This restaurant is more than amazing! The food is incredible and the staff is exceptional! We will definitely be making this one of our "go to" Mexican restaurants! read more

Nothing I have ever eaten has made me more violently ill. The staff was nice enough, but it wasn't worth it.

Fantastic environment. Margaritas are amazing. Wait staff is very attentive. Great food priced very well!

The House Efrain's Burrito is absolutely top notch! It's ingredients can change, but usually contains a mix of most everything you could want. The green chili can be quite hot, so I usually get the half and half. It's big burrito which makes nice left overs for the next day. Not the cleanest or most chic place, but I recommend trying. read more

I really wanted to like this place. We met some dear friends who were celebrating a birthday here. We had our own private dining area which was nice. The chips and salsa were good. The menu I have to say, just looked unappetizing. The waitress seemed to be playing games with a few peeps in our group when she came in and heard them being sassy and asking where the heck she was. I was wondering too, I just didn't say it aloud. She would be there and then she would disappear before anyone could order anything. I thought the games were quite lame. I ordered a beef and bean burrito smothered in green chili. Now the burrito is like 6 bucks, but if you want it smothered it's 3 bucks more....Yikes! Let me tell you folks it's not worth it. The chili while hot was not tasty and mine was extremely greasy. There is nothing more gross to look at then your food covered in grease. Ick. read more

Yuckity Yuck! I love Mexican food and usually let alot of things slide when enjoying such food. However, Efrains was disgusting, first the place smelled and looked like an old Florida restaurant. Why would a place in CO smell like it has been through several hurricanes and be assaulted with green and white decor, really green carpeting, ugh. Plus, the place was invested with flies, really, flies in colorado. The chips and salsa sucked unless you like stale chips with no salt and a bowl of tomato sauce. Apparently, salsa here means tomato sauce from a can with some veggies, gross. And I am not sure what rock the waitress crawled out from under, but she made it wait my table. I have never given such a bad review. I love food and usually with good company enjoy myself. I was with the best company, but the nastiest place. read more

When we sat down for dinner this evening I remembered that I had yet to review Efrain's. I've eaten here probably a dozen times and I have to admit that while the decor isn't great and the place is kinda disorganized the food has always been pretty decent. My wife loves the Green Chili Plate with Mexican Ribs. I'm more of an enchilada guy. We both really like the Margaritas. Anyway once seated I figured tonight's meal would be my opportunity to Yelp about the restaurant. Unfortunately for them it was. Wow what a terrible meal. The beef fajitas were terrible and tough probably the worst meal I've had in several years. The service matched the meal, cranky waiter, slow service and the restaurant set a new low for messy and unkept. The cheeseburgers normally a favorite of my kids were overcooked and had so little cheese on them we had to look twice to confirm it was there. The topper of the night was when I requested additional tortillas (Only 2 came with the fajitas) I was told that I'd have to pay extra. What a joke, a $50 dollar meal and they nicked me for something as simple as tortillas. read more

Third time around. Just gross. Stood up front while many of the employees walked past us several times without greeting or seating us. The chicken in my enchilada wasn't drained at all, and was dripping with water, which made everything on my plate soggy. Oh, well. read more

This is the original Efrain's and sadly the best of them all. I've heard great things from friends about the food here, but my experience was just ok. Driving up to Efrain's I was excited! The outside of the building was very cute. The ambiance inside however was very bland. The table we were sat at had food stuck on it. I was expecting to hear the sounds of a mariachi band in the background, but that was replaced with a dull roar and the clacking of dishes. Something, anything, would have been better than nothing! The food was average. The chips and salsa were not good at all. The chips were very hard and the salsa had very little flavor. I ordered a chicken chimi and it was good, nothing to complain about, but nothing to rave about either. To finish things off we ordered a basket of sopaipillas and they were great! However, I can't say that I've ever had a bad sopaipilla... not even at Casa Bonita, so that's not saying much. The service was below average. We sat at our table with the water and chips and salsa the bus boy dropped off for over 10 minutes before being greeted by anyone! Finally someone asked what we wanted to drink. Over half of the tables were open on a Saturday night so I just don't understand what kept our server. I won't be eighty sixing Efrain's from my places to eat, they have potential. Why they couldn't get there ducks in a row on a slow night I don't know, but I'm choosing to believe they were having an off night. Efrian's is receiving three stars for yummy margaritas, good prices, and potential. I do not return to two star establishments and I think these guys deserve a second chance. read more

