The award for "stingiest with rice" goes to this place. I could count how many grains of rice. Paying $15 and upwards for a dish and can't give a single cup of rice? Or even a half cup? Give me a break. I go here once a year and every year I'm reminded why I don't go back. The food is bland with no flavor. And I'm hungry after I leave. The service gets a star but that's the only saving grace here. The ambiance is nothing special but feels kinda stuffy inside. There's no good Tex-Mex in Purcellville. The other place is even worse. Shame. One decent Mexican place would dominate the town. Otherwise this place is a ghost town and I see why. read more

Simply incredible! From the food to the service, El Ranchos doesn't let you down. The chicken chimichanga is a go-to and is very filling!

Great Food, excellent services good prices Every time I go there We have a very good time read more

We gave this place a shot one Monday evening when we were thing to decide on someplace different to go than our usual places in Purcellville. While it wasn't awful (at least some of the food was good) I do wish that we had gone elsewhere. Granted it was a Monday evening around 8:00 when we came in (they close at 9:00). We walked in and the place was empty except for an elderly gentleman sitting at a table drinking coffee. We stood there for a couple minutes waiting to be seated but nobody came. So we were about to leave when the elderly gentleman noticed us and asked us how many. We had thought he was customer! So he took us to sit down. The staff seemed surprised by our being there and the whole experience was awkward. Like we were on display or something. Everyone was nice enough... but we got a lot of focused attention since we were the only ones there. So service... friendly... attentive... but awkward. The food, however was just not good. The chips are like the ones you eat with nachos (hard yellow and crunchy) and the salsa was bland... like plain tomatoes were just crushed up. And we didn't find out until we paid (never really saw an itemized bill so honestly I don't even know what we paid for) that the chips and salsa are not free like they are at every other Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. I feel like that should be explained up front since it is not the norm. Also, it is cheaper to order one taco than it is to order a "kids taco"... which makes no sense?! Speaking of the taco... the beef taco was just not good. I'm not sure what they do with their meat, but the seasoned beef seemed like it was saturated in some red sauce. My daughter loves beef tacos but she took one bite and didn't want anymore. I agreed with her once I took a bite from my taco salad.... Which was a whole lot of lettuce and very little else. The enchiladas at least, were good... according to my husband and son. So it wasn't all bad. But I have to say, we will probably never go there again and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Especially when there is another decent Mexican place in town. read more

Well prepared dinners and sides. Moderate price and excellent service. Excellent fajitas.. read more

A place where you can enjoy some good fajitas, enchiladas, burritos and chimichangas.

It was ok. No love in the food. If you want cheese & beans it works. I didn't like the chips. They don't taste like they're made in-house.

Had a great dinner there with our extended family. This place has a great family atmosphere. Our server Norma was awesome! We had a variety of dishes and they all were very good. I would highly recommend El Rancho not only for the food but also for the great family atmosphere and service. read more

No way I will ever go back to this place again. I won't recommend it and I'm surprised it's still in business. The food is terrible, service is weak. I'm sorry to say it, but thats a fact. It's too bad they don't put much love into their work. For those praising this place, it's obvious they have no idea what Mexican food should taste like. What a shame read more

We love this place! Very consistent in deliciousness. Chips and Salsa (included with takeout when you spend around $20) are homemade and so amazing. Their queso is also great. The staff and kind and friendly. Our go to spot for local Mexican. read more

Good dependable "traditional" mexican restaurant. It's been here since 1988. I do come here often when I have a hankering for mexican but don't want to drive very far. Fast service. Good for families. read more

El Rancho Plus - Nice family run restaurant - Tex-Mex Near Me - Purcellville, Virginia

Authentic Mexican food. Absolutely the best. Wife had fish tacos and I had chicken tostada. Both most excellent!!

