Nico's Mexican Food — Restaurant in Oro Valley

I've eaten here numerous times prior, all without incident, unfortunately that positive streak has quickly ended. Immediately upon entry while attempting to read the menu board the older "gentleman" at the register was noticably annoyed that l didn't have the menu committed to memory. While attempting to read the menu board the entire staff is loudly speaking in Spanish directly behind the register, this interaction makes communication with the cashier difficult. Additionally one female employee is clearly visible, she's eating a plate of food from the kitchen food prep area just inside the kitchen. No one is wearing food safety gloves. I ordered the #3 plate, consisting of x2 shredded beef tacos, rice and beans. Additionally l clearly ordered a medium soft drink. Upon review of the order the older guy leaves off my drink. When I correct him over it he becomes further annoyed with my presence on planet Earth. I found it extremely rude to continue having a conversation with other staff members in Spanish while attempting to take my order and then having an attitude when my order wasn't taken correctly due entirely to his inability to multitask. I paid with my debit card and had to ask for the receipt. The guy then without speaking simply points to the stack of cups indicating that self serve is truly self serve at this establishment. I fill my soda and the food is instantly presented. The tacos are deep fried and the lag time from ordering to presentation is incredibly short, as a result they are heavily oil soaked. They were clearly never allowed to drain. All tables while bused were visibly dirty. Indicating that they were never wiped down. I found my food good but beyond EXCESSIVELY grease soaked. I'm sensitive to grease and would later have stomach issues all day, left feeling uncomfortable and l attribute this to the excessive grease remaining within the tacos upon presentation. Upon sitting at a table, l wiped down my own table removing dried lettuce from it. All of tables were clearly unclean. I tipped my tacos in the plate to facilitate frying oil drainage but it helped little. I found the rice good and the beans exceptionally delicious. I found $18.44 out the door excessively high for what l received. I get cost have risen but there are serious GREED-FLATION factors obviously at play here. The food simply isn't remotely worth what is charged. In closing, l found this establishment overpriced and under performing. I found the staff dismissive and condescending. Clearly they have zero pride in themselves and their food, and zero shame in what they pawn off as acceptable. They operate as if little to no effort is above and beyond. I wasn't expecting perfection but for $18.44 I did expect their best effort at which they clearly failed. This is not an establishment that I'll be returning to. It's not a warm inviting atmosphere where I felt welcomed and I truly never felt valued as a guest. This is not an establishment that I can ever...

I've been told the food here has gone downhill. It has. Several people told me there own sad experiences and how they won't even eat anything on the menu besides the breakfast burrito. The meat tastes canned, the salsas are watered down. Its just no good.

But, I decided to give them a chance. I'm sorry I did. I chose the Super Fries, because how could they screw that up? They could, and they did. They were done super quick, which was nice because I couldn't find anywhere clean to sit down. But, when I got them home (only minutes away) they were soggy, undercooked, and unseasoned. There was liquid pooling at the bottom of the container! I assume its from the tomatoes they spooned in and didn't drain. Or meat they didn't drain. I don't know.

I tried eating them, and was just getting more and more upset about having paid for this slop. I even put them in the oven to try to dry them out, I seasoned them and threw some more cheese on them. And they were still not worth the money. The only good thing was the Guac I got on the side, it didn't have to be subjected to the rest of the filth.

They could do better! They have done better. Years ago...its like there not making enough money anymore so they're cutting corners, or their cook just...

Food was sooo good. Had Chicken Chimichanga (shown in photo) and Chicken Taco. The flavor of both was outstanding. The chimi was lightly fried and not crispy like I've had elsewhere but the flavor was so good I did not mind. Refried beans were delicious. I wish I knew how they cook the chicken for the tacos - each bite of chicken was a flavor bomb. The style of Mexican was a bit different than I'm used to - that being Sonoran Mexican, with sour cream or cream cheese sauces. The one sauce they have here is red. But again I did not mind because it had such good flavor. There are two tables outside and we enjoyed our dinner while enjoying the gorgeous scenery of the mountains, easily visible from our table. I looked at a lot of reviews for 'fancy' restaurants before we decided upon going casual and coming here. ...