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Neighborhood traditional Mexican restaurant with a solid menu of your favorites. I love that their good taste is pretty authentic of southern Mexican a food from Cali. The guacamole is always fresh and I like their chips. You know it's good when you enjoy the rice and bean sides- yum Hubs ordered the chimichangas , I had the quesadillas and our little friend had carne asada fries and chicken and cheese quesadilla. He's a growing boy playing football so the big servings filled him up. Service is very family style and I believe most of the employees are related. Btw....BYOB All in all- a good Saturday night dinner. Enjoy
Love the food here. Everything is made to order so you have w/o wait a bit. Good things come to those who wait. We can hear for my birthday. There were six of us and the largest seating is 4 people sir we had to split up. The food was delicious. We ordered the Gorditas. Mixed enchiladas. The gorditos were so good. The staff were helpful to know what to order. I can't wait to go back again.
This is like coming home and eating at your grandma's house. It's a small hole in the wall spot with really good Mexican food. We ordered guac & chips, a carne asada Sope plate, an ala carte beef tamale, menudo and a tostada. Definitely way too much for 2 people BUT we got a little taste of everything. I love that the beans are made with chorizo! The guac was nice and chunky. The menudo had hominy, good rich flavor, the tripe was a little over cooked and soft. I live in Los Angeles and was disappointed I couldn't order it with pig's feet. I was surprised because I know the people in HI love their pigs feet! The tamale was moist and had lots of meat filling. It was nice that it came with a small side salad. The Sope was good, they did a good job of making the masa thin and crispy. I'm not a fan of heavy thick masa for my Sope. The thing I missed here is the queso fresco on the beans and on my Sope, instead they use grated cheddar and jack. Parking is NOT fun, the attached lot is super small and shared with the tatoo shop and NAPA auto parts. I would definitely eat here again.
Lived in California most of my life, so my Mexican food standards are high--and sadly, this spot didn't quite deliver. It's a tiny hole-in-the-wall with super nice staff (seriously, they were lovely) and huge portions. But the food? Kinda mid. Ordered an al pastor taco--got ground beef instead. Plus having lettuce and tomato instead of onion and cilantro was disappointing to me. The tortilla was big and probably homemade, so points there. Torta de pollo was solid, but the bread was more hot dog bun than bolillo. Horchata was drinkable but heavy on the cinnamon. Maybe it was an off day, maybe things have changed--but I probably won't be back.
While in the area we decided to grab a quick dinner at El Palenque. Parking is very sparse- either try your luck with street parking or in the shared lot next to the restaurant. There are only 6 tables inside and 2 were already occupied when we came in. Traditional Mexican music and decor. Though there were lots of takeout orders being handled, our server was attentive and efficient, able to get our orders and check at the end of the meal in a timely manner. We ordered the carne asada fries and Trio wet burrito. The portions of food were great for the price. The steak was pretty good on the fries but there wasn't a lot of it. Same for the burrito. Not a big deal for me, but could be disappointing for the carnivores out there. As dine in customers we also got some complimentary chips and salsa. As previous Yelpers mentioned, their salsa is HOT. If your taste buds are sensitive to spice, it might not be for you. Best to have your water or soda on hand to cool your mouth after a few bites!
Located is a small Mexican Restaurant on California Ave on the right side heading out of Wahiawa near Walgreens. Small parking on the side, but other than that you will most likely have to park on the street. They have about 6 tables of 4 per table. The food here is good I tried the shredder beef burritos on my last trip and today the shredded chicken enchiladas with green sauce and the enchiladas were great could use more green sauce which was very tasty. My wife tried the beef Quesadillas and she didn't like that it was pan fried quesadillas, she would had preferred it without oil other than that it was good. Restroom is small for man or women as you enter the restaurant. Staff is nice and service is good
This was my second time ordering from this place. The first time was a much better experience. I don't know what the heck happened but this time the food was horrible. We ordered pork and beef tacos, beans and rice. The pork was the better of the the two being that it actually had some flavor. The beef was terrible! It had no flavor and if I didn't know better it looked and tasted like it was boiled. Yuck! I added salt and salsa (which is watery with a lack of flavor) and I still couldn't eat it. I spent $80 for this crap . Never again.
