Cafe Rio Fresh Modern Mexican — Restaurant in Murray

Wow. And I don't mean that in a good way. We normally go to the Taylorsville location, but my kid's school had a fundraiser that was hosted at the Murray location. It was my first time to this location. There were no patrons in the restaurant, and only one person behind me, in line. It was approximately 5 PM. We ordered chicken enchiladas, a shredded beef burrito, and birria tacos.

The chicken and pork looked fine - juicy and fresh. The shredded beef and birria beef were hard and dry enough that the employee was trying to break it up with a set of tongs, in a struggle to separate it enough to make serving sizes for tacos/burritos. The sauces, especially the red enchilada sauce, had thick skins on them. The skin on top of the red sauce was so thick that after scooping some out, the ladle sat on top of the skin for what seemed like a long time, before the weight of the ladle eventually let it sink back in. The queso had a thick skin on top, too, and looked like it had been that way for quite some time. I didn't order any. Pots of meat cooking on the stove had thick rings of congealed sauce around the inside rims, as the sauce reduced/boiled down. The cilantro rice looked sad. The cilantro should have been a bright bold green, but was instead more olive-colored.

I don't know...maybe the food prep area serving the drive-through was fresher, but the in-person line-up of food was abysmal. I was trying to support my local PTA, but had it not been for that, I would have turned around and walked out.

At 5 PM, I would have expected at least a few people inside ordering, but even if you have no customers, at least stir your offerings once in a while, in an effort to keep them from looking like they got left out overnight.

As we left, a woman was walking back into the store with an order she had already received, maybe from the drive-through. She didn't look happy.

Next time we want Cafe Rio, we'll be going back to the...

Let me start this with I love cafe Rio and food wise it has been a standing with my wife and my relationship (first date, proposed over it, etc.) however…

This location is terrible. Now I never normally review places even if it’s bad but this really irked me a lot.

1- on multiple occasions I’ve come to this location and they are out of something (ranging from tortillas to their mint limeade), and the workers say it’s the managers fault for not ordering supply.

2- This was the big one: so yesterday was Valentine’s Day and as I stated my wife and I make cafe Rio part of our relationship. We drove over as we are super close and get in the drive thru line that is about 10 cars long. 20 mins and 6 cars leaving between us I finally notice that the front car hasn’t ordered or moved. I get out leaving my car in line and walk up and ask the driver and they say “they told me to wait here 30 mins, I dono… (kudos for that guy not just driving off).” So I go in and the inside is dead maybe 2 people in line so I call into the kitchen “what’s going on guys you’re loosing business.” Their response “we’re short staffed and have a major line in here so we can’t help the drive thru.” If that be the fact you had 8 people back there, do 1 and 1 (one inside one outside), don’t just ignore your drive thru! I’ve never really liked going thru drive thru at cafe Rio (I like seeing them make the food) but yeah. I walked out and got back in my car and me and the new line of 7-8 more cars (besides the one in front kudos to him again) all left. You lost soo much business that night.

Now like I said I love cafe Rio, I even left and went to the next closest (that served me in under 10 mins order to pay) at 7200s and 700w, but I’m betting not everyone’s as invested in cafe Rio as I am.

Figure this out guys… I was excited when a cafe Rio opened up within walking distance to my house, but this location is...

Upon entering the establishment you are met with what looks like a normal fast food operation. How ever, you are quickly met with an unnerving and uneasy feeling as you walk to the counter and notice the employee brigade. They are all too young, as though they only hire from Murray High. Scanning the team, you don’t see anyone who could be considered a shift lead or manager. The banter between workers is loud and irrelevant to the work that they aren’t doing.

But you are hungry, so you approach the counter. The employee argues in a foreign tongue for a few seconds before acknowledging your annoying presence. His mask is firmly below his nose. You order a simple burrito, and he asks what beans you want. You state “black” clearly, but he only repeats the question. After finally getting him to understand, he barks back and continues to be rude for the rest of the transaction.

After wondering how ordering a burrito could be so difficult from a Mexican restaurant, you move down the line to the checkout worker. She moves with the speed of a geriatric sloth moving backwards through time. More foreign dialogue is exchanged, and the burrito line pauses again. You stand, credit card ready to pay, but your order is inexplicably still not placed in a bag. After your food is now cold, you are allowed the mercy to pay and leave the store, only to eat your ill-prepared meal in silent disgrace and left to wonder if the employees were wearing gloves at all. Because they definitely didn’t wash...