Not sure how this place stays open with all the competition from other places. The second story balcony location was nice. The place was pretty empty. We only went in because of the special that was advertised (octopus with pesto). However once seated there was no mention of the specials by the waiter and we had to inquire about it and he seemed surprised. They did manage to make it But it wasn't very good. Won't be going back read more

Let me start my review with a positive....it was a great location on the boardwalk with a stunning view of the water as you are on the 2nd floor. First, the drinks: strawberry margaritas were ordered. These were watered down & sour and not at all appetizing. The poorest strawberry margarita I have ever had. Salsa: We were brought a very nice presentation of a bowl of salsa but the chips were stale. Food: I ordered chicken enchiladas. I attempted to cut a piece with my knife; it was not possible to cut through it so I thought I must have cut into chicken bones. No; it turned out to be the meat itself. The waiter brought me a steak knife to try & cut it but I sent my plate back. They improved the enchiladas slightly but this whole meal was considered a waste of money. My positives: Location, the view and the service were good. Negatives: The drinks & food. Don't waste your time. read more

Bleh. Waste of time and money. I had the ribs. Gross. Salty and sticky sauce, fries were clearly frozen- margarita was expensive and watered down. Two of us paid $85 for dinner that was, imho, total crap. ‍ read more

Over will not go again don't waste your money, this is not authentic food taste like ketchup, service sucks and so expensive and the chips were stale.... read more

Oof. They were nice enough and the view is fantastic; we could see fireworks up there but the food is absolutely terrible. Taco Bell makes better tacos. The chips were stale. The salsa and other sauces tasted like Prego. I ordered the ribeye chicharron tacos. Not a single piece of ribeye. I got half a bone on the plate with the tacos, which I mean, cool, I like bone marrow and made my own bone marrow tacos but the rest was charred burned pork rinds with no trace of beef. The molcajete was soggy and flavorless. The fajitas were also not great; no seasoning, not well seared, and preassembled. Manager was pleasant; drinks were okay but come on guys, this is Mexico. How are you putting out stale chips and trash tacos? read more

Reviews are accurate. This place is ok. It has a nice balcony to enjoy your meal and the view. I had a Caesar salad and it was good. Shrimp tacos for my wife were ok. It is an ok place in a great location. read more

Fair prices, good Mexican food and good vibes Place is clean on the second floor so you have a great view of the ocean by the Malecon, let's not forget the good service and awesome staff read more

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I posted this last year but apparently I chose the wrong El Patron as they had 2 branches so I was advised to repost the review to the right restaurant location so here it is. I don't want this to happen to anyone else, I went there last year right before the Covid19 shutdown, I didn't remember how the food was so it meant probably so so but I loved the spectacular view of the malecon (boardwalk) from the balcony so we decided to go in especially there was a huge sign saying 2 for 1 happy hour. We sat down n were upset it was bait and switch, we'd have to order 4 margaritas to get 2 free, we should have left it was a mistake to stay. We ordered a chili relleno it was a disaster, the tomato sauce tasted like it was out of a can, not edible the server didn't have Customer service, in most restaurants they would take it back n it would have been a smart move. There were so many restaurants so just skip this, the only reason it was a 2 stars was the manager came by to say hello we were ready to leave so it was not worth it to bring it up. I should have read other people reviews/recommendation to order the crab tacos people said were delicious but I'm wondering if the virus hurt their business we were the only one there n maybe the regular cook was gone n somebody was winging it . read more

Ordered the salsa and chips and fish tacos. Best we've had in Avery long time! Food was heat hot and spicy hot in a good way! Ordered the margaritas-lime special and then ordered more. Highly recommend! Great place for cruisers off the ship! read more

El Patron - Fish tacos, margaritas and chips. - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

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Skip it! They don't do dairy so no cheese, no sour cream, no lettuce - tacos have only meat. Meat, well I'm not sure what it was overall, very disappointing. $106 for nothing...service = awful I would recommend drinks and guacamole that's it - the table next to us wanted more drinks, but the waiter was lost somewhere read more

The view was nice, but the food was not very good and the happy hour sign board was misleading. We ended up with expensive Margheritas that weren't even that good. read more

Very nice view from the balcony seating. We only came here to grab a drink and a little something to eat. The Calamari was okay but the salsa that they had was very good! Also whatever drink my wife ordered she really enjoyed. The server was attentive. All in all the ambiance of the place was nice. read more

El Patron - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

Skip the drinks and go for the beer and food! Drinks from the drink menu were terrible be the food was great. Location was premium on the water front. The stairs to get up are a bit agressive but the staff was great. We had a stroller with a car seat and diaper bag stored under so it was heavy and the staff helped us carry it down the stairs. Bathrooms were clean. No AC but the had large fans that helped! read more

