Illegal Pete's - Boulder image

Illegal Pete's - Boulder

Restaurant Mexican restaurant Meal delivery Burrito restaurant

One of the Most Reviewed Mexican restaurants in Boulder


Address

1447 Pearl St, Boulder, CO 80302

Website

www.illegalpetes.com

Contact

(303) 440-3955

Price rating

$ $$$

Rating on Google Maps

4.40 (1.5K reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Sunday: (Easter), 9 AM to 9 PM, Hours might differ
  • Monday: 10:30 AM to 10 PM
  • Tuesday: 10:30 AM to 10 PM
  • Wednesday: 10:30 AM to 10 PM
  • Thursday: 10:30 AM to 10 PM
  • Friday: 10:30 AM to 12 AM
  • Saturday: 9 AM to 12 AM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: good (15) burrito (15) great (9) fish (8) staff (7) tacos (7) salsa (6) pretty (6)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Tony O. 2 years ago on Google
    Great food and Atmosphere. It reminds me of Chipotle, only better. I had the Baja Fish Burrito with Rice. It was very good. I highly recommend this place to anyone in the area. We will be back. Thanks for the great food and nice staff. Come see it for yourself. The prices are very good too.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Oscar 2 years ago on Google
    My friends and I thought it was decent. Not quite as good as Cafe Mexicali or Chipotle 😩 Lettuce could be more shredded 🔪🥬 Chips are kind of stale but the salsa was good💃
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Eduardo S. 7 months ago on Google
    Love the burritos here. Very fresh ingredients
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Brie C. 2 years ago on Google
    This place is like a chipotle, but if chipotle was gourmet and 1000x better. I got a burrito with carnitas and other toppings and all the ingredients were so fresh and flavorful. They do this thing where they mix the burrito up so everything is equally distributed. I actually discovered this place because my AP chem teacher recommended it, and it was a very very good recommendation.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Krissy 8 months ago on Google
    Mexican food this bland should be illegal. The staff was great and even gave me some pesto to try since it was my first visit. The food was fresh but lacked any depth of flavor. Unfortunately it will be my only visit. Qudoba has the best burrito bowls I’ve tried so far.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 2/5 Fritz F. 1 year ago on Google
    Went today for lunch. Food is good, but the service isn’t. The guys working the front counter were rude, and talked down to certain customers. It was a bald dude, and some tatted up kid with neck tats and a black hat. Seem pretty blah to be front facing customers at the business.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Richard H. 1 year ago on Google
    Great place to enjoy freshly made baja fish tacos and Mexican bowls! Sports bar atmosphere, great selection of beers and three sport screens to catch a game or watch espn highlights. I highly recommend their baja fish tacos on soft flour tortillas.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Mitch K. 1 year ago on Google
    Went in on a Saturday evening and ordered the Baja fish bowl. The dish was made within 5 minutes. Unbeknownst to me, the fish was fried, which just doesn't agree with me stomach. I explained this to the cashier and the assistant Manager quickly intervened. In his good faith, he righted my wrong and stepped on the line to get me a chicken and rice bowl. The new dish was delicious and I'm thoroughly impressed by the customer service at this location. Highly recommended 😎
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Reilly F. 1 year ago on Google
    This place shreds to say the least. Queso is liquid gold, the fish tacos are crisp & golden and leave you feeling light on your feet. The bangers are always pumping throughout this crib, making the cold ones go down easy.

  • 4/5 Megan L. 6 months ago on Google
    Absolutely love illegals Pete’s but can not enjoy it. Went to go with another mommy friend and there are not any high chairs. We decided to go somewhere else because we needed a place for our toddlers to sit. It would be good to invest in a few.

  • 5/5 Claudia M. 2 years ago on Google
    Delicious burritos and super cool staff! Super good drinks too!

  • 3/5 Jeffrey R. 5 months ago on Google
    We went during the lunch rush and the person taking our order seemed impatient. I asked him about an ingredient in the Coke flavored marinade and he stated that you couldn't taste the Coke, and he wouldn't recommend it. The rest of the staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. I ordered a barbacoa burrito, smothered in pork green Chile and cheese which turned out to be very watery and tasteless, and the meat inside was cold. I won't return there.

  • 5/5 Nora W. 8 months ago on Google
    Incredible food for our daughter's birthday party! We held her birthday party our local park. The food was packed well and easy to transport. Their directions were great for set up and serving the food. Our guests loved the different taco options including protein and veggie options. Very appreciative to the staff at Illegal Pete's!

  • 5/5 Lauren H. 6 months ago on Google
    One of my favorite places in Boulder- get double steak nachos with guacamole on top, and an infused margarita.

