Eclectic Cafe

I got the chimichangas with carne asada and the meat was like a rubber texture … My rice and beans weren’t even hot def not made to order thought this place would be good but it wasn’t I don’t recommend

I found a big black hair in my food, which led me to find a big fat chunk of lint/​hair on my bacon. I understand. It happens. Food was fine. Here’s the problem: The manager came back out, annoyed, and said, «There was no way to prevent that. It was lint. If it came from the kitchen, it would have been cooked on the bacon. It could have come from your clothes. But I’ll take it off the bill.» A. It WAS cooked in the bacon. Grease-​soaked chunk of hair/​lint. Not even my hair color. B. That is NOT the way to talk to a customer or handle that situation. You say, «I am so sorry about that. Would you like something else?» I felt like he was accusing me of placing that on my food to get a free meal. Sorry you’ve been burned by the scums of society to make you this way, sir, but I would have happily paid for my food if it didn’t come with a side of dirty hair and lint.
My family had a fine meal. Out of principle, though, we won’t return. Learn how to treat the people paying for you to remain in business.

I do not come here often, but when I do, I always enjoy it. Usually go for their quiche specials and salad. Today just their quiche Lorraine. Oh. Good. Fresh. Hot. They offer a large menu. Many items to choose from. Salads, sandwiches, crepes, Mexican, breakfast options. Etc. I had the prickly pear ice tea. So yes… a variety of drinks… Service was friendly and considerate. Usually you kind find coupons in some of the junk mail you get. Get them!

When we walked in I thought… oops! I was so wrong. The food was terrific! The flavor was off the chart delicious! Fresh ingredients all the way and food came to the table hot and ready. Don’t let the «old diner» look fool u — this place is a must!

A retro-​charming restaurant with yummy food and a menu full of interesting choices. Anyone would be able to find something to delight them from interesting salads, to sandwiches, to burgers, to Mexican food. The grilled vegetables with chicken and Parmesan was amazing. Our waiter Ben, was adorable. A full menu of hand crafted beers was a bonus.

Great value, decent service, good location. Things are made fresh and I have never had a non-​firstworld complaint.
My favorite thing: they do a killer breakfast on weekends for like two hours… It’s maybe $ 4 for eggs, potatoes, and toast.
I’d give them four stars if they felt less like a diner, and if they focused a bit more on presentation… however, that would probably mean they’d increase prices. ;)

Just discovered this place today. It was packed at lunchtime on a Wednesday so I knew they must be doing something right! I ordered the prickly pear iced tea & the grilled eggplant, hummus & bacon salad w poppyseed dressing. The salad arrived quickly w a fresh baked crusty roll. Unusual salad to say the least & the bread was wonderful. Loved the tea also. I would highly recommend this restaurant.

This is hands down one of my favorite places to eat in Tucson. Anything on their breakfast menu is phenomenal! The chilaques (sort of like an enchilada casserole) is my favorite. I also love the sunrise sandwich.
For lunch or dinner I always get the chicken burrito. It is so good and in my opinion better than many authentic Mexican restaurants.
Service is always pretty good, but honestly I will always go back because I love the food.

This is a go to place for any veggie! Or non veg really! I love this spot! The patio is dog friendly.
The food, oh the food! So much food, so much deliciousness it’s ridiculous! Everything is very fresh! I’ve never had something I didn’t like here. It’s not over cooked or over seasoned, or greasy which you find at a lot of places.
The staff is friendly, normally they are pretty good even the it constantly being so busy. Last time I was there, I had a few gripes about the very forgetful waitress. But I will still go back. I’ve been going here for years, it’s a go to place when I’m on that side of town.

Eclectic is the quintessential neighborhood café, the staff is always helpful, welcoming and outgoing. Many of the customers have been coming for years and it has the feel of a friendly gathering place.
My wife loves the salads while I keep coming back for the Mexican themed dishes. On my last visit I had an area signature street food dish, the Sonoran Hotdog, which was excellent.

Took the girlfriend here for a date night. The place is clean and busy and the staff is very friendly, but we left a bit disappointed.
We had the nachos to start, which are basically just chips with beans and cheese melted on top, and a few diced green chile pieces. Decent, but not great and not something you can’t make in a couple minutes at home in the microwave.
The meals were just OK– girlfriend had the tortilla soup, which looked kinda like a mess of tortilla chips sitting in broth. I guess that’s basically what it is. Though the avocado pieces were good, the broth didn’t really taste like anything.
I had one of their specials– a pasta with chorizo and a spicy sauce. The sauce itself was good, but the meal was just not pleasant to eat– the cheese was something grated and hard, which isn’t for me but that’s just a personal taste thing. What really bothered me was that the chicken slices were tough, like they had either been overcooked or previously frozen. There were also peppers and various other things in there, but didn’t really add to a coherent flavor and seemed a bit raw and crunchy, kinda like eating a salad.
It does seem to cater specifically to an older crowd of regulars who sit down to complain about obamacare, which didn’t bother us too much but would get old really quick. I get the feeling that the establishment is successful more for its network of regulars than the food itself.
We may be back to give it another try– a lot of things on the menu sound good, but we weren’t impressed with the things we did order.

It is hard for me to eat out because I have so many dietary restrictions, but there were so many options here. I got the grilled vegetables with pasta, chicken, and Parmesan. It was so delicious, and healthy too! They did not skimp on the vegetables at all, there were so many, and there was a lot of chicken too. The chicken had a good flavor-​usually I am very picky about how chicken tastes, but theirs was so yummy! I would definitely go here again and recommend it to anyone. It’s a plus that it’s local.

