Pancho’s Family Restaurant

nice sunny interior, wonderful service, awesome food! what more do you want? my boyfriend was looking for a place that did a great whole fried catfish and i found this on Unilocal and we love it! he said the catfish was the best he’s had in ages — the breading was not too heavy and flavorful too! hands down the best most flavorful al pastor! so so so delicious! the asada is also amazing! the only thing i thought lacked flavor was the chicken — but who needs it when the al pastor is to die for? tues — fri they have a lunch special of two tacos and beans and rice for a ridiculously low price and the tacos are big enough (plus the free salsa and chips) that it’s enough for a whole meal! go! now! your tummy will be happy you did!

Just ok, Chips are homemade and fresh meal was ok, prices are fair margaritas blah no stars.

I went there for lunch today, and had the skirt steak taco dinner. I found them to be very salty. I did not like the chips and salsa. The margarita was awesome. I really like the atmosphere they had live music that was pretty good. I am going to go back and try this one more time. The service was very good and very friendly. This is truly a neighborhood family Mexican restaurant can’t wait to go back.

If you’re looking for authentic and great tasting Mexican food then look no further. Great portions and prices and friendly staff. Get their guacamole while you’re there!

Had an early evening commitment in Aurora, so as is my norm I looked for a tasty spot to eat and being Aurora I focused in on Mexican. muchas muchas opciones. Conveniently located on E York good Unilocal ratings and a parking lot to boot brought me to Pancho’s and it was positive.
I had the chimichimunga with steak and it was a very good size, and one of the tastiest I’ve had in a long time. The refried beans and rice were both good as well.
The salsa and chips as in the red and green were not thee most tastiest I’ve had but they were good.
My server Adela was polite and efficient and the price was less than expected for a huge chimichimunga.
The going out the door on Pancho’s is it is definitely a place worth going in the door

We have come to Poncho’s many times. The food is always very good, and the prices are reasonable. I would recommend to anyone in the area that likes authentic Mexican food.

This was really a hidden gem. Located at a nondescript strip mall Pancho’s is bringing classic Mexican dishes at a fair price with attentive service. When you sit down, you get 3 different salsas and complimentary chips, along with some chunky pico. Take this time to familiarize yourself with the salsas, these are all home made, and the red had solid heat. Pico was fresh and tasty.
My 3 taco meal had delicious rice on the side. There is clearly some lard in there, but it was so light and fluffy I did’t care. The corn tortillas were very authentic and the chicken was lean, and had been marinating for a long time. This was about 7 $ and I was stuffed when I finished the meal.
Ask for jalapenos, the side of jalapenos was home-​made and cut in to chunky slices. Seems they pickle there own jalapenos and cut them up just for you. This took my tacos to the next level. Service was spot on, I had my drink re-​filled a few times without asking. Meals are served with limes, another plus.
The atmosphere was fun and we had some live music on a Sunday. Very impressed with this place, I’ll be back!

The best steak I’ve ever had at a Fantastic Mexican restaurant. The portions are big, great value, in a clean authentic atmosphere.

Ordered Ponchos for carry out for a late lunch on a Sunday afternoon (3ish) for the first time. I ordered Chicken Fajitas and my sister ordered the Enchiladas (Red). First of all, they forgot to provide the tortillas for my Fajitas. Considering we ordered during non-​peak eating hours this was a surprise to me. The fajitas were ok at best; about ½ chicken and ½ veggies flavored with salt and little of anything else. The Enchiladas were very average (had better). Both dishes were served with bean and rice, both sides were completely bland. The beans looked funny to me, they were light brown — not the color I would expect refried beans to be. Also served on the side was lettuce and an unripe tomato slice.
Will not be ordering from here again.

This restaurant has a very clean and comfortable atmosphere. I was greeted by a male bartender who was super nice. The waitress seemed to be in a big hurry (even tho no one was there). I ordered steak and cheese quesadillas and got enchilladas covered in red sauce, a sauce which I don’t like. She never came back to check on me, but another server did. The enchilladas were surpsiningly good and the chips are the best ever! Despite the waitress, I would definitely come back.

The food was surprisingly better than any Mexican food I’ve ever had. The guacamole was awesome! I don’t eat very much so I think the waitress thought I didn’t like the food but everything I tasted was extremely good. I had the taco soup and my husband had a combination plate… tostadas enchiladas and tamale. I had a bite of each and it was delicious! The chips and pico de gallo that they give you when you first sit down are really good too. I definitely recommend this place if you’re looking to have some good Mexican food.

What a great place to come for excellent Mexican food.
We’ve been coming for years and finally wanted to give this place a shout.
The menu has all you expect but there are some nice surprises like some of the seafood offerings. The menu items we’ve tried all have an authentic flair and are served in generous portions. You get served 4 different salsas and chips upon seating and all are great.
The dinning room is a nice balance of contemporary and traditional and is well maintained and clean. Obviously someone cares about how this place is presented. The staff is always kind and helpful.
Only minus for us is the Thursday/​Friday entrainment is too loud for our tastes but for sure would be fun if you are into live music/​singing while you dine.
There is a great Margarita nite on Wednesday too.
Pancho’s is one of the bests on our list!

