Mama Tios Mexican Restaurant

I walk here to eat lunch fairly often. For the downtown area, it’s a budget-​friendly option with pretty fast service. The help yourself chips with both mild and hot sauce makes getting those chips to your table faster. It’s an older place, the food is consistently pretty good, and the prices are consistently fair for the quantity. The Wednesday lunch buffet is really good. Love the Taco Tuesday, too. You should do yourself a favor and try one or more of their daily lunch specials.

This is pretty close to me, but every time I intend to go, I end up across the street instead. I am glad I finally gave them a try!
The food is seasoned well. Not bland like most of the tex-​mex type places you find around town.
I didn’t care for the self serve chip area. Just made me wonder how many children run up there putting their hands all over everything. The chips tasted like they were out of a bag, but not bad. I really enjoyed the salsa options. Normally places have a great tasting mild and a hot that is ok. Both salsas here had great flavor and the hot had just the right amount of spice.
I have tried a taco, a tostada, and a enchilada. all good. The taco meat is well seasoned. I want to go back and give their taco burger a try! The tostada had a nice fresh tomato slice on top and crisp fresh lettuce. The enchilada had a brown sauce that was amazing. Their beans are also good.
The margaritas are poured with a nice amount of tequila, but specify a brand as the house tequila is a nasty one that give you that gut rot bad tequila feel. A drinkable house tequila is much needed, or at least a warning to order a better quality.
The place is a bit of a dive, it’s been there for decades, but I didn’t see it as being dirty as noted in the other reviews. Maybe they have cleaned up since the previous reviews being there haven’t been many recent.
Prices are good. Service is friendly. Give them a try, I think it is one of the better tex-​mex style restaurants.

Only visited 1 time, in 2010, off all my years of seeing it, i decided to gamble. THE FOOD. meh. THE LEGACY, LEGENDARY. I may go there for a beer soon, any place that has stayed on 80^th and paseo since the 1970s, and keeps it’s lites on after dark, kudos to that. it’s like a time warp mainly, i feel as i enter i should have shoulder length feathered hair and a jean jacket, and a john holmes moose-​stache. its a tiny lil room, basically 1 room, with an even tinier bar area, oh yea the manager was very appreicative when i was leaving, and the former owner (may he rip) mark mccoy was a credit to the area, i hear.

It’s authentic and the taste so amazing. I didn’t know what to expect when I pulled up because it looked like a whole in the wall but it’s such a laid back place. I just love it!

Yes, this is a little hole-​in-​that wall place. But, it is relaxed and very casual. Feels like anybody belongs and my 5 yr old son recognized the real version of Mama Tio from the menu. Easy place to take kids and just hang out. The food is really good and they give you a lot of it! If you are not too uptight or prissy-​prissy, then you will enjoy this. Plus! Its right in our neighborhood!

Excellent lunch menu… fresh, hot and very friendly place.

This place was pretty bad
The service was scattered
The food was disgusting. I was hoping when i stopped eating about a third of the way thru my meal that i wouldn’t get sick (I didn’t)

I haven’t visited the new one yet, so I’m basing this entirely on the original on Paseo. This place is a complete dive and even though I live and love downtown, I wouldn’t go there except for lunch time.
The food is good and the portions are enormous for the cost. Is there better Mexican out there, more than likely, but very good. The self-​service chip and salsa bar are convenient and kept fresh all the time. I usually go for enchiladas or a burrito of some form, but I haven’t been disappointed in the food or the portions. Finally, for the good, as a dive bar there are several TV’s around and they’re always playing whatever sports happen to be on at any given time.
So, why the low rating? Like I said, this place is a DIVE! It is filthy inside and the bathrooms are so bad I couldn’t even walk in without choking. I’ve never had a menu that wasn’t sticky and covered in salsa or cheese. I’m not sure any amount of 409 and windex would clean this place to an acceptable state. How they pass health inspections blows my mind, but clearly they do. That all applies to the customer areas, what I’ve seen of the kitchen looks organized and presentable and of all the times I’ve been, no one in my group has ever gotten any form of food poisoning — so I can’t imagine the kitchen is as filthy as the rest of the restaurant.
Would I recommend it? For people that aren’t critical of restaurant cleanliness, sure. However most people will probably be pretty grossed out. But, this is a local business with good food and pretty cheap. So there it is, take it or leave it.

I had a group buy coupon and was in the mood for Mexican. However, would settle for Tex-​Mex. I usually just drag my roomie with me and say we eating somewhere. She saw the name and tried to order a Horchata. I told her it wasn’t «that» Mexican. lol
We decided to share a Mama Feast (beef burrito, beef taco, beef enchilada, cheese enchilada, bean tostada, beans, rice, small guacamole) She didn’t like the beef and I wasn’t thrilled with it. Salsa was what I expected, runny.
Service was friendly and fast. Menu were super dirty and rommie said restroom, not. She said she would not return. I didn’t see anything to return to either.

Bare bones, and a dive. A hole in the wall on Paseo and 80^th street, with a parking lot, or you can just as easily park on the street. It’s about the only thing on 80^th and Paseo, and worth the drive. It’s been at this location for atleast 20 years. You enter, sit down, order, and get your own chips, which are under a warmer, along with hot or mild sauce. I chose mild. They have a buffet option, but I’ve never had it.
I had a Spreesy coupon, and took my mom with me. We both had the enchilada, taco, chalupa, and rice lunch special for 5.92. I had iced tea. My mom didn’t score a drink so easily, they didn’t have any decaf coffee.
We were brought our food rather quickly. We did have time to admire the cool tables, with Mexican Pesos and Mexican dollar bills encased in resin. The portions were huge, and I got down to the last of the servings, which was the chalupa, and I had to bring it home. The rice was good, and I recommend it.
Great price for the portions. The service is friendly but we didn’t know who to pay, duh… pay at the bar. If I’m in the area, I’ll go back. They have Mexican ice cream on the menu. Dumb me, didn’t order it, but I was too full. That will be a memorable mistake, I think.

WARNING… Wear sweats or expandable pants when you go. My burrito was bigger than my son when he was born. The self serve chips rock and the salsa is perfect. We have been going there for years. You can walk in anytime on a Friday or Sat night and there is always one more table. Also during the day they have a awesome buffet. If you go you will be hooked. I think the child size burrito is about $ 10.00 and will stuff 4 people. I wouldnt recommend going if you have a big night planned to go dancing or something active. You wont make it:)

A great Mexican restaurant that has stood the test of time. Great lil hole-​in-​the-​wall. Has a pit of chips you get yourself. The portions are HUGE & you’ll be taking home at least ½ of what you order.
I recommend the Chicken Markel :)