El Pollo Supremo

I was in the mood for tacos on a Sunday and my regular taco spot was closed. Yes there were two open taco places between my apartment and el Pollo Supremo but they are for when I’m being lazy and want tacos, not when I want good tacos. So I put tacos into Unilocal and el Pollo Supremo was the closest place that came up that I hadn’t been to before. So I drive over, step inside, and get smacked with the realization that Unilocal lied to me. I had a choice to make, eat here or go find tacos. Tacos would have to wait another day.
In some ways I’m glad that Unilocal lied to me. I probably never would have even stopped in this plaza let alone this restaurant. The food was great for what it was.

This place is absolutely delicious and very authentic. It’s not the most beautiful place but the food is great and that’s what it’s all about. Prices are reasonable and portions are large. The chicken is her actions and a bit smokey. Don’t let the less than polished interior scare you away, and remember you can says get it to go.

Great authentic Mexican food in a hole in the wall space near ASU and downtown Tempe. Seems to be a mom and pop operation. Fresh ingredients and well seasoned grilled chicken and beef. Home made tortillas and delicious pinto beans. Cheap, yummy, and tastier than any fast food in the area. So happy to find this place. Short on atmosphere but delicious food.

This is as close as the chicken that you will get in Mexico this stuff is to die for you can’t even simulated at home with the El Pollo Loco seasoning salt. we go to Rocky Point Mexico and gotta stop and get the chicken in town right on the Main Street it’s killer.

This place is simple and delicious.
A true hole-​in-​the-​wall, El Pollo Supremo offers fresh, hot chicken and beef by the quarter-​lb. The food is cheap and you get a whole lot of it. You can even see the cooks in the back grilling mounds of tri-​tip and loads of chicken from the counter. The sides to pair with your meat and tortillas are plentiful and flavor, and the food here just tastes authentically mesquite.
I do really wish that I could use real utensils here, but unfortunately you only receive plastic. The fact that this place is cash-​only is unsurprising, as it seems that all these people really care about is making good food and lots of it. As you can imagine, this place’s atmosphere is a bit of an afterthought.
In spite of the negatives, I’ll definitely be returning. Anywhere this cheap and tasty is worth going back to.

It was very good! Had the Combo Plate– wish the beans were refried but still good.

Minimalistic food heaven. Beef and chicken are both very delicious.
The Good:
— Food is amazing.
— Portions are big.
— Reasonably priced.
The Bad:
— Plastic utensils. Can be very unpleasant at times.
— Cash only. So beware!
If you love mesquite grilled simple food El Pollo Supremo is as good as it gets for the price range.

Just one word.“Awesome”… They only take cash but let me tell you it’s worth the inconvenience. The chicken is just WoW and the carne asada is right behind it … Get some for the family to go or stop in and get your grub on Generous portions. I give it 7 stars if I could

This is a hidden gem in Tempe. Need lunch, go here now!
Imagine Pollo Loco was a small much more authentic family-​owned restaurant. That’s El Pollo Supremo, or as we call it «Red Chicken.» Yes the chicken is bright red! Not spicy in a hot way, but just extremely flavorful. You can smell their grill from a block away.
Menu is simple. Chicken or beef, OR both. Both are great. I usually roll with a 2 piece chicken meal (comes with beans, onions and salsa). I throw in a grilled jalapeño as well. That’s plenty of food for me and comes out to just over $ 5. Best bang for your buck in the area.

Love this secret hole in the wall, and I’ll definitely be going back in the future. To be clear though: it’s not the place to take your snobby, uptight, possssibly racist mother-​in-​law if you want her to think of you as a «proper young gentleman.» Bathrooms are narsty, cashier doesn’t speak English, and the menu looks like what you’d see at some concession stand at a beach. (I personally interpret this type of atmosphere as «exciting.»)
But the food is amazing! Super flavorful chicken grilled up before your eyes, surprisingly cheap too. If you’re adventurous, enjoy tasty food, and don’t want to break the bank, check El Pollo out.

The wife and I decided to try this place today. Here’s what you should know. If you have expectations for and extensive menu or only desire the same fare you can get at most other restaurants then don’t go here.
If your mind (and palette) are open to new experiences and just damn good food then come visit this place. It’s worth it.

Chicken and/​or beef. That’s it. I like their beef.
I am still in complete wonder as to why people complain about what an establishment does not have on their menu. Well why can’t every joint have sparkling, mineral, mountain-​top water in them? Because you can’t light one up if it is wet and I don’t smoke. Here is what El Pollo Supremo has and it’s pretty good:
I’ve ordered the combo plate the most often and it comes with a very generous amount of a ¼lb portion of sliced steak that has been char-​grilled. The beef has always been very tender, juicy, never overly seasoned. This almost gives this place a ⁵⁄₅ alone. The ¼ chicken is usually a leg and a thigh and is char-​grilled as well. Maybe I’m just unlucky but the chicken has been consistently on the dry side. A side of really wet beans that don’t seem to be cooked along with anything. A side of pickled onions adds good flavor to the beef and chicken. And a little puddle of pureed, somewhat-​flavorless tomatoes that’s really runny. It comes with 3 tasty tortillas that seem to be homemade; they’re all a bit uneven and sometimes parts are burned.
There’s no chips n guac (nor peas), no queso of any sort, rice (which is fluffy, light) is extra, and they take cash only. The booth seating is a little on the tight side and the whole place probably couldn’t hold more than 24 people but the tables are always clean. The ladies at the front counter are always very friendly. They can get really busy around lunchtime during the week.
The ½ beef has been the best value and it really knocks the socks off many restaurants’ steak fajitas.

