Very tasty! Would definitely go back again. We stopped by for a late lunch during Christmas week. The lunch rush was over, but they were still busy with holiday shoppers. To drink, my husband had a Modelo. I tried the strawberry margarita. It was a bit sweeter than I'm used to and may have preferred a salted rim to sugar, but it was good. After our meal I asked our server about one they call the Flu Shot and I think I'll try that one next time. The chips were fresh and crunchy. Great corn flavor. I wasn't a big fan of the salsa but my husband liked it. A self-appointed burrito connoisseur, my husband was delighted by the significant variety Rancho Chico has to choose from. He chose the Express Burrito with ground beef. When it was brought to the table, we were both amazed by the immense size. The plate on which it's served is large and, you can see in the photo, it went all the way to the edges. I tried the sauce and it was quite tasty. He enjoyed the whole thing - literally! I ordered the Mariachi Bowl with steak - a truly beautiful dish. The steak was impeccably seasoned and delicious. I tried to eat all of the components separately, but quickly found the best bite was created by stirring everything together. I couldn't eat it all and was quite happy to bring home leftovers. I love trying something new each time we visit a restaurant, but I'm not sure how I will avoid ordering this one again and again. read more

Rancho Chico - Express Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

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For starters I am from Arizona.. so I'm a bit picky about Mexican food. I've seen this place all over my feed recently so I ordered a few things because I was really craving a specific kind of food and Rancho Chico did not disappoint. So the whole reason for the order carne fries w guac.. Oh My Goodness I ate almost the whole plate (ok more than shoveled into my mouth) before giving myself a stomachache..(WORTH IT). It had everything I wanted a little spice and some amazing queso. We also ordered pollo con queso (my spouse is basic but he said it was DELICIOUS). We got some carne asada street tacos and the churro cheesecake (we may have fought over this one! So good!). The carne asada was super tender and those salsas were so good!! I was not expecting the green to have as much of a kick as it did but it made me sweat a little, the red was fine but I don't normally go for that kind anyways my kid enjoyed it a lot. read more

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sooooooooo gooooood don't listen to bad reviews get the birria enchiladas! yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy read more

Rancho Chico - Carne Asada - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

Stopped by in May, 2023 and had a world class steak fajita plate at lunch for $10. Yes - that's correct - $10. Haven't seen fajitas this cheap since pre pandemic days. The steak was flavorful and the grilled veggies that accompanied the steak were world class wonderful. Fresh tortillas and a nice serving of rice and beans plus guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo rounded out the serving. I spent most of my adult life in Texas - and these fajitas were as good as any I've ever had there. Oh - one other thing. The mango margarita was absolutely terrific. And the salsa and warm chips were also extremely tasty. Most HIGHLY recommend this small, family run restaurant. It really is that good. read more

Rancho Chico - $10.00 steak fajita launch special. - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

Came in with a large group for dinner and our server Angie was great! Salsa and queso were great, guac was made table side which the kids in our group loved. read more

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Amazing table side guacamole. Tacos were great, steak, chicken, pork al pastor... All amazing. Some of the best Mexican I have had in the area read more

Excellent cheese and chips and the drinks were good and service was excellent tacos though were drenched in grease so much so that i couldn't eat them the rice was good to read more

Great food, great service and the best meal I've had while in town for work. From the fresh chips and outstanding salsa to the chicken and chorizo street burrito, it was so delicious. If you try it, you'll definitely be back. They really know what they're doing here. read more

The staff is very friendly and greets us every time we come in. The food is delicious and seasoned very well! I've tried several dishes and have been 100% satisfied every time. Save room for desserts: churros and chocolate cake are to die for. Guacamole is made fresh at your table! read more

Rancho Chico - Fresh Guacamole made at your table! - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

Sweet small simple place, table side guacamole, chips hot, decent food, nice people. Need to go back to check again.

We had heard a lot of good things so decided to give this place a try and it did not disappoint. The margaritas and food were excellent and we really enjoyed our server and the table side guacamole! read more

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Best Mexican food I have had since moving to the area. The birria burrito was amazing. The service was great! We will be back again for sure. read more

Margaritas were good. Chicken mole was really good. Queso good. Some of the cutest girls working there and if I was single again, Id be hanging out here. Lol read more