Food has a good taste but is of just average quality. Service is slow and a bit gruff. When I asked for a takeout container it was brought with the bill tray and bill inside... Which seems a bit unsanitary. When he came back with my credit card slip there was only the merchant copy. Not sure why he didn't give me the customer one, but at that point I was just ready to go.
Food muy delicioso! Quick service! Cooks on this specific evening prepared our meal with alotta love! Gonna definitely be back! Oh yes we will!
Food was order on Uber Eats due to the high rating and it being nearby where we live. The menudo was mediocre and barely any onions or cilantro for the amount of menudo. I'll probably go to the store to get more cilantro. The trio burrito was meh. The meats and salsa rojo and verde for the burrito was lacking. There was extra red salsa, which I ordered for the burrito. Finally, the chips are free but there's no dipping sauce (queso, guacamole, or even salsa in the bag. Probably will not return in the future.
Our go to place for our Mexican food cravings. Their enchilada plate is my favorite! Their portions are generous, I always need a to go box. Excellent service and ambiance. Don't forget to get a horchata yum!
I really hate to do this. We worded from this restaurant and the food was absolutely disgusting. I ordered a mixed fajitas plate and it literally was onion and pepper mixture. I paid extra for the steak and could barely find any steak. The steak that was in there was damn near minced and impossible to enjoy. Not to add they didn't even give us our flour tortillas. -10/10 would not recommend!
13 days ago
My favorite Mexican restaurant on island. Mom and I are regulars. It's family owned and very consistent. The portions are always a good size and Savannah and Zander are always very attentive read more
Out and about and had to try this place...They been at this location (right next to Napa wahiawa) for over 25 years! Parking is also at Napa after hours (they open at 5pm for dinner) A very small cool unassuming hole in the wall with alot of mexican and old time charm housed in an old building with 6 (4 person) tables and light airconditioning. As you enter the inhose bathroom is right in back of entrance (streetside) I believe they also have a take out window fronting Napa parking lot. The staff was friendly and cool and the food didnt take too long (we were the first ones there) The menu was typical mexican food fare tacos enchiladas burritos ..oh and it was taco night $4 tacos (fair size not bad) Food was okay. Not a bad place to try while in Wahiawa read more
2 months ago
Love this place, portions are huge and food is cooked to order so everything is hot and delicious. Service is spot on with the workers being very attentive to all the customers. It's a very cute small place with just enough seating and tables. Can't wait to go back! read more
Neighborhood traditional Mexican restaurant with a solid menu of your favorites. I love that their good taste is pretty authentic of southern Mexican a food from Cali. The guacamole is always fresh and I like their chips. You know it's good when you enjoy the rice and bean sides- yum Hubs ordered the chimichangas , I had the quesadillas and our little friend had carne asada fries and chicken and cheese quesadilla. He's a growing boy playing football so the big servings filled him up. Service is very family style and I believe most of the employees are related. Btw....BYOB All in all- a good Saturday night dinner. Enjoy read more
Love the food here. Everything is made to order so you have w/o wait a bit. Good things come to those who wait. We can hear for my birthday. There were six of us and the largest seating is 4 people sir we had to split up. The food was delicious. We ordered the Gorditas. Mixed enchiladas. The gorditos were so good. The staff were helpful to know what to order. I can't wait to go back again. read more
9 months ago
This is like coming home and eating at your grandma's house. It's a small hole in the wall spot with really good Mexican food. We ordered guac & chips, a carne asada Sope plate, an ala carte beef tamale, menudo and a tostada. Definitely way too much for 2 people BUT we got a little taste of everything. I love that the beans are made with chorizo! The guac was nice and chunky. The menudo had hominy, good rich flavor, the tripe was a little over cooked and soft. I live in Los Angeles and was disappointed I couldn't order it with pig's feet. I was surprised because I know the people in HI love their pigs feet! The tamale was moist and had lots of meat filling. It was nice that it came with a small side salad. The Sope was good, they did a good job of making the masa thin and crispy. I'm not a fan of heavy thick masa for my Sope. The thing I missed here is the queso fresco on the beans and on my Sope, instead they use grated cheddar and jack. Parking is NOT fun, the attached lot is super small and shared with the tatoo shop and NAPA auto parts. I would definitely eat here again. read more
