Yes I did try la Loncherita, I liked the atmosphere, the food and the fact that I tried to do my ordering in Spanish was greatly appreciated by the lady in the kitchen who greet me with a smile.. The tacos were excellent we will be back read more

Crazy how many authentic Mexican places there are in Harvard. It seems out of place for a small farming town for real. La Loncherita is another one of these. Actually it's more like a convenience store than a cafe. This has a dining area, so you can eat it here or take it wherever. About the most authentic Mexican food you can get around here, super authentic. It has the area to order food in the back. There's a dining area with a few tables. If a few people come in here it will be crowded. Very cramped and full of local Mexicans. Food menu is pretty limited. There's tacos. It's about $5 each. These are bigger than the fast food type of style. Have to say it's more like a convenience store than a restaurant to be honest. It's limited and it's pretty cramped inside. There's also lots of Mexican groceries and things. read more

La Loncherita - Inside - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

Came here for lunch on a Saturday and it wasn't too busy. Decided to get street tacos and they were excellent. Got a al pastor, an asada and a chorizo; all three were just cilantro and onion. The al pastor was on the sweet side as it had pineapple in it: it was good but not my favorite (but my wife loved it). The asada was a bit dry but put some salsa on and it was just delicious; maybe my favorite taco there. The chorizo was on the spicy side, and I loved it. Overall, cost was good and the portions were large. We took our food down the street to Rush Creek Distillery and spent several hours. Even as I write this the combination was excellent (way better than pizza with top shelf spirits) and I can't wait to do it again. read more

See all

Mexican grocery store in downtown Harvard. Walking distance to Harvard train station. Police Station next door. Walk all the way to the back of the store for their take out restaurant. Menu on the large chalkboard. Order your food at the window. Pay up front. Then return to the window when your food is ready. Kind of dumpy and dingy but great street tacos. We ordered two of each: Chorizo, steak, and ale pastor. The Al Pastor has pineapple and is very moist and flavorful. The steak was a bit dry but still good. The chorizo was a mess but spicy and filling. We brought our food to eat at the local distillery about a mile away. read more

Food is super authentic and fresh ingredients used. Had the chicken tacos dinner. Highly recommend.

Great food, friendly service ! A little heavy on the rice for my liking with burrito but otherwise it was great!

Excellent tacos! Very large serving and so delicious! Will visit again! We ordered 3 carne asada, 1 chicken and al pastor! All were great.

Very good authentic food. Good fried chicken also. Fresh made order food Pesoli soup on Friday's read more

La Loncherita - Steak tacos with the works - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

See all

Just like what everyone said...this is that hole in the wall place. In the current COVID situation, masks are required. Walked to the back and order the food. Drinks are from the convenience store. We just got tacos. The tacos are on the larger size. Generally get it with onion and cilantro...but wife ordered it with everything. Comes with green and red sauce. The red is a bit on the spicy side but delicious. Great on the taco. Very filling. We ate outside in the car and watched a woman walked up to a closed store/restaurant. She was quite disappointed that it was closed. She shrugged and laughed. Think she was looking forward to some good Mexican. read more

Haven't been back to Harvard in a few decades. This place was recommended by my favorite teacher ever. She was always on target and this proves some things never change. Had the carne asada tacos, chips and guacamole and a jaritos soda. This is a little "hole in the wall" type place in the backside of a little bodega. You know what they say about places like this? They are either feast or famine. This one was outstanding. Everything was excellent. The homemade chips were just the icing on the cake. In the interest of full disclosure I know my way around street tacos. I've been in Mexico City twice recently and found it to be a hidden gem just like this place. Everything made me feel like I was back in CDMX, even the prices. Give it a shot. It's going to surprise you. read more

La Loncherita - As good as they look. - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

Hubby and I were picking up my parents after their train ride to Arlington Park. We stopped in here because it was dinner time and I was relying on yelp to find us some good grub. We pulled up and thought, this can't be the place! There's no indication that they cook food there from the outside until the time you walk to the back, it looks like a rundown grocery store with no AC (boy it was hot). Than you reach the back and their is a woman cooking wonderful smelling food. There is only one table with 8 chairs and 4 bar stools up on the counter. Since we were a group of 5, we had to wait a little before we could all sit. Of course no problem with me because I like to wander to other shops.... They have tacos, burritos, tortas, nachos, fried homemade pork rinds and a few other things. Prices are decent, we got a 3 taco dinner with rice and beans for $6.75 I believe. Warning all toppings (lettuce, sour cream, cheese, and others) are .50 cents each. The rice was good but the beans were excellent. I wanted carnitas but they ran out so I got 3 steak tacos with cheese. These were pretty big tacos and I barely got through two and half of the rice and beans. The steak was perfect and didn't have any fat pieces like other taco places. The hot taco sauce was way too hot for me and they only had that and green mild. The cool thing is that we watched her take meat from the grocery store butcher shop and cook with it, can't get any fresher than that! We also ordered some hot chips and they were awesome! So crispy and fresh. These are a must get! I don't eat pork rinds but my hubby and father said they were great. Can't wait until the next time my parents take the train to Arlington so we could come back. Next time we will take it and go eat in one of the parks around town. read more

Today I visited La Loncherita for lunch during Milk Days, and it was delicious! La Loncherita is made up of a grocery store and taqueria in one. If you walk through the grocery store towards the back, you'll see the ordering window. Order there and pay at the front when you're done eating. I went with two people - two of us ate grilled steak tacos and one of us had grilled pork tacos. All came with tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, and sour cream for $1.99 each. After ordering at the window, we took a seat and waited a short time for our food to be ready. Service was quick, and the food was amazing! The workers were very nice and answered any questions that we had. It was pretty full when we were there (they seat about 12 or so people), but the noise wasn't bad and the whole place was very clean. I like supporting local businesses, especially ones with menus and food as great at La Loncherita! I will definitely be back soon! read more

