El Chivo Birrieria & Taqueria — Restaurant in Crest Hill

Don't judge a book by its cover. I moved into this area to the subdivision right behind this place last year and never really thought to try it because the outside of the building doesn't look very new or appealing. But me and the wife went there for dinner last night for the first time and I was totally surprised by how great of an experience it was. The inside of the place is very nice and clean. The service was top notch. Super friendly staff! The food was delicious too!! The steak was a good quality. A lot of Mexican places you will have a bunch of fat and whatever in your steak pieces that you have to spit out. But this steak was all delicious and everything we had was delicious.

I don't write reviews often but I wanted to for here because I've paced this place every day on my way home since we moved here and never thought to try it because the outside appearance didn't look fresh or appealing. But we were trying to figure out where to eat and after reading every one's positive reviews decided to try it and I'm glad we did.

To the owners if you read this. You have a very nice inside for the restaurant and your food and service is amazing. I think a fresh paint job on the outside and a new sign would go a long ways for bringing in more business. I hope to see you guys around for a long time and am glad we found our new favorite Mexican food place so...

My dad took us out for breakfast despite us being 3 hours late ⏰ I’m sorry Pa I love you ❤️ ☺️ It was Gerald and I first experience at El Chivo Birrieria & Taqueria at the Cresthill Illinois location.

We were able to easily find a table and the waitress was very friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful making sure we always had what we needed during our stay.

I ordered a large refreshing not so sugary horchata as my beverage. My meal was scrumptious Caldo con Camarón 🍤 with a side of onion 🧅 jalapeños y cilantro 🌿 y lime 🍋‍🟩 with 2 peppers 🌶️ con tostadas. Delicious! 🤤 I really appreciate the fact that the shrimp 🍤 was deveined. Brought me back to helping Gaby with her babies birthday 🎉 party. 🎈 Good times 🥰 I notice the details in the work the chefs create.

Pa enjoyed his Birria tacos 🌮 with his Victoria and Ma had her chile relleno with her coffee. Gerald had Juevos Rancheros 🍳 drenched in their salsa was devine.

Overall the experience was fast homey supporting a local restaurant business who also do catering. While we were waiting for our food, we noticed they were still busy with their take out and pick up orders. The food was good 👍 and highly recommend it if your looking for a quiet spot to enjoy a good Mexican meal. This is a great spot. You can always have the option to ask to raise their spice level on their...

FOOD AND SERVICE IS TERRIBLE.

NOPE, friends stay away. I don't know how in the world this place has 4.4 stars but it is a LIE. We ordered a tables worth of food and no one could finish anything because the texture was wrong, there was no salt or it just tasted bland. Th nachos was all store bought items put together on a plate. Nothing was made there. Tortillas are purchased not hand made. Tacos terrible, we had tripe, carne asada, chicken and chorizo tacos. All had no flavor. Our friend had a burrito that was majority lettuce, no meat. Another friend had the quesadilla and he said the cheese was mozzarella not Mexican cheese. Nothing had salt and the salsas were sour.

The bill was 94.00. WHAT??? They wouldn't itemize either so we could see exactly what they were charging.

Stay away friends, you can find much better Mexican Eats in the Chicagoland area than this place. Btw, the service is horrendous, the waitress must be cooking the food because everytime we asked for something she was deeply offended and became visibly angry and would ask us loudly, why? Is everything ok? I'm sorry, I hate leaving bad reviews but this establishment...