Cafe Rio Mexican Grill - Tempe

Truly I love cafe Rio and I have a good time every time I come to this location. However, today I came in and saw they had a sign up saying only online orders. So I went back to my car to place it and when I came to pick it up everything was great up until I got into my car. I love getting queso and chips to take with me to the library so I can have a snack while studying. So I got to my car and wanted to have a couple before I actually went to the library. The horror of the realization when that wasn’t queso shook my core. I saw the corn in it and thought possibly it was the Elotes Mexican street corn . Maybe they were tired and didn’t know which was which or they ran out either way I took the lose and just whipped out my food with my habanero salsa. Might I just say it was some weird green goop that tasted awful. I just threw everything out after that and even my cake didn’t have strawberries or whip cream. Just was an odd experience and it did make me sad because it ruin my whole meal. I love coming here too and the employees but this bad of a mistake is a joke.

The food was decent but be wary about asking for lettuce as they smother the food in lettuce. Also, we were charged extra for dressing and sour cream without being told or knowing we would be until we sat down. They are also a little stingy with the amount of meat they put on as my wifes tacos had barely any on it which is crazy for 30 bucks for 2 meals. The staff felt as if they were rushing us as we ordered. When we left the counter with our food my wife and I both looked at each other and mentioned how we felt extreme anxiety from ordering. To add, the place was filthy. Stains where napkins that touch our face are, tables dirty and not wiped down, windows with splatter, and floors that were sticky. Not the best experience.

Great service and great food. Everyone there had a great attitude and were very accommodating.

We arrived at this location around 8:15-8:20. While approaching the order station, it was clear they were cleaning up for the night. The usual trays of food were pulled out and employees in background were cleaning up to go. This was annoying because hours are supposed to be 10 pm, so our meal preparation felt stale and sloppy. The tortillas were clearly made hours beforehand, cracking then tearing when employees went to shape. Portions were much smaller than I believe they should have been, I assume to conserve for the rest of the evening. Finally, I was irritated because our server and cashier were distracted by, who I assume is a manager. He was going on and on about cell phone service, and cell phone plans. Whole thing felt very unprofessional.

The food is always fresh, the atmosphere is good, and the customer service fast and friendly.