The Absolute Best Chili's Dishes, According To Customers

Chili's recently celebrated its 50th birthday, marking five decades of affordable cuisine with Tex-Mex flare. Originally named Chili's because it included chili on the menu, the restaurant launched with the goal of offering a middle ground between fine dining and fast food, providing an array of great eats and drinks that wouldn't cost a fortune.

The Dallas-born chain has continued to revitalize old menu classics and add novel ones to draw in new diners across multiple generations. The range of offerings from this family-friendly eatery is truly astounding, from Tex-Mex classics like queso and fajitas to traditional fare like burgers and fries. Yet with such an extensive menu, it can be difficult to decide what to choose, especially if you've never visited this popular chain restaurant before.

Whether you're a first-time diner or a Chili's regular, it never hurts to know which dishes are the highest-rated by customers. We've scoured the menu from top to bottom, narrowing it down to the best of the best. From starters and appetizers to entrees and more, customers say these are the top Chili's items to order for a sensational dining experience.

If there's one thing most Chili's customers can agree on it's that this eatery's Southwestern Egg Rolls are truly superb. A fan favorite by far, Chili's Southwestern Egg Rolls come with a variety of tongue-teasing ingredients that showcase this restaurant's Tex-Mex roots. Made with crispy flour tortillas wrapped around succulent pieces of chicken, this simple appetizer is elevated with a distinctly Southwestern spin, boasting black beans, corn, spicy Jack cheese, red peppers, and spinach as key ingredients.

Both customers and Chili's staff find this dish to be exceptionally tasty, especially when dipped in the accompanying avocado ranch or a side of Sante Fe sauce. Looking for even more flavor to satisfy your Tex-Mex cravings? These burrito-style egg rolls also pair well with the chain's other dips and sauces, like Chili's Southwestern Queso, made with roasted green chilis and a hint of lime, as well as the salsa.

If you're looking for a salad that won't leave you famished in a few hours, Chili's Quesadilla Explosion Salad is a highly recommended choice. This filling dish comes with a protein (either chicken, shrimp, or salmon), corn salsa, cheese, tomatoes, cilantro, and dressing atop greens, all finished with a cheese quesadilla in case you were still hungry. It's definitely not a salad lacking in flavor or ingredients.

Even folks who aren't traditional "salad people" commend this enjoyable fare. Devotees of this dish recommend ordering it with extra dressing, citing the accompanying citrus balsamic dressing as delicious. Still worried this salad won't appease your hunger? This dish can also be ordered with Chili's signature Chicken Crispers as the main protein, serving up a salad that's basically an entree and an appetizer all in one. No wonder this explosive order is such a fan favorite!

Chili's regulars wish the Original Chicken Crispers would make a comeback, but the Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers have become a welcomed comfort in their absence. Offered as a combo with fries and a side of mac and cheese, Chili's Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers are a go-to order for many, taking their rightful place as a Chili's menu staple.

What makes this menu item so good? It's likely the flavorful honey chipotle sauce, which customers adore on everything from these crispy chicken tenders to the mozzarella sticks. Of the three Chicken Crisper varieties offered by the dine-in chain, the Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers are largely the most popular, being described as juicy and tender with a well-seasoned batter and, of course, that sensational sauce. Chili's fans love how each piece of these savory chicken tenders are coated in this glimmering sauce, ensuring bite is equally flavorful.

While the fajitas at Chili's may have fallen in quality over the years according to some customers, the ribs have only gotten better. Chili's recently updated its rib recipe, ensuring more meat and a more robust flavor, thanks to a perfectly browned barbecue sauce. Chili's even updated its signature theme song to coincide with its new and improved rib re-release, having award-winning artist Lizzo retool the classic jingle.

Diners agree the revamp was a definite improvement on Chili's ribs. Customers of this family-friendly chain have praised these refreshed meaty morsels, calling them well-sauced, thick, and the fall-off-the-bone tender. Fans definitely recommend ordering them with an order of Chili's hot and crispy fries.

This decades-long Chili's item can be ordered as a full rack, half rack, or combo allowing you to order just the right size needed for the job. Looking for a budget-friendly way to get as many of these succulent ribs as possible? Order the Smokehouse Combo Pick 3 — you can actually snag three half racks of ribs for the price of one full rack with this menu hack, not to mention a side of fries and some white cheddar mac and cheese as well. 

No Tex-Mex chain would be complete without solid chips and salsa, and Chili's take on the classic starter does not disappoint. Fans love Chili's ultra-thin, uber-salty corn tostada chips, which are made fresh every day. Some have even gone as far as to call these chips crave-worthy, delighting in their flavor with enthusiasm.

The perfect precursor to your Chili's meal, these delicately thin chips ensure won't fill you up too quickly due to their slimmer quality. Instead they'll whet your appetite, especially when coupled with a margarita. But what are chips without a good salsa?

Fortunately, Chili's salsa stands as the perfect partner to this salty sensation. This eatery's salsa is so popular in fact, fans of this savory chip dip seek out copycat recipes in online discussions, trying to replicate its consistency and flavor. Chili's customers adore the texture of this sauce, lauding it for striking the right balance of having just enough kick without being too chunky.

When paired together, the dream team is complete, combining a savory sauce with warm salty vessel that you likely won't stop snaking on until the next dish arrives. Even better, this appetizer comes free with every meal if you join Chili's Rewards.

Just because Chili's is known for Tex-Mex cuisine doesn't mean they can't do other culinary styles justice. This casual eatery's Cajun Pasta continues to lure in new fans with its combination of penne pasta, creamy Alfredo, and bold spice blend, all topped with either chicken or shrimp. A dish approved of both by Chili's staff and customers, diners love the bold, rich Alfredo sauce that coats this pasta, noting it's perfect for dipping your accompanying slice of Texas toast.

