Staff was nice, food was great, drinks were even better! Dj / music could improve. Also, add a Happy Hour Nachos? read more

El Rey Cantina - HAPPY HOUR MENU - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

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Stopped in the El Rey for dinner tonight. Alyssa was my kind and efficient server. I started with a shot of Don Julio Blanco neat, chips, salsa and an iced tea. The ambiance is cool and calm. I ordered the chicken enchiladas with red sauce which was perfect for me. The food and service was good and it's a cool place. Been there years ago and I remember they have life music as well. Many tequillas on the menu as well. Recommended read more

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I've eaten here in the past and the food was good but tonight it was quite bad - the asada in the tacos very dry and overcooked and full of large pieces of fat - basically inedible. All of the food came for our table at once, except 1 person's whose quesadilla came 10 minutes later. Seemed like maybe there was no cook and the bartender had to make the food? read more

Margaritas are good. Food is ok. Service is ok if you can hear the waitress. It's LOUD in here, TV turned up all the way. If you want to converse with your dinner partner, good luck. Probably won't come back due to excessive noise. read more

It hit the spot. I ordered the Farmers Bowl(nice veggies). And some chips and salsa were put in the bag. The chips are thick and crunchy. Those and the salsa were very flavorful. I liked the art and items on the walls. The bartender/waitress was very knowledgeable. It was a low light environment, which I appreciate. Parking seemed easy to me. And the service was quick. Good vibes. read more

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We had never been here before. Loved the food and the staff. Prices are reasonable. Try it!

Arrived early on a Saturday evening to have a cocktail. The waitress didn't acknowledge that we even walked in. She never smiled during the hour we were there, we felt very unwelcome. Heard other patrons questioning the charges on their bills and questioning charges on their credit cards, we decided to pay in cash and leave. read more

Agreeing with another reviewer - this is more of a bar than a restaurant. Food and food service are secondary to the bar scene. That being said, the bar area wasn't that crowded on a Saturday evening. Dear Hubby and I stopped in to eat with our daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter. There was no one to greet us. One of the servers noticed us after a bit and said that we were welcome to sit wherever. You get the casual vibe from that kind of greeting. The interior of the restaurant if one large room, with a partial division between booths and tables for dining, and the large bar and adjacent tables. A number of big screen TV's line the wall behind the bar. Abundant festive decorations hang from the ceiling for a party atmosphere. I wanted to order a blended virgin margarita, but they don't use blenders. When I asked for pineapple juice, the server offered a shaken virgin pineapple margarita. I went for that option. It was good, but not especially memorable. Foodwise, about the same could be said. DH and I split an order of shrimp fajitas. Serviceable flavor, but unremarkable, and not that generous. Our son-in-law ordered a burrito, which arrived in large glory. I don't recall if he got chicken or steak inside, but he said as generous as it looked, it was loaded with primarily rice and beans, so a false advertising kind of deal. The little one ordered a kids' quesadilla with some grilled bell peppers on the side. Her quesadilla was one of the nicer ones I've seen in a Mexican restaurant in a long time. It was clearly filled with lots of cheese, and grilled to a perfect look. It could be a decent place to watch sports, but I'm not ready to put it at the top of any venue lists based on our first experience. read more

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We had a great experience today with Alyssa. AMAZING service, she went above and beyond. We will definitely be back

The quick 411... LOVE this place!! Must haves - margarita on the rocks salted rim, carne asada street tacos, carne asada nachos. Very casual, unique and fun dining experience. Plenty of parking in back and great service too! read more

Listen. Staff are friendly as heck. Super nice and helpful. But the fact is our order was wrong which seems crazy since there were not a lot of people there. we wanted pancakes but we got French toast. Not a super big deal to me. They also forgot our chips. The food was ok. My friend said his eggs were cold. Mine were fine they gave us an additional syrup that felt like it had no flavor that was added to it to be honestly. Just made it soggier with no additional taste. Over all it's ok don't know that I would order off the brunch menu again maybe I'll come again one day and order some dinner. For now though not super impressed. Fantastic music playing though haha read more

El Rey Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

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What a great place to go and have a cocktail or two and grab a couple of their delicious tacos. All the bartenders are super friendly and make great drinks. You can also go and watch sports, like the Dodgers or your favorite football team. On some Sundays, you can enjoy live music with no cover charge. Stop by read more