El Patron - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

We went here for dinner on our first night in PV. It's located on the malecon so we found it as strolled along the ocean. Ironically, it is the same restaurant that we had our last meal at in PV when we visited 15 years ago. We remember that meal well so we decided to dive into nostalgia. Our food was good, certainly above average, but not as good as we would get at subsequent restaurants during our vacation. The shrimp ceviche had shrimp that was over "cooked" (in the lime too long) and the ceviche overall lacked much flavor. My garlic shrimp was very garlicky and I liked it a lot but it was overcooked. The shrimp al pastor was spicy and very tasty but again overcooked. Margaritas were good but not very strong. Service was slow but not intolerable. It's not a bad place, but as we discovered, there are so many excellent restaurants in PV. read more

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When you literally have a restaurant totally to yourself, you begin to wonder why. It was very clean and the waiter was fairly attentive, but we had to wait forever for our drinks and for our lunch. My Bloody Mary was not anywhere near as good as some of the other ones I've had here and Reed's margarita was not exceptional. Then we had to wait, and wait, and wait, for my Sopa de Mariscos. Reed's calamari came out fairly quick and it was very fresh and it was very tasty. The view from the restaurant was lovely as you could look up and down the Malecon but for what we waited for I probably would not go back again. I don't like to give mediocre reviews but the rest of it was pretty mediocre and even though the wait staff was very kind they really didn't get our check very quickly or food was slow and even though it was good when we got it we had to wait way too long. We're so few people in there I can see why people are not going back. That sound good read more

El Patron - Calamari - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

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To start off, our waiter didn't know anything about anything. It seems like this restaurant as a whole is lacking a lot. We started off with Paloma's to drink and they were horrible. Then ordered queso fundido and it was the worst I've ever had. We then ordered molcajete and fish and the flavors were non existent. The molcajete salsa tasted like ravioli from a Can. Please Avoid yourself the disappointment and don't come here!! read more

El Patron - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

This place is pretty cool and has a very nice view to the ocean and the center of the Malecon. The food was good and the service was good. They had beer specials and 2x1 drinks which were also pretty good. They lose a star in the menu, which doesn't have much selection. It's very limited and the guy advertising in the front said he doesn't recommend certain plates which makes it even more limited. They also lose a star bc there is an old gentleman who is very nice and tries to make conversation but he's also trying to get you into a timeshare. These timeshares seem to be very huge in Mexico and it's so freaking annoying. Besides that, everything else was very good. They even gave me a lil birthday dessert and played "las mañanitas" for me lol I'd say try it for yourself and see how you like it. read more

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Waitress wanted to force a tip. Service was nice and server was attentive but unbeknownst to us the restaurant had closed and they were punishing us. Don't come here. read more

It feels like a tourist trap. The food was VERY much below average, but the cocktails were alright. The service was strange... they kept reorganizing our plates for some reason? read more

Views are amazing! Service, not so much! Restaurant was empty and it still took about 45 minutes to just get us drinks. Chips and salsa came a bit after... stale if I may add. The only thing this place has going for it is the view! Literally that's it! Couldn't even taste the alcohol in our drinks skipped on the food due to the bad service. read more

The family enjoyed our time in Puerto Vallarta. Especially the street tacos. Great tacos and enjoyed the guacamole and chips!

If I could give less than one star I would. The food was horrible. Tasted like a can of ravioli. Spoke to the manager about one of the items I ordered tasting horrible and he offered no solution. Food horrible. Service horrible. Would not go here or recommend to anyone read more

We loved our dining experience here! We got drinks which were served in fun glasses and tasted great. For food we got molcajete and it was very excelente we enjoyed our food. What really set this place apart for us was the location. We sat on a balcony looking over the ocean. We got to watch the sun finish setting and that was great. They also had live music when we went and the band was phenomenal. The servers were also attentive and very friendly. If I ever visit puerta Vallarta again I will be back! read more

El Patron - View from our table - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

If your in the Malecon area do yourself a favor and try this place out. Service was great, drinks were good and the food was delicious. The atmosphere was very nice with awesome views of the ocean. Go ahead and get that guacamole .... it's so fresh and tasty! read more

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The nachos was so old we ordered fajitas they forgot to bring the plates the sauce , super slow service and defo expensive ! Good location read more

Oh man, I WISH I remembered the guy's name who worked here- October 2021- we asked for the Dodger game (playoffs) and he hooked us up right in front of a tv with the game and a big fan! Thank you for your kindness and hospitality- we will visit you again next year! We stopped here on 3 different nights, watched Dodger games each time, ate and drank a lot- everyone was very accommodating and friendly. Clean, well stocked restrooms. Despite being on the malecon and what one might consider a tourist trap location, once inside it didn't feel that way. The most beautiful ocean views, too! read more

