Visited late in the evening so it wasn't too busy. Was greeted by the hostess immediately and seated. Our waitress as on cue every time we needed her, she kept glasses full and the food tasted wonderful. The chicken fajitas were spot on. They tasted better than I last remembered. So hats off to the cook. The manager stopped by twice to make sure we were ok. I was very surprised. That usually doesn't happen. Overall, very pleasant experience. Ambiance, it's a typical Mexican restaurant chain interior. Nothing out of the ordinary read more

El Fenix - Food from our table. - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

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My kids ordered me a chicken soup for Mother's Day because they know it's my favorite from here. When it arrived and I poured the broth into a bowl it smelled like just tomato, not the usual savory broth; you can tell from the pictures that it was not its usual color and the bright cilantro shows that whatever that broth was was made in a pinch. It would have been a million times better to just better to cancel the order than to serve what was served. The avocado chunks were pieces I would throw away if I was cutting an avocado with lots of brown pieces. I ended up throwing it all away; such a waste of money. read more

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Waitress introduced herself came by our table several times the manager came by and checked on us the food was hot and delicious

Service was fantastic the waitress introduced herself and checked on us several times The manager came by and checked on us . The food was hot and delicious read more

Always reliable for a good Texmex cheese enchilada with chili con carne! So many places to go, but you want good consistent food - this is it - never changes, always same good quality and fast, friendly service. read more

El Fenix - Cheese enchilada - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

Birria tacos not crispy also didn't get the consome sauce for tacos. Rice was not cooked all the way. Won't go back. And I live close.

El Fenix has been my go to since 1976 when I first moved to Dallas and though I have since moved it is on my must visit every time I return to visit family. The enchilada Wednesday has been a staple forever and draws us in for a gathering of our friends and family. The meat chili that covers the enchilada is hard to find in Florida and is a must for any serious Tex Mex meal which makes us crave it for every home visit. The Bean and Cheese Nachos (ask for jalapenos to be cooked with) is a simple but tasty trip down memory lane. The salsa is flavorful yet not over hot so a quart to go that we put in a sealed container and fly it home in our luggage until the next trip back with a bag of chips as a reminder of how good food and almost 50 years of dining at a particular restaurant brings back memories to cherish. read more

Nice ambiance. Comfortable seating. The food was "ok" except for the fish tacos, which I really liked a lot. Our server, Gabriel, was terrific. Because this is close to home and we didn't have a bad experience, we'll be back. read more

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Today we lunched at El Fenix in Arlington, we had the lunch Taco Plate and Enchiladas. We were hungry so we ordered as soon as we sat down, the food was out very quick and hot and tasty. Crystal was our server, she was very attentive and efficient. The restaurant was clean and background music was not overpowering . Good job read more

After being treated horribly by a manager at El Fenix & then posting on here about it several months ago, the owner reached out to me to resolve this issue. I emailed him back twice and have gotten no response. VERY sad! This used to be my weekly go-to with my husband. The food is good & staff is friendly except for this one employee who has also been rated poorly on here. As a small business owner, please go to any other Mexican restaurant than this one. I would never treat my clients like this. This mgr treats women horribly and price gouged me $23 for a pint of chile con carne. Clearly the owners have chosen profit over relationships. read more

The food, the service, the atmosphere were all excellent! I recommend and if in this area again would patronize. read more

El Fenix - Part 1 of El Jefe plate - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

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Always great Tex Mex. The cheese enchiladas are the very best. Have gone here seen 1970!

This place is always consistent with the service and quality of the food. Food is always hot and fresh. The dining room is clean and comfortable. read more

We are long time customers of El Fenix. We live in Austin Tx now but every time we come to Arlington we stop to eat. The food and service is amazing. We have been customers for over 30 years. Thanks for all the great hospitality that we always receive The Domino's read more

Ate at El Fenix t today, I got the quesadila fajita beef, really tastey. Larry got the Hispanic platter......so much food he pretty much killed it though....vote TRUMP!!!!!. I want our rights back... . . read more

extremely disappointed with how I was treated by the MANAGER MANNY. He was not only very condescending but also racist. As a frequent visitor, I will NEVER spend money at El Fenix again and if this is how staff is going to treat black people, I will be filing a civil complaint. Absolutely d and unacceptable. read more

I have eaten at this restaurant since 1988 when our family relocated from Colorado. We originally ate at their location in the Ridgmar Mall, Fort Worth, from Ft Worth we followed them to the Arlington location on South Cooper, just south of the E-W freeway (I-20). We have several items that have become standard items, chicken enchiladas, chicken flautas, queso sauce, chicken fajita nachos, bean and cheese burritos, or stuffed cheese chili relleno with ranchero sauce. read more

Authentic food that's consistently tasty. Always get my order correct plus my family and I can eat there for a fair price!

Stopped in for lunch had the guacamole and chips and salsa and chips and and the beef enchiladas rice and beans , always delicious and great service will definitely be back again read more

El Fenix - Combo - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

Good margaritas good chips and salsa I enjoy the tostadas Jesus and Ariel are the best Attentive great service read more

Great food & service! Very friendly staff. Always enjoy eating there. Best tacos ever!

I love their cheese enchiladas and especially the red sauce and chili con carne. Ole school Tex-mex at its best!

Had not been to El Fenix in eight years since we moved. The enchilada dinner was still as good as I remembered. They have changed the chips, do miss the corn flavor and the texture is different. Salsa is still good. Another favorite are the bean & cheese nachos and they did Not disappoint! So good. Will definitely visit again when we go back. read more

Always a favorite when visiting Dallas wish there was one in OKC. Try the enchiladas plate.

