This El Rodeo on Electric Road is part of the Arellano family's local chain of Mexican restaurants, which introduced Tex-Mex to the Roanoke Valley in the late 1980s. The original El Rodeo opened on Williamson Road around that time and due to community demand, the family expanded and operated additional locations across Roanoke and Salem. Their newest and most beautiful of them all, Rodeo Chico, is located at the Daleville Town Center, in Daleville, Virginia. I've had an opportunity of dining and reviewing almost all of them except this one. Today I decided I would go and try this one out. Located at the Brambleton Center, an elevated development in Cave Spring, Virginia, that also includes the Virginia Co-Op Extension, a Recreation Center, and The Bridge Church Roanoke, it is by far their largest restaurant in this area if one includes its extensive outdoor dining area with a solid beautiful gazebo with an amazing view of the surrounding mountains. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place, its creative architectural design, its amazing views, and its high-quality food. After driving in my pearl white Lexus up the hill, I parked in their parking lot in the back and walked around the wraparound porch of their building until I found the entrance. But before I went inside I walked around their extensive outdoor dining area with beautiful views. Once inside a friendly gentleman at the Host's station greeted me and showed me to a comfortable booth next to a window in the bar dining area of the restaurant. The perfect location to be able to capture photographs of their food in natural light. Afterwards I visited their main dining room which was already almost full in the late afternoon / early evening. After I was seated, Freddy who had served as my host, would also be my server. I ordered a large Virgin Mango Margarita to drink, which looked wonderful and tasted marvelous. I enjoyed munching on their basket of Tortilla Chips after dipping them in their red and white salsa as well. Few Mexican restaurants serve the white salsa. For my main meal I ordered the Carnitas, which contained tender chunks of pork and their photo in the menu made them look so good. They came with rice, beans, guacamole salad, pico de gallo and flour tortillas. I drank my Mango Margarita and enjoyed my chips with salsas while I waited and it didn't take long for my main entrée to come out. It looked delicious: both in quality, quantity, the way they were cook and presentation. All of a sudden, after just taking a taste of these carnitas, this restaurant had become one of my favorites Mexican restaurants. My server did an excellent job checking on me to see if everything was all right and check if I needed anything. The amount of food was so generous that I asked for a container to take some home with me. For dessert I had a Flan and it was also large and delicious. The prices were so reasonable and the amount of food so generous and good, not to talk about the exceptional service, that I made sure to leave a good tip when I paid with my Harvard Alumni World Mastercard. In conclusion, I highly recommend this Mexican restaurant for such an extraordinary dining experience that I had today and look forward to returning many times more. read more

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WOW! MY LIFE IS 4EVER CHANGED !! From the moment you walk in and are met with a claw machine, group photo opportunities, and a diligent and friendly staff, you know you're in for a great experience. The walk from the waiting room to our table felt like a magical stroll through the heart of MEXICO !! Better than that, though, was the quick and intentional care of the wait staff! WOW! SO FAST! UNBELIEVABLE CHIPS AND DRINKS ARE THERE RIGHT AWAY! The lighting and music AGAIN made me feel just like I was in MEXICO. We ordered ACP (of course) and midway through our next breath our food was there! So quick, again!! At the sight of our food, we were SO overjoyed that tears couldn't help but flow. I've been to many Mexican restaurants, but can confidently say THIS is the best, most authentic, IN. THE. WORLD. (Even better than Ethiopia!) Would come back! Tengas in bein día read more

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Came in from out of town and saw this spot on top of the hill. So glad I decided to come in and check it out. My waiter was named Nixon and he was so fast it was like he was at the table before I got there. I ordered the Fajitas Texanas. Price was fair and the food was so good, I'll let you judge from the pictures. The place gives a classic Mexican architecture vibe. Definitely worth the 5 stars. read more

El Rodeo - Fajitas Texanas - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

The food and the service is always excellent here! If you ask for it they bring it with a smile. We love coming here! read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

Love this place and their Tacos de Birria! Excellent service and attentive staff. Ambiance is great as well - inside or out. Bean and Cheese dip is great as well. We go here more than we should, actually but the food is very good and we enjoy just being there. Say hello to Eduardo and some of the awesome staff when you go! We call it the Temple of Taco! read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

Food was average. I am leaving this review because my friend and I ate there last night. We paid our check as soon as we as it was brought. We were in a booth finishing up our conversation. Our waiter came by and asked us to leave because they needed our table. That is a no for me. Any of those people waiting in the lobby could choose not to wait. We weren't going to stay much longer. Getting shooed out like that after a $20 meal is a bad look. read more

