Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican — Restaurant in Mesa

I have gone to this location for a long while and had both good and bad experiences. Most of the bad experiences always happen within the last hour they are opened (9-920pm typically). I went once and they didn't have pico, didn't tell me until they had already made my entire salad. I ended up going to Fry's next door to buy some pico. About a week or two ago, I went and the whole staff were cleaning. It was 920pm and the individual who was on the line went from cleaning and moving a cleaning bucket to handling food without changing her gloves. Then I asked for a salad. She looked around for the tortillas and they only had 1 that was crumbled up. She went over to the individual who makes them and even opened up the container for the tortilla dough. She came back and said they didn't have any tortillas and the one that was crumbled up wasn't good and I didn't want that one. As she said that, she was crushing that tortilla in her hand, so even if I was okay with it, it was no longer an option. I asked if they had any smaller tortillas and maybe they could just use a few of those instead of one big one. She said they had 1 small tortilla. 40 minutes to close and 95% of your menu requires tortillas, and they didn't have any and didn't offer to make any. I said never mind and started to head to my car. As I walked out I said to myself how ridiculous it is that 40 minutes prior to close, they don't have the food available that they need to serve the customers coming in. I've worked in restaurants my entire life, and I understand the desire to clean a bit before the close of the shift to make things easier on us, but we still always had things available to eat and always changed gloves before handing food items, especially after cleaning. 🤮 I sat in my car and looked up the next closest location to see if I would be able to make it there before they closed. As I was about to drive off, the individual who makes the tortillas came outside and said she would make me one and I told her no thank you. I went to the location off of Power and Ray and was able to order my salad with no complaint, no cross contamination and with everything necessary to make the item. I wrote in regarding that visit and never got contacted by anyone which was disappointing. The visit I had today, I placed an order online. I did not ask for cilantro or to have cheese melted on my tortilla, but somehow both of those appeared within my meal. It was practically a bushel of cilantro. I go to pour the dressing in and notice a bit of extra liquid from the ckn and beans (which typically happens, so I didn't think anything of it). I pour my dressing on and go to mix it up and see an abundance of liquid from the ckn and beans just soaking up the bottom of my salad. It was essentially salad soup. I tried to eat it but it was just so soggy and gross. Completely inedible and disgusting. I tried draining it to see if that would help and it was just so much that I wasn't even hungry any more. This location has been a disappointment time and time again. If I have to go to this location in the future, I will ask for each item to be on the side, so I can build it myself to avoid a soaky, soggy soup. I will do my best to go to any other location other than this one, even though it is closest...

While waiting in line for my tacos, the young man serving at the start of the line was taking orders and putting them on the grill. There were 2 people at the cash register and one lady in a white tshirt, I'm guessing was the MOD, doing the 2nd part of the line. Suddenly she comes over to the first kid and says he needs to hurry up and move up the line. He stated he would be able to if he had help to which she got snippy and said she "was helping see?" Finally she had one of the 2 running the same register jump over to the line. This is taco Tuesday going on btw. After I received my food I sat down and ate, also watching what lack of flow their was to the setup. I saw none. There's beans and rice at the beginning and end of the line, yet not one person I saw before me or after me--there was a group of 4 behind me--orderes any. I asked my friend I was with about this and he said he normally doesn't see anyone order it at the beginning, only at the end. Next was food handling. I saw the one the jumped off the register to help the line put on gloves. He missed the part where he's supposed to wash his hands before putting said gloves on. Then the lady that got uppity with the first kid went out behind the counter and gave someone a hug, placing her gloved hands on this person's shirt. Then proceeded to go back to the line without changing them. I would say check the video in case she says otherwise for 9-18-2018 at 815pm to 840pm. Another one of the kids not working the line emptied the crash and then brought the bag through the dining area to also hug the same person the white shirt lady hugged. Now, the good. The food was fantastic. It was hot. The first kid made it exactly as I asked for it and all with a smile, whether faked or not due to previous encounters. The tables and floors were clean. The horchata was damn tasty. I was going to send this through their feedback thing on the website. The website feedback only allows for 1200...

Old great mgr left. Under new mgr. Food sitting in hot bins are dry and horrible. Tostadas are overcooked to burned disgusting taste. Being overcharged. Waiting for fresh food to come out. Have to ask...when stuff left too long is obviously burned and crusty dry. Most meats have way too much fat left on. Other customers asking to switch meats when they see the one they wanted full of dripping white fat. Sweet pork is now so watered down it's mostly juice you're paying for. Used to be ok value but not now. My burritos are so liquid the tortilla is soggy with little to no meat. Just wrong. Prices are high enough without getting what you paid for. I bought 2 small soup size containers of sweet pork, mostly sauce, charged 20$ each! After I got home and poured off the sauce there was 1/3 cup of meat! For 20$ seriously? Pretty sure I was overcharged to start with! I miss the old mgr. Always greeted, no burned dry overcooked food. Correctly charged. Happy knowledgeable staff. Not anymore, this one is really going downhill. Very sad. I will start trying to stop at Costa vita in gilbert from now on. They are fantastic. Reasonably priced, too next visit. Forgot to put in my dressing and charged me extra fro chips and then quesp. Dhen you order one large size, pretty sure chips come with it. Plus had to wait while cashier went to safe to get change for a 20$?? The pork looks very different now too..unsure taste wise yet till we eat. But no one welcomes you..old mgr always made sure they did. Cashier never asked for my app loyalty card. Had to ask her to please scan. Sorry, but downhill so far after loosing previous mgr. Also strawberry lemonade down to pits and...