Aunt Chilada's — Restaurant in Phoenix

I cannot, for the life of me, understand how this place gets such good reviews. Usually, Google reviews don't let me down, but this was one of the worst Mexican restaurants I have ever visited. I went here as part of a group of 9 work colleagues for happy hour. We arrived at 4:00 PM, and our first bit of great news was that they don't do happy hour in the restaurant section. Really, guys? Why? Because it's 30 feet from the bar area? Do better! Next, we sampled the chips and salsa. The chips were good, but the salsa? Gag me with a bus! First off, no spice. Second off, the only detectable flavor, other than tomato, was olives. Olives? In salsa? This was a first for me, and hopefully a last. Nasty! It was as if someone opened a can of diced tomatoes, mixed it with a can of olives, threw it in a refrigerator, and called it good. Since this was a work happy hour, it came to pass that some of our group wanted to leave after just one drink. Then came the next surprise. At this restaurant, they will not split your check for you. I have literally never heard of this before. This caused us all to have to pull out our credit cards and write down the last four digits of our card numbers on the back of the slip next to the amount we were willing to pay. On realizing that a 20 percent gratuity had been added already, I realized that we couldn't just add together the price of what we'd purchased to figure our totals. We had to add up our purchases, then add 20 percent to that, and then write that down as our contribution. Unfortunately, though I attempted to communicate this to everyone at our table, not everyone got the memo. This resulted in there being a balance due after all the cards were run. Our manager was kind enough to pay that out of her own pocket, but this was ridiculous and totally avoidable. We were lucky. One group of us left after a drink, and one left after eating. I can only imagine the pandemonium that would ensue if a we had left 1 or 2 people at a time! The entire tab would have to be run over and over and over, with this process being repeated for everyone at the table every time someone left! Anyway, this whole business with not splitting the check happened before I even received my food. I should have left with the first group; the rest of the food was nearly as awful as the salsa. I ate the "Super Taquitos", which were dry and too crispy on the ends, with a tasteless, gooey cheese sauce on them which was not part of their description on the menu. My wife, who was joining our work happy hour for the first time ever, ordered fajitas. According to her, they were ok. However, they came with just two small taco-sized flour tortillas, which was not nearly enough for the provided filling. She ordered two more, and the cost of doing so was $4. The cost of an order of fajitas, three taquitos, two margaritas, and a sprite came out to be $80. I'd happily have paid that for exceptional food and service. But that's not what we experienced. With so many great Mexican restaurants all over the Valley, I can't imagine why anybody would give this one a second look. I will never be back and would not recommend the place to anyone...

I visited Aunt Chiladas after two friends recommended it, both recalling how great the restaurant was a few years ago. They hadn’t been back in a while, but based on their enthusiasm, I decided to give it a try. I arrived at around 4:15 pm, during happy hour, which runs from 11 am to 6 pm, though seating for happy hour is limited to the bar area.

My waitress, Midia, was friendly and attentive, although she seemed quite busy. After sitting for a bit, I started to wonder where the chips and salsa were, as I assumed they would come automatically. Just as I was about to ask, Midia brought them without me needing to request it, which was a pleasant surprise. She also brought my Prickly Pear Margarita, which looked a little different from what I expected but tasted fantastic. Sam, the bartender, made me a strawberry margarita and two classic margaritas later on, and all of them were well-crafted. One thing I noticed is that the margaritas are all made fresh; there’s no option for frozen, but that wasn’t an issue for me as everything tasted great.

However, my food experience wasn’t quite as enjoyable. I ordered the sour cream chicken enchiladas, and while it wasn’t terrible, there was an odd taste that I couldn’t quite place, which made me think something might have been frozen. The rice was particularly disappointing—it was dry and hard, which made the meal feel a bit lacking. It wasn’t something I would order again.

After spending some time in the bar area, I moved to the dining area, where I was attended by Mari. She, like Midia, was friendly and checked in frequently, but the staff overall seemed rushed, likely due to how busy the bar area was. Speaking of the bar, the seating there was uncomfortable. The high chairs and small round tables were wobbly and cramped, so I eventually moved to the bar itself for a more comfortable experience.

In terms of the atmosphere, the dining area initially appeared clean, but when I glanced up, I noticed that the air vents were covered in dust—a sign that some aspects of cleanliness had been overlooked. My friend, who had been here years ago, pointed out that the three sisters who own the restaurant weren’t around, which could explain the drop in both food quality and cleanliness. It felt like the restaurant, though still large and visually appealing, could benefit from more attention to detail, both in terms of the food and the upkeep of the space.

While Aunt Chiladas has potential and clearly has a loyal customer base, my experience left me feeling that it needs some serious improvement. From the odd flavors in the food to the cleanliness issues, it seems like the restaurant may have lost some of the quality it once had. The staff were kind and attentive, and the margaritas were excellent, but these positives were overshadowed by the less-than-ideal food and atmosphere.

Overall, it wasn’t a bad experience, but it wasn’t great either. I hope to see some improvements, as this restaurant has the potential to be much better. I may give it another chance in the future, but for now, it seems like Aunt Chiladas has...

We’ve been here plenty, and it’s always the same story: they show up, they deliver, and I leave wondering why other spots can’t figure out basic consistency. This time we sat inside because the patio misters weren’t on yet.

Angelo was our server, and he kept it tight: quick greet, drinks in before I had a chance to start side-eyeing the chips basket like a raccoon. I ordered the Mexican Candy: Blanco tequila, watermelon purée, pineapple juice, Tajín rim, lime. And yes, it really tastes like Mexican candy. Sweet, tart, a little spicy, basically childhood nostalgia with a tequila chaser. I don’t even like watermelon, but here it makes sense. This is what happens when someone actually knows how to balance flavors instead of just tossing fruit in a blender and praying.

Now, the chips and salsa. Still undefeated. The salsa has black olives in it, which sounds weird until you try it, and then it just makes sense. Pro tip: ask for the hot salsa. Mix it in for the perfect burn, but pace yourself unless you’re into self-inflicted pain. And the flour tortilla chips? Fluffy, crispy, airy, basically the glow-up corn chips could only dream of. Once you’ve had these, regular tortilla chips just feel like punishment.

Main event: the breakfast quesadilla. Eggs, cheese, picadillo as my protein, plus beans and potatoes. No pics, because it didn’t stand a chance. The cheese was molten, the eggs weren’t overcooked into sad rubber, and the picadillo tasted like someone’s abuela actually smacked the cook with a wooden spoon until they seasoned it right. Tortilla hit that golden-brown crispy perfection. Beans? Smooth and flavorful. Potatoes? Actual seasoning, not just “salt and despair.”

Bottom line: this place doesn’t miss. Just straight-up good food, strong drinks, and flour chips so good they make every other chip feel like a sad afterthought. This is why we keep coming back: because they actually know what the hell...