Not a good experience. Service was slow and non attentive. When you ask about what drinks they have, a waiter should speak to you and not away from you so you aren't able to hear them. It took forever for our order to even be taken even though it was not busy. The walls had the wallpaper pealing off from where they pulled stuff down from and the food was very mediocre. The establishment has definitely gone downhill and is not what it used to be. read more

Fun place to hang out on a Sunday afternoon. They have an amazing DJ and a great brunch menu. If you don't want brunch you can just ask for the regular menu as well. My chiliquenos were delicious! My friends loved their breakfast foods and the lunch salad. They have a great beer selection and bottomless mimosas. The dance floor is fun and lively. Plenty of parking in the back! The servers were very pleasant. Overall I highly recommend this place for a party or celebration or just a girls day out! read more

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Food is not good....service has gone down hill. So many more options in Camarillo for a night out.. they need to step it up...

Amazing how its changed for the worse over the years! Went there Friday around 5:30 and it was pretty dead. The bartender had to bring our menus because the waitstaff was late to work. Table needed a wipe but we weren't going to complain about it. But things didn't get better... You pretty much had to beg for chips and the salsa was a small plastic cup. It also tasted a bit fizzy to me like they're not moving it fast enough. The tacos were good but we never got a fork so I was scooping up taco meat with chips and fingers. I know they had forks; I saw them on a dirty table but we personally were not provided silverware. Wish I didn't feel like writing this cuz its a lil sad - this used to be our watering hole several owners/chefs ago. read more

Look the server super nice as well as the bar tender. But the food was horrible, cold and super expensive. I orders a steak burrito . They brought the burrito with almost no beef and tons of rice . And to top it off COLD. The only thing hot was the plate and the bar tender. The bill 28 for the burrito because the burrito was 22 and steak was separate charge 6dls !!! I guess if you don't ask for protein they'll bring u a super loaded rice burrito. Taste was bad too. read more

Mixed feeling about this place. Love nearby and never had been before so we went to check it out. The atmosphere is really fun, but the table was so sticky you couldn't really touch it, and that was after it was wiped down. I had the chili rellenos which was "fine," and my partner as the birria tacos which were terrible. They also weren't anything even remotely resembling birria. It was 3 cold corn tortillas in tin foil sitting next to this slop of stewed meat floating in juices. The meat was tough and in big chunks that were like chewing gum. If the chef thinks that's birria tacos I suggest they may want to go to a real Mexican place and check it out. The wait staff was good at their jobs, and prompt and efficient but ice cold. The place really rocks at night when the karaoke is going but we left before that. read more

First all of all this is a bar first and restaurant second. The bar was definitely festive. So decor was on point for a Mexican cantina. Ordered a shot of tequila, but disappointed on how small it was. Nonetheless, tried to enjoy our evening anyways. Then, the food came and it was average at best. Not horrible, but decent. I wouldn't come here just for the tacos, but they will suffice when you are hungry. Now, we were in the middle of a nice evening but then they turned up the music and it was so loud. So loud, that we couldn't hear our waitress. People at the bar relaxing. People eating in booths. No one dancing. Just a laid back vibe and then all of a sudden loud music! Be prepared for a bar atmosphere with a security guard who was super nice and bar food that is sub par. Great location though and outdoor patio for people watching. read more

It was so much fun to come and hang out with the fantastic crowd. The DJ, Al, knew how to read the crowd and had everyone dancing! Alicia, the waitress, was excellent. She cared for us, ensuring we had our drinks and food ready, which was amazing. We celebrated my daughter's birthday party and had a fantastic time! read more

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Terrible service. Bouncer was holding the line for the restroom and not allowing gentlemen to use the bathroom. He was flirting and allowing women to cut in front of men to use the men's restroom. When we attempted to speak up and complain, we were told to use the restroom outside...meaning in the street. I doubt the city nor the police department would appreciate that behavior. Unprofessional service and behavior. We are paying patrons...our bill was over $200 for dinner and drinks. It's unimaginable that staff would treat customers this way. Moreover that ownership would hire such incompetent people. If that wasn't bad enough, our table had a leak coming from the ceiling. The skylight was leaking onto our table. We had to play "Battleship" and move our plates and platters so that dirty rain water wasn't contaminating our food. The food was less than average. The tortillas didn't even seem to be heated on a stove. Were they microwaved? Asked for no tomatoes and received extra. The cook must have been a jokester. Dive bar with matching service. Avoid at all cost. Our waitress was great and did an amazing job despite being new. Sad to have to leave such a negative review as I know there are good people working there trying to make a living but ownership needs to do better. There should be standards. Get rid of the unprofessional staff. read more

