Went there for lunch. The food was typical of a Mexican restaurant. Loved their green sauce for dipping chips. Otherwise, the food was OK but nothing stood out as exceptional. The restaurant was clean and so were the restrooms. read more

Yeah, was disappointed from start! Was looking forward to Champs! Too long of a wait with kids hosting with no idea of how to speak to an adult, and did not want to wait on something that I was not familiar with. Decided on Firebirds. read more

Best Fajitas we have had in a long time. Steak and chicken were both tender. Good flavor. Salsa was ok. Beer could be colder!!! We will go back! Our server, Antonio was very attentive. I would have given it 5 stars but beer wasn't cold. How hard is that? read more

Tried this restaurant for the first time since it opened - as my friend would call it a 'swanky and pricey' restaurant. And it lived up to those words. This was formerly Champs sports grill and I was surprised to see a lot of their decor retained in a Mexican establishment! Nonetheless, we went there for the food, made reservations and asked for a booth since we had a child. We got our table on a Sat evening half an hour after our reservation and didn't even get a booth - I expected the front desk service to be a lot better and a lot of people around me felt the same. Of course we went there for the food and that didn't disappoint. Being primarily vegetarian, the fajitas and table side guacamole were delicious and so were the margaritas of the day (blackberry/pineapple). The dessert especially the chocolate pinata looked sumptuous and will definitely try it next time. The food was indeed pricey and is for a good date. The service was OK and the server who helped us didn't go out of the way to do anything albeit during boxing time, he acted a little extra smart. Be sure to make reservations ahead of time and expect atleast a 30 minute wait once you get there on the weekends. A 3 star OK rating overall and my average rating for a good restaurant is typically 4! read more

Amazing food and super worth the money. You can tell the quality is there. It can get super crowded on the weekends at night but the food is so worth it. If you get a chance to do the piñata, do it! read more

NOT inpressed.... ordered a beer prior to dinner and it look a long time to arrive (not a craft draft, just in a bottle). Finally served, but without a glass. Had to request several times. THEN it wasn't chilled when they brought it. When food was served, I ordered another beer and asked for a side of sour cream. Those never got delivered within the course of the meal. Was told by the server that the bar was really busy. Too busy to open a bottle of beer and grab a glass???? About the food..I had Cozumel Shrimp tacos which were good but my friend had a salad with added shrimp (or I should say minus the shrimp...only 3 on salad). My complaint to the manager about our service did grant me a complimentary meal but no apologies from the server. Food was not worth the value, service not worth giving this South Pointe location another try. read more

This is one of my new favorite places in Durham.. a very welcome addition to Southpoint! It is a more upscale mexican restaurant, so along with that comes high places (higher than I'd like), but the food is so spectacular that it's worth it to splurge here every now and then. Starting off, the chips are light, crispy, and perfectly salty and go really well with the fresh, smokey salsa. The queso blanco and table side guac are both so amazing it's hard to decide which one to get. I've tried many different entrees here now and they've all been superb but my favorite by far is the chicken fajitas. The tortillas that come with the fajitas are super soft and pillowy, some of the best tortillas I've had. Also, a tip: all of the entrees come with pinto beans, which are very good, but you can switch them for black beans, which I think are better. In my many times here, I have also never had a bad waiter. They are all great at customer service and the manager regularly walks the floor checking in on customers, as well. Truthfully, you can't go wrong at this place and I look forward to going back many more times! read more

Terrible service. We waited for a server starting at 1:15pm for 25 minutes before leaving today (Sunday afternoon, decently busy but not packed). Under the premise of finding a server and getting menus, I went to the bathroom around 1:30pm while my husband waited at the table, and I asked the bartender if she could send someone over with menus. When I returned, my husband said he did the same thing with a nearby server clearing another table. We waited about 10 more minutes before leaving and going across the street to Zinburger, where I currently am experiencing excellent service. Night and day difference. Take your business across the street. read more

So we have been there a few times and it was good. My wife and I went last weekend and it was horrible. We have a 3month old in a stroller they told us to just sit and have the stroller in the isle asked to move out of the way we got attitude from the staff and finally the manager came over and moved us out the way. So after that we got seated about another 10 mins goes by before we order water. We also order margaritas at the same time and did get those till after we got our food. My wife and I both ordered fajitas since we wanted our own cheese and tortillas the waitress took it upon herself to give us the fajitas for 2. So that was annoying but o well, they didn't bring out the tortillas and said they will be right out. Again another 10 mins goes by before out waitress comes back and we tell her again we need the tortillas. Finally after waiting for another 5 mins we get the tortillas. However after almost 2 minutes of waiting the meat was cold. While we were waiting for the check we took out infant out of the stroller to feed him, the waitress see him and decides to just start touching his face with out asking. Overall this was a horrible experience especially with spending almost $100. I would suggest looking else where if you are wanting high end Mexican. read more

