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    El Patron Mexican Restaurant

    4.1 (68 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Business Info

    EL PATRON MEXICAN RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Outdoor seating
    Good for kids
    Good for groups
    Happy hour specials

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    Recommended Reviews - El Patron Mexican Restaurant

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    Chicken 1 Enchilada and 1 Chile-Relleno. Looks good but not.
    Patrick A.

    Sorry food was not good. Ordered chicken enchilada with a chili relleno. The portion was HUGE. Zero complaint there. The enchilada was acceptable. The chili relleno looks good - loaded but it was mushy and too much batter and the flavor was not right. Beans were bland. Rice was mushy. The service was pretty good. I ate about 1/4 of the plate and left it. They seem like nice people. Maybe it was a bad day.

    Chips and queso.  Queso is a bit runny but with a good flavor with a back spice that hits after you eat it
    Linda S.

    Found El Patron on yelp and went for it. The service was ok. I really wanted a chimichanga but they couldn't accommodate vegetarian even though they had a vegetarian burrito on the menu. My friend and I split the spinach mushroom enchiladas with queso instead of green sauce. The enchiladas themselves were excellent. The sauce was creamy and the filling had excellent flavor The beans were also quite good with savory seasoning. The rice was meh, tasted like a box mix. The queso was ok and got spicier as it cooled which seemed odd. It was way too runny when it was set down on the table. It did thicken with time. We paid separate for guacamole and sour cream which were both good

    Starters always a winner :)
    Joey P.

    My go to place for Mexican food in Waterloo. Very friendly and attentive staff, fast service, and great food. What more would you want when you need a Mexican food fix!

    Amber L.

    We were at a hockey camp and my son wanted Mexican food. This restaurant was right near the rink. We stopped in and were waited on right away. Chips and salsa right from the start and an amazing peach coconut margarita I ordered from the drink menu. The food was amazing! So flavorful and delicious. Plus the servings were huge. We all had a late night snack left over. Please try to get here if you are in the Waterloo IA area. So good!!

    Miguel's Tacos

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    7 months ago

    The Server was friendly, service was quick. We sat outside on a beautiful fall day so the ambiance was perfect. The food was 10/10.

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    2 years ago

    Love the environment and service is great! Their food is soooo delicious. One of my favorite spots.

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    3 years ago

    Just average hole in the wall mexican food. Did what it needed to do. I was full and the price was fair.

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    5 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Authentic Mexican and amazing at amazing atmosphere. True family atmosphere. Everyone feels welcome.

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    2 years ago

    They have gluten friendly options available, delicious margaritas, and a great atmosphere.

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    4 years ago

    Nice people and good mexican food! There are many gluten free options and vegetarian ones.

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    4 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    3 years ago

    The food is great authentic Mexican and the portions are generous. The servers are very friendly.

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    4 years ago

    El Patron is one of those rare restaurants that care more about quality than for the bottom line. Great food and atmosphere. I

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    4 years ago

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    2 years ago

    had a server Sara , best service we have had here and we come here often. great margaritas and food

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    8 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    4 years ago

    This is the best Mexican Restaurant in Town. Highly recommend 100% . Margaritas are perfect

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    7 years ago

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    6 years ago

    Great food and the staff was wearing masks to promote safe dining and a healthy community

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    8 years ago

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    Page 1 of 2

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    El Mercadito - Nice atmosphere. Clean and set up well

    El Mercadito

    3.8(4 reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $$

    I have heard from a friend that there is a truly delicious and authentic taqueria stand in Waterloo…read morethat is connected to a mexican grocery market. She was pretty vague about the location of the spot, so on Friday I kidnapped her and had her help me navigate to the location. She didn't remember the name of the stand, nor did she recall the exact location. After a half hour of roaming through Waterloo, we finally found El Mercadito. I'm a taco purist since living in Philadelphia and giving a lot of business to Taco Riendo. Since moving back to Iowa I have struggled to find authentic tacos. The only other spot I had found was El Super Burrito on Johnson St. in Cedar Rapids. Their tacos were excellent, but they pale in comparison to El Mercadito. I ordered one carne asada taco, and one taco al pastor. Upon receiving the tacos, I was relieved to see it was made exactly how I love them. Corn tortillas filled with succulent steak or pork, and accompanied only by chopped onions, tomatoes and cilantro. It also came with a few limes and sides of red salsa and a salsa verde. The carne asada was delicious. Very tender steak chunks, and the salsa verde and lime was a fine compliment to the delicious and cilantro-heavy pico di gallo. The real treat of the meal was the pork taco. It had a spicy marinade, and it was so soft and chewy. Every bite sent me on a trip back to other delicious taquerias in Austin Texas, or my first love Taco Riendo in Philadelphia. The salsa verde was my favorite. Very spicy tomatillo & lime. The red salsa was also good. It had a smokey flavor that went well, although I could have enjoyed it more had it been slightly spicier. My only complaint about this eating experience is that the option of dining-in was a single picnic table next to the stand. This is my new favorite taco in the state of Iowa. Very authentic, the tacos don't come with the americanized ingredients of sour cream, cheese or anything else you'd find on a "taco" from carlos o'kelly's or taco bell. This is the real deal. Get a few tacos there and it'll change your life.

    Very slow service. Hopefully it's just an off day for this fella. Good chips and salsa when it…read morefinally gets refilled. HUGE platters. Great presentation. Delicious food.

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    El Mercadito - Real Taco's!

    Real Taco's!

    El Mercadito - Will never finish all this.

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    Will never finish all this.

    Amigos Mexican Restaurant

    Amigos Mexican Restaurant

    4.0(61 reviews)
    2.4 mi
    $

    It's been awhile since I've updated my review on Amigos…read more.. Update from our latest visit tonight as it's been awhile since I've posted and we've been here a number of times. The Panther Burrito has become my go to as it's packed with steak, chicken, shrimp, chorizo, rice, and smothered in cheese. The new Birria items were interesting and the Mrs ordered up The Quesabirra which she said were pretty good but she liked other places versions better. The Margaritas always hit the spot too, we had the lime, a raspberry and our friend had a strawberry version. Service was fast and friendly, the place had gotten a mild face-lift since we'd been in last and it looks quite nice!

    We were staying nearby and needed dinner on the Sunday night at the end of a holiday weekend. Not…read moremuch was open nor convenient to this area. We were seated promptly and were served chips and salsa (just ok) but then no one waited on us despite the fact that there were many workers milling around. Actually most of them were transfixed watching the Mexico - USA soccer game on the TVs. Eventually we flagged someone over. I started with a banana daiquiri - not your typical drink at a Mexican joint but it was $3 cheaper than their margaritas... it was quite tasty. I then ordered their two enchiladas combo (one cheese & one ground beef) which was good but nothing special - actually their red sauce was not my favorite. My wife got a platter with an enchilada, a burrito and a tostada - she described it as solid. Prices were typical. I would not rush back.

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    Amigos Mexican Restaurant
    Amigos Mexican Restaurant - Carne asada

    Carne asada

    Amigos Mexican Restaurant

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    El Patron Mexican Restaurant - mexican - Updated May 2026

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