We went and ate dinner here yesterday. I ordered shrimp fajitas and my wife got a chicken stuffed pepper and my daughter got chicken quesadilla. My shrimp fajitas came out lukewarm. First time I ordered this anywhere and it came out Not sizzling. The chicken in my wife's and daughters dish tasted really bad. I'd say disgusting. read more

Great food and service, worth checking out. Not to mention they have the best night life in town and are very involved in the community.

Stopped in for a late lunch with friends. The place is huge. Comfy booth next to the bar. I'm from San Diego where good Mexican food is plentiful so I rarely get excited about it but my shredded beef taco and enchilada were fantastic! Guacamole and pico were fresh and delicious. I had a long wait to get my drink refilled but the waitress was pleasant. I almost wish I'd find myself traveling through Shelton again. read more

Stopped here for lunch since I had training in the area and felt like a taco salad. It took a few minutes for anyone to even greet me when I walked in and then I was ushered to a booth without any pleasantries by a gal. I then sat in silence for about 4 minutes before she came back and gave me a glass of water and chips and salsa. The salsa was about as flavorless and watery as it gets. Meh. A few minutes later the same gal comes back and takes my order and then says, " and you will just have water?". Um, no, actually I would like a pop. My food arrived pretty quickly but it looked like it came from the taco bell down the road. It was very small and had about a teaspoon of cheese on the whole thing. The shell tasted stale and the lettuce was all white iceburg lettuce. And it had a dollop of sour cream and guacamole. Hardly any. The salad was not cheap either. I seriously could have got a bigger and better taco salad at taco bell. The waitress never came back to refill my pop or check on me. I had to ask someone else walking by for the check. First time in a LONG time that I have not left anything for a tip. I would NOT return to this restaurant. read more

Eh. It's ok for Shelton I guess! Definitely not the best Mexican food I've ever had but beggars can't be choosers. It also happens to be one of the few restaurants in Shelton that can accommodate a large group in their back room which was good since we had almost 20 people. But canned mushrooms & overcooked seafood was not my idea of a great meal. Prob won't be back but my husband did enjoy his very strong Long Island iced tea! read more

El Sarape serves the type of Mexican food you'll never remember. It's not bad, but there is nothing redeeming or great about it. I had a Carne Asada burrito, and while edible, nothing I would pay for again. My family's sentiments were, "We're full, but wouldn't go there again". There are at least 4 other places in the area to get Mexican food and I recommend all of those over El Sarape. It really bums me out this place isn't good as it's close to home. Any Mexican restaurant that falls short with my whole family needs immediate attention. Usually at least one of them will feel something was great, not the case this time. Hasta La Vista El Sarape! read more

CANTINA Best happy hour in town, and its not even close..... 1/2 price appetizers $1 off drafts (prices good without already) 3-6 EVERY DAY Not to mention an up to date, huge, classy bar. Pool tables by the hour even. If you have not been, it is time! table in Shelton? YUP read more

Good food friendly service! Consistently good and takeout is convenient, usually less then 10 minutes. read more

El Sarape 3 - Enchalada, taco plate - Mexican Near Me - Shelton, Washington

i went there last night for my birthday and the chips were stale the food was nasty and the server was coughing and no mask i will not go back again stay away from that place. they also need to upgrade the inside looks bad read more

They have changed the menu . Chilkia was out server he was friendly and prompt. Food was good. Just a bit over priced.

