Cactus 2
223 Welch Ave Upper level, Ames
(515) 292-2576
Customers' Favorites
Tacos
Chips
Antojitos
Steak Burrito
Cheese Dip
Steak Quesadilla
Guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream.
Nachos Supremo
Chicken Nachos
Grilled Chicken Quesadilla
Guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream.
Beef Nachos
Guacamole
Shrimp Quesadilla
Queso Fundido
Chorizo topped with hot melted cheese.
Cheese Quesadilla
Guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream.
Burrito Mexicano
Bean Dip
Cheese Nachos
Bean Nachos
Beef and Bean Nacho
Steak Nachos
Steak and Shrimp Nachos
Fiesta Dip
Ground beef, pico de gallo, and cheese dip.
Sopa and Salads
Guacamole Salad
Lettuce, guacamole, and tomatoes.
Taco Salad
A crispy flour tortilla with your choice of ground beef or chicken and melted cheese sauce. Topped with lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, and tomato.
Taco Salad Fajita
A crispy flour tortilla with your choice of grilled chicken, steak, or mixed and melted cheese sauce. Served with sautéed onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Topped with lettuce, sour cream, tomato, guacamole, and cheese.
Casa Salad
Romaine lettuce tossed with bell peppers, red onions, tomatoes, cheese, and croutons.
Sopa de Tortilla
Tortilla soup.
Ensalada de Pollo
Grilled chicken breast served with Romaine lettuce. Topped with tomatoes, onions, croutons, and cheese.
Ensalada de Camarón
Grilled shrimp served with Romaine lettuce. Topped with tomatoes, red onions, croutons, and cheese.
Especialidades
Pollo En Chipotle
Chicken breast with chipotle sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
House Special
One enchilada, one chalupa, once taco, one tamale, and one chile relleno. Served with rice and beans.
Chimichanga
Flour tortilla stuffed with your choice of beef or chicken. Deep fried and topped with cheese sauce. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo.
Chicken Rice
Chicken strips topped with cheese sauce. Served with rice and tortillas.
Flautas
Three rolled flour tortillas, deep fried, topped with cheese sauce. Served with lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, and tomato.
Pollo Con Chorizo
Grilled strips of chicken with Mexican sausage. Topped with cheese sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Tortas
Mexican bun, your choice of carnitas, chicken, or carne asada, with lettuce, tomato, avocado, onions, cheese, beans, mayonnaise, and jalapeño.
Chilaquiles Mexicanos
Fried corn tortillas. Your choice of red or green sauce. Topped with chicken and cheese. Served with rice, refried beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, and tomato.
Camarones a la Diabla
Spicy shrimp. Served with rice, tortillas, and salad.
Tacos de Pescado
Three soft corn tacos filled with grilled fish, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise. Served with rice and salad.
Chimichanga Special
Grilled chicken stuffed with mushrooms and sautéed onions. Topped red sauce and cheese sauce. Served with rice and beans.
Rolled Quesadilla
Steak or chicken rolled in a 12" flour tortilla with pico de gallo and cheese. Served with lettuce, guacamole, and sour cream.
Quesadilla Monterrey
A cheese and bean flour tortilla stuffed with steak, chicken, or mushroom. Served with lettuce, sour cream, pico de gallo, and guacamole.
Chicken with Garlic
Chicken breast grilled with garlic. Topped with cheese sauce. Served with rice, lettuce, sour cream, cheese, and tomato.
Taquitos Mexicanos
Three deep fried corn tortillas filled with chicken breast and topped with lettuce, tomato, and cheese. Served with rice, beans, and guacamole.
Cocktail de Camarón
Fajitas
Fajitas Con Queso
Your choice of chicken, steak, shrimp, or mushrooms. Cooked with bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Topped with cheese sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Fajitas Rancheras
Steak, chicken, shrimp, and Mexican sausage. Served with sautéed onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, and tortillas.
Fajita Chicken
Double Order
Your choice of steak, chicken, or mix. Topped with sautéed onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, and tortillas.
Quesadilla Fajita
Quesadilla with steak, shrimp, chicken or mushrooms, onions, green peppers, and cheese. Served with rice, beans, pico de gallo, sour cream, and guacamole.
Special Cactus
Fajitas Infierno
Grilled shrimp with special spicy sauce, grilled onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, and tortillas.
Double Order
Steak, chicken, shrimp, and Mexican sausage. Cooked with our special recipe. Sautéed onions, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Served with cheese, quesadilla, rice, and beans. Garnished with lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, and tortillas.
Fajita Steak
Shrimp Fajitas
Grilled shrimp with sautéed onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, and tortillas.
Carnes
Carne Asada
Grilled steak served with lettuce, guacamole, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, rice, beans, and tortillas.
Chile Colorado
Chopped steak cooked with our special spicy sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Tacos de Carne Asada
Three flour or corn tortillas stuffed with chopped steak. Served with rice, beans, pico de gallo, and green sauce on the side.
Steak Mexicano
T-Bone steak with jalapeño peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Steak Texano
T-Bone steak with rice, beans, tortillas, and house salad on the side.
Steak Colorado
T-Bone steak topped with our special red sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Chile Verde
Shredded pork cooked in a spicy green sauce. Served with rice, beans, and tortillas.
Carnitas
Pork shank served with rice, beans, lettuce, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, guacamole, and tortillas.
Milanesa
Steak or chicken served with rice, beans, and salad.
Enchiladas
Las Cinco
Five enchiladas, one ground beef, one cheese, one chicken, one bean, and one carnita. Topped with red sauce, lettuce, sour cream, tomato, and cheese.
Enchiladas Del Mar
Three enchiladas, one shrimp, one crab, and one cheese. Topped with red sauce, lettuce, tomato, and guacamole.
