La Chata

If I could give less than 1 star, I would.
My son and I decided to try this restaurant this evening. We walked in at 6:00pm and there were only 3 tables — this should’ve been our first sign that something was wrong (hard to find an empty restaurant on a Saturday night).
After waiting for several minutes with no acknowledgement, I asked a waitress if we were supposed to seat ourselves. She looked irritated and proceeded to seat us.
We sat at our table for about 10 minutes before the same waitress returned to take our drink order.
After getting our drinks, my son ordered the chicken nachos and I ordered the Chili Relleno. I also asked the waitress if she could bring some chips and salsa — once again she acted irritated but left and came back with the chips and what looked like a red enchilada sauce. The chips were cold and obviously store bought. The «salsa» was bland and NOT salsa.
When our dinner arrived, my Chili Relleno was a gloppy mess. I tried eating it, but it tasted like it had been fried in a dirty fryer. It was inedible. The rice was dry and the beans were cold. I stopped my waitress to tell her and she became irritated, rolled her eyes and said, «that’s how chili relleno is supposed to taste.»
My son’s chicken nachos were the same store bought chips with chicken and orange cheese that looked and tasted like Cheese Wiz.
The waitress only returned again to deliver the check.
Afterward, my son said if we wanted terrible mexican food we should’ve went to Taco Bell — the food is still pretty bad there but it would’ve been better than La Chata and not as expensive.
I would not recommend this restaurant to my worst enemy.
Pros:
Easy to get a table — no pesky customers
Sprite was good (it just never got refilled)
Restaurant was clean
Cons:
Food is inedible
Service is terrible
Food is expensive

Awful food, the owner told me what to get and it was the worst dish I have ever had at any restaurant. The chicken look and smelled old. The only good thing was the cold beer that is why I gave it 2 star

Just finished my dinner here. I tend to only write reviews if my experience is incredible or terrible. This Mexican restaurant is amazing! My husband and I just moved to the area and we have officially found our new Mexican joint; it was likely the best experience I’ve had at a Mexican restaurant. Everything from the chips and salsa, to the picadillo (spelling?) cheese dip, to my chipotle chicken dinner was amazing. The blended raspberry margarita was also delicious. The service also deserves mention– never was a drink more than half empty, service was very fast and very, very friendly. Noticed that many patrons were regulars and new the staff well (always a good sign). Tip: on Saturdays they have an pianist come and play requests. So fun! We will be come regulars here for sure!

I just got back less than 5 minutes ago and felt inclined to go straight to Unilocal to help others avoid this place.
We haven’t eaten there in a number of years and thought we’d give it a try at their new location. They must have changed ownership or something because this was a terrible experience.
First, I asked if they had any drink specials. She said they had the large house margarita but failed to say the price, that was my fault for not asking. ONE WOULD ASSUME IT WOULD BE LESS THAN 9 FREAKING DOLLARS IF IT WAS ON SPECIAL. Very deceptive in my opinion as clearly it was regular price. The proper response would be «I’m sorry, happy hour ended at 6.»
Chips and salsa came from a bag and a jar, definitely not housemade
The taco salad shell was so greasy it could not be eaten. The chicken in it was also cold, as in refrigerated cold. Very odd
There’s absolutely no way we would ever go back

Excellent! Tried tamal, chili relleno, carnita taco, taco Dorado — mashef potato, and beef enchilada. All were delicious. Great atmosphere and good service. We’ll be back!

I have been a customer for many years and I have always had an excellent meal. The food is very authentic Mexican made with quality ingredients. I love all the items but my favorite is the handmade Tamales.

Nice place good food!
Great service and I really fundido!!!
Met the owner… really nice lady. Also loved the piano player!!!

My husband and I have eaten here several times. The food has always been excellent, and the service has greatly improved since the first time we visited. It has become our favorite Mexican restaurant in St. Peters. The one item I wished they had on their menu is queso dip for the chips. I definitely would recommend this restaurant! Also, kids under 12 eat free on Sundays.

I grew up in the Rio Grande Valley, so I’m always on the lookout for Mexican food that can compare to South Texas. La Chata is BY FAR the best Mexican food we’ve had in the St Louis area. It’s a small family business, super friendly, and our waiters/​owner always talk to my kids like we are family. There were a few kinks to be worked out in the new location on Mid Rivers, and I would give them 5 stars, except that when they moved to the new location, they began to charge for chips and salsa, which is just a bummer. I hope they change that soon!

Food was not very good, service was horrible, waited on check for 30 min. Table next to us left because their food never came.

Atmosphere is awesome. Service is awesome. But the food is just ok. Margarita had no tequila. Took my girlfriends there and sadly, we all felt the same. I will visit again as maybe they were having an off day.

