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    Carniceria El Ranchito

    4.5 (67 reviews)
    InexpensiveMexican, Grocery
    Open 8:00 am - 9:00 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

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    CARNICERIA EL RANCHITO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Carniceria El Ranchito

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    El pastor taco (top) and Asada taco (bottom) with onions and cilantro
    Ashley M.

    FINALLY! A real Mexican street taco! I recently moved to Indy from Texas and have been searching for real Street tacos for the past few months. I know I have high expectations because in Texas we have good street tacos on every corner. I've always been let down up until I found this place! These street tacos are real. So flavorful and delicious. The pastor tacos (seasoned pork tacos) were filled with so many spices as it should and the asada tacos (steak tacos) were perfectly cooked. I also judge a taco place based off the salsa and they were 5/5. The red salsa was perfectly spicy and the green salsa had a good tangy flavor. Only complaint I have from my spoiled taco self is that they were a little expensive for street tacos. In Texas, it's $1.50 per taco. Here it was about $3.50 per taco. Although, at least they give enough meat in each.

    Shredded beef , shredded pork and elpastor taco. Queso and chips
    Vikram J.

    Food- If you are looking for an authentic Mexican experience , this is your place . All tacos are $3 . Their shredded pork and shredded beef tacos are my favorite. They put a lot of meat on the tacos and it's legit stuff. They also have tortas , tamales and a full Mexican menu . If your kids want fries and chicken nuggets while you are having tacos , you are covered . They have that as well . Vibe- The restaurant is inside the Mexican grocery store . There is plenty of seating and napkins available on each table . Parking - free parking right outside the store . Tip- Don't forget to try their sauces on the food. You will find it sitting on the counter or on one of the tables. Mild ( red ) , medium ( green) and hot ( yellow). Have fun Amigo!

    Produce
    Nicole S.

    I came here for tamales, but left with tamales and a bean, rice and cheese burrito. Next time, I'll just come for the burrito! My burrito was really good and alllllmost the way a BRC burrito should be (the exception being that they use white cheese instead of yellow cheese). The refried beans and rice were bomb, though. The tortilla, too. The tamales, I did not care for. The masa of the tamale was a little too wet, and the tamales themselves were huge. They were wrapped in banana leaves instead of the typical corn husks, which could be why they were so wet and slippery. I ordered half a dozen tamales, and ended up throwing two of them away because I just couldn't eat them anymore. You can buy food at the little restaurant inside Carniceria El Ranchito like I did, and/or you can do some shopping, because the restaurant is located inside a Mexican grocery store and butcher shop (aka carniceria). I didn't do any shopping this time, but they seem to carry a lot of Mexican goods.

    Jackson H.

    This little restaurant is inside a Mexican grocery store which in my experience are some of the best. This place did not disappoint! It is of the fast serve walk up the the counter variety. I had the Burrito Loco and it was very good. The cheese on top was spicy and the burrito was full of steak, chicken, onions, and pico. We went after dark and they had a security guard standing outside, but I did not really feel unsafe there and it is not in a terrible area. It is a great place to quickly get a great Mexican meal.

    Steak tacos
    Erin K.

    Probably the best tacos I've had in Indy. Super authentic and fresh. The Horchata was also great. It did take me a little bit to find the restaurant since I didn't realize it was inside the supermarket. I ended up doing some grocery shopping after. It was actually about 7pm when I got there so I thought they could be closed but they were still open and made the food pretty quickly.

    Tacos
    Chasity J.

    The grocery selection here is amazing, but I'll focus on the restaurant within the grocery store. I've been here a couple of times now, and the food is absolutely to die for. Service is fast and friendly; price is fair. $2.99 per taco, with plenty of other choices on offer. I got three different tacos: shredded pork, shredded beef, and chicken. Absolutely get the shredded beef (barbacoa)! Plus, if you check in through Yelp, you can get a free Jarritos drink!

    Tani B.

    I tried this place for the first time today and boy was I in for a surprise! They have authentic, flavorful food, an easy to read menu, and affordable prices. Not to mention they have a friendly staff as well! They provide cheaper and much better food quality than Chipotle or any other Mexican chain restaurants I've been too. I ordered a steak burrito and it was the BEST steak burrito I've had since living here in Indianapolis. It was packed full of ingredients and only $6.50! I've been on the hunt for an authentic Mexican place for awhile now and I'm so glad I came across Carniceria El Ranchito. I will most definitely be back!! It's super casual inside, it doubles as a grocery store so it's nothing fancy but I feel like that's what makes it so special. **FYI** they did not accept the check in offer! When I presented it to them they did not know what it was and would not accept it.

    Chris P.

    Well, I have driven by this gem of a Bodega for a couple of years and never stopped in. That changed the other day after reading another Yelp revue. I was not disappointed and was thrilled to know there was a full fledged Taqueria inside. The menu is easy and simple. The food is as good as anything the city has to offer. The grocery reminds me of Super Mercado in East Chicago as a kid growing up. The produce and meats are first class for a Carniceria and highly recommended.