NO. Let me begin by saying when a restaurant stops caring about its appearance, the customers don't even want to know how little they care about their food. We had heard that the chilli was definitely worth trying, and I guess we will not find out. Walking through the front door, I had completely lost my appetite. I'm appalled at the disgusting environment and the unattentive host. We were given a number, not asked for our names, and TOLD to sit down and wait for the number. After waiting and madly checking Yelp reviews while we were waiting, I found reports of food poisoning, uncleanliness, poor service, and a printer in the bathroom(?) Huh?? My friend went in and said the bathroom was absolutely disgusting, and when we were showed to our table, no less than 50 tortilla chips, stepped on, and mashed into the carpet that hasn't been cleaned since the old house was probably built, scattered all around the floor and we waited there until the host rolled his eyes to get a broom and sweep them up... With pits in our stomach and having not been greeted for 10 minutes our table convened that we were not going to be spending money to eat this place's food. This establishment should be embarrassed and needs a health inspection immediately. I can't believe people eat there. I'd rather eat off of my toilet. This is by far the worst review I have ever written, but I am completely unapologetic, and feel as though I should be apologized to instead. Ugh. read more

I got to say there's two place's in colorado I will never eat mexican food at, and this would be the second one. (The first one is in fort collins and they use ketchup instead of salsa). I'm for business to succeed, but this place just sucks. read more

I thought this place was outgoing and awesome for all occasions. We came here literally last night and felt the major coolness from all the people. The restaurant can get a tad bit crowded but it makes a huge difference to come in plan ahead. The assistance was really grand and I enjoy how this place is located in Lafayette in Colorado. The people are too cool and sang "Happy Birthday," to our special friend. They also served a variety of Mexican desserts too. read more

Efrains - Birthday boy was happy !! - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Colorado

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Seems folks either love it or hate it. I wish more people hated it...at least that way I might have a shot at getting a table in a reasonable timeframe. Efrains is, in short, my favorite restaurant on earth. I have been known to get off a 22 hour airline trip, get picked up by my wife at the airport, and go straight to Efrains without even going home. My brother and his wife drive all the way from Lakewood every couple of weeks to meet us just to get their Efrains fix. Best dishes are the Chili Verde Burrito (the chili is in-f'ing-credible), the Costillas (baby back ribs smothered in chili verde), and the Tamales (made in the traditional way and smothered in the most flavorful enchilada sauce I've ever had). Love the house margaritas and the flan is superb for dessert. If you look for a Chili's restaurant when you travel because you like to know exactly what you're getting, or expect to have your every need catered to by smiling 20 year olds, or get bent out of shape if the restaurant is busy and you don't get your check within the 3 minute window you expect, please take your delicate sensibilities and go someplace else so the rest of us can get a table! Have any of the people sniveling about the spotty service stopped to think about why throngs of people are willing to put up with it year after year??? Hint: it rhymes with Billy Birdy. read more

Disappointed. I have no idea how (or if) all of the Efrain's are associated with each other, but we've been to at least a couple (or more?) other locations and this is the first time we've been disappointed. We decided to take a drive to find a place for an impromptu date night (read: we were too lazy to cook). There are LOTS of options in this neighborhood, but I couldn't get mexican food out of my head! So to Efrain's we went. We were seated immediately, unfortunately next to two large parties. Both were loud but the restaurant is small so there really weren't many options to be away from these groups. Certainly not the end of the world. I'm not sure if they were understaffed or overwhelmed by these two large parties, but it took a while to be greeted...and then of course when we asked for just a couple minutes to decide, we didn't see him for another 10-15 minutes. We ordered a pitcher of margaritas - not the cheap stuff either. Silver Coin, the good stuff. What they brought us was GROSS. We agreed that it tasted watered down, you couldn't taste or notice the tequila and yeah, when you get the top shelf stuff, you WANT to taste it. Our server wasn't too happy that we didn't like our margaritas. He wasn't rude, but wasn't graceful about it either. We sent the pitcher back and it took so long for him to return to ask what we wanted instead, that we had finished eating, and ordered one single margarita to share...instead of a pitcher. Bummer for them. The food was as expected. My guy almost always gets the Efrain Burrito - which is whatever the chef wants to put into it. Good portion size and he enjoyed it. I got the #Uno combo - a bean tostada, pork tamale and chile relleno. It was all pretty good - no complaints here. All in all, it makes me wish that we would have chosen one of the other many options nearby. Efrain's Boulder and Efrain's Longmont provide a much better experience so we'll stick to those in the future. read more