El Rey may has friendly staff, a decent atmosphere and decent food. I would come in the future and try some other things. A came with a friend this past Friday to grab some drinks, food and watch the Dodger's game. We were greeted from afar and told to sit at a choice of two tables out of several that were available. Seating currently incudes bar, table, booth and I believe some outside tables. Interior is cool with various Elvis pics ("El Rey" in Spanish means the King), red leather booths, a wooden bar, and various colorful signs and graphics. There's several TVs inside to catch any sports on as well. Our server (fella with a SF hat on) was nice and had good customer service. The food was ok; I would try some other items myself next time. My friend had warned me about the food just being ok, but I wanted to give it a try. I think the tacos are just lacking in product and seasoning. The tacos were ok overall, the street tacos had cheese on them which is a big no no authentically speaking. I understand the concept of value however and they are trying to provide that I suppose.. Baja Fish - Grilled fish, red cabbage, tomato, cilantro, El Rey Habanero Ranch. This was just bland, the grilled fish was very delicate, and the sauce was non existent in taste. El Rey Al Pastor Street Taco - Grilled pork, cilantro, pineapple, panella cheese. El Rey Carnitas Street Taco - Braised pork, white onion, cilantro, panella cheese. This was perhaps the best of all the tacos, carnitas tacos are usually oily and this is no different. El Rey Chicken Street Taco - Ground bits of chicken, white onion, cilantro, panella cheese. The second best taco out of the bunch, the chicken seemed to be seasoned better than the other items. A friend had some tacos as well as the carne asada fries. The carne asada fries dish was pretty huge. read more

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The food is nasty. Burnt chicken fajitas with way too much oil. The beans taste straight from a can sitting on my counter for 5+ years. The water tasted like it was from the toilet. The tortillas smelled funny. The waitress was very nice and friendly. Attentive and pleasant demeanor. Unfortunately the food is just nasty. My husband enjoyed his food though I will say that. read more

Any establishment that allows sex in the bathroom is not worthy of business. The server did see me enter and told them to " finish up." How tacky can you be? Not even worthy of 1 star. read more

The service (Bartender Rebecca and Server Ryon) were very engaging and pleasant. The food was decent but nothing to go out of my way for and the table could have used a wipe down. From here on out I would probably stick with drinks and chips and be very content and just enjoy the decor and bar service. read more

Be aware of your bill at the end of your visit. I have been twice in the past month and both times drinks were either added on my tab or they didn't apply happy hour prices. The price on the menu for food also didn't match the receipt price. Double check your bill before paying! read more

Way too loud these days. More of a bar. then a restaurant lately. Food isn't as unique as it used to be either. Old El Rey used to have the best mushroom tacos. read more

The vibe of this place very very old school, cantina, chill, warm and friendly. When we sat down the table obviously looked like it was not cleaned because there were chips crumbs all over the table. Usually I don't complain about things like that because the waitress comes over shortly and cleans it up but not the one that served us. We were offered chips and salsa so we said "sure" and thought "why not?" Later to find out that we were charged roughly $3. Look I get it times are tough but to charge for chips and and salsa is lame. I ordered the steak enchiladas and my wife ordered farmer's Bowl or something (I forget). My enchiladas were simply ...ok. They were dry as dry could possibly be I mean you can see the image I posted and see how dry they were. The beans were also dry. The star of the dish was the rice. The rice was very deliciously. My wife's bowl was very bland looking. It needed some spruce like Pico de gallo or a offering of a special salsa on the side to keep it wet if she wanted. Would I go here again? Probably not but what might entice me to is the $25 all you can eat 2-4 pm on Saturday but that's not reason enough to be honest. read more

El Rey Cantina - Farmer's bowl - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

