Good food, friendly people, and that small-town charm you can't fake. If you're in Las Vegas, NM,…read morethis spot is definitely worth a visit! The waitress was super cute as well. A beautiful New Mexico evening sky. I see why they call it The Land of Enchantment.

I gave this place one star because the guacamole was good and the interior is clean.. Everything…read moreelse: service, presentation and actual food was bad. We're vegetarians, who don't make a lot of demands. We asked if we could get a taco without ground meat. We were told no. We tried small changes (beans instead of meat, no meat added, etc.) but the waitress said she wouldn't even put it on the ticket because the "cook would just ignore it" as she made motion of throwing a ticket over her shoulder. She seemed a little irritated that we asked about items on the menu. Each time came by, she would say in an irritated tone "are you ready YET" . Since it was obvious this restaurant was not interested in meeting any dietary needs of their customers, we decided to just order something we could eat without asking any more questions. My husband got chips and salsa, and the cheese chile relleno with rice and beans. Since I couldn't substitute anything and I would end up giving my husband my rice, I ordered the papitas à la carte and the cheese enchilada plate with rice and beans. I also got a small (VERY small) guacamole. Now that the ordeal of ordering was over we relaxed and enjoyed the ambience. It is a clean little place and although they were several people dining it was quiet. The chairs were comfortable the tables were big enough. The interior was nicely decorated. One of the things that drew us to the restaurant was that Yelp stated they had outdoor patio. We didn't go to the patio but my husband looked at it before we ate and said that it was a nice, separate area across the parking lot. I told him we'd have to try it the next time we came. Then our food arrived. It's always been my opinion that it's very hard to mess up Mexican food, whether it's New Mexican or Tex-Mex. Basically it's corn, beans, rice, posole, salsas, with cheese or meat. Kocina de Rapfael proved me wrong! Without having been in the kitchen I can't swear, but I strongly believe that they had pre-cooked the food and put it somewhere to sit until somebody ordered it. I suspected it when they wouldn't make even the most simple substitution that every Mexican restaurant has always been willing to do. But when the food came my suspicion grew into a certainty. You could beat on my enchiladas with a fork (see video) and it would literally make a sound like hitting a hard surface. I've never been given a steak knife for cheese enchiladas before, but I needed it to cut through the laminated tortillas that they had wrapped around a big glom of cheese that was so hard it made me gag to swallow it. The cheese on top was burnt to the plate and made a solid, inedible surface on top of the tortillas. I managed to cut a bite, but I couldn't chew it. I had to do that awkward spit it in your napkin thing, hoping that the surrounding diners wouldn't see it and be grossed out. I tried cutting the side of the enchilada open and just eating some of the cheese and it was another disaster. The cheese inside the enchilada was something I've never encountered. It was cheddar, it tasted like cheddar, but it was such a big glob and was so hard that it was making me gag to try and chew it. The papitas tasted like old MacDonald fries that had been put back in the fryer for a minute then served. Instead of being crunchy or crispy they were soft in the middle and hard to chew around the edges. The beans were a pile of dry, smashed up refried beans with no flavor, no seasoning. I don't think they used cumin or other traditional spices and it's doubtful they used lard because they were tasteless and so dry you had to take a sip of your drink to choke them down. I didn't taste the Spanish rice because I don't like it, but it was drenched in tomato sauce to such an extent that it was not even a semblance of light and fluffy rice, more like tomato rice soup. My husband's chile relleno was not that great either. He said it tasted like it came frozen out of a box, heated up and smothered in green and red sauce. He said the breading on the chile relleno was doughy with no flavor just a huge portion of cheese in the relleno and then smothered in hot sauces. They warn on their menu to be very careful because their sauces are so hot.. My husband will eat hot sauce so hot it makes his nose sweat! He said it wasn't very hot so I tasted it. I'm the person who gets the mild salsa from Taco Bell and the grocery store. I can't take any heat and I was eating that sauce just fine. Must've been an off day in the heat department. I've never had such badly prepared food in a restaurant in my life. What a disappointment! We immediately asked for a to go box to bring it home and see if the dogs liked it. They didn't. I don't recommend this restaurant to anyone under any circumstances even if you're starving and it's the only place open I would recommend you go to Walmart and get some at the deli.

Cute little local restaurant. Very modern New Mexico style. The decor inside is cute and the air…read moreconditioning feels so good. Reasonably priced dishes and attentive staff with great attitudes. I definitely felt welcomed and will be returning.

We were traveling through from camping in the mountains. We wanted a good breakfast & Mexican food…read morehits the spot always. Esther L. greeted us with a smile, quickly got our drink order, then gave us time to make our decision. She did a great job working the room, fulfilling everyone's needs quickly. This is a NEW Mexican food place, not TexMex. Both are good, but don't be confused when you go here. I had the Breakfast Smothered Burrito with sausage & Wife had 1/2 order of Huevos Rancheros, both were delicious. Wife tried my burrito & said she liked it more, but it was too big for her. The inside is a basic cafe not fancy, clean, & felt like down home. Place was most full of locals, not even needing the menu to order. Right down town in the square (really a circle). It was early morning so we found a place for our 30' RV on the other side of square by an closed building. If we had more time, would have hit the shops. If you like New Mexican food this place will be perfect.

This restaurant is located downstairs of the Plaza Hotel and is convenient for guest of the hotel…read more The menu had some good prices and food was good but not as expected in size. I chose a taco salad and it was good but could have been a lot more filling with some more lettuce in there. Wasn't that busy when we were there for dinner on Saturday and very light staffed so our waitress had to do everything and got a bit busy to come check on us over all it was nice to have something in house since the town seems to close up around there at 4pm or earlier if a store just figures it isn't busy they leave even before the time on sign. One plus here you can get breakfast, lunch or dinner at anytime of the day!