I have no idea why this place is popular. The food is bland and the service is abominable. Ate there with my family of 4 and we all got different dishes each which were about what we could make at home, except less seasoned. If your idea of Mexican food includes chopped iceberg lettuce, chopped plain tomatoes and shredded cheddar cheese, you'll love it. Sort of like the county fair. I prefer actual flavor and heat or even some spices. On a Saturday at around 3pm there was a 20 min wait and our waitress (typical "Flo") was less than interested in taking our order and then we didn't see her again til the bill came. One of those places where they dont care about you and are trying to get you in and out. Atmosphere is not close to modern and neither is waistaff or clientele. Probably hasnt changed or evolved in 25 years or so. Come to think of it....this place reminds me of Casa Bonita. But without the entertainment. Do yourself a favor: in a state with really great Mexican to be found everywhere, go autentico somewhere else. read more

Really bad Mexican food. Really bad. Dirty restaurant, slow service. This is not a dive- just a dirty place. The ladies sitting next to us wanted to have there food taken back it was so bad. Then we got ours and I wanted to do the same. I've tried this place a few times and will never be back. The beans are tasteless, the rice is like instant white rice. The salsa is so watered down it might as well be red water. read more

Yup, this is AS GOOD AS IT GETS (in Colorado anyway). Having been to Efrain's in Boulder, my hubby and I wanted to check this place out and we really enjoyed it (or at least I did). He wasn't too convinced about his plate. I ordered their #8 "Costillas" plate which is one of the hottest dishes on the menu. Yummy! Taste is all there and then some - garlic, chilies, oregano, etc. They serve the plate with triangle sliced potatoes (OMG love them) and refried beans. Writing this review makes me want to visit right now. Only low point: service on a Friday night at 9pm. Granted we walked in late but, customer is always right. Why skimp on the service regardless of the time? Location is cute and so is the building. You'll love this place as much as I do! read more

I really really really want this place to be better. I'm a Lafayette residence, and I want to support my community and the small businesses. But this place is crap. Crap food. Crap service. Crap decor. Even the outside seating literally smells like crap. And yet people continue to file in. I'm baffled. read more

It's funny how many low ratings there are, because this place is always packed. Have been coming here since it opened 15-20 years ago. It is the tackiest, semi-scuzziest restaurant around. But their food is yummy and we always see people we know there which is fun. It used to be a "fern" bar in the 80's which is why the decor is so strange for a Mexican restaurant. Why spend money upgrading when you have a full house every night? Their green chili is very tasty. Varies from extremely hot to mild/medium depending on the chili's that season. Definitely homemade. I usually have the green chili plate or the chicken tostada with a taste of green chili. Their refrieds are spectacular, and DO NOT contain lard. The chicken supreme is out of this world. Order half red/hard green. Yeah! If you love a good dive (one where you can ignore the fact that the restaurant needs a good power-washing), come to Efrains and enjoy! No snobs allowed. Oh -- and depending on who is waiting on you the service will be somewhere between way too fast and really really terrible. Just be forewarned. read more

Nice patio area. Queso comes in ample size. Friendly wait staff with a relaxed environment. Excellent vslue

Debates on Mexican food can get just as heated as discussions of politics and religion. My bias - I lived in New Mexico and San Diego, my wife grew up in Tucson, I like to roast and peel my own green chili, and we both expect our mexican food to be spicy and hot. If you want hamburgers, or American-ized mexican food, don't go here. I judge a place by it's green chili first, then by it's beans and tortillas, then by everything else. Efrains has the best green chili around, if you want real green chili. Yes, service is occasionally off, but more times than not it is good to very good. If you like family-owned restaurants, and good to great mexican food at reasonable prices, there is no place around that I would recommend higher. read more

We had reservations last night for a friend's birthday. My husband and i have never heard of this restaurant and were pleasantly surprised at how busy it was. Always a good sign when the restaurant isn't empty. Our party was sat and as we were taken to our seats the smell of sweat, food, and something funky hit my nose. It was extremely hot where we were sat and crowded. After about 10 minutes we still had not seen a server. We could visibly see the restaurant was busy. We hadn't received waters or chips either. Once we finally saw our server we ordered right away and it took forever to get our drinks and my husband waited an extra 5 minutes for his corona. Food arrived all at different times. . . The food was ok, nothing to brag about.. The margaritas were from a mix. Service was rough from all aspects. This was definitely the first and last time we will be trying this restaurant. Not to mention my husband and i got sicker than ever, we suspect food poisoning since we shared both items we ordered. Very unhappy customers read more

