Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican — Restaurant in Lake Forest

Awesome authentic healthy delicious en every bite with great service.

The restaurant provides a clean and organized environment, offering a refreshing air-conditioned atmosphere perfect for hot summer days.

Our experience was truly exceptional, thanks to the warm and hospitable manager named Yebra, who ensured that the staff took excellent care of us. We had previously visited this Rio establishment, and while the service was merely satisfactory on those occasions, today was truly special.

The burritos were meticulously prepared, featuring deliciously grilled steak, flavorful barbacoa, tender shredded chicken, and succulent shredded pork. The nachos were generously piled high with chips, protein, rice, beans, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole, providing a satisfyingly hearty meal.

The ordering process involved three simple steps: selecting a freshly made homemade tortilla, choosing a protein marinated in delightful juices, and then adding rice, beans, salsas, lettuce, fresh guacamole, sour cream, and pico de gallo.

Drinks are abundant and lot's of healthy choices.

By the end of the meal, the entire party was thoroughly satisfied with their dining experience. It was evident that we would definitely be returning to this restaurant in the future, eager to enjoy another...

I love authentic Mexican food. I had a bbq pork burrito at the new Costa Mesa Cafe Rio to go today. It was mostly beans and rice very small portion of protein. I'm on a strict diet and need to proportion my protein and carbs so I pay more attention to this than most. At home I weighed the pork 2.75 oz the rice 7.75 oz and the beans 7.65 oz. A typical portion of protein at a place like chipotle is 6.5 oz. the pork was hardly authentic, too sweet and bland. They offered to put Jack Cheese on it Huh? No "Queso Quesadilla", "Asadero", "Queso de Papa", "Oaxaca", or "Queso Para Derritier" that would be authentic. Overall I would give it 1 star for the tortillas. The restaurant was really noisy, one person after the other behind the counter was yelling pretty much the same questions at me and I had trouble understanding them. I was asked if I wanted a drink four times. $9.33 for under 3 oz of protein and some water is just a silly waste of money. I looked at the website, they claim to be the #1 Mexican Restaurant in the USA. They claim to have recipes inspired by traditional cooking found in the Rio Grande region of Northern Mexico, Southern Texas and New Mexico. Not based on my experience and I...

Waited 35 minutes in line to eat on site. What is the issue you ask? It should not take that long with three people on the line making food for the six people in front of me. The line was constantly interrupted to do online orders and then the 3 of the six people in front of me can't seem to get it together when walking through and placing their orders while in the line. They had their other family members to order for who were sitting. The biggest inhibitor seemed to be the constant interruptions by online orders. I say run another line for online orders only so you do not interrupt the flow. Standing in line 35 minutes for a burrito is unacceptable. The place was freezing, the door was left open while it was 55 degrees outside. The thermostat was set at 68 degrees, but kept blowing cold air. At 8PM the juice bar (Mint Lemonade, Mango Lemonade) was emptied by staff and the place did not close until 10PM. What is the deal with that? The music is so loud. Why are they playing indie music anyway? It's a Mexican restaurant for goodness sake. The food was great, but really getting it was so...