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    El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant

    4.4 (177 reviews)
    ModerateMexican
    Closed • 11:00 am - 8:00 pm

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    El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant Photos

    EL SOMBRERO MEXICAN RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant

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    Chicken nachos

    This is a great find for delicious food! They offer fast and friendly service. The atmosphere is festive and inviting. In warmer months, there is a patio to enjoy dinner and drinks outside if that appeals to you! Authentic dishes and everything is made fresh to order. We enjoyed our nachos and will be back to try other options including fajitas and enchiladas.

    Antonio from El Sombrero
    Aric K.

    My wife and I have been coming to El Sombrero in Fox River Grove for 15 years, and it's truly one of our favorite places. The service has always been outstanding, and the food is consistently incredible. Today, my wife tried the fajitas for the first time and said they were by far the best she's ever had--better than anywhere else she's tried. El Sombrero is a quaint, family-run restaurant with a warm, welcoming atmosphere. They even have outdoor seating, which makes for a great dining experience on nice days. The background Mexican music adds to the charm, and the staff here go above and beyond every single time. Over the years, we've ordered just about everything on the menu, and it has always been perfection. The margaritas are authentic and refreshing, and the food is full of flavor and made with care. If you're looking for authentic Mexican food with phenomenal service and a cozy, family-friendly vibe, El Sombrero is the place. We're so grateful to have such a gem right here in Fox River Grove!

    Bistec a la Tampiquena
    Mark E.

    Really great hidden gem, with a lovely dining area and a cute outdoor patio. We showed up just before 8 on a Tuesday evening, and despite them not being very busy and closing at 9 the staff was EXTREMELY personable and attentive to us and we had a great meal! My girlfriend had the taco dinner, and I had the tampiquena, both were cooked and prepared perfectly. The margarita pitcher was good too and not simply about the alcohol. We both agreed we'd come back again soon. Definitely recommend El Sombrero!

    Dining area

    Second attempt to find a local Mexican restaurant and this was a hit! Clean, lots of parking and food was great. We didn't have any drinks but they have a little bar too.

    Reasonable price
    Amanda G.

    Wanted to buy a gift card for a birthday gift. So thought what better time to try it. So we ordered a burrito and a pork taco. We were greats and advised to pick where we wanted to sit. They came to the table with chips and salsa and took the drink order. Order it burritos out I swear it seem like five minutes only it was like the fastest restaurant ever been in. For sharing. We ordered steak this time and it had a good flavor. The taco was delicious I actually liked it. Definitely will be back. Oh the chips were perfect and the salsa was just right not too hot but with heat. Staff was super nice and attentive

    W John K.

    Our back up when our other spot is closed. We enjoy great authentic Mexican cuisine. Made reservations for 5:30 PM seating for 5. Showed up early and we're greated and seated immediately. Nachos with various salsa's heat levels. Fondito & Guacamole. Everyone ordered Horchatas except Moi...Went with a margarita. Service was attentive and timely. View our choices via photo's. We're definitely patrons! Mangia & Cheers!

    Nachos and Taco Salad

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    11 months ago

    Food was excellent and the servers are just wonderful. They are attentive and really on their game

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    2 years ago

    Amazing! Friendly service. Incredible authentic FRESH Mexican food. Very reasonable prices. Strong, strong recommend.

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    2 years ago

    Food was wonderful, service was very attentive. Have been back several times and all is consistent.

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    2 years ago

    Great food. A little slow with service but other than that was okay. Can't emphasize more great food

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    4 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Great place! Friendly and excellent food. We haven't had a bad meal yet. Combo #4 and tostadas are our favorites.

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    2 years ago

    Attentive service, generous portions, friendly staff, great food. Nice selection of beer as well.

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    8 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Outstanding service and great authentic Mexican cuisine. Don't let the location fool you! A hidden gem for sure.

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    Page 1 of 5

    Ask the Community - El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant

    Are there plans to reopen any time soon?

    I've heard that they posted on Facebook that they will be re-opening soon. You might try checking there. JE

    Does El Sombrero have a catering menu?

    Yes. We order catering all the time!!

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    4.5(238 reviews)
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    We're originally from Arizona so our bar for Mexican is ridiculously high. We've had a lot of…read moretrouble finding comparable food out here. We finally stumbled on No Manches and we can say without reservation that they have the best Mexican food we've had in the 20+ years we've lived here. The Tri Color Burrito is my absolute favorite and I recently commented to a friend that its made my "if I could only have one food on a deserted island for the rest of my life" list. Its that good. The margaritas are excellent as well. In terms of negatives, the prices are high and the music can be very loud if you want to have group conversations. Our server even got our order wrong the last time we were there because she couldn't hear us! That said, any cons are definitely outweighed by the pros. Everyone we've taken there has been thoroughly impressed.

