cook

line cook

crew member

scheduler

team member

Taco Casa

Working at Taco Casa is great if you don’t have any experience and need a job. They’re always hiring (because people are constantly quitting or getting fired due the horrible management overseeing the restaurant, but more on that below). It’s also easy to get more hours if you’d like and you might meet some great coworkers who are fun to work with. However, that’s as far as the positives go. If you love getting disrespected, constantly screwed over with scheduling, getting paid next to nothing, and being tasked with responsibilities that you did not sign up for, then this place is for you. I’ll break down all the issues with the Taco Casa in Midlothian, TX.

ISSUE #1: MANAGEMENT
While the general manager was never mean or abusive, he was definitely not understanding or sympathetic towards the plights of his employees nor did he take them into consideration when making the schedule or giving them duties. Requests made in advance for days off were often ignored or repealed when another worker was irresponsible and couldn’t make it. Rather than trying to get to the root of the problem and figure out why so many people leave, he just cares about replacing them and not fixing the unprofessional work environment that would KEEP employees if it operated smoothly. This place is a revolving door of employment, workers coming and going all the time and in turn negatively effecting current employees who keep getting their workload and day-to-day job upheaved due to the horrible working environment.

During my time, the other managers/shift leaders (Ana, Ashley, Della, Brenda) were a joy to work with and were understanding, so the problem doesn’t lie with them but rather the GM. He forgets his employees are people so although his schedules and orders sound great on paper, they aren’t in person because he forgets to factor in the fact that his employees are humans, not robots. 

ISSUE #2: CONSTANT CHANGE IN DUTIES
I completely understand that when applying to a job, you’ll have more duties than simply being a “cashier” or “cook” or whatever you applied for. That’s 100% okay. What’s not okay, however, is getting paid a mere 50¢ above minimum wage while essentially doing every single job and not being recognized or appreciated for it. The good workers have to go above and beyond to keep everything in check and in exchange for this labor, we get paid almost nothing and aren’t even appreciated for it. One day I had to be a plumber and take care of a disgusting clogged up toilet and overflowing urinal while I was working the cashier. It was a busy day so of course I was also getting yelled at for not being in the front. 

Additionally, you’re going to often have to do things on your own which will lead to stress. This includes, but is not limited to, working the drive-thru by yourself (VERY stressful), working the front by yourself, and sometimes even being on line (food prep) by yourself. Every cashier station has its cons, but working the front is definitely the worst. With the exception of Tuesdays, you’re always going to be working the front register alone which is very stressful because ALL your duties include: brewing and changing every tea (which you have to stir the sugar for a few minutes) at the three cashier stations, cleaning lobby, taking the trash out, and of course taking customers’ orders. When it’s slow and non-busy, this is fine, but when it’s 6:23PM and you’re about to take the overflowing trash out when a surge of customers come in and you get an unexpected rush, it’s HORRIBLE. Not only will the lobby get messy and you won’t be able to clean because you’re busy at the register, the trash can will start getting full and customers will start complaining about the messy environment even though you CAN’T go to the lobby and clean it because you’re the only person working the front register. Whether it’s a 5 minute rush or an hour long one, you WILL experience this at least once everyday.

ISSUE #3: PAY (or the lack thereof)
With all the issues above, it’s clear that getting paid $8.00 isn’t enough. Even if you’re a hard worker, the GM will be very hesitant to give you a raise and will only up your pay in increments of 25¢. One of the worst things he ever did was raise one of my coworker’s pay rate after she asked, but in response LOWERED her hours so that although she had a higher pay, she had less hours therefore wasn’t making more money. This goes to show how cheap he is. 

All in all, Taco Casa is an okay first job if you desperately need one, but just know you’ll be getting a lot more than what you signed up for. The GM doesn’t know how to properly run his business and as a result the working environment is completely upheaved and causes an unorganized and unprofessional working experience.

A typical day at work was coming in, making sure that you're stocked, if anything needs to be cooked or made get everything together and fix whatever needs to be done while you have no customers, taking, fixing, passing out orders, and cleaning the whole restaurant.

