Chato’s Mexican Restaurant

Had a hankering for Mexican food. Asked a local and he recommended Chatos. Was not disappointed! Chili relleno was fantastic and house marg was delicious. Waiter was super friendly and made it a pleasure to dine there.

Had to make a late night decision and decided to give this place a try. Really glad we tried this. 3 of us enjoyed our meals very much. Good service too. Only slight negative is the salsa was very spicy.

Been driving by this place for the past 3yrs and finally made it in joined by another couple. After wrestling the winterized door open, we entered a patron quiet yet loudly ornate establishment. The greeter/​server was kind and the place was clean –But so far so good.
Nice warm chips and spicy salsa to start. We ordered and got our food promtly. Their chicken fajitas came sizzling and the sides of guac and fixins appeared abundant.
Then came my Burrito Colorado w standard sides of rice and beans. The chunks of beef were well seasoned and not too chewy. Rice/​beans were meh. The sauce was okay but overall the meal was a bit salty. Not memorable but still edible.
My wife got the Super Burrito and it was Super indeed. She had ground beef and seemed to enjoy it. Plenty of guac and sour cream on top w melted cheese all over. I sampled a bit of the ground beef and to be honest is not what I would have liked (BTW– I’m a Mexican). But she ate the whole thing and for a tiny girl that is not the biggest fan of Mexican food, I am still a bit baffled of it all. Overall, she says her meal was average and ultimately I would have to agree as it sums up the rating with dining experience as well.
The meal was enjoyable and the company was great so based on all the above, it is difficult for me to agree with some of the older comments and poor ratings. They seem to have come a long way from 2013 experiences.
If the stereotypical, classic, Mexican/​American dining is your thing then this place is for you. Not a bad thing or negativism, just not exactly homemade or authentic enough for my taste.

The food didn’t taste that great. The chicken tasted like kind from a can. The servers seemed eager to get us out of the restaurant. I don’t know if it’s just their personalities but they didn’t seem friendly. Perhaps hiring a hostess who smiles and treats customers great would help this place.

The waiter was rude and seemed extremely bothered we asked for another basket of chips.
The food is pre-​made, brought in frozen and microwaved. Nothing authentic about this place.
If you want low end so called Mexican and bad service this is for you.
If you want real Mexican food look else where.
This was the second and last time to give this place a try.

Excellent food, service, ambiance, and MARGARITS! I’m glad we stopped here for lunch on our way to Durango. The Shrimp Fajita Salad was amazing!

My second attempt to eat here and not worth the wait. I’m not going to bash this place because everyone’s opinion is different, but I will say this. The chipolte chicken enchilada dish you should not try. It tastes like thousand island dressing with chipolte sauce mixed in it poured on top of the enchilada. I can eat almost anything but not this.

Stopped in with the family while on vacation everyone liked everything service was fast we don’t have much Mexican food like this in Montana

Chato’s is a good place. It does have great décor and fast service. The choices are bountiful and filling. The prices are cheap. It does have the perception that it is always crowded but when you go there at the early afternoon it is not full at all. Parking is not an issue. I had the super burrito and it’s off the main road that goes through Pagosa Springs. The waiter was quite polite and it was very appreciative that he was on top of things.

Traveling through by myself and thought the place looked good. It was near closing time and the place was nearly empty. This was Oct. 2012. I don’t remember the dish’s name but it had a really delish cream sauce. See picture.

What kind of palette do the other reviewers have? This place is average «run of the mill» Mexican. Staff is friendly and efficient; service great. Unfortunately, the only redeeming value is the salsa: lots of flavor and a kick, like true salsa should be. The chorizo burrito was very basic and too salty –and I use more salt in my cooking than I should. Everything else bland; the pic of the beans is the one I took to gauge the look of the food.

If the salsa had been better, this would easily have been a 4 star review. Salsa extremely peppery — in a biting way — not flavorful. My dinner companion likes really spicy and he didn’t even like this salsa. Just an odd overly peppery salsa. Chips were good!
I ordered their Arroz con Pollo (and mushrooms with special sauce) — and it was different than I had expected (when I order it in other Mexican restaurants) but I was pleasantly surprised and it was EXCELLENT. Lots of chicken, lots of mushrooms and the sauce was great. Would definitely order again.
My dinner companion ordered the fajita salad with steak and it was good. He was slightly disappointed that it was iceberg and not mixed greens as the menu stated but he still really liked it.
Our service was very good. We went on a Saturday night and it wasn’t busy. Prices are a bit high but would still recommend.

My first impression of this restaurant was that the décor was very… festive. Pretty over the top. The restaurant was practically empty which could be a bad sign but it was a little early because we were dining with three kids. Our waiter was not super friendly. He was kind of indifferent. One of the kids spilled a water and while we were obviously trying to clean it up he came with out with our food and was trying to set it down in the middle of us wiping it up. The hostess was very pleasant and helpful though. The food was alright. The shredded beef chimichanga was good — the meat had a lot of flavor. The beans were very salty! And the ground beef looked like it should have been served at Taco Bell — pretty greasy. I’m from NM and picky about my Mexican food and this place was just okay.

While I couldn’t rate this place a solid four relative to the Mexican food in my hometown, it stands up pretty well in Pagosa Springs. The food was good, though spicy. The portions were a good size. The prices were a little high, but not too high for a vacation spot. We ate here on a Wednesday during spring break week, and we were immediately seated. The service was a little slow considering the place was almost empty. I ordered a chipotle burrito and the size was good. It was pretty spicy, even for someone who likes spicy food and eats a lot of it. My wife and son split the steak fajitas, and there was plenty of food for the two of them. Overall, we had a pleasant experience, and we will probably be back the next time we’re in town.

Cute ambiance. Decent service. Food was a bit pricey. Had the huevos rancheros. They were okay. Didn’t get the whole beans I ordered but instead the refried. Liked the cabbage that came with the chips the best.

Food was excellent, the seafood chimichanga was awesome! Best one I ever had. The are open late 11 on Friday and Saturday, which is unusual in Pagosa springs. Even though we got there after ten the treated us awesome and the staff was great

Really good service. Friendly staff. Food is decent price a little on the pricy side but really good food. Great for families!

Excellent heaping bowl of tortilla soup. Husband liked his veggie burrito. Giant portions. Decent chips and salsas. Reasonably priced (at least at lunch time, when we ate). Excellent value for money. Good service.

Was ok not great The queso is like ballpark cheese sauce Not the type of mexican food I’m used to. I had chicken enchilada and it was so so