Chela’s Restaurant & Taqueria — Restaurant in Ann Arbor

Chelas has always been a family owned, and family friendly dining space. I've been a regular for years since they first opened up and I'm so proud of their growth as far as expansion of the new restaurant they added, as well as expanding their space outdoors in the back of the Maple Rd location -thats been an important upgrade to accommodate for social distancing experiences. The food has always been phenomenal, delicious, good quality for a good price. -i don't know that it can get any better. I highly recommend their barbacoa meat, whether it's a taco (that's what I always get) or something else. The seating is fit for larger parties, the food is cooked well and served in good timing, rather quick but you always know the food is made with love. The facility itself is always clean and the staff go above and beyond to ensure that, during this pandemic, the customers dining experience is as safe as possible. Staff always wears their masks, I see them using gloves as needed and hair tied back if necessary. There's a designated staff person(s) who handle bottle-opening for the bottled sodas and juices, distributing condiments and silverware, and making sure the right pick-up orders are distributed to the right people. If it's your first time dining there, the staff is so helpful with assisting with finding you the right food to order for you, sharing details about how the food is prepared, and what's within the budget you have. I highly recommend dining here and hope you enjoy as...

I read something about this place having the best tacos in Ann Arbor. I have only been in town about a year, but if this is the best in Ann Arbor that makes me sad. I gave Chela's three tries. The first was with a torta and tacos. The tacos were very bland (chicken and steak). The torta was the thinly sliced, breaded milanesa-style chicken type.The bread was dry and uncharacteristic of an authentic torta. Unfortunately it turns out this was the best thing on their menu. The second time I went it was gone. The next two times I tried different tacos, a tamale, and their burrito. Tamales are hard to screw up and were fine, but the tacos and burrito, again, were super bland. And their salsa is unremarkable. Besides, their food should be able to stand up on its own without dumping on extra flavor. I really want this place to be great. I've spent several months in Mexico, and living in various parts of the country where there have been amazing taquerias. When you walk into Chela's it looks like it should be the real deal. They even have the Mexican coke in a bottle. But the food. The food is so bland. Everything tastes like something store-bought. It's a bummer. The best taqueria I have found in this area is in Lansing, and it's actually a permanent food truck called El Oasis. And it's more affordable. If you want the real deal and full flavor try that, but Chela's does not come anywhere close. Especially not for the price. I won't return unless I hear they make some...

I was visiting Ann Arbor and was craving some tacos. I came across this place and thought I'd try it considering the good reviews.

Service wise this place was very good. We decided to do takeout as there was limited seating. The workers were friendly. Gave recommendations and were patient with our questions. I like that they offer complimentary salsas, so if you want a bit extra salsa cups you can take some.

Coming from Grand Rapids where there are plentiful options for authentic Mexican food, this place was average in terms of food quality at best. Black beans were just boiled, not refried, rice was average, we found a chicken bone in one of the chicken tamales, steak tacos had no outstanding flavor. We added guac + chips and they were good. Standout in my opinion were the salsas, absolutely enjoyed the spicy red sauce, adding the sauce to the taco and tamale made them better.

Although this place was lacking authentic Mexican flavors, I can't really knock them for it considering Ann Arbor in general is lacking in this space. Seeing as this is one of the few mexican options in Ann Arbor I will be back and try their other offerings, as I know I will receive great customer service...