Worried this Cajun creation might be too fiery for your palate? Heat-sensitive pasta fans can order the spice blend on the side, testing their taste buds with a dash here and there. A popular menu hack is also to sub the regular chicken for Honey Chipotle Crispers. The fusion of the creamy Alfredo married with the heavenly honey chipotle sauce makes for a spectacular combination.

While some classic Chili's items have disappeared from the menu — such as the once-popular Awesome Blossom – others have risen to greatness to take their place. A now-viral item, Chili's Fried Mozzarella was first added to the menu in 2022, although its widespread fame was yet to occur. The appetizer's sweep of social media began in 2024, with countless fans gushing over the decadent cheese pull and crispy exterior coating. Its fame has yet to wane, with diners loving the sharable nature of this appetizer, calling the quality consistent and portions generous.

In response to the dish's popularity, Chili's began adding new varieties of fried mozzarella to its expansive menu. Much like its Chicken Crispers, the lively restaurant offers its fried mozzarella in three flavors: regular, Honey Chipotle Mozzarella, and Nashville Hot Mozzarella — all of which can be ordered in a three or six piece size. While all three varieties are highly rated, Chili's regulars seem particularly fond of the newer Nashville Hot flavor, praising the sauce-drenched appetizer when dipped in cool ranch. The slow heat of the spiced sauce is perfectly quenched by this dipping sauce, coating each piece perfectly.

Despite which style you order, fans seem to agree these cheesy treasures are well worth the price, declaring they are large enough that an order of three is perfectly satisfying. Unlike other chain restaurants whose fried mozzarella follows tube form, Chili's Fried Mozzarella resembles bricks more than sticks, ensuring you'll get plenty of gooey cheese in every bite. It's a dish just as mouthwatering as it is photo-worthy, making it an appetizer Chili's customers hope will stay for years to come.

Though it's known primarily for Tex-Mex, burgers were one of Chili's first menu items. Chili's Big Smasher Burger may sound deceptively simple with its ingredient list of American cheese, red onions, pickles, lettuce, and Thousand Island dressing, but customers seem to heartily approve of this uncomplicated fare. Served with fries, fans praise this thick burger for its stature and flawlessly charred patty, not to mention the crispy, perfectly salted fries that accompany it.

Those who've tried this beefy burger compliment the juicy patty and the way the cheese melts perfectly to its charred exterior. Unlike other burgers with overwhelming sauces or fancy trimmings, this burger never lets one ingredient overpower the others. Instead, the traditional ingredients render this dish a classic, with each element working in harmony.

While Chili's debuted The Big QP burger in 2025 — which unabashedly declared 85% more meat than McDonald's classic burger — it seems fans are more enthusiastic about the Big Smasher. Customers credit the burger for its quality and price, mentioning how deals surrounding the dish make it significantly more appealing than fast food burgers. Currently available as part of the 3 For Me deal, you can order this cunningly simple burger along with a drink and a starter for just $10.99.

Can't decide what to order? Combine several of Chili's favorites into one filling meal. The Triple Dipper allows you to order three of your favorite appetizers, be that your favorite fried mozzarella, Chicken Crispers, buffalo wings, or simply three orders of Chili's Big Mouth Bites (also known as sliders), to share with the table or steal for yourself.

If you've never been to this casual chain restaurant before, this item is a highly recommended place to start. The Triple Dipper might be the most popular of all Chili's offerings, given how it constituted a whopping 14% of sales in the second quarter of 2025, per FSR. This is largely attributed to the appetizer achieving viral status on social media in 2024, resulting in 29 million Triple Dippers sold that year.

One has to wonder if the success of this dish is also due to its highly customizable nature, giving customers the opportunity to choose from a wide variety of appetizer options, from the much-esteemed sliders to egg rolls and boneless wings. Everyone has a preferred combination for this fan-favorite. Although there are more than a dozen options to choose from, we recommend including the Big Mouth Bites and Fried Mozzarella as part of your order — that way, you can make your own mouth-watering cheese sliders.

No meal at this Tex-Mex restaurant chain would be complete without dessert, and there's a secret menu item at Chili's that combines two delectable dishes into one. This heavenly creation is known as the Molten Chocolate Cake Skillet Cookie, and while not on the menu, it has been recently making the rounds on social media.

The creation merges two celebrated Chili's desserts into one, resulting in a delightful experience that is perfect for sharing. The first is the revered Molten Chocolate Cake, in which a warm chocolate center fills a chocolate cake topped with ice cream. The second is the pizookie-like Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie, crowned with ice cream and hot fudge.

Made by sliding Chili's much beloved Molten Chocolate Cake atop a chocolate chip skillet cookie, the Molten Chocolate Cake Skillet Cookie is then drizzled with caramel, topped with vanilla ice cream, and graced with even more chocolate. Fans seem to agree the concoction is delicious, raving about the softness of the cookie combined with the rich chocolate and ice cream when joined together into one tantalizing bite. It just might be the perfect end to the ideal Chili's dining experience. 

To measure Chili's top dishes, a variety of Chili's offerings were assessed and compared with the help of online recommendations and discussions of favorite items by Chili's customers.

Factors included the quality of ingredients, overall popularity of the dish, portion size, taste, and consistency. All of Chili's current menu offerings were taken into account, from appetizers and entrees to desserts. Past dishes no longer on the menu were not considered, though we did sneak one "secret" menu item in.