Seated quickly and friendly service. Waitress arrived quickly and was very prompt with drinks, delivering order and keeping everyone topped off. Salsa and chips were generic but good. Lunch Enchiladas Rancheros were tasty and beautiful presented. Steak quesadillas were full and very good. Burrito Mexicanos look great and flavor didn't disappoint. Interior is divided and usual Mexican restaurant fare. read more

Food was fair - not terrible, but definitely not great. Drinks were good. VERY noisy. Very crowded. We had to wait so long for our check we considered just leaving cash on the table and walking out. Don't think I will go back. read more

This is a great place to have authentic Mexican cuisine. Great clean ambiance. Ángela was great , she was attentive to our dietary needs. Will be back again tomorrow. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Main restaurant entrance - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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Located in a strip mall off College Road. The strip mall is jammed with people and cars. Traffic is terrible in this area of town. Okay, sorry, onto the review Summary - Food is very good - Service was excellent - Price is fair - Place is busy as crap. We had to wait a few minutes too get a table. It was lunch so I was unable to try the margaritas. I will next time. read more

Great experience overall. New and improved menu was great, interior remodel looks very nice, and the service was phenomenal. Gaby, our wonderful waitress was extremely pleasant and made our evening a great one, and the food came out so fast my girlfriend said it was faster than fast food! I went for the steak fajitas with corn tortillas and my girlfriend got the beef taquitos. They couldn't have been better. Thanks El Cerro and thanks Gaby!!! read more

what a great dinner!!! it was absolutely amazing due to Gaby! what a great waitress! We love our time here and it's the best Mexican ever!

We were looking for authentic Mexican food!Great food, great service during our trip to Wilmington ;) read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Lunch Shrimp Fajita - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

An updated review of the tortilla soup ordered at the MJ location. THIS REVIEW IS ONLY FIR THE SOUP!! Not sure why I would try again but I had high hopes. This time the soup was not extremely salty but it lacked any Mexican flavor we are so fond of. I suspect the soup is but an afterthought. The portion was generous but there are miles of improvement to go. I'd love Love LOVE to hear from the owner. The other food served was excellent. The service was excellent. read more

I've been here in the past, the food is good however I came here today for lunch and after having a couple sips of my drink I noticed a cockroach floating in it. It was dead thank God but completely grossed me out. I discreetly pointed it out to the waitress as I didn't want to cause a scene. No apologies were offered and she just went and poured me another drink as if I would want another one after that. My food finally came, I really didn't want to eat but tried. I ultimately could not nor could I drink the replacement drink. They simply brought me the bill with no apologies. They could have at the minimum not charged me for the drink. Needless to say, that will be my last time dining with them. read more

Delicious. I would come again. Totally recommend. I recommend getting the taquitos and birrichanga.

I have ate at this restaurant several times and this last visit on 12-13-25 was the worst time ever. The service was bad. The waitress got the order wrong, we had to ask for chips and drink refills. Our waitress didn't pay attention to our table at all. The beans on our plates were cold and my daughter couldn't eat half of her food because the meat had chunks of fat in it. On top of all that, I did leave the waitress a cash tip and then get a notification from my card company that the restaurant charged an additional $10 to it the next day WITHOUT MY APPROVAL. I will be contacting the restaurant about this. This is ridiculous & I consider it THEFT since they charged it without my authorization. I WILL NOT BE GOING BACK THERE especially since they took money from me without my permission- that's STEALING. read more

The food was great. The Queso dip was delicious! Another cool thing is the way they serve their horchata. It comes in a little reusable container. So innovative. The deco was what you would expect in a Spanish style restaurant. The service could have been more welcoming but overall it was great. When we come back to NC we will definitely go back here. read more

Food was good. Service good. Servings were... ehhh. I paid $17 for 3 queso-birrias and some rice. Small portion. Otherwise was good. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Queso-birria - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

Visiting daughter in Wilmington and decided to take her and her roommate out for Mexican. Very disappointed. Upon entering it took the hostess almost 15 minutes to acknowledge us. While tables were available, it took about 20 minutes to be seated, although I'll attribute that to possible staff shortage. Food was nothing to write home about. Steak dish was bland, enchilada dish was over sauced and fajitas, chicken, was over cooked. On the positive side, the Spanish rice was very good. I usually take pictures but felt none of the dishes were picture worthy. Not sure I would go back although they could have been having a bad night with UNCW starting up. read more

It good the food is great except.......a HAIR in our food. But the service is great the ambiance is great but besides that everything was great read more

I ordered the steak burrito and a side of queso! The food is delicioso! The server was very nice and attentive also. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Burrito El Diablo - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

I truly hate to write this review. I have been going here for years and the food has always been very good. Recently, the dinners have been less than expected. I have been recently opening the burritos and other rolled items to find it full of vegetables and very little meat inside. Also, I ordered the carnitas to see if that was less, and the portion of pork is half of what it used to be. And the prices have also gone up. So costs you more for less quality food. I have been noticing this for a couple of months now. Sorry you can't raise prices and give less and expect to be considered a place to continue to frequent. Stop the live music and give us better quality food. Sorry to say but now looking for a new Mexican restaurant in Wilmington.... read more

