We came back again on a Friday night. We were seated promptly and our server was very charming and friendly. We started with a Modello Negra and a Corona which are authentic, of course. We then had the Ribeye dinner with shrimp, which is our favorite. But this time we added a side of grilled jalapeños which are very tasty. A lot of great food in this dinner. $62.00 (plus tip) for two dinners and beers. Very good value. Great, authentic restaurant. We will be back! read more

El Potro Mexican Restaurant - Ribeye Y Camaron: Ribeye, jalapeño, sautéed shrimp, frijoles, arroz a la Mexicana, avocado salad with sour cream. Delicious! - Mexican Near Me - Grand Rapids, Minnesota

Best authentic Mexican food in town, they are very friendly and fast they get you seated as fast as they can, when your dinning in it feels like you're in Mexico enjoying real food, read more

Overall I would probably give it a 4/10, service is generally slower than usual. The food definitely wasn't the best. But one good thing is that you get a large serving size for most foods. I wouldn't recommend going here if you are in town. read more

My Mexican-American wife and I have adopted the habit (perhaps call it "tradition") of seeking out a Mexican restaurant the first night we spend in any destination we travel to. We travel quite a bit. So suffice to say, we have visited a LOT of Mexican restaurants. Generally we're not carefully looking for the most authentic, nor do we enjoy high-end or "fancy" Mexican joints. Just run-of-the-mill "strip mall" type of places. El Porto seemed to fit that mold when we chose to visit a friend in Grand Rapids for a couple days. Being somewhat connoisseurs of typical Mexican fare, I can say El Porto pleasantly surprised us. We knew the moment we arrived and were happily greeted by the hostess, we were in store for top notch service. The entire staff, albeit seemingly just a bunch of youngsters, were 100% professional and cheerful. The food was excellent as well - the wife enjoyed her carne Asada and I was equally impressed with my fajitas El Pastor. Both delivered promptly and sizzling (literally) hot. Very tasty. Overall this place gets a solid 5-star rating from a couple discerning critics. Do yourself a favor when you visit Grand Rapids and stop in here for dinner! read more

El Potro Mexican Restaurant - Fajitas El Pastor. - Mexican Near Me - Grand Rapids, Minnesota

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Good food. Great Service. The Carnitas are my favorite. We've eaten in the restaurant and had take out. The food is always fresh and tasty.

Stopped in for the lunch menu. Service was excellent, and the food was very good, will definitely be stopping there again

Great food. Clean and friendly staff. We have eaten there on three occasions and have been continually pleased with service and food.

Whew. This place gives a whole new meaning to hole in the wall as far as the cleanliness aspect goes. There is dried soda dripping on the walls, salsa and grease stains on the sealing and the wall we sat on wasn't finished it just had sheet rock. But the real disappointment was the food. Both my husband and I said at the same time that the dishes we had were the blandest dishes ever. The tacos and burritos had no flavor. Their salsa for their chips was good though. read more

Overall this is a great option in Grand Rapids. The staff is very helpful. The cocktails are good for standard American Mexican restaurant with nice options. The good was generally good. The tamales were very good. The guacamole is sub par. read more

Excellent food! Was takeout only due to covid... Everything was packaged well and Everything was fresh and hot! We will be back. read more

El Potro Mexican Restaurant - Menu - Mexican Near Me - Grand Rapids, Minnesota

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Consistently excellent Mexican restaurant!! I highly recommend their food, especially the El Potro Cheesesteak!

The menu looked good so we thought we would try it. I was disappointed. The inside was blah. Just a regular restaurant, the only way you could tell it was Mexican is a few pictures & music. My husband got a rib eye, & most of it was fat & gristle, I got Texas fagita & the meat was very rubbery & hard to chew, very little flavor. I gave it a 3 because the drink was good & service was friendly. read more

Had one bad experience here when the waitress was rude, but we all have bad days! Every other time all of the staff has been incredibly pleasant! The food is delicious, I love their nachos! read more

This was a wonderful Mexican spot! Quick friendly, service and a very yummy meal! Portioned just right! So many times you get way too much at other Mexican restaurants, this one has it down to the perfect size!! I'd love to stop again sometime when in the area! read more

The food is great. I love the chile relleno. Served me fast and decent prices. Will be back again.

