Whenever I come to visit my kids we end up here. The food is always good. Tamales and chile relleno favorites. Cute decor small atmosphere which makes it feel less crowded. The staff are wonderful, kind, funny and always accommodating. read more

Always delicious and great service. Eating here for over 25 years now. It never gets old!

1) The salsa had the consistency of tomato soup with salsa ingredients and wasn't that memorable 2) The chicken I had was okay, but the vague "ingredients on the side" made me feel like I was getting some of whatever was left from something else because it came with maybe 10 plain French fries. The chicken was pretty good though, but the dish itself was just a plain combo 3) I was really excited to try deep fried ice cream for the first time and was extremely disappointed. Either it was made a while ago(like a day or so or maybe as soon as the store opened) or it's never made fresh because the coating was soooo stale and the ice cream was like the ice cream that's been left in the freezer for a while. I only took two bites. But the flavor of the ice cream was tasty. 4) the staff were pretty sweet and it wasn't busy at all so the wait wasn't long for anything. I think gran plaza is better read more

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Went Valentines night, it was very quiet there that night. Food was pretty good, came hot and looked the part. G/f had a "large margarita," which is $15 but it looked like she had a half a gallon of margarita. Server was nice to us, no real complaints about the visit. read more

Absolutely the best Mexican food I have had in twenty years. Fantastic service, ambiance and the food! OMG! Super. read more

El Tequila - Burrito and taco salad. More meat than lettuce! - A Mexican meal featuring enchiladas with cheese and sauce, Mexican rice, pico de gallo, sour cream, chips, and salsa on a table. - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

Great food, great people at a good price in a very family friendly environment. Overall excellent experience. Have been here many times.

Disappointment. I visited with three friends and all four of us felt meh about it.  The margaritas, while enormous, contain little tequila. Two of my friends went for the frozen blended strawberry marg which were just big sugar bombs. Another friend and I went for the traditional marg on the rocks, which tasted mostly like pre-mix with ice.  The "famous" chips and salsa the menu touts are nothing to write home about, or write yelp about in this case. Very basic, and very stingy on refilling the basket even halfway. I guess that's what they mean by "limited complimentary" chips. As for our meals, I ordered the veggie fajita salad, which was a boring mix of lettuce, a few tomatoes, and a few sad soggy sautéed onions and green bell peppers dropped on top.  Two of my friends split the combo fajitas with steak, chicken, and shrimp. The quantity was sufficient to share, except they had to ask twice for additional tortillas. They were also surprised to see it swimming in a weird sauce. Generally fajitas come sizzling right on the skillet, but these had an enchilada-ish red sauce covering everything. Unfortunately, it was worst for my gluten intolerant friend who got sick afterward. Probably from the large non-gluten-free tortilla that came with her burrito, even though she specifically asked and clarified not once, but twice while ordering, to ensure this menu item was gluten free including the corn tortilla. Obviously not. I will never be back. read more

El Tequila - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

This is a solid choice for sit down Mexican fare, the service was warm and friendly, we had the Molcajete, which was delicious (and the chips were warm, always a bonus in my book!) Sweet, cozy little place to sit down and eat. read more

Hello everyone who May read this, and or find it to be a useful when deciding to come here. First of all I've been here a few times over the years, and the food has always been fairly decent with a small local family kind of vibe. However today 08/14/2022 not even an hour ago I came here with a friend, and ordered their staple Tequila burrito with fajita steak and two Chile Relleno.. Unfortunately when taking a bite into this Chile Relleno, I noticed a roughly two inch long pointy thing in my mouth when I started to chew then realized oh goodness this is a full sized toothpick they use to hold the filling in the stuffed pepper.. So not to make a scene I just calmly managed to keep it from getting stuck in my throat, and continued to finish my meal with the friend deciding it best to wait until the server came back. Honestly the worst part of this whole thing came shortly after this extremely dangerous incident took place. I informed the server of this, and she apologized then disappeared for a bit. I assumed to speak to the manager, but eventually returned with the bill. So I am thinking okay, I guess I have to bring this to the manager's attention. Sadly it didn't matter because when I did walk up to speak to the manager he just smiled and said "sorry sometimes the cooks push the toothpicks in too far" I'm like okay..? Well I almost choked on this toothpick, and don't think they should be letting food go out that could potentially hurt someone or worse! He again just said I'll talk to someone still smiling then started ringing me up. Now the bill was only $29+ change to be 100% transparent. It's not like I expected a free meal. The reason I am even writing this review is the genuine lack of care for a customers concern/wellbeing, and thank goodness my friend thought there were two hot so we shared. Since I ordered the burrito, because she is in her 60s and might have had a much different experience if she had gotten the toothpick plate.. Not trying to say people in their 60s are any lesser with such an issue. Because nobody should have to deal with a mouthful of toothpick, but still thankful it didn't happen to her. To wrap this all up I'll just finish by saying this business truly had 0 care for the people who choose to help support local keeping the lights on. Which means I am left making the choice to no longer condone such terrible business practice by eating here again.. Which is pretty darn sad because their food wasn't bad, but service matters.. Also as a side note I made sure to inform the manager that they should take this more seriously because next time they might get someone who isn't so calm finding a full toothpick hidden in their food, and especially in the sue happy world we live today.. Again just smiled saying "yeah yeah I'm sorry I'll talk to the guys it happens" "PLEASE BE CAUTIOUS WHEN EATING HERE!!" if you choose to.. Kass read more

