The complimentary chips were great! Otherwise, there was one server who was overworked, so it took us a long time to get served. The food was an average price (~10-14 per entrée), but my combination platter wasn't very good. I had the Chile Poblano, Bean Enchiladas, and a Chalupa. The items were different temperatures, and too soggy (ultimately blending into a single, bean dish). read more

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The flautas mexicanas came completely undercooked. The tortillas are basically white. Food was not warm when it arrived; not at the fault of the Doordash delivery driver. This is not the first time we've had issues with this restaurant either. Our last order was simply not palatable at all. Dry and unpleasant tasting. I usually order from the Danville location and the difference in quality is just unacceptable. Never had any issues with the Danville restaurant yet every time we order from the Champaign location we end up wishing we had ordered somewhere else instead. I would not recommend this rest to anyone. read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - Undercooked Flautas Mexicanas - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

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In the past years the staff was really friendly! Last time I went they were all snobby! Their salsa was " Watery" no flavor! Really skimpy with their chips too! The Tacos were somewhat cold! The meat was scarcely hard too! Haven't been back since! Staff? At least act like you're happy to be there! Not happy ex customer!! read more

Always great food, excellent service and the best queso around!!! Several locations to choose from, and you can't go wrong with any of them!

I had lunch at the El Toto at the Fields one day this week. The food is big in amount with reasonable prices. Each of us got boxes to go. But the meat and beans were a little salty. read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

My wife and I were in Champaign, IL for a weekend to attend a wedding. Our hotel was across the street from El Torro. We loved it. Chips and salsa were very good. She got Chimichanga's and I got Pizzadilla...both were fantastic. The top shelf Margarita was great along with the draft Dos Equis'. The waitresses work together to get our drinks and food...they were all very nice and accommodating. read more

I passed by coming home from work and needed a small snack like dinner so I ordered a small chips and salsa to go with a side of beans and rice. It was 9.85?? Come on guys. Chips were sorta stale. Salsa was good. The American cheese on the beans was a strange and interesting choice. read more

We were at the University and needed lunch. We came here and had a wonderful lunch!!! The service was great! Everyone was attentive and so helpful! It is festive inside! The food was Amazing!!! I cannot wait to come back and try more!! read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - El Toro Chimichangas Lunch and margarita on the rocks - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

The service has always been good. The employees are very friendly and helpful. The food has declined a bit and it's really rather mediocre. The guacamole was awful. Almost foamy. And the margaritas tasted like they were from a mix. unfortunately, we had 11 people there and I felt like I had to apologize to them afterward for picking El Toro for dinner. read more

First and last time we will patronize El Toro. Our server, Jaime, was slow. Our order came up wrong...twice. The food was flavorless. We ordered a combo of a taco and burrito. The taco was rolled up like a burrito and smothered in a red sauce next to the burrito. Very messy, not a nice presentation. Our drinks, just beer and soda, took quite a while to get to the table. My son's tacos were cold. We wouldn't recommend this establishment. read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - Beef nachos. Plain, greasy ground beef with a bit of cheese. No lettuce, tomatoes, hot sauce, nothing. Pretty blah! - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

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Mediocre at best. They slobber cheese on everything. Burritos really over powered with tomatoes, cheese, and green peppers. read more

Its Saturday. The El Toro location on South Neil St closes at 10pm. Upon arrival at 9:00pm, We were told that we would not be able to have a Margarita or Beer. Umm a mexican food establish on saturday , No Margarita with Our meals. Its Weird. Meanwhile People at the bar have nice cold beers and tall Mugs at that. The Servicer looked uninterested. The quality of food is always good. We were completely sober and it sucks not having a Carona with Meal. Ok read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - How can he drink but we cant ? - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

Delicious Mexican food and big servings. Count me in! I've been here a few times before the pandemic, and each time has been a good experience. Not sure how things have changed these days, but the service was friendly and food came out really fast. Let me emphasize that again. Really, really fast! Their tortilla chips are probably one of my favorites in town. They're not hesitant to refill the free chips and it's a nice addition to their yummy entrees. I always have to stop myself from eating too many chips because I'd be too full to eat my actual meal. read more

Their flautas are the best I have ever had, and I'm from El Paso, the Crown Jewel of Mexican food. I order from El Toro once every two weeks regularly. It is reliable, always ready in 10 minutes, never missing anything, and always hot. Their beans and rice are delicious, and I NEVER say that about beans and rice. read more

The best food i've ever had. literally amazing. gave us free food too the best restaurant ever.