This place is trash due to their customer service with to go orders. My family experienced bad customer service twice from here with ordering to go. There were tortillas missing from our fajita Order and customized requests were ignored. When we called to complain about our order, we got put on hold with no one picking up. This place had potential but sucks majorly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

Apps were good and drinks were OK. For main course stay away from the seafood. I had "sushi grade" tuna tacos and the fish was so bad I could not eat them. Said something to wait staff and no offer to take them back or replace. No comment card to fill out they don't seem to care. I will not be back. Oh and they are 20-30% more expensive than the many other good local Mexican restaurants - La hacienda, Monterey, Los Tres, Margarets, etc. If you go order well cooked land meat or fajitas. read more

My husband and pulled decided to try this place because it was new and I love Mexican food. The atmosphere is nice. Our waitress was really good but the food was just okay. I really wasn't impressed. I also think they are way over priced! Not somewhere that I would go twice. read more

Best place to go for some Tex Mex food!! Service is great, managers are on top, great seating with the bar area being first come first serve and full service! And if you have a reservation there will no problem with getting a table This place is great for everybody! With different rooms in case you want to have a private party, plus they have this chocolate piñata which is really good and for any occasion. Their table side guacamole is also good, fresh made at your table read more

So disappointing. Sat at the bar and, while they were busy when we first got there, it took 45 minutes to get a single order of steak fajita soft tacos...and when they arrived, they were chicken. We finally just asked for our tab without the meal. The manager tried to make amends but his attempt was, "can I take care of your bill?"...not, "I'll take care of your bill." Perhaps more concerning was the server at the bar who was so aggressive with pounding the glass into the shaker that it broke...glass everywhere but he didn't clean up the shards. Our server was a great guy but they are obviously dealing with some process issues. Not sure we'll give it another try. :( read more

Wanted to try something new. After finally getting a parking spot and walking a ways, waited about 45 min for a table. Dining area was a little warm and humid...not good when eating spicy food. Booth was a tight squeeze. Server seemed new, made some mistakes. Food was very good but a little overpriced. Didn't like the brown salsa. Constant battle for room on the table. They bring each person a huge covered container for tortillas, which takes up half the table. read more

This review is about service, not the food. Honestly, the food was fine. I've had better and worse meals. I rate my shrimp fajita as being average. However the service, that is a different story entirely. I went to the the bar to pick up my to go order. Literally, four workers are at the bar. The bartender was wiping done glasses while two workers stood there talking with him. I waited three or four minutes without even a hello or can we help you. I finally asked if they saw me standing next to them. At about the same time another worker came from the back and ask if she could help me. I told her that I was picking up a take out order. The bartender told me that I should be patient, that he doesn't do take-out. Fact is, he nor the other workers knew why I was there because they never asked. I had heard about Uncles Julio's and decided to pick up something for a lakeside dinner at Jordan Lake with my wife. The restaurant's dining area was impressive. The food, as I said was fine. The service was horrible. I have giving the bare bones version of the experience to avoid appearing like I'm venting. I was literally having an argument with the bartender about why it was my fault that I was not helped sooner. The lady helping me apologized for the wait. So, a positive service experience I'm guessing is possible. I think my experience was an isolated issue of being exposed to a less than professional employee. read more

The service was great. Food was subpar and overpriced. There's nothing that would make me revisit.

Great food and good service. I recommend the bacon wrapped shrimp! Also, if going during a busy time Friday evenings/weekends, I suggest making reservations. read more

Great food! We splurged and got the table-side guacamole, which was a big bowl of wonderful guacamole! The jalisco was a combo of steak (very tender, especially for skirt steak), chicken and 3 huge shrimp. Normal accompaniments, and very nice just-made tortillas. That combination usually fills both of us, but the proportions were more normal than other oversized Mexican restaurants. Nice swirl margarita / sangria for my wife. A bit pricey, but very good, fresh food! read more

Meh. Overpriced. Ordered the salmon, with was sickly sweet. Fast food quality for $22 entree.

