El Gallo Bravo — Restaurant in Lake View Township

IF YOU ARE WILLING TO GO HERE INSTEAD OF ANYWHERE ELSE, NO MATTER WHAT ‘CHECK YOUR FOOD!’ Had to come back 3 times in a 24 period all over one meal. Firstly, they delivered only a third of the food ordered. literally one small bag for what was $45 of food. Took no accountability and claimed ‘the delivery guy ran out.’ (Then call them back and get it right..?) Had to go back out, at 1am mind you, to pick up ok the rest of my ice cold food. Finally get home with what we hoped was all the food made right, was wrong and still incorrect. Literally everything had sour cream when we specifically said not to and the wrong meats in the tacos. Also, missing a side of beans and rice. By the time we figured these flaws out, they were closed. So we came back the next day, hoping for some sympathy or accountability. Nope. Refused to replace anything except the burrito with sour cream (member in our party can’t eat). So I made sure to stand there and watch him make it, so at the very least get that one item right. Nope! Watched him throw stuff on we didn’t ask for, and then wrap it without the onions and cilantro that we did ask for. Finally, we walk out with the ‘correct’ food, the next day, mind you, with the rest of the meat up food they wouldn’t fix still sitting in my fridge. (Wasn’t going to eat in front of the person who couldn’t last night) AND THE FOOD WAS TERRIBLE. Steak like fatty rubber, soggy everything. Right now, we are leaving to Wendy’s. Yes... the fast food joint... and they were far more respectful than El Gallo Horrible, and dropped their jaw when I told them this story. If I could put zero stars, no negative stars, I would. This is maybe the 2nd or 3rd time I’ve ever written a review in my life. I have been to a good 80+ Mexican restaurants and 200+ Latin American restaurants across the county, this has to be top 10 worst. Oh, and the restaurant was disgusting and nobody had masks on properly so should probably report that as well. Good luck anyone who decides...

(This is NOT a paid review!)

Tldr; the tacos here taste EXACTLY like food truck tacos I had at the taco festival in Pilsen.

The food: This is the ultimate post-smoke stop. The tacos are reasonably priced, and the amount of actual beef in my carne asada tacos is waaaay more than when I have to pay $4-$5 downtown for an equivalent experience. The beans are tasty. Are these the best tacos on Earth? No. Will you like your order? Post-Smoke, 1000%. Pre-Smoke: yes, but not 1000%. Edit: The horchata is not my favorite. It reminds me a little of potpourri, but the taste version.

The staff: the woman who took my order was polite, kind, and in my opinion, exceptionally friendly. I have social anxiety and didn't feel the sense of impending doom at all in this place.

The atmosphere: I read the reviews for 5-10 minutes before getting out of the car and walking in. Photos were posted of the bathroom, so I took more, because it was really clean. The sink was literally cleaner than any home I've been a guest in, ever. It's an older building, and we are ALL on a budget, so everything isn't the newest-shiniest, but who cares.

Summary: my total was less than $20 for a side of refried beans, medium horchata, 3 carne asada tacos, limes, and verde salsa.

I hope this helps your decision! I'm sending well wishes and...

I usually have a wonderful experience here. They always satisfy my latenight needs for a burrito or taco dinner but in my latest trip, i did not have such a pleasant experience. My mother and i went at about 11pm and we ordered a burrito dinner and a tostada dinner. My rice was dry and hard, resembled rice scraped from the bottom of a pan. The refried beans tasted old and as if they were left out to dry into a semi solid mass. My burrito was delicious as always. The tostada dinner on the other hand made my mother extremely sick. She got food poisoning and was sick for the next 4 days. She was only able to eat 1 before she started feeling sick. We're regulars so we've already grown accustomed to the food and the bubbly tummy afterwards but this was much different. We went to the ER and she was told she had food poisoning most likely from undercooked meat. Usually i would defend this place and say it had to be something else but given the quality of my meal (or a lack there of) i didnt put it past them. We will unfortunately not be returning back to this place. The experience has kinda scarred my mom. I do not recommend going in late at night. (Maybe they are more careless in the...