CATERING OPTION: I ordered a "Taco Bar" for a staff lunch for approximately 50 people. El Toro was AMAZING, they provided great basics for a typical taco bar: ground beef, shredded chicken, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, chips & salsa. We were able to add on a tray of veggies as an alternative option for our vegan staff members. We also wanted to add queso to go with our chips, which was a fabulous option. The food was delivered very warm still, which was not anticipated but they had wrapped everything with that intention and it worked! They provided disposable utensils, which were not necessarily needed, but as it is included in the package - it's great to know for future reference or for someone who would need that to be included! The process of ordering was pleasant, the process of following-up was pleasant. They delivered perfectly on time! Overall, a great experience having them cater a staff lunch. Jen even helped set everything up, which was very sweet of her. They ensured that we had everything we needed, everything we had ordered, and that the process of putting this all together was flawless. I will definitely recommend catering a taco bar to anyone that is needing to feed a larger group, and will keep El Toro in mind for future lunch caterings. THANK YOU JEN & TEAM @ EL TORO ON NEIL -Victoria & the MTD Staff :) read more

Ordered and it wasn't ready until at least 15 minutes past when I ordered. They were rather rude to me. I think they forgot my order bc my friend ordered at the same time and hers was ready to go when we got there (but missing items). I finally got my food and promptly drove home. Got home (5 minute drive) and everything was cold, so who knows what they did to my order. Had to microwave to eat. Burritos were pretty decent in that the beef was tender (hence the 2 star); fajita quesadilla was gross (slimy) and had no cheese (doesn't "quesa"dilla imply cheese?). Salsa was just ok (definitely not fresh). Just moved here and will be looking for better places. read more

Vegan/vegetarian, and gluten-free options available. Lackluster dishes. The salsa was great - chunky tomatoes and plenty of cilantro made this one of the best salsas I've had in Chambana so far. But that's where the good stuff ends at this restaurant. I had the fajitas, and although I highly appreciate the addition of broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, and carrots into a traditionally green pepper/tomato/onion dish, the fajita flavor just wasn't there. The grilled veggies tasted like grilled veggies and nothing more. My husband got the veggie burrito, which was the grilled veggies from the fajita wrapped in a flour tortilla. Unseasoned black beans and bland red rice were on the side, making this burrito rather unremarkable. The flavor of the red rice was off. It's hard to describe, but I was getting an uncooked ramen noodle flavor off of it. Both the guac and the refried pinto beans were over-salted, and the guac tasted like it was old. If I end up back at this restaurant for some reason I will gladly eat their chips and salsa, but nothing else. I ordered my dish with corn tortillas but the kitchen sent out flour tortillas, so I had to send them back. Our server seemed really rushed when he was interacting with us. When I asked for the corn tortillas I had ordered he didn't even let me finish my sentence. read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - Veggie fajitas that lack that signature fajita flavor - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

As a Californian I feel it's unfair for me to review El Toro, which may be just fine for Champaign but would be utterly crushed if it were located anywhere near San Francisco. The food wasn't very authentic and I'm not even sure this was as good as a Chevy's. THE ICKY: - The salsa was barely better than salsa you get out of a jar from the supermarket. Where are the tomatoes? The chips taste similarly store-bought. - The guacamole had no personality... maybe they couldn't get fresh avocados? - The cheese inside the quasadilla tasted really off. Were they using American cheese or something? - The tacos from head-to-toe were just not great, from the shell to the meat. THE GOOD: - I did like the horchata. :) - Despite the ickiness, I left pretty full, so large portion sizes with reasonable prices. - It had the ambiance of a taqueria, but was cleaner. - Service was fast and efficient. read more

