Illegal Pete's is a mexican restaurant in Old Town, Fort Collins.
Editorially verified August 19, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Mission burrito, Queso
Must order: A burrito with green chile and queso over the top
Tip: Weekend breakfast burritos run 09:00-13:00; Friday and Saturday the line serves until midnight with margaritas alongside.
Address: 320 Walnut Street, Fort Collins, CO 80524
Vatos Tacos + Tequila grills street tacos from a shipping container at The Exchange in Fort Collins, open from 07:00 with margaritas on the plaza.
Signature: Street tacos, Frozen margaritas
Order: Three street tacos with guacamole and unlimited chips
Tip: It opens at 07:00 for breakfast service, unusual for a taqueria; gluten-free items are flagged on the menu board.
La Piadina griddles Emilia-Romagna flatbread sandwiches from a container kitchen at The Exchange in Fort Collins, with Italian wine and local beer.
Signature: Piadina flatbreads
Order: A prosciutto and squacquerone piadina, hot off the griddle
Tip: A piadina crisped to order plus a glass of Italian wine on the plaza is one of the city's best cheap dates.
Big City Burrito wraps its famous potato burrito on South College Avenue in Fort Collins from 07:00, the original counter of a homegrown institution.
Signature: Potato burrito, Breakfast burritos
Order: The potato burrito, smothered, with hot green chile
Tip: The potato burrito smothered in green chile is the order that made the name; breakfast burritos run from opening.
Cheba Hut toasts its counterculture subs on Taft Hill Road in Fort Collins until 02:00 on weekends, with billiards, a full bar and Kool-Aid on tap.
Signature: White Widow sub, Goo Ball
Order: A toasted White Widow with a Kool-Aid cottonmouth cure
Tip: The chain's headquarters sits in Fort Collins; the westside hut adds billiards and stays open latest. Order a White Widow toasted.
JAWS Sushi rolls student-friendly maki and pours hot sake on West Elizabeth Street in Fort Collins, with an 11:00-13:00 happy hour on rolls.
Signature: Specialty rolls, Hot sake
Order: Two happy-hour rolls and a tokkuri of hot sake
Tip: Closed Mondays. The 11:00-13:00 happy hour is one of the cheapest sushi lunches in the city.
Vatos Tacos + Tequila grills street tacos from a shipping container at The Exchange in Fort Collins, open from 07:00 with margaritas on the plaza.
Signature: Street tacos, Frozen margaritas
Order: Three street tacos with guacamole and unlimited chips
Tip: It opens at 07:00 for breakfast service, unusual for a taqueria; gluten-free items are flagged on the menu board.
La Piadina griddles Emilia-Romagna flatbread sandwiches from a container kitchen at The Exchange in Fort Collins, with Italian wine and local beer.
Signature: Piadina flatbreads
Order: A prosciutto and squacquerone piadina, hot off the griddle
Tip: A piadina crisped to order plus a glass of Italian wine on the plaza is one of the city's best cheap dates.
Petra Grill carves certified halal shawarma and grills kabobs on West Elizabeth Street in Fort Collins, a family room that feeds the CSU crowd.
Signature: Chicken shawarma, Mixed kabob platter
Order: Chicken shawarma wrap with a side of hummus
Tip: Everything on the menu is certified halal and there is no alcohol; the falafel-hummus sandwich is the vegetarian sleeper.
