Esta Loca

3.1

10 Reviews

$30 and under

Mexican

Make a reservation

2 people

Dec 4, 2024

7:00 PM

Booked 12 times today

Good for groups
Lively
Good for business meals

Esta Loca on Randolph is an elevated Tex Mex and Mexican restaurant in the heart of Chicago, just off of Millennium Park. Join us for a bite in the dining room, or take Esta Loca with you for a convenient and delicious meal on the go.

Host your next event or special occasion with Esta Loca! Located next to Millennium Park with gorgeous views and a rooftop patio, it’s the perfect venue to celebrate your next milestone or corporate gathering.

Additional information

Dining style
Casual Dining
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
Mexican, Tex-Mex
Hours of operation
Mon–Fri 11:00 am–9:00 pm Sat 9:00 am–10:00 pm Sun 9:00 am–8:00 pm
Phone number
(312) 473-1111
Website
http://www.estalocarestaurant.com/
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Dress code
Business Casual

Location
130 E Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60601
Neighborhood
River North (Chicago)
Cross street
Randolph St. & Michigan Ave.
Parking details
None
Additional
Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access

What 10 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

3.1

3.1 based on recent ratings

3.2Food
3.2Service
3.3Ambience
3Value

Noise • Moderate

10 Reviews

R
Rogelio
Chicago
2 reviews
4.0
2 reviews
Dined 1 day ago
1. Overall 4
2. Food 4
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 4
The setting for the restaurant is excellent, the service was excellent, and the food was very good. Esta Loca (a great name, by the way but more on that in a moment) is joining a growing list of very good Mexican restaurants downtown and that, alone is a great development considering that a few years ago, the only way to get good authentic Mexican food was to go to Pilsen. Tzuco was perhaps the first excellent Mexican restaurant downtown and now there are a growing number, of which Esta Loca is one. We liked the name because it is a clever play on words for a couple of reasons. First, loca is a term that we use in Latin America that belies its literal translation of "crazy woman." We use loca to mean many things. Second, because Esta Loca, by not announcing where the accent is, leaves one to imagine whether it means this woman is crazy or this crazy woman. We also appreciate the fact that the restaurant is open from 11 to the evening since many of us are now eating lunch late, or dinner early, however you chose to see it. We will be back.
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C
Christopher
Chicago
4 reviews
vip
5.0
4 reviews
Dined 4 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Nice evening; good to order as you go with street corn and ceviche, followed by steak and shrimp fajitas and shrimp enchiladas...
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L
LAURA
Louisville
1 review
2.0
1 review
Dined on November 17, 2024
1. Overall 2
2. Food 2
3. Service 2
4. Ambience 2
The restaurant was ok. The appetizer was delicious. The rest of dinner was certainly not Mrxican. Tex-mex at best. Also, my dinner was ice cold, and the brisket, which should have been melt in your mouth tender, was stringy and tough. The drinks were overpriced for having next to no alcohol in them as well. Overall, we wea disappointed and won't be back.
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J
John
Chicago
9 reviews
1.0
9 reviews
Dined on October 25, 2024
1. Overall 1
2. Food 1
3. Service 1
4. Ambience 1
We had a terribly disappointing experience. The food was fairly tasteless, the menu was inflexible (only one type of taco or enchilada per order - no mixing). The carnitas tacos and guacamole had virtually no flavor.
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K
Kristin
Chicago
2 reviews
1.0
2 reviews
Dined on October 25, 2024
1. Overall 1
2. Food 2
3. Service 1
4. Ambience 3
The food is mediocre & kind of bland for Mexican fare. Very disappointing since it’s in my neighborhood.
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a
alexandra
London
3 reviews
vip
1.0
3 reviews
Dined on October 20, 2024
1. Overall 1
2. Food 1
3. Service 2
4. Ambience 3
The food arrived cold and we had a hair on a plate.
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OT
OpenTable Diner
Chicago
1 review
3.0
1 review
Dined on October 17, 2024
1. Overall 3
2. Food 4
3. Service 2
4. Ambience 2
This appears to be a new establishment for the Rosebud group. The front of house needs to be more organized. A busboy served us water. We then waited 15 minutes and finally flagged a server who did not know who our server was, so she decided to take our order. She was very nice. The drinks (Margaritas) took a long time and were not very good for the price; we could hardly taste the tequila. This is the first Mexican restaurant we've ever visited that charged for chips and salsa! Eight dollars! The food was delicious and the portions were generous. But, it took a long time overall to be waited on and served.
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OT
OpenTable Diner
Chicago
2 reviews
4.0
2 reviews
Dined on October 2, 2024
1. Overall 4
2. Food 3
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
The customer service was wonderful and the ambience of the space was lovely. My only complaint is that the food was a bit lacking in flavor.
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C
Chris
Chicago
2 reviews
2.0
2 reviews
Dined on October 1, 2024
1. Overall 2
2. Food 2
3. Service 3
4. Ambience 2
Pricey, bland food for the money. Guacamole is decent and the tacos are passable-barely. Had a brisket torta that didn’t seem to be seasoned at all. Really disappointed.
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B
Brent
Washington DC
3 reviews
1.0
3 reviews
Dined on September 28, 2024
1. Overall 1
2. Food 2
3. Service 2
4. Ambience 2
The food was overpriced and not very good. It wasn’t bad, but not anything you would want to return for. Al Pastor tacos should have some spice to it, but have sweet pineapple to balance it out. Theirs did not have either and was bland. The enchiladas were borderline dry and definitely needed to be smothered in sauce to balance out. The guacamole was good, but that should be table stakes. The avocado salad was good and fresh, but it seems like it was one of the only good aspects of the former Rosebud left over. The ambiance was blah. The second floor dining area had no sound absorption, which made conversations difficult. The walls were simply painted in a color conducive to Mexican fare, but there was no other decorations to break up the sterile feel. The lighting was harsh and look/felt like a spotlight when you were right under the tiny can lights. The service was incredibly slow, but not because of the individual server. They only had three servers for the entire dining floor, and one was borrowed from another restaurant. Management was trying to help out, but it was definitely strained. This all goes back to what it appears to be: a money grab. The location makes it attractive to tourists looking for a good, reasonable place to eat. No one would think that Mexican cuisine would be expensive, so people wander in. The drinks were small (small glass, lots of ice) and about 30% more expensive than they should be at another restaurant. The food was much more expensive than the quality should allow (~$300 total tab for five people, when two of them were small children). The low staffing leads to higher profits, especially because tourists aren’t repeat customers that would be affected by the service.
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FAQs

Esta Loca is rated 3.1 stars by 10 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people

Dec 4, 2024

7:00 PM

Booked 12 times today

130 E Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60601

Additional information

Cross street
Randolph St. & Michigan Ave.
Neighborhood
River North (Chicago)
Hours of operation
Mon–Fri 11:00 am–9:00 pm Sat 9:00 am–10:00 pm Sun 9:00 am–8:00 pm
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
Mexican, Tex-Mex
Dining style
Casual Dining
Dress code
Business Casual
Parking details
None
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Additional
Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access

Website
http://www.estalocarestaurant.com/
Phone number
(312) 473-1111

Esta Loca

Make a reservation

Additional information

Menu

What 10 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

FAQs

How is Esta Loca restaurant rated?

Is Esta Loca currently accepting reservations?

Make a reservation

Additional information