Went here on a weeknight, for a later supper; we arrived about 7:50; they close at 9:00, so we thought we had plenty of time. There was only one other table occupied, and they were finishing up, so that may have been a warning to us. We didn’t heed the warning, and forged on. The place itself had a warm, inviting atmosphere, nice muted Southwest colors, without the usual pinatas and sombreros getting dusty hanging on the walls, like so many other St Louis Mexican places. The tables were spacious, and not too close together; the wooden chairs, comfortable. Seems like a good place so far.
We were seated, presented with menus, and each ordered a margarita on the rocks with salt while we checked out the food options. The margaritas arrived in huge stemmed glasses, and we got a basket of chips and salsa. At first glance, then menu really looks good; a nice departure from the usual numbered combos. The descriptions and pricing made it clear this place aspired to be a more upscale experience. I was getting interested…
My wife ordered the tostada plate with pork; which came with rice and beans. I ordered just an empanada and a tamale, with a side of rice only. After that, it was time to sample the drinks and chips. Now the trouble starts… the margaritas were watery, and tasted only of the mix; no real tequila flavor. The chips seemed fresh, although they weren’t warm. The salsa was a smooth purée; with no real heat; maybe a hint of peppers and/​or cumin. Nothing remarkable about either of these.
After a short wait, which was reasonable, the food arrived. It was very attractively presented on square white plates, and there wasn’t the usual handling with hot pads, which has always annoyed me in other places. The presentation looked so good, I was really hopeful we were going to get past the poor drinks and chips. Alas, not to be. My wife said her meal was standard, nothing to get excited about at all. One tostada with beans and pork, sided with a pile of rice and beans. My empanada was plated with the rice; and the empanada itself was covered with shredded lettuce, fresh ripe tomatoes (yea!) and some sour cream drizzles. The empanada crust was nicely pretty flaky, but the ground beef within was lunchroom sloppy joe quality and seasoning; pretty much bland. To make it worse, it was all room temperature. The rice was very average, and also room temperature. Disappointing. The tamale, and I LOVE tamales, was on a smaller separate plate, served out of the husk and covered with some chunky tomato salsa and melted cheese. It was huge, almost burrito sized. I was again hopeful, and again, disappointed. The masa was bland, with a very loose, watery texture. The pork within was without seasoning, although plentiful and very tender. The salsa over the tamale had some good spice (finally); the melted cheese; standard. Sadly, that whole dish was also close to room temperature. All in all, we ate about half of what we got.
We really wanted to make this place work, but just couldn’t get past the poor quality, Service was standard, fine, but nothing special. The bill for this came to $ 42.00; pretty lofty for three individual items, two drinks and rice/​beans. We could have (and should have) complained, but honestly, we were just tired from the work day, and more than frustrated with the experience. I write plenty of very positive, glowing reviews of places that earn our dollars and repeat visits; this place we won’t be returning to. If you like it, good for you; it just didn’t do it for us.

So disappointed! This is the 3^rd time we have been in. The service just gets worse and worse. We came in w our children who are very well behaved and promptly ordered appetizers and our meals since it was 6:30 and kids were getting hungry. We received chips and salsa after sitting there for 20min. We should have just left, but we waited 30 more min no apps or refills on chips, nothing! Our server who was pregnant, kept peeking out at me but avoided using door near us and instead only went in/​out a door at opposite end of restaurant. I don’t know if she forgot to put our order in or misplaced it, but she was aware we hadn’t received any food and never came back to apologize or explain. There were 2 tables seated after us that received drinks, chips/​salsa, and dinners. We got up and left and a tall guy, either owner or bartender stopped us, we explained that we couldn’t wait any longer because our kids were hungry. He simply said «that’s how the night is going». He never apologized. What? My children 9 and twin 6 yr olds even said afterwards that they couldn’t believe no one cared. We won’t be back. Don’t spend your money here!

I’m revising my earlier review. Why? Because I was wrong. Simply put, I misunderstood La Chata.
I’ve experienced more of the menu now and there are so many treats. Love the soups, both the Pozole and Tortilla. Great depth of flavors in each. Other favorites include…
Empanada
Pollo en Mole
Burrito w/​Green Chili Sauce
Chips and Trio of Salsas
Prices are a bit higher but completely worth it. Great stuff!

The best authentic Mexican food, period. La Chata.
I’ve experienced much of the menu and there are so many treats. Love the soups, both the Pozole and Tortilla. Great depth of flavors in each. Other favorites include…
Empanada
Pollo en Mole
Burrito w/​Green Chili Sauce
Enchiladas Verde
Chips and Trio of Salsas
Prices are a bit higher but completely worth it. This is a family sharing decades old family recipes! Great stuff!

