New restaurant in Adams County serving up authentic Mexican fare

Judith Munson

Contributor

March 3, 2025

FRIENDSHIP – It’s been less than a month since the Crazy Taco Waterfront Restaurant opened its doors in Friendship, but if early Facebook reviews are any indication, it’s a welcome addition.

Comments such as – “Food is so good and (it has) very friendly staff,” and “We have been there twice, service is excellent, food is amazing… truly a place to go for a great time” and “Great place, checks all the boxes, it’s going to be a great success” – are just a few of the positive messages that fill the restaurant’s page.

The restaurant, located at 1947 Dakota Lane along the shore of Castle Rock Lake, held its grand opening late last month in the building that formerly housed Splash Waterfront Bar & Grill – which closed in 2021 after a 31-year run.

Crazy Taco is co-owned and -operated by Humberto Bravo and Carlos and Yolanda Torres – all of whom grew up together in the same hometown in Mexico, later reconnecting in the States.

As a business owner already – opening his first restaurant in Tennessee, before moving to Wisconsin where he ran Mexican restaurants in Rhinelander and Minocqua – Bravo said he knows a thing or two about being a restaurateur.

Before embarking on the Crazy Taco venture, Bravo said he opened Bohemios Mexican Grill and Cantina in Portage (125 Wauona Trail).

Bravo said he currently commutes between Friendship and Portage to help run both Crazy Taco and Bohemios.

A combined passion

Bravo said he and the Torreses have always wanted to open a restaurant on a water-adjacent property – so they promptly pursued the Friendship location when it became available.

“A lot of people wanted this property,” Bravo said. “So they told us, ‘you have to wait.’ Then, they went to our restaurant in Portage, and they really liked the food and the atmosphere. They called me back, and we signed.” 

The partners said they took their time to ensure the place transitioned into an authentic Mexican experience.

“We worked very, very hard,” Bravo said. “(We) cleaned for two months. It took a long time. Then we announced a soft opening.”

That soft opening, he said, took place Feb. 9 – Super Bowl Sunday – and went very well despite people having previous Super Bowl party plans.

Bravo said lots of people wanted a sneak peek at the new and improved space.

“People were happy – people liked it,” he said. “They commented on Facebook. The response has been really good. Lots of good reviews. We had a full house until game time. We’ve been pretty busy every night since.”

For the soft opening, Bravo said Crazy Taco wasn’t quite set up for the big game, as the TVs hadn’t arrived yet.

However, he said the sports bar part of the venue is now up and running with lots of events planned around major events – which most recently included the Daytona 500.

Bravo said they are also planning to host bands this summer at the establishment’s tiki bar, every weekend, starting in May. 

A peek at the menu, space

Bravo said Crazy Taco Waterfront Restaurant has an extensive menu complete with a wide range of Mexican fare from burritos, nachos, quesadillas and enchiladas, as well as grilled steaks, seafood and salads.

Patrons, he said, can also choose from the “Monster Family” menu, which offers a monster-size chimichanga, burrito, quesadilla and enchilada, as well as the Monster Burger.

Bravo said the restaurant also features its own “Crazy Specialties” which includes chile relleno, carnitas and stuffed avocados. 

The team at Crazy Taco, he said, focuses on serving “real Mexican food – stuff you don’t always see on other menus.”

In addition, Bravo said the restaurant’s bar pours several “Crazy” specialty drinks and shots and has extensive beer and margarita offerings.

Complementary to Crazy Taco’s indoor restaurant space, he said is its outdoor space that they inherited from the previous establishment – which includes volleyball courts and a 20-slip marina, which has its own tiki bar and deck.

He said it is also located right off a main snowmobile trail, which has contributed to the location’s reputation as a tourist hotspot. 

Initially, to help get the word out to snowmobilers about the restaurant’s opening – “now that we finally got some snow” – Bravo said Crazy Taco offered everyone who arrived by snowmobile one-cent margaritas for their first drink.

‘Tortilla’ success

Bravo said “so far, so good” for Crazy Taco Waterfront Restaurant’s business – adding that less than a week after opening, they started receiving bookings from groups for the summer.  

“We have a guy who has come to the restaurant every day since we opened,” he said. “He liked the food so much, he told his friends from Chicago – many who camp, vacation in this area – so we have a group of 90 already planning to come this summer from Illinois, as soon as they can. It’s great that people from Chicago already know about us.”

Crazy Taco Waterfront Restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on the weekends.

Check out the restaurant’s Facebook page for more details.