    Gordita w/ Asada added cheese
    Crystal R.

    Ok so this Hispanic grocery store has a hidden gem inside! I was hungry one day before class, and wanted a small snack. There isn't many options by the UIndy campus, so I turned to Yelp. After my search, I found great reviews on this Hispanic market with great cooked food. It is only about 2-3 blocks away from campus, so I decided to give it a try, and boy was I not disappointed! I went on two separate occasions. The first time I tried the Shredded Beef Quesadilla. The next time I tried the Gordita w/ Asada! Although the quesadilla was delicious, it was very rich. The Gordita on the other hand was absolutely perfect! I asked for cheese inside, and the Asada was tender, juicy, and seasoned to perfection! Wow! I couldn't believe the amount of flavor, freshness, and quality that comes out of the kitchen at this market! All they are missing for me is Margaritas, and I would make them my weekly stop before evening classes.

    Menu board for small restaurant inside grocery store!

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    Kroger

    Kroger

    3.1
    (77 reviews)
    4.7 mi
    $$

    Just wanted to say that the Kroger's downtown Indianapolis on East Michigan Street is one of the…read morebest of all the Kroger stores that I've ever shopped at the staff is friendly the store very very clean , the woman that normally works the self checkout stations , is very friendly she seems to go above and beyond the normal standards of an employee the manager she's very helpful very friendly also the lady that runs the customer service area is also very friendly and very helpful. I enjoy shopping there I've been shopping there for quite some time now. Only thing I don't like is sometimes they don't have the electric carts so I try to shop early in the morning so maybe I can get electric cart. So if you ever in the neighborhood of downtown Indianapolis stop by Kroger's on East Michigan Street they have great values great products or you're not shopping just stop by and tell them what a great and wonderful job they're doing. I definitely give this store location of Kroger's five stars and two thumbs up in my review. I don't have any pictures to post and maybe next time I'm shopping there I'll take some pictures and get the names of the employees that are very friendly and edit my post and my review.

    I read some of the other reviews and I guess I went at good times because I didn't see any homeless…read morepeople and the employees were very nice. Came here to see if they had Luna bars and was very happy when I found them. And they were on sale 4/$5 which was even better. Great deal!! I also wanted something sweet and ended up with this chocolate tres leches style cake. Never had anything like this before and it wasn't bad. Not sure if I like all the liquid but I did like the flavor. And it was only 200 calories. If you've never had a cake like this I would definitely recommend trying it. And they had other flavors if chocolate isn't your thing. Would also recommend going to the customer service desk and signing up for a Kroger card so you can get the sale items. Only takes a few minutes to fill out the paper.

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    Needler's Fresh Market

    Needler's Fresh Market

    3.3
    (147 reviews)
    4.4 mi
    $$

    Who the heck knew that there is a Needler's in downtown Indianapolis? Apparently, everyone except…read moreme. I guess this used to be a Marsh, before all of the Marsh stores closed. So all of the old reviews that mention Marsh don't apply to this newer store, now called Needler's Fresh Market. I don't know -- I think Needler's is pretty good! It has a little bakery on site (Lemon's Bakery Cafe), which has hot food and baked goods, with seating by big windows that overlook Mass Ave. Beyond the cafe, the rest of the joint is a small grocery store. You'll find a modest produce section with fresh-looking greens and fruit and things. They sell house-made hummus and sushi. The wine section is abysmal, but I did find a bottle of one of my cheapie low-key favorite bottles of Malbec here, so I picked that up. The dried ramen section is also better than it needs to be. The prices seem to be about the same as Kroger and other grocery stores. Checkout was quick and there were several registers open. The only thing is that I entered through the cafe and exited by the registers, so I got a little turned around once I exited. Keep in mind that you can only enter/exit through the cafe at certain hours. They lock that door after a particular time. (I think it's 5 or 6 p.m.)

    well, I love Needler's, I've been going to this downtown location for many, many years now!…read moreNeedler's is a very convenient fresh market store, that I consider it being the better market! better then Kroger's, Preston's say way, and Myers! its just a expensive market Thank you Mr. Anthony L. Hampton Sr.

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    Cheese area
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    Needler's Fresh Market
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    Saraga International Market

    Saraga International Market

    4.1
    (214 reviews)
    8.7 mi
    $$

    This place has everything you could want. I found Oxtails, Rip tips, and St. Louis rib here. All…read moreaffordable and plenty of meats. The produce sections was wonderful. So many fruits and vegetables to explore. A go to of mine at least once a month!