Came here recently for lunch with my life. We had heard this place was very good and it did not disappoint.
First, I have to say it has a much nicer décor and ambiance than most Mexican restaurants. Lots of natural light in the place and I like that. Good first impression.
One caveat: They do not (or at least did not that day) serve chips and salsa for starters. I was actually okay with that because I ended up having a great meal and not walking out stuffed from the gratis chips. Nevertheless, it is somewhat of a novel idea for a Mexican restaurant. Was not a deal breaker for us, however.
Wife had a chimichanga and I had the fish tacos. Both were excellent although smaller portions, i.e. a decent amount of food for lunch but not a dinner portion. I’m not sure if they have smaller portions for dinner but I left feeling I had enough but not too much.
Prices were a tad higher than most Mexican places, but not outrageous. We’ll go back. Overall it was very good.

We moved here about a year ago from Washington state and have had a heck of a time finding a good Mexican restaurant in the St Louis area. We have tried several… always with the same disappointment. Nothing seemed fresh, food was bland and salsas were miserable. Most of them even used queso… instead of real cheese in things like enchiladas etc. With the exception of Milagro Modern Mexican in Webster Grove… which is wonderful!
Then the other day I was complaining to a nurse at my doctors office about our plight… and she suggested La Chata in St Peters. What a wonderful surprise! We tried it the other night… not hoping for much. We were pleasantly surprised! The Fundido with Chorizo was excellent, as was the fresh guacamole. Our entrees were delicious as well. We will definitely be back!
So happy to know that we can finally enjoy a great Mexican meal without going all the way to Webster Grove.

Best Mexican in the Saint Charles/​Cottleville area. Quiet environment with authentic food and AMAZING margaritas. Relatively good prices and great service. The new location is even better than the old.

Excellent food and great atmosphere! Attended the Cottleville/​Weldon Spring Chamber of Commerce for a luncheon meeting and they handled the large group very well.

I love Chata and I have been going for years!!! I love the new location! I’m not a huge fan of the new recipe they are using for their salsa, but the food totally makes up for it!

Went there for dinner with my family. Walked in and was seated quickly. There was some old guy sleeping in a chair by the bar, one of the waiters was drinking alcohol out of a foam cup, but at least he was friendly and entertaining. They don’t give you chip and salsa, you have to purchase them. The trio salsa was awful. Margarita were ok, but nothing special for $ 9 a glass. I got the chicken fajitas, which came out on a white plate, no sizzle or spices. More like sautéed veggies and plane boiled chicken, might of been the worst fajitas I have ever had. Needless to say, I will never go back. I don’t usually do reviews but this place was by far the worst mexican I have eaten. Sorry

I ate here often before their move and after.
It’s unfortunate that this part of the U.S. or even most Amercans think the food they are eating; advertised as «Mexican», are clueless as to what «TRUE» «Mexican» foods are.
El Maguey, Vista Grande, Chevy’s Fresh Mex, Qdoba etc. are an invention of what Americans think Mexican food should be. You tasteless clods are eating Texacan food.
La Chatas serves real Mexican with a touch of Texacan. Don’t go to Mexico City and expect chips and salsa. For that matter don’t go to Italy expecting Antipasto, niether exists.
I’ve lived in both countries, I know.
To add, La Chatas isn’t a fast food or chain restaurant that has it’s meals pre-​made.
This is a family owned restaurant where the ingredients and recipes are prepaired in advance. So take your un-​ruly little brats some where else and let the real foodies enjoy and savor without the yelling, screaming and running around.
Please do these good folks at La Chatas a favor, get in your cars and go to a drive through to get your so called Mexican food.

We are big fans of La Chata, because the food is outstanding. You will not get Mexican food like this anywhere else.
Yes, you are going to pay more — this is not a chain or paint by numbers Mexican restaurant.
However — Please, please, please get your service issues worked out. We’ve been four times since you moved, and we have had spotty service at best each of the times. I know you have kinks, but they really should have been worked out by now. Now afraid to recommend you, because the service overshadows the amazing food and the best Margaritas!

Went for lunch today at 12:00. Departed at 1:30, angry with the lack of wait staff. Only one waiter who appeared to be the only employee there. He was apologetic but there were on 9 customers attempting to
Be served. Poor guy was running his butt off
But couldn’t keep up. Food was great but I won’t be back until they staff up.

