Pollo Tropical

Fantastic service. Able to easily describe menu items. Food was very good. Perfect portion size. I would definitely try it again. Only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is I would need same experience a couple more times.

This is the worst place I have ever been service wise!!! The parking lot was completely empty not one vehicle, and now I know why, they will not work with you on your order in any way, you have to get it exactly like they have it on the menu if you get the trio but only want two meats NOPE can’t have it, you have to throw food away or order a single meat plate and a side of the second meat making it twice the price of the trio, manager refused to change anything or even speak with me. Please there are better companies out there that treat you much better, that are more deserving of your business, out of here heading to Cane’s

Service is at times slow but man is the food good. Have not had a bad meal here so far. The chicken is so moist and the black beans are oohhh so good. Their salsa is pretty awesome also.

Had the tropichop bowl and it was completely tasteless. Extremely bland. First time I’ve ever been to a pollo tropical

I love Pollo tropical, being from south Florida it always reminds me of my childhood. Chicken is tasty, as well as the rice. The only complain I have are the beans, they are kinda bland compared to the south Florida stores. The calipso beef is amazing, filled with flavor. The store did have a musty smell and the store was dirty the one time we dined in.

I visited this location with my son and he got the macaroni and cheese kids meal, which looked a little bland but he seemed to like it — and he’s a picky eater.
I had the half chicken platter, which was very flavorful and the sauces (I tried the curry mustard and the poyo sauce) were excellent!
I am anxious to see how this restaurant does in the area.

I was pleasantly impressed with Pollo Tropical. It’s a cross between Taco Cabana and KFC but just up a notch or two.
I ordered the ¼ chicken plate with green beans and everything was very enjoyable (except for the roll). On the first sight I didn’t think I was going to like the chicken because it looked dry and overlooked but to my surprise it had much flavor and it was moist inside. It was a little on the smaller side but again the taste made up for that minor upset. The green beans were shockingly decent also. They could have kept the awfully dry roll though.
As for customer service issues, everyone I encountered during my visit was pleasant and helpful. I’ll definitely come again.

Cheery restaurant that is a change of pace from other fast food in the area. I had the ½ chicken special with yellow veggie rice and black beans. Im sad that a poor lil baby chicken had to give his life for that meal. I think the chicken may have tasted ok but there wasnt enough of it to tell. Tiny tiny lil leg and thigh. Good for someone who is watching their portion sizes but Im glad I wasnt real hungry when i stopped in. They offer several different sauces which is a good thing since the food is totally tasteless unless you add the sauces. If I want to doctor up my food to get a flavor I will stay home and cook it myself. The meal comes with a tiny cold roll which i took a bite of and put down. I had been wanting to try this place and now Im glad I did so I know Im not missing much. Never say never, but I will probably never return.

Service was very friendly and extremely fast, but the food was just too bland for my liking. I had the chicken breast w/​yellow rice, black beans, and boiled yuca. It also came with a cold roll that I ate a bite of and set right back down. (And I never pass up a bread product). The only interesting food items were the plantains (very sweet and charred), and the yuca (which was more interesting than good). It tasted like a cross between flavorless mashed potatoes and polenta. I guess the idea is that the food is served rather unseasoned and you add your own sauces, but I prefer that it comes from the kitchen with some initial flavor/​character to start with. Atmosphere was casual, nice decorations on the wall, and soft, pleasant music playing.
All said and done — I don’t see myself returning.

I went to pollo tropical on the second day that it opened. I was so excited to try something that was close to home and brand new. I took my Tropichop bowl to go, and it was absolutely disgusting. The rice was soggy, and the chicken dry and flavorless. I tried to save the taste of the bowl with the many salsas, but even the salsas were unimpressive. I heard that this place is super popular in Florida, but I honestly can’t understand why. Gross, I’ll never be back. Ever. Not even in another state. First impressions are the most important, and they are already blowing it.

Not impressed. Brand new place and I could not believe how dirty it was. there was a musty smell upon walking in… counters and tables were dirty, puddles of water and soda under drink machines, patches of water on floors with no «warning» signs– the floors were so slick. The food: horrible. No taste, no special seasonings, and just overall bland. A pile of yellow rice (it looked dyed) thrown on the plate in a «mound» and it looked like some random frozen vegetables were mixed in… Black beans had no seasoning or flavor whatsoever. I could throw a chicken breast on the grill and it would «outdo» anything they have on the menu.
Employees: standing by drink machines and congregating LOUDLY– talking about each other and insulting one another.
Bathrooms were «iffy» and smelled of urine. Again, puddles on the floor– not sure if it was water or urine.
An employee was standing at the only sink available to wash hands and she was fixing her hair– I stood there waiting to wash my hands. Customer service skills are lacking– I would have stepped aside for a patron to wash her hands, but maybe that’s just me.
What the heck is going on here? I felt like I was in the twilight zone. This place will not survive very long.

