Did not have any fajitas without pineapple I'm not saying that it doesn't taste good. It's just…read morethat I'm not used to that. It must be one of their unique dish ingredients.. the service was good. The chips and salsa were good but we still have the same problem with the pricing. Oh my God do not buy a soft drink or a tea, etc. from them they want four dollars for a soda, which is the cheapest food item that they pay for in their overhead and with only two refills allowed seems a little stingy and they're trying to make some money off of that obviously so the best bet is just to have some water and by the way, the cheapest fajitas on the menu or $20. I'm not from around here. I'm visiting so I'm thinking that there must be a lot of rich people in this area to be spending these high prices at these local restaurants.

What a cool spot in the Cedar Valley. Friendly staff that is fast and present often. Wide range of…read morefun and traditional drinks. I got a duck in my 57 oz Duck Pond Margarita lol. My wife's Margarita was full of yummy candies. Food came out fast, fresh, and tasting great. There's a bit of hustle ambience all around but they also don't mind if you slowly enjoy your meal and drinks. A wonderful Mexican restaurant to dine in.

Great food and service! Fast and reasonable prices. Could eat here every week. It's nice to be…read morerecognized and welcome with each visit!

The food was plenty full and tasteful. The sauce was good and the chips were good. The only reason…read morewhy I am leaving a three star is because the pricing.. these days everybody is trying to save a dollar and everything is seemingly more expensive so I chose a less expensive mail. The menu indicated.$14.99. When I receive my bill, I noticed I was charged.$15.99. The server said that it was because I chose a cheese enchilada and it was a dollar more expensive than the beef or the chicken.. given these times when meat is way expensive, I found that hard to believe that cheese is more expensive than that. Also, I don't remember seeing it on the menu so I reluctantly paid the extra dollar when I was trying to keep my bill with the tip under $20 as I am on a budget and it is splurging for me to eat out..

Until yesterday, June 30, 2026 I would have given El Patron a 5-star rating. Unfortunately, my bad…read moreexperience left me feeling hurt and unwilling to return. I was with a group of 12 who came in for my birthday lunch. Our table didn't have napkins for our drinks so because no waiters were close by, I went to the bar thinking I could get some napkins without bothering our waitress or other waiters. There wasn't a stack of napkins on the bar (as many other places have) but I noticed some napkins on a lower shelf behind the bar. I took a few and returned to our table. Just as we began to sip our margaritas an employee (manager or owner?) came up to me and accused me of breaking a small decorative piece of pottery! There's absolutely no way I broke the piece! I'm an honest person and if I'd broken something I would have noticed it or heard it break, apologized and offered to pay for it! I was very offended by the nasty accusatory tone that was used toward me. Needless to say our group will take our business elsewhere. There are may other good Mexican restaurants in our area that treat their customers politely!

It was a little slow on actually getting seated but to be fair the gal was working solo. That being…read moresaid, it wasn't busy when we stopped by. The food was amazing, the restaurant was very clean and nicely decorated. We ordered the Tacos De Barria's and the Street Tacos Pastor...you get four of each and we split them two and two for the each of us. The Pastor Street Tacos had the perfect amount of char on the meat and the little sweetness from the pineapple was perfect...good quac sauce to boot! The Tacos De Barria were the first we've had up in the area and they were outstanding! With the barria dipping sauce adding even more to the flavor! Service was better once we were actually seated and we'll definitely be back again as the menu has alot of options that look delicious!

Full disclosure: I'm a Mexican food snob. I spent 20 plus years in Texas and most Mexican food in…read moreIowa is bland and lacks authentic flavor. That's why I was EXTREMELY surprised to find authentic Mexican food at Chapala in Waterloo. It's a family restaurant that is now 18 years old ...and the recipes are from the kitchen of the grandmother of the owners. The chips and salsa are made on premises and they're very tasty. There's a ton of luncheon specials in the $9-12 range. And the food is REALLY tasty. I had the fresh steak quesadilla with the grilled fresh veggies and it was the best Mexican plate I've had in Iowa in the last five years. Top notch food. Top notch friendly staff. And they even carry Mexican Coca Cola and Mexican Pepsi. Most highly recommended!

Great service Great ambiance…read more Great food. Mano took care of me and helped me with my selection. Carne asada and chile relleno Plus caddy margarita.