Yike! Grilled chicken nachos... I was so ecxited about grilled chicken. I wish I could attach a photo. Chips with a TON of cut sauted (zero color, I believe it was boiled chicken cut into strips.) And some cheese sauce. (Just some. Not enough to scoop up in a chip. No lettuce, sour cream...nada. Dry..dry..chicken ...on chips. Silly me. Figured I would go with a Roanoke OG. Nope. Too many other really good places around..Go someplace else. read more

First time visit to Roanoke and to this restaurant. I've been to Mexico a dozen times and live in Nevada where there are many more Mexican restaurants than in Virginia. Surprisingly these were the BEST shrimp fajitas that I've ever had! Hands down, no question. I wish this restaurant was in Reno Nevada! read more

Great food had the 2 combo. Had the chill relano authentic and also the Tostitos with chicken added the sour cream. Everything was reasonably priced waiter was very good., my friend has Cancun We sat outside great ambience, mountains, trees, beautiful read more

Terrible stay away Awful service. Super slow. Bad attitude. Food is average at best not worth it!! Many other better places. read more

During our visit in Roanoke, we decided on this restaurant to satisfy our Mexican craving. Parking lot was very full upon our visit, but we found a spot in the far back. When we went inside, it was extremely noisy and the lobby was jam-packed full. Thankfully our party of 3 was seated after a few minutes. Well, the noisiness continued for our entire dining experience and I couldn't really talk to the people at my table. Even my boyfriend sitting right next to me had to shout in my ear for me to hear him. A lot of people were obviously really drunk screaming, hooting, and hollering. Maybe it's just me, but it seemed inappropriate. It was also hard to communicate with our waiter with the noise, and I was worried he hadn't heard what I wanted. Anyway, the food turned out to be very enjoyable. For the table we ordered a bean dip, along with the salsa blanca (white sauce) and regular salsa. The bean dip was delicious with the freshly fried chips. I'm also a big fan of white sauce, and it was tasty too. For my entree, I got 2 shrimp quesadillas with sour cream. The shrimp were nicely cooked and the cheese was gooey and yummy. My boyfriend got a big platter of steak fajitas which he cleared. It was served with rice, beans, and veggies, along with tortillas. He said it was delicious. His sister got the fried chicken chimichangas, which were also reported to hit the marks. All the dishes looked appetizing, too, and were served piping hot. We probably wouldn't come back due to the ambience. I personally don't like noisy venues, but it was a little crazy how wild the patrons were. I guess it's not the restaurants fault but I feel like when the noisy is that extreme, maybe some parameters should be in place. read more

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I absolutely love this place and the food. This place doesn't play around when it comes to Tex-Mex. Our server Carlos was great. He came when we were about to ask for a second basket of chips and he brought them. He was very helpful and a great overall person. I've been eating here for a few years and it never disappoints. I ordered the Cheese Sauce Enchiladas which comes with a side of rice and refried beans. It was amazing. In the middle of Virginia, this is great! Please give this place some love y'all! -Jacob Moore read more

El Rodeo - Cheese Sauce Enchiladas - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

Solid Mexican food. Can't go wrong. Prices are on par with other Mexican restaurants. Clean and good quality

The wait staff rude and inattentive until they learned I could speak Spanish. Once they realized that, they became very friendly. The food was okay at best. read more

Delicious food, great price and the waiter was very kind. Stopped by for a quick meal after shopping. Waiter was great music was good not to loud. read more

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El Rodeo has always been a staple in our household and they are consistently wonderful. We had a great visit here with family and we all enjoyed our food. If you are a vegetarian, please know that they have their refried beans on their vegetarian menu but they are not vegetarian unfortunately. My husband and I, both vegetarian, just got two modified orders to get around this. I ordered three cheese enchiladas a la carte which were delicious. My husband ordered the vegetarian special number three and substituted black beans for refried beans. He enjoyed his meal but probably wouldn't get it again. He was excited for the chalupa in the combo but it was quite disappointing. The chips and salsa were very good. I'm not quite sure what the white sauce that they brought out was but it had a consistency and taste very similar to ranch, very light. The service was good but we were forgotten about a few times and had to get the attention of servers near by even though they were not super busy. Overall, I enjoyed myself as always and I will be back due to the nostalgia and consistently quick and delicious food! read more