Great location, ambiance and view. That's about it. Waiter made a point to Up sell us from chips and salsa to chips, salsa and guacamole but then forgot to bring it. Chile Relleno had great flavor but came out cold. Cold hard cheese in the middle. Sent it back. Out comes yet another cold Chile relleno. Don't bother ordering a sparkling wine ( kinda dumb of me for ordering in a Mexican restaurant) but it was flat, zero bubbles. Margarita was more like sour lime water. So much potential. So much disappointment. Waiter was not very nice either. Don't bother. read more

Just had dinner here and the service great. Food was good and location is perfect. recommend!

Service was slow and there were no people. I got the fish ceviche which was "okay" my husband got the "steak/chicken" fajitas and they were cold and stale.. looked nothing like fajitas or chicken ...in other words Food was trash, and I can see WHY restaurant was 99% empty .. don't read more

El Patron - Don't let the "pretty" presentation fool you... it was trash - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

Amazing view, welcoming staff, great food selection. We started with the quacamole and wine and ended with delicious shrimp tacos, chilli rellenos, and a chef specialty of shrimp stuffed with gouda and wrapped in bacon. Delicious! read more

El Patron - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

I give it one star for view. We got food poisoning at this place. Terrible service too. Ordered drinks and food and had to send back both ! read more

I honestly don't get why this place has bad reviews. The location is amazing. The food is decent - not amazing but solid. The service was good and the manager even checked up on us several times. I'd recommend this place and I'll eat her again. read more

Had an amazing meal! I was concerned with the low rating but was meeting friends so went. The tortilla chips were stale so that also worried me, but from then on everything else was fabulous! I had grilled lobster -a special treat-and it was soooo yummy! My husband had a seafood salad that was excellent and the others had grilled fish and seafood pasta. All I can say is Wow! read more

I don't understand all the bad reviews. The food was good, the service was good and the view was amazing!!!! The owner even came by to make sure everything was good. I had the coconut shrimp and my father had the Ribeye steak and he said that was the best steak he's had outside the US (and he's a world traveler). Give this place a shot!! read more

El Patron - Coconut Shrimp with amazing tequila sauce. - Seafood Near Me - Puerto Vallarta, JAL

We decided to eat dinner here after seeing the beautiful balcony overlooking the Malecón. The Cadillac margarita was great! But it all went downhill from there. We noticed that locals or native Mexicans were getting served more quickly and the servers were super attentive to everyone else in the restaurant. Our appetizer never came out and we had to ask about it. And then our meals came out about 10 minutes apart from each other. The servers looked confused and when our food did come, 3 out of 4 entrees were incorrect. Meat was undercooked. Fries were still frozen on the inside. Chicken fajitas literally had NO seasoning. The servers were unapologetic and acted as though they did not understand what we were asking for (even with someone at our table who is fluent in Spanish) to correct the situation. There was absolutely NO service recovery attempt. We just felt unwelcome. I'm probably the easiest going person, especially while dining. I was very close to just plunking down some cash for our drinks and walking out. But we stuck it out because we were hungry. They also tried to charge us for an item we never ordered or received and acted like it was going to be too much of a hassle to adjust our bill. My first horrible dining experience in PV EVER and we have eaten in many many places and have had wonderful experiences. Choose one of the other places along the boardwalk if you are a tourist, especially if you are LGBTQ... https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g150793-d6427843-r796716993-El_Patron-Puerto_Vallarta.html# read more

Good service. Food was cold. Was given a cup of ice with straw for soda and straw was dirty and had clearly been used before.

Very similar to all other restaurants at the malecon. Not the best food and mediocre service. Not going back only because I can get mediocre of the same elsewhere. Keep looking, Vallarta has better restaurants. read more

Please read my tip please. Stay away. Took 2 hours to eat a drink and cash. Only want to sell you stuff. Time share and tours.

The reviews were spot on! My friend and I were seated and given menus. I did not realize my menu opened until I saw my friend reading his because mine was so tattered that it did not open freely, nasty! We got lucky because no one ever came to our table after we were seated, thank god. I had a feeling about the place so I Yelped it then we got the heck out of there. I don't think they will ever notice since no waiter or waitress came over. Thanks Yelppers for the reviews!! read more

It was just gross! Old really old fish. DISGUSTING! I didn't want to tip however my husband left $50 pesos. The guy ourside told us that they only have 2 stars! He also stated that everyone that comes out of the restaurant complained. Hopefully we don't get food poisoning. read more