Colorado’s third El Pollo Loco location opened on 825 E. Fillmore St, just shy of two miles away from campus, on Oct. 1. This marks the company’s 500th location.
With extreme wait times reported and many reviews written about them, I figured it was time to see if the chicken was actually crazy or not. It’s safe to say… no.
2.5/5 stars
I set a timer to prove if the myth of wait times was real. However, since I showed up two weeks past the opening date, I’d say the wait times have vanished. I waited 12 minutes with nine to ten cars in front of me.
I ordered their Original Pollo Bowl, which came with chicken, rice, diced onion, pinto beans, salsa fresca and cilantro. A meal came with either a side of chips or a tortilla, so I chose chips paired with their guacamole. The meal also came with a drink. I chose the horchata.
Nothing about the chicken is crazy. Not the seasoning, not the way it is cooked, nor the way it is presented. It was very bland with very minimal seasoning.
To be completely honest, this meal was way too mushy. Bowls tend to have a softer texture once everything is mixed. However, with El Pollo Loco, it seemed to be a bit extreme.
The beans dominated the taste and took over the texture. The rice and chicken were not flavorful enough to stand out. The main way to get flavor into the bowl was through the salsa that came with the meal. Their salsa verde was the savior to an otherwise one-note bowl.
The chips and guac were classic. The guac was fresh but didn’t deliver any punch of flavor. No extra lime or salt, just all around lifeless.
The horchata was very sugary and cinnamon heavy, but I prefer that. It redeemed some of the other flat flavors. The horchata easily beats out the other items for top spot in this meal.
Now, here’s the highlight of this place. The bowl made me extremely full, like, food baby full. Not only that, but in total I spent $7.55! When’s the last time you went out and ordered a meal for under eight dollars?
The original price of the bowl was $5.99, and the only reason it cost more was because of the guac.
I’d rate this five stars for college students on a budget and those without tastebuds, because it’s very cheap and not far away from campus. And if you can’t drive, El Pollo Loco is on Uber Eats, GrubHub and DoorDash.
It is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day of the week.
If you’re coming here for crazy flavor, I’d head somewhere else. But if you’re on a budget and want to feel full, El Pollo Loco is the perfect spot.
Graphic via the Scribe archive.