    Kroger could never. You can find things at Saraga that you can't find anywhere else in Indy, and…read morefor that, I love this international grocery store. That said, this is not my favorite Saraga. (My favorite Saraga is the one in Castleton.) This Saraga is a little grody, to be honest. But how can you hate on a grocery store that exists in Indianapolis with such an abundance of food from all around the world? Overall, I am so glad this place is here. I visited Saraga not knowing what I was looking for, but was quickly drawn to the Japanese snacks aisle. I saw lots of different flavors of Ramune (that Japanese marble soda), which is my children's favorite, and Pocky, my favorite. Then I went to the seafood aisle and looked at the fish swimming in the aquarium below their unlucky brethren who had been filleted and arranged in the display case. Then I walked to the Mexican food aisle and saw many kinds of Mexican candy. The frozen food aisle had lots of different things, from Indian samosas to Korean vegetable pancakes. The meat aisle is hardcore. But, that's to be expected at an international grocery store. Be prepared to see pig snouts and chicken feet packaged next to less offensive, ambiguous red hunks of meat. This is the place to get bulk rice and beans, imported snacks and produce that you can't find anywhere else, like yuca root and plantains. I love Saraga in general, and this one is good and important to this part of Indy.

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    Oh boy
    Oh boy
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    Broken rice. Oh no.

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    Broken rice. Oh no.
    Meijer

    Meijer

    3.2
    (112 reviews)
    10.1 mi
    $$

    Actually, the whole shopping trip was pretty good and there was a wait in line, but it wasn't too…read morebad. However, I was waiting in line 12 and a child in front of me dropped some coins and was paying for his own cookies. His mother was in front of him, so I helped him try to find his coins and so did she, and there was only one person behind me. Everything moved along relatively smoothly, but when I got up to the register, and the mother and son had left the cashier who is an older lady wanted to complain to me about the woman that her son taking too long and moving in the way, and having their cart still there whatever I told her twice that it was not a big deal and that I didn't care about the weight, but she wanted me to join in with her in demeaning this customer that was before me. It really put a bad taste in my mouth because she was neither pleasant nor kind. I expect a lot more from the cashiers at Meijer because I've never had this experience before, but I was in a really good mood because it was New Year's Eve and she really soured the moment. How rude.

    It has been nearly nine years since my original review of this Meijer location, an eagerly…read moreanticipated arrival for me as a longtime fan of Meijer. An updated review is long overdue. First off, the anticipated battle between Wal-Mart and Target has been a non-starter. All three still co-exist within about a mile or so of each other with Target, in particular, blossoming with the growth of Glendale Town Center. While my original review was for opening weekend, this review is now several years in with hours changed, staffing patterns established, and a sense of the mundane established. ADA still tends to be fine (and slightly better than Target in my opinion. The Ben's Pretzels that was here is long gone. The South Bend Chocolate Company spot that was planned never came to be. The area where you can buy pizza is a small dining area at the back of the store with a few tables and a vastly reduced selection. The pharmacy here is still a highlight. I've always appreciated the staff - something I can seldom say about the rest of the store. As a chain, Meijer has a long history of hiring people with disabilities and frequently for more than being a doorway presence. In the battle of the three major stores (Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer), there's no question Target's the winner. I primarily head to Meijer for certain items, for pharmacy (I don't care for CVS pharmacy, a Target partner), and for ice. I also head here because the accessible parking is superior to Target and Meijer has small carts that are easier for a wheelchair user to manage. Customer service? Clearly a Target win. It's not even close. Even at opening, Meijer fell short and it's only gotten worse here. Last night, I visited Meijer in search of a few items. I can almost never find help to reach an item. Customer service continues to carry on personal conversations in lieu of serving people. The self-serve check-out is nearly always unreasonably long. Actual check-out lanes are typically 2-3 available with ungodly long waits. As an ostomy wearer (if you don't know, you probably don't want to), mine actually popped last night because I was in line so long waiting. Seriously. Seriously inexcusable. I live about 2 miles and five minutes from this location. I frequently get in my car and drive all the way to McCordsville because that location is better staffed, friendly, has greater selection, and is immensely cleaner. I realize it's newer, but it's actually been a while and I consistently have a better experience. Yes, I know McCordsville is a small town. Yes, I know 56th and Keystone is a bit rougher area (as evidenced by the fact that security and/or IMPD is consistently a presence here). But, really? If you're going to have this location why not show some pride in it? My feelings of "meh" have given way to feelings of embarrassment to the Meijer chain for this location. I should not have an ostomy pop because I've waited in line for so long trying to check out. The cashier? Perfectly fine (I do tend to view Meijer employees as Stepford employees...incredibly robotic and devoid of personality). Am I done here? Probably not. It's too convenient. However, more and more I'm giving my hard-earned dollars to Target and/or making the trip to McCordsville. This area deserves more than a dirty and under-staffed Meijer with a worse selection. I absolutely want Meijer to continue to be here - I just want this Meijer to be representative of the best of Meijer instead of the worst.

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    Meijer
    Meijer
    Meijer

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    Carniceria El Ranchito - mexican - Updated August 2026

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