El Pollo Loco

Not your typical fast food joint. Healthy at low price. It is not organic or grass fed fancy stuff but on the other hand, it makes the price affordable. Chicken seems lean and they are tasty.
When they first opened up years ago, I couldn’t get enough of this place. But when the management/​ownership changed and I can see that they are going down hill, I stopped going.
I was surprised and pleased to find out in my recent visit, that the place was nicely renovated and the food is good.
They make very good Mac and cheese. My two kids approve. I love pollo bowl for 5bucks. Sometimes, I order 4 piece combo and share with my baby. I love their under 500 calorie plate as well.
So far, during my last three recent visits this month, I had no complaints with the staff.
I am really happy that I can rely on this place as a back up on the days I don’t feel like cooking without spending a lot of $$$

Ordered a ranchero burrito but they gave me a rice and bean burrito. I only realized it after taking the first bite and ate it because i was so hungry on my lunch break. Not returning to this place.

WTF happened to the chicken wings here ?
Skinny and flat
Come on Pollo Loco get ur chicken elsewhere
Remodeled dining
But still very smoky in here
You leave smelling like smoke

Great food but the people that work there can never get an order right! In the past two weeks they have messed up three orders (one of which being a replacement order for the chicken and cheese quesadilla with avocado that they forgot to put chicken and cheese on!!) Then I got chicken al carbon tacos and they didn’t put the cilantro and onions on two of them and on the third there was only one piece of chicken (that ended up being a fat piece) on it. I really enjoy El Pollo Loco but the one on Betteravia is the worst one I’ve been too!

So mad… ordered the Chicken and shrimp paella bowl to go. Left and when it was time to eat it… it had no shrimp. WTF!!!

Went by yesterday for the double chicken tostada i waited about 5 minutes wasnt the best. There was only one cashier the other one was in the back being lazy. I will not return ever again i will go to taco bell.

Decent Mexican fast food and affordable. It’s like the Mexican version of Chick-​Fil-​A, and way better quesadillas than Taco Bell.
Not sure what it is about this place that reminds me of Los Pollos Hermanos from Breaking Bad…

Wasn’t the crunchy chicken taco an original item at el pollo loco? Now it’s off the menu and the taquitos are gone too. The lady that rang us up was the most unwelcoming, most unresponsive person ever. Would it hurt to be a little friendly? Geez, guess my el pollo loco days are over.

Their chicken tortilla soup is delicious. It has big chunks of chicken in it along with vegetables and tortilla strips. The drive tru is always fast and the staff members are also very friendly. It’s also very clean. Try the green avocado salsa!

I just drove across town to get my fiancé and myself dinner because Unilocal says they are open until 11, but at 10:02 they were already closed. All of the lights were on inside so I tried the door but it was locked. There was an employee outside — I asked what time they closed and he said 10 and could care less about my plight.
Is Unilocal wrong or is El Pollo Loco wrong?

Why do I keep coming back here! This fast food chain has become so expensive and the quality is not the same as it once was. I go to pollo loco about once every four months because I love the flavor of the chicken. With that being said today I ordered a 2 piece dark meat combo with corn and mashed potatoes. My thigh had maybe 5 bites of chicken on it and small bites, the leg had more chicken than the thigh. What has happened to the wonderful salsa that they served when they first opened this chain? The salsa looks like mushy tomatoes and that’s it. Where are all the bits of jalapeño/​Serrano peppers and why are we given a container that holds just over a tablespoon of salsa. I give this two stars because of the flavor of the chicken but I am going to find the copy cat recipe or another one with the same flavors. Too expensive and the quality is not there anymore.

Always great food. Manager was very helpful on selection of food. Place was kept clean. Always good food.

Are you kidding me… Out of chicken on a Friday evening! There is a 15 to 20 for chicken as I have to back out of the drive thru! Ridiculous. I’m pretty sure chicken is what you serve and you run out? Come on!
Sad and frustrated.

I love this place for its quick drive thru service. Staff is always in a happy mood.

Food was «good.» I don’t mind a gas grilled chicken, although they are in the land of red oak.
The thing I didn’t care for was the music. The employees played it loud and for themselves, not the customers. It was that irritating ranchero music too. Some nice soft BACKGROUND music, even soft Spanish tunes is fine, but they cranked up the volume– and if they have that crap playing next time, I will turn around and leave.

I have seen their ads all over television (the ads that say «El Pollo Loco!» every five seconds) and always wondered what El Pollo Loco had to offer. Unfortunately, the nearest place was in Santa Barbara, so I was out of luck trying out this place… until now.
El Pollo Loco specializes in one thing… flame-​grilled chicken. And thankfully, they cook it just right, and it tastes better than KFC (grilled is definitely better than fried). And the salsa on the side complements the taste of the chicken. They also have guacamole and lemons on the side to suit your taste. However, I wasn’t too interested in the side dishes because it almost sounds all-​American (i.e. fries, mashed potatoes, coleslaw, etc.) and tortillas cost extra (I’d rather get those with my chicken, but it’s really stomach filler).
Thus, if you have a hankering for Mexican-​style chicken in Santa Maria, check out El Pollo Loco. As long as the chicken tastes good here, then getting side dishes will not really matter.