I tried this place for lunch and was not disappointed. The food and service was very good. The fajita steak and cheese enchilada were delicious. Got to my table hot and fresh. The chips and salsa were also good. I was a little disappointed with the tortillas but they weren't bad. Looking forward to going back to try another combo plate. read more

El Palenque - Fajita steak and cheese enchilada - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

This place is always good. Every time I'm in the area I'll try to come here for Mexican food. I love their chicken enchiladas with Verde sauce. Yeah fajitas are always good as well and we can never have enough margaritas. The staff here is friendly always helping you when you need something and the ambience is nice and relaxing read more

$8.50 XL Margartia on the Rocks - watered down $4.00 Bottle of Corona Unfortunately their not so great prices on drinks are a huge turn off. If I'm going to pay that price for a Marg on the rocks it better taste like more than watered down mix with a splash of tequila. The restaurant decor is actually rather, bright, like circus bright? They say colors can change moods and in this case the bright colors I think make this place a rather fun lively atmosphere, but there still is a force to be reckoned with their food. Chips and salsa (served warm) are a hit in my book, but again I'm a chip and salsa junkie and don't quite feel like you could ruin this, though knock on wood I do hope to never encounter such. I ordered the El Tejano $9.95 which includes one cheese enchilada, tamale and your choice of beef or chicken fajitas alongside rice, refried beans and tortillas. I think I expected more with the fajitas. I choose chicken and that is just what I got a piece of grilled chicken that I had to break apart and distribute into my tortillas. Guess I was looking for maybe some grilled onions and green bell pepper, and not just simply chicken? The enchilada and tamale tasted pretty bland, nothing being doused in salsa couldn't fix. In fact douse this whole meal in salsa, which is what I did and I was good to go. The price is definitely not bad for the amount you get, but the quality is definitely not there both in food and in drink. read more

Boooooo their service has gone wayyyyyy down. Very disappointing! Don't go there for the food, margarita's maybe, but food = never again! read more

Nasty nasty me and my wife got food poisoning from here be careful please don't eat hear was in hospital for 3days from eating here

Honestly, the food here was just "ok" I took my daughter and we ordered an appetizer to share and each got cheese enchiladas. Everything tasted like their main seasoning ingredient was straight salt. Whatever, this was our first visit, doesn't have to be a repeat thing. However; upon leaving, we really noticed how unkempt the place was (causing us to toss the leftovers which consisted of basically our entire meal). My daughter had food on the back of her jeans, when we got up to leave we could see the the chair was dirty to begin with. The food on the chair/jeans was not what she had ordered! And the dining had a very sour odor. The only blessing was that we didn't eat our food, we probably would have been ill. read more

Really good food and amazing margaritas. Food always comes out pretty quickly along with the drinks. The margaritas are pretty popular but are strong. My boyfriend and I usually get nachos and a margarita to share since it's usually a pretty big portion size. This by far my favorite Mexican restaurant. read more

El Palenque - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

Busy but great food and drinks. I loved the strawberry margarita. We also ordered the queso and shrimp stuffed m avocado. No complaints. The salsa that comes with the chips is hot and delicious. Overall great experience. read more

I have been here probably 3 times and I have to say thatI really like this place, margaritas are awesomr, beer is good and the food is really good , I highly recommend this place if you wanna try some nice Tex mex food !!! read more

El Palenque - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

Stopped by to pick up to go order of fish tacos and their pollo loco lunch special. "Grilled" fish tacos after a bite went straight to trash, what a waste of 13$! The fish was raw and blue color, gross af. The chicken was alright but never got the rice neither tortillas that supposedly go with it due to the menu. read more

El Palenque - Fish tacos after a bite went straight to trash, what a waste of 13$! The fish was raw and blue color, gross af. - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

Excellent service! We ate outside with friends. Food portion and flavor was outstanding! We will be back!! read more

El Palenque - Brandi Hicks - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

