El Pico Mexican Restaurant

Very good rice and street tacos! They also offer Mexican beer! Price is right and staff are friendly, we will be back.

Great lunch… Taco salad. Super fast service, people are very nice. Place was clean even though they were busy. We just moved in to the neighborhood, so we will be back!

I’ve visited a few times. Quiet place in downtown Independence, interesting décor, fair number of menu options… Imagine it as being Mexican-​Light… A very washed out version of Mexican food. Technically it’s what it says it is, kind of. Light flavor, which can be nice if you don’t want to go into a food coma. Prices are a bit high (guacamole was a tiny amount for the price) and staff is overall nice, though something is missing… Either they take forever, or seem petrified of interacting with you, or it’s so slow they just talk amongst themselves without thinking a guest may need something… So while they are nice, they fall short in some aspect or other. Don’t go in a hurry, nor starving, you’ll be upset and not satisfied. If you want flavor, this is not the place for that. I think the most flavorful items were their tacos a la carte, their platters were ho-​hum… It’s not horrible, we have been there after all about 3 times for various reasons, but mostly because it was near. Not really the place I would make a point to drive to… But I don’t mind it if I’m in the area… Then again, I would not jump of joy and excitement for getting to dine there. Not great, not terrible, ok if I go there, ok if I don’t. 3 stars.

Let me preface this by saying I was visiting from Houston where we really have Tex Mex. I was not expecting much. Chips seemed freshly made. They were not greasy and were crispy. The salsa and quest were great. Unfortunately the fajita steak had no flavor. It totally lacked seasoning and was over cooked. The fajitas included a generous portion of red and green peppers and onions. Service was friendly.

really good mexican food for being on the square. the chimichanga is especially good, the chips and salsa are good to. but the waitresses are slow. the food has that mexican taste of lemon, and is cooked really well.

Do not come here if you are in a hurry. The staff is very friendly they just can’t keep up with the customers. I had the avocado burrito which was very good.
Their chips and salsa are pretty tasty too.

Expect to wait atleast 45 minutes before getting your food. The food was also bland for the most part.

Maybe it’s just me, but I yearn for something really special when I go out to eat. After all, I could have chosen dozens of other places to go, but I selected this one, mainly for it’s location and I have had good luck with Mexican restaurants lately.
My super-​friendly waiter was a tad on the slow side for processing my order and following up after bringing my check but I’ll take friendly any day over an uncaring snob. The décor was fine if not interesting anyway (see pics).
My glass of iced tea was served in a plastic cup. I REALLY REALLY prefer glass. I ordered the 2-​avocado tostada dinner with refried beans and rice. it looked great but was somewhat bland, however… the hot sauce served with the chips prior to the meal was outlandishly good. The GM stopped at my table to see how things were and I did let her know that I really liked the hot sauce. They apparently they roast all the veggies in it before blending it. The flavor is rich and kind of smokey. I asked if chipotle seasoning was in it. She said it was not. I was able to get a small container of it to bring home though, for $ 1.
Prices are reasonable and I might come back to try other items on the menu, so, it didn’t suck by any means.

I am at a loss for words right now from how many stars this place has. My experience was terrible and I don’t plan to ever go back.
The environment is very cool. Small place but very eclectic atmosphere. It was insanely loud though. We could barely hear each other while at lunch.
The service was terrible. It was around noon which is peak time but the place only has 11 tables total. It took 5 – 10 minutes to be greeted, 5 – 10 to get our waters, then 15+ minutes to get the 4 tacos we ordered. We barely saw the servers and they kept disappearing into the kitchen. I think they might have been making the food and serving the tables. We were never given refills and only asked once everything was gone and we had been sitting for 5 minutes waiting for the bill to come.
I don’t even care about service if the food is heavenly and that is far from the words I would use to describe their cuisine. The salsa for the chips and salsa tastes just like spaghetti sauce. Even my guest thought so. We ordered 4 chicken street tacos and they were good. Not great. Nothing special about them. I didn’t care but my guest was extremely underwhelmed by them.
Overall I give them less than 1 star. I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone. I feel like they should go visit some other restaurants and really learn about service and culinary excellence.