I am so sad and hungry. I went to the drive through wanting the light caesar wrap and soup. They were out of soup so I decided to get the regular chicken caesar wrap and a caesar salad and asked for a side of their spicy Poyo Poyo sauce. They forgot the sauce leaving me with a wrap with exactly 2 small pieces of cubed chicken and wilted lettuce wrapped in a tortilla twice the size it needs to be for the filling. The caesar was gross as well with black wilted lettuce. $ 7 down the tube and no lunch today

The grilled lime chicken breast was sooooo not worth it. The chicken had no taste, other than me personally adding the lime. The food was NOT worth the price ($ 24 for 2 meals and 2 drinks).
The plus side is that the staff was good with customer service.
This was the first AND LAST I’m going to visit this place.

My wife and I went to Pollo Tropical in Dickinson today at around 2:30. I was really looking forward to a fresh chicken place like the ones that do so well in California. I was so wrong.
First, make sure you take rappelling gear with you, I do not have any idea what the hell they have all over their floor, but every person in there was walking deliberately not to fall. It was like an oily sheen over the entire floor, not just one section. From the minute you walked in, to the counter, to the drink station, to your seat. Even the rug in front of the drink station had a slickness. This place just opened so I find it very had to believe it is dirty.
Second, the service counter seems confused. We were asked what we wanted, and as soon as we started ordering the clerk turned around and started looking into the kitchen. She then turned back around and had us order again and had to ask someone in the back if they had cheese.
Third, if you are going to put Pollo in your name, you better have some damn good chicken. I had the TropiChop with grilled chicken over yellow rice with black beans, tomatoes and avocado. The chicken was dry, the rice was so overcooked it was a mushy clump, and had vegetable in it that I totally was not expecting, like soggy broccoli. The avocado was not avocado but a ready made guacamole. I ate the chicken and toppings off but the mushy rice mixture was not worth eating. My wife got a chicken sandwich, and it was the most pathetic dry little piece of chicken that we had ever seen.
Fortunately they have a sauce bar to rescue their dry chicken, but you have to weigh the pros and cons of the kamikaze suicide floors. My wife went for it. A couple were very good, some were pretty basic, either way, it helped the chicken.
The décor is very nice, it has a nice clean tropical feel and there were plenty of people there at the time of day. When we were leaving, someone at the door was extremely friendly, the best part of the experience.
I can not imagine that we will go back unless I hear from someone that it has changed drastically.

While in Costa Rica 2 years ago, I caught my first glimpse of Pollo Tropical. Since I was there for an authentic experience, I did not eat there since I could tell it was a chain. However, I was somewhat excited to see they opened one 3 minutes from my house because it gives me another food option prior to my dreaded grocery night.
They have an odd system in that, you check in with the hostess and she assigns you a seat. On one hand this is nice because you’re not fighting for a table, and it keeps small groups or individuals from sitting at a large table. On the other hand, you have no say where you sit, so they may put you next to a crying baby or some weirdo with a staring problem.
Once you get your seat you stand in a line reminiscent of Six Flags, as it does meander about for a moment. You let the cashier have your assigned seat number and proceed to order.
Contrary to what another reviewer indicated, the DO have beer, rum punch & Cuba libre for purchase, as well as the soda fountain, tea & juice.
Both hubs and I ordered a Chicken Avocado Club wrap. He felt the wrap was was too small, but I found it to be a good size. We both agree that the avocado & bacon overwhelmed the chicken, and that neither of us will get this wrap again. Don’t get me wrong, it was really good, just not the «Caribbean flavor» we were expecting.
I got the balsamic tomatoes for my side and he got the mac ‘n cheese. We both really enjoyed the sides and I was surprised hubs REALLY like the Mac because he is a mac ‘n cheese snob. Lol!
We also ordered a guava bar to split and it was tasty, although I wouldn’t order it again simply because I don’t eat sweets that often.
Overall we felt the food was good and we are looking forward to trying their other dishes!