I'm writing this review while still waiting to leave! The food was average, normal priced. But the service has been crazy slow, we waited almost 15 minutes for a styrofoam to go box before finally having to ask someone else. When we arrived, there were no hostesses to be seen. Nobody knew if we had to seat ourselves until they finally came. We are now currently waiting for the check... it's been about 10 minutes so we'll see what happens. We just want to leave and get on with our day! Food isn't worth the lengthy wait for basic service. read more

El Palenque - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

The food was pretty good, reminded me of Chuy's a bit in quality, but the Margaritas were ON POINT! Great place for lunch with the girls:)

Never disappointed! Chunky guac is soooo good!

this is my FAVORITE mexican restaurant. I always recommend it to everyone who wants REAL AUTHENTIC Mexican food. as a Mexican who always eats in Mexican restaurants during special occasions, this restaurant is by far the best. I even sometimes come during my lunch at work. If that doesn't show how quick their service is, i'm not sure what will. I can easily have enough time to sit, order, eat and chat all within an hour. Never had a bad experience here!! read more

El Palenque = The Arena. Here for a birthday party. A couple of their margaritas will knock your D into the dirt. read more

El Palenque - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

Over priced Tex Mex food. They are known around town for their frozen margaritas. They are very tasty, but I don't suggest drinking more than one. They a super strong As for meats, the beef fajita meat is better than the chicken. I recommend the cheese enchiladas, the beef quesadillas and the queso. Nothing too exciting to report here. read more

We ordered take out from the website menu but the price at pickup jumped from $14.40 according to their web page menu. To $20+. When I asked about the discrepancy they just said the web page was incorrect. When I asked to speak with the manager I was told he was too busy. Their customer service is a zero. read more

Sat down for lunch, hadn't even ordered drinks when a roach decided to run across the table... killed it with a sugar packet! ZERO STARS. read more

El Palenque - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

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Had never eaten here before but wifey had and said it was just okay. So my sister and I decided to give it a try for lunch. Was pleasantly surprised. I just spent 10$ and got a great meal that was delicious and more than filling. I usually judge a Mexican restaurant by their salsa and theirs was really good. The rice in these restaurants is usually an afterthought and unimpressive but theirs was really good. My taco had the crispiest and tastiest shell. The chicken in my burrito was nicely seasoned and juicy. I hate it when they just put unseasoned meat in their dishes but this was great. There was hardly anyone in The place because of social distancing and all, so I strongly suggest patronizing them now. Staff was really good and attentive. I'll be back for sure. read more

Before the COVID mess we went here often even supported them with pick up only that being said I have gone for the last time! 2 weeks ago a friend and I went on a Friday about 2:30 got a table in the bar area the restaurant was not busy and they had plenty of staff! The service was awful!! They waiters were standing around on their phones and just talking we had to wave at them to get their attention and had to ask for everything we got they never checked on us and didn't even give us all of our order! I have never not left a tip or written on the receipt but this time I did! No tip and left a message the service was awful. On the way out I saw a manager and he just looked at me after I told him everything that had happened and his reply was "ok"! They have gone up on their prices too! Bad service, higher prices! Hummmmm. I could have understood if they had been short handed but nope they just didn't care and wanted to stand around! My last trip! read more

Favorite Mexican restaurant! Great customer service and even better food. Keyla P. is by far the best waitress I've had thus far and her smile brings great vibes! If you're in this area, this is the place for you! read more

Sunday 11/18/2018 My wife had the spinach enchiladas dinner and I had the Cheese Enchilada dinner with a side of guacamole and one standard margarita. our bill was $40.97(including tip). Very expensive for Tex-Mex! The meal was served luke-warm on a very hot plate...got cold if eaten at a leisurely pace. First, the good: The rice was good, the guacamole was good, but very small amount for $2.99! The Bad: EVERYTHING ELSE ........The enchiladas were "OK" , The refried beans were more like like soup , The chips were tough and cold, The Margarita on the rocks was room temperature and had no noticeable tequila but the glass was cold...NOT GOOD! Overall, a really bad dinner experience and we will not be back. We have tried Las Cascadas on Cypresswood Dr. and WHAT A PLEASURABLE difference......fantastic Margaritas, Smaller, more family atmosphere and much more friendly prices read more