Lived in California most of my life, so my Mexican food standards are high--and sadly, this spot didn't quite deliver. It's a tiny hole-in-the-wall with super nice staff (seriously, they were lovely) and huge portions. But the food? Kinda mid. Ordered an al pastor taco--got ground beef instead. Plus having lettuce and tomato instead of onion and cilantro was disappointing to me. The tortilla was big and probably homemade, so points there. Torta de pollo was solid, but the bread was more hot dog bun than bolillo. Horchata was drinkable but heavy on the cinnamon. Maybe it was an off day, maybe things have changed--but I probably won't be back. read more
2 years ago
While in the area we decided to grab a quick dinner at El Palenque. Parking is very sparse- either try your luck with street parking or in the shared lot next to the restaurant. There are only 6 tables inside and 2 were already occupied when we came in. Traditional Mexican music and decor. Though there were lots of takeout orders being handled, our server was attentive and efficient, able to get our orders and check at the end of the meal in a timely manner. We ordered the carne asada fries and Trio wet burrito. The portions of food were great for the price. The steak was pretty good on the fries but there wasn't a lot of it. Same for the burrito. Not a big deal for me, but could be disappointing for the carnivores out there. As dine in customers we also got some complimentary chips and salsa. As previous Yelpers mentioned, their salsa is HOT. If your taste buds are sensitive to spice, it might not be for you. Best to have your water or soda on hand to cool your mouth after a few bites! read more
Located is a small Mexican Restaurant on California Ave on the right side heading out of Wahiawa near Walgreens. Small parking on the side, but other than that you will most likely have to park on the street. They have about 6 tables of 4 per table. The food here is good I tried the shredder beef burritos on my last trip and today the shredded chicken enchiladas with green sauce and the enchiladas were great could use more green sauce which was very tasty. My wife tried the beef Quesadillas and she didn't like that it was pan fried quesadillas, she would had preferred it without oil other than that it was good. Restroom is small for man or women as you enter the restaurant. Staff is nice and service is good read more
8 months ago
This was my second time ordering from this place. The first time was a much better experience. I don't know what the heck happened but this time the food was horrible. We ordered pork and beef tacos, beans and rice. The pork was the better of the the two being that it actually had some flavor. The beef was terrible! It had no flavor and if I didn't know better it looked and tasted like it was boiled. Yuck! I added salt and salsa (which is watery with a lack of flavor) and I still couldn't eat it. I spent $80 for this crap . Never again. read more
10 months ago
Food has a good taste but is of just average quality. Service is slow and a bit gruff. When I asked for a takeout container it was brought with the bill tray and bill inside... Which seems a bit unsanitary. When he came back with my credit card slip there was only the merchant copy. Not sure why he didn't give me the customer one, but at that point I was just ready to go. read more
10 months ago
Food muy delicioso! Quick service! Cooks on this specific evening prepared our meal with alotta love! Gonna definitely be back! Oh yes we will! read more
11 months ago
Food was order on Uber Eats due to the high rating and it being nearby where we live. The menudo was mediocre and barely any onions or cilantro for the amount of menudo. I'll probably go to the store to get more cilantro. The trio burrito was meh. The meats and salsa rojo and verde for the burrito was lacking. There was extra red salsa, which I ordered for the burrito. Finally, the chips are free but there's no dipping sauce (queso, guacamole, or even salsa in the bag. Probably will not return in the future. read more
11 months ago
Let's just say 30 weeks pregnant and craving authentic Mexican food. This hit the spot! Food was amazing and our server was so kind and genuine! We will definitely be back! read more
2 years ago
Our go to place for our Mexican food cravings. Their enchilada plate is my favorite! Their portions are generous, I always need a to go box. Excellent service and ambiance. Don't forget to get a horchata yum! read more
