Latest visit: Jan 2024 (Colorado Springs - Bass Pro)
First visit: Feb 2020 (Colorado Springs - Powers)
Locations: In addition to the two locations in Colorado Springs, their original spot is in the beautiful northern Colorado mountain town of Steamboat Springs.
I hadn't really planned on revisiting Vaqueros anytime soon. For us it seems a better place to take out of town guests given its stunning setting and reasonably good food. But on this cold and dreary Sunday, as we await a snowstorm, a Mexican lunch sounded perfect. Our original plan was to go to El Padrino but we forgot they're closed on Sunday's. Just up the road a piece is Vaqueros, so let's go there. Walking in I was reminded of El Paseo in Keller - a large elegant restaurant - for no apparent reason to be that way...
My voice text notes state: We're at Vaqueros where they're playing some incredible Norteno music (lol)... I had the two enchilada plate, one with chicken and one with ground beef. Refried beans and rice. Everything came out steaming hot (yaay). We both liked the red enchilada sauce - not enough for Mrs. RJG though, they skimped her portion. Ground beef was delicious, heavily seasoned mush meat. That was our favorite. Shredded chicken was very good, and I added pork green chili (for $1) and it wasn't worth it - couldn't really taste it honestly (I should have read my own review below first). Beans were excellent and the rice even better. Mrs. RJG had a chicken enchilada (as noted) along with a ground beef taco that she really enjoyed. Chips and salsa were good, and we did ask for a hotter variety, and that was better than the standard table sauce. And... haha.. we ordered "medium" margaritas which were large 20 ounce globe glasses. A good amount of tequila was applied though it was a tad sweet overall for my tastes.
In conclusion my original assessment was correct: Ideal for out-of-towners, but not really a RJG rotation restaurant. We skipped last year, but it made the list for 2024 anyway.
---original 9/10/22 review
On our first visit, there was an air of ominosity. Lockdowns had yet to come but something wasn't quite right. We sensed the last days of freedom were upon us. We'd been through pandemics before, but for some reason, it didn't seem like the world was going to react in the same way. And boy was that ever right. Our memory of Vaqueros was tainted because of this, though more from the Mrs. than I.
So it was with much surprise - happily I might add - that Mrs. RJG suggest we go to their new location for lunch nearby to where we live. She hasn't been wanting to go for Mexican food for the longest time. That streak was broken on Labor Day when we visited The Loop. I figured that might be it. But here we are again, reliving the type of life we enjoyed back in DFW.
Vaqueros took over the old C.B. & Potts location that went belly up almost as soon as the pandemic started. It sits in a most stunning location, across from the Air Force Academy with large windows displaying Pikes Peak and the foothills. And you can sit outdoors as well. It's a fairly isolated place, so you're not in a typical suburban strip mall area. There must be serious money behind this small chain just to grab this location. They were smart though - as they didn't renovate the building. The interior looks like Potts did, with a few Mexican touches here and there. They did make more significant changes on the exterior.
The chips and salsa are very good - not exceptional. Good tasting sauce and the chips were crisp. For drinks I was just going to get a Mexican lager, but Mrs. RJG went for a globe margarita. So I fell prey to that idea. The margaritas are premade, which is probably good, as it ensures that they at least put some tequila in it. I really miss the frozen margarita machines in Texas, though I can always go to Fuzzy's if I need a fix. All the same it was a good margarita. But again, nothing memorable.
The main dishes were the highlight. Mrs. RJG had the chipotle pollo which comes in a thick chipotle sauce that was delicious. Also comes with mushrooms, rice, and black beans. Everything came out hot temperature which is not something you can always count on these days. I stayed simple and had a chicken crispy taco and a ground beef enchilada smothered in green chile, with rice and refritos. The latter is the first thing I tried and I was immediately drawn to the great flavor. The rice was perfectly cooked and also excellent. The ground beef was heavily seasoned, always a plus. The green chile wasn't very distinctive for Colorado, so I'd probably pass on that for future visits. Though maybe they should have given me more? It was a pretty light ladle pour. The chicken was white meat and a tad dry - but the homemade corn shell was great.
For next-level Mexican food, Vaqueros tops the competition Hacienda Colorado, and is less expensive (though by no means a bargain either - gotta pay that rent or mortgage!). While this will not be a regular stop for us, we'll certainly try for annual reviews. And maybe more, because this is a good place to take out-of-towners, especially considering its location and ambience.
2/22/20; 9/10/22 (new entry); 1/7/24
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