Ted’s Cafe Escondido – Lee’s Summit

Oh my gosh! I absolutely love this place. As someone who’s traveled a lot I’ve eaten at many Mexican restaurants but this one takes the cake. The service is amazing and the staff is wonderful! The food is authentic and absolutely flavourful. This is my new favorite restaurant!

Service was fine and we were seated quickly. Food was meh — Taco Bell quality.

Really loved this place! My husband thought it was the best Mexican restaurant we’ve had in LS. The complimentary chips, salsa, and flour tortillas were really nice, and I thoroughly enjoyed the cheese sauce, as did my 1 year old. Our waiter, Ryan, was nice, I just wish he spoke up a bit more since it was loud inside. Our meals were great! Didn’t have to wait long and our food was hot. We were checked on multiple times to make sure things tasted okay and our drinks were refilled. The sopapillas are a good dessert after a great meal. Will definitely return.

Five star service, three star food. I’ve been to Ted’s three times and each time the service was excellent! The food is nothing special though. You do get complimentary cheese dip and tortillas but the salsa is very bland and has a bit too much cilantro for my taste. Overall I would say it’s definitely worth trying.

Positives: loved the food experience at Ted’s! You are provided with complimentary cheese dip, salsa, relish, and atomic salsa upon request – awesome! Menu had lots of great choices. I went with the pick two-​chicken taco and spinach enchilada. Very tasty! I sat with a party of 9. For being a large party all of our food came out quickly with no mistakes.
Cons: Service. Throughout the course of our meal our waiter was attentive to our needs and was friendly. However after we paid his attitude changed and it was clear he was ready to leave. We had one person at our table that had paid with a credit card. The waiter paced back and forth from the beverage stand to the hostess stand several times until the person in our party signed the receipt. Then a table busser stood by the beverage stand staring at our table waiting for us to leave. As a party of 9 we sat down at 8:15 and left at 9:30. So for being a larger party we were in and out within a decent amount of time. We left 30 minutes before closing time and there were other people still seated in tables around us.
I think teds is a great place to try if you have never been but be ready to eat and leave!

The homemade chips and tortillas were very delicious and the service was fast and friendly great menu for kids my kids enjoyed food and complimentary salsa and queso and tortillas with honey was like Indian fry bread will definitely be back in got Escondido especial and it was very good

My family gets take out from Ted’s often. For the price I think it’s a great value, you get free cheese dip and tortillas in addition to traditional chips and salsa.

I loved the service at Teds. Chips and dip were tasty. The main course was good. I am not a big fan of Mexican food so my four star would be a five for a lot of people.

The food is so-​so. There are much better Mexican options in Lee’s Summit!

Well we finally found a time to visit Teds when the wait time wasn’t so long — in fact we were seated immediately. The place was busy for a Sunday night, but the atmosphere was festive and fun. Our server was energetic and helpful. We ordered the combo fajitas for two for $ 30.
It only took about 5 – 8 minutes for our food to come out — in the meantime we enjoyed complimentary chips, salsa and queso dip. They also brought us some free fresh tortillas. The fajitas were fresh and plentiful with steak and chicken. If I had to improve anything, I would request more peppers and less onions. The guac was tasty by my simple standards. To finish, they also brought complimentary sopapillas.
I’m giving 4 out of 5 stars mainly based upon overall value. Understandably nothing is «free» — the queso, pre meal tortillas and post meal sopapillas were all factored into the price of the entrée. But we had fun and we will return.

Ted’s is the «new kid» in Lees Summit Mexican restaurants so naturally there’s a lot of buzz and demand. That means you will likely have a bit of a wait for s table. They also share the parking lot with Minsky’s pizza, IHOP, and 5 Guys Burgers. During prime time finding a parking space can be a challenge.
Chips & salsa/​cheese dips are comp’d so «quantity» folks are in for a treat. I know their stuff is all made on site, but it could use a little more kick.
The menu is traditional Tex Mex. Dishes are all good, but seem to be a bit more bland than other places nearby.
For service they use a «team» concept. I think this means «whoever is nearby». Likely overall service is faster, but I have to wonder if that also means tips are divided up between all employees. If that is the case there’s no way to reward exceptional service– :(
Overall Ted’s is very acceptable out here in the suburbs, but I do know other places nearby that «I «like better. Check it out, could be exactly what you are looking for.

