Rio Grande Cafe
| Address: | 270 S Rio Grande St, Salt Lake City, UT 84101, USA |
| Phone: | +1 801-364-3302 |
| Site: | riograndecafeslc.com |
| Rating: | 4.1 |
| Working: | 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–9PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 9
LA
Lance Hemmert
As a recent transplant to SLC this was my first time eating at the Rio Grande Cafe. Ill start with the positives. 1) My wife loves the place, and has many a good memory dining there with her family. It holds a special place in her heart. 2) Our waiter, and I wish I wouldve taken note of his name, was excellent. He was attentive, but not intrusive. He was affable and very prompt with his service. Hes the kind of waiter you wish you could replicate and staff every eatery with. 3) The Rio Grande Cafe has a giant paper mache taco in which a mannequin woman is inserted. Its the kind of weird that is both charming and solid Facebook material. I wished their above-the-bar train had been working. That wouldve been great, too. Now. The negatives. 1) I spent $30 on lunch that was 100% unremarkable. Truth be told you could eat for half that price at any taco stand and get a far better culinary experience. I juxtapose their food to say, the Copper Onion, and there simply isnt a comparison. The Copper Onion blew me away while the Rio Grande Cafe was just disappointing and boring. 2) Their salsa was fresh, but the flavor panned out as diced tomatoes and heavy cilantro. I recommend blending the ingredients so the onion infuses a bit more, and to tone down the cilantro. I usually love salsa, but couldnt muster any appetite for theirs. 3) The chicken in the taquitos is already cooked, unseasoned, and then is deep fried which cooks it a second time. It was tasteless and dryer than than California during fire season. Oddly enough, they added a side of shredded lettuce with vinaigrette. It makes absolutely no sense. 4) Their vegetarian enchilada was really nothing more than microwaved vegetables (think Steamfresh bagged veggies you heat for a couple of minutes), some white sauce, wrapped up in a heated (probably microwaved) flour tortilla. The only thing Mexican about that enchilada was that it was accompanied by beans and rice. The beans, btw, were soupy. 5) The ambience is that of a diner, not a Mexican restaurant. Aside from the giant woman-stuffed taco suspended above the bar there is nothing about the restaurant that gives you the impression its Mexican or otherwise. Overall it was just a crappy experience. I do wish them continued success, since theyve been around for a very long time. I mean that sincerely. I wont dine there again, but I encourage SLC residents to check it out and make up their own minds.
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Robin Kimbrough
I have been going here for over 20 years and have always loved the food, atmosphere, and value. Wont be returning, though, because of their newer pricing methods. The cost of their basic enchilada combo has roughly doubled from 5 years ago. I can (grudgingly) accept that, but I was confused when asked if I wanted enchilada sauce on my enchilada, or if I wanted it without sauce. "What?" I asked the waitress, "Dont the enchiladas normally come with sauce? They always have before." "No," she replied. When I paid my bill I discovered I was charged an extra $1.59 for having enchilada sauce on my enchilada! Seriously!?! WHY NOT JUST SHOW THE TRUE PRICE ON THE MENU! Now I understand why the restaurant was only half full, whereas they used to be bustling with diners who had to wait to be seated. Simple economics dictates they would make more money with lower prices and more customers.
DA
Dan Jones
This being my first meal in Salt Lake City it left me with a terrible aftertaste in my mouth, pun intended. After reviewing what looked like a boring uninspired un"authentic" Mexican food it took over 45 mins for it to arrive. When it did we were missing our silverware. After asking our waiter, who was busy and overwhelmed (not sure why there wasnt that many people there) he still forgot and we had to wave down the non-English speaking bus boy to help us. The "halibut" taco should have been titled "Deep fried fish stick placed in tortilla". It literally was a bread battered fish stick deep fried and placed inside of a tortilla. Not a single person finished their meal. I am concerned with all the positive reviews for this location. Either people are lying or there is a severe misunderstanding on what true authentic Mexican food should look like and taste like.
DA
David Whitney
Back in the 80s I ate here frequently. It seemed to be higher than average price. Just last Friday 05/06/16 I returned, the prices seem to be right in line with other restaurants now. The food was excellent, I enjoyed the shredded beef chimichanga. Our server (Allison) was very attentive and her timing was spot on. We were witness to a loud patron, with a foul mouth, sitting next to us. I was very impressed with how the Server Keri, handled the situation. There was not a discussion, she brought him his bill, and his food to go like there was not a choice, he left without further incident. I will be back, this is good food, good atmosphere, and good entertainment. I only wish I hadnt gone the last 20 years without The Rio Grande Cafe.
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A Private User
Granted, Ive only been once, but I was not impressed. I had the enchilada, their "specialty," and it wasnt all that great. The chicken was very dry and CUBED. Whenever I go to a place that has cubed chicken, I feel like I feeding at the trough, cafeteria-style. No thanks. The cheese and beans were decent, made the meal "average." I would suggest Blue (or Red) Iguana in SLC over Rio Grande Cafe. Oh, the train station atmosphere is cool (with the electric train in the middle near the ceiling). But what do trains have to do with Mexican food? Slightly confusing...
NI
Nicole James
Learned about this place after the new ownership and decided to give it a try. The place looks really cool for a historical building. They have a lot of the original neon lights from the 1920s. The atmosphere is super fun with the open bar in the center of the restaurant. The margarita was delightful with the spicy salt rim and I ordered the halibut tacos. The only problem with those was I only ordered 2! My daughter says its her new favorite place and asked if we could come here more often. I am happy to oblige.
AL
Aliyah Rich
Went there with a big group and wasnt very impressed. The food was alright but just realize that when the waiter asks you if you want beans and rice with your meal, thats $2.50 extra for each. My husband and I shared a meal because we werent very hungry and were mostly there to go with friends from out of town and our meal was $14.50 for one of their Rio Grande tacos with beans and rice. It wasnt like the taco wasnt good, it just wasnt anything special. The chips and salsa are great though!
JU
Justin Hellstrom
It was ok. Place was packed, was Saturday night. Waiter got my order wrong but was good about it. Could have been a bit of a language barrier. Ordered and eventually got beef tacos and pork burrito. Read good things about the pork but I wasnt all that impressed. Was pretty fatty and oily. Shredded beef tacos were good, what beef was there. Street taco sized. Inconvenient for me to drive too and would go out of my way to go to. Historical location is kind of neat, food was ok.
AM
Amelia Hansen
I have been going to Rio Grand since i was an infant. They recently underwent a change in managent. I found the food to be the same as with the previous owners, however the nachos were much smaller and the chicken was less sheredded. Not a big deal, but you know, when you know a resturant like the back of your hand, you tend to notice little differences. My favorite item is the nacho which has yummy melty cheese, tomatoes and jalapeños. And the chicken rio grande taco. Yum.
