POLLO TROPICAL #22

POLLO TROPICAL #22 grades better than most of its neighbors: safer than 88% of Seminole County restaurants we grade, holding an A at 99/100.

Its latest inspection on January 15, 2026 cited 1 basic violation. Diners give it 3.7 across 2,409 reviews. It's a Cuban spot in Altamonte Springs. Menus here flag options for vegetarian, dairy-free, and healthy diners.

A · 99/100 · safer than 88% of Seminole County restaurants we grade

Get directions Call (407) 865-6750

Restaurant details

Health grade
A (99/100)
Violations
1 total — 1 basic
Address
489 W SR 436, Altamonte Springs, FL
Cuisine
Cuban
Categories
Chicken restaurant, Cuban restaurant
Price
$10–20
Rating
3.7 stars (2409 reviews)
Seats
96
Phone
(407) 865-6750
Website
Official website
Photo of POLLO TROPICAL #22
Photo: Pollo Tropical

Community Rating

Reviews via Google
3.7 Community-sourced rating 2,409 reviews
Read all reviews on Google →

What diners say — our read

An A inspection result sits behind a review average of just 3.1. Reviews mentioning the staff average 3.1 stars, so it divides opinion rather than settling it. After that, how long an order takes appears most often — 24% of the corpus, averaging 1.8.

10 of 21 rated reviews are four stars or higher; 9 are two or lower. What nobody raises here is whether it is worth the money — it goes unmentioned across all 21 reviews. More reviewers landed on 5 stars than any other score — 9 of 21.

The health record runs ahead of the reviews. The last DBPR inspection returned an A (99/100) with 1 basic violations. That result dates from January 15, 2026. Ranked against Seminole County, it is safer than 88% of the restaurants we score. What the inspector actually wrote up: nonfood-contact surfaces clean.

The weak part of this listing is the experience, not the sanitation — those are different failures. The reviews themselves follow, unedited and newest first.

Our own analysis of 21 reviews for this restaurant, set against its Florida DBPR inspection record. How we calculate grades →

  • June 20, 2026

    Food is beyond delicious, and employees are very friendly, especially the Manager I encountered that evening.

  • June 19, 2026

    The food is delicious with healthy options. Maria, the cashier, was very nice, friendly, and knowledgeable about the menu. Her years of experience shows every time I visit and I’m attended well! She always lets me know any new food item I might want to try. I will be returning soon!

  • June 17, 2026

    The food was decent at this location, they use quality ingredients. The music was very loud inside. We had a less than optimal ordering experience and were called up for our food rudely, and then they ended up forgetting all of our sauces for our meal.

  • June 15, 2026

    It is awesome all of the food is precise

  • June 14, 2026

    They are very very slow and rude. The store only had a few customers inside.

  • June 11, 2026

    Excelente comida, buena atención y el sitio muy agradable.

  • June 11, 2026

    Were not friendly and my rice was old took it back and the still messed up my order

  • June 10, 2026

    Ordered a tropichop, rice is undercooked and was out of onion, asked for tomato and corn, only got lettuce and beans….use to love pollo but this sucks

  • June 8, 2026

    Everytime I order here its some issue but recently they told me I couldn't order what they had on their site because their "system" doesnt allow to add items to your order which made zero sense when ive done it in the past before. Waited 35 minutes in drive thru to be told that so truly excellent time

  • June 6, 2026

    I love the taste

  • June 6, 2026

    El señor mayor que atiende en caja no usa guantes para manipular la comida Cortó el pollo en una tabla sucia y lo puso en el plato creyendo que no lo vi No recibí el plato porque me parece muy desagradable esa acción de este personaje

  • June 4, 2026

    Food was well prepared. My issue was with my kids apple juice box. The box was unacceptable and should’ve been thrown away. The box seemed to be heavily damaged in which leaked in the bag during transportation. It was clear that this shouldn’t have been handed to a customer. Although this annoyed me, this won’t stop me from coming back as the food was good as well as the service.

