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    El Rodeo

    3.9 (106 reviews)
    InexpensiveMexican
    Closed 11:00 am - 10:00 pm

    Order El Rodeo Takeout or Delivery

    El Rodeo Photos

    EL RODEO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Happy hour specials
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - El Rodeo

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    Monica B.

    We love El Rodeo! We love it so much we drive out of the way to get here. The food, staff, and vibe are all worth it!

    Rob C.

    Food was good. I got three different tacos with meat. The margarita was tasty and chips and salsa were also good. Service was vast and easy.

    Cynthia R.

    Went for cinco de Mayo, so naturally it was slammed packed. Seemed they only had 2 waiters in the whole place, but we all know hood help is hard to find. They were doing their best. I got the birria tacos, they were very good but not the best I've ever had. But I would go back and try some other items.

    Hairy Salsa
    Nicholas F.

    In town for business and this place looked like it had good reviews. Walking in to pick up a take out, they were busy and also seemed very disorganized. I let one person know I was there for a pickup and they told me to wait in "line", which was anyone's guess as to where the line was. They also didn't ask for a name or any way to identify as to when my food was up. After I went back to find out about my food, turns out it had been sitting waiting for a few minutes. Half way through my first taco, I discovered the meat was still raw. Second taco had a lovely hair in it. By the time I got to the third, the shell was almost falling apart because it was so soggy. At least I still had my chips and salsa right? That was until my second dip in the salsa to find, yes, ANOTHER HAIR?!? This place is DISGUSTING!

    a menu for a mexican restaurant
    Joshua W.

    After visiting Artspace in downtown Raleigh, I wanted to grab some food before the Carolina Hurricanes played. Right next door is El Rodeo which is a Mexican restaurant. I've heard of this place and I always wanted to try it, so I made today that day. El Rodeo is a great spot if you wanna take someone out for good tacos and drinks, it's amazing for groups and even if you're alone and just wanna vibe, they have a bar as well. We were seated immediately after walking in and I knew what I wanted so I didn't waste time. I ordered the Texas ACP (Arroz Con Pollo) ($15.25). It comes with grilled chicken, steak strips, shrimp, onions, bell peppers and tomato over rice covered with cheese sauce. It's said to be served with flour tortillas on the menu, but I didn't get any when my dish was brought out. I wasn't concerned because I didn't want tortillas. I also had a 16 oz lime margarita pitcher ($8.25) as well. The margarita is smooth. One of the best margaritas I've had. It's not strong but you can also tell that there is alcohol in this drink. This one drink is enough for one or two people and it does the job. The Texas ACP is delightful. Very pleasant to the taste. The portion size of this entree is enough to fill you up and still have some to take to go. The ratio of meat to rice was in favor of the meat. So much chicken and steak strips with nice size shrimp covered the rice to the point that the rice looked nonexistent. Once you mix and stir to the meat in with the rice you can see the cheese, rice and vegetables too. The dish was very hot and flavorful. Everything cooked just right. The steak strips were tender, the chicken and shrimp was seasoned just right and the rice was just cooked. Nothing left over. I really enjoyed the Texas ACP a lot and the margarita. Id always go back for that and to try other things as well.

    Chicken Rolls and Fajita Tacos. I will go for Chicken Roll appetizer.
    Breee T.

    Beats any appetizer!!! Chicken rolls. Service is quick and food came out fresh and tasting amazing . This is now one of the reasons to come to downtown Raleigh. Well Done!!! We also ordered Fajita Taco which was also good. Will cone next time we are in downtown.

    QuesaBirria Tacos
    Samantha S.

    Wonderful service here! They do have a large menu with lots of options to choose from. I ordered their birria tacos, I thought they were okay a tad oily and not the right consistency. However, the fajitas and the quesadilla were great! Ordered their large house margarita and it was good and strong! Located downtown.

    El Rodeo in downtown Raleigh NC
    Bruce K.

    Arrived for a late lunch and the restaurant was a little busy. Still good service. I was greeted with the menu and the usual chips/salsa. Salsa is served in a small carafe which is nice. Less waste and easier to refresh. Chips were firm and did not break when scooping. A good plus. For lunch, I chose a chicken dish (can't remember the name) that is topped with chorizo and queso. Delicious, served with rice and beans that I ignored as my keto diet suggests. A good portion and very flavorful. I enjoyed my lunch at El Rodeo. I'd return! [Review 12488 overall, 2277 of 2019.]

    Natika G.

    Great spot! It's located downtown Raleigh so be prepared to pay for parking. The food is very good...you get a lot of food! Prices are very reasonable! The restaurant is clean and the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful.

    Enchiladas Blancas
    Maddi S.

