Uncle Julio’s Fine Mexican Food

I used to consider Uncle Julio’s in Grapevine to be a somewhat upscale restaurant, but in the last year or so it has become very pedestrian. However it still has upscale prices. On our visit this past weekend the seating was very slow, 1 hour, while empty tables sat un-​bussed for quite a while. No sense of urgency. The waiter forgot to bring our appetizer. I would have reminded him if he had ever checked on us prior to the end of our meal. He was also clearing the table while my wife was still eating. Felt like we were getting the Bums Rush. The food was good, but expensive for what it was. It cost about $ 70 for two, with tip, but it felt like a $ 45 experience. I hope they get their act together. They have lost me as a customer. I think I’ll try Mi Dia.

Delicious food and drinks. It is on the expensive side. Drinks are around $ 10 non happy hour. To go can be spotty at best for service. Sometimes better to come for a drink and order and wait for your to go order

We had a delicious lunch today! Plato Gordo has a little bit of everything delicious. If you have a chance, ask for Jasmine. She is an outstanding server! This is my favorite place to eat. I call it «my happy place. »

I don’t know how this place only has 3 stars. Besides the menu being a little pricey, the food is always so great! Queso and Salsa are one of my favorites in DFW area, and the margaritas are so fresh… even the house! I haven’t been able to find a margarita that tastes as good in the surrounding area. Sit in the bar during happy hour for good prices on appetizers. Also suggest using their loyalty program…1 point for every dollar you spend and after a couple trips you will have a $ 25.00 credit and it gets better from there. Wait on Friday and Saturday nights are longgggg so show them your loyalty card and they will put you at the top of the waiting list!

Pretty good Tex-​mex food, but a little pricey. This outing we came only for a special dessert for my daughter’s birthday. Somehow they have concocted a chocolate piñata. Yes that’s right, a chocolate piñata. It is new on their menu and pretty cool. It only took about 7 minutes after we ordered and out came out sever, the manager, and head cook. (I’m assuming they haven’t sold many yet since its new and all wanted to come see it being delivered and broken into.). It was really cool and came on a huge serving trey. My daughter received a big wooden stick and got to whack it until it broke.
Inside the piñata was pineapple, raspberries, blackberries, and tons of churro. On the serving dish was huge amounts of made-​in-​house whip cream and the bowls of caramel. Everything was really good, but my favorite was pineapple with caramel and whip cream. The dish is huge so have at least 5 adults or lots of kids if you hope to finish it. Also, it was $ 20 so, for us at least, only a special occasion.
Server was great. We got sat by a nice big roaring fire. Everything was really good. Have been many times in the past and food is always good.
Only negative of uncle julios is the price. Plan to have a high check. You definitely should give it a try!

Uncle Julio’s is one of those chain restaurants which advertises itself as «Fine Mexican Food», yet it seems like the only thing Mexican about it is the name «Julio», and possibly parts of the décor and background music. Julio’s is one of those disappointments you sometimes come across when you go out to eat, where you vow you will never go back again, yet in a year or two (in a geriatric moment) you vaguely remember not being there in a while and impulsively decide to go back… only to be disappointed AGAIN. Tonight was no exception…
The folks and I ordered the «new» seared ahi tuna fajitas and chicken Cobb salad. On paper, these items LOOK like a good idea — seared ahi tuna, served on a bed of julienned zucchini, carrots, and yellow squash, with lettuce wraps and a side of mango and jicama slaw, while the salad was diced grilled chicken with avocado, greens, roasted corn, black beans, tomatoes, and some «3 pepper ranch» dressing… so yeah, it LOOKED good, but the taste was anything but…
The tuna was HEAVILY spiced and hit you like you were biting into a salty peppercorn every time. The veg was cooked at one point but was cold and tasteless, while the slaw didn’t even offer any sweetness, just a hint of acidity and no taste whatsoever. The only taste I got was from the side of garlic aioli (which by the color had some sort of chipotle component), but that did little to mask the too strong pepper and overly salted taste that was embedded on the nearly raw tuna. The «fajitas» came with a very limited number of Bibb lettuce wraps (3) and all of them woefully small (one the size of a half dollar!), meaning I spent as much time cleaning aioli off my hands as I did eating. As for the salads — once again, no taste whatsoever. My dad went through not only his side of dressing, but also my mom’s, JUST so that he’d be able to taste SOMETHING!
The ONLY saving grace was our waitress who took care of us and the slightly disgruntled 4-​some in the booth further down who hassled her over some order issue. That is the ONLY reason this place has more than 1 star from me!
The only pull this place has is for people who show up to drink alcohol and not care what the food tastes like because this AIN’T Mexican or even Tex-​Mex. The prices are way above and beyond what they should be (over 20 bucks for ANY KIND of fajitas, and almost that much for a salad). My suggestion — go to a non-​chain Mexican restaurant, spend a quarter or what you would here, and enjoy some decent TASTY Mexican food and beer! Julio’s is overpriced, tasteless wanna-​be Mexican cuisine which attempts to be more upscale and colorful than what it should be — GOOD, TASTY FOOD!