I normally will give a new place a couple of weeks after opening before trying it, but I haven’t had Island food since leaving Florida 10 years ago. I had the Chicken Trios, with the pork and beef. Yucca and the Balsamic Tomatoes were ordered as sides. I never received the tomatoes, (one of the reasons I wait until all the problems are worked out) but everything else was wonderful. Had I received my entire order, this would have been 5 stars.

This place has only been open a week, and they are already packing ‘em in. Apparently Pollo Tropical is as popular in Florida as Taco Cabana is here in Texas, and both chains are owned by the same parent company, and the ambiance and procedure at Pollo Tropical is very close to Taco Cabana. As a new restaurant, it was apparent they don’t quite have their act together 100%, ie, they let some soda flavors run out for over half an hour, and some of the salsas were empty. I’m sure with time they’ll smooth over these types of warts.
Unlike TC, Pollo Tropical doesn’t serve beer, margaritas or other alcoholic drinks. That’s a shame but the food is worth coming here anyway.
As a nice alternative to Tex-​Mex, the Caribbean themed food was a treat. The pulled mojo pork was juicy, well marinated and a little smoky, nice job! Chicken wings were small but really tasty, also marinated in tropical fruit juices. There was a really nice assortment of Caribbean salsa to choose from, similar to the TC salsa bar. I’ll have to warn you about the Tropical Fire sauce they serve, it’s hotter than most Mexican hot sauces, so beware. The fried plantains were cooked to perfection, according to my picky S.O. Their dinner plates come with a King Hawaiian roll. I had a side of their cornbread soufflé, and it was amazingly delicious.
The prices are very reasonable, and there is a «no-​tipping» policy here. I have a feeling this restaurant is going to do very well in the coming years, which will probably spur on more locations throughout Houston (they are already in Dallas and San Antonio markets). So if you’re looking for fast-​ish food that’s tasty and not too expensive, this place will fill the bill. Tell them the Phantom sent you.

Before this week, I have never been in a Pollo Tropical. Think of it as a cross between Taco Cabana, Chipotle, and Black-​Eyed Pea. It clearly isn’t Tex-​Mex but has chicken, beef and pork for your gastronomical pleasure. They do have items in tortillas, bowls, with rice, without rice, beans and plates of rotisserie chicken. I enjoyed my TropiChops bowl, which is a four step process of building your own bowl of food. I had the calypso beef, on top of mashed potatoes and gravy (yes, you read that right), topped off with beans. It was very good. By the way, my teenagers loved their mac and cheese. They said, the mac and cheese alone deserves five stars. With that, overall, I’ll give them four stars and I will go back.
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This our first time trying this food chain, we loved it! Authentic Latin flavor! The chicken is delicious! Good variety of sauces, the cilantro sauce was the winner, the t guava BBQ is also very good. I anticipate will be back several times in the near future, maybe later today!
Good and fast service. Very clean, as expected, it was their second day since opening.
The seats though, were uncomfortable, I wonder if they designed them that way to keep people from staying too long. The seats were too low or the table top high or both. But again, everything else was excellent.

I thought this place was a tanning salon with a tropical theme until it occurred to me… pollo means chicken, lol. I wanted to try this place out so I went through the drive through. Got the trio platter with black beans and white rice, corn soufflé, and a tres leches and mango peach drink. The food was very delicious, and the platter was a lot of food. Good portions. the calypso beef was flavorful and tender. The chicken was awesome. The wings tasted similar to the chicken. The black beans tasted very fresh, but a little bland so I added salt. I really liked that corn soufflé. They gave me my mango peach drink at room temperature, which I thought was odd because it doesn’t taste like they just juiced it. But it didn’t have an overpowering sweet taste so I take it it’s because the ice would dilute it too much. Now I have to tell you, that tres leches cake was almost too sweet to eat. It needs to come with an insulin syringe if they’re going to serve that. It’s supposed to be 3 milks but I only tasted condensed milk. The topping tasted like a mix between cool whip and marshmallow fluff. I just. can’t… no. The texture was a bit grainy too.
Overall the food was delicious and I can’t believe this is considered «fast food.» It tastes like a home cooked meal. The people were nice and overall this is a good place to get fast food that taste nothing like, fast food. I found the prices reasonable for what is being served. Just please don’t give your children that tres leches cake unless you hate yourself.