    I've been here for lunch twice now and I love this place. It's a great spot if you want inexpensive Mexican food that's quick and delicious. Unsure about takeout, but when you dine-in you get chips and salsa for the table that they'll keep refilling. The salsa is the delicious and the chips and usually warm. I've gotten enchiladas both times but my boyfriend got their new queso birria tacos the more recent visit, which I tried. It was the first time we'd ever had those so we don't have anything to compare them to, but they tasted good with a nice portion of shredded beef. The enchiladas blancas with beef are delicious as well if you like queso, which is the sauce on top. The only thing I don't like about this place is that the meals come with rice OR beans -- I'd much prefer half and half! But luckily you can just get a side of beans/rice so it's not too big of a deal. The service is good and I always leave here stuffed!

    Shrimp Quesadilla- lunch menu
    Kathy G.

    Stopped in for lunch. This location is always busy for lunch. We were quickly seated, chips and salsa followed. They have a big lunch selection which is great. I decided to try the shrimp quesadilla from the lunch menu and ordered beans on the side. Considering it was busy, the food came out quick. The shrimp was lacking flavor, the rice was hard and the beans were my favorite- they topped the beans with cheese. The food was ok, filling and good price for downtown Raleigh lunch. The staff were attentive which was great.

    Smokin hot veggie fajitas
    Robbie C.

    I love that they have lots of veggie options. I went with the veggie fajita, minus the beans. They happily offered rice instead. The fajitas came out sizzling and smoking, and was a huge portion of broccoli, zucchini, onions and peppers in a very tasty marinade. With lettuce, tomato and rice, I couldn't finish it all. Server came back to make sure we had everything we needed. Prices very reasonable.

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    3 years ago

    My favorite mexican place!! The prices are very reasonable and the staff is super nice. Highly recommend.

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    2 years ago

    Excellent food and easily most affordable downtown Raleigh. Free chips and salsa and generous sized meal everytime. Totally worth it!

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    3 years ago

    Food is always delicious and delicate a pleasure to have at every visit. We also get quick and fast service. Always a treat to eat here

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    4 years ago

    Vegetarian options are tasty as well as the margaritas! Perfect lunch spot would highly recommend

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    Carajillo's Mexican Kitchen - Tres leches

    Carajillo's Mexican Kitchen

    4.3(142 reviews)
    3.9 mi
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    Nice place plenty of parking…read more Very friendly and attentive server- Chips, salsa and queso fresh and delicious. We got the fajitas for two and have leftovers for tomorrow. Meat was cut super thin- worked well to put in the tacos. Plenty of seating, well lit and not too noisy.

    I don't usually leave reviews, but this was an all-around frustrating experience from start to…read morefinish. Right off the bat, we asked for a highchair and were told it would be brought over. It never came. After waiting, we had to flag down a server walking by, who eventually brought one--only for it to be broken. It then took another 10 minutes before we finally got a functional highchair. Throughout the visit, the staff seemed far more interested in talking amongst themselves than actually paying attention to guests. The overall atmosphere felt disorganized, inattentive, and unprofessional. The worst part came after we left. I realized almost immediately that I had left my wallet behind and called right away. Instead of any sense of urgency or willingness to help, the host who answered was incredibly rude and dismissive. Before I could fully explain the situation, she cut me off and told me to "call back tomorrow." When I tried to quickly describe the wallet--color, contents, anything that might help--she hung up on me mid-sentence. Considering I called almost immediately after leaving and was brushed off so quickly, it raises serious concerns about whether any real effort was made to locate it. I would hope any establishment would take something like that seriously. Between the lack of attention, the disorganization, and the way a simple, time-sensitive situation was handled, this place clearly has serious issues with customer service. I won't be back.

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    4.2(69 reviews)
    6.9 mi

    Food: 4 Service: 4.5…read moreAmbiance: 5 Date/Time: 5/15/2026 7pm Order: ACP, Pollo Tropical, No Manches 'Rita, Ojitos Lindos 'Rita Crowd: 1/3 full I think this place has gone through a couple of mgmt/name changes since first going there, but the place looks the same inside and the food is just as good but seems to be more variety. The service was very good with what seemed to be a newer server. She checked in quite often until it was time to bring the check. Had to ask her for that after about a 10 minute wait after she cleaned off the table. Outside of that, very friendly and attentive. The ACP had very thin slices of chicken which was nice, but not as much cheese as you typically see in other restaurants. According to the server, you do have to ask for some flour tortillas on the side if you want them as they don't come by default. The Pollo Tropical had a nice thin layer of chicken breast covered in cheese.... tasty. The margaritas were good and have a smear of taijin on one side of the rim which gives the drink a little spice. Prices are in line with other restaurants in the area. Definitely would recommend it.

    Came out to dinner with friends and it was wonderful. Not very busy since it is a Wednesday. They…read morehave a $10 mezcal deal, so I got a mezcal margarita and it was delicious. We also got the guacamole, which was yummy and made table side. Then I ordered a quesadilla fajita. Typically quesadilla fajitas have melted cheese in line but this one didn't. Our waitress was amazing! She was sweet and attentive. I'll definitely go back but will likely order the burrito which I've found to be delicious.

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    El Rodeo - mexican - Updated September 2026

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