The waitress short changed me and didn't give me a receipt. I called the management. Let's just say, very poor customer service! He did absolutely nothing about it. read more

Great local Mexican food in a wonderful small town! The staff was great, the food was yummy. We enjoyed our time :)

A solid 3-star place. Nothing too amazing and nothing terrible either. I'm no Mexican food connoisseur, but I find the enchiladas and nachos very palatable. Haven't tried much else, honestly. As far as complaints go: There's not much of a vegan menu and the waitstaff isn't very friendly. read more

We had planned on going to Xinhs Clams & Oyster House but the timing was off and they weren't open yet. We were hungry, driving through Shelton and needed something to eat. This was in walking distance from where we parked, and we both like Mexican food. Place was almost empty, 1 couple and a family of 4. We were seated right away. Torn seats, worn carpet, dusty sombreros and pictures on the wall. Pretty typical. I ordered Nachos and a margarita, Howeird ordered a burrito. My Nachos were unpalatable. The meat was bad, the cheese was oily muck, I just couldn't eat it. I tried to wash the first bite down with the margarita and I almost choked. The margarita had that bottled mix that is too sickly sweet. I ended up eating just the chips and salsa and we were out of there in 30 minutes. Only thing the waiter ever said to us was, "Order now?". I like margaritas and I like nachos. I have been to many Mexican restaurants that were divey-hole-in-the wall places but they could at least serve you a plate of nachos and a margarita on the rocks (with salt by the way, which they did not do). I never thought you could screw that up. This place proved me wrong. read more

Let me preface this review by telling you that I was born in Mexico City and grew up with homemade Mexican food. I've also traveled to and eaten in a number of locations in northern, central, and southern Mexico. I've been living in South Texas (Galveston, Corpus Christi, San Antonio) since 1993, and have been bouncing around Central and South Texas since 1987. Finally, my ex-wife and her family are Mexican American, so I got a heaping helping of deliciousness there too. Now, onto my review: Facility Could use a good cleaning. Not awful, but they need to take a little time to dust, clean, and replace old stuff. Service We were greeted by a nice girl of about 12 years, who promptly seated us. The waitress; however, took about ten minutes to come by and take our order. She was nice though. Food - The chips were bagged, but pretty good as bagged chips go. - The salsa was very good. My mother used to make a simple salsa almost exactly like this that I loved. Hers was made with canned tomato sauce, lots of oregano, chiles, and a couple of other things. - The guacamole was perfect. - The drinks (one of my favorite food groups) were decent. The whisky on the rocks I ordered was VERY generous. The margaritas were acceptable. - I ordered a chimichanga, which I hadn't had for some time. A chimichanga, for those who don't know, is essentially a deep-fried burrito filled with whatever the maker wants to stuff it with. I thought I'd try their seafood chimichanga. It was not deep fried. It was just a burrito made with a non-handmade tortilla and covered with canned red sauce. The seafood filling was so-so. The whole thing was on the low end of "meh." - The beans were good. I'm guessing reconstituted dehydrated beans, which area MUCH better than canned. - The rice was fair. - I also ordered a chile relleno. A chile relleno is a green chile stuffed with cheese or meat that is coated with a light, whipped egg white batter and deep fried. It's typically covered with a tomato sauce. The one I had at El Sarape was made using a canned green chile. Canned chiles are often fine, but better with a fresh roasted and peeled poblano. Anyway...they didn't use a batter, they simply wrapped it in egg. So, it was more of an omelet stuffed with a chile that is filled with cheese. The relleno was then topped with a canned "con carne" (or meat) sauce. It wasn't too pleasing. I use canned green chiles in omelets, but this wasn't even good from that perspective. Meh. - We finished with flan for desert. Flan is a custard dessert that is typically served with a caramel sauce. They used canned flan and covered it with chocolate sauce. Double meh. I suppose if you've never had Mexican food more complex than Taco Bell, El Sarape might be acceptable to many, but if you're looking for something authentic, or a spin on something authentic, look elsewhere. read more

The other night, I figured I would save the wife the trouble of cooking and treat everyone in the family to dinner at a Mexican style restaurant. I can remember eating at El Sarape with my dad as a boy and thought that would be a good idea. The place looked pretty busy and the decor was really inviting. However... I ordered a three item combination consisting of a enchilada, taco, and tamale. I asked for beef in all three, however, when our order came, it had chicken in everything. Very disappointing... read more