Excellent service, and the tastiest chips and salsa I’ve had, ever. The chips are fresh, and thin. The salsa has a smoky taste and is absolutely delicious.

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I had the chicken fajita’s and they were delicious. This place is more expensive than your typical tex mex restaurant. I shared with my 4 yr old daughter and still had plenty left over. Our server was a little slow, but nothing terrible.

Awesome service. We were 22 people and they accommodated us even though the restaurant was closing.
Their service guys James and Keenan were awesome.
They have great food and awesome attitude.
Thanks for making our day.

Uncle Julio’s is a favorite of ours for taking friends from out of town to dinner. They have plenty of seating so the wait is never too long, not to mention some pretty killer margaritas. (Including their famous Swirl which is a regular frozen margarita mixed with sangria). The chips and salsa are great, their flour tortillas are made fresh, and the fajitas are consistently delicious.
My friend from Canada was in town, so I brought her here to load her with Tex Mex as any good Texas woman should. I didn’t realize she had a corn allergy so we skipped the chips, but the rest of the meal was fine.
We shared the chicken fajitas for two ($ 34) which comes with a heaping mound of garlicky chicken along with two separate plates of all the fixings (guacamole, sour cream, pico, cheese, lettuce, rice, and beans) and fresh tortillas. They asked us if charro beans were okay or if we wanted to substitute them for refried. Her face lit up never having heard of charro beans before (stewed beans) so we stuck with those and they were packed full of flavor.
Everything was great as usual including the service. We only had a ten minute wait and the food was on our table in under 15 minutes when they had a full house. Though they are a tad on the pricey side, I highly recommend giving them a try. I have never ordered anything besides the fajitas, but of all the people we’ve brought no one has left disappointed.

Only if you live in a state without an Uncle Julio’s can you truly appreciate this place.
Most of the bad reviews are from Texans who have so many fucking Tex-​Mex options that they can afford to be snot-​nosed nitpick critics. But for the REST OF US, who don’t have an Uncle Julio’s nearby, coming here and ordering the fajitas is a religious experience.
Go here, order the fajitas, sit back and come in your pants. Because the meats, the house-​made soft, pillowy-​flour tortillas, the pico, the salsa and the chips are THAT GOOD.
I will go back to my home state and dream about these fajitas.
The rest of you bitching and moaning about Uncle Julio’s, well, let me know where else you can get those pillow soft tortillas, perfectly seasoned fajitas and roasted tomato salsa.
I’ll await your response.

Not really impressed with this place. I wouldn’t make the drive out of the way to come eat here. It was nice sitting in the patio but like the previous review, you are kind of invisible when you’re sitting out there. You literally have to wave down your waiter for literally every little thing (water, refills, orders, hot sauce, Togo box, check, etc). Keep in mind it wasn’t busy or anything the waiter was just standing around talking to another waiter on the far end closest to the doors.
We ordered the large order of guacamole which was pretty good since it came out fresh and chunky the way I liked it. The chips and salsa were eh. I ordered the lobster and shrimp soup and for the price I got 3 bites from it and it was definitely not worth it. There was micro bits of lobster and 2 tiny shrimp. Very bland. The strip steak fajitas needed a little bit more seasoning. The meat was really tender. Ahi tuna tacos was probably the best dish out of everything.

So aside from being intrigued by the chocolate piñata, nothing here stood out. There guacamole and taco salad were generous, tasty, and pretty to look at but I wouldn’t make a special trip for it. The place was crowded but wait time was surprisingly short. Kind of loud here though. That’s my only complaint.

Came in and got seated right away. Our server brought out individual salsas and some chips. Ordered the table-​side guac and that was great. They make it right in front of you and they add what you want in it.
I ordered the Sizzling Mesquite Shrimp from the lunch menu. Lots of other items on the menu as well. Shrimp was decent. Very filling for lunch.

I did a take-​out dinner from this location tonight and everything was perfect. TO-​GO counter area staff was well trained and courteous, he checked the food with me to make sure everything was correct in the TO-​GO bag before I left. The food was delicious too!