Cozy atmosphere with delicious offerings! I've been wanting to try this place since I saw it open. After I kept hearing how good it was i made it my next meal out. My family and I were not disappointed. We ate early on a Saturday night. We arrived about 4:45 and were only the second table to sit down. There is not a lot of seating but they do have booths and tables. You can also order online from their website for easy pick up. My family of 4 sat at a booth. Our waitress was attentive and polite. We got our chips and salsa right away and drinks. We ordered an appetizer of cheese dip which was delicious. Our food came out quickly and piping hot! You could tell everything was nice and fresh. My husband and son both got the 3 beef taco meal with rice and beans. Plus the order was right/ my husband gets his tacos with only cheese my son with nothing but meat. It was nice to have it right and to not have to pick off the undesired toppings! I ordered the carne asada burrito. Which is a huge steak burrito. It was great! My other son got the shrimp bowl. The shrimp was excellent and fresh. We were all happy with our food and service was great. We will be back very soon! I can't wait to try the online ordering and pick up. read more

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4.5 stars? While the staff gets 5 stars, the food gets a 2. Cheddar and Mozzarella instead of a Mexican cheese? What is this, Taco Bell? The rice and beans taste like something your high school lunch lady would serve. Suburban Midwesternern tastes I guess, but 4.5 stars, really?The worst part was having to sit under operating room bright overhead lights. No ambiance. read more

New restaurant in Cedar Falls with delicious food! Salsa is fresh and homemade. The shrimp diablo is spicy and amazing! The poco pollo fundido is another favorite. The happy hour is 3-6 and the margaritas are mucho bueno! The price is affordable. I even got the salsa to go. They have the spicy stuff in the back. Great location right by my hotel. read more

Rancho Chico - Great happy hour! - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

Came here for dinner while on a work trip. The place was rather busy and the food was good; however, this place felt a little too Americanized for our liking. The margarita was good, but be careful, as they do offer premade margaritas. Get the Presidente or other margarita to avoid that issue. The fajitas were good and salsa great, but we left feeling as though more could have been done. We will give this place a shot again if in the area. read more

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Very good service. Clean atmosphere. Great chips & salsa. Also had pico de gallo, which tasted better than it looked. Trio of street tacos .....have had much better, not impressed. The pollo fundido was very good. We'll be back to try a few other things on the menu. read more

Rancho Chico - Trio of street tacos - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

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Best margaritas BEST micheladas (if you never had one and like bloody mary's you gotta try it) authentic Mexican cuisine amazing servers 10/10 would recommend read more

We were in town for one night, staying at a hotel down the street. A quick Yelp search garnered 8-10 choices and the reviews for this spot were pretty good. Three quarters full, so tables were available but it wasn't suspiciously empty. We were greeted cheerfully, had quick service, a table-side guacamole so a perfect example of freshness and transparency of service. The hand smashed guacamole really was superb. President margarita was worth the money, in my opinion. Our meals were delicious, a mix of street tacos, beef enchiladas, and carnitas. Good enough to eat at if we are back in town, and a definitely recommended spot for family and friends in town! read more

Rancho Chico - Mexican Near Me - Cedar Falls, Iowa

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This is my go-to place for Mexican in Cedar Falls! I love that it's conveniently located in one of the busiest areas in town. The food is delicious and the prices are so nice! A lunch special is a little less than $8 for an entree, rice, beans, and chips/salsa. The place is not very big at all but I personally enjoy the atmosphere it provides. There's also a full bar which is always a plus! I personally love the chicken flautas! read more

Ordered lemonade, shrimp bowl. All fast, friendly, tasty. Guacamole side was 4.95 and tasty.

Maybe it was an off night. The salsa was literally tomato juice with diced onions, cilantro and garlic with a touch of heat. The chips were tasty and warm. My husband got the fajitas and he thought they were "ok", not great. He did not get near enough garnish to put in the tortilla- cheese, guacamole, pico, etc. hardly enough for one tortilla. Nothing had any flavor. Based on reviews I saw on here, I got the pollo fundido. Completely flavorless white sauce. They layed a slice of American cheese on top (think velveeta singles) and served that. Not melted or anything. My rice was colder than room temperature. It was our first visit. And our last. read more

I've eaten at this restaurant several times for lunch. I order the exspresso burrito every time because it is so delicious. Plus it is reasonably priced at $6.75 along with the unlimited chips and salsa. Great lunch sized meal for a big eater. I've always had great service even when the place is busy. The people I've had lunch with have always enjoyed their meals too. There was one time the burrito tasted as if salt was spilled in to the sauce but other than that it's has always been 5 stars to me. I will continue to go there for lunch. read more

This is a New Mexican restaurant in a small area in a strip mall by the Cedar Falls Walmart. It is owned by the owners of Los Margaritas which closed and this placed opened shortly afterwards. The margaritas aren't as good as Los Margaritas. The food is not as good either. A big disappointment. read more