  • May 29, 2026

    Sorpresa agradable por el sabor de la comida muy latina

  • May 28, 2026

    This last order the rice and beans had absolutely zerooo flavor and the rice was mostly bottom pan dried up crunchy rice and the rice portions were skimped on both my entrees. Something has changed recently but this was hands down the worst food ive ever gotten from pollo

  • May 26, 2026

    El área muy limpia y no tuve que esperar mucho tiempo como en otros lugares.gracias.

  • May 25, 2026

    Every time I got here there are 7 or 8 people working behind the counter and no one greets to acknowledges you for several minutes. They ignore you. And then when you ask to be helped. Even just picking up an order whome 3 are sitting there..they act like you are a burden and are rude and bark at you. Horrendous culture here. Por customer service. Every time.

  • May 25, 2026

    Larger location but also warmer than others...kids meal is a good option since it includes a large choc cookie

  • May 20, 2026

    No lo recomiendo hay mejores opciones

  • May 15, 2026

    Todo muy bueno buen servicio maria una empleada muy pero muy buena q persona tan amable gracias maria tú servicio

  • May 15, 2026

    Quiero expresar mi decepción con la cantidad de comida que están sirviendo últimamente en Pollo Tropical. Cada vez que voy, noto que ponen menos pollo y más arroz y frijoles. En la foto se puede ver claramente que la porción de pollo es muy pequeña en comparación con el resto del plato. También pasa con la salsa de cilantro. Cuando pedimos los potes, apenas los llenan y normalmente solo dan 2 para toda la comida, cuando realmente por la poca cantidad que traen eso equivale prácticamente a 1. A mí me gusta disfrutar mi comida con suficiente salsa, pero últimamente la cantidad que sirven es demasiado limitada. Siempre me ha gustado comer en Pollo Tropical, pero la calidad y las porciones han bajado bastante. Espero que puedan mejorar esto porque los clientes sí notamos la diferencia.

  • May 13, 2026

    I'm editing my review because I've been going to this Pollo Tropical for years and always had a good experience. Today I ordered 1 of my usual meals through the app, like I usually do. I arrived 5 minutes before my food was supposedto be done, I didn't mind waiting. But 20 minutes past the time my food was supposed to he done. Nobody let me know. I did advise the staff as soon as I arrived that I was there. When I got my food I headed back to work to eat my lunchl. I then find out that there's no utensils in the to go bag. My job is like a 3 minute walk, so I had no problem walking back to get the utensils. However when I got back and explained that I just picked up a to go order. But didn't have any utensils. The girl behind the counter looked confused and got another employee to help. I didn't mind because she was the same lady who handed me my food when I 1st picked it up. I asked for the utensils so I can go back to my job to eat. But apparently the lady who just handed me my food maybe 5 minutes ago looked confused too and needed to a manager just so I can get a fork to eat my lunch. I explained to the manager that all I needed was a fork to eat my lunch that I just ordered. At this point I'm getting frustrated. So I also explained how long i had to wait just get my food and all I wanted was a fork to eat. The manager then asks me"What can I do to help the situation"? And all I wanted was a fork.

Overall Score

71 / 100

  • Health inspection grade 40/40
    Grade A
  • Dietary transparency 10/20
    3 options listed
  • Community rating 15/20
    3.7★ average
  • Hidden-gem status 0/10
    Not flagged
  • Track record 6/10
    Stable, 50% clean

Composite score from health grade, dietary options, ratings, and inspection record — distinct from the state-derived health grade.

Opening hours

Monday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Tuesday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Wednesday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Thursday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Friday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Saturday
10:30 AM to 12 AM
Sunday
10:30 AM to 12 AM

Inspection history

The following records are from Florida DBPR public inspection records, most recent first.

  1. January 15, 2026 · Routine - Food

    Inspection Completed - No Further Action

    0 high-priority · 0 intermediate · 1 basic

    • 23 — Nonfood-contact surfaces clean
  2. July 8, 2025 · Routine - Food

    Inspection Completed - No Further Action

    0 high-priority · 0 intermediate · 0 basic

    No violations cited.

This grade is calculated by us from Florida DBPR public inspection records — Florida does not issue official grades. How we calculate it →

Data last updated: January 15, 2026