CU Bars in the News, Best Bars: Chevy's in Champaign

From WCFN 49.

Chevy's in Champaign

Chevy's is located at 103 West Marketview Drive, near the mall.

Dave Benton: We all know that central Illinois has a wealth of Mexican restaurants. But what does it exactly mean to be Mexican cuisine?

Jennifer Ketchmark: Here's what I learned while visiting Chevy's in Champaign!

When driving down Neil Street looking for a place to eat, don't forget to turn the corner and check out Chevy's.

(SOT) "We opened September 14, 1999, and this was the first one to open outside the major cities, we were able to bring in fresh Mex to the community, and we've been here ever since."

And that means food inspired by Spanish, Italian, and French flavors. And one thing this place doesn't do is cut corners.

(SOT) "Chevy's is fresh food, nothing is canned, you can go back in our kitchen and look for yourself. It's a very fun atmosphere, it's casual. It's a very happy place."

But to be a dish from south of the border doesn't mean that it has to leave your mouth on fire.

(SOT) "All of our food is medium spiced, however we can spice it up. We feel that medium spices are flavor."

And here are some dishes that will have you saying "Ole"!

This salad—mixed grill with everything from chicken breast to jumbo shrimp—and a chile verde burrito.

And from top to bottom this dish was my favorite!

And if it's not the food you are looking for, you better be looking for their margaritas. They come in grande size all the way down to samplers.

And just like the food, all flavors you see here are made from the fruit, not concentrate.

(SOT) "We also offer great flavors of margaritas, such as strawberry, straw-banana, melons, mangos, cranberry, you name it!"

And the make sure to go top-notch with something else too!

(SOT) "We use the real thing, the real tequilla, we have our secret sweet and sour mixes that have never changed."

(SOT) "We are the only restaurant in the area that has the Grand Platinum patron tequila. We sell high-roller 'ritas!"

And if that doesn't have you sold, you should come in for this big pull.

(SOT) "Chevy's is a fun, festive atmosphere, and we have a lot of fun colors like you can see."

(SOT) "We use some authentic Mexican pieces, the hats, the paintings, it really gives a feeling of fun warmth to the guests."

But wait, one more thing you should never miss here is the 5th of May.

(SOT) "Cinco de Mayo, it's the biggest celebration of the year for us. We have lots of specials and we bring in some type of music, decorations."

(SOT) "For Cinco de Mayo we are going to have $4 margaritas."

Bringing the flare of south to central Illinois is why this place made our list of best bars.

[SOTs: Cheryl Hussain, Chevy's owner; Mauricio Salinasm Chevy's general manager]