This El Sarape is outstanding.... I've been to Olympia, Lacey and Tumwaters restaurants and NONE come close to the atmosphere as well as the food and service. The Cantina is the best place to be if you enjoy pool, impeccable service. Toni the best Bartender... attentive and loves people. They have happy hour & I won't be happy at any other El Sarapes after visiting Sheltons best! read more

El Sarape 3 - Mexican Near Me - Shelton, Washington

See all

We often come to the Shelton area for weekend getaways so we thought we'd try this place. It doesn't look like much from the outside, and it doesn't look much better inside either. However, the food is good quality and the service was exceptional. It's a little spendier than what you'd expect to pay at a small-town Mexican joint. But you get what you pay for. I ordered carne asada and got a HUGE plate of grilled steak & onions, guacamole, pico de gallo, mixed veggies (not just the iceberg lettuce and beefsteak tomatoes most Mexican places will pawn off on you), rice and beans, with 3 hot tortillas on the side. Won't come back everytime we're in town (the prices don't allow for that), but definitely will return once in awhile. read more

I really like the food at the Railroad Ave. location; it's simple but delicious. The prices are fairly cheap, but the portions are still a good size. I've had a decent margarita there, and the enchiladas senora is a delicious lunch. The service is a little inconsistent. What I mean is sometimes it's really great, friendly and prompt. Other times it's been a little slow and sometimes the wait staff seems distracted by other things. There is a lounge and also an area in the restaurant for larger groups; I like that there is usually no wait for a table. Customers have also come in while I was there and ordered meals to go. I haven't tried this myself, but it would be a nice service. The restaurant is always clean. It's light on the decorations and atmosphere, but still nice. The service inconsistency aside, I think it's a good place to go for lunch, and I'm sure I'll go back. read more

If I could give no stars I would. This place is a joke when it comes to customer service, it's rare they get your order right, when theyre tired of hearing about how they keep getting your order wrong they yell at you, then Out of the blue you can't order anything for delivery unless you want to spend whatever amount they decide That day. One day it was $45 the next it was $40, the food is good, but the rest is shit read more

El Sarape is a chain through out the South Puget Sound region. They are all good authentic Mexican food. I should know I'm Mexican and grew up on this. The chicken mole is fantastic. Everything from a salad to mole to enchiladas hit the spot when your looking for good Mexican food. Always great service. Casual dress. If you're looking for good Mexican food in the South Sound, any one of the El Sarape's have not disappointed me yet. read more

Tried for the first time and was pleasantly surprised! I had a taco, burrito, enchilada dinner combo with chicken and my girlfriend had the asada burrito. Second best Mexican in town and worth a visit. We will be back for more delicious food! read more

2nd time trying their food. Hoping it was just bad luck the 1st time but wont again go here.. I got sick again( throwing up) and my husband and son got bad stomach aches. I wont recommend this place.. 1st time had street tacos got sick. 2nd time had chicken fajitias and still got sick. read more

Really disappointed in today's experience here. Only giving two starts and not one because some of the customer service was. The website menu lists several vegan meals which was a large factor in why this restaurant was chosen to try for takeout to celebrate my dad's birthday. When I called to order the women didnt know what I was talking about when I asked for vegan rice and beans and had to go check. She confirmed they had it so I ordered 1. 3 regular cheese enchiladas with vegan rice and beans 2.nachos 3. Taco salad and 4. A regular combo plate. I arrive and a server greets me and asks me if I was there to pickup take out and I confirmed. He went back and wasnt seen for at least 10 minutes. No one said anything or acknowledged me and I was pretty sure they were getting it but I didn't know and was starting to wonder. After staring at them for however long I finally got eye contact with another server who acknowledged me and said they were still making the food. They bring out the food about 5 minutes later and hand it to me then charge me. I asked to confirm that the rice and beans with the cheese enchiladas were vegan and this server grabbed another to speak to me and informed me she was incorrect and they do not have vegan rice and beans so they proceeded to use regular. I confirmed what was my understanding that they do use lard in their rice and beans and then said I would need it remade as this is for a vegetarian. She says ok as long as I can wait like 10 more minutes I say sure and she let's me know it wont cost any additional money... That had not even crossed my mind that I would have and in fact asked to confirm that since I am now just getting 3 cheese enchiladas without rice and beans and paid for a combo that it would be the same price so she offered to put black beans and sour cream on the side which I accept and was happy about. They "let me keep" the incorrect order and I think ok cool well someone can just have this later so it kinda reduces my frustration. She brings it out and is really nice. I unfortunately didnt check the order thinking since this was already a mixup they would get it correct. I get to the party where; the first 3 dishes are plain cold; the "corrected" meal was still not correct and included rice made with lard!! Additionally they did not add sour cream. This person could not eat the meal now and to top it all off there was no "incorrect meal" at all. They had not even included the hypothetical enchiladas with regular rice and beans despite knowing it was supposed to be vegan and not bothering to mention it at check out. I havent checked my receipt so I dont know if I was charged for it or not but at this point I dont even want to know. read more