What a pathetic excuse for Mexican food. Tostadas were shells with one having a little guac. The other having a little cheese sauce. Soda has one refill. Enchiladas were small and the tamale was pathetic. No husk. Size of quarter filling with a sauce all over it. Guess there isn't a good restaurant in Purcellville. read more

I would rate this Place lower but I can not. Waited well over an hour for food. The waiter did not return until I complained and the food showed up. It might be cinco de mayo but this is ridiculous Food is bland, margarita is bland. Never again read more

**Long, but worth reading through** I would like to first start off by saying I've worked in the restaurant industry for many years early in my career as well as my wife (so like a lot of us, we understand what customer service is and how it should be established within a customer oriented business), and though my wife is from this area, and I am not, she has been to this establishment in the past without any problems.... Until now. The problem happened on Cinco De Mayo, when my wife and I decided to order from this restaurant through Door Dash. I paid for everything in the app seamlessly for a total of $46.73 (Two Burritos, side rice, side queso, and 3 "hard shell" chicken tacos). I get a call from my driver ~55 min later saying my card is declined, which I thought was odd because my bank account posted the purchase, and I said there must be a mix up so the restaurant had me call them and they were saying they were getting a card decline, but I seem to never get a call directly from my bank or an email saying anything was fraudulent. They asked me for my card number one more time, and POOF, everything magically went through. **This is a mistake on my part where I should have asked for the total that was being charged of me and what they were exactly charging me again for since the Door Dash payment already hit my account. Simultaneously as I hang up the phone, my wife tells me El Rancheo charged us now ~$74. I immediately call back and now get a hold of the manager (older gentleman) and I tell him there was a mistake on their part that they charged me more than what the original amount was and he said they charged me the correct amount. I went back and forth with him for about 3 min (with the driver now at my front door) saying that I was already charged by door dash and they not only double charged me, but charged me $30 more than they should have. I asked him to repeat the order to me and he stated it was (Two Burritos, side rice, side queso, and 3 hard shell taco Chicken SALADS). I told him I didn't order hard shell taco salads, just hard shell tacos. I told him I would bring the food back to refund my money or make the order right and credit the difference, and he has the audacity to say that the food is already made and he would not refund my money because then he would be losing food and money. I couldn't believe what I was hearing and told him that was not my problem and to make it right. After ~3 more min of back and forth he then says "It is busy right now, I don't have time for this" *CLICK*, he hangs the phone up on me. I was beyond furious at this time and had the driver then meet me at the store with the untouched food. I met this same older gentleman face to face at the front counter and showed him my door dash receipt of what I ordered and backed up what I was saying. He then told me his same line "I'm sorry there is nothing I can do, I made the food already and will lose money on this, sorry there's nothing I can do!!!" After 2 minutes of arguing with him furiously, he went a step further and said "I'm done with this, don't have time for it" AND WALKS AWAY TO THE BACK... Then this woman immediately in a business suit comes to me asking what the problem was, I explain the situation, and SHE TELLS ME THE SAME THING HE DID in that there is nothing they will do for me. I told her I'm not paying $110 for a $45 meal and demand my money back!!! After 3 minutes of arguing with her back and forth she finally takes my card and voids the order, takes the food, and told me to leave the store and they they refuse me service while also saying they will not be doing anymore business with Door Dash. I am only writing this because this is not how you treat people. My question is "What if my wife and I dined in the restaurant, and they god our food wrong or there was a bug in it for example? Would they say "Well sorry we already made the food and there are no refunds here..."??? This place is sleazy and low, and has the worst customer service and was nothing going out without a fight from them trying to steal my money like they were..... read more