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The food here is okay but the service leaves something to be desired. Last time I was here, there was a hair in my margarita and I had to be persistent to get seated because there was no hostess at the door. I also called about catering recently only to be told that the manager wasn't available. All in all, it's decent but there are certainly better mexican restaurants in town. read more

This is definitely a great place to grab drinks and dinner with friends on a Friday night. The outdoor patio is spacious and the inside space is quite large as well; finding room for out party of 8 was no problem at all! The food was pretty standard (I got the cheese quesadilla and asked to get vegetables added and our waitress was able to accommodate my request with no problem!) and the prices were very reasonable (I paid $13 for my quesadilla and a good-sized margarita, tip included). In regards to their drinks, the servings are VERY generous! Our party enjoyed a range of their margarita selection, spanning from lime margaritas on the rocks to mango-strawberry frozen margaritas and everyone was happy with their drink of choice. We all went with the Jumbo (or was it Grande?) size (the equivalent of a medium) and it was definitely bigger than expected, but great nevertheless! Not the best Mexican food I've had, but it was a great place to meet up with a group. I have a feeling that I haven't seen the last of El Toro! read more

I'd give this 3.5 stars. It's everything you would expect in your run-of-the-mill Mexican restaurant. Free chips n salsa and a HUGE menu with all your classic combinations of the dame handful of ingredients. Reasonably priced for the large portions you get and the quality is good. Mostly, If you are craving solid Mexican food this is a great, clean, comfortable option. Nothing too fancy or high end. Just solid Mexican! read more

Above average American Mexican restaurant. They do like to sit minorities by the bathroom, though. They are right in front. Go far left or far, right? read more

Placed order through the El Toro website and specified that I can't have onions in my burrito. Got the order home and it had them, almost extra. Called and they agreed to make a second one at no charge so I was appreciative and drove across town to pick up. Got home ready to eat nearly two hours after placing my original order to find the replacement also was riddled with onions. Can't justify the gas for a third trip to just get home with nothing corrected again. read more

The food was horrible here ! Ordered guacamole and it had no salt or seasoning in it along with the avocado they used not being ripe. Then I ordered a vegetarian burrito thinking it would be how I've always had it .. (beans, rice, lettuce, sour cream, tomatoes, etc) and it ended up being ONLY sir fried onions, green pepper, and tomatoes drenched with this gross red sauce. My friend ordered the shrimp cocktail and the avocados used were again not ripe and the sauce used wasn't good at all so she talked with the waiter and owner immediately about the foods quality and ended up being told not to come back again! Food was more than disappointing and the service was awful. Would not recommend to anyone. read more

Although it may no be the best Mexican food in town, it's consistently good and keeps me coming back. I know a lot of people categorize El Toro as "Tex-Mex" which may be true, but the food never disappointments. The restaurant itself is great: ample space and great decor, not to mention the nice outdoor seating. The staff are always friendly and helpful, making sure to check in to make sure everything is going well. This place is always great for a margarita and usually has some kind of special for them. Can't really go wrong with any food you get here. I've had many different things here, and I've enjoyed just about everything. I'm especially partial to the chicken nachos and crab meat combo, yum! Can't really say anything bad about this place. It's never disappointed me in any capacity, it's been nothing but positive experiences here for me. I will definitely keep coming back. read more