Been here 3 times and each time got a little worse service/quality. Tv and music never work. When we got a free coupon thing for a fried icecream he pulled some fossil out from a deep crevasse of the freezer. Took 1 bite and it was awful. He knew it looked terrible and was bad old quality , but it was free ,so he didnt care. I questioned him about shouldnt it be warm on the outside its suppose to have been fried? He assured me no its cold icecream... and laughed. Right after he ran into the back, said something in Spanish then him and someone else laughed. Thats the service youll get there. Other locations are better. read more

Tried them again. They left the beans out of my burrito and the food was COLD. Only takes 5 minutes to get home so if the food was ever hot it should still be warm. That was their last chance. read more

The most sad, disgusting, alleged street tacos we've ever seen. The gray, fatty, wet mystery meat, which in no way resembled chopped carne asada, looked as though it was left-over meat scraps that had been stored in a tub of water for a few weeks and then scooped (water and all) onto the saddest corn tortillas I've ever laid eyes on. It was so bad that even my husband, who literally eats anything, looked at me and said "you gonna eat that?... me either". We paid for our beer and promptly left. Save yourself the potential gastro-disaster and steer clear of this health hazard disguised as a Mexican restaurant. read more

First let me say the parking lot was full of transients, and the journey from lot to table was sketchy at best . My husband and I ordered the tortilla soup, which we promptly returned because it literally had the flavor and consistency of water with floating tomatoes and onions. As we waited for the ceviche and the enchiladas rancheras, which by the way, was essentially the only redeeming quality of the entire experience, we sat in fluent Spanish-speaking amusement as we listened to the chefs complaining about us (in Spanish of course) because we returned la sopa sin sabor (the soup with no flavor). The ceviche might be the only reason I ever return. read more

Great food! Staff are friendly and prompt most of the time. Have had a few incorrect food orders received; but all in all a good place to eat. read more

Best happy hour ever. One Margarita is plenty!! Free chips and salsa galore... half price Mexican pizza. All other appetizers half price also. Thank you for a great night! Hey read more

This review is strictly for the cantina. We went in this past Tuesday around 6pm. It was my first time in so I was pleasantly surprised at the vibe it gave off for this little town. Place was hopping. We went up to the bar and sat...and sat...and sat. There were 3 bartenders behind and not one even looked our way. I waited 20 minutes for a drink and I'm not even exaggerating lol. Check the tapes haha. Finally got drinks. We wanted food...waiting another 15 min for anyone to even glance our way. Finally get everything settled with the food...asked for water 4x.....asked for more drinks multiple times and out of the 4 hours we were there only received 2 sangrias. Tired of waiting so I just stopped asking. At this point it wasn't even busy anymore. What blows my mind is this business could make a lot more money if they just hire more attentive and customer orientated staff. It's not that we had to wait forever between drinks or food...its the fact nobody even looked at us or acknowledged us. Definitely need some coaching on how to make guests feel welcome. read more

We were hoping for some good mexican food but this place was awful. Honestly, I do not recommend coming here. We got the street tacos and they were so bad we couldn't finish them. The chips were super hard, almost burnt. The salsa was very thick, almost like paste. We will never be back. read more

This place is getting better, service from the bar is still poor at best. Its a good atmosphere, but the service could improve.

