i love everything about this place. the atmosphere is great and the staff is super kind! this is the best mexican food ive ever had in my entire life. ive recently moved and no other mexican place even comes close to how amazing el kanelo is. i love it there read more

Authentic Mexican in Durant, Oklahoma?! Check out: El Kanelo! My wife and I were in Durant, Oklahoma, attending an early evening Graduation at Southeastern Oklahoma State (Go Savage Storm!). We got to town mid-afternoon and had worked up an appetite chatting about Tacos and Shrimp dishes on our 2 hour drive up from Dallas, Texas. We spotted an unassuming Mexican cafe called El Kanelo (Cinnamon) on 729 N. First Street, and stopped in, not confident we would like the place & food. We were swiftly seated in a large booth, ordered water with lemmon (for which we weren't charged) and were brought crispy chips and fresh, home-made, chunky red salsa. The decor was traditional Mexican with dark wooden benches and tables adorned with colorful Mexican pottery back boards. My wife ordered the Steak (strips) Fajita dish ($15.99) and I ordered the Camarones Al Mojo De Ajo (suateed shrimp in garlic, olive oil and citrus juice) ($15.59). Both (large) dishes were brought out within 15 minutes sizzling hot, with richly seasoned aroma of lightly burned peppers. My shrimp was tender, not overcooked and smothered in richly flavored garlic butter. My wife's ample steak fajita's were served on a bed of onions, bell peppers (paprika) and piping hot yellow squash slices. Here is our verdict: Ambiance & Service: 3.5 stars Food Presentation & Quality: 4 stars Food Texture & Taste: 5 stars Quantity & Value: 4.5 stars Overall, an exceptional experience. We each left with a to-go box filled to the rim! We are already planning to go back this summer. Put El Kanelo in Durant, Oklahoma (10 minutes North of the Texas state line) on your road trip list! read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - Dining room - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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The food was much better than the Mexican restaurants in the area. We will be coming back The chili relano was very nice as was the tamale. I had the combination meal and they substituted the rice with refried beans. Personal preference Service was excellent and the margaritas were not as sweet as you sometimes get, so thinking they use a different mix They were okay and would consider the pitcher option next time The Ambiance was typical Mexican restaurant decor. Once seated hard to tell one from the other but it works. Will be back read more

Ceviche-Camaron $16.99 New.Chopped shrimp, mixed with onions, tomatoes and jalapeños. Topped with lemon juice was good and so was the Chile Relleno. The tacos and burrito were so so otherwise I'd give them a 5-star. The music was a little loud too, but I'd still recommend as it had a real Mexican vibe going on inside. read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - Chili relleno - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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The restaurant was clean and colorful. We were greeted when we entered the door. The service was great. I never had to ask for anything. The food was delicious. Served promptly. Enormous portions. Our fajitas for 2 would easily have fed a family of 4. read more

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Ive been to El Kanelo's twice, once when it was called Los Arcos and the second when it changed to El Kanel, I didn't enjoy it much back then but it could've just been preference. It's was my third? Attempt at authentic Mexican cuisine, didn't hate it but didn't exactly enjoy it much. But now under it being named El kanelos, I tried it again, saved up some money and got myself a burrito with orange Fanta and those delicious chips with salsa dip, the food came by quickly, the service was excellent we got refills before we even realized it had been served out for us, and the burrito was gigantic! I saved half of it and it filled up the entire Togo box, would I eat at el kanelos again? YES this place is so good I'd recommend trying atleast one of everything, it's obvious the food was made with love and it tastes amazing! read more

I absolutely love the food here. It's my favorite place to eat Mexican food in Bryan County/Durant Oklahoma. I've never had a meal here that was not incredible/enjoyable. Fresh chips and the hot sauce is so amazing. And they keep it flowing. The staff is good, but the communication is difficult. I don't speak Spanish, and they have difficulty understanding English. It doesn't keep my family or I from returning. We point at the menu item that we want to order. But adding grilled onions and jalapeño's on the side is a real challenge due to communication. This last visit was our first time to see a female employee. That was refreshing as our family has discussed numerous times, why do they not employ females. Just an observation. Congratulations to her, I hope. #DurantOklahoma #BryanCounty read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - ~Durant, Ok~ 05-24-20 - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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The staff was great and very quick with the orders. Later, our waiter was made sure or soft drinks were always full and chips and salsa also. The food was great! read more

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Love the tacos here, we order a side of beans and rice with guac and make our own tacos! Salsa and chips are yummy and the margaritas are huge. Always fast service and staff are friendly and pleasant, good vibes! :) thank you read more

Food was 4 stars, service was 1 star. We arrived for a friend's birthday dinner and they sat us in the back at a long table. Chips and salsa were brought out right away but no napkins, utensils, or waters were seen for the first 40 minutes we were there. I asked for pico de gallo three times before it finally arrived after all the meals were brought out. Water glasses were not attended to throughout the meal and someone from the group had to go down and flag someone whenever we needed something. At first I figured it was a busy night and maybe the server was new. My friend let me know that server has been there at least 5 years and he is always this way. They clearly need to figure out how to seat a group, bring the basics of water and napkins if there are going to be chips and salsa out right away, and then make sure to send someone to check on the table if the main server cannot do it every 15 min or so. The food was very good and did not take long to come out once it was ordered. The queso comes in huge bowls and should probably have side bowls for families to share as we had two kids in our group -- once the little one ate his chips and queso over the communal bowl of queso I stopped eating the queso. Prices were reasonable and all of the folks working here were nice, despite the service being really slow and inattentive. read more

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Great fast service and excellent food!! Fajitas were great Also the burrito great Fresh chips and salsa not to mention tortillas are fresh!!! read more

Really good chips and salsa... just ok margaritas. The lunch steak fajitas were excellent.

