Vela’s Restaurant & Lounge

Walked in and out. It was definitely not as described on Unilocal.
Very disappointed. The place had a smell as you walked in, and older crowd and a super loud live band. (Akward)

I really like this place.
The owner always makes my group feel at home and is always friendly to my family. The ambiance is «Joliet Mexican bar,» which increases the feeling of authenticity: plain and unadorned.
The food is really good. The chicken mole is great. Caldo de res was tasty and well-​apportioned. The tortillas seemed fresh. Good beer choices. There are not too many places to get pozole and menudo on the weekends.
I appreciate that they cater to those who want real Mexican food instead of catering to the chimichanga crowd.

I love this place, not much to look at but some of the best mexican i’ve had. The best pozole that i’ve found in town and the chicken mole is awesome. I like the fact that you can order chile reyallnoes (spelling ?) with cheese or ground beef.

Went there after work around 7ish. Macarena was playing in the background, which I thought was funny. Only a few patrons were there at the time. We sat at the bar & got (supposedly their famous) margaritas while waiting for our meal. They were o.k. & kinda tasted like it was made from someone’s house with one of those pre-​mixes. The owner was taking care of business at the bar & while me & my friend ordered different flavored margaritas, the owner gave me one on the house since he was making them the moment we ordered them & the blender had some drink left so that was nice of him. I finally got my steak enchiladas, which had a mass quantity of movie theater cheese all over it. While it was average, I was rather surprised since it was what my friend & the owner recommend. While eating, the owner was talking to us like we were old friends & that made the occasion enjoyable since the food just wasn’t doing it for me.