Big Al’s Drive In

The person on the grill was helpful and courteous as I made it clear this was my first time at Big Al’s. I ended up ordering a cheeseburger deluxe w/​fries and a Coke .
The food came rather quickly and tasted just fine. Good prices too

I’m on the «used to be good» team… then they decided they are better than they really are and became way to expensive! 5 star shakes no doubt… but way more importantly…1 star for the dirty tables and the disgruntled worker spitting in the food (that’s right… I happen to know someone who works there and have inside info to beware)!!! I strongly suggest you watch your food being made if you go there!!!

Ordered a burger, than went to pick it up. Was planning on ordering a shake on top of that when I got there. This short dude was extremely rude. Supposedly the tax wouldn’t add up and I couldn’t order a shake on top of it. Guy was very rude and wouldn’t even give me prices. Worst customer service I’ve gotten in a while. Won’t be coming back. They also would not put peanut butter on my burger. The burger was burnt

Used to be good. I would come here all the time as a kid. Onion rings had a burn/​bitter after taste. Probably cause the oil was gross. The «deluxe» double cheese burger was meh. I’ve had better for cheaper (in and out). Overall disappointed. Plus the service is really unwelcoming for a «family» restaurant. No hi, nothing. Go someplace else.

Really disappointed with the quality of the food I received the last several times I’ve eaten here. Ordered the fish&chips last night to take to a sick friend and when I got it in the car it stunk so bad I tossed it away before reaching my destination, now 24 hours later my car still smells awful!
Big Al’s Drive In has been a Chico tradition for 50plus years and we’ve enjoyed them for four decades. it’s just sad to see the quality of their food has gone down so much. Still enjoying their Triple Thick Shakes, hopefully they don’t mess with those!
Note to the owners — Please, please review your business practices before you have no business left. Chico loves Big Al’s and people would be willing to pay a little extra for better quality and service!

This place is what I would call a «gem». It looks like a old, outdated, run down hamburger joint. The food is amazing! And OMG the shakes are life changing! Seriously the toffee shake is indescribably good. The prices are low & service is quick.

Terrible service, they make the burgers in between orders. So you order and they wait until that burger is ready before another order can be taken. I sat in line to order in 100 degree weather for 25 minutes and didn’t get to the window, there was only 2 people ahead of me when I showed up. Get more staff.

This is a joint you go to for the ice cream/​shakes, not the «food.» The burgers and fries have never been that great, but the ice creams are UNBEATABLE. It’s a super cool experience to be able to visit one of the older, classic restaurants in Chico. The walk up window is fun for kids and a different style of ordering. Unfortunately, the current owners are no longer the original ones, so some of the history feels like it’s been lost, but they keep up with the same menu and traditions as before. Check it out, get a shake, it’s a Chico classic!

Great soft serve cones! Yum! Fun atmosphere.

I’m not from Chico and I don’t know the history of Big Al’s. I heard «its not as good since it changed ownership», but I was very pleased with the food and ice cream. I ate here several times and I got a consistently good drive-​in burger (like I’ve been getting since I was kid in the 70’s at places like this), the fries were very good, the shakes were super thick and tasty (and they had a large selection of flavors). Their prices were very reasonable and service was always pleasant. So it may not be «as good as they were» in the past, but honestly I thought they were very good and would without hesitation recommend to anyone.

My review is for the soft serve ice cream. We walked over here around 10 pm on a Saturday. The place was packed. The lot displayed some classic cars. There was a sort of HAPPY DAYS feel which was great. We ordered our cones inside because the lines outside were crazy long. 5 of us had lovely soft serve cones for 6 bucks. I heard the cones used to be way bigger before the new managers took over. I get it and am okay with a smaller serving. The counter helpers were friendly and hustling and I’m so happy we had dessert here.

Growing up in Chico this was the place to go for a great burger and fries. Not anymore. Sadly it went here for lunch today and not only did it have to wait for 20 minutes to get my order it was wrong. The person taking it didn’t get it right, my soda was tea, the large fries were not even cooked completely, not to mention the size of anyone elses small — not worth the sharing they were ment to be and when it was bagged not all my food was there.
Sad to say but I don’t think I’ll be returning anytime soon.

The burgers are good but the shakes! the Shakes are godly! i mean a sugar overload but what do you expect from a shake? LOL the choices of flavors and everything is the best!!! i love getting marshmallow and butter scotch btw!

Tryed Big Al’s today. 1^st time since new owners took over. They cleaned up the place, new tables inside and more organized. I had a burger basket with fries and a drink. Bland burger and they never asked if onions or not. I got them not a fan should have told them or they should have asked. Different fries no skin on them and bland. It’s not what it used to be. Back to the Oasis or In and out. Sorry big Al, you need to improve.

They have one of the best ice-​cream sundaes. Fresh whip cream, with hot fudge and a cherry. Simply and delicious.

This was official my 2^nd and last time I’m going to big Al’s. I like to give a places 2 chances to impress, this place didn’t impress me either time I tried it. The service was definitely the worst part of big Al’s, the food was a close second. I got a cheese burger basket and a drink and it was roughly 9 dollar, burgers and brew in downtown Chico is cheaper, and far better.

Use to be my favorite place when I was in high school.
Went today after not going since May and they changed a lot of things. I like that they no longer use Styrofoam cups! However the service was terrible. The girl taking our order was too busy paying attention to someone else behind the counter and when she finally took it she flubbed it up. We were missing items, they gave me the wrong shake (they corrected the first two things) and then after we got home realized that they messed up our order even more :-\
Super upsetting as I took my mom who is visiting from out of town (she use to LOVE big als) n she couldn’t even finish her food. Now she says she’ll never go back.
I hope maybe this is just some transition stage and they’ll get it back together soon.
Ps… How are you going to put a bubble lid on a milkshake without putting whip cream in there?! :-(

It feels like an old school burger joint. The food is good, the prices are pretty good, and the menu is pretty big. I rather enjoy sitting down and eating inside despite the fact that it feels like it hasn’t changed at all since it opened.
The shakes are amazing.

If big AL can’t make a good burger we must be near the end of civilivation as we know it
The burger is perfect for a drive in burger.
Civilization had been saved.

Love this old fashioned drive in for the charm & best soft serve in town!
You don’t come here to eat healthy, but you do leave happy :)