El Pollo Loco

Worst fast food restaurant I have ever been to in my life! Out of the tacos I ordered only one had and cilantro, I asked for hot sauce and got some nasty Green stuff! NOT happy about the experience! We’ll be advising anyone I know to avoid this store at all costs! Maybe there needs to be a retraining for management and staff! Customer Service shod always be s top priority. I wish there was a way to give ZERO stars instead of the 1.

This is a good location, particularly if you go inside rather than order through the drive-​through. I used to only go through the drive-​through and would periodically have my order missing salsas or churros. If you go inside, they are patient, friendly, and open all the containers to make sure your order is correct before you leave. You can also pick out as many salsas as you want from their salsa bar. I have also personally witnessed the manager sending my order back to the line when there wasn’t enough chicken in the box, which tells me the manager is really dedicated to doing a good job. Their chicken is always delicious, and I have not been disappointed with the quality of the food. I’ll definitely be back!

Because I have an exponentially longer lunch than usual, I thought I would review my lunch choice for today. I’ve finally discovered what’s wrong with El Pollo Loco. First, to preface, I’m not a fan of leftover meat. It develops that «not as fresh as can be» quality that is all too prevalent when something is cooked, cooled, stored in a stinky fridge, and then reheated. This is EXACTLY what the chicken in every single burrito I’ve gotten from EPL has tasted like. It does not, in anyway, taste like their delicious rotisserie chicken one gets when they order it separately, as a part of their chicken meals.
Why you gotta play me like that, El Pollo Loco? You KNOW I don’t care for gristle and brown chicken! Your menu items LOOK delicious, and then sure enough, you serve me mystery meat in your burritos. Why? Why serve the worst parts of the meat in your other menu items? I’m gonna go ahead and guess it’s because it saves you money or time. In the long run, it’s going to cost you. No one likes the funky chicken. Not no one. 90% of your menu would be better received if you used quality chicken, instead of the crap people usually leave on their plates. I’m talking to you, Crazy Chicken. Yeah, you. YOU.
If I go to El Pollo Loco again I’ll stick to their «regular» chicken. It’s the only way *wistfully waving ‘goodbye’ to their delicious-​looking menu*…

Health code issue! While waiting for our food, one of the employees had a bucket of bleach water up on the counter top, and was wiping down the surfaces near the hot food. Sounds like a good thing right? Yes, bleach is a great way to kill germs, and keep things clean however, she wasn’t being careful, and I saw her carelessly dunk the bleach-​soaked rag into the food several times while wiping the counter. It went right into the rice multiple times.
When I brought it to the attention of the manager who was running the cash register, she said «so do you want us to give you different rice then, or?» Um, hello! Not only would we like to have rice free from bleachy wash rags, we’d also prefer the manager didn’t ask the customer to decide the most logical course of action when food is being contaminated in their restaraunt. I mean if I need to put on an apron, and come behind the counter to make these decisions, I’m no longer the customer am I?
So then it gets wierd. She goes in the back to tell someone something, then they come remove the rice and take it in the back, replacing it with other rice. THEN right when they get ready to dish ours up, the cleaning lady calls the person over to the back, and uses the rice that was moved to the back, not the new rice they brought out? I was so confused.
We decided to eat here because of an awesome coupon we got in the mail for like $ 10.00 that offered a ton of food! As it turned out, the rice didn’t smell like bleach or anything, and the chicken was good like it normally is.
But no, just no.

Well the food is good however it is not very sanitary. The man who took my money also retrieved the food from the cook and handed it to me, then emptied the trash container, swept the floor and came buy with a tray of condiments never wearing gloves for any of these tasks.

I love El Pollo Loco’s house salsas and toppings. For the most part, this establishment has quick service and the food is pretty consistently okay. I would probably give this location four stars if their staff was friendlier and more knowledgeable. Without fail, each time I visit this location, the cashier has troubles completing the transaction because they don’t know how to use a register feature.
Tip: make sure you order the chicken «extra juicy» because if you don’t clarify you will be served the chicken that has been on the grill for far too long.

It seems the regional/​corporate office finally hired a manager that knows something about customer service. The food is better, and the people manning the counter are no longer snippy and uncaring. We have not had problems with them taking their own coupons lately, either (this was a major problem before). I still suspect they «recycle» leftover chopped jalapenos into the other salsas rather than throwing them away at times — but overall, this restaurant has improved quite a bit since my last review.

I’m not sure why this place has so few stars. I’ve been coming to this location for 12+ years and I’ve never had a bad experience – it’s always fresh and quick. Their house salsas are great and their chicken tacos are just about perfect. My usual is a BRC with side of slaw. It’s the perfect combination of flavors and textures. Makes me wanna hop in my ride to make a quick run… Because I needs to get some crazy chicken!

I was kind of bummed out by this location. I really like the virginia location better food wise. Their chicken tasted really charred and everything was pretty bland, so I had to cover everything in salsas. Their customer service and atmosphere at this location though is great. It’s a bit more updated than virginia which is cool even though it was pretty difficult to maneuver a stroller in there and it wasn’t even crowded. I don’t know, ill probably just make the extra effort to go the virginia one instead.

I got the chicken enchilada it was good but cold. Not really much else to say about the place. Just another chain.