Ted’s was 5-​stars all the way… until our last visit.
The food is good, really good, actually. We alway enjoy the salas & cheese dip and the atomic salsa is a nice addition as well. The chips are always warm & fresh. I go to Ted’s more often than I should, probably, and enjoy the same few things on the menu.
Of everything on the menu, the Must Try Best Mexican Tacos with steak is my favorite! The soft corn tortillas as always good and the steak is cooked with cilantro and onion, giving it an incredible flavor. Add some refried beans and papas mexicanas and you’ve got an incredible meal.
When Ted’s first opened we were struck by the attentiveness of their service. If your cheese dip looked like it was under ½ full, they were buy to refill it. The trainers they brought in from other locations were stellar, but as they have returned to their home bases, the service has suffered.
On our last visit, I was embarrassed that I had invited someone to join us.
First of all, I ordered a Pacifico «Ted’s style.» This wasn’t my first rodeo and I new what to expect. A cold glass with lime and salt on the rim… a great way to enjoy a libation. When my drink came out I could tell that the glass wasn’t prepared properly, so when the manager stopped by I indicated that to him. He told me that I could fix it myself by simply shaking salt from the salt shaker on the rim. When Ted’s first moved to town, they would have taken my glass and fixed it for me… even it was a fix that simply. I would have never known and they could have shown they cared. With the customer service pros fleeing back to their home base, we are now told how to rectify the problems on our own.
Secondly, it took over and hour for our food to come out due to a «mix-​up in the kitchen.» The manager came over to tell us that, but never made an effort to make it right. A small discount would have been appropriate and getting the food out for the kids as soon as the problem was discovered would have also been nice.
I’ll be back, I’m sure, but I won’t be planning lunch meetings there and inviting others until I see that the service gets back on track.

They give you a ton of free food as appetizers. The food is «average» kind of like Denny’s for Mexican food. I think the customers who go here like the «we give you a lot of food» motto that Ted’s has.
The food does not taste as good as other Mexican places.

We hit this place when we are over on that side of town.
Our hang out is in the bar. Service is excellent and the attention they shower you with makes you feel like you most come there every day! Very friendly folks!
Chips, regular and hot salsa with cheese dip all brought to you as you sit down. The drinks off the menu are excellent but they will craft whatever you ask them to do.
What I really like here are the portions. When I go to a place like Ted’s I want good food and I want a fair amount of it. Many times I find tacos have less meat in them then even Taco Bell puts in there tacos. Not the case here, plenty of meat and fixings.
Food is always fresh and tasty.
Taste more like a mom and pop than a chain.

Look. I only gave it 2 stars for the free stuff.
I love Mexican food. Love On the Border… But this place just lacks.
The ambiance is non existent and food not that good.
But you do get free cheese sauce and sopapilla.

The food was delicious…
Chicken enchiladas oh yeah…
Perfect Margarita was okay…
House Margarita frozen with a swirl of sangria, AMAZING…
Our server/​waiter FLETCHER…
Yes you FLETCHER… (trippy name)
Was an exceptional, is an exceptional server/​waiter…
His attitude is AWESOME…
That kind of customer service ROCKS…
Besides the complimentary Queso, fresh tortillas, sopapilla, the food was great.
Topping it off with great service…
I will be back…

A busy place so be prepared to wait a little, but worth the wait! The chips and variety of salsas and cheese dip was a treat. Being a chip and salsa girl this was a winner. They were on top of it checking and refilling the chips and dips too. The food was great as well. I got the «Best Tacos» I believe it was called, very good. It was my birthday so they gave me a pink sombrero to wear and the birthday song was unique and made it fun. Definitely will be back!

What are people smoking. This isn’t even Mexican food. VELVEETA CHEESE on everything.
The décor is good and so is the service. I see a lot of review about the great service, but I think most people like this place and rating on fact that that get a free cinnamon sugar donut at the end of their pathetic meal.
Ordered a margarita that was their premium for $ 10. Believe me I make better ones at home and I am not a bar tenter. Ordered a fajita burrito and it had meat with rice inside and Velveeta on top. It that is what you like, you found heaven. Good luck.

We have enjoyed both dinner experiences here! The first time, our server Emily was especially conscientious about offering all the complimentary items, describing them and promptly refilling the Complimentary salsa, cheese sauce, vegetable relish/​pickled carrots/​onions/​jalapeños, chips and warm tortillas, and later the complimentary warm sopa pias.
The staff worked well together, replacing halfway empty sauces and chips, clearing plates, checking on us, and the manager Greg personally touched our table.
We were very happy with our entrees too: my son especially loved the ground beef enchiladas. And the marinated chicken was delicious. (Our friends raved about the marinated beef fajitas! Which I will order next time.)
I also appreciate that we can switch out the rice and beans for a different side, like the grilled vegies.
The flour tortillas are just a bit too thick for liking, but I certainly appreciate that they are freshly made and warm when served!
Careful walking on the tile floor in the bar area; though beautiful they are a bit slippery. We noticed even our chairs slipped a bit if we moved at all while seated.

Stopped in for a late meal and were really impressed with our experience and meal. We ordered a margarita, Corona (Ted’s style — in a large mug with a delicious messy salt /​lime rim). We both ordered their street tacos — chicken /​beef combo. They were very good for Americanized Mexican food. Lots of meat with guac on the side. The service was great — big bowl of chips (frequently refilled) with several salsas and cheese dip. Our son got a kids bean and cheese burrito covered with cheese sauce. He liked his plate. At the end they offered us a free dessert — deep fried bread with cinnamon sugar on top. Although the food was tasty it felt really heavy. We left with leftovers but only cuz we filled up on chips and dessert. We will return.