WiFi password so I could leave this review. I will drive from Portland, arguably one of the best restaurant cities in the world to visit Welches and Alley for Mexican food. What is this? I can't. Be careful with the five alarm tacos - legitimately spicy. read more

Chicali Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

This review is strictly for the vegetarians out there as plenty of carnivores have already shared their experiences here. Calling all vegetarians. I've taken one for the team and tried this place for us all. My recommendation? JUST SAY NO unless you like lard in your rice and beans and want the options of salsa, "salad" (see picture), and/or a lettuce burrito. I'm not even trying to be funny here! You may be surprised to learn they are attached to the grocery store where I'm willing to bet my burnt lettuce and canned corn they just might be able to purchase some things to enhance their options and give their servers a reason to live when one of us veggie lovers finds the teeny tiny disclaimer and actually asks, "so, what are your vegetarian options?" SMH read more

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I'm so impressed with the food, service and atmosphere. Our waitress was super helpful as this was our first trip in. Had the salsa flight, tacos and molle enchiladas. Very flavorful and my wife was raving about the carne asada tacos. Highly recommend the Cadillac margarita as well. Everything is a little pricey, but worth it!0 read more

Chicali Cantina - Cadillac Margarita - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

A MUST STOP if heading to/from the mountain. I've been several times while in the Mt Hood area and it has never disappointed. I've tried a wide variety of items and everything has layers of flavor. The birria tacos, fish tacos, taquitos, and guacamole are excellent, but I feel like people sleep on the loaded fries - they are top notch! The margs are huge and well-balanced - nothing I've tried has been overly sweet. All of the fruit margs are so fresh and delicious. Try them all! I can't recommend this spot enough. Try it yourself and you'll understand! read more

Came in to celebrate the 3rd anniversary and it did not disappoint! As always the restaurant is beautiful with such kind staff and owners who really care about their costumers! The food was amazing, our favorite salsa is the Sweet and Smokey morita but you can't go wrong with any of the options. We also love the Birria here! The drinks are also delicious and are not for the weak! So authentic and keeps us coming back! read more

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Las mejores quesabirrias Riquísimos chiles rellenos Los nachos ,tacos al pastor riquísimos tienen Riquísimas salsas y guacamole todo con un sabor casero y recién echo comimos en familia y esta fue nuestra orden muchas gracias Robin excelente servicio... read more

Chicali Cantina - Quesabirria - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

Great Guacamole and chips - we should have stopped there as also had street tacos with beans and rice - which wasn't as great as the guac and a fresh lime Margarita. Service was quick and informative. I definitely shared the spot with friends who live in that area. read more

Nice drive up the mountain, very inviting and also very disappointing. My burrito was served barely warm, The massive burrito was filled with mostly cold rice, lettuce, a few avocados and about 1/2 cup of meat chopped so small It was hard to tell if it was even steak. I didn't complain or send it back as it was date night. Dave your $22 burrito wasn't great I've never been to a Mexican restaurant that didn't offer complementary chips & salsa- Odd! read more

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Excellent and very unexpected stuck in the corner of a strip mall in a pretty remote area. Cute decor and friendly and prompt service. The braised beef on the tostada salad was amazing and I liked the fact that it was a tostada rather than the usual fried shell. House margaritas were good too which was another plus. Definitely recommend. read more

Chicali Cantina - Tostada salad - Mexican Near Me - Welches, Oregon

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Great experience at Chicali Cantina! The food was phenomenal! Our favorite restaurant of our trip. Highly recommend the guacamole! We also got the salsas which were really good and the fish tacos and enchiladas! Overall, the food and service was great! read more

Every year we travel to Portland for skiing on Mt Hood. Wait, let me stop lying. We travel here just to eat at Chicali! Skiing is extra! The carne asada tacos are so good! Literally makes our trip every year! Live music, good drinks, and awesome people! read more