It pained me to give a star after the treatment I received here tonight. I would like to base this review solely on my treatment by the owner although the food certainly is a disappointment, I expected that. Living in purcellville, you don't have many options for eating out. I stopped by with my 11 year old daughter tonight after yoga because I was craving a beer and some chips and guacamole. I've eaten here in the past with my family and knew it wasn't mind blowing authentic Mexican but was ok with that. Our guacamole was NOT fresh by any means. Not one chunk of avacodo in it. Smooth and glassy with the funky taste of preservatives that premade guacs have. The chips are not fresh or house made either. My daughter was pretty upset about this but I told her to stop complaining and eat it. When I received my dish I took a bite and looked down at my plate to see a stink bug nestled in the center of it. Living out here I am aware that stink bugs are everywhere but needless to say I couldn't bring myself to chow down thinking about it spraying its stink. I sent it back with the waitress who acted very surprised that I would ask for a fresh plate instead of eating it. I waited 15 minutes for a new plate. I took a few bites but wasn't very hungry by this point. I received the bill and saw that I was charged full price $16, for my dish, which was overpriced without the added bug. I never complain at restaurants because I don't like to make a scene and I worked as a waitress for years and hate those people. This is the first review I've ever written. I decided to politely let the waitress know at the check out counter that I would pay for the meal but that I was surprised to not even receive a discount on my dish that was returned with a bug. The owner joined the waitress and told me that he knows my type and can tell I'm just trying to get a free meal. He said he could look at my face and see that I do this everywhere that I go. I was in shock and tried to explain that he was wrong and I couldn't believe the way he was treating me. The waitress said that the bug had probably come off of me. I said that I was going to write a review and the man told me he didn't care about my review because they serve 1000 people a day. He told me to pay my bill and leave his restaurant because I wasn't welcome there. All of this in front of my daughter. After being accused of just trying to get a free meal and everything else this jackass said I was so angry I could barely think of what to say! I walked out of that place so pissed, shocked and disgusted. I've never in my life felt so mistreated by a business. I can't believe they have remained in business as long as they have. I urge everyone to take their business elsewhere to business owners who respect their patrons. read more

El Rancho Plus - Look closely and you'll see the stink bug I was accused of "planting" there for a free meal. - Tex-Mex Near Me - Purcellville, Virginia

What to say about El Rancho? This is a small town Tex-Mex style restaurant, I've eaten here dozens of times for lunch and dinner and the food and service have always been above reproach. Everything I've order has been good portions and good flavored. The service is always a quick as you'd expect depending on the crowd size. I like bringing my out of town guests here, the atmosphere allows for chatting and the food is worth sharing. They handle medium sized groups with no problem. The food has always been consistently good and well made. Bottom line is I will be going back and if you are visiting this place is well worth a try. read more

All right -- I've read many of these reviews here and I haven't found them to be that bad. We are transplants from Texas and have enjoyed "Tex-Mex" style food for decades. We've now been here for over 8 years and have been eating at El Rancho Plus dozens of times. We find the salsa quite good -- certainly not the best, for sure, but decent. Same with Chile con Queso. I really like the combination dinners or platters: Rancho's Fiesta is one of my favorites - combination of cheese enchiladas, rice/beans, and a tamale. Now, being an old Texan, I know good tamales - in fact, I've been in search of authentic tamales for almost 30 years (since I left the small West Texas town I grew up in). I haven't really found them and certainly the one's here aren't them either. But again, they are decent. Enchiladas, tacos, chips, guacamole & salsa -- the basics, are good, not great. For Purcellville or this part of Loudoun County, I think they are fine. Seems like authentic Texas-style dishes -- which, may be an acquired taste? But one-star? Not in my opinion. read more

about as tasty as frozen tv dinners. Being from CA I LOVE Mexican food. This place is worse than any place I've been to, anywhere. Guess I'm stuck with Taco Bell's version of Mexican for now. read more

Not the best and certainly not the worst! The portions are HUGE so I'm not sure what another reviewer was talking about saying they were not. Maybe we're different sizes? Anyhow it's definitely a decent meal if you're craving mexican, I mean really what are your options out this way anyways right? If you're looking for cheaper head to Taco Bell. We both ate for under for under $20 and left stuffed. The service is good and prompt. The people watching on an early Sunday lunch rush was pretty entertaining. Talk about twilight zone! I'd return if I were in the area! read more

Update to previous review. Better than before. I still can't believe all the bad reviews of this restaurant. My husband and I just had an early dinner there (7pm). The place was packed. When we arrived there were only two tables available (this is a large restaurant). Obviously, there's something here. On my previous review I discussed the tacos and how this place would rank up next to Texan tex-mex. This time, I'm raving on the steak fajitas. Just raving!!! Exceptionally tender steak, marinated in deliciously earthy spices, and then cooked to perfection. Here's some of the best I've had anywhere, including Mexico! If you're trying to decipher the mixed reviews, go to El Rancho and order these fajitas. You won't be disappointed. read more

We are new to town and were looking for good Mexican food. Great food and service!! Will definitely eat here again when we move here.

great California burrito and margaritas, very nice family owned business, never disappointed!