Horrible. Very, very Midwestern Mexican. (Disclaimer: I grew up in the midwest, but I have traveled and had Mexican and Southwestern food, and I've enjoyed trying the many Mexican themed restaurants in town.) Chips were okay - crispy and pretty tasty. Salsa was okay. Chips and salsa were, probably, the best part of the meal. So, +1 star for chips and decent service. My girlfriend wasn't feeling well, and wanted something lighter and got the guacamole salad. What she received was a plate of iceberg lettuce, shredded white cheese, and very salty guacamole. The guacamole tasted like it came out of a jar. The combination was exactly as appetizing as it sounds. I got a burrito plate. The burrito was not wrapped up. It just had some filling dumped into it and had been shoved into an oven, so the edges of the tortilla had become hard and browned. It was impossible to pick up and broke into pieces when I tried. The filling itself consisted of stewed, mushy beef with stewed, mushy tomatoes and onions. The sides were forgettable. I really hate to throw away leftovers, especially if I think they can be jazzed up somehow, but that's what I ended up doing with the rest of the burrito. You do get a lot of food on your plate, but if it's bland Mexican that's very, very reminiscent of what you can get out of a box at the supermarket, why bother? If you'd like better Mexican, try Huaraches Moroleon or Mas Amigos. Or Taco Loco. Cocina Real and Dos Reales aren't my favorites, but they're still better than here. (I haven't been to Maize and can't comment on it.) If you wish there was a Burrito King off campus, this is pretty much it. Except they do, at least, leave off the salty white cheese sauce here. Overall, I would avoid this place and go to one of many places that is cheaper, more charming, and more authentic. read more

This was the singularly worst meal and dining experience I have had in a very long time. The menu promises there will be a great meal here. The actual experience is extremely different. We ordered our meals and waited an hour for them to arrive. Our waiter was absent during this time. When our meals arrived via a different waiter the food was all lukewarm. My chile relleno was so small and unrecognizable I thought they forgot it. It consisted of small flat piece of pepper covered with a tasteless sauce and some sort of cheese. The tamale was cold, filled with unseasoned ground beef and quite tasteless itself. We never received our check until we stood up to leave. Then our waiter magically materialized, for the first time since taking our order over an hour earlier. Try any other Mexican restaurant, even Taco Bell, before going here. read more

Great location and atmosphere. Authentic and Mexican American fare that was served in generous portions and DELICIOUS! The Guadalajara burrito was simple and SO flavorful. Hubs had Molcalambres and ranked them near the top of his fajita list. Not hoiity toity; not trying to be hip and trendy like Maize. Will come back whenever in town. read more

El Toro Mexican Restaurant - Molcalambres. Wow. Not your run of the mill fajitas. Stellar! - Mexican Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

Visited eltororestaurante.com and ordered lunch off their lunch menu. Got to the restaurant to pick up my lunch and was charged a higher price than what was on their own website. When I pointed this out to the hostess she kept pointing to the menu till another employee explained to her in Spanish that their own website had lower prices, at which point she lowered the price. Was told it would be ready in 5 minutes. Got their after 5 minutes and had to wait another 5 minutes. Was told to wear a mask though some employees were not wearing masks in the dining area and guests were using the washrooms without a mask. And oh, the food: It was pretty mediocre. read more

The chips and queso were good and the beer was cold. Our meals were disappointing. Chicken fajita nachos with jalapeños were flavorless and bland. My wife had a seafood fajita plate which was equally bad. Flavor was lacking from all our meals - not a good experience. El Toro needs to step up their game to be on par with the quality other Mexican restaurants in the area offer. read more

It's just ok. Salsa was one step up from Pace which isn't really a compliment to the chef. I absolutely hate food drenched in sauces to disguise lack of flavor and this was the case with their version of the enchilada. Initially my taco came out in a crunchy tortilla and I was shocked to find out this was the norm when ordering a taco at this place. Since i'm not really into the crunchy taco bell-esque tortilla I kindly asked for a soft corn tortilla (and they gladly changed this for me). The taco was good but again not great. The peach margarita was strong but not really peach so while I got happy from the booze, I wasn't to thrilled at my mystery fruit drink though. Probably won't go back. read more

I have to say I am really excited to have the New El Toro open, because it's only 3 blocks from my house - so smart for them to move closer to both campus and downtown... In the newly renovated warehouse building on the corner of 901 S. Neil (right next door to Kamakura), the restaurant has 6 options for seating (or at least they WILL once the outdoor seating is in place), large, spacious rooms, and good decor. The drinks are strong and generous, the food is fresh and i think MUCH better than the old Neil St Location, quick service, sporting a mixed and interesting crowd of students, yuppies, sport fans at the bar and families. GREAT location, well-designed and reliable, cheap excellent food. read more