Dropped in to El Pico with the family for dinner last night; we live not too far from the square, and had been meaning to check it out for some time (especially because there were several rave reviews here). Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to the reviews; and was a little pricey as well. The service was … competent, although I got the feeling our server was new and a little nervous. Chips and salsa weren’t brought until –after– we ordered our meal, which seemed unusual. Chips were especially salty, and salsa was nothing to write home about — tasted like it came from a jar somewhere. I ordered the steak street tacos with a side of guac, which were pretty disappointing — small, and the steak was poor quality and not cooked well enough to make up for it, and the $ 2.50 side of guac was –maybe– two tablespoons.
My wife ordered the pork chimi, which was fantastic; it’s the only reason this review is 3 stars (and the fact that I can’t give 2 ½). The kids enjoyed their quesadillas, but it’s hard to mess up melted cheese and tortillas. The rice with the meal seemed like salted instant white rice with a handful of peas and carrots mixed in, but the refried beans weren’t bad.
Overall, the food was just pretty average, and seemed priced a little high for what we got. It was somewhat better than some of the greasy spoon Tex-​Mex joints in Independence, but not worth the 4 and 5-​star reviews it’s getting here. I mostly found myself wishing we’d gone for pizza on the next block over for dinner instead, and if I want –good– Mexican I’ll drive out to Blue Springs … but if I’m ever with someone else who wants to go to El Pico, I won’t try to weasel out of it, either.

This is a crazy hidden gem in Independence. The atmosphere is adorable. I love the new outdoor porch seating. The wait staff is always sweet and prompt (well, always in my two trips there). The food tastes amazingly fresh. I’m kind of used to greesy cheese puddles but El Pico is so far from that. The salsa is unique and kind of garlicy. Guac is amazing. They have a few avocado options. (I can’t swear vegan, but I’m guessing vegetarian?) And the prices are super reasonable. El Pico is my new favorite Mexican in the entire metro.

I ate here yesterday with some coworkers. Nice atmosphere. Great chips and salsa! I had 3 pork street tacos and rice and beans. Better than most Independence Mexican restaurants. Our server got our order wrong but we shifted items around to make it work. The manager came over on her own and offered to make it right. We explained that it was fine. No worries. But she still reduced my bill a little. That is doing it right! I’m going back today!

Not good.
Beef in the enchilada was extremely dry. Food was not flavorful. Very bland and boring. The refried beans were reheated and not fresh.
The restaurant does great décor, and looks very nice. However, there were only 4 other people in the entire restaurant and the service was VERY VERY slow.
Might give them one more try, but highly unlikely.

I will give only 3 stars for now as I have only eaten there once and I always give a place more than one chance. I always like to try a new place and here is one. Good thin chips, white cheese dip great. Food good but portion size a little small for the price. Disappointed they didn’t have tamales. Will try it again Small places need business to succeed so give it a try.

We enjoyed the atmosphere as soon as we walked in, the server greeted us and it improved steadily from there. Sam our server was attentive and ready to answer our questions and exhibited great patience for our many inquiries. Our girls had the cheese quesadilla and my wife and I shared the combo fajitas; they were awesome! If you enjoy queso dip please give it a go as it was great as well.

I love Mexican food so I had to check out El Pico. My boyfriend and I went for lunch on a Saturday afternoon, we were the only customers there. We both ordered margaritas, our server told us that their ice machine was broken, so all they had was frozen ritas. They totally tasted like the premade mix stuff you can buy at the store. The salsa was really good, while the queso was a little on the bland side. I ordered the chicken taco salad which was also a little bland. My boyfriend ordered a chimichanga, he seemed to enjoy it. The menu was pretty small, most of which were tacos. Also our server was not very friendly. I’m not sure we will be back.