I learned that no matter how much of a good worker you are, you will not always get the best outcome or everything you want if the manager doesn't want to give it to you and that some customers will have very bad attitudes and make it hard to deal with while others give you little or no problems at all. But in any situation it's best to stay calm and try to mend to all of their requests without breaking any rules.

Management could have really been better. My manager really didn't know how to manage people because she didn't have any authority within the restaurant. Other co-workers were talking to her any kind of way and it was not only disresepctful to her but it was also disrespectful to the other employees.

I pretty much enjoyed working with all my co-workers. I rarely had any problems with anyone. This job actually had some of the most down to earth people I have ever worked with. At times I would have people who wouldn't want to do this or do that or took their time doing it but overall they were good to work with.

The hardest part of my job would have been being the only person working in the restaurant at a certain time that can cause many complications because you are taking all the orders on front counter and drive thru, fixing everyone's food by yourself, and bagging them and passing them out. Sometimes that's where the problems would come in at because people would start to get angry, ask for more food or discounts, drive off leaving you with food you can't serve, etc.

The most enjoyable part of my job I would say was meeting great customers who understood the process of your job and never or rarely complained or gave you any problems whatsoever and would at times leave tips even though we weren't allowed to take them lol!

Taco Casa was my first job and I have been a cook there for 8 months.  I have made many friends and have enjoyed working at Taco Casa.  

A typical day at work has me cooking meat, beans, or some times both for the store.  I stock the line with ingredients and restock the lettuce in the walk-in.  In addition to my cooking duties, I clean the grill, clean the wall, mop the floor, and clean the stainless steel equipment.  Also, they some times have me work the drive-thru, and the front counter.  When I do this, I handle money transactions and provide excellent customer service.

While working at Taco Casa, I have learned to be self reliant, that it is important to be early and prepared for my work shift, the value of giving good customer service, and to help other employees when they need it.

My favorite manager would assist and encourage me in learning my job and in situations became short staffed. 

I have assisted in training my coworkers.  We work as a team and assist each other when it is needed.  Also, we have a good relationship, and some of them I consider friends.

The hardest part of my job is making sure the product I am cooking consistently meets high customer standards.  

The most enjoyable part of my job is cooking. I would like to one day become a chef.  Cooking is not only fun for me, but could be a possible career path.

Our managers didn’t even speak the same language when I worked there. There was a woman from bangladesh, a woman from mexico, a woman from egypt, and staff were mainly american. I obviously do not mean that race was a negative factor,.. I mean that communication was so confusing and poor that the staff and managers could never get on the same page. One time an employee’s sister died and he came to work the next day and asked for time off on the saturday of the coming weekend for her funeral, and a manager replied with “No, you did not take 2 weeks notice.” I doubt she knew how inconsiderate her response was or even fully understood the situation because the language barriers were so insane... but that was a terrible conversation to bare witness to. At one point during my employment there another staff member assaulted me (on the clock) & I was yelled at for crying in the bathroom because the managers didn’t fully understand the situation. They fired him but I was never ALLOWED to file a complaint because it would look bad for the company. Stuff like that became unbearable, and also just the management’s blatantly obvious lack of empathy and understanding 24/7 made it impossible to get anything done or explained.

Unless you are toxic, like to start drama/rumors, nosy, and/or rude, DO NOT WORK HERE. If you are suspected to have Covid-19, they make you work without question until your results are back (1 employee and 1 manager continued to work and ended up testing positive and spread it to other workers, possibly customers too). No one washed their hands and if they did it was a quick rinse WITHOUT soap. You are expected to do the MANAGERS’ duties without question. The managers share personal info with other workers (If you have any health issues, home issues, etc. the managers share it with other workers and openly judge/make jokes out of it). You are not allowed to have any sick days without the managers insulting/dissing you. The managers will help themselves to half or ALL of any tips (if you let them know you earned one). And last, but not least, you are expected to have absolutely NO life outside of working there, as they demand you cover other workers shifts, even after working 9hrs straight and on your off days. You have been warned!