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It's a bit tricky to get into the parking lot. You have to turn in to the plaza and follow the road behind it to get to the parking lot. It wasn't busy when we went but somehow everyone there seemed to be in a bad mood. The hostess was smacking her gum loudly and popping it as we walked in and followed us. No smile, no greeting. All she said was, "how many? In or outside?" She then scurried and dropped the menus on a table and walked off without telling us or seating us. Very strange. The waiter wasn't rude. Still no smile. He was just about business and wanted to take the order and bring the stuff and leave. Definitely a negative vibe the entire time. Sad to say that and then say the food was pretty good. He got the chimichangas and I got the carne asada. Food came out piping hot and quickly. They brought some white and a red sauce with chips. I asked what the white sauce was and was told it's salsa verde(green salsa translated into English) I asked why it is white if it's "green salsa" and the guy just gave me a blank look and walked off. Would I go back... sure. I wasn't expecting red carpet service or anything like that. The food was good but they really need to work on communication and being somewhat hospitable. I personally don't feel comfortable eating at a place where you get the vibe they don't want you there or that you're somehow bothering them by being there. As mentioned before, it wasn't busy by any means so I don't really know what the problem was: the entire place was empty except ours and the table directly behind us... which brings me to why would they put us together if the place was empty and now we have to struggle trying to hear our own conversation because the people seated by us were talking so loud they you could hear them across the restaurant? The place is called el rodeo and has a very tropical Veracruz/Cancun decoration vibe. The way designs were of the desert. Very strange indeed. For those not familiar, it would be equivalent of having a restaurant called the rodeo and having Hawaiian/luau decorations with wall paintings of the Las Vegas. ‍ Service was 1/5 Food was 4/5 Decor was 3/5 only because it made no sense and had nothing to do with the name or theme of the restaurant. They do have a nice outdoor area. I give the experience an overall of 3. It could have been a solid 4/5 if the staff weren't so cold and annoyed we were there. Before anyone says it could be a language issue, I speak fluent Spanish and it was the same when I spoke English or Spanish. The service was bad. There was zero hospitality from any of the staff we interacted with. We never got one smile or greeting coming or going nor did anyone pass by once to ask how things were or if we needed anything except when they dropped off the check. read more

El Rodeo - Menu cover - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

I have lived in Roanoke my entire life and I grew up remembering El Rodeo as a wonderful experience with great food. However the quality has declined greatly over the years and tonight was the night we gave them one last chance, and we will never give them our business ever again. We ordered from Grubhub so we know we can't just simply send food back, but tonight was unacceptable. My wife's entree was so bad we wouldn't even feed it to our dogs. Part of what we ordered never arrived, and my order wasn't much better. I cannot eat cheese, so I ordered something that didn't come with that. Just to be safe, I put in the specific instructions to please make sure there's no cheese because I can't eat it. My entree came covered in cheese, and even though I was able to scrape it all away, the food was so poor that I lost my appetite before I was full. They were also extremely unhelpful over the phone. As a native of Roanoke it breaks my heart that El Rodeo has gone so downhill after enjoying it so much my entire life. Shame on their ownership and management. read more

I love eating here, in particular eating outside. I just love the holiday feel. The menu is extensive and even has a mole. I can't say enough about how impressive each meal, perfectly cooked and seasoned. I come here whenever I want good Mexican food in Roanoke. I will be back. read more

The service was EXTREMELY slow, our waiters were very short with us, and they are very unprepared for large parties. They have also claimed to have a no take back policy. The food was ok but I could not really enjoy it with your slow service. The environment was ok but still the service was not the best i've ever had. And when someone in our party asked for a refund, that stated that that was not possible, which is usually not the case for most restaurants. Also, you guys were not at maximum capacity and it took over an hour minutes to get served, and some items from some meals have been forgotten. Anyways, if you made it this far I would like to say that i had an AWFUL time! And you are lucky that I am not able to give you zero stars. read more

Good food with good service. Glad they started using Coke products. Short wait times and friendly staff