All I can say is YUCK. You might as well go to Taco Bell. Nothing is fresh, it's all canned or frozen. This is by no means Mexican food. If you want good Mexican food and are in the area, drive 25 minutes to Charles Town and go to Mi Degolldo. I don't know what it is, but it doesn't seem that you have to have any standards at all to have a restaurant in Purcellville. I can't believe the residents eat at places that are so awful. Anyone who rates this over one star has obviously never had REAL Mexican food. read more

Chips were very good. My wife and I both ordered burritos that were good. The queso was ok. Service was great. read more

El Rancho Plus - Tex-Mex Near Me - Purcellville, Virginia

This is a hole in the wall joint in a strip mall in purcelville. What a great find! We have been here several times and taken several guests. The food is always hot, fresh and comes out relatively quick. Margaritas are yummy:) read more

I am not sure why the reviews are so critical. No, the food is not the best Mexican, not even close. It is decent and the prices are cheap, we paid $30 for two full meals and drinks. Is a $15 meal too pricey for some people? I think that those people should stick to McD's which should suit their meager budget. The place is pretty good, service is friendly, and the price is right. read more

I'm such a big Mexican food person. Unfortunately everything seemed more like "chain" Mexican than fresh family. Just my opinion. My husband loves the food. Chips were a tad salty for me. Queso was not the typical white but more like velveeta with rotel. Rice was overlooked and just not my cup of tea. I will never deter anyone from trying Mexican...so check it out. Service was fast at lunch time and place was clean. read more

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I like their chicken fahitas. The salsa is fresh and chips are always crisp and tasty. The service has always been kind & attentive.

Well we gave this place a try not expecting authentic but at least tasty Mexican food. The ambiance of the place is cute and was in theme along with the music. Chips and salsa came out and the chips were warm but they reminded me of Tostitos brand and the salsa tasted like pace salsa which was ok but not typical of the restaurants I have been too. Not horrible just not that homemade taste I prefer. My family ordered the taquitos with shredded beef and the oil it was fried in was rancid so the meat inside was ruined too the beans and rice were ok. The beans were dried out and the rice was ok. The steak fajitas were great but "homemade tortillas " were not as claimed but store bought and that's ok just don't claim that they are. The Chile rellenos were ok as well, a little cheesed out for our liking and the child chicken nugget and fries plate were fried in that same rancid oil so not as appetizing for our little one. The beverages were cold and refreshing. The place is mediocre at best. it lacks a little love in the food preparing. I don't think we will be returning to this establishment anytime soon. read more

I love this place - do not understand low reviews. We have eaten here 20 times - always consistent and excellent food. Great service - and it's also (if you have room left) nice to step next door to the ice cream place for fresh ice cream for dessert. El Rancho kicks Chipotle's a--! read more

This is a family owned restaurant. They are very friendly. Their menu is very reasonably priced. The food whether it is take out or dine in is always as we expected. The take out is carefully packaged and perfect when we get home. The complaint that it is not authentic well the chef is the mother of the family and I suggest to you try a few of her specials and you will be convince. Especially on salad a home made jalapeño pepper dressing is great. And the salad is made perfectly with each bite fitting the end of your fork not huge peaces. read more

El Rancho has the best chips and salsa. If you like it hot, ask them for their hot sauce and watch out. Their 3 cheese enchilada's are great with their meat sauce. We've been eating here for 5 yrs and the Mexican food is as good as Colorado and New Mexico. Enjoy. read more

I'm sad to rate El Rancho this poorly, but the quality of food AND service has taken a severe nosedive! Years ago, the food was amazing, and cooked from the heart. Now, chicken is over cooked, dry, and cold. Ground beef is tasteless and the texture is that of what comes out of a can. Wait staff hides behind a lattice fence in the back of the dining area, and stares at you while you eat - I'm sure they're also saying nothing but GREAT things. Makes for an uncomfortable meal! On a more positive note, you will get your money's worth of Tequila in their margaritas! read more