Great placa , the food was great not only flavorful but also Hot! The service was outstanding ! Would love to go again when in town !

If you find yourself up north with a craving for authentic Mexican food, I suggest you look no further than El Potro. Family owned and operated, the staff is friendly and helpful. The menu is substantial and filled with familiar favorites, but also some dishes with a nice twist to them. A full bar is available and service was quick and timely. I enjoyed their complimentary chips and homemade salsa. Nice flavors, spicy, but not too hot. My entree was the fajitas-style enchilada, with chicken. It was very good sized and sided with generous portions of guacamole, pico, lettuce, and sour cream. A very fresh and generous meal for a very reasonable price! Worth a stop if you are in Grand Rapids for sure! read more

Only ate here once but favorably impressed by quick service to our large group. Plenty of chips & salsa and margarita special. Not sure where else on the Iron Range you'd find this equal to the sort you'd find in the Twin Cities. read more

This is my favorite Mexican food in all of the upper Midwest! The food is always fresh, and the staff is so friendly. Miguel, the owner, is a great person and will no doubt stop by your table, introduce himself and make small talk to ensure you're comfortable and satisfied. The menu is amazing! You won't regret stopping in for a bite! read more

Great food, came out very fast. Good environment and very respectful and kind workers

After years of having only the tex-mex options at passable family places like Applebees, getting a Mexican place in Grand Rapids was a nice change. Since it's opened, most everyone who's been there has absolutely loved El Potro. I know that more often then not, when I go out for dinner, I end up there. The service is just fine, the food is great, and it's one of the most reasonably priced sit down restaurants in town. I've never left unsatisfied. read more

I can't say this was the worst I've eaten, but I don't think I'll be going back. I must say this place has been successful for quite a few years in a location where before things came and went, so maybe my experience was just an off one or maybe others enjoy this version of Mexican. The free chips were good the salsa tasted like cut up tomatoes, no flavor at all. That went double for the food. I ordered a plate of chicken nachos for my meal and this thing could not have been blander if they served me a plate of white rice. The hot sauce on the table was about 1/2 gone when I was through trying to get my meal palatable. The food did not make me sick like others have commented. The server we had was nice and the service was quick, but that's not enough to get me to go back here. read more

I've only ever been here twice. I used to live in Grand Rapids until I moved to CA. I got food poisoning both times. The first time I thought maybe I just had eaten too much, but not two times in a row. I have a really tough stomach, and can handle very spicy/ethnic/rich.. etc food. I went back after the second time to let the manager/owner know, but they didn't seem to care. Oh well. I don't live there, and when I visit I simply won't go. Also- bad service the second time we went. I was a server for 5 years, so I'm very forgiving with service, but it was abysmal. read more

I wrote a good review for El Potro a couple of years ago, but the last time I ate there, I got food poisoning, so I can't bring myself to go there any more. read more

Flavorful meals, huge portions. The food came out quickly and was hot. Menus were very dirty and we washed our hands after ordering and before we ate our chips..attention to this detail would have made their review higher. Food was good, great service, large portions, just not the cleanest place we've eaten at. read more

The food is always good and tastes authentic. I eat here a lot and never have I gotten food poisoning. I definitely recommend the cheese dip. The free chips and salsa are always delicious! My favorite thing to order is the lindos special. read more

Great for lunch- free chips and salsa. The only Mexican restaurant in town, it's doable. Definitely not gourmet, but the waiters are nice.

Years ago, after having spent some months on the Mexican border of Nueva Laredo / Laredo, Texas I was MORE THAN SURPRISED to return to Grand Rapids to find El Potro in town, serving-up the same great flavors and authentic dishes. You cannot go wrong here. Plus, the margaritas are phenomenal. Bon appetit! read more

So, I keep telling myself "ok the food will be better today" And Nope.... disgusting! Don't eat fajitas, terrible . The enchiladas... lol. My 8yr old could have done better. Rice & beans are edible. Don't know what the deal is but maybe you need a new cook! And for Pete's sake clean the walls & windowsills as well as a competent contractor to help with all the half ass remodeling... lol. read more

Excellent Mexican food. We drive from Bemidji (far exceeds Mi Rancho)! Lived in Southern California, know good food when we eat it!

