My family and I have been going to Pepe's in Harlingen for over 25 years. The Jose's Special with charro beans is my favorite. Their cheese enchiladas are the best. Haven't been able to find any better. Their prices are reasonable. Their service is also top notch. All their waiters and cashiers are professionals and have been there for years. I have been to just about all the Mexican food places in the Valley and by far Pepe's in Harlingen is the best. read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - Cheese enchiladas, chicken taco, charro beans - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

We stopped in for lunch today, and the restaurant was quite busy, which speaks well of its popularity. The staff was friendly, welcoming, and provided attentive service throughout our visit. Our experience with the food, however, was a bit mixed. While everything was prepared well, the flavors were much milder than we were expecting, and the dishes felt a little under-seasoned for our taste. To us, it's not what we expected a Mexican restaurant to be, being so close to the border. We also felt the prices were a bit high for the overall experience. Everyone's taste is different, and it's clear this restaurant has many loyal customers. For us, we were simply hoping for a little more bold, authentic flavor. We appreciate the excellent service and wish the team continued success. read more

Food was very trouble and the service was just ok Nothing extra Food - the rice had no flavor, I could go on but I just didn't even eat anything after tasting the food read more

Food was excellent. I had the #8. Yummy! Service was promp, professional and friendly. The owner was there as always making sure everything was perfect. Wonderful experience. read more

The place was very popular on Saturday afternoon. Clean and simple in furnishings. Very attentive waiter. He made sure my tea glass was always full. They ordered the botano plate for 4 and it was enough for 7 easily. I picked a salad and added the chicken and beef to mine. I recommend! read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - Botano plate for 4 - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

Joel was an outstanding waiter he was so kind, helpful, prompt, respectful. The food was fresh, and they didn't cook my dog.

Great food, Tex-Mex service is impeccable, clean and nice size portions. Ask for Hoel great server.

I had the chicken mole enchiladas with charro beans. The food was exceptional. The me was on point and the charro beans had a nice undertone of cilantro and ham. The Fresca salsa was delicious and had a great bite. If you visit Harlingen, this is a go-to read more

We just moved here from the West coast, so to be fair I have very different expectations than local people do. When you ask for fajitas or carne asada, you are getting totally different things down here. The fajitas is basically a flank steak, it was flavorful and juicy. I would have it again. The downside is most of the restaurants down here don't have aguas and only have sodas or sweet tea. The servers were nice and their uniforms were very old school. We may eat here again, but just didn't live to our expectations of Mexican food. read more

Very many restaurants on this street , we did not know what to pick. So selected Pepe's. Wrong choice. Ordered castillas, beef ribs. It was actually "short ribs" Korean style. Very bland. No food decor as normally in Mexican restaurants. Restaurant decor so poor inside.... Hmmmm. Bland food, bland decor, bland service . Two stars for good salsa! read more

If you are looking for authentic Mexican food, this isn't it. If you are looking for very Americanized "Mexican" food (think Tex Mex) then this is the place. The servers are all super nice!! read more

Amazing cheese enchiladas and beans, salsa, and chips are good. Great food professional service. reasonably priced. Good menu variety. Would recommend read more

Pepe's has my favorite corn enchiladas in the world. Both their chicken tortilla and jalapeño soup are flavorful and i appreciate that the chicken is not in huge chunks. When we come to the Valley, trips to Pepe's are FIRST priority. The service is excellent. read more

Food was good.. however, when I ordered the same Botana for 2 as always, and 3 extra ribs as always. I normally pay about 12.99 for the 3 extra ribs but this last visit I was charged 10.00 per rib. I was shocked to say the least and I will not go back. read more

Best Mexican restaurant ever. The food is downright amazing and the service is top notch.

Food was really good & our waiter was amazing, even the manager was pleasant. However, the host not so much as we were leaving the kids decided to go to the little toy machine & she blocks them purposely. As I confronted her (of course mama bear) she stepped up trying to argue with me, the manager got involved & apologized as she walked off rolling her eyes. There was no need for all that what so ever!!! I do thank the manager for his kindness seeing how his worker was acting he tried to make things better by giving the kids a toy & that made them happy of course. So 3 stars for the manager & our waiter, host caused your other 2 To host girl if you can't stand the job quit or change that attitude. Like us we stepped away from a family member that is very ill to have dinner, we were hurting!!!! & for you to be rude is so disrespectful. In other words treat ppl they way you want to be treated. read more

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The best thing about this place was the salsa which was fresh and not a warm gravy which seems to be the norm here in the area. The chips were made in house but the fryer must not be hot enough for the visible oil all pooled on the chips. The asada fajitas was just asada and had next to no seasoning the taco, enchilada and chili rellano were bland and to be honest I'm not a fan of charo beans so we will not be returning to try anything else here. read more

The food was good and they kept giving us chips n salsa plus drink refills. Everything was on tap. Plenty of food on the plates. Service was wonderful and we're a party of 18. read more

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Loooove this place any time I come to town. Best chips n salsa everrrrr!!! So much more.