Enchiladas Cactus
Three enchiladas, one chicken, one beef, and one cheese. Topped with lettuce, tomato, and sour cream. Served with rice.
Enchiladas de Chorizo
Three four tortillas filled with chorizo and beef. Served with rice. Topped with our cheese dip, lettuce and tomato.
Enchiladas Verdes
Three white chicken breast covered with our special jalapeño sauce. Topped with cheese and sour cream. Served with rice and beans.
Trio Enchiladas
Three chicken enchiladas, one green sauce, one red sauce, and one mole sauce, cheese, onion, sliced avocado, and beans.
Seafood Enchilada
Shrimp and crab enchilada. Comes with rice, cheese dip, avocado, sour cream, lettuce, and tomato.
Burritos
Sancho
12" flour tortilla. Your choice pork carnitas, grilled chicken, or steak. Served with rice, beans, lettuce, guacamole, sour cream, and pico de gallo. Topped with shredded cheese, red, and green sauce.
Burrito Loco
Your choice of pork carnitas, beef, or chicken. Topped with cheese sauce, lettuce, sour cream, cheese, and tomato.
Burrito Cactus
Pork carnitas, ground beef, or chicken topped with red sauce, lettuce, sour cream, cheese, and sliced tomato. Served with rice and beans.
Burrito Mexicano
Chopped steak, cooked with hot rolled tortilla rice and beans
Señor Burro
12" tortilla served with rice, beans, guacamole, sour cream and your choice of beef, chicken, carnitas, or shrimp. Topped with Colby cheese
Burrito Los Dos Amigos
One ground beef and one chicken.
Combination Plates
Enchilada (1 pc), Burrito (1 pc), and Таco (1 pc)
Burrito, Taco (1 pc) and Chile Relleno (1 pc)
Tacos (2 pcs), Rice, and Beans
Enchilada (1 pc), Tamale (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Enchilada (1 pc), Chile Relleno, and Tacos (2 pcs)
Burrito (1 pc), Taco (1 pc), and Chalupa (1 pc)
Chile Relleno (1 pc), Chalupa (1 pc), and Rice
Enchilada (1 pc), Burrito (1 pc), and Chile Relleno (1 pc)
Enchilada (1 pc), Tostaguac (1 pc), and Tacos (2 pcs)
Enchilada (1 pc), Chalupa (1 pc), and Таco (1 pc)
Enchilada (1 pc), Chile Relleno (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Enchilada (1 pc), Taco (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Enchiladas (2 pcs), Rice, and Beans
Enchiladas (2 pcs), Taco (1 pc), and Rice
Burrito (1 pc), Tamale (1 pc), and Enchilada (1 pc)
Burrito (1 pc), Enchilada (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Burrito (1 pc), Chalupa (1 pc), and Enchilada
Chalupa (1 pc), Taco, and Tostada (1 pc)
Taco (1 pc), Chile Relleno (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Burrito (1 pc), Taco (1 pc), Rice, and Beans
Create Your Own
Create Your Own
Pick up your three favorite items.
Little Cactus
Quesadilla
Served with rice and beans.
Chicken Tenders
Taco
Burrito
Enchilada
Chicken Nuggets
Served with French fries.
Desserts
Sopapilla
Flan
Vegetarian Entrée
Chiles Rellenos (2 pcs), Rice, and Beans
Two chile poblanos, cheese inside the bread, and red sauce.
Cheese Enchilada (1 pc), Bean Burrito (1 pc), and Bean Tostada
Chalupa (1 pc), Bean Burrito (1 pc), and Quesadilla (1 pc)
Vegetarian Fajitas
Mushrooms, calabacitas sautéed with bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Garnished with lettuce, guacamole, sour cream, and pico de gallo. Served with rice, beans, and flour or corn tortillas.
Quesadilla Fajita Vegetarian
10" vegetarian quesadilla filled with fresh grilled yellow, green, and red bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms. Rice, beans, and salad on the side.
Cheese Enchilada (1 pc), Chalupa (1 pc), and Rice
Bean Burritos (2 pcs) with Mexican White Cheese Sauce
A La Carte
Chicken Burrito
Chile Relleno
Chicken Taco
Taco de Carne Asada
Super Taco
Flautas Chicken
Chicken Enchilada
Beef Taco
Tostaguac
Flautas Beef
Bean Burrito
Cheese Enchilada
Tamale
Beef Enchilada
Beef Tostada
Tostaqueso
Chalupa
Beef Burrito
Side Orders
Chips
Rice
Salsa Verde
Guacamole Dip (3 oz)
Cheese Dip (3 oz)
Sour Cream
Chiles Toreados
Shredded Cheese
Pico de Gallo
Refried Beans
Corn Tortillas
Flour Tortillas
Lettuce
Avocado
Soft Drinks
Cola
Diet Cola
Recent Reviews
First visit to Cactus restaurant in Campustown Ames. Actually it's known as Cactus 2 as there are 3 restaurants in Iowa.Generally okay, went during snowstorm, not busy but a large group showed up later, which is a good sign.Service was fast and friendly!Food tasted okay though the portion sizes are shrinking to the point as too whether it's worth it or not.My chips were fresh out the oil, but not salted which makes you hungry and thristy for more. They tasted good. The...
February 2023
Good Mexican food in the Campustown area. The drinks are great too! The atmosphere is very vibrant and the servers are extremely friendly. Highly recommend and will definitely be a regular here!
October 2021
Standard Mexican restaurant, pretty much the same quality food you'd find at most other sit down Mexican places you've ever been to. However, they run great specials every day which really give you great bang for your buck.Seems to be a bit of a hidden spot, when I went in at 150pm on a Friday, I was the only customer, which initially gave me some apprehension as to what the food quality would be - however it was just as good as I had hoped.
September 2021
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