A serious insult to Mexican's and their food, the closest thing to Mexican food here would be the people in the kitchen, probably embarrassed by having to cook it and someone using their nationality as a name for it! Cons - Bad, the Chimi was the same size as the toppings, the salsa was the same consistency as water. Pros - service was good read more

I've been here twice and both times were a huge disappointment. Slow service and bad food. We drive to Louisville if we want mexican food. read more

Horrible ambiance, bad service and the food is NOT good. Entirely non-authentic mexican food, stay away unless you like bad Tex-Mex. read more

The service was worse than the food and that's really saying something. Total lack of service and totally rude and inattentive staff and management. I had a burrito that was drowning in disgusting red sauce. Flour tortilla was soggy, limp and disgusting. The garbage burrito had little beef and no rice and was overpriced to add insult to injury. Don't bother going to this place as there are many other good Mexican restaurants in the area. read more

I had heard a lot about Efrain's from friends and so my boyfriend and I decided to go there this weekend for lunch. I am not sure why it receives such good reviews. The first thing I noticed when we were sat at our table was the fact that most of the tables were full and there seemed to be only one server handling the main room of the restaurant. As I looked around, people seemed to be waiting quite a while for service. I ordered a house margarita and it took about 10 minutes for it to arrive from the bar. Food service was also very slow. I had to use the bathroom during lunch and noticed that the large bucket of chips used to serve tables as they are seated was literally right on the way to the bathrooms on a corner outside the kitchen. It did not make me feel very good about eating something that was so close to lots of traffic going to and from the bathroom. Who is to say that someone sneezed on their way to use the bathroom and it landed in the bucket of chips!? The food was lackluster. I got the bean burrito and it felt like it was just a can of re-fried beans put in a tortilla with some kind of red sauce poured over the top. Garnish, two black olives. The restaurant itself could also use a bit of a clean and revamp. Random printer in the women's bathroom and the main dining area just did not seem to be very clean. It also took quite a while for us to get our check paid. We were unsure if we were supposed to take it up to the front door, which really didn't have a hostess stand or if we were to wait for our server to come back and take it. We had to wave down the host who looked like he was about 14 and ask him to run the check. Overall, I was not impressed with the food, service, cleanliness or atmosphere of the restaurant and probably will not be going back anytime soon. read more

Smells like sewage. The septic scent was really something! The food was ok. Beverages were ok. Service was slow and friendly. read more

Like the lyrics of Natile Imbruglia's one hit wonder "Torn," I'm Torn about this little mexican restaurant found in Lafayette. This place is the quintessential Clint Eastwood of mexican restaurants, It has the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. The Good: Without a doubt, one of the best House Margarita's served in a 16oz canning jar, like a bootleg of moonshine for $5.75. Great deal, great flavor, great size. One of the friendliest bartenders we have encountered. Very busy, but very attentive. Flame thrower powered roasted jalapeños. The Bad: One of the smallest parking lots to navigate. I ordered the Efrain's Famous Chili Verde Bowl, not quite Princess Diana famous, and not as hot as they lead you to believe. The Ugly: The old carpet, wobbly bars stools, the uncomfortable seating arrangements and uneven floors, is it character, charm or just a lack of attention to details? The bathroom...better to leave that to your imagination. So you see, as Natalie sings, "My inspiration has run dry...That's what's going on, nothings right, Im torn." Go there without great expectations, disregard the "heat level" charts on the menu, ignore the bizarre decor and small, tight spaces and the Good will outweigh the Ugly. read more

Efrains is awful. Microwaved food. Served warm. With the worst service. Left my debit card on the take out counter for anyone to steal. Manager said that's what they do. read more

Unbelievable service and great food! I will definitely be going here again. You guys rock!

