Chilero’s Mexican Food is located in East Mesa on the Southest Corner of Ellsworth & Brown.  We were seated promptly and were brought chips n salsa. The chips were great. They weren’t your typical chips that you get at other mexican restaurants. They were a little thicker and I really liked them. I decided to go with the Chile Verde Burrito Enchilada style. It was on the lunch menu and came with rice and beans. I believe the lunch menu had 6 choices and they were all around 6.95. It was an extra 1.25 or so to have enchilada style.

The burrito tasted great. The tortilla was very good and the green chile was amazing. The rice and beans were also good. Overall, I think the food at Chilero’s was good. I think it may be a bit overpriced, but I would still recommend this place and will still go back. Try it out and tell us what you think.

Decent Mexican food with pretty high prices. Typical Mexican lunch menu burro’s, taco’s, enchilada’s, …..It had comfortable atmosphere with tables and chairs for about 30 people and a small bar seating area.

I got a Carne Asada Burrito from the lunch special menu. Good tasting food that was neatly prepared and served promptly. I ordered a couple sopapia’s for all of us for dessert. They gave me a taste of their flaun for dessert, it was very good, home made.

Relaxed Mexican food, great lunch date location.

First Impressions

Chilero’s sits up on Brown and Ellsworth, in that part of Mesa where you think you’ve already reached Apache Junction but haven’t.  The strip mall it resides in is very new, and the newness and cleanliness is fairly visible throughout.

The general decor feels like a dramatically toned-down Tia Rosa’s, with a few Mexican knick-knacks on the walls and a small tiled fake roof.  Strangely, there are a few Chilero’s themed signs around, which gives it a sports-bar vibe for a moment.

We pushed tables together ourselves to seat ten, but the seats were immediately available.

(more…)

Just like the many Mexican Restaurants in Mesa - Everything about Chilero’s Mexican Grille was ordinary and exactly like any other Mexican food joint you find in Mesa. I thoroughly enjoyed my dish (Pollo Asado lunch special), chips, and salsa, but not enough to steer me away from my Mexican food restaurant regulars. Our group received great service. The inside of the restaurant was nice, clean, and well decorated, but again, there was nothing original. The one thing that that had me wanting to return over and over again were the delicious sopapillas. Now those treats are something to make the trip for!

For lunch we ended up going to a fairly new Mexican restaurant in Mesa. Located on the corner of Brown and Ellsworth, Chilero’s is a small corner restaurant. Fitting no more than 30 or so people, they offer a full entree menu as well as lunch specials. The inside has what you would expect at any Mexican place, bright colors and Mexican music in the background.

I ordered number five on the lunch special menu,  three chicken flautas with beans and rice. Although I never had flautas before, I enjoyed them. They were freshly cooked and complimented the rice and beans. The service was great over all and the food was ready quickly.

Dessert was two orders of fried dough with powdered sugar and honey, forgot what they are exactly called. The meal was good and filling and it seemed that everyone else enjoyed their meal. However, something was missing, perhaps a bar or more tables or a TV? Again this restaurant is quite small and besides the good food, doesn’t offer much. Might want to stick to a pick-up or take-out order.

Located on Brown and Ellsworth, Chilero’s has a clean cantina feel with a colorful interior. There is a lunch menu that has 5 meals aside from the normal dinner menu.

I ordered the #1, a shredded beef taco and cheese enchilada, but substituted the beef for chicken. The taco is a typical medium-sized, hard shell taco with the exception of having the right proportions of ingredients. I was pleased to see that the taco was not over stuffed with meat and topped off with two shreds of lettuce and a shred of cheese as I usually do. Instead, there was the right amount of chicken, cheese, lettuce, and tomato.

The cheese enchilada was covered in cheese and red sauce, though, there was not much, if any, cheese inside. It complimented the taco nicely even though I wish the red sauce had a little more kick to it. The plate was rounded out with spanish rice and refried beans to make a good sized meal.

Lunch was topped off with fluffy sopapillas.

We brought in some Little Caesar’s today for lunch.

General thought:  They’ve managed to pick up a bit of slack since the paper-thin pizzas that came two-to-an-oversized box in my childhood.  The crust was thicker, although still much thinner than Chicago style, and the toppings were sliced larger.  Both the sausage and pepperoni pies did seem to have a fair amount of topping.

However, the Crazy Bread never changes.  Still incredibly soft and doughy, primarily tasting of a sprinkling of cheese on top.  It’s hard to compare it with anyone else’s breadsticks, since it seems designed differently– to be crustless for kids.

General conclusion:  They’re ready to compete with other national chains.

My roommate and I decided to get lunch at Paradise Bakery around the corner from the apartment. I ordered the ham and brie grilled panini and he had the turkey and cranberry sandwich. We both had a side of their pasta salad and a cookie, that comes with every sandwich. Both sandwiches were ready just as we found a table. The service is excellent and prompt. The decor on the inside is what you would expect at any paradise bakery cafe. They offer seating outside as well as in. Although it was lunch time and the place was packed, the staff seemed to be on top of everything.

Not only do they serve great specialty sandwiches and baked goods for lunch and dinner, they also have a breakfast menu which they serve until 10am. Also in their bakery section they have  several cookies and cookie cakes they can customize to your order.

In the past I have also had their chicken salad sandwich. The only thing I have against it is the walnuts. I don’t like when restaurants add either nuts or berries to their chicken salad. To me, it takes away some of the chicken flavor and adds unnecessary ingredients. Besides that I don’t have anything negative to say about their food. It is fresh and cooked as ordered.

After you order your sandwich you can add either pasta salad, salad, soup or additional cookies to your order. The set up is quite unique and seems to be efficient. I would recommend trying them if you haven’t already. The sit down Paradise Bakery setup is pleasant and comfortable with bar style tables, regular tables or even lounge type leather seats with built in mini tables. Give them a try!

First Impressions

The Eagles Buffet is set off to the side of the McKellips branch of Casino Arizona, next to some elaborate native-art displays and hidden behind about six banks of slot machines.  The general vibe appears high-end, with dim lights, fairly elaborate surroundings, and many booths.

(more…)

Upon the suggestion of a co-worker, we found ourselves at the buffet at Casino Arizona. Although we were seated quite quickly and the service was very “energetic,” I don’t have much to say. The food was mediocre at best, and lacked any sense of originality. The food was over cooked and really didn’t offer anything memorable. If I had to pick the best part of the meal it would have to be the dessert. I had 1 creme brulee, 1 piece of lemon meringue pie and a couple sugar cookies.

After about 2 to 3 dishes per person, we finally declined coffee and decided to hit the road.  I doubt anyone present at the table for lunch, including me, would recommend this buffet to anyone. At about $10 a dish, you definitely get your moneys worth, but sacrifice quality.