Small town restaurant feel, always great service every time. Consistent menu that you know what to expect, food is good. If you're looking for a sit-down restaurant and burrito this could be a great option in town. read more

Love this place! Took my brother here, he loved it and it's the first place he could get a fried taco and Hot peppers~ we eat here when we can!!! Great family owned!!! read more

I've been a loyal customer for 22 years. Good food at great prices! The staff is also friendly and helpful. Great place to eat.

Such good service, food, and drink. We always go there when other restaurants in town are packed. The food and service is always great.

This is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Northfield and after coming here for several years, I decided to finally write a review. I've never been disappointed here for a meal or drinks. Let's start with the drinks! There is a full bar and the margaritas come in all shapes and sizes. There is nothing like celebrating a happy hour with a gigantic margarita. My tip is usually to upgrade to a better tequila. The beer menu is ample and has all your standard choices. Starting with the food, a lively basket of warm chips and delicious salsa are complimentary. The challenge is not eating too many chips before your meal. The food menu has something for everyone and has so many choices that I try to order something different every time. If I had to pick a favorite it would be the deluxe beef enchiladas, which comes with rice, beans and salsa. The portions are huge and the prices are very reasonable. Finally, the service is always friendly and fast. read more

El Tequila - Super Taco - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

I both my fiancée and I ordered blended standard Margheritas, very good. The homemade chips are awesome and the salsa is perfect! For lunch I had the Seafood Cimichanga, fabulous! She had the standard Beef Chimichanga with ground beef, awesome! Not a negative thing to say...service was top notch!!! Generous portions help...top notch family run small business! read more

Food had no flavor, we were waiting for more than an hour for our food, people that got there after me and my family were getting their food and drinks way before us. would not recommend this place ‍ read more

After getting some room temperature corn-chips and some watery tomato chunks that I guess was supposed to be salsa, my wife and I ordered. It takes talent to make food taste good, but it takes a good deal MORE talent to make beautiful-looking food taste like newspaper. I got a chicken burrito with red sauce and cheese, and the innards tasted like nothing at all. I could feel the food in my mouth but my tongue would not register anything, not even salt. Later, after four different employees asked us if we were ready for our check the fourth actually followed up and we were all too eager to get out of there. Never coming back. What a dump. read more

Nice spot in town. I am visiting from Las Vegas which has its fair share of fine dining but this place is good for its location. The service was ridiculously fast which was a reason for an additional star. There are margarita drink specials as well. The wait staff is super nice and I will definitely be back. Food isn't call home to tell grandma but it isn't terrible and it's worth the money. read more

El Tequila - Beef Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

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Recommended by my friend and not disappointed at all! The steak fajita is definitely a gem and the portion size was amazing! Also loved the chips--taste so good with the dipping and they are FREE! read more

El Tequila - Lunch Steak fajita - A basket of tortilla chips with a side of salsa is placed on a restaurant table with menus in the background. - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

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As I'll try not to mention in *every* review I write, I'm from Texas. Finding Mexican food that isn't deplorable in Minnesota is a challenge. This place accepts that challenge and gives it the college try (get it? Northfield's a college town)! While it's still not quite as authentic as I'm used to, it's great for the midwest. I'm probably giving it 5 stars more out of nostalgia. It likely deserves 4 stars, but I'm so fond of the super fast service, yummy fresh salsa and kind people that I splurged on that 5th star. I like the food, the lunch menu is reasonable, and the birthday party element is great. Who doesn't like wearing a sombrero and having Flan for their 21st birthday? I know I did! Sunday thru Thursday they offer buy one get one for Margaritas!!! They have a punch card for Lunch too, where you have lunch there often enough that eventually one is free. Not a bad deal if you live in town. Bonus: They aren't effing around when they offer a "large" margarita. Seriously. It's like your own personal fish bowl. read more

El Tequila - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

Northfield, MN. Food is good and reasonable in price. Disappointing that the sign by road says "Margarita Specials Everyday", but when inside, margarita specials are only Monday thru Thursday! Even asked waitress and she agreed. Don't promote something you are not going to honor!! read more

El Tequila - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

Had the steak fajitas and they were great. Thank you!! Very friendly staff and we thoroughly enjoyed it as we find it hard to find good Mexican food in MN. This place is a gem! read more

I ordered something so simple and they could not remember it and as well somebody in my party did not get there food!