I ordered chicken fajitas and a plate that I got did not look like chicken fajitas. It look like ground chicken with onions and bell peppers. They did have good chips and queso. read more

Nothing better than authentic Mexican! Love the chicken pork tacos. Fast service and affordable read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

El Cerro is more of a Tex-Mex/Americanized Mexican chain than authentic. Choripollo and shrimp quesadilla is normally my go to. Their dessert is really yummy as well. Service is always nice and keep your drinks refilled. But if you want more authentic foods, I'd look somewhere else. read more

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That was some of the best Mexican food I've ever had. Out server Cruz was super nice and helped us pick out some great options. We are definitely going back. read more

Tasted good, good salsa and chips, portions were good as well. The chairs and table were a little sticky though and there was a wait. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Enchiladas - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

AMAZING. Best Mexican I've had in a while. Love the people and the food. They just redid the inside and it's so nice. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Lunch ACP - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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The food was so good but the problem was when the waitress came to us and told us she works by tips and that we had to leave her 20 % or 25% from what we ate . We were gonna leave tip no matter what and I never seen that before and I hope she doesn't do the same to other customers that comes to enjoy the delicious food . I think management should talk about it with the waitress read more

Excellent food, no matter when you go. The service is always fast and reliable as well!

visited my sister in Wilmington and we went here for dinner one night. I loved this place! I got the diablo burrito with the spicy red sauce on the side since i didn't know how spicy it was (extremely lol) and it was so damn good. filled with steak, onions, and mushrooms, covered in cheese sauce. also had a kiwi margarita and it was so good!! the flower on top is actually edible. would definitely like to visit this place again next time i'm in town. read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - kiwi margs and a blue hawaiian - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

The food is amazing and tastes delicious. The service is outstanding. The music is HORRIBLE. This is a Mexican restaurant, please play the appropriate music. The music you play is way too much bass and it's giving me a headache. Please change your music. I feel like I'm in a club. read more

I live for El Cerro! It is one of my favorite places to go anytime and any day! This location is close to UNCW campus and offers a student discount! Food is great, service is awesome! Friday nights are loud just because of the in house singer... read more

El Cerro is the kind of place that is so good you can go with some friends after a bad Monday, eat some outrageously good Mexican food, drink a pitcher of Dos Equis, and leave with a full belly and love in your heart. I seriously eat at this restaurant more than any other in Wilmington. read more

We got delivery from here through door dash a few times during COVID. The food was always really tasty. But the wait was usually longer than quoted. I also wish you got more than one bag of chips since that's my favorite part! Their queso is really good and not spicy. I've gotten the fajitas and carnitas. Hubby always gets ACP which has more cheese on it than most places give so he's always happy with that. We will continue to order from here! read more

El Cerro Grande Mexican Restaurant - Carnitas to go - Mexican Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

Huge margaritas! Great food! Service was pretty good! Definitely will be back with friends!

Can't beat this one, everything was amazing. The atmosphere, the service,the food and the price. 10 out of 10 and I will definitely be going back! read more

Our favorite Mexican restaurant in town, and we've tried a lot of places! Live music on Friday nights, the best white queso dip, and you never have to wait more than 15 mins. read more

Very good food and service. The sweat tea was great! The food was affordable and the portion sizes were great for the price.

Best place ever. I go here all the time and it's always good. Tried to get delivery once and they didn't deliver it to the right address but every time I've gone into the restaurant the service is great, amazing food, fun times. read more

Service was bad. I ordered rice and never got it (paid for it and never got it). The fajitas were bland and flavorless. I strongly do no recommend and will not be coming here again. read more

This place is rocking a vibe! Great food and atmosphere! Dined there again this weekend. All of the food was hot fresh and delicious. The staff are friendly and attentive. The restaurant itself is decorated beautifully and as we were leaving, the owner came over and asked us how everything was! I'm sorry I ha e no beautiful pics. We were too hungry!! Next time. I had the pic three, which is enough food for two people, and husband had the fajitas, also enough for two! Yummiest read more

The menu is huge the drinks are large yet expensive the food is made cheaply the steak not present in fanatic read more

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The service is always top notch! I have yet to have a bad experience here. Staff, food and atmosphere is 5 stars.

I did not eat here but actually next door at the crab house but unfortunately I left my camera there with countless priceless pictures of my family. By the time I realized they were closed and we were not going to retrieve the camera that night we felt so defeated with a 15 hour drive home. Luckily I was able to speak to what I assume was a manager of this restaurant where he took down my name, number and assured me he would personally make sure he spoke with the staff to find my camera. He called me the next day to let me know and unfortunately I wasn't able to pick up the call but I'm just so grateful to run into such kind people. Your small ethical actions were so impactful in our lives I couldn't thank you guys enough. Legend is good people make great food and these were GREAT people. I could recommend them more! Thank you so much! read more