The Chicago Tribune gave Las Cumbres a really favorable review last week, I was thrilled to see.
Obviously, as M S. said below, he/she is missing it. If you're looking for an overall "experience", at a Mexican Restaurant that's not a chain? This is probably not it. I don't think calling it a dive is fair. It's extremely clean, and yes, it's small. It's a family run restaurant. And no, nothing "posh" LOL. Â
We have been eating here on a regular basis for easily 5 years. The service has always been fine. They don't fall all over you, but they take care of you. We have never once not had our chips and salsa refilled, ever. And yes, they try to save money with canned pop.
The chips and salsa are wonderful, the steak taco's are my favorite taco in the entire area.The peppery taste is just wonderful! Â My husband loves the al pastor and the poblano taco. The shrimp soup is devine, as is everything we've ever tried there.
I did a little test one time with a steak taco from a grocery store/taqueria in Crystal Lake that I used to frequent and Las Cumbres. I purchased both, and ate them together. I haven't been back to the grocery/taqueria in 5 years.
So, if you're looking for a posh interior, cozy atmosphere and freebies, you're probably better off at the On the Border chain. If you're looking for fresh ingredients, made to order, and not Americanized Mexican food? Give Taqueria Las Cumbres a try, it is fabulous!!!
So maybe I'm missing something, but my family and I didn't think this place was all that. Â I know it's gotten a lot of good reviews and it was even recommended to us by a co-worker, but hmm, we just found it to be so so.
To me, eating out is about the overall experience, not just the food. It's also about the service, environment, location, etc.
As said here many times, this restaurant is definitely a dive. Â There are maybe ten tables in the whole place and it feels like a tight fit. Â There is nothing about the decor that is posh or warm and happy. Â So please don't go thinking this will be a cozy atmosphere.
As for the service that's been so highly rated, we didn't experience that.  Perhaps we came on an off night, but the waitress we had didn't  crack a smile once.  We had to ask her for things more than once and she never checked on us to see if everything was okay.
The sodas come in cans and there are no free refills. Â Also, according to our waitress, you don't get free refills of chips and salsa. Â We were with four adult sized people and the basket of chips, (which I found to be just okay and on the greasy side)
is relatively small, and we finished them quickly.
The food is not bad but not exceptional either. Â I've had better and I've had worse. Â I imagine if you order take out from here, you'd like it well enough.
Having said all of this, they definitely had customers and were busy. Â The prices are quite good, too, but again, for us, it's about the overall experience, not just the food. So therefore, I am only giving it 2 stars.
The food is awesome, Made fresh minutes after you order it. The only thing that keeps this from getting 5 stars from me is that the hours are not the best. A restaurant like this, in a prime downtown Crystal Lake location, should be open until at least 9-10 pm, but they close, lock up and lights out by 8:30 pm.
Try the shrimp burrito. If it is still not on the menu, ask for it.
Last Friday, I had a craving for Mexican food. But then I remembered that it was Friday during Lent, and was kind of bummed. However, it was no big deal since Las Cumbres offers a fish burrito that I tried. I was extremely impressed by the quality of the fish and the overall taste. There is literally not a single bad thing that I can say about this place since everything I have tried there is extremely delicious!
Review Source:With new daily specials, I'm in! Â Specials M-F. Â Tuesdays and Thursdays are $1.50 tacos (variety changes), and they have $5.99 burritos on Monday. Â The chicken tacos are out of this world - seriously. Â Before you take a bite of your chicken taco, just try a nible of the chicken first. Â
This place may be hit or miss if you don't like mild spice - I haven't tried anything here that wasn't at least mildly spiced. Â This place rocks. Â Also I've noticed they've stepped up the table service a bit and it works. Â Great coffee too.
As noted by another viewer, it is correct that this is not a place to go for atmosphere. Â (What do you expect when you get $1.50 tacos, come on). Â But, if you are a foodie, you come for the food and you will love it.
Been frequenting Taqueria Las Cumbres for about 2 years now and have yet to order something that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed.
My usual order of 2 tacos, steak or chicken, has meat that's been cooked perfectly, still moist, and very warm. Meat couldn't be seasoned any better, and a perfect topping of fresh cilantro and chopped onions makes these perfect.
I usually order a chicken tostada as well and am continually astounded at the portion size of chicken that comes at the price it does. Â Again, perfectly balanced toppings and both the red and green salsas seem to go well with every dish.
Need to try the shrimp tacos after checking out all the reviews on here. Â Glad to frequent a business like this out here in the burbs. Â Consistently great quality and a great experience whether dining in or carrying out.
This is my hands-down FAVORITE Mexican place. It's fast, delicious, and inexpensive. I see the owner walking around Downtown CL all the time and he always recognizes me.
