Well ok... I really try to avoid bad reviews cause I know livelihoods are involved. I want to love this place cause we need a GREAT Mexican place here BUT alas... I've had several to go orders from here and below not good status. I would encourage them to improve on freshness and quality and I wish them the best. It's not disgusting, so I'll continue to occasionally try in the hopes that they become excellent. read more

Looks like Yelp reviews have failed me again! This place was pretty terrible. Old, weird decor and not very clean in general. Almost turned around and walked back out, but we drove a while to get there and were hoping the food was better than the atmosphere. Restaurant wasn't very busy, yet the service was incredibly slow. My vegetarian enchiladas were super dry tortillas with a tiny bit of cheese in them and an even tinier amount of red sauce on them. Beans and rice were completely flavorless. Boyfriend's burrito came with tomatoes when he ordered it without. When brought to her attention, the server insisted there were no tomatoes in it because she wrote that on the order, when there were tomatoes clearly sticking out of the burrito! She did apologize for it later. There were 3 little kids screaming and running all around the restaurant, repeatedly bumping into the back of our booth, while the parents and servers just ignored them. Took forever to get drink refills and the check. Was looking for a good, sit-down Mexican meal and left disappointed. Definitely won't be back. read more

The food is Super authentic!!!! born and raised Mexican American from California, and living in Florida for over ten years this food is just like back home. The chips are the best and their homemade tortillas can't be beat. Viva El Texano!! Great food. read more

Walking in to this place and looking around I can tell it wasn't a five star restaurant. Everything looks very old and dated. The set up is very odd. My friend and I decided to give it a try. I got the fajitas and they were okay at best. Service was slow. Probably will not be back. read more

My wife and I just had dinner there. Atmosphere is sterile like an old diner. Chips definitely out of a bag. I ordered steak fajitas and she had enchiladas. Fajita meat was accompanied by 3 tortillas and nothing else. No lettuce or rice or beans. I had to ask twice for a dish and silverware. These guys aren't even trying. Save your money. There are better choices out there. read more

Staff was nice but I couldn't imagine the food being good with such terrible tortilla chips. The menus were falling apart, decor was completely outdated, windows were only partially tinted, and I've never eaten a more stale tortilla chip in my life. So, I can't say the food is bad. But I won't be going back to find out. read more

After moving here from Texas it was difficult to find really good Mexican food. El Texano has certainly it. They are not experts in speaking English but can certainly prepare the absolutely best soft tocos I have ever eaten. The waitress Linda is the best of the best waitresses. I am a fan for life. read more

Service was very slow. Didn't have any queso Saturday night. Chips, as well as food, lacked flavor.

Well I has sopas and the tortilla was stale and the meat was spoiled. The salsa was canned tomato sauce.

Being from San Diego I am a bit of a Mexican food snob. Swung by this place for lunch and was surprised at the decor. Almost as if the owners don't care. There were also no customers. I tried the chili rellenos. Came with two, rice and beans. The rice was good and the beans were very loose and water. However they tasted pretty good. The Chilies were pretty tasty. I would have liked for them to be deseeded but they were still okay. Not the Mexican food I was hoping for. The search continues. read more

Fantastic food and authentic! Order the Orden de Alambre with shredded chicken and homemade tortillas. You won't be disappointed.

Saturday night dinner and the place was empty. For a new place all of the furniture and rugs were already well worn out and chipped. Very plain decorations with the feeling of just put it up and open the doors. They had 2 servers who were very attentive to the 6 people having dinner. Our server was very nice and very helpful. The food was good but not great; little above average at best. It's a shame that we still don't have a solid 4 star Mexican restaurant in Palm Harbor. Only 3 stars for El Texano. read more

One of the best kept Mexican food secrets in the North Pinellas area. Chips & green sauce are always good... our favorites are the tamales (red or green) and Huevos Rancheros. Nice, mellow place to take the family. Waitresses are nice & helpful. Nothing fancy, but the food is authentic and tasty! read more

I'm telling you what- This place has awesome Mexican food. Seems like the food is cooked to order. The drinks are "ok" (Margs), but well worth the price. We go weekly and I'm only doing this so they get a little bit more traffic. We like that we never wait for a table, but these people are also very nice. The true definition of an awesome whole in the wall. read more

ALWAYS good food and very nice staff we go frequently and as always everything is great. Highly recomend!!!!

Best hole in the wall authentic mexican around! Their chips are homemade and the green salsa is the bomb!

