Uncle Julio's Oklahoma City — Restaurant in Oklahoma City

My husband and I visited this establishment for the first time Wednesday evening, July 27, 2022.

I should preface my review by saying that I was born and raised in New Orleans, so I am a harsh judge of what I consider to be good food. I also have never really considered myself a huge fan of Mexican food. Not that I don't like it altogether, I've just never been to a Mexican restaurant that "wowed" me. Well . . . let me tell y'all . . . Uncle Julio's just became that place.

The host asked if we had dined with them before. I responded that we had not. As he escorted us to our booth, past the open kitchen where patrons can see the staff in action, he explained that Uncle Julio's uses only fresh ingredients and even has an in-house butcher. (Whaaaaat?! Mmmmkay, I like the sound of that!)

The establishment was full of patrons, was clean and modern, and, honestly, was the most upscale Mexican restaurant I have ever been to.

We took our seat. To start, we ordered chili con queso and an order of guacamole. The chips, of course, came with salsa. My husband and I, each, ordered the margarita swirl (Half frozen margarita, half sangria) . . . because Happy Hour, y'all!

Let me say that while I have eaten guacamole from many Mexican restaurants in the past, I have always preferred salsa because the guacamole always seems bland to me . . . and it visually reminds me of jarred baby food . . . like it's pureed to death. Well . . . my opinion of guacamole took a complete turn during this visit.

Uncle Julio's guacamole is made fresh-to-order and contains chunks of tomato, onion, etc. throughout. You can actually taste all of the ingredients! I went from someone who didn't care for guacamole to someone who could have eaten this by the gallon. (P.S. The leftover guacamole made for killer avacado toast topped with a fried egg the next morning!) And, of course, we were also provided with hot, fresh, handmade flour tortillas. Yummm!

The margarita swirl was delicious. I ordered my very first street tacos (I've only ever had "regular" tacos). I wasn't expecting much from my rice and beans because, you know . . . rice and beans, rice and beans, it's the same at almost every Mexican restaurant; it seems so mundane. So I told myself to just focus on my street tacos. (Of course, I did feel obligated to eat the rice and beans because they were on my plate, too.) I took one bite of the beans, looked up at my husband like a deer in headlights and thought my eyes would pop out of my head. My GOD, y'all!!! The beans!!!! You NEED these in your life!!! The amazing smoky flavor put these beans on my list of must-have foods. The rice was also very flavorful. I could not have been happier with my meal. My husband said his fajita steak was tender, melt-in-your mouth delicious. He, too, was impressed with the beans and rice.

Our server, Edwin, was gracious, hospitable, professional, and took very good care of us. We left feeling, dare I say it, euphoric. I noticed after our 25-minute drive home that I felt full, but not bloated. Fresh ingredients really do make all the difference in how you feel after you eat.

We will definitely visit Uncle Julio's again. And again and again. If you have never been to this restaurant (even if you have never considered yourself a "fan" of Mexican food), I HIGHLY recommend that you try this place. They have something really good going on here.

When we have out-of-town guests who want Mexican food during their stay, Uncle Julio's will definitely be our go-to place!

Thanks, Uncle Julio's (and Edwin), for showing us what really good Mexican food tastes like. Keep doing what...

Hot Skillet Theatre” at Uncle Julio’s

I rarely write reviews—especially bad ones—but this dinner earned it. After a long day of shopping, My family and I stopped at Uncle Julio’s hoping for what they advertise as “Fine Mexican Food’.

After our server took our order she must have had something more important to be. Our drink, chips, and salsa refills were non existent, until another server passing by allowed us to have a solo chip & salsa setup because they sawing we were hurting. 45 minutes after ordering, another random server showed up with our meals and auctioned it off to the table. This is where it gets good…..

The fajitas were placed on the table and I immediately noticed they had “died” back in the kitchen long before making it out to our table. My son’s meals were hot and looked good, but the limp and lifeless fajitas were cold to the touch. I proceeded to flag down the manager to come over to our table. I politely requested him to bring us fresh, hot food, if we didn’t have to wait another 45 minutes. Otherwise, I told him we were ok with just dealing with it. He scooped up the lifeless fajita platter and darted off promising to get it out right away. However, he walked off so fast I couldn’t get his attention to tell him he left the shrimp and veggies behind. A few minutes later he returned to ask if we needing anything else while we waited. I pointed out he left the shrimp and what mimicked a form of succotash (the veggies) Again, he darted off to the kitchen.

Now, about two minutes later he arrived with two sizzling platters with one containing the same exact 3 shrimp & succotash he left with—just louder. It was obvious they had been slid off the side plates they were served on originally and slid right onto a sizzling hot skillet. Yep, attempting to pull off “The ole' switch a roo!”

No apology, no check-back, they never brought out our side of beans or rice, I even had to ask for plates TWICE after all of that 🥹 . Dear God help me. Not one dish or glass was picked up the entire meal and totop it off, we were overcharged for an item already included with our son’s kids’ meal.

About $175 bucks later, I left with one clear lesson: if you’re craving fajitas that actually sizzle, or a floor manager who doesn't attempt to insult your intelligence, this isn’t the place. The only heat here came from the reheated lie on the skillet. PS: As for our server. I left a bad tip because when customers tip, it’s called “gratuity” for a reason. There was no attempts to fix anything, nor apologies for anything . She didn’t even attempt the expected “last apology pitch” while delivering the bill. Now, that’s where I normally forgive and forget, tell them it’s ok and not their fault, and leave 20-25%.. To be perfectly honest, l wouldn't have taken the time to write this review, if our server or at least a manager would have done something besides a pathetic performance of “hot...

Two weeks ago, I dined at Uncle Julio's restaurant while visiting Texas. I enjoyed the Mexican Caesar salad with chicken fajita meat and found it delightful. Upon returning home, I shared my experience with my children, expressing how impressed I was. My daughter informed me that there is a location in Oklahoma City. With family visiting and my son's 14th birthday being today, I persuaded him to celebrate his birthday there. We needed to have an early dinner since my other son had to work that evening. We arrived at 3:00 PM, and the restaurant was quite empty. Our party consisted of nine people. As each guest arrived, our waitress began taking drink orders. Naturally, I ordered the same dish I had previously enjoyed. When our food was served, I received a Caesar salad in a standard bowl, accompanied by a few pieces of chicken that had been briefly grilled. I explained to the waitress, who had limited English proficiency, that this was not my original order. I requested to see the menu to clarify my order. A manager approached and insisted that it was indeed what I had ordered. His demeanor was rude, and he seemed indifferent to my concerns. I searched extensively for a picture to demonstrate how the dish should appear. I even considered calling the Dallas location for clarification. Ultimately, I requested that the incorrect dish be removed. While the rest of my party waited, my son had ordered queso as a side, and I asked for a bit more since my meal did not meet my expectations. When the bill arrived, we were charged $25 solely for the queso. My son accidentally spilled his drink and had to clean it up himself while other staff members walked by, merely observing. No one offered assistance or brought napkins to help with the mess, and this was compounded by our waitress's notably slow service. There was another table nearby that was growing frustrated as they too waited excessively for their bill. My daughter works as a waitress, and I understand the effort that goes into earning tips; I also served in my youth and recognize that this is how they earn their income. Regrettably, this waitress did not merit a decent tip. Upon receiving the bill, my son noticed that a gratuity had already been added. I highly recommend going somewhere else. For $250 you would expect an enjoyable experience and it was nothing but a...