When we planned to meet our friends, the L’s for dinner, they informed us that La Chata was closed. I did a little checking on line and found that they had simply moved. We also noticed that the reviews were mixed, mostly regarding service. Our experience pretty much matched that of other reviewers.
We arrived before the L’s. It took a while to be acknowledged as being there. We interacted with three people in getting seated. The bartender actually ended up seating us. The hostess seems to be at a loss about her job. After the L’s arrived, we again waited at our table for a long time to be noticed for drink orders, and even at that is was a guy randomly walking by who happened to ask us if we had been waited on. Apparently the table was not assigned to anyone. After that service was fairly normal. It appears that the staff is mostly new and inexperienced, since our friends did not recognize any of them. It all was unprofessional.
La Chata does not serve chips and salsa, which is fine. I’m not clear whether they are available to order. Ms L ordered some guacamole for the table. It arrived just fine with chips and was OK. I usually think it needs more lime juice and salt; this was no exception. We asked for some salsa, the waiter gave a confusing answer and brought a bottle of a thin vinegar, red sauce. It had good flavor but is not what you typically eat with chips. Later when our meal came a small cup of actual salsa showed up. We could not figure out if it was what had been ordered earlier or if it came with one of the meals.
Ms T ordered a Taco Salad, Mr L had Pollo en Chipotle, Ms L had a chicken enchilada and I had the Carne con Chile. Mr L’s Pollo en Chipotle looked good and he confirmed that. It was pieces of chicken breast in a creamy sauce. I don’t think it had a lot of chipotle, based on the light color. Ms T’s Taco Salad was not impressive. It had about a tablespoon of meat and came with two sauces that she did not care for. One was the aforementioned cup of red tomato sauce and the other she could not really identify.
I think my Carne con Chile was the best of the night and is one I would certainly order again. It was cubes of pork in a roasted tomatillo sauce. It had good flavor and was somewhat thick, not watery. You could tell the tomatillos were roasted both from flavor and from appearance. The meat was tender and moist. There was little if any heat. The name is misleading, due to the absence of any noticeable chile, but is was still a good dish of the style I like, well cooked meats in flavorful sauce. I ate it with soft white corn tortillas.
Just because I rarely if ever, find posole on menus in St Louis, I ordered a cup. They only offer it as a large serving, but obliged me by providing a cup, which turned out to be a decent sized bowl. It was reddish brothy style, with pork. They provided shredded lettuce, chopped onion and lime. I used the lettuce, all of the lime and it still needed something. So I added some of the thin vinegary red sauce that the waiter had brought earlier and that did the trick. I wished for chopped radish, but maybe they would provide that if you order the large bowl. This was not great posole, but would be a nice lunch on a cold day. I was glad to find it here.
La Chata has a good following. They were reasonably busy on this Friday night. It seems that they have a lot of inexperience at running the front of the restaurant that they need to overcome, but I also think their loyal followers from the previous location will stick with them as they gain experience. This is another place where you really need to try a few things so you know what is good and what to avoid.

The new location is closer to my work.
I was so excited… however!
They’ve got kinks to work out.
I think since opening, they’re under staffed.
We’ve been for lunch and dinner since the new location opened and while the food is still good, dinner involved a very confused bartender trying to make what appeared to be pre-​made margaritas. They had lots of tequila’s but as nice as he was, I don’t think he knew the difference or how to actually make a margarita.
Lunch service was slow and appeared to have 1 waitress for the entire floor.
We will be back and hope things improve over time.
The food is some of the best Mexican cuisine in the St. Charles area.
From our past experiences at the previous location, the owner seems very hands on. I’m sure things will get better.

A new location for the best Mexican food around. Awesome enchiladas, fajitas, tacos, etc.
This is authentic and NOT part of any chain. Family owned and operated.
Great margaritas too. As well as an extensive selection of tequilas.

They are definitely not as good as the original location in ofallon. Waited about 40 minutes for a table. Then ordered a relatively easy meal: two adults and two kids. Orders were getting confused on all the tables around us, as did ours. The service and food was slow. When our entre’s finally did arrive (after about an hour), they were watery, room temperature and poor tasting. I will give them 1 more chance because the original was so good, but tonight they were horrible. Avoid for a month till they get their act together.

While looking for a quick lunch I ran across La Chata. The interior is very nice and comfortable. There’s a bar with some TVs and a party room in the back. The service was very prompt and friendly. I ordered a beef burrito with spicy green sauce off the lunch menu which was very good, well portioned, and not too spicy. It came with the usual rice and re-​fried beans which were good as well. To my surprise they charge for the chips and salsa that other mexican restaurants give you, so I skipped it. But they do come with three different dips when ordered. Overall I was pleased with my experience at La Chata’s new location and will mostly likely return. My reasoning for 3 stars is the fact you have to pay for chips and salsa. Its not a deal breaker but more of an annoyance for me personally. Definitely give them a shot.

We sat at the bar the gentleman that created us was pleasant and a little gruff in a funny way. The margarita he said was the best and he was correct. I ordered the tamal and a soft taco most of the menu is a la carte chips and salsa is also charged, but you get three different kind of salsas with was hot and great. They had the game on. Go cards! When asked what as good in told us stay away from your traditional meals like fajitas ya can get that anywhere. The staff isn’t your traditional Hispanic Latino decent. Think this could be a pretty fun place for food and entertainment. Stay tuned for more reviews.