If you like Mexican food, well this surely isn't it ! Absolute worse Mexican restaurant I have ever been to with the most watered down Margarita's I have ever had ! First of all the place smelled like cleaning fluid...and every entree' that went by, including the one delivered to my table, was like a plate of refried slop....gobs of refried beans oozing out of everything with tons of cheese (some melted, some not) over everything... My soggy Chalupa was drowning in refried beans and lettuce and not at all crispy. I couldn't even FIND the Chalupa underneath all that mess. My cheese Enchilada only had melted cheese on top and instead was 100% filled with more refried beans...and was laying in a pool of grease masquerading as some kind of red sauce. Everything tasted the same ! The Texas Margarita I ordered, which in every other place would usually be called a "Cadillac" was incredibly watery...could not taste anything but watered down Grand Marnier...you did not taste any Tequila at all ! Glass had pretty much more ice in it than anything else. HUGE place but pretty empty when I was there for dinner last night..service was less than attentive.... Beyond disappointing. I asked for my check after a few bites. I couldn't wait to leave. The few people here who gave this place some red stars, obviously do not know or never had well made, authentic Mexican food or know what decent service is. Save your money ! read more

This was my first time at El Rodeo. Chips and salsa were brought out immediately after being seating. The white sauce accompanying the salsa was more similar to ranch than the sweeter white sauces at other local Mexican restaurants. Although the waiter took a while to get our order, the food came quickly and was a large portion. The mole sauce was great and corn tortillas were exceptional. El Rodeo is definitely near the top of the Roanoke Mexican restaurants. read more

We had to go to Roanoke to get our taxes done and had an urge to have some late Mexican lunch! So we went down the road to El Rodeo and had an exceptional meal!! Fantastic service! Quality and quantity of the food was second to none!! Please open a restaurant in Lynchburg!! read more

We love El Rodeo! Best mexican in Roanoke! Fantastic service. Hardy margaritas and very affordable. Large portions. Must try! . . read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

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Nachos Texaco Absolutely the best in the country! From someone who lived many years in Texas and California. And have eaten Nachos around the world! Delicious! read more

Food was decent but then came time for the bill. Our table had split checks and then waiter Nixon stood and watched everyone fill out their receipts. Once they were finished he lectured in Spanish that we were a $100 table and we should've each tipped $20. He then told us to go to an American restaurant or cook at home. When trying to speak to a manager on the issue, Nixon rushed into the convo and started lying saying none of that happened and the manager did nothing but let his employee yell at customers and lie. Also, I being the third person had $10 in cash to leave with the receipt but because he decided to take it upon himself to be rude, he did not get this cash. So if you're reading this, next time be patient. Also, maybe teach management how to handle a situation and that it's not okay for Mr. Nixon to talk to paying customers like this. I will never come here again. Also, thanks for the $10 I didn't have to leave. read more

Discriminates against black people. Customer had an experience where they were upcharged a fee because the waiter stated that "Your people don't tip". So make sure you check your receipts or simply choose another establishment to support. Feel free to see photos attached below. I wouldn't support this business and I wish I could put zero stars. read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

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I posted a review recently but forgot to post my photo. Best Arroz Con Pollo in town! Delicious! read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

Large portions and wonderful food. I had the fried chimichangas - 1 fajita chicken and 1 fajita beef. My husband had the enchiladas mexicanas. Food was tasty! The chorizo dip was great too! read more

i ordered a shrimp quesadilla and i got my food. I found a random green bean and a random piece of pineapple. if you have allergies always check your food. the waiters excuse was that the cook was doing a lot and i get that but some people could be allergic to the things that fall into other peoples food. always check your food!!! and very touchy!!! read more

El Rodeo - Mexican Near Me - Roanoke, Virginia

I love the slight variations amongst the local El Rodeo chain of restaurants. They all have the same essential things that make them so popular, but each one has a slightly varied ambiance and cuisine. This particular location has an absolutely beautiful view set up on a high hill. It is a must to eat on the patio when the season is warm. For a brief moment, you feel like you're on a vacation at a gorgeous beach town. Moving on to the food, during my last dining experience, instead of getting my favorite of tacos al pastor I ordered the tacos de carne asada. These tacos are just as mouthwatering and flavorful as tacos al pastor. To sum it up, this place is carne asada heaven! El Rodeo on Electric RD is a fantastic place in Roanoke to simply unwind. read more

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Wow - talk about tasteless food! This was the WORST place we've ever eaten. Came here on Mother's Day and it was busy, but not slammed. Took over an hour to get our food. As we waited we drank our mostly watered down margaritas that were pretty tasteless. My son's fajitas came out almost cold as did all of our food. His chicken steak and shrimp were just as tasteless as the drinkes. My chicken taco salad was cold and the chicken dry and tasteless. My daughters enchillados were also cold and gross. Such a sad experience. I don't normally write negative reviews, but this was warranted. read more