Let me begin my saying I have never given a review online of any kind. This place definitely wasn't the worst but far from the best. The service, other than one server, was terrible. The steak in my fajita was super fatty and mostly inedible, when I asked prior to ordering, how it was I was told it's their most popular item. The rice, beans and guacamole were terrible. I sat at the bar and had numerous servers on top of me socializing with each other with dirty plates in their hands, inches from my food. Overpriced even if the food was amazing. I do not recommend and will never go back myself. Very disappointed as I love Mexican food and seemed like a good place. read more

The food that my family and I got was not the best, but when my mother told the waitress that she did not like her soup the situation was handled very well. It was easily taken off the check. We will not be returning. read more

So to start we were told that we would have a hour wait when we arrived. Turned out to only be a few minutes. Sweet 5 stars. The server was awesome 5 stars. The food was great 5 stars. But the price and quantity of food was a huge turnoff. We got the small guac it was maybe a 2oz scoop on a bed of lettuce, definitely not worth 7 bucks. The fajitas we got were delicious but the portion size was kinda meh. The beans and rice were very dull, had better out of an uncle beans bag rice. The margaritas were weak small and over priced. read more

They get 1 star, and that's because on my first visit my experience was great and I told my girlfriend we must go. But this past Saturday was date night for me and my girlfriend and they get NO STARS. We arrived at the restaurant around 8PM and was told it would be 1hour wait, so we decide to seat in the bar area. We sat down at a dirty table, and after about 10 mins, I asked one of the waitress can I get the table cleared off, she stated that someone would come by and clean the table off. After few minutes a waitress did come by and removed the dirty plates off the table but never returned to wipe the table off. About 5 mins later Jacqueline came with chips and salsa but noticed that the table was never wiped off. She returned and wiped the table down than returned with chips and salsa. The whole ordeal took about 20 mins just to get the table cleared and cleaned. After getting our menus my girlfriend order water with mints leaves and I wasn't sure yet what I wanted to drink. We waited, finally my girlfriend goes up to the bar to place our drink orders for Jacqueline to realize we were ready. We order 2 drinks from her and they came out about 5mins apart. We order Queso to eat with chips and that took so long that I had to ask Jacqueline to check on it, she stated when its done they would bring it out,(so rude). It took 30 mins for our food to arrive and than we didn't even have utensils to eat. The couple seated in front of us arrived after we got our drinks and received the fresh guacamole service and there food before us. Overall the bad service took away from us enjoying our food, not once did Jacqueline refill water or asked did we want more drinks. We asked for our bill and Jacqueline kindly brought the bill and with out any words placed it on the table. I wrote on the bill worst service sucked :( and asked another waitress to speak to a manager. I spoke to a male manager and explain to him overall that Jacqueline customer services skill sucked, he apologize on her behalf. Not sure if I will visit them again !!!! read more

Wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but that's not a bad thing. Unique spin on traditional Tex-Mex, combined with an upscale setting which wasn't pretentious. Wait staff seemed to be genuinely friendly. Looking forward to my next visit! read more

SEVERE food poisoning 6 hours after ingesting food at this place. We know it's from this place because it's the first thing I had for the day. read more

I celebrated my birthday at this restaurant with family. The servers were so nice about making me feel special and recognizing my birthday each time talking to me. The piñata was the whole reason I went and it SURPASSED my expectations. It was amazing and can only say it is worth the money. Food and drinks were great and it has a wonderful atmosphere read more

My family of four was excited to try this place out. Walking in, the highly creative use of space & decor was impressive. Service was a bit lackluster, but it was really the food that earned the 1-star review. The salsa that comes with the chips is flat out gross- it is made with black beans. (I like beans even.) I had a few bites, but nobody else in my family would eat it after one bite, which is usually their favorite thing. The Swirl margarita/sangria drink was fine, and the tortillas were good. But the chicken fajitas were lousy- the chicken was slightly undercooked and completely devoid of flavor. The green peppers and onions could also have been cooked longer for a charbroiled flavor- might as well have been microwaved. We didn't get dessert, but rolled our eyes over the $30 (!) chocolate piñata dessert on the menu. (For the frugal diner, you'll be happy to hear there is also a $25 version...) The prices were very high overall, despite the restaurant being rated with only 2 "$$". We weren't happy when we left, but about an hour later, the one person in our party became pretty ill. While it may have been an unknown food sensitivity (I had eaten the same fajita), it wasn't worth the risk for lackluster leftovers and we threw the doggie bag away. So, if you want to come for the tortillas and decor for a $60 lunch, this place is for you! read more