We do not recommend tonight we found. A human tooth in the free salsa the chips were stale the service was terrible and the way they handled the human body parts was obserd read more

If you can get past the cheesy decor, the food is pretty good. Fast service and friendly staff make it a yes.

Decent service slightly better than average Mexican food. I went here twice and ordered two different lunch specials. The lettuce is your typical pre cut ice berg strips and the neat gets cooked a little dry. Overall it is still very satisfying and decently priced for the amount if food you get. You get free chips and salsa before your meal as well. read more

Delicious food! Very reasonable pricing! Lots of selection! Fast service! Hilarious wait staff!

Extremely slow service!!! Our party of 3 arrived at 6:15PM and were finally leaving around 7:55PM. Chips and salsa were pretty quick and drinks were just a little slow. However refills were a miss. Upon receiving our drinks, we needed just a minute longer to make an order as only two of us were ready. Roughly 10-15 minutes later, our server returned to take our order. She stood at another table with a tray full of dirty disheS talking, and talking, and talking. By the time we ordered, we had heard an "I'm sorry" at least twice. Our food took a little longer than average, but nothing too extreme. A friend joined us as we received our food and ordered within 5 minutes. His food came out in a decent amount of time. Now, for the checks... what a nightmare! When our friend received his food, we asked for two boxes and all of our checks. We did not receive our checks until after our friend was completely finished with his meal. A four top that had arrived at least 20-30 minutes after us were already finished and ready to leave. As the server said we paid at the table, we handed her our checks and waited her return. The four top next to us however, got up and took their checks to the front where she processed their checks while we continued to wait and wait. There were two servers on this Sunday evening. Our server had at least 80% of the tables and the other server, much, much less. They needed to either balance the table outs one for one, or bring on another server. Having worked in the industry for many of years at an extremely busy lounge, the amount of tables would be a cake walk, WITHOUT any complaint. Our server was way over her head and by the end of our meal we had heard an "I'm sorry" at least 10+ times for any given reason. Twice she said "I'm sorry, I got caught up talking". Really?! Not something a table is going to be understanding of when they've been waiting for your return. Our visit a week prior was not any better for service. My husband and I waited for our server to return for over 15 minutes after finishing our meals and needing boxes and a check. There was one other single top in the restaurant this day. The two servers were busy cleaning bar signs in the windows and seemed completely aloof to the needs of their customers. The food is great! The chips and salsa are incredible. The service..... NEEDS VAST IMPROVEMENT!!! read more

Friendly and fast. Salsa and chips first: great salsa! Had quesadillas mexican: ham/cheese/tortilla and 2 chicken tacos. Topped off with a pitcher of beer. The food was okay but the service made up for the quality of food. read more

This is a wonderful option for food in the Grand Rapids area - delicious complimentary chips and salsa, and a large menu offering options for all kinds of palettes! read more

This used to be my favorite restaurant, but as of late has dropped down the list. They used to put enough white cheese sauce on top of the chicken chimichangas. The last 2 times I have been there, the amount of that cheese sauce has been a lot less. The first time it happened, I asked for more and they had the guts to charge me $4.00 for them being chintzy. So, the second time, I asked first and they said that is all you get unless you pay the $4.00. Trust me folks, this cost you far more than you can imagine because I do indeed tell everyone I can about this and I myself have cut down to about 1/3 of the normal times that I used to eat there. The customer service response to my complaint and comment was pathetic at best. read more

When going to el potros be prepared to be ignored, then be told they don't have answers to simple questions, then get wrong items, then be told tough s**t you are paying full price for everything. We were there for almost TWO hours and some of our party didn't eat because they never got food or never got right food. Will NEVER go back. read more

the fajitas, guacamole, and salsa we fresh and excellently prepared. the wait staff were gracious and offered suggestiins for accomodating our vegetarian prefernces. loved it. read more