In a nutshell, this is one of the best Mexican food restaurants you can find. The location of the place is not ideal, as it's in an area of Lafayette that faces a lot of crime and is generally not a place to visit at night. However, it helps the place gain the whole hole-in-the-wall fact. I've been to El Potrillo quite a few times now. Enough to know what my favorite dish is--a white enchilada with Spanish rice. Out of the many times I've gone, I've only had one bad experience where the food was not cooked enough. Not a big deal, in my opinion. The atmosphere at the restaurant is genuine and one of the best out of all the Mexican places I've been to. The pricing is amazing, the service is very responsive (they actually check on you frequently!), and it's one of the best. I have no reason to give this place anything but a five-star review. Thanks! read more

El Potrillo Mexican Restaurant and Grill was a pleasant surprise. I have passed this restaurant for years and never thought to stop, but this particular evening I was in the mood for a true Taco Tuesday which for me means a good margarita and plenty of chips and salsa. My family joined me and the atmosphere immediately felt local and customer focused. The complimentary chips and salsa set the tone. The salsa had a distinct and fresh flavor with a light kick. It did not taste canned, and I even overheard another table asking if the recipe had recently changed. Whatever they are doing, it works. I ordered the fajita quesadilla which was a nice portion and came with rice and beans that were both enjoyable. My margarita was not as strong as I prefer. I do not need to taste the alcohol, but I at least want to feel like I am not drinking juice. My parents ordered the Texas fajita which came with four meats including chorizo, chicken, shrimp, and steak. They were genuinely impressed and said they would order it again. Overall, I would definitely return. This spot earned a place on my list for an easy and satisfying weeknight dinner. read more

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Very nice fajitas and a friendly atmosphere. Service was great, food was promptly served, would definitely go back.

Excellent value for the price. The fajitas were overly generous and very hot and tasty. My only complaint would be the unsatisfactory odor that hits you in the face as you walk through the door. I believe a fresh coat of paint and maybe an air ventilation system could help with this issue. I loved the decor of the restaurant and how attentive and friendly the staff was. read more

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Foods great and service was great and the seating was convenient. What's on the menu today was as good as yesterday. And the service was quick. read more

Authentic with great service. I've traveled to Mexico way too many times to count - multiple times per year for about 25 years, so I'm familiar. read more

What a great place to get a good meal. Waiter was very good and nice. Food was great. Prices were very good read more

Good overall Mexican near interstate 10. I had fajitas and they were pretty decent. Definitely more on the authentic side IMO. read more

El Potrillo - Chicken fajitas - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

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We came to eat here because of yelp as we'd just camped out in our motel. The place was very unassuming - we probably would have passed it by if we were looking without Yelp. However the place was awesome. Ambiance, Food, service and the waiter were first rate. Wife ordered Vegetarian Fajita and I got the Taco Salad with steak. Both orders came out super fast and were piping hot and delicious. We finished with Tres Leches cake that was sumptuous. Wife hit the jackpot with a Two for one Margarita night and I had a Dos Equis. Thanks again Yelp! read more

Very good food. Not overly salty like most of the Mexican restaurants. Great service as well !! read more

Great food great service and affordable. REAL Mexican food and the Best in Lafayette! Very vegetarian friendly

Ambiance is very home style, food is delicious and very reasonably priced. Fast and courteous and have not been disappointed. It's a hidden little gem and we love it. read more

Always good food, fast service, good margaritas and reasonable prices. Haven't raised prices as much as most other local option.

Best Mexican restaurant in Lafayette. We have tried them all since moving from North Carolina, and nothing has been even close to what we are used to. El Portillo is the closest thing in town! We will be back. read more

This is the best Mexican food I have ever had. I know that's a bold statement, but I stand by it. I first ate here randomly six years ago when I was visiting Lafayette. I got the fajitas then, and my mind was blown. For the past six year, I've been thinking about this place at least once a month. When I was passing through this week, I made a point to stop for lunch. I got the Texana fajitas (shrimp, chicken, beef, and chorizo), a tamale (beef), and some sopaipillas to go. I also got a beer and chips/salsa. After this meal, the conclusion was solidified: best Mexican food I've ever had. read more

