Cielito Lindo Mexican Restaurant

Made ra group reservations for New Year’s Eve multiple days in advance. Show up for the meal and they tell us there was a mistake and they didn’t have room. No phone call or notice. Most unprofessional.

First time visit and I enjoyed my evening. The food was good. I had a chimichanga with beef. The order was accurate and tasted good.
I had a margarita that looked very odd. It was not green or gold. It was brownish. I thought they had mixed my order up but it was correct. First ever lime margarita that was brown. It did taste good, though.
The service was good. The staff was attentive and friendly. The only thing is they did not fill up our chip bowl. I went with a large group and when we finished our chips, that was the end. Again, unusual.
The checkout system was interesting, too. The check comes to the table and then you pay at the booth by the door. I am just not used to that system at a Mexican restaurant.
Good food, great service, off-​colored drinks and nice establishment. Highly recommended.

This place sucks. Is there any real mexican food in Lawrence or am I doomed to eternal Texmex.

My favorite mexican restaurant in town! Always love going here, especially when the weather gets nice so we can sit on the patio and enjoy a margarita!

Until they get rid of this bartender I have to give It one star. She had headphones in. I tried to get her attention three times and I never got her attention because she was wearing headphones. I love the service and the food for the most part, but how can they let a waitress wear headphones while on her shift? It’s ridiculous

Huge inside, good place for groups, though paying can make for a long line. Tamales have a nutmeggy taste — very good, Chile relleno is good enough. Last time ordered a huge shrimp burrito covered in white sauce… mmm. I tried the horchata, and it was a bit too «spicy» for me, compared to others I’ve had. Be careful coming on weekend nights, busy and sometime there are too many birthdays (singing and sombrero)!

This place would have received another star if the service was better. I was warned about the service before I went here so the problem must be pervasive.
On the flip side, if this place did not have a big patio it would have received only one star. The patio was great and the reason I decided to try this place.
Being seated outside was fast and simple. It took A LONG TIME for a server to come by and drop off some chips and water. It then took A LONGER TIME to get an order taken. Our order was simple. A burrito and a taco.
We then waited A VERY LONG TIME for our dinner to come. There was two points in the evening, one before my order was taken and one before my food came where I set a timer and if it had gone off I would have left and walked to Chipotle. I have never contemplated doing that before. That is how slow this place was.
When my food came, it was not hot. You could tell that it was once hot but had been sitting out for so long that it had become not hot. That was just as disappointing as the slow service.
The food was very standard Mexican American food. A plate of rice, some tortillas filled with stuff topped with cheese and put under a broiler or microwaved to melt the cheese. This is not a fancy operation. Their green sauce had a good taste. Would have been better if it was hot.
To be blunt — there is no reason to go here except to sit on the patio and get a beverage which means its only a viable place to go 7 or 8 months out of the year. There are plenty of other places that have equal or better mexican food and all have to have better service. I will not suggest going here again unless its for an outside drink.

Best patio in Lawrence. Great place to come with friends when the weather is nice and enjoy a margarita and some Tex-​Mex. the food and drinks are good but far from exceptional, I come for the patio more than anything.
Margaritas are pretty typical but you can get generous portions or pitchers which is nice for a night with friends. The food is underwhelming. Nothing to brag about but not distasteful either. Wait staff is kind and attentive.

Cielito makes me so happy. When you need your greasy Tex-​Mex, they’re there for you!
Their chips (complimentary) taste fresh and come with individual bowls of salsa, which I really appreciate! They’ll bring you hot salsa upon request.
Their cheese sauce is exactly what you need. It’s creamy and savory and oh goodness, I could just eat chips & queso & margaritas all day.
I highly recommend the burrito arandas. It comes with your choice of protein (including shrimp!) and all the fixin’s (including guac!) and is slathered in their cheese sauce.
Margaritas are standard, and made with a mix. They usually have some size margarita on special, so go for that one!
The patio is also wonderful, definitely «Lawrence’s Best Patio!» It’s a great place to drink your marg on a hot day.
They are also happy to split checks. You pay at the front and just tell the cashier which items are yours. Good news for big groups!
I do not recommend their «basic» Mexican food, which mostly comes from the combination menu. I mean the stuff like «chalupa», «tamale», «tostado», etc. It’s not very interesting and not very good tasting. Order from the more interesting part of the menu where they actually describe the food!
The biggest downside is the service. They’re nice enough, but often forget stuff, like I usually ask for corn tortillas instead of flour, and they still bring me flour tortillas about half the time. The service is worse on the patio, which makes a little sense since they can’t see your water or chip bowl is empty.

We ate here for the first time in August 2013 while in the midst of moving, so I did not have time to write a review. I recently returned for some follow-​up visits and now provide my candid opinions.
The restaurant is large and the service pretty good. It reminds me of a real Mexican cantina inside with colorful décor and an open feel with a balcony on the second floor overlooking the dining room. The patio in front is large and inviting on a mildl day or evening and Cielito Lindo has been named the 2014 BEST OF LAWRENCE «Best Outdoor Dining» spot, a great place to have a drink, appetizer, and/​or meal with friends and family.
The margaritas are decent, both on-​the-​rocks and blended, but compared to most places in town they are overpriced unless you can catch a special as we did recently ($ 12.99 for a pitcher on a Sunday night).
The chips are abundant and appear homemade and the salsa one of the best I have fond in Lawrence. The guacamole ($ 3.99 for a «regular») is reasonably sized and not bad, containing tomatoes as is the norm in many restaurants and a faux pas in my eyes. The regular queso blanco (white cheese dip — $ 3.99) comes in a similar size bowl, but was lukewarm and runny, not thick enough to cling to a chip and making quite a mess on the table and my clothes as I attempted to get it from bowl to mouth.
The tacos and enchiladas are adequate, yet boring. Tacos are tasty enough, coming in small, prefab shells and the small cheese and onion enchiladas are bland with little melted cheese. The chili relleno’s are well done, coming with plenty of cheese in a large chili surrounded by fluffy egg, but again the sauce was lacking flavor. Tostadas, which are hard to mess up, are OK, nothing special. Combinations are reasonably priced ($ 7.99) and ala carte items can be mixed and matched for a cost effective meal.
The carnitas appeared underwhelming at first look after arrival, but were crispy, well seasoned, and delicious pork tips that when pulled apart (as most restaurants serve them) filled the four corn tortillas that accompanied the meal ($ 10.49). I asked the waiter if the dish came with guacamole and pico di gallo before ordering, and he assured me it did, but when the plate arrived there was barely enough guac for one taco and zero pico di gallo. The rice and beans were flavorful and good. Some canned jalapeños topped the dish for some unknown reason with little value added.
In conclusion, Cielito Lindo is comparable to the other mediocre Mexican restaurants in Lawrence, all of which fail in comparison to some of my favorite spots in Mexico, California, and Texas.
CombatCritic Gives Cielito Lindo 5 Bombs Out of 10 … MORE BOMBS ARE GOOD!

The food is incredible and consistent… This is our go-​to in town for a special night out or just a Thursday when the weather is nice and we don’t want to cook. We love their fajitas, their chorizo and their green sauce are both uniquely good. The service can be spotty — definitely depends who you get. Ask for Ray and you’re likely to have a good experience!