We ordered food so I can't speak to the service or staff as it was delivered but the food was wonderful. Everything we ordered (rice, beans, guacamole, salsa, chips, tortillas, enchiladas, and pork) were all well seasoned and a perfect hint of heat that adds to the food instead of masking a lack of flavor. read more

Really beautiful restaurant but the food is really bland. My wife soup was bland, my tamale and Chile relleno was bland also. Being a Latino myself the food was very disappointing read more

Dine in experience is good but takeouts experience has been awful the past three times. All three times they have forgotten item or messed it up when it says on the receipt and I drove all the way back to the restaurant dress for them to make me show the dish that they either messed up or that they forgot to put in the bag. As if I'm going to drive 15 minutes again just for a free chimichanga. Then when i bring in the messed up order she dissected the burrito to make sure i wasn't lying. Not to mention, when we were leaving there was another customer returning with an incorrect order. read more

Horrible! Deserves zero stars. We have been to El Molinito twice as it is close by. Both times food & service was bad. We went again last night as one of our guests wanted to try it. Just walking in was bad- hostess looked at us and said your table is over there then walked away. There was an error in one of the orders which took 2 requests and half the meal before resolution. We never got our check so went to the register. Two women were standing there talking, ignoring us. Finally, one looked at us and barked out our total- no receipt to look at, no questions, etc. we were ignored, poorly treated, served awful out-of can food, stale chips and everybody was rude. We will never go back though it is walking distance and will pass the word to all we know. Nasty! read more

We ordered a family pack for 10. It was so small. It did not feed all of us. We ran out of taco shells. There was no guacamole. We ordered the same thing from the Pantano location 2 weeks ago. We had so much more food. It fed us for 3 days. And it included guacamole. Very disappointed!!! read more

I just had El Molinito cater my father's birthday party and I was very pleased! First of all, I found them super affordable. Under $600 for the deluxe, plus drinks, set up, tear down, for 40 people way out in Catalina! I thought that was going to be tough, but nope, no problem. Next, the food: we are all Southern Californians, so we don't know much about Sonoran Mexican food. YUM! The beans were oh so good! The shredded beef was divine. HUGE amount of guacamole and sour cream. Fruit changas for desert? I never heard of them, but they were super yummy. And finally, major shout out to Andy, the manager of the Oro Valley restaurant. He came out in his own car, set everything up, then came back and took away all the dirties that night. He even brought containers for leftovers (which we totally devoured the next couple of days). I'm really happy with this place. Will head there to the restaurant next time I'm in Tucson. read more

Food is good. Everything else is lousy. Ordered a five person taco kit, and a pint of guacamole around 3:00 for a 6:00 pick up. I'm sure they didn't start it until I paid at 6. Ready at 6:20 (waiting with 7 others in the small room for pick-up only since the dining room is closed. No social distancing going on here). Slow behind the counter. Get home to find out my five person make your own taco kit comes with a whopping 7 shells. And about 2 servings of beans. My pint of guacamole (not cheap) was a half-pint, the small size. I do like the food but am always disappointed with this location. The one on Ina is a million times better. read more

I suggest a name change to something more descriptive, like "Lukes." Our food was luke warm. The two servers and hostess treated us with a luke warm coolness. The salsa had zero kick (luke warm). The food was meh... I see no reason to return. A waste of time, money, and caloric intake. read more

Love their beans and enchiladas. Quality is consistent. I have eaten here many times since they opened. I am a fan and recommend it highly. read more

El Molinito - Cheese Enchiladas with a side of refried beans. - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

I was here with a large group in the separate room. I was impressed with the service given the size of our group. There were chips and salsa available. The salsa was pretty good. I had the green corn tamales with refried beans. The tamales were ok-pretty dry though. The beans tasted good and the tamales came with some shredded lettuce on the plate. There was plenty of parking available. There is an outside patio and the separate room could be opened to it. The rest of the restaurant wasn't over crowded. It was ok but nothing special. read more

This restaurant gets 5 stars for the delicious food. The staff is courteous, efficient, and prompt. I have yet to try the margaritas but I hear they are delicious! read more

El Molinito - Lunch. Mmmmmmm - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

Literally the worst Mexican meal I've ever had. Avocados were foul. You could see by the color as soon as they were served - what self respecting restaurant would've even sent them out?? Carne seca was a gross stew, wtf? They put CHEDDAR cheese on their Mexican food - that should tell you everything you need to know. Meat in tacos and flautas was as bland as you can get according to my family. Most food wasn't very hot. Oh, and I guess it our waitress was new because she didn't know squat. Come on folks. Sonoran mexi food ain't hard to cook. How could you get it so wrong. There's a TON of Mexican restaurants in this town. Eat somewhere else. read more