I highly recommend the fish tacos as well as the horchata and the mini quesadillas (so cute). This is my go-to stop for lunch, hands down. Get the fish tacos!!
The Horchata is amazing! Â Cheap too! Â I used to only order the bottle coke, now I can't resist ordering the BIG ASS size (32 oz) and I suck it down every time!
I typically order, at least this month, 3 tacos (fish, shrimp & steak). Â I love the salsa and chips too...everything is made fresh in-house.
We love it so much that we must get Las Cumbres nearly once a week. Â We frequent so much, owner Manuel gave us one of their t-shirts that I sport around town.
If you're a soccer fan, you'll enjoy what they have on the 2 tv sets...it's all that is ever on.
This review is a copy of one from my blog (link in profile).
In a post I did early last month, I mentioned how I had finally found Mexican food in Chicagoland that I loved. Apparently, I had just been searching in the wrong places. Now, I have two favorite places in as many months.
I had a friend take me to Taqueria Las Cumbres recently. Located at 93 Grant Street in far-northwestern suburban Crystal Lake, Taqueria Las Cumbres delivers on great food and a friendly staff. Though I will point out that the decor of the place leaves a lot to be desired, the food will more than make up for their lack of style.
Their chips and salsa that come before your entree taste fresh and delicious. If you are like me, you will be required to prevent yourself from filling up on these chips before your main meal. Fortunately I had built up quiet an appetite before visiting.
My entree of choice was the steak fajitas. Let me tell you that they were so delicious. The steak was so tender and juicy, and the vegetables were grilled to perfection. This place even had the seasonings just right.
Kyle, who had the chicken burrito, was served with an entree that was as big as he was. I kid you not, his burrito was so huge he was having a hard time wrapping his hands around it. Not only was it a huge portion, he said he loved it.
This is one restaurant that does not skimp on the meat when making your entree. While I am pretty sure my fajitas were served with a whole steak, I know that Kyle must of had an entire chicken stuffed in his burrito.
So, if you happen to be in Crystal Lake, make sure you stop by and visit Taqueria Las Cumbres. The prices are low and the food is great.
I know that next time we are in the area, we will be stopping by again. You should too.
I wanted to like this place, i REALLY did as it's hard to find good Mexican food in the burbs. Â
The food was, Eh! Â Now i am spoiled to have lived most my life in Chicago and have been to most of the best taco joints there, but my quest to find an equivalent meal in the burbs continues on.
I ordered the 3 taco dinner and wanted to try a few different ones so i got the Carne Asada, Al Pastor, and Chile Relleno. Â Biggest disappointment was the steak. Â It was bland, tasteless, and had a boring meat flavor as if it was just cooked dry with no seasonings. Â The Chile Relleno was not great either. Â It was VERY greasy, the breading basically fell off, the Chile was flavorless until i reached the top which had a faint heat. Â Not at all impressed. Â The last taco was the Al Pastor. Â This was not bad, i have had much better but it was flavorful and tender. Â
I did LOVE the homemade chips and green salsa, the Horchata was pretty good too. Â After reading all the great reviews i thought i had found my suburban Mexican fix. Â I am sadly still on the hunt. Â
If only Las Asadas or La Palapita would open up in the NW burbs.
Two words.... shrimp tacos.
Five words.... you have to try them.
Seriously, the shrimp taco's are wonderful. Perfectly seasoned and delicious.
I ordered a steak burrito (without lettuce) and a shrimp taco. I figured I would eat half of the burrito and my hubby would get the other half.
Our wonderful waiter brought my burrito without lettuce and my shrimp taco without lettuce.... even though I forgot to order it without lettuce. He said he would add lettuce if I wanted, but figured I wouldn't because I was lettuce free on my burrito. What a smart young man!
The kids ordered cheese quesadillas and they came with fries. Great way to make kids happy!
As we were leaving, my daughter realized she forgot her "magic sticks" (straws)... she ran back in to get them... our waiter saw her and handed her his whole stack of straws. She was a happy girl.
Excellent fish tacos + yummy Mexican Coke + great staff = we will be back.
This place rocks! Â Â We have moved through the menu on successive visits and each time the take away is "This place rocks" . Â This last visit, we decided to succumb to the hype and step away from the "dishes familiar and known". Â Â We had the shrimp tacos, fish tacos, chile rellenos tacos. Â These were all tasty and now cause a crave in the pit of my stomach, Â saying.. "must have those tacos"... Â
What I love about this place is how great the staff is with kids. Â There are times when dining with kids when you can sense the apprehension, anxiety and downright disdain that you brought them here. Â That is NOT the case here. Â The staff was friendly, and went out of the way to make my kids feel at home.