We were there today and ordered a fajita burrito. They brought us 3 orders that weren't ours. I said, "Where is our order."He said he would bring it right out. Well it never happened. We will not be going back to this place service is horrible. We waited over an hour. They don't even qualify for one star. read more

An extremely popular with students at the colleges. Every birthday, every celebration, every day--"Let's go to El Tequila." I wish I was kidding. I probably ate here once a week or more when I was in college, so of course I had to stop by when I was in town recently. They recently got a new menu, but usually a Mexican restaurant of this type is just about eight ingredients slathered together about 100 different ways. The salsa and chips are good, but not super hot. Actually, none of the meals have a ton of spice, but the salsa is a nice accompaniment to the meal. It's simple, it's good, it's always super fast...what more could you ask for? read more

El Tequila - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

Really gross, and we were overcharged. AVOID It started with the drinks. My wife ordered a strawberry lemonade which looked like they took a regular lemonade and smashed strawberries into the bottom of the cup. After a few small sips, she noticed a strange metallic aftertaste. When the server came to check on us, she sent it back and got a water instead (my wife declined the offer to remake it). My wife wondered if there was soap still in the cup or something like that. Fast forward to the end, and of course the drink appeared on our bill. I asked the server about taking it off and she said "normally I would but my manager is here" to which we replied that we would happily talk to the manager. She left and came back with it magically removed from the bill. I had further suspicions about the bill but didn't bring them up because of how bad we wanted to leave. For example, I thought I remembered my dish being listed as either 11.99 or 13.99 on the menu but came as 14.99 on the bill. One dollar isn't a big deal, but now looking back, and being able to look at menus online, I'm pretty sure they overcharged us on nearly every single item, which helps explain why the server brought us our check in the middle of the meal, explaining "I just wanted to make sure you have this in case there are any questions and if it gets busy" (which is crazy because there were like 3 people in there the whole time we were there - it never got "busy", let alone so busy she couldn't bring us the check). Looking back other reviews talk about them being pushy with the check too. Beware and double-check your bill to the menu prices! The food. For starters, the "limited" complimentary chips are obviously not homemade. They're the extra thick, almost neon yellow type of tortilla chips that come from only the cheapest of quality bulk bags. The "limited" complimentary salsa was basically tomato water - I couldn't detect a single actual piece of vegetable in there. The queso dip we ordered was the same stuff that likely came in a big can that most places serve (not homemade), but even that was chunky because they didn't warm it enough (just a few more seconds on the microwave would have done it). My wife and daughter both ordered dishes with beef. Big mistake. Their taco-style ground beef is a greyish brown paste, devoid of flavor or definition in texture. If you're craving actual crumbly, flavorful meat, this is not it. It was literally a very greasy light brown/grey paste. Almost every dish we ordered was completely covered in what appeared to be great value (walmart brand) Colby and Monterey jack style shredded cheese which had been melted under a broiler or in a microwave. We are from Wisconsin and are no strangers to cheese, but this was a ridiculous amount and a crazy out-of-whack ratio for the dishes. We're used to Mexican restaurants that sprinkle a little queso blanco on the beans when a dish comes with rice and beans, and it's almost a garnish that doesn't interfere with the ability to scoop a forkful of rice and beans. Here we got a blanket of yellow and white cheeses we had to cut through to get to the beans. We were literally pealing off cheese to get to our food. I ordered the Choripollo. From my experience, this should be a mix of chopped or shredded chicken mixed with chorizo, sometimes some vegetables, and sometimes also a cheese sauce. Everywhere else this has come with tortillas. Nope, wrong again. Here it was served with no tortillas (I was afraid to even ask based on how we were being charged, remember I had already seen the bill because it came so early). Here's how it looked it like was prepared: The chef took a piece of a chicken breast, pounded it flat and round, grilled it until there wasn't any juices left and it remained a hard disc, put it on the plate as-is, put a scoop of chorizo on it, then rough chopped an entire medium onion, waved the onion over the grill, then piled it onto the chicken disc, put rice and beans on the plate, covered the entire plate with a handful of wlamart cheese, then microwaved it. To even attempt to eat it, I had to peel the cheese blanket off, dig through all the onions, and spend significant time trying to hack through the hardened chicken disc with a butter knife. Oh, and did I mention how TINY the tables at the booths are? We could barely fit the 4 of us and our plates there. Some how both sides of the booth had to lean over to get to the table. Very awkward. The tables are covered in cloth tablecloths which are covered in a thick clear platic tarp, which extends down to your knees, which if they are exposed, will feel sticky and the thick edge will cut into your leg. Then that tarp is covered with a thick rigid clear plastic type top. How they truly get the tables clean is a mystery. I honestly don't know how this restaurant is still in business. I would never eat there again and never recommend it, not even to my enemies. 0/10 read more