If your looking for sub par service, and food that taste like it was nuked, this place is for you. Growing up eating Sinoran style Mexican food, I had high hopes for this place. NIW my 3rd outing here, and the only taste that's good was the refried beans. Very Disappointed. read more

El Molinito - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

Took my wife to dinner. Business was slow, maybe two other couples eating. We ordered our food and ate a bowl of chips and a cheese crisp, and waiter came back and asked if we were ready to order? We reminded him that he had already taken our order. He looked surprised he walked away and came back with our food about 5 minutes later. Food was cold do to sitting on the counter for 30+ minutes. We asked for our bill and over heard the waiter telling the cashier we didn't like the food. I couldn't take it anymore so asked for a manager and explained everything to him. He said sorry here is your bill for the cheese crisp. He even mentioned that they always have issues with that waiter. He could care less, where did the customer service go? read more

The only reason this got 1 star is because I couldn't give it a 1 star. Absolutely horrible for everything. 45 minute wait before we even got our drinks. Ordered food an hour later. Couldn't get second drinks. Food cold. When we talked to manager he just shrugged his shoulder and said well we are busy. There are too many great Mexican restaurants near here. DO NOT GO HERE. read more

Let me say this business has done a 180 flip in the last year or so. Hats off to management and staff. During covid times, all staff had on masks. Every other table next or across the aisle next to us was closed off. Our table was empty and clean. Staff brought us throw away menu. We got chips with both spicy and mild sauce. We ask for salt and pepper. Our meals were red chili carne chimney with beans. The food was delicious as was the frozen margarita and coffee. I was also impressed that everyone that came in had their mask on until they were seated. I would definitely go back!!! read more

The service is horrible! The hostess just pointed to where our table was and when we get to the table it was higher than the normal tables which would be fine if the high chairs were higher. I went to find her and asked if they had a high chair that would fit and she said no and when I told her we need to have a shorter table so my baby can reach the table as well she got really irritated and pointed to another table. We had to move everything on our own and she brought over a high chair and seemed extremely irritated I didn't grab it. When she brought it to the table she just dropped it and we all looked at her because we weren't expecting that. It was not busy and we were the only ones in this area and she started mopping while we were eating and only in that particular area. It was extremely frustrating to be smelling that dirty mop water while trying to enjoy a meal. Food is always good but service is absolutely horrible!!! read more

Sad to say but this has honestly been my worst experience at a Mexican restaurant. I came here with my family of 4 and the quality of our meals were unfortunately very poor. The enchiladas were terrible, it looked as if the just slapped a piece of cheese in between two uncooked tortillas and put it in the microwave. The chicken is so dry and the beans taste like they are out of a can. Chips and salsa was honestly the best part of our entire meal. I also wont be coming here again due to the table side service its horrible. They came to the table 3 times total. We had to ask for someone to refill our drinks and get more chips. They are lazy. 3/10 recommended. Lastly i went into the restaurant restroom and there was a hairbrush full of hair and a glob of hair in the sink. Disgusting. read more

I love El molinitos. I have been at the one on 22nd St. I have been at the one on INA. Both have great food and great service. I expected the same at the one on Oracle. But sadly it did not happen. I sat for almost 20 minutes having chips and salsa. But in that 20 minutes, nobody showed up to ask me if I wanted food or drink. read more

Bartender has no clue on how to make Margaritas. They were so sicking sweet I couldn't drink it. Ask if she could make another one less sweet. I was worst than the first. Had to ask for water. Had to ask for chips and salsa. She sat down at a table and talked to other employees while we waited for our bill. Had to interrupt her friend pow wow in order to get our bill. read more

This was my third time eating at El Molinito on Oracle for lunch. The service is horrible. I thought they were just slow the last time I ate there but this time was the same. It took 10 minutes to get me a drink or merely a glass of water on a day where the temp outside was pushing 105 degrees! The waitress came by once after the meal arrived 25 minutes after I first sat down. I asked for more chips and they never came. The lunch chicken enchiladas were pretty good but I would rather go elsewhere where they appreciate their customers more. read more

I really wanted to like this place, but there were too many wrongs to justify their 4+ rating. The beans were cold and everything else was just okay. Our waitress was too busy and didn't check on us after taking our order. Waited and waited for the bill. Finally just walked up to the cashier. Dealing with who/what/when/where was not pleasant either. Such a shame. read more