Clean and open environment. Chips were ok, on the brittle side. Salsa was sub par(some type of chipotle salsa). So many people serve normal salsa because it is the favorite, that is one area which they dive in too deep with there "scratch made authentic Mexican food". With 8 guests including myself it took 25 minutes to get all of our drinks. Not too bad considering it was busy and many were cocktails, business wise they are making a mistake. But that's a different story. Queso blanco was greatly overhyped and largely overshadowed by the table-side quac. I'd say some of the best guacamole around, I'd equate that to the freshness. Overall not too spicy, I'd use more kick but that's personal preference. Entree wise I split chicken and steak fajita quesadillas. Great flavors for both meats. Though you could find an average of 2, .5"x.5" x.5" cubes of meat per triangle of quesadilla. This is sad considering the large price of 15$ for what came out to be one normal sized quesadilla. Overall the environment and the guacamole are the only excellent things this place has to offer. Other than that there are no other reasons I would come back unless one just wants to shell out money for food that could cost half as less and be just as good if not better. Service was ok. read more

Uncle Julio's is a Mexican restaurant in Durham that has been open about 3-4 months. Everything was homemade in house which is great. However we ordered the table side guacamole but never received it which was a let down as my date was looking forward to it. We arrived about 30 minutes before closing and the service was still fairly decent. Overall I would say Uncle Julio's is worth the try. read more

As vegetarians, there were few options available. We could only have black beans and one type of rice. To make matters worse, my wife ordered enchiladas and asked for a vegetarian sauce to replace the meat option. We accepted the first suggestion the waitress made. When we got the bill, we were shocked to find that we were upcharged for the substitutions. Talked to the manager before leaving, who seemed apologetic, but would not recommend going to this establishment for the time being. read more

My family went to this new eatery that opened November 13th to much fanfare. It was my daughter's 25th birthday. I called eariler in the day to make a reservation for 7:00 and was given 7:15. They asked if it was a special occasion I said yes birthday dinner. Upon arriving at 6:30 to meet my daughter and her friend, we were greeted by 3 ladies who seem to be having a disagreement. The one lady who spoke first looked dis-shoveled. We were pointed to the bar area and found two seats while we waited for our daughter and her friend. I asked for wine, but was told the wines were all bad and was directed to mixed drinks instead. We got two mixed drinks, which were rather pricey, 11.99 each. Finally, at about 7:25, we were shown to our table on the drafty patio. We ordered Juanita Platter with an extra plate to share and a appetizer. Our main entree arrived before the appetizer so we asked about the appetizer and she said the kitchen forgot it. We cancelled it because the entree was on the table. Our water we delivered by another waitress and I asked her for an extra plate to share my meal. She returned with a small salad plate and I asked for a dinner plate. She said" that's the biggest plate we have". Our waitress returned and I asked for a larger plate, which she went and got. Minutes before the meals arrived, another lady began to sweep the floor behind our table and I stopped her and asked kindly to not sweep around my table. She went and got the manager, who came to our table promptly and asked did we call for a manager. I said no. Just asked her to not sweep near our table. He left without offering any kind gesture of appreciation. Finally, we paid our check for the food, which was just okay but overpriced and smaller portioned. One bright spot was the pay at the table handheld computer, so "your card never leaves your sight". I rate my experience from end to end a "C". I am not likely to return. Thanks for reading my review! I attempted to call the general manager at the store but LaKesha avoided returning my call on two occasions. The last call a man came to the phone by the name of Brad and said he was the regional manager who just happened to be there. I took the time to tell him of my dissatisfaction he patiently listened and we ended the conversation. My wife promptly told me he wasn't the actual regional manager because he would have offered you a free meal or drink or something to get you back to try them again. She was right and I hope they didn't play on my emotions to avoid a difficult customer. We spent over $100. read more

Had reservations for 5:00PM on Saturday. When we arrived early, we were greeted at the door and told the establishment had a sprinkler problem and they did not know when they would reopen. I recognize that things happen but I would have thought they would have offered something for our inconvenience since we told them we drove an hour to get there. We were also told we should have been called about this problem. We did get a call, after 5:00 to tell us not to come to our 5:00 PM reservation. read more

This is a great place to get authentic Spanish food where everything is made from scratch! I've ate there twice now and both times the food was amazing. Check them out, you won't be disappointed! read more