This is my favorite Mexican food restaurant in NoVa. Chips are homemade and perfectly salted. Mild salsa is good but the hot salsa is excellent! I love the 3 cheese enchiladas with the meat sauce. Family owned and run. Prices very reasonable. read more

Having been in the Purcellville area for about a year after moving from Colorado, we decided to try the local Mexican restaurant. My wife ordered the Chili Rellenos and received a plate of sliced green peppers smothered in melted Velveeta cheese. NOT what a real chili relleno is for anyone out there wondering. The food was moderate at best with a high price for what you get. Other than the food, the service was horrible! I had to ask twice before my drink was refilled. Not only that, but apparently you can only have SODA with the kids meals and not milk without being charged an extra $1.50 for a shot glass of milk for your kids. Don't worry though, because they won't tell you it's extra till you get the bill and then they just shrug their shoulders. My family and I will not be wasting our money at this local establishment again. Which is a shame, because we'd rather support locally owned businesses rather than national chain restaurants. Fortunately there are other great restaurants in NoVA worth the time and money. read more

I decided to give this place another try after reading some of the favorable reviews. As a transplant from California who lived across the street from a real Mexican place I consider myself an expert and am usually disappointed with NoVA attempts at Mexican cuisine. If they don't have Menudo on Friday's and Tongue every day then it is hardly authentic. With that said, El Rancho sadly disappoints. We stopped by around 7:30pm on a Tuesday evening and there were only three other table occupied. The décor is outdated and a little too dark for my tastes. Service was friendly although slow considering the lack of other patrons. The only highlight of the visit was the Negro Modela they have on tap. The so called tortilla chips could not possibly be any worse. You could go across to the 7 Eleven and get a better bag of them than the horrible chips they serve here. They are terrible with a capital "T". The salsa is okay but it is on the watery side although it seemed fresh. The chili con queso was also not very good; I get better results at home with Velveeta and some spicy Rotel. Definitely not worth the 6 or 7 bucks they charge for it. I had the Puebla which was a Chile Relleno and Cheese Enchilada. It was passable but sort of resembled something you would get in a TV dinner. Chile Relleno was not breaded and the use of ground beef is a copout - use some real meat in my Mexican please! Not worth $11 for sure. One of my kids had the wings and cheese sticks meal. Cheese sticks were overcooked and it was run of the mill Sysco products. Older kid had the chicken fajitas which were decent although at $16 are overpriced. You can go to Chili's and get better chicken fajitas for $10 with an appetizer under the 2 for $20 deal. All in all this place sucks. It is in desperate need of one of those restaurant rescues where they brighten the place up and fix up the food to be fresher and tastier. Until that happens I will not be wasting my time eating at this place again - I would rather go to Taco Bell than eat here. read more

This was the first time visiting el rancho since moving to Purcellville four months ago. We were very impressed with the food, and the staff. My husband and I both ordered enchiladas, they came out scalding hot and delicious. Tacos were crispy and stuffed full of flavorful juicy meat, and sopaipillas were a great way to top off the evening! Will definitely be back soon. read more

Why oh why didn't I listen to the reviews! This place is just yuck. The salsa taste like store bought and the chips are not even made fresh, probably store bought too. My husband ended up getting BBQ because he was scared after the salsa and nasty, nasty cheese dip, which he said was meh. I had quesadillas that were two slices of crispy tortilla one on top and bottom not holding it together at all which was super hard to eat as it falls apart as you pick it up. The guacamole is not fresh at all, just a waste. I will not waste my money on this again. read more

Sorry - awful. For anyone who has ever had decent mexican food, this place is low on the totem pole and pricey to boot. $16 for fajitas in Purcellville? I used to pay $12 for fajitas in NW DC in a place where the tortillas were made in the restaurant fresh daily, the chicken was in amazing tender chunks, and all served with foam butter. read more