Caca watts food trash what tacos are these? So confused beans are the only good think on the menu

The food here is disgusting. I get sick every time I eat here (usually against my will - friends' pick). There is hardly any meat in the mini chimichangas - it's just some tortilla rolled up. There's hardly any meat in their chicken enchiladas, and their ground beef is absolutely disgusting. they try to rip you off with every dish. They use the lowest quality ingredients possible and the lowest grade meat. Run from here unless you want the runs. read more

We were staying at the El Conquistador Resort and were looking for a good Mexican place close by for lunch. Found El Molinito on Yelp and took a quick drive over. I found the restaurant to be appropriately clean and well-staffed. Our service was excellent at midday on a Friday. Dani gave us great recommendations on the margaritas (try the Cadillac!!) and our entrees. He directed my husband to the steak burrito, which was a generous portion with nice, sizeable chunks of steak, well seasoned and prepared. I had the house chicken enchiladas and they were fabulous. I consider myself to be a very good cook and make a mean enchilada, but their sauce and seasoning were terrific. The salsa was fresh and spicy and guacamole well seasoned. We had the lunch specials and the portions were VERY generous. I thought it was a great value for our meal and was absolutely delicious. Bottom line: give the expensive resort food a break and step out down the road to El Molinito for some very tasty food and cocktails. You won't be disappointed. read more

Poor service! Would not recommend! Staying at the Fairfield Inn & Suites next to this restaurant. Went there to get dinner when my knee was torn and could barely walk. They didn't give me any tortillas, which were supposed to come with my carne asada steak, and no utensils. Should have guessed that I needed to check before I left since the guy picking up his order before me was waiting for something they forgot. I ordered there and not on the phone. BIG MISTAKE. They made me pay before they got it ready so I gave them a tip up front when they didn't deserve it. I called to ask about it and they said that they wouldn't have given me utensils anyway. Guess hotel guests eat it with their fingers. Bad service and attitude. Eat somewhere else. read more

We were a party of 15 (mixture of adults and kids). Called a couple hours ahead to make a reservation. Table was ready. Everyone arrived within 5 minutes of our reservation. Smooth arrival. We were seated. We received bowls of their chips and salsa. I've never had a "gringa" salsa that tasted like pizza sauce. Nothing a little salt can't cure, right? Wrong. Still tasted like bland pizza sauce. Weird but whatever. Definitely won't be getting full offa this! Eventually, our server made an appearance and took our drink orders; mixture of leaded and unleaded orders given. And we wait. And we wait. And we wait. Drinks arrive! And he vanishes. Not to worry, though! We were seated on the enclosed patio so getting refills of water myself was a snap with the "self-service" beverage station located mere feet from our table! I think our server offered refills once, well into dinner. One of our friends actually walked up to the bar, ordered another drink, waited for the drink, paid for the drink and returned to the table. Our server never noticed. After another very long intermission from service, dinner orders were taken. Pretty straight forward; no "When Harry Met Sally" sauce-on-the-side or substitutions or anything. And then the wait ... A few rumblings around the table about the service thus far, but we are patient and understanding folk. Food arrives! Yay! Maybe, just maybe, the food will redeem an already disappointing evening... Oy. Not so much. Not only was the "bland" theme carried out through dinner but a couple of our diners received some bonus freebies! At this point, we request to speak with the manager. Let's see... chicken bones found in two dinners (it was explained by the manager that they boil the chicken whole. What the wha?). Another dinner had a part of the chicken I have never, in my 48 years of life, seen - ever. Again, the manager was quick with an explanation. I couldn't take it anymore so I explained to the "manager" that we are a group of friends who have been in the resort/F&B industry for 25+ years. Because of our experience, we can either be the most forgiving or the most critical of customers. This time, I choose... critical. Damn straight! We continued to explain that not once did our server apologize for anything. Not the constant -obvious- long wait times. Not his lack of attention to service. Lack of character. Nada! I don't even blame him for the food quality, he didn't prepare it. The manager's response... Can I buy you all a round of margaritas. Um, no. We're done. So he says we can show our server how we felt about service when we tip him. Really? We weren't even fishing for any comps; just a simple a-pol-o-gy. Look it up! It's a pretty valuable word. I've never stiffed a server, and didn't break my vow this night either. However, I hope my pittance of a tip conveyed to our server that his manager needs to hold his staff accountable for their actions, and that there is much opportunity for improvement for all. read more