La Loncherita - Grilled steak tacos! - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

Delightful courteous service and flavorful authentic Mexican food. Normally, we eat the always delicious well seasoned tacos (care asada or polo being our favs), but recently my fiance and I decided to try the torta Cubana (Cuban sandwich). It was HUGE! Definitely, the crispy on outside soft and pillowy on the inside bread held at least two pounds of shredded pork and ham with just a thin layer of lettuce, tomatoes, onions and a mayo based garlic laced sauce. It was enough for two and maybe even a third person. Did I say it was HUGE? It had the height of a perfect "Dagwood" sandwich. All for $10.95. The many choices of fruit based Mexican branded bottles and cans are available, and as always we picked a new favorite Boing Mango. This continues to be a favorite of ours for service and flavor. We continue to leave happy. read more

The real deal. I had the huge burrito. Big as your head, juicy and delicious. Also on the menu... authentic tacos, and three sandwiches you might finish on your own. read more

La Loncherita - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

See all

so my second favorite food is mexican street tacos...i'm somewhat of a connoisseur, have had them a million times from all over the country and in mexico. these tacos here are damn good. homemade tortillas, bigger than a typical street tortilla loaded with fresh juicy hot meat. cilantro/onion fresh lime and salsa. mmmmm. not over cooked. good flavor. i had the asada and al pastor. tacos are only $2.69. 2 of them is plenty, 3 if ur a big guy and starved. nice lil authentic family restaurant in back of a small mexican grocery store. only possible downside i can think of is, if ur squeamish about cleanliness, u may be a lil uneasy eating there, just get it to go...it's not gross or dirty, it's just, ya know, a lil family place with fold up tables and chairs. oh, u were wondering...sushi, my #1 read more

The food has an authentic Mexican taste which you only get from an operation where the people are very close to their roots. The flavor is really there. And you get a lot of it for a low price. read more

La Loncherita - La Loncherita - Mexican Near Me - Harvard, Illinois

The Best Place for Mexican Food in McHenry County

Delicious tacos and carnitas. Looks like a small grocery store but has kitchen in back and a butcher too. Great place!

Great food, great prices. Always consistent. And everyone is really friendly. Keep on supporting this company!!

Great tacos, chicken drumsticks, and chiles rellenos! Not many places to sit but great food

I concur with previous reviews of how great the steak tacos are here. Helpful hints: Go to the back and go up to the opening to order. You pay afterwards at the cashier up front. Drinks are in the cooler to the left...help yourself. Highly recommend this place. The steak tacos were absolutely delicious. read more

What a great place! Delicious food--highly recommend the steak nachos and steak tacos. Small but cozy. Our three kids--picky eaters all--each found something they liked. Will definitely stop here again on our way through town! read more

Yummy tacos in the back of the grocery store across from the train station. The Pastor and chorizo tacos were good. The salsa was good too. It had a nice slow heat that just subtly built up. It is my go to spot when visiting Harvard. read more

The best tacos whether it's steak, or pastor. Always friendly service and smiling faces! Everything we have eaten has been awesome! I also love to get their fresh chips. The taqueria is the back of the small grocery store so you can pick up avocados, drinks or snacks while you're in there! read more

Best tacos I've had in years. We live in a community with fantastic Mexican food and are spoiled, but stopped here on vacation and had to try the tacos al pastor. The seasoning was phenomenal. Kids loved the chicken tacos. Restaurant is located in the store, so come for the food and service, not the atmosphere. They need to open a full service restaurant. Excellent!!!! read more

The gf had to go to Harvard and I tagged along. She remembered having eaten at this place about 2 years ago but couldn't remember name. Had some trouble finding it. Luckily Harvard is small and thankfully we did not give up locating. As others noted, located in back of a grocery store. But food was incredible. Steak torta was delicious and huge. GF got a chicken and a steak taco with rice and loved it all. Will eat here again if/when in Harvard read more

Possibly the best steak tacos my husband and I have ever had and we've lived a lot of places. Not a lot of seating but feels very authentic. The only quotation we had that wasn't answered by the reviews was if they took debit/credit and they most definitely do! read more

I visited this establishment based on the outstanding reviews I viewed. Not only did I lose my $22.00 dollars but a desire to eat Mexican food for the near future. I expected more of a restaurant atmosphere but what I received was a folding table with a sticky table cloth made of plastic. First you have to walk through a Mexican grocery store to the rear of the building to place an order. They have two menus that are sticky with incorrect prices ( beware)! After placing mine and my girlfriend's order our food arrived 20 minutes later. Runny beans, dry rice , fatty steak meat. Hot sauce container is lathered with past hot sauce all over the bottles. Flies buzzing around a small trash can near the single table to sit and eat. Yes you heard me correctly, there is only one table six foot long available to sit and eat. Dirty and a sticky mess everywhere I looked or placed my hands! The kicker was upon checkout when I found out the prices on the menu are incorrect and much higher than posted. The items we ordered according to the menu should have been $15.00 dollars but upon checkout was told that the prices have increased since the last revision of the menu and the revised prices came to a grand total of $22.00 dollars. I would recommend Taco Bell over this place and as an added benefit you won't get stuck with several disappointments as we were. read more