    It's been 2 years since I've reviewed so time for an update!…read more As usual this place is packed! I've come at 5 on a weekday and 6 on a weekend. Packed! I always make a reservation and I recommend doing that. Service is always great and quick. Chips and salsa are delicious. My new favorite tacos are both of the shrimp tacos. All of the food is delicious. Same with the margaritas. The only downside of our last visit was that they cleared my plate when I was t done with my rice and beans (on a separate plate) and they took my fork. But other than that, this place is one of my favorites.

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    El Vado #2 Mexican restaurant

    4.4(59 reviews)
    5.9 mi

    Look no farther for a place to celebrate cinco de mayo! The tastiest horchata , most delicious…read morechicken tacos , perfectly fried chips with a fresh salsa , extra sauces , and the best guacamole! You get alot of bang for your buck here with prompt and friendly service . Smells so good when you walk in and nice clean and comfy booths .

    Date of visit: 4-7-2026 - early evening…read more I've never been there before. I usually go to other Mexican food restaurants in the area. The place was clean and roomy. I took a booth and was given an extensive menu. The server offered chips and salsa. I was brought a small basket with about 10-12 large chips and a small shallow dish of watery commercial grade salsa in the basket with a tablespoon in it. Not having been given any additional plate, I guess I was expected to spoon the salsa onto the chips over the basket, because the dish was too shallow to dip a chip into other than the very tip of each chip. I ordered what I usually order at most Mexican food joints - taco dinner al pastor with onions and cilantro no cheese on anything including the beans. Service was prompt. The beans had cheese on them which I returned, and a dish came back without cheese, except when I took my first fork full, there was a strand of cheese left. The cook had just lifted the cheese off the original dish instead of replating the beans. The rice was formed into a perfect half moon shape on the quite large square plate. That is usually a signal to me that the restaurant is into portion control, as the aesthetics as can be seen from the photo attached make the rice look like a small amount. There was little flavor in the rice but something I did not expect - a slight fish flavor in the rice. Every fork full (only a fork and napkin provided - I guess the spoon from the salsa can be used as double duty) tasted like fish. That was a big minus. Either they use a fish base as part of the rice cooking process, or the cook used the pot for fish and didn't wash the pot prior to cooking rice in it. Or he was using a spoon that he was using for fish as well. Either way, I don't find fish flavored rice appealing. The beans were not puree and also contained whole beans, but were bland. I ordered the tacos with corn tortillas because I like the tortillas a little crispy, but these were somewhat soft. The al pastor meat has plenty of sauce and was minced. The meat sauce was very average in flavor, hardly any spice. Maybe the meat needed salt, but it sure needed something. There were two squirt tubes for sauce on the table, one green and one red. I tried the green sauce, it was too creamy, wasn't spicy and didn't do anything for the tacos. I finally used the remainder of the red salsa from the chips. I was given a few tiny wedges of lime (probably sliced also for the bar drinks) for three tacos, another indication of portion control over focus. I took a photo of this meal, not for reviews, but to show my girlfriend who was out of town what I was eating since she hadn't been here either. So I looked at the photo before leaving, and I then noticed that there were NO onions on the tacos despite asking for onions and cilantro. The kitchen wasn't slammed, so I just chalked it off to further inattentiveness by the cook despite the server's instructions. That may have added to the lack of flavor of the tacos, but it was really the al pastor sauce and seasoning that didn't cut it. All in all, I was disappointed in the meal. I didn't go to my regular place just to give this place a try. It seems the ball was dropped at every turn for this very simple staple meal at a Mexican restaurant. I would give this place a 4 out of 10 for the reasons given above. I wouldn't go again. The food was not terrible, but lacking in flavor, and the cook was obviously not into what he was doing. There are other places close by where the food is superior to theirs.

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    Cuco's Burrito Express

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    4.1(136 reviews)
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    Cucos is classic. Been going my whole life and they have since updated the interior a lot but still…read morea gas place to get some tacos or burritos.

    Cocos Burritos: We had a very unfortunate situation tonight at Cucos in Cary. We have been…read moreenjoying their food regularly for the past 10 years with no issues. Tonight our takeout order included a wire from a wire grill brush my daughter found while chewing her steak tacos. After considering what to do, I decided to go there to show them the wire and make sure they know that wire brushes aren't recommended anymore and a grill needs to be wiped down thoroughly after use. When I went there, they admitted they do use wire brushes, but not on the grill and they had no idea how I got in there. In fact, it felt as though there were suggesting the story wasn't true. I asked if they had a grill brush that used bristles similar to one I was holding in my fingers and they said they did, but they don't see how we could've ended up in the food. At which point they asked which food it was in and they offered to remake it. I let them know that our meal was complete and didn't want the food remade they. They said, thank you, and I'll let the manager know, who was not present. I sat there for a second considering the fact that after eating there hundreds of times over the last 10 years, I didn't even get an apology and they don't seem concerned in the least. At which point I said, can I at least get a refund? She made a face like it was an unreasonable request, and reluctantly went to the cash register. At which point I told her to forget it. I pointed out after 10 years... I didn't even get an apology and they really didn't seem very concerned. I rejected the refund and told them they can read about it on the Internet tomorrow.

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    El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant - mexican - Updated September 2026

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