First Mexican place my native Coloradan husband took me. Their green Chile is my favorite! Their rice and beans are my favorite. I almost always get the chicken enchilada plate with green chile or the Chile plate. Often super busy and sometimes there is a wait but always worth it. Servers are always nice. margaritas are salty but deliciously strong! read more

The location is obviously ideal, and I love their salad... but, it was downhill from there. My beef burrito with green chili had some decent flavor, but hardly any beef, and the beef that was there was very tough My daughter ordered a hamburger with no cheese and it came covered in it . I was expecting a better experience, but will give them another shot! read more

Efrain's gets one star for being... well, Efrain's. But the food is awful compared to the one in Boulder. Terrible, terrible service. We were seated fairly quickly and chips/salsa were delivered shortly after. Then begins the wait. We watched a guy who we thought was our waiter walk by about 10 times (no joke) to the people at arguably the worst table in the place (hidden in a far back corner). He clearly looked us and our empty-of-food-and-drink table and practically ran the other way. When he finally graced us with his presence, he threw menus (not that we needed them) on the table without asking if we wanted anything to drink. I practically had to beg for a margarita (thank goodness I knew I wanted a pink cadillac). When it finally came it was really watery - ew. Our food took forever to come out and we were sorely disappointed. The chicken in my enchilada was dry and tough and the whole plate was really greasy. BF's plate was not much better. We didn't even bother ordering sopapillas because we wanted to get to bed at a reasonable time. Our waiter never checked up on us - not even for more chips or water. When the check came, it took our waiter another 20 minutes to run the credit card. By that time we were ready to leave the card and just make a run for it. Long story short, don't go to this Efrain's. Drive north on 287, turn left at Arapahoe, and drive to 63rd Street. There you will find outstanding food, real drinks, and happier people. read more

This place looks like its on restaurant impossible, before they show up to improve it. When I sat down the sugar container was sitting on the floor? The food is just ok. Service fine. But everything looks wore out and dirty. read more

The smell of the bathrooms permeates the entire restaurant. I couldn't wait to get out of there. The food was lowest common denominator gloppy beige piles as well. So disappointing. read more

I wouldn't really recommend this place. The service was pretty terrible, served food without any silverware and waited forever for silverware. Waited by the front forever while the owner just talked to a carry out customer. First in line waited for a seat for like 30 minutes. I'm holding a sleeping baby and leaning /holding open a door and a server pulls the door right from underneath me, wakes up baby.... and usually this stuff can be excused if the food is good but it's not. The food was really not good at all, I just kept thinking what may lurk in the kitchen, flies everywhere, the salsa was like tomato paste and water, with a hint of old pizza sauce. I just got a bad feeling, like Gordon Ramsey was going to pop in and tell us all to clear out. I'm not sure if they are the only place in Lafayette to eat or something but I can't figure out why people eat here. read more

After reading the Yelp reviews, we truly expected better food. We should have left after starting with the chips and salsa...it is never a good sign when the salsa is watery and lacks flavor. Not sure if it was a bad day or if the food is mediocre every day, but between three of us, none of us would return for their bland Mexican. Perhaps if the place didn't feel so drab and dirty, it may have gotten another star. If you do decide to give the place a try, don't sit by the windows along the back. The sun comes in at funky angles. All the patrons that were near us were constantly moving their chairs to get out of the sun so they weren't baking or blinded. read more

We have come here a dozen times because of the food. This is also one of the only places I've found dessert sopapillas, a crispy powered sugar and honey covered treat. The food is good. Can't speak for the entire menu but we have 2 or 3 favorites here. The current favorite is the Smothered Burrito... a cheesy, saucy treat for a ridiculous $5.75. We also like the Steak San Lorenzo which comes with beans and rice and a nice scoop of guac but the cooks never get the steak cooked right. We have finally figured out to ask for it medium rare for it to come out medium well. The chimichanga is also very good but kind of on the small side. I don't know about you, but I like my food sprawling out over my entire plate, not just hiding in the corner. Now for the worse thing about this place... service is really shoddy. We've had good service once and bad to abysmal service all the other times. Maybe it's because Efrain's is so understaffed, the current workers hate their lives. Once we ordered to-go because the wait for a table was about 30 minutes but then we ended up waiting almost 1 hour to get two dishes. I felt bad for badgering the poor kid who was waiting tables, clearing tables, juggling the wait list, and trying not to trip over the hordes of people waiting by the door. Overall: Go outside of busy hour and don't expect them to get your steak right. Go to Texas Roadhouse if you're really craving the steak. read more

I have been eating here for over 5 years and have always enjoyed it. Yeah, there can be a wait, and the service can be slow, but I enjoy everything else. Salsa is good, chips are decent. Margaritas are excellent, if you get the Gold Rush. Chili Colorado, Mondango, Hot Green Chili, the burritos all get a thumbs up. Sopaipillas are excellent as well. read more