Good mexican food and generous portions.
You get what you expect from a family mexican place.
Free Mariachi’s on Wednesdays!

Best mexican restaurant in the western suburbs. The carne asada and enchiladas are our favorites and the husband digs the pico de gallo.

I love Poncho’s! Food is incredible! I could do without the trumpets in my ear… pretty loud… but other than that, its a great place for a date night, or with the whole family.

El Día de la Batalla de Puebla. aka 5 de Mayo. Great first time visit, we were looking for some place to celebrate after mass. We got in as soon as the doors opened at 9am and the server fooled us into thinking she spoke English. Couple things lost in translation but over all, we had a great celebration.
Loved the trifecta of salsa served in the bottles, as apposed to dishs. The chips must be made in-​house daily and were great.
Guacamole was decent too but the Carna Asada a la Tampiquena was super tender and perfect. It was a large portion for $ 12, took half home. The chips, guacamole and salsa filled me up so.
Saw a table order a boat load of Michelada… they must be old school, in thinking the hair of the dog helps. Margarita’s were great and so were the Chicken Quesadillas.
Always a great treat to save 10% on a Unilocal check-​in. Thanks John!

Clean, affordable, and tasty!
I’ve been desperately searching for a legitimate Mexican place in the Naperville/​Aurora corridor for some time now, and I feel like I may have found my place in Pancho’s!
I got an order of enchiladas verdes, and was pleased with the results. The free chips and salsa are very, very good.

Panchos currently holds the crown for the best Mexican restaurant I’ve personally been to in the Chicago area. Maybe even the best Mexican restaurant I’ve ever been to, and as someone who has spent considerable time in Southern California, that’s a pretty lofty claim, I admit.
The crux of any Mexican joint is the quality of the chips and salsa, and, well, let’s use a car analogy. You know how in any movie that features a drag race portion there’s always a crucial point where both cars are neck and neck then one of the driver smugly smiles before punching the nitrous and leaving his opponent in the dust? Well, that’s the culinary equivalent of what happens when your waiter (or waitress) drops Panchos’ chips and salsa off at your table.
The chips simply must be made in house, if they’re not, they’re the best pre-​packaged chips I’ve ever had. The same goes for the salsas, of which you get an assortment of three ranging in different heat levels from a fresh pico de gallo to what I can only assume is some sort of smoky chipotle concoction. If you feel like going all out, get the guacamole, you won’t be disappointed. Paired with their already amazing chips, you’re in for a treat.
The food is fantastic, and everything I’ve tried from the menu has been to die for– Especially the gorditas. Throw everything you know about gorditas (likely taught by Taco Bell) out the window. These are like if you took an extra thick corn tortilla, split it open to make a pita-​like pocket, then filled it with taco trimmings. I’ve been competing in a personal competition called the «three gordita challenge,» and have never been able to finish three in a single sitting.
One tip though– If you can, you really should go during what amounts to «prime» dining hours. As close to noon as possible for lunch, and as close to around 5:00-ish for dinner. It seems clear they make their food fresh for the day, and have been there when they’ve just been out of gordita shells. The food also seems better the busier the restaurant is.
Not that it’s bad or anything later in the day, but there’s a noticeable difference when you roll in at 8:30, minutes before the close, versus showing up at 1:00 PM on a Saturday for lunch.

One of the best Mexican restaurants I’ve experienced in Illinois.
A few weeks ago I had a DirecTV guy out at my house to adjust my satellite dish. We had both lived in Southern California so we talked at length about the great Mexican food back there. He asked if I had ever been to Pancho’s in Aurora, and said it was some of the best he’d ever had (given that he was born in East LA, and not lives in Aurora, I figured I could trust his judgment on the subject). Last weekend (yes, on Cinco de Mayo) we drove out to Pancho’s to see if it was as good as I was told.
Oh boy, we are definitely going back. To begin with, I love a place that brings multiple salsas (and not just spicy, spicier, and spiciest versions of the same basic salsa), and all three of the salsas that this place set on the table were very good. What sealed the deal were the spot-​on Queso Fundido and the fresh and tasty Guacamole.
I had the extremely flavorful Carne Asada, my mom had the steak fajita, and my wife had the enchiladas suizas. Everything was great, and the service was nice and friendly. My only complaint was that the menu wasn’t very large. That’s probably a good thing though, because it allows them to focus on a smaller number of things to do really well, rather than a large number of things to do mediocre.
We arrived at noon on a Saturday and had the place to ourselves for at least half an hour, until the place was probably about 75% full. Even when we were the only ones besides two other table though, the small parking lot that this place shares with the other businesses in the strip mall was packed. It was obviously much crazier when we left, with people sitting in their cars waiting for someone to pull out of a spot.

Went here for lunch with a bunch of teacher’s after PSAE testing ended. Food was good, nothing to shout about, but service was slower than a funeral march. I don’t think they know how to handle a large, sudden crowd. We were the first group in at 12:45, and we didn’t get our check until 1:15, AFTER everyone else.
I may go back, we’ll see.