Always a must visit when I travel Home to visit my family for the holidays! Wish there was one in Austin! read more

I ordered the bistek ranchero and it was good. The place was full when we got there but the otder didn't take long. The waiter was friendly and attentive. I will return when Im on Harlingen again. read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - Lonch in Harlingen - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

Pepe's is one of the best Mexican restaurants I've had in a long time if not ever. The food is absolutely wonderful, and the service is great. read more

This restaurant is probably the best Mexican restaurant I have eaten at the Service is amazing and the food is even better the waiter was fast to bring my food and gave us refills before I could ask for one and Im telling you I was so surprised how fast they came out with my food it was super fast and as soon as we sat down they gave us Chips and Salsa with Guacamole I will 100% be coming back this place is PERFECT! For families and your kids will love it too no waiting and you can get toys near the entrance too! Can't wait to come back. :) read more

Mmmmm, Mexican food! We showed up around 1:30pm on a Monday and this place was packed. We had a party of 5 and had to wait 15 minutes for a table. First up: chips and salsa. This is a weakness of mine, and their salsa is, indeed, VERY good. The chips are also as good as people have described in their reviews. We also got two orders of guacamole and I don't know if this is normal or not, but the portions we got were huge. So big that we had to leave some behind, and I am -completely- against that. Next up: orders. I was starving and wanted everything, but instead settled on the enchiladas verdes. I was hoping to get a good plate of chili verde, which is something I love to order when I'm in Southern California. To my disappointment, no such thing was on the menu. However, there were a few things that I've never heard of before, such as the botanas and the carne guisada. My order was good; I would not say it was the best I've had, but for chicken enchiladas with green sauce, it was solidly good. I thought it could have used a little more flavor, a little more spice, and the chicken could have been a little more moist, but I was happy with the dish and ate every bite (and felt like a Goodyear blimp afterwards). I enjoyed my meal and would recommend it to anyone who is NOT in a hurry. One thing we didn't appreciate was how long it took to get everything. Service is painfully slow, so know that going in. They've got their own parking lot, so don't worry about parking. read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - Enchiladas Verdes - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

Consistently great good. I live in the Dallas area and think of Pepe's on my way back. Great fajitas, terrific service.

Good food and good service in a nice family atmosphere. Don't plan on a late dinner, as it closes at 8 on Fridays. We arrived around 6:50 and had to wait 20 min for a table of 2. Ordered the beef and chicken botanas for two. Basically a big plate of nachos with beef fajitas, chicken, fresh avocado, and fresh tomatoes on top. I noticed a couple of previous reviewers said the food was bland. It's true that they don't add much salt compared to Houston Tex-mex, BUT they do put a salt shaker on the table! Beef fajitas were tender and well seasoned, but not salty. Everything looks fresh - salsa, tomatoes, herbs, etc. Charro beans were good, but again, many would want to add salt. Frozen margaritas were good as well. This seemed to me to be more Mexican than Tex-mex; all male waiters with traditional clothing, greasy but fresh chips, no flashy deco like a Chuy's or Pappasito's. We'll definitely visit again if we're in town. read more

Great meal! Love the fresh tostado chips and refried beans. Entrees for our table of eight were excellent. Wait staff was helpful and prompt. read more

The valley is usually known for their best Mexican food. But Pepe's didn't stand out to me when I ate this evening. I recently came with family for dinner after hearing great things about it. We got there pretty early so we could beat the crowds. When we got there, we sat down but the waitress took forever coming to our table and asking for our drinks. Their chips and salsa costs $1.89, who pays for chips and salsa? Salsa wasn't that great, no spice and chips were very greasy. I had ordered the chicken fajita dinner with rice and refried beans with guacamole. Food was very bland, it had no taste at all and lukewarm. Service was ok we had a male server that was quick and attentive. I won't be coming back after this experience. read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - Chicken fajita taco plate - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

Pepe's is a good place to go if you want some basic Mexican food in a super casual environment. I went here for dinner last weekend with a large group. It was very close to closing time, so we had to rush in and put in our order. Their drink and food menu is pretty standard and is what you would expect at a Mexican restaurant. The chips and salsa are warm...always a good start to the meal! I ordered a combo plate that had steak, mini cheese enchiladas and a side of tortillas. Steak was pretty overcooked and the food could have used a bit more flavor. Waiter was definitely rushing us, but he was always around if we needed anything. Overall, decent place to go in town. I would probably order something different next time, but I appreciated how they accommodated us so close to closing time! read more

Excellent food! Excellent service! Cold beer! What more could you ask for. There was a miscommunication in what I ordered and they fixed it no questions asked. So happy I stopped here. I'll be back read more

Great food. Great service. A place to run into friends. It has become a Harlingen tradition and landmark. If you don't know and love this place you're probably new in town. read more

