Cafe Rio Menu Prices

Café Rio Mexican Grill or simply Café Rio is an American fast casual restaurant chain specialized in serving Tex-Mex and Mexican food. Their menu is pretty large and includes items such as tacos, appetizers, soups, tostadas, quesadillas, salads, enchiladas, burritos, beverages, and desserts.

This place is known for its dedication to large portions of never frozen, handmade, fresh food. With multiple ways to customize your order and a friendly staff, you should not be surprised that Café Rio is a popular restaurant to take out or dine in.

The prices charged by Café Rio tend to be a little bit higher than those you can find at other similar Mexican-style fast food restaurants, but the food is of great quality. In the table below you will find the latest Café Rio menu prices, so you can get an idea about how much you should budget for their food.

Brand history

Inspired by the cuisine around New Mexico, Northern Mexico’s Rio Grande region, and Southern Texas, Patricia and Steve Stanley opened their first Café Rio restaurant in 1997, in the small town of St. George, Utah. In the following years, the business grew and by 2004 six restaurants were opened across the state of Utah.

The chain was sold to SKM/Apax Partners, Spencer K Hill, Kathleen, and Bob Nilsen, in December 2004. In the next six years, the new owners developed the business and opened more than 40 restaurants in 7 states, and later grew those forty locations into more than 70 restaurants in more than 10 states. Over time, Café Rio received many awards and recognitions for their food including a few for the fastest-growing company and many local awards for the best burrito.

You might also like our articles on the menu prices of Costa Vida, Taco Casa, or Chuy’s.

Café Rio sets itself apart from its competitors through its commitment to offering very, very, very fresh food. They pride themselves on not using microwaves or freezers, something that other restaurants cannot say.

Some say that their success is exactly thanks to this principle, as they never serve stale, old food. Actually, they claim that each food item is prepared in-house, that day. For example, they juice by hand, every day, a minimum of one thousand limes.

Nowadays, there are 155 Café Rio locations in eight U.S. states including Maryland, Colorado, Arizona, California, Montana, Utah, Idaho, and Washington.

Our review

Regardless of what your order from Café Rio, it will burst with flavor. Their menu has all the food items of any respectable Mexican restaurant, including chips and salsa, burritos, tostadas, quesadillas, and enchiladas. Be prepared to pay around $12 for one of these meals. Also, they offer a kid’s menu with items that come at half the price of their adult equivalents.

The waiting time is average and while your order is prepared you can watch how the tortillas are made by hand in front of you. Also, if you love cheese, you can ask to get your dish enchilada style, which means extra melted cheese and sauce.

The great number of awards has proven that Café Rio food is delicious and appreciated. So, they responded to their customer’s requests and now provide catering services, as well. You can enjoy fresh Mexican food at home or at your office by ordering their “Enchilada party”, “Taco Fiesta”, “Nacho Bar”, or others. The prices for catering are reasonable at around $12 per individual.

You can also dine in at Café Rio and not only take out. The interior design can be easily recognized as it is inspired by Latin and Southwestern and the walls are painted in rich warm colors. Plus, you will be welcomed by a friendly, fun staff, with a festive attitude.

Café Rio FAQs

At what time does Café Rio open?

Most Café Rio restaurants open at 10:30 a.m. Monday through Saturday and at 11:00 a.m. on Sundays. However, it may vary from one location to another and you should check which are the opening hours of the location you are interested in by visiting the restaurant’s official website.

At what time does Café Rio close?

Most Café Rio restaurants close at 11:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and at 09:00 p.m. on Sundays. But again, it depends on the location and it is recommended to visit the restaurant’s official website to check this information.

How many Café Rio locations are there?

Currently, there are 155 Café Rio locations in eight states across the United States of America.

Where was the first Café Rio opened?

The first Café Rio restaurant was opened in St. George, Utah in 1997.

Who founded Café Rio?

Café Rio was founded by Steve Stanley and his wife Patricia.

Which is Café Rio’s signature dish?

Café Rio’s signature dish is a sweet pork barbacoa burrito prepared enchilada style.

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Alec Pow

Alec Pow is a thorough and methodical Financial and Business Analyst with over 15 years of experience in financial statement analysis, Foreign exchange derivative hedging instruments analysis, modeling, and risk management, with a long history of writing for big news publications like Forbes, MSN.com, Washington Post, and many more.

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