Jake English
Dr. Greene…read moreComposition I
July 6, 2015
El Sombrero
If you're ever in Statesboro, and are looking for a great dining experience, then I would recommend "El Sombrero", not only for their delicious variety of Mexican food, but also for their great hospitality. Everything about my evening at the restaurant persuaded me to go back in the future. This two-story restaurant serves a variety of customers from a peaceful family, to a crowd of rowdy college students. There are several establishments that offer cuisine, but three of my friends referred me to El Sombrero, so I took their recommendation. They gave me great advice.
Whenever I go out to eat, usually with my family, nine times out of ten I'm going to go to a Mexican restaurant. The endless supply of chips and salsa, and the gigantic amount of alcohol they give you in just one margarita are some of the reasons why El Sombrero attracts money-saving college students. Also, the two-storied design allows college students to go upstairs and eat and drink and keeps them separated from families who may be disturbed by loud college kids. When I asked the manager where the college students usually sit he said that the restaurant was arranged with an upstairs bar and one on the bottom because they wanted to attract college kids, yet they also wanted to serve in the community. Statesboro offers three locations to eat at so it shouldn't be too hard to find.
Another reason to patronize the restaurant is that it is walking distance. Following the suggestions of my friends, I asked for a seat upstairs. As soon as I was seated my waiter brought out the free freshly made chips and salsa, as expected, and then asked what I wanted to drink. Being a teenager I ordered a Coke and asked for a bowl of jalapeño queso. Thinking about texture of the gigantic sized, salted chips mixed with the delicious jalapeños queso makes my mouth water now. I was not disappointed with the dip, it was hot and the perfect consistency. As I examined my surroundings I realized that in every corner of the room there was a flat screen T.V. awaiting my attention. The service was great. When I was almost done with my first coke, the waiter came up and asked me if I wanted a refill. The hospitality of the waiter is a major reason why I would recommend this joint to anyone looking for a nice dinner. When the waiter asked me for my main course, I ordered the steak fajitas with red and green peppers, onions, rice, guacamole, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, pico de gallo and flour tortillas. It didn't take very long for my food to arrive, and the visual display of the steamy fajitas coming out only added to the excellent tasting dish it was. The quality of meat was outstanding; it was fresh and perfectly seasoned.
My waiter said that a common dish that people get when eating at El Sombrero is the Burrito California. This dish is served with either steak or grilled chicken, onions, black beans, white and yellow cheese and El Sombrero's green tomatillo salsa. Other popular dishes served included are the fajita quesadilla and the enchiladas super rancheras. I was on a dinner date with Tori and ordered the fajita quesadilla with grilled chicken. She loved it, as did I.
Everything physically about El Sombrero screamed out its Mexican ambiance and it was appealing to me. For example, the visual display of red clay tiles on the roof, the traditional tan coloring on the walls, Hispanic music playing throughout the restaurant, all the things that you would expect at a Mexican restaurant were present. Whether you want take out, catering or just to dine-in, El Sombrero offers it all. The only issue that I experienced was that, like all other popular restaurants with good food and service, El Sombrero gets pretty crowded on certain days during peek hours. With the idea of crowdedness, the factor that comes into to play as well is parking. When I asked my server when it typically gets crowded, he told me the weekends are without a doubt the busiest business hours. Not knowing that prior to when I ate there on Saturday, it was my luck that it wasn't too crowded.
Looking at the reviews on Yelp for El Sombrero, if you want to have a nice, inexpensive peaceful lunch or dinner there are three locations in the Statesboro area, go to the El Sombrero in the old Publix shopping center behind Hardees. If you are a college student and want to be surrounded by people your age, and don't want the hassle of parking, go to the one on Fair Road. It is open until 11:00 P.M., which comes in handy if you are busy studying and can't eat any earlier. Food related almost all the other food critiques agree that they serve excellent Mexican food.