I have to agree with some of the other comments, don't judge the food by the atmosphere. Dark and outdated inside but the food is amazing. Huge portions and incredible flavors. The green chicken enchiladas are my favorite. I have a big appetite and can't finish my plate here. The menu does have a lot of Spanish but the wait staff is helpful with explanations. read more

Do yourself a favor and stay away. I went in here on a whim with some family. The decor is outdated and the carpet on the floor looks to be about 10 years old. The food wasn't necessarily bad but it just wasn't good. I got a funky feeling as soon as we walked in this place. It was 6:30pm on a Friday and no one was in the place. You can do much better for the price. I know I normally write more than this but I really can't think of anything to say other than I would not visit this place again. read more

The food here is fresh and very reasonably priced but at 6pm on Dec.7,I was one of three tables filled here. Something has gone wrong and Management needs to do some work either with decor or promoting it. It is in a Plaza with a Sushi Restaurant nearby but that should not deter you from coming for really good traditional Mexican food.But,without some change,I doubt it has a good future. read more

Not impressed and was dissatisfied with the service as we received food we did not order and we were made to pay for it. FYI my husband can speak Spanish and instead of sending us Carne asada tacos (which we specifically ordered) we received the meals which were much more costly and a ridiculous amount of food especially considering one of the meals was for our 7 year old child! Very sneaky! read more

We ordered carry out and really regret going here, not sure how the three star reviews were remotely accurate. The One nice comment the steak fajitas were flavorful however they did not come with any condiments. The tortilla chips were prepared at the restaurant but tasted a bit stale, no salt and a bit to thick for a proper chip. Also ordered a combo #2. They did not have tomales so I got two chicken enchiladas. There was no salsa on them but some unflavored water. The Chile Reno had the vein in it and was in the same watery sauce. I ate three bites and threw the whole meal away. The chicken inside also had zero flavor. Not even salt. Lastly we ordered chicken tortilla soup. One of my favorite foods. It was water cooked with dehydrated peppers. No chicken stock no flavor at all. My 8 year old daughter cooks better soup then this restaurant staff did which wasn't soup but a bowl of colorful water unflavored chicken and tortilla chips. Terrible!!!. Warning if you really want good food don't go here. Try Don Taco but expensive and random hours. Or los megueyes in holiday. More Tex mex but good. read more

We went to this restaurant on the recommendation of a friend. We were apprehensive when we first walked in because the decor is drab, dark and run down. There were a few other tables of people in there so we stayed. The servers were very nice. We were surprised by how much Spanish was on the menu with no English translation and had a hard time figuring out what we were going to order. But we ordered what we knew and were pleasantly surprised by how good it was. I had the tostadas and my husband had enchiladas. Both of us cleaned our plates. We also had the chips and salsa verde; which was very good. The chips tasted freshly homemade. I hope this restaurant sticks around long enough to get around to getting rid of the old carpet and make the place more bright and inviting. I would go back for the food. read more

We went here and had the saddest Tex-Mex meal I think we've ever shared as a couple. Anything else I could say would simply be piling on but we found everything sad about this place, from the huge wasted space inside to the sad decor. I wish I had something positive to say about our meal here but I don't. read more

Waited 20 min to get hard chips and never brought our drinks when a table came in after us got waited by a different waitress and then got their food before we got our drinks we said adios and walked out. The food might be good but never will go there again read more

Best mexican food in the Palm Harbor/Tarpon springs/Trinity/East Lake area. Server was very friendly and food was good. Good value. Not fancy inside by any means, but nice spot to get everyone together for a family dinner. If you are in the area, give it a go, read more

Real Mexican food!!!! The best in town. Fresh tortillas salsa and guacamole!! We will be back.

The absolute worse Mexican food I have ever had. Everything tasted like it came from a can. The red sauce tasted like tomato paste. We decided to try this restaurant because of some of the good reviews it has received. We should have realized it when we walked in the door and we were the only ones there. The restaurant looked old and dirty. The chips tasted stale and the green salsa was watered down. Do not waste your time and money going to this restaurant. Did not want to even give it a star. read more

I have been to El Texano several times. My boyfriend and I have enjoyed our food every visit! Our server has always been friendly and attentive. The atmosphere is a bit dark and outdated, but we continue to go because the food and service (and Sangria!) are great. read more