I've been here three times, and each time the service is slower than a snail. They never ask if you want refills and it takes so long to get the food you feel like you owe the manager rent by the time it arrives. The food is serviceable but nothing remotely special. Very disappointing. read more

Best guacamole in town and made fresh at your table. Good service. Good food. Salsa is on par for most of the Mexican restaurants in the area. read more

The food came out very quick, and was very good. The waitress was very friendly and that's a plus. Only negatives are asking me if I need silverware and if I need a box for my food as I'm still eating. My check came out and I still wanted a margarita. I felt somewhat rushed. Possibly just some uncertainty on how to ask or wait. Good easily out weighs the bad by a wide margin. read more

I have never been to this establishment before. It was really small. There were about 10 tables or so including booths and they were all occupied or waiting to be bussed. There was a small isle to walk down between them to get to the bar and no seating area to wait for a table. If someone pulled their chair out, no one could get through. It must be really hard on the servers. There was one server and one bartender who were both openly Mexican and clearly spoke English. I specifically asked the bartender and server together the sizes of the side orders to take home. They didn't know. they tried to describe the container, but didn't ever actually manage to do so. I probably would have ordered chips and guac had I known. Once I ordered the meal, she then says.... oh ok now you get chips and pico. would have been nice to know when I was looking at the menu and asking specifically about sides. She said there were no sides, but then when I ordered it she changed that to include chips and pico, which is a "side". I also asked about the "smoothies". I was planning to go get a recovery smoothie from Freshii, but they had them.... so I figured Id try one with my meal. I asked DO YOUR SMOOTHIES COME IN CONCENTRATE OR DO YOU MAKE THEM IN HOUSE? Oh we make them.... she replied. Cool, I'll get a Pina cold smoothie then. I was super disappointed when I watched her make my "smoothie". She used a can of juice and some Pina colada mix with ice. in a blender. A smoothie is fresh fruits and vegetables with a cream base- yogurt or Kiefer and usually added healthy options, like turmeric or protein or probiotics. I didn't expect too much in the first place, but for crying out loud, you have the ingredients in the back of the house... except the frozen yogurt / keifer. Which doesn't really go bad, and most of the menu is healthier high protein low carbs. Why wouldn't you do it properly? what I got was a virgin Pina colada not a smoothie. So please don't expect a smoothie. I waited for a pretty long time to even place my order, it wasn't difficult. And the rush was dying off. Asada Chicken bowl with no beans and a Pina colada smoothie. Everyone was nice enough, but it is clear to me that servers today are just not being trained or scheduled properly. The food was great, except that I had ordered a meal with out beans and they still put the beans on, under the toppings. Any way you look at that I have to blame the person who trained the server. I didn't see them under the toppings when I checked it. She should have double checked it. I didn't realize this until I got home, and since abhor beans- I couldn't really enjoy the meal. Servers should know the answers to basic menu questions, such as "how many ounces is a serving?" to every menu item, or at least have a reference point. But she couldn't answer any of these three questions correctly. None of this is her fault. She doesn't know the difference and is trying to do her best. The poor server was clearly on her own, on the floor, during a Christmas lunch rush. It seemed like she was handling it ok, but she had no bus or hostess. I felt badly for her. But it just doesn't change my experience. Why wasn't she trained properly and why wasn't the appropriate staff available to her? She should have known the difference between a "in house smoothie" and a "bartenders virgin Pina colada" and it should be clear on the menu. Also its 2020 in a week.... so why aren't the nutrition facts available at all? Calorie and fat count should be on the menu, along with portion sizes.... Or even weight watchers points.... The menu is for the most part healthy, so cater to the healthy eaters please. She shouldn't need to memorize it the information should have been on the menu. I ultimately gave them a 3, because my order was just wrong and I couldn't really enjoy it. $20 for lunch, for one person. Take that as you will on your own budget, but it was a lot for me. I looked forward to that smoothie all week long..... read more

Terrible! I ordered street tacos and the portion of meat in the taco were next to none, and it wasn't all that good! I was making a delivery and decided to go eat there; I will never eat there again! You will do better finding a Taco Johns than this place. read more

Good service and good food. Get the pollo mazatlan. It is amazing. I need this place to stay open because las margaritas closes and I need a way to get pollo mazatlan read more

My first trip here the food was amazing, the margaritas were awesome and the wait staff was great. Second trip the staff was great, the frozen lime margarita showed up sugar not salt rimmed and chilled but definitely not frozen. I ordered steak carnitas and was presented with steak carnitas by the waitress but what I got was steak fajitas with very dry overly cooked meat sautéed beside onions and peppers along with very dry rice. 2 Stars because the person I was with had enchiladas that he enjoyed. read more