Great Food, Art, & Ambiance (hidden gem!!): El Nopal Restaurante (1) Food Quality -- I ordered garlic butter shrimp with a small set of side dishes. Honestly, I wish I'd been more adventurous, because one look at the menu and it's clear El Nopal has a deep commitment to keeping every tradition on the table. (2) The menu is massive -- seriously, it caters to everyone. Whether you're craving classic comfort dishes or something you haven't tried since your abuela's kitchen, it's there. The kitchen must be stacked with talented, versatile cooks who take pride in range. (3) Service is A++ -- Don't sweat your Duolingo app progress. The staff meets you where you are. (4) The Owner is A+++ -- On top of the difficulty of running a bustling restaurant, the owner invested in a serious soundproofing project on certain walls, finished with canvas-like acoustic tiles. That's not just decor -- it's a deliberate choice to keep the dining experience comfortable for guests inside and respectful to the neighbors and residents outside. (5) Think about that for a second: Who sinks thousands of dollars into soundproofing a busy restaurant in one of the busiest cities in the world? An owner who genuinely cares: about the customer, about the community, & about doing things right. read more

See all

If you are looking for some delicious Mexican food with handmade tortillas this is the place from breakfast to lunch or dinner, every plate I have ordered has been enjoyable read more

See all

Service was great The staff is very friendly and the Michelada were bomb Aswell definitely recommend. read more

server wasn't attentive and chilaquiles were not the best. The carne asada plate was pretty good though. parking is also rough on busy days

Not sure if the man that immediately greeted us from outside and sat us down right away was the owner but amazing customer service, can't say much about the waitress, a little stuck up & had a sassy reply to a question we had lol. Food was pretty good. I ordered the wrong plate but regardless my grilled shrimp, rice and beans 8/10.. El pescado sarandiado was an 8/10 as well. Not a big fan of the chipotle sauce on it but still good. Hand made fresh tortillas 10/10.. guacamole needed more flavor 7/10. Fresh chips 10/10. This place has live music and it can be really loud in there so if you don't like noisy places just place your order to go read more

So far this is a place to recommend. Small business and very clean Server was friendly The chips were warm and good Salsa had the right amount of heat. When I ordered the cocido, she commented, ooo that's. Good choice. The soup was tasty but could have used more calabasas. The side of beans was good, a bit on dry side On negative side, the music is too loud , probably good if you are dating or married and don't want o hear the other person talking They don't have Pepsi I actually drove here because yelp stated they have handmade tortillas, but I couldn't get it today and told only on weekends Only for four stars for no handmade tortillas and music very loud. (And maybe no Pepsi) read more

Just an average Mexican restaurant. Nothing out of the ordinary, waitresses are nice but nothing I can brag about the food. The parking can be a problem. The owner goes around greeting people which I think it's a good thing. read more

FOOD The food is hit or miss. The dishes varies in terms of seasoning, portion sizing, and how well it is cooked even if you order the same menu item. I feel as though I can no longer rely on the great food I had grown up eating. Taking pricing into consideration, I would appreciate more consistency with their food. Some of the menu items are big portions that are meant to be shared with 2-3 people. SERVICE Also hit or miss but I have noticed that the larger my party is, the better customer service is. Perhaps the more you spend the better you are treated. AMBIANCE The painted mural of the mariachis was beautiful. Sometimes they have a band, karaoke, or mariachis. You can even request the band or mariachis to play a song of your choosing if they know it. I will likely be back because my family has been coming here for years. It has become a tradition for us to eat here when we have family visiting us. Hopefully my next visit will be better. read more

Best menudo in the area. The prices are a little high for delivery but worth it. My wife loves the enchiladas

Me gusta mucho comida de alli 10 de 10. El senor tony muy amable pero las meseras. Simple que voy tengo una mala experecia si les pides algo. Te inoran nunca regresa para atras aver que te falta algo simple anda con cara enojadas nunca son amable. Deberia agarar algel mas amables que den un buen sercicio al cliente los clientes son los que paga. Sus facturas para perder cliente rapido para recuperarlo rapido nose por que el dueno nose cuenta de sus cajeras dan mal servicio read more

If you're craving some good Mexican food, I suggest coming here! I've been here a few times, always in the morning to beat the rush. We came on a Sunday around 8:30AM and were sat right away. We got a torta de carnitas (minus onions & tomato), salpicón, and a tostada de ceviche. My father in law LOVED the salpicón, even said it was the greatest thing he's ever ate! The tostada de ceviche was also amazing and the torta was very yummy. The bread for the torta was also perfectly toasted and fluffy. The severs are very kind and attentive. The music is great, sometimes we even get lucky and catch some live music. read more

See all

La música extremadamente alta, las meseras no te escuchan , no puedes tener una conversación en lo absoluto con tus acompañantes. No, no es un ambiente familiar, definitivamente los niños no deberían estar en un ambiente así , pero no por la gente, es por el alto volumen de la música . Está bien la música, eso no es discusión, lo que no está bien es que si ya la música está alta (que valga la redundancia). Este conectada a bocinas que te dejan sordo y con molestias en los oídos, pobres meseras. Y que triste porque la comida es muy buena y con precios accesibles. read more

The best food for the money and the same goes for the service!!! The Chile relleno is the best of the best !!!

La comida el ambiente el servicio la atención la música la limpieza el trato amable muy bueno

I ordered shrimp cocktail for pick up and they made sure I had all I needed to prepare it myself, it was delish! Service was great, the waitresses are very nice! read more

Great food and service. Owner personally comes in and helps and greets customers and the service is fast.