They are nice people and their food is fantastic but there food prep is terrible. Especially for takeout. My husband has to go to the restaurant to order and then they get the order wrong three times before they got it right. He has to go in there because the last several times he ordered over the phone they got the order wrong. Their patio would be heavenly if they would cover it and pick up the trash around it. read more

Nice restaurant in a nice neighborhood with very average food. My husband and I had the chili Colorado and the guacamole tostada. The guacamole tostada was reasonably sized with a good amount of guacamole on it the problem is that it lacks seasoning therefore it was very bland. The chili Colorado was overcooked the meat was dry and the Chile bitter. I like the Molinito son 22nd much better. read more

My good friend is getting married and the couple had their rehearsal dinner here. They have a great backroom for large parties. I'm guessing that all in all, there was about 60 people approximately. The food was buffet style with all the favorites, chilaquiles, rice, beans, mini-chimis, beef tacos with sides of cheese, guacamole and lettuce. The tables were prepped with salsa and chips when we arrived. Their specialty is margaritas and they have a bunch of different ones, like the a prickly pear (very sweet), mango, strawberry and of course the traditional. I enjoyed a frozen, mango margarita. The mango puree wasn't overpoweringly sweet and I could taste the tequila, which is always the testing factor as to whether it is mostly fruit or a good marg. :) A few things worth noting. For alcoholic beverages, we bought our own drinks at the bar. This works nicely, because everyone can take care of their own bill and get a drink at their discretion. The bar is toward the back of the restaurant, so it was very close to the large room. The large room led out into a patio. Although we didn't use this option, they have the window/garage type doors that open out to the patio, so if the weather is nice, you can actually have your party spill out onto the patio! For some reason our table didn't have silverware and we had to ask for it and they never brought it. Not a big deal in my book - they were pretty busy. They let the couple bring in cookies for dessert. That was great! They asked if we wanted coffee but it took so long to brew that by the time it came, it was time to leave. I felt bad about this! Other than that, I recommend this place for a big party! Also, not sure what kind of dietary options they have! read more

Second visit to this new location. Ordered different items. The Chili Relleno still had the seeds and membrane inside which made it VERY HOT! My wife complained to the waiter who got the manager Victor. His explanation was that the cook insists on leaving the seeds in and he has had others complain too. We lived in Mexico for six years and never had any cook leave the seeds in the chili. The manager did take the chili Relleno entree off the final bill. Waiter service was slow. The water, salsa and chips was fast, but food ordering and drink reorder was slow. Salsa was excellent, hot and spicy. Tacos were tasty, but soggy on one side from sitting in juice on the plate. We watched and waited for this restaurant to open with hopes for great Mexican food. Turns out it is only average fare, like so many others. The margaritas are very good, so this place is best for drinks with chips and salsa. Go somewhere else to eat. read more

El Molinito - Seeds and membrane left inside the Chili Relleno. - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

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The worst food I have had in years. And don't bother ordering the margaritas, they were disgusting pre- mixed and not drinkable. Go somewhere else...anywhere! We will never return. read more

El Molinito - Disgusting flavorless food. Don't bother "eating" here. - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

I love the beans at this place, but now I have had the best chimichanga of my life! Went here with a large party (13 people including kids) and we were seated in the side area with no problems. Service was pretty good especially with keeping our chips and salsa refilled. The salsa was so good and spicy which seems to be lacking in so many restaurants in NC. Spicy in AZ means SPICY! We started with the cheese crisps, very greasy but very cheesy and good! Can't have too much though, but good for an appetizer. Now, the chimichanga.... I got the shredded beef chimi topped with enchilada sauce, cheese and sour cream. It was a thing of beauty and was just as good as it looked! I will be craving this thing until I make another trip back to AZ. Take it from 5 in our party.. this is the thing to get! A star got knocked off because some of the silverware that was wrapped in the napkins were filthy, like not cleaned at all and my Dad got completely the wrong order. He didn't send it back because he didn't want to have to wait for it to be made again. He ended up getting the same thing as my stepmom which was the Ranchero steak chimi (or something like that) and they both said it was gross. They tasted mine and loved it of course. I was a happy camper, too bad all of our party wasn't. read more

I recently had a baby shower for my daughter at the Oro Valley location. I cannot express how amazing everything turned out!! The two ladies (servers) that were there to assist us were so nice and always asking us if we needed anything to let them know!!! They were Awesome!! The food was delicious!! The service they provided was excellent!! All our guests were very happy and had a great time!! Thank you so much!! I highly recommend this restaurant for parties!! They'll take good care of you!! read more