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Let's be honest , this place is beautiful! The decor !! Great location , but the service , friendliness, greeting is horrible . Either they are understaffed or all hiding in the kitchen . So we walk-in the restaurant and we stand there until the bartender actually took care of us , we ended ordering soda and fries from the bartender . Looked like she was the only employee in that place . We had originally came to have dinner with family but after waiting 1/2 hour for fries , my whole appetite went away . The waitress finally came and asked us a question , but the look on her face was rude , she was annoyed . No smile no hello . Terrible . I suggest they hire more workers and friendly like the bartender she is the only reason why I gave any stars at all . read more

El Rey Cantina - Menu - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

Sorry guys! This place has really gone downhill. We came in for lunch and margaritas. The drinks were fine but I'm sorry to say the service was lacking. Server was very nice but did the bare minimum. We had to ask for the most basic things. My husband ordered fajitas and she didn't bring him a plate. He spread the foil his tortillas came in and just used that. She saw that and still didn't pick up on the fact that he needed a plate. After asking for the chips, salsa, forks he was over asking for a plate. The food was not good. This place is not inexpensive so I would hope that they could up the quality and service. Getting our check was a whole different story. It took forever. Three servers just hanging with the regulars. It was a Tuesday at noon. It was pretty dead and it still took forever. read more

Great food and atmosphere. Very friendly service. We were just driving through town (on 101) and had a good time watching football and eating great Mexican food! read more

I'm really glad we decided to try this place after driving past it many times. Parking is easy in back, and they have a nice dog-friendly patio in front, where we ate. Everything was great; fajitas, salsa, apps, seafood- we tried a good selection and it was all tasty. They even brought out a dish of water and some carnitas for little Jack! Top spot. read more

El Rey Cantina - Dog friendly patio. - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

Went to see my friend play here Sunday. Service sucks, no chips and salsa. 8.50 for a fish taco.

Yummy! Always good when we visit family! We have never been disappointed. Can't wait till next time.

The service is great ! One of the best in Camarillo. I live around the corner and make it a mandatory spot to come to come on Wednesday nights, especially if Alyssa the bartender is working. She is great on making drinks and keeping a conversation. Highly recommended spot in Camarillo. read more

Went in one Friday night to check this place out... lady bartender was not that nice to my friends & I. Very snobby attitude. When asked if I can get tajin on my rim of my seltzer she looked at me like I had 2 heads... odd. Male bartender was just as snobby... hmmm read more

It was great to get back to a dine in experience. This is a great spot that opened up for dine in and we truly enjoyed. I had the breakfast burrito that had fries, bacon, eggs, steak, avocado, as well as a few other treats. My wife had their advocado toast which had a fried egg, tomato and avocado. The food was delicious and the service was even better. Hannah did a great job. She served with a smile and an great attitude to match. read more

El Rey Cantina - Mexican Near Me - Camarillo, California

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Brunch is a joke, order a coffee but all out of creamer & sugar, order the tres, leches pancakes , they ran out of syrup , ok you have a brunch menu you should have the basic necessities for brunch 12-22-2024 read more

I NEVER write reviews, but I couldn't stop thinking about how BAD my meal was here. I ordered the carne asada tacos, and I genuinely didn't know they could be this bad. The tortilla was hard and dry, and the meat was so rubbery I could barely bite through it. After just one bite, I couldn't continue--it was that gross. What's worse is the price they charge for something so poorly made; it feels almost insulting. I deeply regret not asking for a refund because no one should have to waste their hard-earned money on food like this. read more

Service is slow. Took 30 minutes to make 5 tacos. Had to call someone over as no one attended me. The music is horrendously loud. Can barley hear anyone. Got a headache after a while with the obsurdly loud music. Went to paint next door after eating, and el Rey ruined my painting experience!!!! I could barely hear the instructor with the loud bass that is vibrating EVERYTHING around me! Many complaints to the manager at el rey but they did not care. Terrible management and inconsiderate to the businesses around them. Great place if you're young & looking for a party bar. Terrible place to relax and grab a bite (maybe during lunchtime is ok but never after 4/5pm!) I feel bad for the customers who are disturbed every single day over at the painting place next door, even more so the workers!!! Having to deal with paintings falling off the wall every night, all because the manager does not want to turn down the music at the slightest. Very rude to turn the volume up super loud in the middle of a painting class, especially on a random Tuesday night when there are barely any people there and no sport games. Workers are nice but again, was very slow and I wish I could have heard them over the loud music. Food has gone downhill with new management also. & Everytime I go in there, the floor is ALWAYS sticky like they never clean it. One star for having OK food. Just OK. read more