Really good service. Huge portions and really inexpensive prices. We were a group of 11, all of us enjoyed everything we ordered. Fast refills on drinks. Decor is really cute. read more

We enjoyed our meal at El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant & Bar. I had the Enchiladas Mixtas, which consisted of four enchiladas: a beef enchilada, a chicken enchilada, a bean enchilada, and a cheese enchilada. The beef in the beef enchilada was delicious, while the chicken in the chicken enchilada had a delicious light spice to it. All this was served in tortillas that were made fresh in the restaurant. Plus the portions here are very generous. We would definitely come back here next time we are in the area. read more

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Great place! We've been in twice now and this place is soooo good! Just moved to Durant a few weeks ago and a lot of people recommend the other Mexican restaurant right down the street but we've been to both and El Kanelo is by far wayyyy better! Service is especially better here their staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. I found the other place staff to be sort of rude and inattentive unfortunately. The food here at el Kanelos has so much flavor nice portions and it's all fresh! The tomatillo salsa is so so good so make sure you ask for that ! Over all we Love this place we will be back and we highly recommend it! read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - Mango Margarita - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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I'm not sure where anyone whose rated this restaurant is from? All I do know is for this place to still be in business is scary as Heck. We were in OK to celebrate my fiancé Birthday and didn't want to eat at the casino after our Lunch experience at the Asian noodle place. Let me tell you this Mexican restaurant is hands down the Worst they are ZERO stars. You fools reviewing have got to be the people working there? Do Not Go save yourself the nausea just looking at your meal when it comes out less then 5 minutes after your order is placed. My fiancé cheese enchiladas with Chile can queso looked like ketchup the guacamole was brown and my T-Bone steak was as old as the Guacamole I took a bite and spit it out. Wouldn't even feed it to my dog. We got our check and left. That's how freaking horrible it was. The salsa they served had to be a month old how do I know this? When something fresh like that should be is old the tomatoes turn acidic and that's what it was a damn bowl of F around and find out by eating it. DO NOT EAT HERE!!! read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - The guacamole I had to mix it to get the brown it was so old it looked fake!! - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

Food was excellent. Attentive staff. Fun atmosphere. Huge beers. Happening place! Small town, big time restaurant. read more

Excellent, food was amazing drinks were amazing service was amazing. Highly recommend if ever in Durant area. Got seated fast ordered drinks and food fast. Drinks and food were also delivered fast. read more

3 people to eat. 1st order was the combination plate of tamales served w/rice and beans, 2nd plate was combination enchilada and taco with rice and beans, 3rd was lunch fajitas beef and chicken served with rice/beans pico, guacamole and sour cream. All drank teas Service was good. And the tea was good. That is about all the positive I can say. Chips were meh (tasted a little stale) as well as the hot sauce-no flavor. Plate #1 (2 tamales) was pretty much awful. I wouldn't really call it a tamale. No seasoning what so ever. Guest ate about 3 bites and was done. Plate #2 (enchilada/taco) was pretty much the same. Guest ate half of the plate and was done. He was hungry and sucked it up. Plate #3 (fajitas-steak and chicken) Where to start-the meat was WAY over cooked and no seasoning whatsoever. Same with the rice and beans. It was a very good portion (enough for 2 people) but I only ate one corn tortilla and couldn't eat the rest due to the food being so poor quality. The fajita plate came out first and it took a good 8 min for the other 2 plates to come out for the other 2 guests. One of the few places we haven't tried in Durant. We live near by and come to town 2-3 times a week. This place always seems to be packed when we come by and I'm not sure why; now that we have eaten here. So very disappointed as it seemed to have good reviews. We have tried all the Mexican restaurants in Durant except for one. This by far was the worst. Would not return. Again disappointed. read more

Delicious especially the El Kanelo Chicken. Wasn't impressed with their taco but everything else was delicious.