After reopening food wasn't as good Charon beans lacked taste tacos were disappointing thought they might have added real drinks though the meat was good read more

OMG I freaking love Pepe's!! I had no idea it was on here!! This place is the best I crave their Salsa. If you ever take a trip to South Padre Island, TX you must stop here it is really close to the airport! I love the enchilada taco plate with rice and Charro beans!! Yummmy slurp slurp I'm drooling over here just thinking about the salsa!! So fresh and so good!! read more

I arrived at lunchtime today to a packed house. I was expecting a long wait and was actually going to turn around when a gentleman saw me and quickly seated me. There was a basket of chips and salsa already waiting for me on the table. The chips were good and the salsa was just right. I ended up eating the whole thing. The waiter came over and quickly took my order. Before I knew it, my queso smothered burritos were sitting in front of me. The food was good and what I liked about this place was the co-existence of white and blue collar workers sharing a meal under one roof. My only complaint was that I was seated close to the cashier table. As it was close to the end of lunchtime there was a long line of people standing next to my table who were in line to pay. Not too big of a deal but next time I'll try and sit somewhere else if its not too packed. read more

I have been going to this place ever since they opened. The story was some people from the old Antonio's defected and opened Pepe's in what used to be a Burger Barn. It is a pretty small place, even after they expanded. It's classic Tex-Mex style food. They can be packed, especially during typical lunch / dinner hours. Although I have never had to wait more than 15 minutes to get a seat. The biggest down side, it is a very small, crowded place. So you usually don't feel relaxed (unless you like that sort of thing). I usually feel like I need to eat fast to get out for the next table That being said, I love Pepe's. I no longer live in Harlingen, but try to get here every time I'm in town. The first thing is their chips and salsa. It's pretty rare that we don't go through two servings of their salsa before we get our food. I may have had as good chips and salsa as Pepe's, but never better. I have had numerous things on the menu, and have enjoyed everything I had. I tend to stick to beef enchilada's, crispy beef tacos, and the tacos al carbon though, as those are my Tex-Mex favorites. To this day, they have my favorite beef tacos and enchiladas. People whom I trust tell me their Mole is awesome. I do like Mole, but I prefer the other things more so it's hard for me to get away from those. I also really enjoy their rice. I'm not much for rice and beans, but Pepe's is one place that I eat just about every grain of my rice at. I try to remember to ask them to hold the beans and give me a double serving of rice. The wait staff is also excellent. As I said, I've been going there since they opened. Some of the wait staff has been there the entire time. You get very prompt and courteous service, and you almost never have to ask for refills of anything. Someone will notice your near empty glass of something, salsa, or chips and ask if you'd like more. I have never been disappointed at Pepe's. If you like Tex-Mex, try Pepe's. You shant be disappointed. read more

Exactly what I was looking for and expected. A great low key mexican food restaurant. Fast service, great staff and wonderful salsa. The food came out in no time and the staff was just the right amount of attentive. I got a fajita dish and it was delicious, as were the beans. If you are looking for fancy, this is not your place. If you are looking for mexican food with good service and salsa - this is your place. Locals are a good guide and it was full of them. read more

This restaurant at one time was rated as one of the top 50 Mexican restaurants in the country - a pretty big deal for a little Harlingen restaurant. The chips were especially good and seem to be made right at the restaurant. If you have 2-4 people, a botana platter is usually the way to go. Our waiter was efficient and friendly and was, for some reason, calling my dad "boss". It's not classy so don't dress up and be prepared to look at high school football players and cheerleaders on the wall that the restaurant sponsors. read more

Pepe's Mexican Restaurant - a neon sign for pepe's mexican restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Harlingen, Texas

We didn't care for this Mexican Restaurant too much. I say go to Las Vegas or La Playa instead. We ordered the botana for two. I forget what we got the kids, but they didn't touch it because they did not like the taste. We ate ours but were not as happy with it as we had hoped. We didn't really care for the atmosphere either. I do want to note, we know many people who enjoy eating here regularly. read more

Not open on Sundays!! The info on this page is incorrect although this is one of my favorite places to dine in Harlingen. Service is courteous and quick. I have never had food I did not like here. All deli ious. read more

I'm from San Antonio and here visiting my sick mother along with a friend we drove around and Pepe's looked to have a few more cars than the other restaurants near by so we gave it a shot, had to pay for chips and salsa that were cold and greasy, the salsa was not even on the chart of salsas... We should have gotten up and left at that point. We went ahead and ordered, and the food was not any better did I mention it was on a Saturday evening? Which means you shouldn't roll your eyes at your patrons, and be rude, although when service is good and food bad i still tip well because the servers are not blame for the food I hope they can bring back there 1996 status of there bragging rights since it has displayed so proudly around the restaurant because as of now it should not even be on the 50 best restaurants. I never wright reviews but this one had to be written so disappointed read more