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With the help of the Yelp app I found this place while visiting the area. After reading the previous reviews I decided to check them out. Gotta love GPS or else I would have never found this place. As I was driving up to the location it honestly appeared closed but there the "open" sign was lit up. I actually drove past the place and proceeded to call to make sure that they were open. The parking lot was deserted. When I walked in I noticed people were inside eating. Not sure where they parked. The decor is bright and colorful. It's what you would expect from a Tex Mex restaurant. We were seated immediately and drink orders were taken promptly. I ordered a frozen strawberry margarita to enjoy. The menu is your typical Tex mex menu. I should note that their lunch specials are offered every day until 3 which was nice. Most of the lunch entrees come with a choice of rice or beans where the dinner portions come with both. I decided on the beef Enchilada and Tamale dinner combo with rice and beans. My son chose the 2 beef taco lunch special with came with rice and beans. We enjoyed the chips and salsa before our food arrived. The salsa was just ok. The chips were good but I honestly would skip them and save room for your entree. The food and drinks arrived quickly. Plates were hot and the food looked good. I tasted the rice and beans first and they were really good. They both actually had flavor. The beef Enchilada was seasoned perfect. The Tamale was really good as well. I almost ordered an additional Enchilada because it was that good. The strawberry margarita was very tasty and wasn't overloaded with tequila. Next time I'm back in town I will make sure to come back here to visit. Also this place is very affordable. I spent $25 for 2 entrees, a margarita and a soda. read more

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In my opinion this is the best Mexican restaurant in Lafayette. The price is budget friendly and all of the entrées are super. My dad is very fond of the trip and Shalott us. I had the steak in the fajitas and also the enchiladas and all of those are very good. I don't really care for the sopapillas. They usually have really good margarita specials as well. The lunch specials are hard to beat read more

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Back once again for my last evening in Lafayette. Food was excellent as usual. The service couldn't be quicker or more efficient. Dinner arrived at the table within 5 minutes of ordering. Complimentary salsa and chips are a winner as well. I just really like this restaurant . read more

I lived in Texas and traveled a good bit to Mexico, so I'm well versed in Mexican cuisine. After Ancestry DNA discovered this 1% indigenous Mexican south of the border blood (I knew something was up) lol because of my love for this great food. El Portillo ranks top in the Lafayette La area for authenticMexican restaurants. read more

El Potrillo - Salsa and Chips - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

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Customer service was okay. Given, we the only ones there at lunch time. However, service was fast and friendly. Food quality was okay. Refried beans and Mexican rice were really good. Taco meat was questionable. Chile Relleno was disgusting because the cheese tasted like Mac and Cheese White Cheddar cheese sauce. Damn. That was the one thing I wanted too. I probably wouldn't go back. read more

El Potrillo - The End. Chile Relleno, beef taco, rice & refried beans. Pretty good. - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

First off I want to correct something said about this place. It is not now nor has it ever been located in the "so call ghetto". It is located on the north end of Lafayette which to my knowledge isn't one big " ghetto". To my knowledge people who live on the south side aren't all living in trailer parks. I decided to try this place last evening after not eating here in a couple of years. Not because of a bad past experience. I'm just not the biggest Mexican Food fan. But just as I remembered from years ago, good service with great food done fast. I ordered the Fajitas Bravas which included chicken,steak and shrimp with sauteed vegetables. It also included Mexican rice, guacamole, Pico de Gallo and re-fried beans. Everything wasn't perfectly cooked or seasoned but it was close. Best fajitas I've had at a Mexican restaurant hands down. Whenever the mood hits me again to eat some good Mexican food I will without a doubt visit this place again. read more

all time favorite mexican restaurant! the food is always hot, staff is always nice, the place is gorgeous! my favorite foods are the tacos de carne asada, beef tacos, and steak fajitas! read more

One of the best kept secrets in Lafayette. Our favorite place for Mexican food! If you're looking for authentic Mexican this is the place to go. read more

El Potrillo - Guacamole and beans. - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

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Tamale, rice and beans was good, however the taco and chips were stale!

A really good, really cheap Mexican restaurant. The staff is patient and kind, and they are very attentive. I love this place!

Uhh no. Why? - Somewhat dirty. - In a crappy part of town. Not safe for women at night. - Food is OK... but there are at least a dozen better Mex places in town that are not in the ghetto... so why go here? Hacienda, La Pagua, Azteca are a few... they are all fab. read more

Cheap, fast, friendly and awesome. This is the home of endless chips 'n salsa - and the chips aren't greasy, thank God. Service is lightning fast & the portions are huge for what you pay. Check the menu for a freaking enormous margarita "for two." Pretty epic. My go-to item here is their Steak Fajita Nachos. Good lord, I could eat some right now. I've had a few other things & have never really been disappointed. But oh my God, the cheese sauce on the Fajita Nachos...mmmmm... Tell them when it's your birthday & they'll bring a free dessert to you, sing, then smash a bit of it in your face while taking a picture of you to add to their "wall of shame." I am not kidding. I didn't use to eat Mexican food very often, but this place is changing all that. Do it! read more