Extremely slow service and the food was all very bland. Had the guacamole- bland. Chili relleno - bland. Salsa - not really bland, but also not very good. Asked for hot sauce and never received anything. Very disappointing experience altogether. Was really hoping for outstanding Mexican food while down in Houston. Oh well. I'd avoid this place like the plague if I were you. read more

My entire experience at this place was a disappointment from the moment I walked in. Upon entering this restaurant, I chose to sit on the patio. This was my first mistake. The service was horrible. The waiter greeted us in a timely fashion and told us he would be right back with menus. 10 minutes later--still no menus. I walked back inside to retrieve two menus from the hostess. This is when another gentleman, I'm assuming the manager, followed me out to my table to bring them. He asked us if our server had stopped by, and I explained to him that we were greeted, but had been waiting on menus for a while. A few moments later our order was taken. The food came a little while later, but was cold. In leu of sending my order back, I ate the parts that were still warm enough to enjoy. I requested salsa, and that took another 10 minutes to reach our table AFTER I asked the manager who brought us our menus, as he was walking by. By this time I was already irritated by two young boys--around 8 or 9 playing an obnoxious game of tag in an already tight space; weaving in and out around other tables and throwing sombreros. I could see other tables were as annoyed with this behavior as I was, so I was quite surprised that none of the wait staff addressed this with their parents. I brought the issue up--and the waiter responded with "I'm sure their parents know they're running." So at this point I've had to wait for menus, wait for condiments, I've had no refills on my drink, my food is cold, and I'm now 5 seconds away from round house kicking some obnoxious children MMA style. I asked for check--ironically, that was the fastest thing that made it to our table during the entire visit. Go figure. I can't say that I'll return. The two stars are for the meal. It wasn't bad, but I'm quite sure it would have tasted much better had it been hot. I'm pretty sure I would have had a better experience at Taco Bell. read more

I don't frequently write reviews, but I felt my experience so exceptional, warranting a review. I placed a food delivery order a couple of days prior with Hugo. On the day of, he called to confirm the order, ensuring the order's completeness. The food delivery was flawless...right on time and everything included. The bulk fajita order (with all of the extras) and frozen margaritas were delicious. I definitely recommend this El Palenque location for your next home get together! read more

One of my favorite Mexican restaurants ever. Chips and salsa are second to none and the food is excellent . Service is fast and always prompt , never go without refills or anything you need. I recommend the pollo loco or the fajitas mixta. Check it out when you can ! read more

Omg one work great! I love there food great Mexican dining and the restaurant is amazing. Love there enchiladas and tamales if your in the neighborhood go on in and true me you will enjoy. Plus great helpful staff One thing I want them to do is sell more authentic Mexican candy and sweet cakes and then I'll be giving them a 5. read more

El Palenque - This drink is the amazing blue margarita try it!!!!! - Mexican Near Me - Spring, Texas

MANAGER ALFREDO NEEDS CUSTOMER SERVICE TRAINING! He just lost 2 families of customers. WE'VE COME HERE FOR approx 11 YEARs NOT for the food but the margarotas & atmosphere. FRIDAY NIGHT AT 9PM, placed a small skinny margarita order, a small itilian margarota and a jumbo margarita. The waitress comes bk w/a jumbo skinny margarita which i didnt order. She then returns with the correct size and says she will charge me $1 extra as well as for the jumbo margarita...why?? The jumbo margarita had nothing to do w/the wrong drink order. Long story short Alfredo, Manager came to take our order. We tried to explain our exoerience but he refused to hear anything we had to say and nly wantec to take our order. We were shocked...what manager doesnt want to improve customer service. We tried to tell him that we were long time customers but he didnt care. We walked out and will never be bk! read more

Bland, chimichanga had lots of meat. Salsa, queso, guacamole all kind of flavorless as if they came from a packet. The guacamole did as it was still bright green the next day. After ordering (visiting area) noticed it was a chain. As much as this cost (soft drinks only) will be happy to not return. Got hit up on car park with a sob story asking for money. Well dressed older man. read more