Being a fast food place, it is great for a first job. The daily tasks once trained in them are fairly easy and straight forward. However, it is easy to get lost in a routine and find yourself stuck in a rut. I worked there for two years and learned only 75% of the possible entry positions despite voicing wanting to learn more. With jobs like these when you show talent and reliability in an area you tend to be put there time and time again. Two years and instead of training people to be more flexible in various other positions and working them up to be promoted they outsourced new management from other stores or hired new employees for the sole purpose to promote. I myself and others I knew that have been there longer than I weren't approached for promotion  despite voicing interest and showing reliability and skill. This was the biggest problem I had, and the lack of variety in what my job entailed is why I left.

Good first job to learn how to get into a daily routine, but also a risk in being stuck in that routine without a shot at moving up.


An average day at work entails taking customer orders, cleaning the lobby and restrooms, restocking the condiment bar, and dealing with the occasional dissatisfied customer who got the wrong order. During your first few months, you can expect to be asked to help out with various other tasks other than working cashier, but this is just to give you some experience with the other duties in case you ever need to perform them in a pinch. Also, be prepared to encounter angry customers on a daily basis. This is why I say this job is not for anti-social people. You'll need to be able to talk down a dissatisfied customer and handle the situation positively. After you gain more experience, you might get asked to work the drive thru, but it's pretty much the same as front counter, except much busier and fast-paced. All in all, it's a pretty easy job for a fairly decent pay (definitely not enough to live off of, but it's nice pocket money). A decent part-time job for any high-school students looking for a way to make some quick and easy cash.

It is stressful to most> There is huge turn over..and short handed alot. I thrive under pressure.But they are unfair to some and the managers are very unprofessional an are not short of cussing you. But for me, It was ok. I suffered alot of disappointments there, But I like the job in itself and can handle a little drama. WE stay short handed..And its busy. My gm paid me better than moist. But I work very hard . I like it.  I have alot of energy. and thick skin.But there is favoritism and unprofessional behavior . I have been cursed and ive seen others humiliated in front of customers. I was lied to alot, but I loved my work. In itself. Its the people in charge that make it hard as they lack candor and self discipline. I was paid good because I picked up alot of stack. I am worth two people.I quit because im  waisting my potential and i strive for something more . I stayed there because its hard  to find day time hours. and i was guarunteed part time day shift. However I am ready to move on to something more as i have alot to offer.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Don't apply at the Gun Barrel City Taco Casa.   , Too  Many Rules. Dawn, The Mgr. and Her Assistant Mgrs.  runs the Place like as Military Org.   WE are CIVILIANS, Not Soldiers.  It is a Customer Service Mindset that should pervade a Workplace, NOT a Military Mindset 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Too Many RULES.   Feels like Boot Camp.  WE civilians just want to Serve Customers in an Orderly, but Relaxed, workplace

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Almost Like Army Boot Camp.  LOT of RULES, Not an Orderly & Relaxed Workplace.  Rules and Standards are NEEDED, But Not a Military Mindset.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Dealing w/ Customers was FUN, but The Management was TOO STRICT.   Work Atmosphere should be Relaxed but, w/ A Sense of Order.

A typical day at work? Well, I always showed up on time with no complications so I never got scolded for petty things that weren't my fault. I usually cook all the meat and beans needed while talking to one of my co-workers. I learned that hard work, diligence, and dedication will get you far in this world. The management relieved tension and stress in the room by telling jokes or encouraging the employees who deserve it. Some of the co-workers were overbearing at times, but it was very tolerable. The hardest part of my job is making sure the lines have enough meat and beans to go for the rest of the day, making sure you don't overcook a certain item and making sure you actually cook enough of it. The most enjoyable part was how the management treated everyone, it felt like they genuinely cared about all of us.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Cook 38 salaries reported	$13.09 per hour
Line cook 1 salary reported	$11.25 per hour
Crew member 12 salaries reported	$12.50 per hour
Scheduler 1 salary reported	$15.00 per hour
Team member 25 salaries reported	$12.43 per hour

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