Wow the food is awful, how can you not make a simple enchilada? Cold, hard cheese, no flavor. Meh. Wine list is very sad as well. Can't believe I spent $35 including tip for so little. read more

I agree with another diner... The margarita cosisted of two things.. salt and ice and more ice... I think I had two sips and it was gone.... The salsa was warm and not at all good... And I love my salsa. Our lunch bill for 2 lunch entrees and 1 margarita was $43.00... $53.00 with tip. read more

We had been anticipating dining at Uncle Julio's since we first noticed the remodeling of the building and advertising. Salsa was unique and tasty, atmosphere was very inviting, now for the cons: drink prices are too expensive for what is received, only had bottled beer at $5.25 per bottle (quick math $31.50 / 6 pack) and the margarita was $10.50 and was in a small glass with 75% ice and in the 4 sips it took to finish the drink there was no taste that alcohol was even added. The food order was delivered which included shrimp tacos, which were adequate but was disappointed the shrimp was small and very few in number; and a beef and chicken enchilada, the enchiladas were small in size for price but did taste OK. The service was adequate. In short, we will not return as there are better dining options with better food and drinks at better pricing. read more

We were so glad when we heard Champs was closing because we knew there was a high likelihood that whatever replaced it would be awesome. When we heard it'd be a Mexican place (eventually uncle julios) we were ecstatic. Mexican is a genre that was otherwise missing in the southpoint area. We went on opening weekend, and had an absolutely awesome meal. First off, their margaritas are amazing. Tons of variety and you can get some cool variations amongst frozen margaritas that make things extra saucy. Many of the fajitas and other main dishes can be ordered "for two". The portion sizes are generous, and the service is fantastic. The chips and salsa at the beginning are unique too. A smoky salsa makes it different from all the other Mexican restaurants we've been to. Atmosphere was great too. Open spaces, friendly staff, awesome food. Couldn't have asked for much more. Will definitely eat here again and again and again. read more

Tonight was our 2nd time going to uncle julios. Food was much like last time, ok but we thought it was too expensive for what you get. It wasnt the worst Mexican food restaurant but wasnt the best either. Enchiladas were smaller than other places I've been too and more expensive. The shrimp salad came with 3 shrimps only and lots of romaine. The quesadillas were okay. Honestly, I come for the tableside guacamole and chips and salsa. The service was great; super nice, friendly, and prompt with refilling drinks and such. Only problem we had today was seating. We had 4 adults and one child (high chair). We were seated in the middle dining area at a table for 4. All 3 sides were close to other tables also in the middle dining area. The host recommended we put the high chair right at the corner of the table (which we did not, I simply sat at the corner to let my daughter have the side of the table). When asked to switch to a bigger table, we were told we didnt have enough people for that and they did not have a server working the big tables, she recommended the high top tables and a booster seat for my 20month old instead (we declined). Throughout the dinner more people were being seated at the tables right by us, they also asked to switch to a less crowded area but got the same answer. The tables were so close that some of our chairs were touching another person's chair at another table making it an uncomfortable dinner for everyone. I enjoy having my own space and not worrying about accidentally elbowing someone's else's chair during the dinner...yes we were that close and none of us could move due to limit space. This is the reason for 2 stars and not 5. Thanks for reading but unfortunately we will not be back for a 3rd visit. read more

We went to Uncle Julio's because of a promotion in their loyalty program--buy three entrees and receive a free chocolate pinata. Our reservation was for 5:30 pm. We are a family of 4 with 2 young kids so we had to recruit granddad to come so we would be able to buy 3 entrees. When we asked about the chocolate pinata we were told that they'd sold out an hour before, and according to one runner I spoke to, it was because of this promotion. While our server apologized, she told us to come back to try again another time. The promotion expires in a week! Beyond this, we probably won't be back because the service was so slow. It took 30 minutes to get our drinks and an hour to get our food. For a family with young kids, this is like an eternity. Many restaurants acknowledge this and at least rush the kids' food but Uncle Julio's doesn't seem to get this. I saw many patrons who were impatiently waiting for food and drink and a few tables who called over the manager. Uncle Julio's, why would you not prepare for a promotion that is giving away a popular $25 dessert by stocking more supplies? You ran out of the dessert by 4:30 pm on a weekend day! Why didn't servers let guests know when they sat down to order? Every table still had an advertisement for a chocolate pinata on it. Why would you not prepare by having extra staff on hand? You brought us in the door but then didn't follow through on the promise. We had a pricey dinner that took too long to be served and ended with disappointment. read more