Always incredible at the location near Old Town Spring. Cold margarita to start you off and then you cannot miss with the guacamole or queso. Fajitas are always A+ or traditional platters with enchiladas and tacos hits the spot every time. If you want consistently amazing Mexican food in North Houston that is 5 stars every time El Palenque will exceed expectations as they have for over 25 years at this location read more

This spot was brought up because earlier we wee at Gringos waiting over a hour to be seated so we found another Tex-Mex spot to eat at. One great thing we called and they told us it was no wait tie so that was good news! Upon arriving we were greeted with nice smiling faces, what a relief, also it felt authentic, now in Florida (where I live) it's not a big Tex-Mex market so I'm not an expert on what it taste or what to expect. Here we sat down and in a few minutes the serve came brought chips and salsa now I will admit it was a little watered down but it still had a good taste, and it had a little kick. However if it was thicker it would have helped. We got a cheese dip, OMG it was a great appetizer, I'm a huge fan of cheese so I was in heaven. Then I order the California burrito, about an 5-6min wait then the food came. The burrito was good, the sauce on top as flavorful, I could only eat half of it because the cheese dip I got to greedy to are more than I should lol but the service was great, my cup never was empty, waiter spoke some English, but hey it made the experience feel as if I was in Mexico I would come back! read more

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Killer margaritas! Great service. Good, hardworking honest people. Was here 9 days ago and had one of their killer margaritas. Just one. Left w just enough of a biz to leave my purse....for two whole days before I remembered where I'd left it! Thankfully the held safe it in a back office. Thank you. Oh and their chips, salsa, quedó and food was pretty fantastic too. read more

Sooooo delicious! The food portions were massive (especially for the price) and the margaritas were SO good! Authentic Mexican food, with awesome staff and a cute little location! read more

Coworkers suggested this place, and I've figured out my standard order for barely standard mexican restaurants, so I decided to tag along. I know people who RAVE about this place. They talk about how wonderful it is, but they NEVER mention they like the food. It's always about how much fun they have there and the great margaritas. Well, I don't drink tequila, so this place has got NOTHIN' for me. The ONE vegetarian item on the menu was spinach and mushroom enchiladas covered in cream sauce. Um, no thanks. I ended up ordering a taco salad (my bad texmex fallback). Not even the guacamole or chips were worth bothering with. I ended up eating a pile of iceberg lettuce with refried beans. read more

Had the margarita and spinach mushroom tortilla. Margarita was on the rocks and delicious. Tortilla was too salty. Salsa was served warm and was really good read more

I've eaten at El Palenque a couple times. The restaurant is decorated in bright colors with roosters all over the place. The staff are dressed in traditional mexican dresses. Service is prompt and friendly. Chips and salsa are good. The salsa they serve is warm and is well seasoned with onions, cilantro, tomatoes and peppers. I had the beef fajitas and my wife had the spinach enciladas. You get a huge portion of food here for a reasonable price. The fajitas were pretty good. Well seasoned and not tough or stringy like some. You get a lot of meat and onions with this selection. I had enough left over for lunch the next day. The spinach enchiladas were good also with mushrooms and cream sauce. The charro beans they serve are not very good. The rice they serve with the meals are good though. I usually don't like mexican rice, but here the rice is good. We also had the nachos palenque which were pretty good. Standard nachos with fajita meat on top. I like this place because it is cheaper than most, portions are huge, staff is friendly and it is close to home. read more

One of my favorite Mexican Restaurants Excellent service and Great food 10/10 The food is so good read more

This place USED to have the best fajitas, chips/salsa & great beans. After a few times of wrong order, food coming out totally not acceptable. Still tried a few many months later & ordered to go. It contained food I didn't order & it looked half eaten & shoved to here. I hope I will have the faith to try again, but it won't be anytime soon read more

Our family loves this place. Always consistent food and service. Fajitas, salsa, tortillas, and Margaritas among the best in Houston. Cost and portions are great. As a regular, our tablet has been visited by the manager for a check in or to ask when are kids aren't with us. Today they sent us some hot queso on the house, just because. We just love this place! read more