Clean, good service, good fresh food served quickly.
I have been to both this location and the location on S. Virginia in Reno on multiple locations and this store is cleaner, the food is fresher and always hot when I get it and they never screw up my order. I have been trying to go to this location on my lunch break whenever possible even though I work much closer to the facility in Reno. I have to assume the bad reviews represent a genuine experience, however they sound like the experiences I have when I go to the S. Virginia St. location, so for me, this is where it’s at. They have always been courteous and polite and I always get what I asked for and am never rushed in the drive through like the one in Reno. I will choose this location over Reno any day of the week!

forget this location, they all of a sudden wont take coupons that el pollo loco puts out, they dont care and the service sucks, you get spoons to eat a salad with, and when you ask for certain salsas they dont put them in the bag, after living in this area for 16 years they just lost a customer along with anyone I know
the salsa bar is always a mess, not all of the patrons are spanish, so they need to have more english speaking people, they arent cheap, so if your gonna charge people in a costly manner then have the service and professioanlism to go with it

The Crazy Chicken is crazy good, and the prices are too. As far as fast food goes, this is probably the healthiest way to go… as far as Mexican Food goes, it’s adequate, but it is no substitute for a REAL restaurant.

They ruined their amazing tacos. The shell is great, but the insides are all screwed up. The meat is mixed with like beans and soy or something into this gruel and it really has a bad impact on the flavor and overall composition. Just skip them now.
Their sirloin is as well marinated as their meat, but thanks a lot for ruining a truly unique find by screwing up the recipe of the crispy chicken tacos.

I have always loved El Pollo Loco but today we went and bought some and we were missing the tortillas… Of course we were home already by the time I checked and I was not planning on driving there again. I called and the lady said that it doesn’t come with tortillas anymore. WTF…come on people… how much does a tortilla cost… You can’t eat it without tortillas…

I’m not a picky person when it comes to having a spotless restaurant, or great service when it’s a low-​rent type place. I’ve eaten at plenty of hole in the wall restaurants with grumpy service where the quality of the food made it a decent experience overall. But when you’re a huge fast food chain like El Pollo Loco, you’re expected to have a certain standard of cleanliness and professionalism. EPIC FAIL in those areas, at least at this location.
Looking at the menu, they took out a few of the items I used to like, most importantly the chicken Caesar burrito. Also, I understand grilled chicken is the specialty here – there must have been 40 carcasses smoking on the grill when I walked in – but they could benefit from a little more variety… seems like 75% of the entrees use that ingredient. Asking the cashier if they had a steak burrito, she turned around to look at the same menu I was reading, «uuuhhhh…we have steak tacos… we have a steak bowl.» Since they have at least three kinds of chicken burritos, why not one measly steak burrito? Oh well. I ordered two of the steak tacos that come with guacamole, pico de gallo, onions, cilantro and cheese, and decided to try the twice grilled chicken burrito. I ask her what the combo comes with. «Just a drink.» Really? Not much of a combo. «Can I get a large drink instead of a small?» «Yes…oh I’m sorry! It also comes with a side!» With the employee being totally unfamiliar with the menu, I felt pretty much on my own as far as making a decision here. After much struggle and stammered apologies, and being asked to repeat myself at least three times, we managed to finalize the order.
Then she hands me the credit card receipt to sign. No pen. «I guess I should get you a pen…» she rummages underneath the register, then turns to the employee behind her: «I need a pen!» in this desperate voice. The employee gives her a stupid clueless look and does a big shrug. Somebody finally produces a pen from the back, along with a small amount of blood from a stone, and the new Michael Jackson album.
The shrugger plunks a medium cup in front of me on the counter. «Sorry, but I ordered a large.» The cashier produces a large cup covered with filthy black marks and dirt. «Uhmm, this cup is really dirty.» «Sorry!» she takes the dirty cup away and gives me a clean one. Hoo boy.
I always like places that have a salsa bar. I fill up a couple cups with spicy avocado salsa and the VERY spicy salsa roja. Looks like the bar is in need of a wipe down, but at least there’s spilled salsa and not DIRT. I get my order in about five minutes.
Everything tasted pretty good, the burrito had the same toppings as the tacos, so the end product was OK. The side of BBQ black beans wasn’t whole beans as pictured, but partially mashed and blended beans, with a surprisingly spicy BBQ flavor. Again, pretty good but nothing spectacular. Without the salsa it would have been lacking. I just couldn’t help thinking about that dirty cup– I should have gotten a tetanus shot before eating.
I really should have given one star – I’m giving credit because the food wasn’t bad, and it’s sitting OK, so far, so good (it’s been an hour). What I think is strange – this restaurant is always full of Latinos. Is this really authentic Mexican food? For the same price, or even less, you could go across the street to Lupita’s, and have a real variety of Mexican food to choose from, with good service, and clean cups.

El Pollo Loco has got to be one of the healthier fast food places. Grilled chicken and not a lot of goop put on the food. The chicken seems fresh. And you can pick healthy side dishes. Like with my most recent meal there I got corn on the cob and salad. That’s got to be healthier than biggie French fries.
There’s always room for improvement, I guess. I don’t like the beans they offer as a side dish. Too bland. And the salsa bar is better than bottled but not as good as a really good Mexican restaurant.
I suspect my doctors would be happier if I ate at El Pollo Loco instead of some of the burger fast food places.
Update:
They’ve started offering beef dishes and I’ve yet to find one I really like.