Don Julio Mexican Restaurant

Reviews 10

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Julie T

We have visited all three locations many times. We LOVE Forest Lake & White Bear for their customer service, friendliness, good food, drinks & nice surroundings. However, every time we go to North Branch we encounter problems. We have given it many "second chances" only to be disappointed each time. We are easy to get along with and dont often bring any issues up even when the waiter asks, however, the last time at North Branch we didnt have a choice. One of our guests had the Fajitas del mar & the fish fillet was old and disgusting. Another friend found a thin coiled piece of plastic in her food. When these were brought to their attention we were treated poorly. They did discount each meal but they should have and, at check out, we didnt say anything but it was obvious from the waiter having written the issues on the ticket that there were issues yet they never said anything and treated us kind of rude. And, if you ever consider buying a gift certificate just know that if you buy from North Branch you can only use it at North Branch. We found this out the hard way as they never told us when we bought it. We highly recommend the Forest Lake location. Weve always been super satisfied & when I say "always" it is sometimes three times a week as we are frequent diners there and love it.

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Anna Dembroski

I use to love Don Julios.. after my last experience... not so much. I ordered one of the the quesadillas on the phone to go. I picked it up and didnt really think I needed to look if it was the right one because I never had a problem before. So I get home and opened it. Wrong order. I called and explained what I ordered was not what I got. The person who I was talking to on the phone told me that what I got, is what I ordered. Told him no that it was not and explained again what I actually ordered... and he started to raise his voice and argue with me that I was wrong. I asked to speak with the manager and he asked why.... told him because I asked. He finally put the manager on the phone and he was just as bad. So, after about 5 minutes talking with the manager, he finally said hes sorry and they will make the right order. BUT before I could say anything he hung up. I went to go pick it up and seriously... they were absolutly rude.. terrible customer service. Never coming back.

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Andy McNeill

Had to track down a server for a service setting and additional knapkins, margarita was "thick and disqusting". Tried to tell waiter that i wanted a new beverage, mid sentence....he walked away (WEIRD) but strangely enough returned with our server. My chicken taco salad was watery and void of flavor!!! I couldve lived with that BUT I seriously felt like my son and husband were in an inexperienced restaurant where we had to "fend for ourselves".....I am a mother of five and deserve a night off of cooking and tending towards my peeps. If i have to pay someone to cook and serve us......I DO NOT WANT TO ASSIST THEM. And then PAY them!!!!!!! My husband had a burrito and son had simple, cheese stix and choc. NORTH BRANCH, MN HORRIBLE SERVICE/FOOD QUALITY someone report them, pls !!! White Bear Lake, mn - excellent!!!! Go there instead.

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Dan Emmerich

The first time I was here a few years ago, they were new and everything was great. This time while passing through we stopped in and was surprised how much quality has decreased. Salsa tasted like marinara, it was pretty bad. Their service was flat out terrible- staff was rude to everyone. A robot could have given off more emotion than our server. I had to stop another server from taking a chair from our table without even bothering to ask (my wife was in the restroom at the time). Their food was still above average, though not nearly as good as I remember. I will not return. If the local Mexican restaurants I have been in the south come up here, this place would get buried. Friendly piece of advice- drive south to Forest Lake- that Don Julios is much better.

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Sarah King

Terrible food, terrible service. Never had worse food from a restaurant. Even my kids ordered the kids mini pizza, and it was soggy and smelled awful. My 8 year old said it tasted smelled and tasted like a butt cheek. If I could give this place negative stars I would. The service was awful also. No one understands english. The manager was angry when he had to split my bill with the other people I was with, and then never once said thanks. Also, the chips tasted like someone made them out of sewage and the salsa was bland, lacking any flavor. Blech. I wish I had my money and time back from my visit.

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Jesse Kneeland

Awesome chimichangas! We always get extra white sauce because its so good! We eat here whenever we are in town. HOWEVER, rarely do they not mess up our order. Once it was bad enough we tried to resolve it with a manager, but when we came in the staff couldnt understand us so they charged us for what was suppose to be a free meal. The food is so good, we keep going back. If it wasnt for that the bad service would keep us away. UPDATE: We came in for a meal recently and the service has improved! And although it was a big order everything was accurate! Moving them from 3 stars to 4!

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Chuck Brunschon

This place is great! They immediately had a table for 3 ready on the Friday night before July 4th. We had full dinner entrees within 15 minutes of sitting down. The food is delicious, and its generous portions at a price thats more than worth it. And this always includes a complimentary, bottomless supply of chips and salsa. Ive been to the North Branch, Chisago City, and Forest Lake locations, and so far theyve been 100% consistent with their level of quality across the board. My family and I will definitely be visiting Don Julios for years to come.

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Jeremy Kwolek

For a smallish town in East Central Minnesota this place is doing something right when it comes to Mexican food. The food is consistent and the service is usually pretty good. From my personal experience I dont enjoy the American cheese sauce that gets put on a few of their dishes, but I guess a good portion of their customer base probably does. To each their own. I can always find something good to eat and will vouch for their machaca as being an A+ in my book.

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Bryan Hansel

Ive only eaten here for lunch on two occasions. Both times were excellent. The food is tasty with a large number of choices. The plate sizes are slightly too generous. Because the food is so good, you really need to have good selfcontrol to resist eating the full plate. Wouldnt it be great if more places offered half-sized plates? The location is just off of I35 so it makes for a good lunch stop when heading south from Grand Marais.

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Jerry Beach

BEWARE! I took my family to eat there last week. Four hours later I was headed to the ER after they made me very sick. When I called the next day to inform the manager what had happened her first and primary response was "Well sir, we cant even verify that you were here". I didnt even ask for anything, just wanted to be sure they didnt make anyone else sick. They practice sloppy food preparation so beware.

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