La Parrillita Mexican Grill

The food was delicious, deffently a hidden gem! I will be back again, even though I live about 25 minutes away. We ordered $ 35 of food so we got to try many of the items and took some home too. I wish they had pork on the menu, but the beef and chicken were done very. The entrance off the main street is a little hidden and hard to see, but there is a back alley entrance.

Food was delicious! Tamales were just right. Not being overly drying nor too soggy. Their guacamole was amazing not to mention the horchata and mango juice they had. Definitely coming back and soon!

Tacos were pretty good. I don’t think they are the best by any means, but I would probably go again to try it out. I usually like al pastor and was intrigued by the chicken al pastor. They were ok, I’d probably stick to steak at this place. I kept biting into these little seeds in the al pastor tacos, if you have weak teeth I’d recommend being extra careful eating those. Overall, I’d try again but not overly impressed first time around.

I tried the nachos and and a steak burrito and they are not good at all. The avocado was horrible, spoiled… the meat didn’t taste good. The service was good I enjoyed tasting the different sauces. Would not go back.

Coming back up north from the South Side, we needed Mexican food. Unilocalers rated this place 4.5 stars so we stopped in. Small place. Counter seating for 12. Service was great: our order taker was very attentive and friendly. The owner talked to us for a while. Nice guy!
Now the food. Came in for the nachos but stayed for the spicy chicken tamales! Wow! It’s hard to find good tamales but here they are. Not too dry, not too wet, good spicy flavor and generous chunks of dark meat inside. Really fabulous! Their nachos were good too. I like their chips: firm and on the smaller side and they stand up to loaded nachos well. No crumbles but watch for sharp edges. For my tastes, the sour cream drizzled on the top was too much and the mangoes were tasty but maybe should be diced smaller so they can be distributed better over more bites. Tasty guac. Their horchata was perfect! Sweet and lots of cinnamon and a large size isn’t filled with ice as filler. Shocking!
Parking of six spaces or so in the back of the place. Easy to pull into and out of with an SUV.
Local firefighters eat here so it’s got to be good.
Sad end to my visit because I left my half filled horchata on the counter. I hate to waste that good of a drink!

I’ve been using Unilocal for years. This is my first review. That says a lot. Came in today for my first visit and loved the experience. The meat was delicious and the service was fantastic. Definitely going back soon.

I really wanted to like this place but… it never got better. After the 4^th time ordering steak tacos, I have given up. Poor quality of meat. Every bite had fatty, hard to chew, gristle in it. Slow service, over priced, no tables and chairs, only a tiny bar that accommodates about 6 or less. Only thing that I do recommend is the fresh made churros but they run out all the time.

Oh what a gem!
Can I get an Amen! Awesome tacos! Awesome tamales and a staff that cares about the customer! Yes oh yes I will be back! Great al pastor!

I have been here a few times and tried a variety of items from the menu. Today I had the spicy chicken tamales which were moist and had a decent amount of chicken. I definitely will be buying a dozen next time!
As for the nachos they were good but not my top choice. I am more into chihuahua cheese on my quesadillas instead of mozzarella but it passes. I am also a big fan of their salsas. Try each one to pick your favorite!
The employees are super kind and always welcoming. All the orders are made fresh to order so if it’s during lunch time be prepared to wait awhile for your meal. Otherwise call ahead. I definitely recommend this place if your looking for a tasty Mexican meal.

*hidden gem alert*
Tucked away off north avenue, this spot is quick to miss. But boy, is it worth it. Salsas galore. If you like to mess with spice of all varieties… this is the spot for you. Similar to the southern lovin their BBQ sauce, this place is on point with their salsa. From different reds to greens, and all in-​between… chipotle, squash, mild, and more… your every bite change change its flavor profile.
My boyfriend took me to check this spot out. Awesome quick-​bite joint. It’s clean, and the workers always stay busy. I got a steak taco and tamale. Good size on the portions of meat. Options of lettuce and tomato versus cilantro and onion. the tamale was also surprisingly on point. If you call ahead, you can order a batch by the dozen.
It’s a different taco joint. Fresh, made to order. I love that they’re not greasy or over-​seasoned. They’ve got good quality, which i think tends to suffer from competitor-​chain-​joints.
Alert. They’ve also got a REALLY good horchata. probably the creamiest I’ve ever had.
I’ll definitely be back for more. It’s only too bad they’re not open later in the night

Wow! Very friendly staff to compliment the delicious food. 1^st time here and it definitely won’t be my last. Their fresh fried tortilla chip nachos hit the spot. I had the pastor and steak tacos and I enjoyed both of them. Highly recommend!

Finally some good Mexican food around here keep up the good work. Love the salsa and the fresh food. The owners are very nice and always engage in conversation

Absolutely amazing place, with the most delicious and interesting nachos I’ve ever seen. Mango, who’d have thought?
It doesn’t look like much from the street. I just about drove by the place, and was dunious walking in. From the outside, it looked like a diner. Heck, from the inside, it looks like a diner!
Then you notice little things. How clean everything is. How much in order and perfect everything is. This is no short-​order place. People are patient and calm, not trying to move you through (I was there on a Sunday for dinner, I imagine it would be a bit more hectic on a weekday at lunch.)
They are especially proud of their salsa variety. I liked the second most-​mild and the hottest the best. Their pastor chicken was amazing, the tamales are made fresh daily and are, of course, delicious, and I ran out of room before I could try more food. :(I have only been the one time, because I don’t live close. But I swear to get back the next chance I can. I want to try everything on their menu.