We came here for dinner, my mother in law recommended. Mexican restaurant that plays country music! We all ordered at the same time, 4 of us for dinner. My husband ordered a simple fish soup, we mentioned to the waiter its lent Friday, no meat. Hint, hint. 3 if us received our food, my husband was served chicken tortilla soup! We sent it back, the manager was right on it, brought a complimentary appetizer and apologized for the mishap. 45 minutes later my hubby got his soup , it was hot flavorful but could of used more fish. Nice atmosphere, clean, lots of kids. Margarita was good. Reasonable prices . Sopapillas were delicious! The manager was very nice, he comped our ticket. read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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Service was impeccable and I was really surprised with how fast the food came out to our table. The food was delicious, I highly recommend the queso, it's just the right amount of spicy. The restaurant itself is clean and cozy and not too loud. 10/10 I'd recommend. read more

El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant - Rice - Mexican Near Me - Durant, Oklahoma

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Called to ask if their beans are vegetarian, I was given the cashiers opinion twice. Asked him if he could ask the cook to confirm. He told me they were cooked with onions and hung up on me. Great customer service. read more

My wife and I stopped in El Kanelo for lunch on Friday the 20th and was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was. Not that we're expecting it not to be good but we really liked their chips and salsa! I had the Burrito Kanelo and really enjoyed it as my wife had the cheese enchiladas. We will definitely be back! read more

Went to Kanelo Durant yesterday twice! Once for lunch with couple friends and it was super yummy! Then for dinner with my parents and my boyfriend and it was as yummy as it was for lunch! Fast service and great service! I think this my be my new favorite Mexican restaurant! Best restaurant in Durant!! I'm craving it right now while I'm in my way back to Colorado read more

The best part of wandering around is wandering into a gem like El Kanelo. I forget the name of the dish I ordered but it was 3 enchiladas with Red, White and green sauce. It was delicious! Service was also outstanding but it wasn't very crowded when I went in. However business was picking up nicely by the time I left and moat note the several cars with Texas plates. 20 miles north of the state line so they must know it's pretty good too to not only make the drive but to choose this place over a plethora of options in Durant. read more

We got the carne asada plate to go with flour tortillas and a side of guacamole and extra chips and salsa. I didn't realize that the flank steak would be whole and not cut up, so I diced it and put it in the tortillas along with the grilled onions as and a dollop of guacamole. Boom! Instant goodness! The beef was cooked perfectly and a little chewy which is to be expected with that cut. It was lean and tastes good. Rice and beans were good. The guacamole was your standard restaurant-style, good but not spectacular. The salsa was yummy. I just want to mention that we are seniors (as in old, not high school kids) and were surprised at the maskless crowd there (Saturday at 6ish) as if there is no COVID thing happening. The staff were masked and we felt sorry that the customers didn't have any care for their well-being. Good food though. I just wish the law allowed take out margaritas!! read more

We are in Durant on business and found El Kanelo Mexican Restaurant. Great service, Great Food, and 2.99 Margaritas at lunchtime...now I am turning this over to my 9 yr old grandson because he wants to tell you about dessert. Aidyn: I love the "A la Carte" burrito here, when you order dessert; You gotta have that cheesecake, not the chimichanga but the cheesecake, When you order it; You have 2 x 2 items to decorate the cheesecake with, like chocolate syrup, strawberry syrup, And whipped Cream, It's amazing! Ask for Hildegard. He's the best!!! read more

Can I give it 6 stars? Hubby had the fajitas locas and I had the shrimp tacos. Amazing! Our server brought out the Hot sauce and tomatillo sauce and they were incredible. It's hot but soooo worth a little burn. Service was top notch, our server was Leyder and he's phenomenal! Highly recommend and we'll be back! read more

Oh, you can't go wrong! All dinner plates are delicious. I'm going to have to drive 40 miles just to come eat here! Totally worth it. and the tap beer; big cold MUG! Yummmm read more

My favorite Mexican restaurant in Durant! The fajitas are great. My favorite is the carnitas rancheras.

Good food, very generous portions and great service! The prices are also good. Will be back when we come back through this area again. read more

Love this place. Head there whenever I go to Choctaw Casino. Get the ceviche camarones and chile verde. Fantastic!

The best Mexican food in town with great service and weekly specials it's a win win if it's a date night or birthday party stop by for some love read more

Food was a waste of money , server had was ok. The cheese in the enchiladas was like glue!

Awesome food, great service. Civeche was the highlight, fresh and flavorful. Service was quick and we were well taken care of. Salsa is obviously made in house had had wonderful flavor and texture. Guacamole was very tasty, tea was strong and glass was always full. Restaurant was clean, plenty of parking, good selection from the bar This is one of the best Mexican restaurants in southern Oklahoma. We will be back often! read more

good service,good food ,good Ambiance,lo mejor de Durant se los recomiendo el restaurante #1

Ate here today for the first time and WOW I'm kicking myself for never eating here before. I got the fajitas tropical, my dad got shrimp tacos and my mom got tacos carne asada and we were all overly impressed. The chips are so good, too. read more

Lacks flavor, smaller portions for higher prices. Very similar to El Tapatio on West Main.

Truly fresh food. Three of us ate there tonight. Service can't be beat. Excellent food. I do believe everything is made fresh. A big menu! It was hard to decide. I had pollo encebollado (chicken with sautéed onions). A lot of food for the price. Two tender chicken breasts. Their cook knows what they're doing. Never had to wait for refills or the to-go boxes. Waiter was fast and efficient. read more