Some of the verrrrrrry best chain restaurant food we've had in a longgggg, longgggg while…read more
With only 4 locations in NJ, I honestly wasn't very familiar with Tio Taco at all. With this area being our go to after a Salvation Army drop off run in Passaic, Tio Taco was next up on our list after we had already hit up a few of the restaurants in the Clifton shopping area.
We came by at around 12pm on a wintry Saturday afternoon and there was only one table occupied at the time. When we walked in though, unfortunately we weren't greeted by anyone for a good few minutes, so alarms already were going off in our heads of a potentially bad experience coming up. We ended up walking in on our own and seating ourselves before being greeted.
The menu was Mexican-oriented as you can imagine - empanadas, tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, steak and seafood Mexican-inspired entrees, etc. It wasn't a huge menu, but plenty to still choose from. We started off with the Beef Empanadas, which were FANTASTICCC. There were 3 large pieces in the order, which easssssily could have been an entree. It was some of the best beef empanadas I've had - honestly. Juicy seasoned beef and very good flavor from the sofrito. It came with a side of lettuce and pico de gallo and cheese dipping sauce.
Next, the entrees. We ordered from the Kids menu for the kiddos - a Kids Chicken Quesadilla. First, the order was absolutely HUGEEEE! We were so shocked that the serving was so big that we double-checked with the waiter that it wasn't 2 orders. This was one of the largest kids meals items I had ever seen. There were 6 cut up pieces of the quesadilla, which was generously filled with lots of chicken and melted cheese. There was also a side of deliciously super crispy fries. I had 1 piece of the quesadilla and it stunned me that it was soooo gooood and the entire order probably would have filled me up with ease.
My better half ordered the Churrasco Skirt Steak and I had the Short Rib Enchiladas. BOTH were ridiculously superb. The skirt steak was tender, juicy, flavorful and the chimichurri sauce was perfect. One of the better "non-fancy restaurant" steaks that we've had. As for the enchiladas, absolutely delicious! The short rib was soooo juicy and flavorful. Both entrees came with a side of rice and beans. The rice was a bit on the hard side, but I mixed mine with the beans, which made it better.
We've been to our fair share of restaurants and, especially chain restaurants, and this was one of the best experiences, service wise and food wise, that we've had. It didn't get off to the best start having to wait a few minutes to be greeted, but our waiter was very friendly, accommodating with our requests for non-glass plates and plastic forks and even brought over extra ketchup and napkins without us asking. He came by to check on us every once in a while as well. And, yes, initially I was brought the wrong order of enchiladas, but they fixed that up asap with a brand new order for me.
In closing, I'll say that when we visit chain restaurants these days, most of the food is decent and satisfies our hunger, but nothing very memorable ... the food here was absolutely MEMORABLE and we'll definitely be back.