I decided to stop here after seeing all the five star reviews. I'm glad I stopped by as I thought this was an excellent Mexican restaurant. The reviews for this place all say the same thing; that this place is cheap, fast, and good. I was always told when it comes to cheap, fast, and good, to pick two. This is not the case with El Potrillo. It hits on all three notes. It's definitely located in an older, declining area of the city. It's also not the safest of areas. This isn't a place you visit to impress your date. The interior is very kitschy. When you enter the entrance you are met with hundreds of Polaroids. It definitely has its own special charm. I came here with a good friend of mine and we both ended up ordering the same thing, the Fajitas Bravas, which is the combination fajitas. They came out so fast I almost didn't believe it was my order. They were very good. The bell peppers and onions were also good. The refried beans were also delicious. I realize that I'm the first person not giving them five stars. While I think they have excellent food, good service, and great prices, their food wasn't five star worthy. That being said I could see my opinion on this changing and if so I will update accordingly. read more

Service is EXCELLENT. The food however is even better. We had the fajitas for two and couldn't eat it all (but we tried!) I'm from Texas and I know my Mexican food. This is where I'll be headed in Lafayette when I get the urge for Mexican from now on!! read more

El Potrillo - Dining room - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

Amazing veggie fajita I had so far in USA. Very good options for vegetarians. Chips n salsa are good too.

Authentic mexicana comida I got the number one kept it simple .. taco chalupa and enchilada my food was not hot hot like it like it warm but it was still bomb and got Rita's to go no wine based here real tequila! read more

This place is quite consistently delicious! Only problems I had tonight was that I had to ask my for my order to be taken, and remind the waiter about my drink. I can say that it was pretty busy though. Other than that, no real complaints. I always get a quesadilla of some sort and I'm never disappointed. They are on another level of awesomeness! read more

El Potrillo - Can you believe this is a chicken quesadilla? Best one you will ever have! (I opened it so you can get a good look) - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

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We stopped here on a family road trip with a large group, mostly kids. Area of town did not feel sketchy to us, as other reviewer's had said; def more industrial-feeling area. Very close to highway; maybe 2 minutes away. We had some problems placing our order regarding drinks and appetizers...miscommunication? Server was often polite but sometimes seemed indifferent (shrugged when bean dip was covered in cheese and told us that's how they do it when menu made it seem queso and bean dips were 2 separate items). We were unable to get plain bean dip. Quality of food was pretty good. Chips were hot & not greasy! Lemonade was very unpleasant. Good kid menu. Shrimp chimichanga was very good. Chory pollo was good. Chalupa was ok. Quesadillas for kids were fine. Overall, an ok clean place. But didn't wow us and we will probably try a different place next time. read more

Lived in Houston, and have worked in Pecos-Odessa-Midland area for the past year where there is nothing but Mexican food so Mexican food was the last thing I wanted but all of the Cajun restaurants are closed on Sunday. Atmosphere is traditional Mexican inside and the tables had cool Mexican imagery on them. The service here is very good and the people are nice. The salsa had a sweet taste, and was not spicy/hot. It was decent, kind of bland. Ordered fajitas and it came out very good. Usually when I go eat Mexican food I prefer to order a more original dish than fajitas, so I'll have to try something different. If you have ate at several authentic Mexican food restaurants then I would try one of the other dozens of places to eat in Lafayette. read more

El Potrillo - Fajitas, which were good. - Mexican Near Me - Lafayette, Louisiana

Not the same anymore. Food & service could be better. Not the best anymore , in my opinion . I'll have to try again

this restaurant absolutely fucks. i go here everytime im craving mexican. i usually get the churry pollo and it smacks

The place is Ok. I mean, there are so many more good authentic Mexican restaurants in Lafayette that it's hard to rate this place higher. However it's not a bad place at all to have a few margaritas, and your typical, not so traditional Mexican dishes... The pro on this one, it that is pretty close to my house. The Con... well, If you have a craving for some "tacos al Pastor"; you're sh... out of luck. read more

Was good and pleasant dining a few years back. Its very obvious that some business is more welcomed than others, sad to say. Despite being treated poorly we still ordered. Two of us got sick and just never went back. read more

My favorite non-authentic tex mex in Lafayette. The price, food, service, and consistency is very accommodating. I've never been disappointed, I've been going there since 2006. read more

Perfection! Loved the chicken fajita tacos! It is very affordable and big portion sizes.