Honestly driving by you’d never noticed this place until you experience its awesome — sauce counter and bar stool seating.
Honestly we first start off with fresh made chips. Deep fried deliciousness
Where we then got greeted with 5 selections of salsa
When our order got there shortly after that. It was food coma heaven
That’s about how awesome this place was. REAL quick…
Chips and guacamole +++ salsa
Two fountain drinks
Tamale
Two tacos
One burrito
+ Tax
And free samples
Under $ 25.00
If I dine in next time I’m going to be tipping 25% because it was great

I wish I could say that I stopped in after passing this place tons of times. I have passed it but somehow never noticed it. I wandered in last week on the recommendation of a neighbor. Now that I have, I can tell you I am elated that I did.
This is really good stuff. The service is phenomenal. Upon entering, you are handed a menu because the screen above the register does not have everything. Once we ordered, we noticed there was a connect four game so we decided to play while we waited for our food. As we played and waited, we were given chips to try the four different sauces. I liked the garden best. We were also given samples of the flavored water. This led to a second purchase. We bought two of the four we tried.
Loaded down with food, we decided to dine on our porch instead of on the cute barstools at LP.
Two visits within a week with no plans to slow down. It’s definitely a great go to spot for a quick bite. My only wish is that they were open later.
El Pastor Chicken Nachos — good but too sweet for my liking
Chicken Nachos — perfect!
Carne Asada tacos — delicious!
Strawberry Limonada water — refreshing and addictive
Tarmarind water — yummy
Chorizo taco — very good
Rice — I could seriously eat this alone. It is some of the best rice I have ever had at a Mexican restaurant. My only regret was that I did not order more.

AWESOME food.
We came here on a whim, and when noting the size of the interior/​parking lot, we decided to get our order to go. We learned, ordering to go is simpler when you call ahead– this place makes everything fresh, but is working in a small space, and is continually busy, so the wait was over 10 minutes.
I ordered their steak nachos– chips, cheese, ample steak, guacamole, huge mango chunks (life changing), grilled corn (also life changing) and sour cream. The portion was massive! I put most of it away though. It was sooooo good I couldn’t stop eating it! They did everything possible to keep it safe and intact as I brought it home too. It was 98% as pretty as when they assembled it in the shop. It cost a little over $ 7 which I thought was fair for what I got!
My guy got a chicken quesadilla which was also massive. It comes with guac, sour cream and pico de gallo. He said it was great!
The owner is sweet as pie. Going back to what I said above, the regular wait time is probably about 10 minutes– they seemingly misplaced our ticket though, so our wait was longer. To soften the blow, the owner gave us fresh chips and two salsas to try– the verde, and the ‘wake up call’. Both were great, with a good kick on the verde, and serious kick on the wake up call! She also recommended extra salsas to throw in for our take home meal. It was an honest mistake, and they made up for it, which was appreciated.
You can see the quality in everything they do. It’s on full display in front of you! You can see how hard they work to keep up with the demands of customers– constantly refilling salsas, grilling up meats, working together. It gives you a good feeling about the whole experience. Highly recommend this place!

I used to ride my bike past this grill all the time. I never went in because it never seemed to be open. Flash forward to a now when I noticed it has been put under new owner ship and it is an Amazing Mexican grill.
They make your food fresh to order right in front of your face. They have an assortment of custom drinks they were passing out samples of. They could not have been nicer and showed more that they want your business. 5 star service.
They have an assortment of salsas in squeeze bottles you get to try out on your incredible tacos/​burritos. I had a chorizo burrito and it was ¹⁰⁄₁₀.
They were even incredibly polite and gave excellent customer service to the horrible lady sitting next to me who wasn’t pleased with anything but seemed to eat every bite.
New Mexican restaurant found.

Excellent food, great flavor, large menu.
If it’s cooked in sight, it must be right!
The portions are very generous and too tasty to leave any behind. I had a chicken quesadilla, a ground beef burrito, a spicy chicken tamale, a chorizo taco, and a carne asada taco (not all at once) and enjoyed each bite.
The torta is next!
There are only a dozen or so seats in this place. Be sure to ask for samples of their specialty drinks! Get a churro before you leave too.
This place is tops. Well deserving of the 5 stars.
Don’t pass the opportunity to get your pic taken for the wall.

I really like this place. It’s unassuming and not very fancy, but the food is excellent and service outstanding.
I stopped here due to favorable Unilocal reviews. I believe that the delightful woman that was working there was one of the owners. She was very welcoming and I could tell that she had a great sense of pride in the food she was serving. She recommended a couple of items and we took her advice. Pastor chicken was phenomenal, as were the sauces. All of the food tasted fresh and you can watch them prepare it. We also received samples of their beverages– the horchata was my favorite; hibiscus actually tasted like hibiscus.
This is a great addition to the neighborhood and I will be back.

5 stars for service, taste, value, staff and location. (TIP: enter and exit through the alley). It’s close by my clients so it gives me a reason to visit my clients more often!
Let’s talk taco! Chicken Al pastor how I love thee. Wow an explosion of taste and great quality meat. I’m a total snob when it comes to «authentic «tacos because I’m loyal to real Mexican tacos and will usually only order tacos in Mexico. But ay chihuahua this Al pastor is increiblè!!!
Must have: chicken Al pastor in EVERYTHING (torta, taco, burrito, nachos). They also make tamales daily. Try both spicy and non spicy. They’re both tasty and not dry. Horchata is super good too!
There are 2 people who run this place: Janet and Jamal. She’s the owner and he’s the cook. Together, they make your food with love and passion. And it shows in the great taste. Fast, fresh, and friendly. Plus the value makes this place 5 stars. Hands down the best Mexican joint… In Chicago!