El Pollo Rico

so we’ve been here a few more times since my last review, & i’m disappointed to say that after our last time we WILL NOT ever be coming back.
my first two chimichangas were great (like in my first review) but the next one was disgustingly soggy… so oily that it was leaking in the container. since then i’ve tried the VEGGIE fajitas burrito, which really unfortunately had some accidental chunks of meat in it, & their veggie nachos which were bland.
my boyfriend orders their special burrito (which is supposed to have everything on it) but the past 2 times they made it a regular & still charge for the special. the lady taking orders can’t really understand English, but the worst part is that once she understands what you’re trying to say, she’ll forget the order. our last time there i had her repeat the order twice on the phone to confirm that she got it right, then once more when we went to pick it up, & the order ended up still being wrong.
the food is prepared sloppily & getting the correct order/​price is a hassle. not gonna be spending any more money here.

Love this place.
Best chicken and tri tip. All Mexican goodies to eat. Great service.

Good traditional Mexican food. Nothing special on the food side. Location is a little run down, but comfortable.

If your looking for Mexican food, this place is delicious! Fast friendly service– superb food!

This is not the best Mexican food, but it was quite tasty!

Excellent food and exceptionally good choice of salsas. The picked onions are truly rico.

Probably the best enchiladas I’ve ever had! They make them so good here, all the other dishes are great too. It’s a good spot to eat for lunch if your craving authentic Mexican food, 100% recommend.

Bummed to see a few only OK reviews for this place! We love it. My opinion: best all around Mexican BBQ in Goleta– better than Chicken Ranch, MUCH better than Pollofino. I recommend getting the special burrito, wet; both green and red sauces are good, but I prefer red. The combo meal satisfies too. Well-​seasoned tri-​tip (occasionally a bit tough) and chicken. I really like their salsa bar, but the salsas they have mostly aren’t chip-​dipping salsas like I think many people expect (they’re primarily chili-​based taco and burrito salsas; not tomato-​based chip salsas). But get a couple of each and pour em over the wet burrito. I can’t attest to the tacos, but my partner’s had them and thinks they’re solid, but not Lily’s-level great.

From the outside it does not look like much however the place blew me away With an amazing atmosphere people sitting around watching soccer and the best Mexican food I have had in a long time.

Fantastic. East coast guy that has been missing great Mexican and this place delivered! And then some. Don’t miss it.

Eh. The food is okay. They have a buy one get one free from the AXXESS card. The tri tip and the chicken tasted just okay. The tri tip was also a little tough. I prefer chicken ranch over this place. Probably won’t be back.

Food was good, services was friendly. outside eating on a nice day people watching was classic. we will be back!

My wife and I were in the area and saw the good reviews and so decided to give El Pollo Rico a try. I ordered the tri tip wet burrito and my wife ordered the chicken fajita burrito.
While both were very large and visually appealing the taste left something to be desired. The meat was overly salty in both burritos and there wasn’t much other flavor going on.
A let down because I feel like they have potential. We did enjoy the outdoor seating.
They also lose a star for an asinine no free refill policy on fountain drinks…
If you’re looking for decent Mexican food go elsewhere.

Hi there! I highly recommend this restaurant food is so good especially the chicken is the bomb…

New owners turned it into a double threat: Bad food AND bad service. Shame. I loved this place.

Very, very good. Tasty marinated meats. Nicely grilled peppers and tortillas. A chill authentic vibe at the restaurant. Always fast, friendly and tasty.

Mehh. I was hoping for something better…
The food wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great either. We decided to visit this place tonight since we were up in Goleta for the night and based on the reviews I thought it would be good place to eat.
Well we ate ;) but as far was leaving us with the desire to ever go back? Nope.
The tri-​tip is very thin and overly salted, the horchata was just from a mix so not satisfying at all.
They have a decent salsa bar but the chips are not free.
So if you are looking for a just-​ok Mexican place then give this place a try.

Great food. Super reasonable for lunch. This spot is in an area with some good food and Pollo Rico holds it down.

Wow! It’s really all I can say — I had the chicken soft tacos and the tri-​tip nachos. Of course I didn’t eat all of it — I took the nachos for next days lunch! YES — next days lunch. Love the atmosphere, the flavors, and the freshness of the meat. Wishing I could take this back to Vegas with me, but I am here for 10 more days!

I’ve often joked how I was going to book a vacation based upon the places Marc D. has visited.
Imagine my surprise when bored during a meeting at UCSB, and tired of listening to my stomach, decided to see where I could get a taco near campus and guess who’s review pops up?
I wasn’t sure what to think knowing this was basically part of a laundromat but knowing I’ve eaten in odder places, wrapped the meeting up and got on my way.
Right off the street on Hollister (and very freeway adjacent) there is both lot and street parking; I was there mid-​afternoon so finding a spot was super easy.
With lots of options from standard Mexican food to a guacamole bacon burger, stayed with my original vision and order up two chicken and two tri tip tacos. As I was the only person in the restaurant at the time, the service attention was all on me with my tacos cooked up quickly and with a smile.
The chicken was beyond amazing with the perfect amount of flavoring and just off the grill. The tri tip was more of a well done than on the rarer side which caused it to slightly loose some flavor. Not bad but could have been just a little bit better with a few minutes on the grill. I’ll gladly trade some char for juice. Both are topped with onions and cilantro with lots of salsa options for extra flavoring.
The restaurant, including the bathrooms, are spotless which doesn’t mean much if you’re taking it to go but would certainly enjoy my meal with a cold one there next time.
And there will be a next time!