We stayed a night at the hotel and used the restaurant for dinner and breakfast. Dinner was really…read moregood - some sort of hard shell brisket tacos. It took a while to come out but we were both happy once it did. Servers were good here too. Friendly and responsive for both the evening and morning meal. The quality of breakfast was disappointing. My generic eggs, hashbrowns, etc was OK. My partner's avocado toast was made with some sort of odd avocado puree (not a fresh avocado) and tasted odd. They also had a large pancake that was slightly cake/cookie - ish. Hard to explain... Crunchy on the outside and spongy on the inside. It didn't taste bad, but is not what you expect when ordering a pancake. The coffee tasted watered down and weak too. For what you get, it seemed too expensive. I think you're safe going there for dinner, but perhaps not breakfast.

OMG. I thought $13 for the chili rellenos plate was expensive. But after we were served the two…read morehuge rellenos and ate one each with the ample portions of real beans and delicious rice we we both stuffed. So this lunch for two actually turned out to be a bargain. To me, the hallmark dish for Mexican food is the chili relleno. The cook on it here was absolutely perfect. It was lightly battered and fried to a gentle crisp on the outside. That is hard to do since not very many can accomplish it. The chili itself had enough crunch that I had to ask if it was fresh. (It was not and I did not expect so since it is not chili season.) The cheese on the inside was perfect. My kudos go to Olivia herself who is the cook here. The other lady cashier/waitperson was engaging and congenial. Sitting outside with the plaza around was delightful. The three white guys at another table said that this was the least expensive Mexican food in town. I wish that I lived near here so that I could try Olivia's other dishes. WARNING! The City of Las Vegas has installed some vicious speed bumps on the streets that go to the Plaza. They are unsigned and largely unmarked since the paint has worn off. Shame on them for mistreating their tourists that are trying to support the community

I love supporting small, local businesses and I really wanted this place to be awesome. I got a…read morebowl of green chili and a chunky green chili handheld burrito. I will say that the tortillas were homemade and amazing. The green chili was spicy, but was really kind of blah. The waitress was very friendly and the service was quick. Maybe I just chose poorly from the menu (everything I had was centered around the green chili). My son had the chicken strip basket with fries and he loved the fries and said that the chicken was yummy. The coffee also wasn't anything to write home about. Feels like an old diner vibe and seems to be generally clean. Liked it, didn't love it. Next time I'm in Las Vegas I will try something different, not because it's bad but because there are probably better places.

"what went well?" Ambiance at the bar. Raven is the best bartender in NM. Don't bother driving to…read moreSanta Fe. She recommended wings. 6/10 stars. I didn't come for wings, and I left before sampling anything else. I'm a dry rub guy, and the option wasn't given. I came for happy hour which Is an all day affair at Dick's.

Tasty food, prompt service, and easy to get a table are what make this place worth stopping. The…read moreenchiladas were phenomenal! Highly recommend this place if you're looking for dinner!

The food was awesome…read more It is in a small town crowded gas station. We got the turkey Rueben and the bratwurst sandwiches. Nicely down and super service

Onions were burnt, nochos were soggy, no sour cream, overpriced, and salsa was so wateryread more

Took a drive to Vegas for lunch as it had been years since I had been there. Googled this place as…read moreI like to patronize mom and pop restaurants. Restaurant was fairly busy upon our arrival but we were seated immediately. We ordered chips and salsa (which were not complimentary) to start off. My mom and BFF ordered the chile rellenos plate and I ordered a Navajo taco with Xmas (red and green chile). Food was ok, both mom and I enjoyed our plates. I found the green chile was spicier than the red, but the red had more flavor. My friend did not like his plate at all as he thought it was terrible. The salsa was very mild and lacked flavor, but the chips were good and they give you plenty of them. Also, I did not like how they served the entrees on paper plates and your drinks in red Dixie plastic cups. I feel that's fine if you are ordering fast food or eating outside at a taco truck/stand but not at a sit-down restaurant. I will definitely not be back, only because I don't live in the area, but if I did I might order take out.

Only had their breakfast so far but it was fairly good. I had the fiesta omelette Christmas style…read moreand it was good and I liked both their red and green sauce. The hash browns were ok. They forgot to bring us our sopapilla at first but we asked for it and they brought it out shortly warm and with honey and it was excellent. Nothing was outstanding but nothing was bad but I felt their prices were very fair for what you got. I would eat here again.

Yummy is all we can say If you're looking for and…read moreoutstanding, flavorful burritos and local food and I mean really local, you're in luck, this food is it. Their friendly service and pride they take in their food shows in what we ate. They let us sample their Smoked Brisket and Green Chile, which both were excellent. Johnnys Express staff are also as good as the food they make and serve. Almost forgot to mention their video ads are entraining to watch, showing off their food and their T-shirts are neat. https://johnnysexpresslv.com/#menu We purchase the: The Randy Savage ‍ Two Scrambled Eggs & Papitas with Brisket & Bacon, Red Chile & Cheese Wrapped in a Flour Tortilla & The Caballero Two Scrambled Eggs & Papitas with Sausage, Green Chile, & Cheese Wrapped in a Flour Tortilla & Side of Red Chile, for use in our enchiladas this weekend.

Food is great and good portions. Enjoy stopping there when we are in town. The cardinal is my all…read moretime favorite breakfast burrito.