I have driven past this place many times over the past year but could never convince my other half to try it out. FINALLY, he gave in tonight!
We ordered the chicken nachos (as I have been desperately craving them for at least a month) and a chimichanga to split. This was one of the best experiences with mexican food that either of us have ever had.
The nachos came out hot and eye appeasing! Real chunks of grilled chicken topped with the perfect amounts of refried beans, lettuce, pico and cheese. The chimichanga was the best my future husband has ever had in his life. The beans were made perfectly.
The restaurant itself also had an amazingly easy atmosphere. The lighting was just right and everything was sparkling clean. These guys must take real pride in their restaurant. The service was extremely friendly and very punctual. We did not wait long for anything. My margarita was exactly the way it should be, and speedy too! We will definitely be back!

We tried El Pico for the first time back in January of this year. Needless to say this review is long overdue! I remember that we were blown away at how delicious this place was that I left El Pico a note on their facebook page. Basically this will be a review inside a review!
January 18, 2013 — «Douglas and I went to El Pico for the first time last night. Absolutely wonderful. Chips & salsa were right on. I hate salsas that contain too much cilantro. This salsa was perfect. He had the steak street tacos and I had the chicken enchiladas. Both were phenomenal. Everything was very fresh. We can’t wait to try other menu items (because obviously we will be coming back!). Bang for our buck? Right on. Our bill was $ 17 (this is without our tip). You can easily pay that at Subway, Quiznos or other fast food. El Pico is sit down style with a server. We thought this was a great deal. Our server was super friendly and informative. The place looked amazing and super clean. Loved the ambiance. Overall we had a wonderful dining experience and we WILL be back! PS: There is only one review I found online for El Pico. It was incredibly stupid. The items they pointed out were meaningless, overly picky and dramatic. I look at that review as null and void. Don’t listen to it! Everyone needs to try El Pico!»
We’ve been there a couple more times since then. I remember we tried the steak burrito one time and it was so fresh, meaty & flavorful. There is one specific waitress who would wait on us each time. She remembered us not only coming in, but she kindly asked if I was the woman who wrote the nice message on their facebook page! That was really neat that she took notice of that. She said the manager was beaming and really happy that we were satisfied customers. I do not remember her name, but she was always super friendly and kept our chips and drinks coming.
El Pico resides on the Independence Square. Check it out!

At first I was thinking, «Yay! Another Mexican restaurant in Independence. I can’t wait to try it.» NOT! Between all of the Mexican restaurants and thrift stores in this area, well it isn’t pretty. But alas, I digress. Onward…
I’m actually glad we tried it. The chips were outstanding. Fresh, thin, hot, lightly salted and they kept ‘em coming. I would go back just for a chip fix.
My hubby had beef (ground — mixed soft/​hard) tacos and I had the chicken chimichanga. Both came with beans and rice. The food tasted fresh and was presented nicely. By nicely, I mean it didn’t look like a pile of goop was just slapped on the plate.
The service was OUTSTANDING!!! We NEVER had to ask for a refill of our waters or chips. They just did it. They checked on us regularly and it really felt like they wanted us there. Major kudos to them for customer service!
Clean place, solid food, and excellent service. If you live in the area, I would suggest trying it. I’m sure we’ll probably be going back.
FYI — They do serve beer and margaritas now.

I love Mexican food. I love it. So, when a new restaurant opened on the Square. I was excited to try it out.
Now, it took us a good month or so of talking about it before actually making our way through the doors. Every time we drive past the place it was closed. This is reason 1, of 2, for why El Pico only gets 4 stars. Wonky hours. They close at 8 pm most nights.
Regardless, we made our way in for dinner one night. The menu is very limited, or streamlined if you will. So much so, that the beverage options only number 6 or 7, no alcohol (reason 2).
We both ordered the street tacos. These are not classic street tacos! I was a little skeptical as a result. They were chunky and colorful, ribboned with sour cream. Americanized… and delicious!!! The ingredients were so fresh tasting. Both of us said the word «delightful» at least twice during the meal. Our second visit yielded the same results with different dishes (chicken tostadas and a beef burrito).
Pros-​delicious, Mexican-​style cuisine; AWESOME salsa, inexpensive.
Cons-​wonky hours; no margaritas :(
We will be back for sure!