I have heard from a friend that there is a truly delicious and authentic taqueria stand in Waterloo…read morethat is connected to a mexican grocery market. She was pretty vague about the location of the spot, so on Friday I kidnapped her and had her help me navigate to the location. She didn't remember the name of the stand, nor did she recall the exact location. After a half hour of roaming through Waterloo, we finally found El Mercadito. I'm a taco purist since living in Philadelphia and giving a lot of business to Taco Riendo. Since moving back to Iowa I have struggled to find authentic tacos. The only other spot I had found was El Super Burrito on Johnson St. in Cedar Rapids. Their tacos were excellent, but they pale in comparison to El Mercadito. I ordered one carne asada taco, and one taco al pastor. Upon receiving the tacos, I was relieved to see it was made exactly how I love them. Corn tortillas filled with succulent steak or pork, and accompanied only by chopped onions, tomatoes and cilantro. It also came with a few limes and sides of red salsa and a salsa verde. The carne asada was delicious. Very tender steak chunks, and the salsa verde and lime was a fine compliment to the delicious and cilantro-heavy pico di gallo. The real treat of the meal was the pork taco. It had a spicy marinade, and it was so soft and chewy. Every bite sent me on a trip back to other delicious taquerias in Austin Texas, or my first love Taco Riendo in Philadelphia. The salsa verde was my favorite. Very spicy tomatillo & lime. The red salsa was also good. It had a smokey flavor that went well, although I could have enjoyed it more had it been slightly spicier. My only complaint about this eating experience is that the option of dining-in was a single picnic table next to the stand. This is my new favorite taco in the state of Iowa. Very authentic, the tacos don't come with the americanized ingredients of sour cream, cheese or anything else you'd find on a "taco" from carlos o'kelly's or taco bell. This is the real deal. Get a few tacos there and it'll change your life.

Very slow service. Hopefully it's just an off day for this fella. Good chips and salsa when it…read morefinally gets refilled. HUGE platters. Great presentation. Delicious food.

The food was plentiful and the service was good. The food tasted a little bit sweet for my taste…read morelike it could use more spice.. I ordered a small white queso and it was almost 6 dollars so heads up the menu prices have gone up for one meal and a drink. I was out the door for like $24 plus a tip.

The food here is delicious, when they get your order right. However our experience with our server…read moreAlma tonight was very poor and disappointing. Our table witnessed Alma talking negatively about us and it added to the disappointment. Alma was working with her AirPods in taking our order, which did not come out correctly and only checked on our table one time after we received our food and all of our drinks were empty.

Dallas FRESH IS SOOOOOOOO MUCH BETTER! On La Porte next to Pizza Hut!…read more This place here has worse service ever. The younger woman is horrible. Her attitude and the way she treats customers. They finally hired someone who has good customer service skills but the shitty service remains cause of that other younger woman who speaks perfect English. The owner of the store has a nasty attitude as well, when I originally went to compliment how awesome the store was and the tacos. In reality the tacos are tasteless. The verde and rojo make it a little better but so not worth it. Try Dallas fresh for literally $1 per taco. Authentic steer tacos!

Excellent service and the food was very good. Ever since a friend of mine told me about this place,…read moreI've become a regular customer.

Huge portion sizes, great prices, excellent service (as for Olivia!). Got a paloma which was…read moredelicious and not sweet (a plus in my opinion), and huachinango frito. It was ever so slightly over done but still delicious. Chips were warm, salsa flavorful.

This is our absolute favorite Mexican restaurant! Their burritos are VERY large, and full of sauce…read more The street tacos are perfect! A big portion of meat and super tender! The service has always been kind and quick! Such a cute atmosphere and always a great temp!

5 stars for what it is, an amazing roadside food stop in the Midwest! It's a very quaint and…read moreunassuming food truck tucked in a corner of Clark Gas. Burritos are nice and large, and the salsa has a decent kick to it (I can't handle spicy food very well, this had me sweating a bit in the summer heat). I got the chicken, they cooked it right and seasoned it well. Just the right amount of salt and a nice lime hint. Would definitely recommend, particularly if you're a hungry traveler passing by with a hankering for some Mexican food!

Pretty good sized tacos for $3 and some change. Flavor is really good. That spicy salsa is pretty…read morehot so I'd suggest the mild. Overall good quality and taste.

Gets worse all the time beef over cooked and dry been going since 2014 no more sorry done done done…read moredone done done

The food is great!!! I eat here once a week !!! Reminds me of resultants back home (Chicago)read more