They serve french fries with their kids quesadillas.. Â As Charlie Sheen's kids would say "Winning"
Bumping up Las Cumbres to 5 stars. Â I think the only thing that was keeping the fifth star out of the equation on my first trip was the overhyped fish tacos. (Thanks for nothing Yelp :P)
Well, after eating here a good 10 times or more in the past year I've tried every taco they make and the fish just got better and better. Â Grilled just right with the perfect mix of lemon juice and spicy heat. Â I'm still not a fan of the extra-greasy chorizo though, but the chelle rellano taco is really good. Â The tortas are also great.
Here's a quick tip, get the small cheese quesadilla and add steak plus ask for grilled onions and peppers. Â Awesome. Â Also the first basket of chips and salsa is complimentary but you'll be charged for refills.
They've added some dinner entrées to the new, nicer menu as you no longer order off of the old pink paper menus . And I swear they've painted the walls and changed the decor a bit recently, but I can't say for sure. I usually just watch whatever football..err...soccer match is on the TV when we go there and sip from the 5 gallon bucket of horchata.
Wow! The food is really good...
The decor isn't fancy, but don't let that deter you from going here.
I had a steak burrito. The steak was tender, juicy and full of flavor.
The chips and salsa were really good. The salsa was fresh and great flavor.
The people were really nice. It was clean inside, but a little small.
I will be returning!
Huge fan of Mexican and this place is terrific... Relaxed atmosphere, courteous staff and authentic food. Â Everything I've had has been great and it's nice to get a Mexican coke in a bottle. Â
It's also a pleasure to get the check and think they made a mistake because they charged too little for the meal. Â Throw the address in the GPS because it can be hard to find if you're not familiar with downtown Crystal Lake.
Great recommendations from the yelpers. I went with fish and shrimp tacos, and the chile rellano. Â Very good, and a great price.
I've been looking for a place that had good fish tacos. Taquerias beats everyone in town. Â I will try adding the avocado next time. Â
I did find some things interesting. Â The restaurant is L shaped and you order and wait in this narrow corridor. Â They have a large screen tv always on a soccer channel in that corridor so there are quite a few people standing there. Â As you wait for your food and watch soccer, people are squeezing in and around you the whole time making it a very unique experience. Â
Definitely will be back.
This place has gotten a facelift  since I last reviewed it. Looks way better in here now, nice colors and decoration.
Food is pretty good too. I got shrimp tacos, fish tacos, and carne asada tacos. The steak tacos were piled with beef too, awesome. They're still serving drinks by the can or bottle depending on what you order.
Got to head back and try the ribs with green chile sauce on them next time. ;)
Hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant with friggin BANGIN' authentic Mexican food!
My boyfriend and I would go here 1-3 times A WEEK.
Fish tacos are AMAZING. Esp. with adding avocado, fresh squeezed lime juice, and some verde salsa YUMMM. Shirmp tostadas are wonderful, same with burritos. The quesadillas are nice and toasty too.
Table salsa is super fresh and tasty, as well as the chips!
Service is very friendly. If they're busy, it'll get slow or you'll have to wait for a table (as there aren't many...)
LOVE LOVE LOVE this place. My fav is the fish tacos and shrimp tostadas :) Mm mm mmmm!!
Thank you, Yelp (and Yelpers) for turning me on to this place! Â Based on the reviews here, we tried it for dinner tonight and were very impressed! You guys were dead on! Â
The salsa was good and the chips were freshly fried. Â The carne asada (steak) tacos were truly the best I've ever had! Â (and I've had plenty!) Â Flavorful marinated meat, with grill marks and was very tender and juicy. Â And at $1.60 each, how can you go wrong? Â My husband got the chile relleno tacos ($2.00) each, and they were huge, stuffed full of cheese, and absolutely delicious! Â My son got the steak burrito, which he also enjoyed very much. Â He almost cried when we were halfway home and he discovered he had left his 1/2 a burrito on the table! Â
I don't think we'll need to look any further for wonderful, authentic Mexican food in this area as long as Taqueria Los Cumbres is around!
Holy cow, these reviews weren't kidding! After reading several reviews, I decided I need to try this spot for myself to see if this place could really pull off the hype that this site has been giving it. Hands down, every good thing that is being said is absolutely true and then some!
It's true that it would be very hard to find unless you're looking for it as it is pretty small and off the main roads of downtown Crystal Lake. However, if you're in the area and have a craving for some Mexican food there is nothing even close so you have to go find it!
They cover everything you could want in an authentic Mexican restaurant - Tacos, Tortas, Burritos, Gorditas, Quesadillas, Tostadas, Fajitas, Seafood plates, Combo plates, all the different sides and the list goes on. They even serve Mexican breakfast meals and if you're really weird you could even order a cheeseburger if you wanted! Although with all the amazing food choices I have no idea why you would ever do that!