The Fuentes family has extended themselves and this Champaign El Toro location is definitely the best one in town (if you don't have a rapport with individuals at another location that is) , and I usually have a pretty decent experience here. A few notes: The place is fairly big, but the parking lot isn't, so if you pull up and can't find a spot in the lot, you can find some parking on-street parking and will still be able to get a table once you go in...don't quote me though! For the most part the waitstaff's 1st language is Spanglish, so be prepared to talk slow and point to what you want.....I don't think I ever had an issue with lack of communication. Additionally they may be a server short at all times as they are always running around trying to serve and do not fully spend as much time at the table to ensure accuracy of orders (especially special orders, etc.). My last experience the food was just alright....maybe a tad bland and lackluster. I usually get the Alambres dish...but strayed this go round.... I'd highly suggest trying the Alambres dish to anyone and will probably stick to that. I usually get the mix of steak, chicken, bacon, peppers, and cheese with the usual sides...comes out like fajitas....sizzling and ensuring it'll be nice and hot. The drinks are alright, but I think are a little too expensive for the alcohol content. I think they would benefit from an aggressive happy hour special with extended hours everyday...something to help them stand apart from all of the other competition in town which may have a slight edge in the flavor/authenticity department.. Nonetheless, El toro is a solid place to go. read more

Four stars for the win, El Toro. At last, a place where I can watch the Pumas, eat some decent food, joke in Spanish, and even have fried ice cream if I'm playing gringo tourist. I like it. And I don't mind taking midwestern friends here. It makes me look 'edgy' cuando yo hablo en espanol con la gente. ;) Also, the alambres were fantastic. read more

El Toro is great! We came here on a Friday night and while they weren't busy when we arrived, they were able to seat our party of 7 quickly. They also allowed us to split our checks 3 ways, which gets a huge PLUS in my book. Food and service was excellent. I look forward to my next return to El Toro II. read more

Went there today (6-4-21) for lunch and was refused service because I had my registered service dog with me I guess they don't know the law about service animals never been refused service before by any restaurant so I definitely will not go back there read more

I had a great time on my visit. The lobby does still have a new paint smell that was off-putting, and that odor did occaisionaly drift into the dining area, but it did not affect my enjoyment. Despite what other reviewers have noted, I found their menu to be pretty expansive, going far beyond the 'typical Mexican restaurant' fare. The one thing I wanted that they didn't have was a Mole sauce, but most places don't so no big. They had a strong selection of liquor and tequilla, and pretty good drink specials. I enjoyed my enchiladas del mar, and everybody else liked what they got, too. The tamales entree was a hit. They give you warm chips and salsa that is good but pretty mild. I knocked ours up a bit with the Cholula and Tapatio they put on the tables and was sweating gleefully in no time. I wanted to try their Margarona, which is a margarita with a corona stuck into it. I know, it sounds gross to mix beer with liquor, but if it is done right, it can be surprisingly delightful. Holding me back from ordering this frankencocktail was the $8.50 pricetag, but If it were on special, I'd definitely take a Margarona behind the bleachers and deny it later. read more

Pros: Nice ambience, fairly strong margaritas. Cons: The last time I went, the service was not great. The waitress got our orders wrong, never refilled our water, and never came back with the salsa we asked for. It wasn't busy at all, either. The food is just so-so. Everything seemed overcooked and not very thoughtfully seasoned. It's certainly no Mas Amigos or Maize. read more

It turns out that El Toro II is the favorite restaurant of one of my best friends, so I started to go there alot recently, and it has grown on me exponentially. The service is always amazing: the food comes out in like 5 minutes piping hot and exactly as ordered whether the party has 2 people in it or 15. I think I have also gotten a handle on what I like to order here too: mango margarita (frozen) and three cheese enchiladas. read more