Excellent! Delicious food, clean, bright atmosphere, and very friendly staff. #38 was wonderful! read more

El Merendero - Interior - Mexican Near Me - Pomona, California

El Merendero used to be located diagonally across the street at the old Fox theater location. When it was closed, I was so saddened because my family has been dining here for at least 3 decades. But one day driving down Garey I spotted their NEW location - Thank you God! The new location allows a pleasant sit down dining experience. Their waitresses are friendly and expedient, especially Juanita! We typically order their SUPER COMBO which is a combination burrito filled with goodness. Guacamole, cheese, pico de gallo, choice of meat, beans and rice. I like to order what I call a carbohydrate burrito....delicious Spanish rice, potatoes cooked with chile, guacamole, cheese, pico de gallo and then I DRENCH it with their fabulous red chile sauce which is nice and spicy. Their tamales used to be hit or miss, but recently they hired a lady who NAILS the recipe every single time. I like the chile cheese tamales. They have the right amount of cheese and chile and masa. Good flavoring. Another great family business that has been in the inland empire for generation after generation. I remember watching the grandmother prepare the burritos at their old location. Her fingers were bent with arthritis, and she appeared to be partially blind, but she had a passion for cooking. Very authentic cuisine, and reasonable prices. read more

I only come here for the asada burritos and I am ecstatic to report that this is the best asada burrito I have EVER HAD!!! I have been to countless Mexican restaurants all over LA, I.E. AND MEXICO and only 2 come close!! I rave about this burrito all the time!!! read more

El Merendero - Mexican Near Me - Pomona, California

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This place has the best food!!excellent service!!we drive all the way from riverside to come here to eat..thnku for the great service and excellent food!!! read more

Pretty good food. Been to both locations in Pomona. Decent prices. Been coming to Meremderos for years.

So me and my husband go here last night and there's maybe like 5 people there eating and 4 people working and no one acknowledges we were there for like 15 mins. After standing there I ask one of the waitress there do we just sit down and grab menu and she tells me in a rude way no just stand there and wait. So we continue to stand for another 15 mins and she finally asks us how can she help us which confuses me cuz I had just told her we wanted to eat there, and she says oh you're eating here? And I'm like yes. She then says then just sit any where and that's when I loose it. I'm like you just told me to stand here and wait. And again with her attitude she says "you didn't say you were eating here" I'm like forget this I need to talk to your manager and she goes to the back not knowing I speak Spanish saying "she wants to talk to someone who do I call" this place use to be so good years back and now I understand why there was only 5 people there. Would not recommend this place yo anyone read more

I had some pretty good posole here. The best I've had in the area. I keep going back almost weekly. It's pretty authentic and when I can't make it on my own, I stop by and please my belly. It's pretty busy on weekend mornings so I usually call in my order then pick it up when it's ready. read more

This is my favorite place to get Mexican food. It is delicious! Sometimes it's really busy but overall definitely worth going to.

This place is delicious I recently placed an order over the phone and they had it ready when I got there I live right down the street and had a furious hunger this is one my favorite little Mexican restaurant in Pomona read more

Waited for 40 minutes to get called and when I asked about the wait the security said they already called my name. I was waiting the entire time for nothing. He said he didn't understand the name that is not my problem. He should of tried or asked not just skipped my name. Worst service ever. read more

Favorite Mexican restaurant in downtown Pomona, it's comfortable and welcoming! && The decor is so cute!

So woke up this morning with a craving for menudo so we drive out to pomona i order a small kid bowl and my husband orderd a large as i take a spoonful of menudo i see a black hair on the meat which appears to be thick so 8 thougt maybe from the cow so i set it aside as i continue to eat i find more hair im really grossed out by then i call the waitress over she took it to the kitchen i asked her what it was she dumbfully said i dont know she knew exactly what it was. I see people bringing in big pots for menudo buyer beware i always look at my food before eating im glad i do, dont want to be eating hair, roaches, rodent dropping etc. etc read more

Good food and avg service. Margaritas were like slushes. Too much ice and easy on the Tequila. Won't be back.