Highly recommend anything with Asada (grilled steak) in it. I personally love their burritos, and for a small charge you can get multiple kinds of meats in your burrito, such as steak and chicken, which I have done and thoroughly enjoyed!
One thing I have to make sure everyone knows about is their fish tacos. They are not on the menu and I cannot understand why they are hiding this fantastic gem from the general public. All you have to do is ask and you will be thankful that you did, I promise!
A lot of people have commented on their Authentic "Mexican" Coke which is definitely an awesome choice. However, for me when it comes to nonalcoholic Mexican beverages it's all about the Horchata (Rice Water) and this place has some of the best Horchata I have ever tasted!
Aside from the food, the service is great, the wait staff friendly, and the wait is usually short.
My only complaint is that I wish they had later hours so I could eat here more, especially after a night after the bars!
Also, something I noticed is that someone posted pictures of their menu on here. Everything looks accurate except for the Sunday hours. The menu on here shows them being open until 8:00 PM when they are actually only open until 7:00 PM so don't make that mistake!
Went for the 3rd time and still loving it! Â
This time I had the pozole; Â homemade broth with tender shreds of pork and firm hominy. Â It is served with fresh onions, limes, a shaker of mexican oregano and a spicy red condiment of some sort. Â So delicious on a chilly February day.
I tried the horchata on another yelper's recommendation - it tasted just like rice pudding with cinnamon. Â
The kids get the quesadillas and nachos, a jarritos and everyone is happy!
This is the best Mexican restaurant in Crystal Lake, bar none.
I usually get a steak burrito, sometimes chicken and they are fantastic. Â The ingredients are always fresh and the salsas that come with are good - I like the verde personally. Â
Now let's talk horchata. Â If you've had good horchata and have been looking for a place to get some, this is IT. Â I've had horchata at other Crystal Lake Mexican restaurants and it's either too floral-ish or it's kind of soapy-tasting...yes, soapy and not good. Â Taqueria could sell me their horchata by the liter and I would love them for it. Â :)
They offer a full menu from steaks to seafood, burritos to gorditas, chips and salsa or guacamole as well as side dishes. Â They also have a breakfast section and a small menu that I call the kid section although it's not a kids menu per say - it's burgers and chicken sandwiches for those of us with picky eaters and nice for a one stop shop.
Location...It is small and slightly off the beaten path and not a place I would have ordinarily gone to if not for the recommendation of my sister.
There are several similar looking restaurants in Crystal Lake, but the food isn't nearly as good and the service isn't nearly as friendly. Â Their staff are never rude and they don't make you feel like you're imposing on them by ordering food (which we have all felt at one time or another!)
I would recommend the Taqueria to anyone looking for yummy, authentic Mexican food at reasonable prices.
A Hole-in-the Wall? Â Yes.
Authentic Mexican Food? Â Absolutely!
Wow, Taqueria Las Cumbres is fantastic! Â You start of with fresh, handmade chips with a mild sauce. Â If you like it hotter, which I do, ask for the picante sauces. Â The verde sauce is the spiciest sauce I've found in IL.
Had the fish tacos. Â Very, Very Good! Â Fresh, not greasy...tons of flavor!
The rice and beans are very authentic, just like you get down in Texas, which is really, really rate in IL.
May be the best mexican restaurant in IL. Â We'll definitely be back.
Wow. I love you, Yelp. If it weren't for you, I would have never found this place. The reviews are spot on. Taqueria Las Cumbres rocks.
I'm a pescetarian. Â I eat fish. But I totally discriminate. I won't eat fish everywhere. Only good fish. And I'm a huge fan of fish tacos. Let me tell you--these are the best I've ever had. The condiments on the individually wrapped made-with-love tacos don't overpower the favor of the citrusy pan fried fish. They're freakin' awesome.
Hubby had the bistek a la mexicana (a recommendation from our lovely server) and he says the meat was yummy, tasty, flavorful...seared with roasted jalapenos and he totally dug it.
Only downer--no alcohol. But the giant glass bottle of coke and bucket of delicious horchata totally sealed the deal. We're in love with this place.
This is THE best mexican food you can find in Chicagoland. This is a heavily family run business and it is consistently good every time I go and great service as well. The staff is warm and friendly and always seem to be happy we're dining at their restaurant.
My favorite order: steak tacos, quesadilla, chips w/ guacamole, arroz, and a lime jarritos. Every single thing is the best that I've had at any Mexican place in Chicago proper or elsewhere around the city. The menu is extensive and the other items I've tried are excellent.
The place is usually pretty busy. You can dine in for table service w/ chips and an outstanding homemade salsa, or take out. Or call in for pick up.
Prices are pretty low for the quality of food you're getting.
I would seriously make a special trip to Crystal Lake just to go. It really is that good. Out of all the taquerias I've tried there's no other place I crave like this one! And I can't say a single negative thing about it.
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