I had a nice lunch plate with chicken enchilada and tamale with a side of guacamole. I especially enjoyed the tamale. I also had a peach sangria which was sweet and yummy. I didn't care for their salsa. The service was friendly and prompt. I would probably go back if I was in the neighborhood. read more

El Tequila - Chicken enchilada and tamale lunch plate with a side of guacamole and a peach sangria. - Mexican Near Me - Northfield, Minnesota

lovely place! good service, nice people, good food for not too expensive. definitely a recommendation. i like the number 30!

Flav-O-Meter rating: 0 out of 10. Go to El Tequila when you need spice-free and flavorless food, along with bland drinks. Perhaps right after a major surgical procedure where the other doctor-approved choice is chicken soup. Otherwise...stay away! Take the time, get a cookbook and whip up your own "authentic Mexican food" at home. You can do way better on your own. The rice had no flavor, just coloring. The margarita didn't even have coloring! The salsa used tomato sauce as a base, and the fajitas were sprinkled with black pepper - the true Midwest spice for the faint of heart (and stomach). I need to drown my sorrows with a blizzard at the local DQ. Adios! read more

El Tequila is pretty decent Mexican food. For Minnesota. Having lived in California for about a decade, I found it somewhat under-whelming, but it was good enough to satisfy my Mexican cravings. Be warned, however, that we once found glass in our rice. read more

This our first time here and I wasn't impressed at first and almost ready to seek another option. The food made up for it. Great flavor, good portions, reasonable prices. Service was good but it would of been nice if our server spoke a little more English. I wouldn't make a special trip to eat here again but if you like Mexican and in the area it's worth a try. Really good food, and the chips and salsa are really good. read more

The food was very tasty... depending upon what you order. The chicken and steak burrito was good but the chicken quesadillas were subpar. Almost looked like different meat was used. Drinks are pricey but good and was let down by the "fried ice cream" as it was really a scoop of ice cream covered in what I'm guessing was special k cinnamon cereal or Frosted Flakes cinnamon. It was tasty but absolutely not what I was expecting read more

Service was good... food... meh. Got veggie fajitas. Pretty sure they used frozen mixed veggies... not to mention they put a sauce over it to try and cover up. Guac was good... the front glass door was broken so they had a piece of wood over door... nobody too the time to vacuum up all the glass pieces in parking lot... kind of set the tone for the meal. Friendly staff. Sub-par food. read more

I loved visiting El Tequila in my college days. Free chips and salsa, huge margaritas (see my profile picture), cheap prices, and friendly staff are a few reasons this joint is popular. The food itself is good, but not exceptional. I usually ordered the chicken enchiladas because anything smothered in sauce and cheese is delicious. Overall, I would describe it as very good Americanized Mexican food - which is great if that's what you're in the mood for! read more

We just moved to Northfield. We love Mexican food and El Tequila was recommended to us, so we gave it a try. And yum!! The food was really good and the portions were huge! We've been back doing takeout and count El Tequila as a favorite. read more

A great place for original Mexican food, I brought a visiting coniseur of Mexican to this restaraunt and he was delighted. The atmosphere is quaint and original, service is excellent and the food is outstanding. Now coming from a person that loves Taco Bell, you know it's gotta be good! Here again, being a transplant from Faribault, there is also another restaraunt there, enjoy! read more

Best Mexican in town. That said, it's a pretty small town.

Best salsa around, possibly the best in Minnesota. Lots of cilantro, very fresh. Also food is always fast, hot and fresh. Service is good. I can even find something on the menu for my picky eater, so this restaurant is a family favorite. read more

Food is delicious, chips and salsa always fill me up fast but I find eating my leftovers later or the next day is still good. I recommend the Camorones Guadalajara, bacon wrapped shrimp. Decor is a little cheesy thus the 4 stars, but the drinks are delicious. I like a virgin mojito... read more

A previous reviewer was right on with the salsa description and recommendation. It is thinner than most salsas I like, but the spice level and the generous amount of cilantro in it made it a winner in my book. I was in a hurry and ordered the two taco lunch special as soon as I sat down. Chips and salsa were brought promptly and my meal was right behind. The food was flavorful, not greasy, and well portioned, and reasonably priced. read more