Not a good place to eat service 0 food maybe waitress forgot about food blame it on the cook and the oysters where still attached to the shell just a big lack of service over all read more

El Nopal Restaurante - Oysters were not cut - Mexican Near Me - Anaheim, California

Decided to go by and try this place for the first time. Only one table of customers. No cars in the drive thru and got there at 6:45. They had NO broiled Chicken. Wanted me to wait 10 minutes. Not a great first impression. Probably a last impression. If you only sell two products and you're out of one at dinner on a slow night... No bueno campero! read more

The food was amazing, and had a very unique spin on mexican cuisine. The service was great, and the meal was well paced

This place is a hidden gem! I came here for lunch one day and I tried their quesadilla camarones and it's absolutely delicious! It's very filling, and the shrimp tasted fresh and there's plenty of yummy ooey-gooey cheese. Overall, I highly recommend it. Prices are decent, credit cards accepted, and there's plenty of parking. read more

This is such a good place to eat and I recommend it to anyone who never had Mexican food before and in general it's just something good to eat. read more

I tried this place out with someone that used to be a regular 20 years ago. We saw the 3.3 stars but tried it anyways. Well, I do believe the 3 stars is accurate now. The place was nothing fancy and looked like a Mexican restaurant. Be careful when you walk around if you are tall because there are low hanging TVs. The music was too loud and the lighting was so dim we had to use our phone flashlights to see the menu. The service was not great. It was below average. They did not check on us much. In regard to food and drinks, the drinks were overpriced and not anything out of the ordinary. We had the spicy shrimp (there are only 6) and the cost is 21.99 for the meal. The sauce is great though. The shrimp burrito was good. The fajitas were average. The best part was the chips and salsa. Overall, I would not be back, but glad we tried it. Our bill was about $115. read more

See all

Highly recommend this place is off the hook!!! The food is bomb. The vibe is cool. It's overall amazing! Do yourself a favor by ordering the Mole plate and the mojarra frita with Diablo sauce on the side. HOME MADE CORN TORTILLAS IS A MUST The service is great. What are you waiting for hop in your car and get going. read more

El Nopal Restaurante - HIDDEN GEM! - Mexican Near Me - Anaheim, California

Guy working there is to busy watching tv the food was horrible by far the worst I've ever had never have I ever been disappointed in Mexican food. Food was bland service was slow I would give a 0 star if I could. I would rather starve then eat this food read more

Food and service were amazing! Definitely recommend. Our order was taken within 5 min and came out in less than 15 min read more

The horchata is very watered down and also the drinks aren't even on the menu there is also no parking and when I went for my first time people were getting crazy with each other in the parking lot. read more

Es uno de los lugares que cuando quiero comer rico voy ahí así no le hierro todo muy rico

100% Authentic Mexican Food. Can't compare to other Mexican restaurants in the OC area. It's a must go to spot.

This place was disgusting along with the service not to mention everything is over priced! Our waitress had poor customer service. I would honestly go to Taco Bell instead of this disgusting dirty place. read more

If you are craving mariscos this place is great! They have karaoke with Chiquis on some days, and live band other days and comedy shows. The service is always on point. The ladies are super nice. The food is always fresh and great. You get quantity and quality! 100% recommend and hand made tortillas. I always get piña de mariscos. Arroz marinero. Botana de camarones dinamita. Always fire. read more

See all

Had a few things from here, albondigas are good and also their camarones al mojo de ajo.

Recomiendo este lugar 100% la comida está muy rica , muy buena calidad y buen servicio. El mejor menudo sin duda de Orange county. Si visitan este restaurante recomiendo el mole poblano mi madre quedó encantada con este platillo. Buen ambiente .... read more

I ordered some menudo for delivery from this place, just to satisfy a menudo crave I randomly had. What a pleasant surprise to taste a finely made authentic menudo just like mom's. Gracias! read more

Very nice food, big plates. The food is tasty and gime like kind of homemade style. My mom love it.

Este restaurante es frecuentado por muchos por que ofrecen show de karaoke. Hacen concursos de canto y es puro fraude. Hacen que los concursantes traigan porra para apoyarlos. Los jueces llegan más de dos horas tarde para aprovecharse de la gente y sacarles el mayor consumó possible. Al último, el dueño les dice a los jueces a quien escoger como ganador y defraudan a toda la gente. No apoyen a este lugar. Cobran todo muy caro y sirven del alcohol más chafa. Hagan BOYCOTT el nopal! read more

Food was delicious, but we ordered a burger for my kids and ended up with a chicken burger(was expecting a beef burger). Kids ate it so no complaints there. Overall Good food, beer & service. NOTE: After a certain hour it turns into a BAR/CANTINA playing Kareoke music. We arrived there after Universal Studios expecting a restaurant and ready for a good meal... but we got a CANTINA/BAR atmosphere and almost literally the karaoke music stopped when we walked in. We had an oh $##$ moment of "where are we?" Hungry as hell we decided to sit down anyway. No complaints other than I wish I would have known.. The sign should read Restaurant & Cantina. read more

Food is very expensive and the quality of the food is inferior. I order a Torta de Milanesa and it gave me bad ingestion. It seems that there meet is not treated with good quality. read more

Amazing menu Full bar. , beer and wine Great margaritas Fast service, and the inside is gorgeous. Many many booths and tons of nice tables with matching new chairs. Murals ll over the wall. Great paintings and decor /lighting pictures. I got chicken flautist platter. It didn't disappoint!!! The creamy chipotle, guacamole, and sour cream drizzle was amazing. The person with me got a steak plate. Food was fantastic! read more

See all

Be careful because they have hidden fees that they don't inform you about before hand. When you complain, the manager will tell you that business is business. :/ Bad customer service! read more

The service was poor. We had to call the waitress over to get refill on our drinks. Other employees walked by and not checked on us. My husband got a headache cuz the music was too loud. It's the first and last time we come here. read more