Definitely a hole in the wall. Small menu (beef or chicken) No chips and guac, which is my fave for taco accompaniment.
Combo platter is huge. Mix of beef and chicken, side of tortilla, beans, salsa, onions. They gave a fork, but no knife. The beef came in bite sized pieces, but chicken was still on the bone. Made a mess.
Friendly staff, clean tables.

Love this place! Great chicken. Flavorful, tender and grilled over mesquite coals. ½ chicken dinner with some chilis asado on the side = lunch perfection.
Similar but significantly superior to the Loco chain option.

This spot is a favorite amongst valley poker players, as the owner Jose happens to be a fellow enthusiast.
I finally got to try it out on the recommendation of other regulars at the card table and I can tell you without a doubt this deceptively small and unassuming diner has the best chicken you’re likely to eat in all the East Valley. Give them a try, I’ve heard comparisons to El Pollo Loco, and that is frankly an insult to this, the true mom n’ pop chicken diner.
Inexpensive, well plated, well priced and you won’t leave hungry. These guys are well worth a visit!

Decent but not any better than El Apollo Loco and the owner lady was very rude and messed up our order.
This place is also a health hazard. Take a look around on the doors and bathrooms. So gross!

3.5 Stars
I started doing low carb again this week. When I lived in San Diego, the only thing that kept me on my low carb diet were some Mexican style grilled chicken places (El Pollo Grill, Pollo Don Pepe, El Pollo Loco etc). Whenever I wanted to go out to eat, I would hit these places up and enjoy a carb free meal for the most part. I had El Pollo Supremo bookmarked for awhile now and decided that today would be the day I tried them out. It’s a bit of a trek from Surprise, but would it be worth it? You shall soon find out!
I drove down University and pulled into the parking lot. It was pretty full but I did find a spot to park. I walked in and scoped out the menu for a bit. I decided to go with the 4 piece chicken meal. My total was just under $ 8.00. While I was at the register, you have an open view back into the kitchen where they are grilling the chicken. I could see tons and tons of red yardbirds just patiently waiting to be finished. I was pretty excited to try it out. I took a seat (seating is limited… maybe five 4 person booths and then two 2 person tables) at a small table. a little bit tight for a large man like myself, but I was ok. You order and pay at the counter and then one of the ladies brings out your plate. I was sitting there for about 7 or 8 minutes and a lady came out and asked me what I had ordered. I told her the 4 piece chicken meal and she went to the back. A minute or so later, she brought out my plate. It looked fantastic. Here is how it tasted…
4 Piece Chicken Meal– This plate of food came out and it smelled and looked great. It had a split breast, a wing, a leg and a thigh as well as some beans, salsa, pickled onions and a tin foil wrapped package of tortillas (I tried half a tortilla for quality control even though I probably shouldn’t have for my low carb sake… anyways…the tortillas are excellent!). The first thing I noticed was that the chicken pieces were pretty small :-(. Not cornish gamehen small, but still pretty small compared to other places I have been. I took a bite of the breast first. It was delicious! The skin was nice and crispy, the meat was piping hot and the perfect consistency between juicy and dry. The taste was awesome but it didn’t even really fill me up because the pieces were so small! The breast was the best piece. The leg was like 2 bites, same with the wing. The thigh barely had any meat on it. I could have easily eaten a whole chicken. Salsa was tasty… a little watery but still good. Onions were great! Beans. didn’t touch.
Overall, I was glad I came. Service was friendly and it seems like they do a bustling business. The chicken does taste awesome! The portion was pretty skimp though and I’m not sure I am driving 45 minutes from Surprise to come here often. With that said, if I am in Tempe and need a place to eat, I would definitely come back and maybe even check out their carne asada, too!

I’m tellin’ ya, if the Internet and Unilocal existed in the 80’s, they would have retired me as The Duke, ’cause I was here at least 3 days a week when I went to ASU. 20+ years later, they haven’t changed the recipes: tortillas are tasty and served hot, chicken is juicy and tasty and comes right off the grill, beans/​onions are yummy sides, and the salsa is my favorite of all time/​anywhere! I repeat, best salsa EVER!
Cheers!
RS

A good place to go! I have found they have good food and good service.
Grilled chicken or beef — that’s it! Plates come with beans, salsa and tasty tortillas! Rice is available for an extra charge.
I would recommend that you give this place a try because I think you will enjoy it.
When you go in — tell them that Chris from Unilocal recommended you go there. They will have no idea who the hell I am but it might provide some interesting entertainment and a good laugh or two!
Enjoy!

This is one of my favorite Mom and Pop hole in the wall places in Tempe. Some friends told me about this joint and so I decided to come by and see what was smoking. Nice!
Very simple inside with some booths to sit at and a counter to order your food. Their menu offers Mesquite Grilled Chicken and some delicious Carne Asada Beef. They also have several yummy sides that you can order as well.
There are no fancy this or that items here like some other restaurants. Just very tasty food that is cooked with tender love and care. You can see it in the customer’s faces as they arrive for a repeat visit.
Usually order the Combo Plate with a side of Beans and several Jalapenos to get my juices flowing. They make the Salsa in house and it combines nicely with the warm tortillas and the beef and chicken. Saw several people buying whole and half chickens and getting them to go.
Place can get pretty busy during peak lunch time hours and it is very close to the ASU campus. You may even see some short shorts during your visit. Or what they called hot pants now? GO SUN DEVILS!
4 STARS