This is one of my top five favorite restaurants in Tucson. I always have a good experience here.
I first started coming to Eclectic around five years ago when they we’re running some sort of two salads and two iced teas for $ 20 summer specials. That’s how I got hooked. The iced tea is my favorite in Tucson (not counting «tea shops»). I usually get the mago, but they also have plain black, prickly pear, and decaf apricot. They’re really good about keeping my glass full. I really appreciate that!
This is my go to spot when I want a salad. There’s over a dozen to choose from including several that are offered as half sized portions. My current favorites are the mango curry chicken salad (that’s chicken on a green salad, not chicken salad) and the spinach artichoke salad.
The menu also has quiche, sandwiches, Mexican, and breakfast on the weekends. They often experiment with new limited time items over the summer and I recommend you try them while they’re available. Last summer there was a pesto burrito that was great and this summer I’m enjoying their take on a Sonoran hot dog.
The services is friendly and efficient. The one time I ordered something a didn’t like (some breakfast item was too oniony for me, can’t remember which) and they offered to take it off my bill and bring me something new when they noticed I wasn’t eating it. I didn’t even have to ask!
For me they are a bit out of the way on the Eastside (I live NW), but totally worth it.

Been going to Eclectic for nearly 20 years. Consistently good food — friendly and qujck service
Thanks Mark Haddad Smith

We stopped by Eclectic for lunch and were very impressed with everything; the spotless patio, the warm greeting, excellent service from the bus person, and the terrific food. Best tortilla soup I’ve had in Tucson.
The menu is huge with many choices available for those who are following a restricted diet of any type. Our server went outside to chat with a friend on the patio so another server brought our check. The bus person hurried to get the door for us and say goodbye — so impressive!

We’re just passing through, but this place is worth putting in my Unilocal cue for future reference.
The mango chutney chicken salad was delicious.
I loved all the gluten free options and fresh food.
Somehow my baby did well, too, which speaks for the gentle, friendly ambiance.

I love this place. I was surprised it had 3.5 stars. When I fly out to California I always make it a point to come here. ALWAYS.
–tortilla soup is a must and amazing! 10 stars
–Marc’s chicken chorizo pasta. 10 stars
I would try other stuff but I just love it too much.
Other things over tried
–McGina Mac n cheese 4 stars

Ultimate Veggie Burrito and the Veggie Burger FTW!!!
Not if these are gems! The burger is surprisingly delicious, I wouldn’t say meaty, but delicious, much better than any other veggie burger I’ve tried. The burrito is just die hard filling and scrumptious.
The staff is awesome, it’s always clean and the for sale art has even improved.
I always bring out of town guests here, especially for breaky!

Went to EC for dinner a couple weeks ago. I had an enchilada salad and my gf had a Carne Asada chimichanga.
The menu here was huge and there were many options. I didn’t like my salad, it was under dressed and kinda tasted like one big bland mess. I wasn’t very hungry so maybe that had something to with it. The strange thing was that when the server came back to see I hadn’t eaten but two bites of my enormous salad, and didn’t want to take it home… he didn’t seem concerned why someone would order an 11 dollar salad and only have a couple bites.
The reason I still gave this place 3 stars is that the chimichanga was absolutely phenomenal!!! I mean it was one of the best either of us had ever tasted. We took half of it home, reheated it in the oven a couple days later and it was still better than most chimis in any other restaurant!!!
One other problem w EC is that it’s located right next door to Rene’s Organic Oven. If I’m goin all the way out to east Tanque Verde… I’m gonna hit Renees every time. But we will definitely be back to Eclectic for another Chimichanga !
Upon revisiting this establishment, I must report that my change in order form a salad to their turkey melt made all the difference in the world! My gf had the shredded beef chimi again and it was just as delicious as the first time she ordered it. My turkey sandwich was nice and juicy with a good amount of REAL turkey on it. I also tried the tortilla soup which was pretty darn good too. We will return !

Despite living on the East side for nearly 20 years, this was only perhaps my fourth visit to Eclectic Café. It’s a cozy little restaurant tucked into an aging strip mall on one of the busiest intersections in town. The inside is painted in warm colors and features beautiful paintings which appeared to be by local artists.
The menu is extensive and has many, many dishes that would be good choices. I quickly chose the Francisco’s Enchilada Salad, as I have never had anything called an enchilada salad before. It arrived almost immediately — less than five minutes after I ordered it. This would usually be a good thing during my lunch hour, but it did not bode well for the quality of the food.
The salad was large, fresh, and beautiful, with bright green slices of avocado, crumbles of queso fresco, chicken soaked in red guajillo sauce, tiny halved jalapeños, and topped with crisp tortilla strips. The salad was accompanied by a jar of red salsa that was just piquant enough, without overwhelming the flavor of the dish. Underneath the salad, I found a pair of corn tortillas soaked in the delicious guajillo sauce.
The only real fault with the dish was the chicken, which was slightly dry and slightly tough. When the plate arrived so quickly, my first thought was «How did they have time to grill the chicken?» They didn’t; it was pre-​cooked. And for this, it suffered. Some of the tomatoes were also under-​ripe and had hard, flavorless white centers. Every other aspect of the salad was perfect.
Eclectic Café’s menu is huge and many of their items are unique, at least in my experience. The fast service got me back to work with 20 minutes to spare in my lunch hour and while this would usually be a benefit, I would have waited that extra 20 minutes if it had meant better chicken. Still, I would be happy to return to Eclectic and sample more of their local delights.