Home style food at great price always friendly and fast everything on the menu is 100% authentic and yummy worth the time and money . A child hood favorite that still lives up to the good ole days read more

This place is legit!! Good authentic food. Prices are kinda high for Mexican food but its worth it. Gotta try the menudo and burritos!! Love it!! read more

This is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Pomona. I eat here about 2 or 3 times a month. Although I haven't tried everything on the menu there no question that it will be very satisfying. The hard chicken taco and enchiladas plate is my favorite. Another thing I love about this restaurant is that I never have to wait too long to get my food, even on a busy day (Sunday) I still get my meal pretty quick . . . . . A++++++ from me :) read more

Great food, love the bakery. I can eat the chips and salsa all day! Location is not in the greatest area but the food is worth it. Service is good for the most part. I've been here twice and will continue but only question, why the security presence? I need to try the posole! read more

So disappointed this morning! Yesterday I had ordered a dozen tamales to be picked up between 9 and 10 AM this morning. My intention was to try the tamales so that I could place a larger order for Christmas. I arrived at 9:40 AM. The woman at the restaurant counter told me she would check on the tamales and then another woman came and told me the first woman was checking on the tamales and then the young man who had been busing tables came over to me and told me they had sold four of the tamales from my order and so they only had eight for me. I told him this was a test run for Christmas and El Merendero failed. I speak Spanish and English so language was not a problem. I don't understand why the women working at the counter couldn't talk to me directly. read more

ok maybe 3.5? ordered a small menudo and a carnitas torta. both came out well. wait service a little slow but they bus as well. next time bringing a sweater, cold dining room. very inexpensive. read more

We used to eat here a lot, my husband just came back from overseas and decided to stop by and eat menudo well let me tell you, it smell like cow...literally! I tried to change my dish and the waitress keep on avoiding us, no refills on our drinks or nothing,waiting to see if our waitress will notice us I witness another waitress taking chips to another table, but before she did she picked on the chips and was eating them her self, no need to say, but will not be going back there ever again read more

One of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Pomona! The best nachos! Food so good I don't care if some days we have to wait. It is totally worth it! Also when you finish you can head next door and get some Pan Dulce! read more

This place is disgusting! People that go must have really bad taste!!!! I just tasted the food and told the waitress that I couldn't eat it. It was just very nasty. My husband and I were so Disappointed. WORSE FOOD EVER! If I could give them zero stars I would! read more

Authentic food. Clean and friendly. Can be loud when it's packed. Easy parking. Great value.

The cakes from this place are amazing. Great place for some morning pan dulce or a delicious lunch or dinner.

Nice lunch experience with my 21 yo daughter last month. Large portion of nachos easy for sharing. Very inexpensive. Don't miss out walking next door to the attached bakery. Oh my goodness! Such a delightful array of pastries and all marked, so you knew what you were looking at. I had a pineapple turnover that was fabulous!!!! I wish I had bought a couple. Soooooo cheap. I handed the girl behind the counter a $20 bill, and I think I got $18.60 back... What?!?!? Been craving a pineapple turnover....very authentic Mexican eatery. read more

El Merendero - Nice little pots of condiments on the tables. - Mexican Near Me - Pomona, California

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One my fave local spots to pick up some food. Their tostadas and ceviche are amazing!

This place is average. Food was OK at best. The service was some of the worst I've had at any sit down restaurant and the salsa tasted like tomato sauce. I wouldn't come back a second time. read more

Is a great restaurant with a great consistent service & quality of food.. Always very helpful & genuinely nice every time

Im a Student nearby and this is the best place in the area I've been too so far. I always get the specially burrito, (I think its number 21 on the menu) ...I think its good for its price. read more

Went on Sunday afternoon with a couple of friends. This is not the best food in Pomona. Maybe they were just busy but. The service was not good. The food was just okay. The place was a mess. The restrooms were very bad. No tp. No paper towels. Had to dry my hands on my pants. One of us never got the drink she ordered. Or the chips n salsa. We did complain about the drink and chips. We were given a bag of chips upon leaving. With a tiny container of salsa. No thank you. A few customers actually left before they got their food. The wait time was crazy long. Too bad because the location is great. One star for location. read more

