El Pollo Loco Closes Only St. Louis Location

By Ian Froeb Fri., Feb. 18 2011 at 1:00 PM

Jennifer Silverberg

The El Pollo Loco in south St. Louis County has closed.

Following up on a post on the Post Dispatch's "Eat at Joe's" message board, Gut Check can confirm that the only St. Louis area location of the fast-food chain El Pollo Loco (4103 South Lemay Ferry Road, South St. Louis County; 314-892-4600) has closed.

A spokesperson at the chain's corporate headquarters said the restaurant has closed but couldn't provide more specific details except that it was most likely the decision of the franchisee.

I reviewed El Pollo Loco in September 2009. As I wrote then, while fast-food restaurants usually don't fall within the range of my reviews, El Pollo Loco has a unique history: It was founded as a roadside stand in Guasave, Mexico. It is now based in Costa Mesa, California.

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El Pollo Loco

4103 Lemay Ferry Road, South St. Louis County, MO

Category: Restaurant

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closings, El Pollo Loco, fast-food restaurants, Mexican cuisine, South St. Louis County restaurants

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Martin Logan

Yes Msrdls, it was impossible to get IN there from one direction - not a recipe for success. When there are so many other choices right in the area, people are lazy and will just keep driving til they can easily pull in.

Mike N.

This comes as no surprise to me -- after a half-dozen or so visits I only had one decent dining experience. It struck me as a management issue; there was something off in the way they were handling things, particularly during slow times.

Pollo Mofo

This isn't too shocking given the fact its located in one of the busiest intersections in the city, yet was almost always empty. I went there a few times and thought it was entirely bland. Was that salsa or water they were serving in there? Also the few times I went the music was so annoyingly loud you could hardly carry on a conversation. I do remember it opening in May 2008 and being packed, but left thinking wtf is all the hype online about? I don't think it was the "wrong" part of St. Louis, I just think the food was average and people voted with their mouths.

Msrdls

I used to eat at this chain in California.....didn't think much of it then. In the case of the S. County store, it was located in the wrong area.

JackC

They changed the recipe, pretty much changed the whole enterprise. The company that bought El Pollo Loco, decided to save time and money by all new franchises, instead of cooking the chicken over a firepit, they cooked the chicken in an oven. I predicted this would happen, when I first found out what the geniuses were planning on doing. If you want the original El Poolo Loco you need to have it cooked the original way, come to California or Texas and have it done right. FAIL!

If I was the franchisee I would probably sue the company for misrepresentation of what you were buying.