Not my first time here. Usual place I meet my brother and his wife several times a year for Sunday Brunch.
We chose to sit outside on the patio. Arriving first with my kids, we sat at our table for 5 almost 10 minutes before we say a flicker of a waiter. Then it was as if we were invisible. I had to go inside and ask for a 2^nd waiter (more experienced) and chips. Who has every heard of a Mexican restaurant where chips don’t pop on your table w/​in moments of sitting, let alone water.
The manager (after my request for another waiter) came around and assured me someone would be with us shortly (this is now about 15 – 20 min after we sat). Another waiter showed. Took our drink orders (had to asked secondarily for water). Extended time, she reappeared with 3 out of 5 drink orders correct. Them promptly while serving tipped an entire glass of water on my daughter. But it get’s better, she didn’t offer to help wipe up.
After about 30 –35 min same waitress showed up to take our food order. Food came out about 15 min later (slow compared to previous times). Again order was about 70% correct. Each time we needed a tea/​water refill we had to waive down the waiter. The second time she refreshed our beverages, she again promptly tip a glass or water (yes a 2^nd time) on my brother’s lap. Again, apologies but not offer to help clean up or bring another glass or water.
We finished our less than average lunch and again waited about another 10 min after asking for our check.
Sadly, we never saw the manager again — received no comps for the 2x water spill.
Service was so shockingly bad, I began to think that it was on purpose since I had made the mistake early on asking for another (more seasoned) waiter.
With all the great restaurant’s in Southlake, move on. Or be sure to — wear waterproof clothing, and bring your own chips and water — hahahaha.
Uncle Julios — shame on you as well a the «manager» you have in charge of this location.

Worst experience ever!!! We waited over 30 minutes and never got our food. We only ordered fajitas, should have been out in less than 10 minutes. Tables that were sat well after us got their food in a timely manner. The server never refilled our drinks and never checked on us. Only after we asked for a
Manager did he come by to say it wasn’t his fault. When we finally decided to leave, the manager would never come talk to us. She hid in the kitchen while the hostesses tried to calm everyone down. We weren’t the only ones with issues. Worst management ever!!! We will never be back to this restaurant. Mi Chula is just down the road, has the same food and great service. Too many restaurants around to waste your time or money here!

Having heard a lot of great things about this place decided to try it out. Came here on a Friday night and got seated right away. Greg was our waiter and he was nice enough but wasn’t overly attentive and kind of slow. He took our drink orders and ordered some apps. We ordered the queso/​guac combo and it was good but it could have been better. The chips were good but they were a little to thin for me if that makes any sense. The sangria I had was delicious and I could have had a few more they were so good but a little pricey.
For our entrees I ordered the steak fajita quesadillas which is actually an appetizer. My hubby got the carnitas tacos. The quesadillas were exceptional. They had a slight crunch on the tortilla which I love. They were cheesy and the steak had a nice smokey flavor and was cooked to perfection. The tacos were tasty. The pork was shredded and seasoned well. It came with beans and rice that was also very good.
Overall the food was great but the service and the price of alcohol was not the best. The pride of a sangria and a margarita was almost as much as our entrees. I would definitely go back!

Good margaritas and appetizers. Patio is rather nice. Service staff was friendly but very slow to come clean old stuff off. Waiter spilled half my margarita on himself and still served it too me. In his defense he did go get me a small partial to make up for quantity he was wearing but should of got me a new one.
Then there was a mix up. They brought out an extra one and we just say it down on table. A minute later a different waiter comes back takes it and walked over to another table and served it to another lady. Which this has to be illegal. I thought he was going to take it back and dump it but nope.
Something else a bit off putting is they move quantities of chips around in a trashcan that looks like it was used for trash.
The spicy shrimp appetizer is good. Have habanero in them but couldn’t taste the heat. The table side guacamole is good but not table side of you are on patio. They claimed there is health code reasons they can’t make it for you outside. Funny how they will obey that one but take drinks off your table and serve to someone else seems ok. I started off to give it a 3 star but by time I got down here I reduced to 2 Star thinking on how hazardous the drink thing could of been for someone.

Uncle Julio’s is a solid 3 star restaurant. While they are fancy Tex Mex, the food is mediocre at best. The margaritas (especially the swirl) are pretty yummy. I ordered the chicken enchiladas covered with green sauce (tomatillo, I suppose) and the chicken was quite dry. The sauce wasn’t that great tasting either. We ordered the table side guacamole and it was lacking in salt and flavor, not to mention the tomatoes were not mixed in. I actually had to add salt to it after it was prepared.
Despite the mediocre food, our server was excellent. He was extremely attentive to our large party of 10 and was outstanding. If the food matched the service, then maybe Uncle Julio’s would get a higher rating from me.