  • 4/5 Stanislav K. 7 months ago on Google
    For what it is, it is pretty good! What it is: a cheap ish healthy ish option to eat a good amount of fresh food. A double meat burrito with extras is around 18 dollars, and the good men behind the counter really do put a lot of meat in. The quality of the ingredients seem pretty good for a fast food joint in America (I’m a high maintenance European and even this is good) The service workers are early twenties kids that aw probably high at times and don’t care too much about sanitation or anything like that. But basic standards are there - I don’t think anyone would be disgusted to eat here or anything as some reviews say. If I don’t feel like eating at whole foods hot bar, I go here. Again - pretty happy with it - two burritos in two different days did not disappoint Note it can get very very crowded - I waited 20-30 minutes in line once

  • 3/5 Stephanie W. 1 year ago on Google
    Food was savory and fresh. It was very loud and difficult to hear tho, the staff didn't communicate well either, didn't speak up or seem to know how things ran very well. They may have been new. My college kids live eating hear and go a couple of times a month.

  • 5/5 Jean-Samuel C. 1 year ago on Google
    It's a rather busy place serving a lot of great combos for a very affordable price. The food was great, but don't expect a fancy service. It's a pretty expedititive order process. Generous portions and the taste was quite authentic. The nachos were really salty. They should adjust the recipe.

  • 5/5 M 2 years ago on Google
    Killer staff and great food. Come during happy hour - free chips and salsa and $20 margarita pitcher makes for the perfect date night, the baja fish tacos are incredible!!

  • 5/5 Steve M. 1 year ago on Google
    Vegan options were wonderful and a nice selection of hot sauces. The mixing of the ingredients in the burrito was also an unexpected touch. Sure it takes an extra 20 seconds (which is why chipotle doesn't do it), but adds to the experience.

  • 5/5 Laura N. 1 year ago on Google
    Best burrito on this earth. Everything is delicious. The chicken, steak, pork, fish tacos and fish burrito just to name a few. Illegal Pete's food is so satisfying, if you try it once you crave to go back. The salsa... Green medium, red is hot but the corn salsa is my favorite.

  • 2/5 M F. 1 year ago on Google
    I’ve eaten more authentic Mexican food at Chipotle 🥴 ps: since you want to run a Mexican food business and put the word “illegal” on the title, does this mean that your next American food diner will have the phrase “active school shooter”? 🤔

  • 2/5 Bob H. 1 year ago on Google
    Tiniest portion of meat coupled with a huge amount of rice. The first 50% of my Carnitas burrito had no meat whatsoever. Neither of my burritos had any salsa (or if they did, it was undetectable, even though I ordered the hottest available). Overall, both burritos were dry, boring, and flavorless. I won't be coming back. What a rip off.

  • 4/5 Otto R. 1 year ago on Google
    My carnitas burrito was very delicious. My wife's chicken tacos not so much. The tacos lacked salt and spice. Otherwise a solid place to enjoy some Mexican/American food 🥑

  • 3/5 Shane W. 1 year ago on Google
    So illegal Pete's is great for lots of reasons. Much better than chipotle and they play great music. It's also some of the cheapest food in boulder. Here is my only complaint as someone who is a chef. They don't use their slotted spoons to drain liquid before putting it in the burrito so often if not every time the bottom of the burrito is soggy and gross. I understand their trying to live quickly but it really really ruins the burrito for it to be soggy. Another issue is half the people there literally have no clue how to properly roll a burrito which is pretty silly considering how easy it is. Overall there's some laziness that really affects the overall quality of the food but it's still worth the money.

  • 5/5 Justin M. 1 year ago on Google
    Good food with lots of vegan options. Staff was super friendly.

  • 5/5 Erica D. 1 year ago on Google
    We used Illegal Pete’s catered burrito bar for our Boulder High 2001 reunion and I can’t stop raving about it! Great communication, the same amazing food we all remembered from high school and we got to support a local Colorado company. If you are having an event - small or big- don’t worry about the cooking because Illegal Pete’s has you covered! Their corn salsa is my favorite! Highly recommend whether you get 1 taco or 200!

  • 4/5 Darrin S. 2 years ago on Google
    First time to Illegal Pete's while we were on vacation in the Denver area as we heard it was better than Chipotle. The food was good but at the time we went they were doing a lot of carryout orders and has to wait longer than we should have. The food was better than Chipotle and a lot more selection. I would recommend giving it a try.


Call (303) 440-3955 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Parking
    • ✓️ Paid street parking
  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Coffee
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Quick bite
    • ✓️ Hard liquor
    • ✓️ Comfort food
    • ✓️ Small plates
    • ✓️ Vegan options
    • ✓️ Happy hour food
    • ✓️ Healthy options
    • ✓️ Late-night food
    • ✓️ Happy hour drinks
    • ✓️ Vegetarian options
  • Popular for
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Solo dining
  • Accessibility
    • ✗ Assistive hearing loop
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible seating
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible entrance
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible restroom
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible parking lot
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Dessert
    • ✓️ Seating
    • ✓️ Catering
    • ✓️ Breakfast
    • ✓️ Counter service
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✓️ Takeout
    • ✓️ Delivery
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating
    • ✓️ No-contact delivery

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