The lady that greeted us was very nice but that's about as good as it got. We asked for a potato, cheese and meat burrito. We got green peppers in it also. When we asked our waitresses she was really upset when we asked her to fix our order. Not going back. read more

Great food. Great service. I've been coming here for the past 6 years and I know I can always count on two things: my green chilaquiles with an egg on top being delicious and Margarita being here to provide us with amazing service. Highly recommend! read more

I absolutely love this place the food is delicious our favorite waitress Margarita always makes sure our food is perfect and she always remembers our order she knows what I want even when I don't gracias Margarita read more

Went in on my lunch (1hr) and ordered to go, the food took over half an hour and was just sitting there on the counter with no one payin any mind to my food, decided to eat there cuz half my lunch went by, asked for a bottle opener and they directed me othe counter , ok? Nice service lol (sarcasm) poor service and food isn't great it's very plain, read more

Back here after 2 years (lived in Pomona 12 years and this was our favorite Mexican restaurant) and nothing has changed. The menudo and the Chile Verde burrito are as good as I remember. It's nice to see our friends still working here making customers happy. read more

Came here for a Friday evening, after work, social hour with coworkers. There were about 18 of us and the restaurant had no problem accommodating us (I believe someone may have called ahead and warned them of our large group heading their way.) Service was as good as it could be, considering the size of our party. It wasn't really fast, but they didn't balk at doing separate checks for everyone and I appreciate that willingness to make it easier on us. So I easily forgive a little slowness, especially since there were so many people to deal with at our table(s). The chips were super good. Really crunchy, nicely salty. The salsa was just OK. Not spicy, not bland, just kinda there... in a little lidded cup on top of the chips. I think they preset a bunch of baskets of chips all along the many tables they lined up for us. I ordered from the 'small plates' section of the menu and I didn't think it was small at all. The plate I ordered was (#88? I think) 2 tacos, rice and beans. I had the carnitas and it was very tasty. It didn't have the crunchy bits of fried pork that I really like, but the meat was tender and flavorful. The rice was very good and the beans were... I don't know... I didn't love them or hate them, but something was 'off' about them. Although, I still ate every last bite of them. The prices are excellent. My meal was only $6.99 and the Negro Modelo was $3.50. Not too shabby.... Others at the table raved about their chile relleno, chilaquiles and huevos rancheros. I will definitely be back to sample one of those! read more

The best Mexican food in Pomona... The salsa is the best...they have two locations the one on Garey is bigger & you can even get pan dulce there. read more

Best Mexican food in all of southern California - highly recommend the combination burrito, enchilada style with red sauce and an ice cold Corona - this is as good as it gets read more

Great Food but Terrible Service!! Warning do not eat El Merendero! Worst Service ever!!! Myself and a friend of mine ate their this morning. Food was excellent as usual, but their service was beyond horrible. We were asked to leave after we had payed our bill, because we chose to sit and chat. They had a wait in the lobby but no time limit posted. I have never been asked to leave any American establishment unless they were closing up. Their mentality is that we don't have to provide you with any good service because someone else will come in your place! Their attitude is completely Third World at best! Never Eat there unless you like being insulted and unappreciated!!!!! read more

So this is some of the best mexican food ever. Why the two stars? The service. I have been coming to this restaurant my whole life. It has always had consistently good food. Recently ALL and I mean ALL of the waitresses have changed and not for the better. Last time I was in there was two weeks ago and I have not been back. While the waitresses now all speak english they have not adopted ANY cleaning procedures. All of the tables are dirty. But here is the kicker... You can see in the kitchen from the dining room and these girls are shoving food in their mouthes and then picking up plates to deliver to customers in the dining room. Yes, with the same unwashed hands that have been stuffing their faces with nachos (or whatever they are getting for free that night) they are then bringing your food to you and your families. I have contacted the Los Angeles County of Health and Food inspector. With the way things are today, this is completely unacceptable. YUCK! read more