I'm Hispanic so I grew up with amazing food at home which causes me to be very critical of Mexican food. This place has an amazing taste on CERTAIN dishes. Example: enchiladas, beans & rice. There are other times that DO NOT TASTE authentic such as the salsa, hard tacos and taco meat which feels like it's out of the can. Overall it's a great experience and the food is good. I wouldn't return on a non regular basis. read more

El Molinito - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

Delicious and great Mexican restaurant!! I was traveling for work and this restaurant was next to my hotel. I was hesitant bc I saw the Yelp overall stars. I started to read the reviews and saw 1 person gave 2 stars for loudness and service ( on Cinco De Mayo). So very glad I came to try it out for myself! Service was incredible from the moment I walked in (I came in on a Wednesday night). I was greeted with not 1 but 2 smiles. Was seated and with in 1 min, Mary (my server) came to grab my drink order. Not knowing what was good, I asked her recommendation. She recommended the Cadillac Margarita and it was strong and delicious!!!! I ordered the chicken fajitas (picture below). My drink arrived in less than 5 minutes. Food in less than 15min. There was so much food, I couldn't finish it and it was so very delicious! I highly recommend this place for - fantastic, well made food, and delicious drinks all at an incredible price! read more

El Molinito - Chicken Fajitas! - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

We have been eating at this restaurant since it was first open. We just ate our last meal there. The quality has been going down hill for the last few months, but tonight it was terrible. We ordered by telephone, repeated the order for accuracy and went to pick it up as instructed. The order had not been sent to the kitchen. I reordered on the spot then waited until it was prepared. Hurried home and found that my wife's meal was not what we ordered and missing half the order. Called them and got a run around. My meal was awful. The rellenos were like left over cold pieces of chili, the seeds had not been removed, and they were not prepared correctly. They tasted like somebodies left overs. I threw them away. The rest of our order was not what we ordered. Now the worst thing that happened was that when I called to discuss my less than satisfactory meal with the manager I was put on hold and then hung up on. Calling back they never answered. This was our second serving of a lousy meal. We overlooked the first time believing they just had a bad night. After tonight we are convinced that management is completely missing. I suspect the health department would not be happy with the kitchen. read more

My hubby and I just moved to AZ from Cali 6 weeks ago. We've been searching for a great Mexican Restaurant to rival our favorite in Huntington Beach -- Mario's at Five Points Plaza. El Molinto fills the bill! We were seated promptly, chips and a big bowl of salsa arrived practically at the same time we sat down, and our waitress ANDREA was there to tend to our questions about the menu. She was knowledgeable, efficient and very pleasant. We ordered a small pitcher of really, really good Margaritas (on the rocks) for $16. The glasses arrived full of beverage, along with the pitcher! That was a first for us. We decided to try one of the house specialties the "Molinito Asada Special" for the very agreeable price of $11.99. What a feast! Think fajita platter but with steak and "Chilaquilas" (which is tortilla strips in a red enchilada sauce) with a fresh slice of avocado and tomato on top, along with a separate plate of pico de gallo, rice, refried beans (which I believe were freshly made), lettuce, grated cheddar cheese, and of course, tortillas to place it on. This was amazing and yummy! What a bargain for the price. Too much food for me to eat, but my husband managed to finish his. We will definitely be going back, asking for Andrea's section, and also taking our visting company there for dinner when they are in town. read more

El Molinito - The "Molinita Asada Special" at just $11.99 was a WONDERFUL meal. There are two shown here. - Mexican Near Me - Oro Valley, Arizona

Worst experience in a long time. We went in at 8:30, half an hour until closing. We asked are you sure and ordered bean burritos. I could make those in 5 minutes. These arrived cold, but not just cooled off. These were cold beans and seemed like they had been taken right out of the can. The cheese did not melt, anywhere. The enchilada sauce was also cold and I'm not talking about room temperature. Maybe our mistake was going in there after the cooks were cleaning up already, but the few waiters in the place were just standing around. When we went to pay, up to the register because no one brought the check, two people had to go look for the manager. He said we should have sent it back. Maybe. I don't think they would have ever come though. So, this place really is just as bad as everyone says. Also, sending food back kind of defeats the purpose of eating out. read more

The refried beans are creamy like butter. We ordered the steak chilaquiles which was drenched in cheese and was delicious. We also ordered steak fajitas Meat was cold on the inside but seasoned well. read more