The food is truly excellent, but the service is notoriously poor to the point it stops me from going. You sit at your table, and wait and wait for drinks. I could give this place four, or five stars if the service was decent. read more

I don't get it. When taking an order over the phone, you'd think it'd be common practice to write it down. Especially when someone tells you it's going to be a doozy. Go here all the time. Incompetence at its finest! read more

For so many years now, we have been enjoying the excellent service and delicious food and drinks at this El Rodeo location! Now we miss going into the cheerful restaurant because of the pandemic. Ordering takeout has been efficient and safe. Our food is packed so that it transports well and is just what we ordered! read more

Your basic, generic, tasteless Americanized "Mexican" food. "Mexican" food for people that don't have a clue as to what real Mexican food is - i have pretty much never had a good experience at any of these chain restaurants. As always, you are brought sweet, chunky "salsa" pickd up straight from your local Kroger's store, with thick, tasteless chips to accompany. For us, the food arrived fast, and not to our surprise, it ended up being a straight up disappointment like all of the other times we've ate here. What you are served is basically slop on a plate. I ordered the enchilada and taco, and like always, the enchilada looked like it had been sat on by someone, and resembled more of a pancake in the form of an enchilada than anything. Vegetables and beans tasted like they were straight from a jar, and everything else sucked as a whole. If you want crisp, authentic (emphasis on authentic) Mexican food, then venture on over to Tacos Rojas, it's a very underrated little shop near downtown Roanoke, and they serve amazing tacos, enchiladas, and burritos. read more

I would give 12 STARS!!! The chicken chimichangas are so incredibly delicious and the salsa is amazing as well. Very good service and totally delicious food! Definitely a win and do it again experience! read more

I stopped here tonight despite the reviews and had an excellent evening!! While they were a little short staffed, who isn't these days? My service was great, the waiter was very nice, the food was super quick. The food was totally El Rodeo, which is what I wanted. Had the carne Assada which was good. I didn't love the beans but I am pretty picky about that. They have Monday Mexican beer special so for that. And the VIEW is amazing!! Overall a good evening. I recommend it. read more

I have enjoyed El Rodeo on 419 cave spring for years. The last 3 times I have eaten there the service has been beyond terrible. The waiters have been the worst servers I have encountered. The last two times I have given the servers the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they were having a bad day. They were not very attentive, I had to request refills, had to request boxes and even request the check. When I say request refills, I had to literally get up from the table and find my waiter. Last night I had the displeasure of being waited on by Selvin Ariel R. or at least that was the name on the top of my receipt. My date ordered Fajitas Texanas and I ordered Chicken Fajitas. I did not want the grilled tomatoes in my Fajitas. Everything was going okay. Selvin brought the drinks, but did not bring my dates ice water. Then another person brought the chips and salsa. Then, Selvin brought the cheese dip we ordered. At that point, my tea was empty. Selvin dropped the cheese dip off and walked away. My date went over to another waiter and asked him to bring me a refill and her ice water. Instead of bringing the drinks, I guess he told Selvin. Selvin came over and stated, " Do you all need anything." We stated yes I would like a refill of tea and could we have her ice water. Selvin stated, "Sure, I will bring that right out. Before Selvin came back, they brought our food. Needless to say, I had grilled tomatoes in my fajitas. However, I did not have any chopped tomatoes in my Pico de Gallo. I thought, well I guess he did not understand my request. I picked the tomatoes out and gave them to my date. Tea glass was empty again, but I was almost finished. My date asked me to get boxes for the leftovers because she was going to the restroom. She came back and asked me where the boxes were. I told her Selvin had not returned. At this point she was getting frustrated. She had to go find Selvin for the 2nd time. When she came back, SeLvin came back a few minutes later. Selvin asked what he could get for us. She told Selvin we needed 3 boxes for the food and containers for the sauces. Selvin stated, " I will bring your check too." Selvin brought the boxes and the check. Then, he proceeded to stand there and wait for me to pay the check. At that point, the only thing Selvin had been in a hurry to do, was take the check. It was 8:30pm and they do not close until 10:30pm. Selvin took the check. We finished putting our food in our boxes. I told my date, I have never given that small of a tip. She stated, "I would not have given him anything. I never leave without giving something to the waiter/waitress. I told my date, I know we love eating here, but I probably will not eat there again. This is the El Rodeo Electric at 3280 Electric Road in Roanoke Va. I am not sure what happened to this restaurant, but avoid it. read more