First time and last time.. I'm born and raised in LA and married to a Mexican so I know what good Mexican food is. For one, it took 45 mins for 4 tacos and 3 tamales. Yes 45 mins and that was a to go order. Where they busy??? No they only have 3 tables.. Don't get me wrong, those hole in the wall places are the best but these Tacos way below average and $2 a pop. I know so many other places around Clearwater Palm harbor and Tampa that are 100% better and cheaper. Sorry but this place was a bust.. DONT BOTHER read more

Although the decor is a but outdated, the food and service were amazing. We ordered the giant bowl of food for two (I can't remember the name of it) but for twenty dollars, it had more than enough to feed four. The guacamole, salsa and chips were all made fresh. This reminded me of places I've eaten in Mexico. It is definitely a more authentic style of Mexican food, so if you're looking for taco bell, you won't get it here. Muy delicioso! read more

Just stumbled across this gem of a restaurant. I have been craving some authentic tacos for a while now and boy did they deliver. Several of the reviews were negative about decor. When we go to a restaurant we base our experience off of the food first, second is service and both were excellent!!! I would recommend this spot to everyone and will be back for dollar tacos Wednesday or Thursday. read more

I would give one star but the staff was nice. The food just wasn't good. I had the flautas which is what I usually order at Mexican restaurants. Beyond crunchy tortilla shell and not much flavor. very bland chewy meat. The dishes do not come with any sides (rice or beans) those must be ordered separately. The refried beans we not mashed at all and soupy. read more

Saturday night ordered takeout for 3 and was told it would be ready in 15 minutes. Went to pick up order and had to wait 30 more minutes to get my order. The girl was very nice but offered no reason why had to wait on food & the restaurant was not busy only a few tables with customers. So disappointing the food as it was mediocre & lukewarm. The enchiladas were not tasty and needed some seasoning & the tacos were very, very small as if made for a 5 yr old child. The prices are high for what you get. Reason for the 1 star: Guacamole was very good, but just a small container so even that alone is not worth purchasing. Overall, I would not recommend this place to eat as you will be disappointed in the food and the restaurant itself. read more

The wrost food I ever ate. The waitress stood behind the bar with her back to us talking to another worker....ignored us after bring food? to the table..after 20 minutes I walked up to her and asked for the check. Horriable food and service. Nasty looking old and dirty in side. I had a hard time ordering because it seemed the menu was written in Spanish. I WOULD NEVER GO BACK.....WASTE OF MONEY!!! I ate very little of my meal...my husband ate his even though he didn't like it and got sick as soon as we got home. I was so disappointed because it looks ok until you get in there.....no one else was in there ...I wonder why??? read more

Truly an Authentic Mexican restaurant! I enjoyed the Carnitas (fried shredded pork) the rice, beans and corn tortillas were delicious! Chips and salsa are my favorite so far around the Palm Harbor area! Fresh ingredients! Looking forward to their tamales! Yum! read more

When I walked in I immediately got hit by a disgusting odor (like a mixture of urine, roach killer, & just dirtyness). The place lacks in the eye appeal department. The carpets are a light grey color and covered in stains, the blinds were at one point white but when I look over they look stained but they're actually just filthy, a good scrub would do them a lot of good. The bathrooms are pretty secluded and off towards the back. It's pretty sketchy. I felt like at any point someone was going to walk out from around the corner to rape and murder me. So far I give it 5 stars in authenticity..... It's like I'm really in Mexico but with no flies and air conditioning! My server was nice, a bit slow on refills (which normally I totally understand but we were LITERALLY the only customers in at the time & she was sitting down on her phone). Overall The food was excellent! I liked the chips & salsa verde. It tasted fresh & had a nice kick to it. I got the steak burrito, I'd give it 4 stars. My boyfriend got the pork quesadilla which I tasted & liked, 4 stars to that. Overall if you like good Mexican food and don't care about smell or looks, give it a try for yourself read more

Nothing impressive about this place. Food was average, portions were slightly smaller than I am used to from similar restaurants. But it was the service that left much to be desired. It was not busy (3 tables between 2 servers) yet our food took a long time to come out. When the food was served, the kids hard shell tacos that we ordered came out in soft shells. No big deal right? She took the plate back and told us she would have it fixed. After a while I split my food up and shared it because I didn't want to eat in front of my hungry kid. I asked about the food twice and was told both times that it would be ready any minute. When everyone else was finished eating, a plate of fried soft tacos was brought out to us. We would have just ordered something else if we were informed they didn't have hard taco shells. This was a first for me, a Mexican restaurant without taco shells? In addition to that, we were never even asked about drink refills and I had to track her down for the check. There were many other little things that turned me off about this place but I won't go into those. read more