Meh, it was close to where we were heading , we decided to give it a shot. $77.00 bucks less in my pocket and I could've had Taco Bell.

Yes and yes! The sour cream sauce was delicious and the best I've had at a restaurant. There was plenty of food and the ice box lemon cake was the "icing" of the meal ;) read more

A disappointing lunch. Perfect chips and salsa to start and great sweet tea. Ordered cheese enchiladas and a bean and beef chalupa. Chalupa was excellent. But the enchiladas were awful; the cheese a rubbery log. That's a usual sign of overcooking or reheating. The chili gravy was scorched. So disappointing. The manager was summoned. Described the problem and he basically said the recipes were not changed to which I said it's not the recipe but the execution. I've been eating el Fenix for over 60 years. He acted as though he knew very little about how the product is made. He replaced it and while the second plate was better as it cooled the rubbery aspect returned. They should use a better melting cheese like they used to. Oh well. read more

Delicious food.Have been eating here for year and can highly recommend when you are looking for great Mexican food!

Not bad! I got the fish tacos they were seasoned nicely. Charming atmosphere great place for families. If you want to go to a sit down restaurant with reasonable priced food this is the place. read more

El Fenix - Pan-Seared Fish Tacos (Three) - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

One of the oldest restaurants in Texas, 1940s decor, food service at 4:00pm was decent, the food was the most tasteless, nasty, flavorless TexMex food I've ever tasted, prices too high for the quality of their food, like the Arroyo they push their alcohol, the one star is for our waiter Angel who was professional, attentive, and knows his job. I didn't see any Hispanic clientele so maybe that's the reason they sell bland, tasteless, uneatable food, their salsa tasted like Ortega canned tomatoes and green chiles, no cilantro, no onions, no nothing, and you can hear the screams from the kitchen by the cooks cursing in Spanish at staff. I was so disappointed and dissatisfied after researching this place and reading their history and driving 45 minutes, NEVER AGAIN read more

This is the 4th time I have eaten here since moving to Arlington. Great service, great ambiance, great food. I love their chips & salsa & am grateful they are sold alacarte. I have told many friends! read more

Just very good basic TexMex. The chips are very light and good. The salsa is not really spicy but I understand. They don't want to scare people. I really liked the Charro beans. read more

El Fenix - El Fenix dining room - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

Was at the restaurant 10 minutes before the new closing hours - 9pm. Would not sell me a bag of El Fenix tortilla chips. They obviously DO NOT need our business!! But, there are plenty other finer places that do - even though they are more than 5 blocks from us. read more

Clean Restaurant great customer service great prices excellent queso Went here with my family we had the best meal.

Im happy to have been seated so quickly the hostess Leanna was just great with conversation and children! and the food was so good! Glad that everyone was still following mask protocols i felt safe to eat there Chips and salsa!!!!! read more

El Fenix is a main stay Tex-Mex restaurant been a fixture in DFW for a long time. The food is good and predictable if you ever been to one in the past you know what it is going to be like. They all seem to be the same. That is not a bad thing you just know. I like going on Wednesday and getting the enchiladas special for 5.99. You get 2 enchiladas I get cheese with rice and beans. And the chips and salsa is very good. Great margarita's to go with the food but a little on the sweet side. This location off I-20 in Arlington has good service very fast not much of a wait for the food. The food comes out very fast to the table. We had no wait to be seated on Wednesday at 630pm. The restaurant had a good crowd. The service was very good and friendly. Food was hot and tasted good. The menu has a bunch more items the typical plate combos, and fajitas. I like coming here once in a while can't beat the price. read more

Every time I come here, I am greeted immediately with a very warm and inviting spirit. There's always good parking and the restaurant is always clean. I really get the authentic Spanish feel when I dine here. The waiters are very attentive without being overbearing. My food is ALWAYS hot, SO HOT, lol! The margaritas are very reasonable and perfectly crafted. I am happy to have found this jewel by their amazing deals and coupons that come in the mail. I am currently doing this review as I sit because I don't want to forget and they deserve this great review. Thanks Andrea M! read more

El Fenix - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Texas

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Our family has always liked this restaurant. Recently, we were running late and ordered food to go. Don't do this!! Normally with dinner you get 3 enchiladas, rice, beans. If you order to go, you get 1 enchilada, a tiny scoop of rice, and tiny scoop of beans. You pay the same! What a ripoff! I contacted them and never heard back. Super dishonest., read more

This place is so timeless for me since the 90's. Their food is still consistent on the Beef Enchilada Plate including the Chips & Salsa. Great service read more

Did I miss something here? Wasn't this place supposed to be good? I'd give it a 1-star rating but I will go with 2 because I didn't get sick (yet) from it. Where do we start... The chips are obviously bagged and brought in, served cold. The salsa is basically tomato sauce with a few pieces of onion and cilantro. Not much flavor. Not hot. Lunch was a beef enchilada (boring), a beef taco that was basically ultra ground beef, very greasy and flavorless. No cheese, no tomatoes, no lettuce, just a shell and some beef. The guacamole tostada was literally just that. And I won't judge it because no avocados are in season anywhere in the world. Period. And the queso we ordered had no flavor. Literally it tasted like they melted velvetta and threw in a chopped tomato piece or three. No jalapenos, no onions, no seasoning, just melted velvetta. We didn't even finish it. And you can't say I didn't order the right thing... It is a Mexican restaurant with little else to offer but variations of enchiladas, quesadillas and tacos. Maybe I missed something. Wasn't this place supposed to be good? Isn't the original location in Dallas always busy? I am confused and probably will pass on this next time and hit up the myriad Mexican restaurants near by instead. (At least the service was great...) read more

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