1 year ago
I really hate to do this. We worded from this restaurant and the food was absolutely disgusting. I ordered a mixed fajitas plate and it literally was onion and pepper mixture. I paid extra for the steak and could barely find any steak. The steak that was in there was damn near minced and impossible to enjoy. Not to add they didn't even give us our flour tortillas. -10/10 would not recommend! read more
8 months ago
2 years ago
THIS IS NOT AUTHENTIC. SAVE YOUR MONEY AND GO TO TACO BELL. DONT LET THE NAME OR THE MENU FOOL YOU! Ordered a burrito and chimichangas plate. Burrito plate was mostly lettuce and sour cream. Basically a vegetarian burrito. Maybe a tablespoon of diced meat for the whole burrito. Chimichangas plate we ordered had a bunch of oil at the bottom. Chimichangas were soft cause they sat in the oil. Beans and rice just tasted like oil. I would rename this "oily plate with semi-fried/ soggy tortillas" I can't imagine what the salsa and nachos taste like. read more
1 year ago
8 months ago
2 years ago
We tried El Palenque on a recommendation and weren't disappointed. It's a small establishment, with minimal parking, but they do takeout. Staff was very friendly and food was cooked quickly. They make their own tortillas and they tasted fresh and were cooked well. Ordered 3 tacos, Sopa, and a Gordita to try a variety. I don't really care for rice and beans with my meal so we ordered a la carte. Gordita - pork inside. Good amount of filling. Masa was fresh and pocket held up to the filling. Enjoyed this a lot. Sopa - again fresh masa. Fried perfectly and the beef was well seasoned and the whole thing was filling. Tacos - 1 soft (chicken) and 2 crispy (beef and pork). These were my fave. Again the masa is the star here. The crispy tacos were puffy and had a mix of crisp and chewy. I was pleasantly surprised and very happy. The fillings were really well seasoned and the tacos were generously sized. We will definitely be back here to try other options, and get more tacos. It's out of the way for us, but 25min to Haleiwa from Town isn't too bad to manage on a weekend. read more
Excellent service, excellent food. Parking is slim (either street or a couple in the parking next to the building. Was lucky to find a street stall so stopped here for lunch. Ordered their Trio Burrito. Wow, this thing is gigantic. It came with their 3 meats (chicken, carnitas, and beef) with lettuce, cheese, avocado, and sour cream. The flavors of all the meats came through in different spots in the burrito. I tried to finish it but it was too massive. This is one of our fave Mexican food spots on the island. Swing by and try them out. read more
Authentic Mexican Food in Oahu. We've been going for years and the menu is extensive and tasty. Homemade tortillas set the tone with great salsa. Service is always friendly. Most favorite dishes are available so be ready for a tasty experience. read more
1 year ago
1 year ago
I'm here biweekly at this point. It's definitely my favorite mexican food on island. When I walk in, they know what I want already (mixed cheese enchilada plate) although I do love to mix it up sometimes (tamale or chile relleno is delicious as well). The mole enchilada is my favorite. It's so perfectly balanced between sweet and heat, I can't get enough of it. I love all of the different sauces (red, green, mole) and it never disappoints. Most recently I got the chile relleno plate with both red and green sauce. I guess my stomach is shrinking because I couldn't finish it all! Pretty big portion as it comes with rice, beans, tortillas, chips and salsa. Don't worry though, I got the rest to go and enjoyed it later. The restaurant is pretty small but when I go midday, there's always seats available to dine in. You can order take out as well, place your order in store or call ahead. There is a bathroom available and limited parking. There is street parking as well as a little lot right next to the restaurant. Usually, I just park in the Walgreens lot and walk on over if the other options are taken. Customer service is almost always perfect as there are two people that are incredibly nice, a male and a female. I need to get their names, but they are always so nice whenever I go in. The server is a male that takes my order and the women is the one cooking. So sweet, every time. As I'm writing this, I am waiting for them to open as now I want another plate. Today may be the day I try a new dish! read more
1 year ago
2 years ago
1 year ago
3 years ago