Fun place. I love the round fireplace and they even have hand shuffle board! The drinks were good and the stuffed jalapeños with bacon were very yummy. A good place to go for happy hour. read more

Great food every time I went in with my Mexican co workers. But every time I've gone in with a white person I get the worst food and service! Wtf? Last time I went in with my grandpa we both got a macho burrito with no meat which it was supposed to come with and so much salt on top I was able to scoop at least 3 spoon fills of pure salt. So we both tried to tell our waiter and she just snickered at us and walked off two times. So we just both left without paying. And a week prior I was there with my Mexican coworkers and had an amazing meal with great service! Great food if you are brown skin I guess. read more

Any time I see a well crafted response to a less than wonderful Yelp review, I know that there is someone paying attention to details. In the long run, a good restaurant is a place where someone is paying attention to details. So, you get another star from me! read more

Food was fast, fresh, and tasty! We had the enchiladas rancheras and the combo plate. Drinks were great too :) We rolled into Shelton just after 7, and restaurants that were still open were in short supply. Other than a lackluster tamale, no complaints here! read more

My review is on the staff in the cantina. I have been here a couple of times now after work and each time it's been extremely slow service. The last time we were there (on June 10, 2016) 3 of us ordered drinks which consisted of 2 beers and a well drink. When the waitress brought the drinks over she told me mine was coming soon then took food orders...from only two of us. I was excluded and she walked off. I was holding the menu in my hands waiting to order and she still walked off. When I finally got her attention I was able to order food but still had no drink. My husband went and reminded the bartender that I had a drink coming and was told it would be brought out. 20 minutes later, still no drink but food arrived. I flagged down my waitress told her I was still waiting and was then asked "oh, who did you order a drink from?" When I told her it was from her when I was seated she went and told the bartender who then argued out loud in front of everyone that she hadn't received the order and that it wasn't her fault. SO UNPROFESSIONAL!! I finally received my one drink after 30 min of waiting. We ended up just eating and leaving even though we had a large group that planned on staying out. This is the second time we have left the establishment due to poor service. Again, so much potential but the staff was horrible. 9/13/16 update: Well, my husband and I went back last Friday hoping things had turned around since the summer was coming to an end. NOOOOPE! We got in there and had no greeting which I can live without then sat at a booth. We sat there...and sat...and sat...and my husband attempted to wave down both the bar tender and a waitress. The waitress smiled at us and walked off. Seriously. So, after 20 minutes we headed out and have vowed never to return. Holy crap guys. It's not rocket science, it's just customer service. read more

Went out to dinner with the family and decided to try this place. We have eaten at the el sarape across town a few times and its always been good. We were greeted by a not so friendly waiter who gave us only water until we asked for soda. We got an appetizer sampler and it was so so but unfortunately it was the best of the food we were served. My daughter ordered a meal with steak As did I and the meat was tough, overcooked and just seemed like it was old meat. My son ordered a meal that included steak and shrimp and he couldn't even eat the shrimp because it tasted awful. I ordered fajitas with steak and I got a sizzling platter of old tasting onions and peppers and dried out steak chunks. Served with oily unfresh refried beans and flour tortillas that looked and tasted like walmarts great value brand and I won't eat here again. Honestly I'm surprised that none of us got sick. The decor is tacky, plaid carpeted floors and an overall feeling that everything is dirty and needs a good cleaning. We won't be back. Yuck. read more

Food was good. Server was too busy dancing to actually deliver the drinks we ordered--had to just order again at the bar. "Live Music" was absolutely excruciating. Dude yelled into a mic for HOURS. Pretty unenjoyable atmosphere, but as I said, food was good. read more