Ordered from El Palenque for dinner tonight via UberEats. I got the chimichangas. They are crispy, warm, and comforting. I do however find them a bit plain. They're still tasty, just kind of wish they had more flavor. I also didn't really care for the refried beans- a little runnier than I normally like them and would've liked a little more cheese. I can't say much about the ambiance or the service, as we ordered through a delivery service. All in all, I would still order from this place again, maybe try their enchiladas. They looked delicious! read more
2 years ago
The best Mexican Restaurant in the island..... way better than El Ranchero on California Ave read more
Having been here a lot prior to COVID, I can say the quality slipped a little. The tacos were meh...and the tamale was just okay... I was a little sad as I had bragged that this was one of the better places I've found for Mexican food. The homie from Texas was very underwhelmed. Will prob not be back for awhile till they're open for dine in. Waited 25 minutes for 2 tacos and a tamale. read more
4 years ago
I got some tacos beef ones and a burrito. The food was great. But the water no bring your own water or buy a drink that is in a bottle. But the tacos were really tasty especially with lime and salsa. The burrito was good I just wish I got the steak fries cuz that was my original reason for going but I somehow forgot. They had a pretty good table salsa not what I'm used to... which is generic Pico de galo knock off and it wasn't the smoked chili aji that gives me heart burn but is pretty tasty. The burrito had 3 different meats and was huge. It was like Mexican flag. The people working there did a great job. I would go again. I love tacos next time I'd get the steak fries and bunch of tacos. But the burrito wasn't bad. And it was huge. One of the more authentic place on the islands. Great feel like I'm south of the border. It's really good cold maybe better then it was hot on the burrito... in retrospect I would have rather kept the burrito let it sit a day in the fridge then eating it hot. It's so much better cold and a day old. read more
2 years ago
6 years ago
Pre-pandemic review. I was not impressed with the looks and location of this restaurant. But this place always seems to be packed with people waiting outside. As it was the case tonight, even the rain couldn't stop the crowd from coming in. It was difficult getting a waitress to acknowledge we are waiting for a table, and we had to wait outside in the rain. My niece insist we come here, and my thought the whole time is, this place must be good. She always talks about how much she likes it here, and I've heard the same from a couple of friends. Well, we finally get a table that couldn't barely fit the 5 of us. The space is so tiny, it couldn't fit an extra chair on the 4 seater table, but we managed. This place is filthy, the walls and tables are dirty. The building is old, restaurant is small, the dining area is packed in with tables that barely fit. But food looks good, and doesn't seem to bother anyone as I'm watching people loving their food. More I'm thinking, oh, this is going to be delicious I'm sure?? Well, the food did look delicious. Mister and my son liked it, as for me, not so much. I've tasted much better. To me, the food had a weird salty taste, I couldn't enjoy any of it, and sitting on the dirty table made it much worst and I was anxious to leave. Not a fan of this restaurant, but I had to checkout what the hype is all about with this place. This restaurant has been opened for a long long time, so it's successful for a reason I suppose. Difficult to find parking, high traffic area of Wahiawa. If you insist on eating here, take out would be best. read more
Wahiawa has many Mexican options but this is my favorite. It's a small hole-in-the-wall, but you can't beat the food. Since there's limited seating, we usually do take out. Please note that the food does take a while to make, but I love that it's fresh. If you're ordering take out, you can park on the street or in the parking lot in front of Napa. The window to pick-up your takeout food is actually in this lot, so it's super convenient. They're always super nice and helpful on the phone. They do have taco Tuesday prices! read more
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More info about El Palenque
177 S Kamehameha Hwy
Wahiawa, HI 96786
Directions
(808) 622-5829
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https://www.elpalenquehawaii.com
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Ask the Community - El Palenque
When will you reopen for dine-in? We've been waiting patiently!! Please open so I can bring my hubby for his birthday. smile...
Do they sell gift certificates by any chance? I would like purchase some gift certificates for my ohana in Wahiawa.…
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