This was our first stop when we arrived in Atlantic Beach. They offer your typical Mexican fare along with some seafood dishes you won't find in the Piedmont Triad. I ordered the Shrimp Chimichangas. I wasn't particularly impressed because they were skimpy on the white cheese sauce. The shrimp had an overpowering cumin taste and I was not prepared for this. I'm not a big fan of cumin. However the rice was delicious. The chips were very thin, which I love, and the salsa tasted like it had been made fresh that day. My partner ordered the Carnitas. The meat was very dry and he had to really "doctor" it up by adding lots of salsa and sour cream to make it palatable. We were hungry and ate it after an afternoon of traveling in very congested Friday afternoon traffic. It filled our bellies so we didn't have to get groceries until the next day. If we go back I will definitely not order a seafood dish. I will stay with what I know is familiar. They do make a mean margarita. Strawberry, frozen and rimmed in sugar. This was the best thing about my meal. The service was excellent. The staff was friendly and attentive. Honestly, I think I just ordered the wrong thing. read more

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This is my second experience in a row where the chips were burnt. The chicken on both ACP's were completely raw and had to be sent back. The queso was runny on the first and non-existent on the second and I had to ask for more. After sending both ACP's back, I asked for at least one to be taken off the ticket. The server spoke with the manager and said they could not discount anything because they "fixed it". Getting a $53 check for a queso dip, a Dr. Pepper, and two ACP's was the last "wow". I do not plan to be back and wouldn't recommend anyone go either read more

Great food , funny server!! We both enjoyed our meals and the price was amazing. We will be going back next time we're in town read more

El Zarape - Bryan Burrito, massive amount of carnitas!!! - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

First of all new menu, automatic higher prices. All plates were $3.00 higher. Service was okay, meal sizes were smaller. Lunch specials were priced at the regular price before the new menu! Watch out for drink prices!!! $4.65 for TEA not wine or mixed drink! And then the service fee tagged on your bill. We will not be back. Price gouging. read more

Sorry , last visit to El Zarape. The Taco Salad is tanked from my choices. They have replaced or added Crema instead of sour cream. So bland, very minimal beans, with cream now added it looks like all the food floating in oil. Had chips, must have been in bottom of box. Tasted like cardboard. You can tell cheaper choices are being made. The salsa is another issue. Who ever cranked open the lid on the tomato's can could not even puree the sauce. The dishes are effortless, it shows. To beat it all whomever is the preparer and or cook has missed the boat taking ownership of how tasty, delicious, and satisfying the dish he sent out made his customer want to come back again. read more

Slow, discourteous service. In addition, I almost broke a tooth and/or choked on a ROCK in my refried beans. I alerted the manager, who didn't seem to care much and offered nothing. Very disappointing. Left more or less ignored, we were finally able to get our check by flagging down a different server altogether. Not good. Don't waste your time or money. read more

There was one person waiting tables and hosting, but the service was incredible. I got a chicken chimichanga and it was perfect with lots of guac and cheese. read more

El Zarape - El Zarape Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

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Basic and ok in a pinch...but nothing special to go out of your way for. Nachos had only a tiny tiny bit of meat...mostly peppers and onions. A tad of sour cream and smaller tad of guacamole. From the rave reviews we expected better than what we got. As you can see from the photo the nachos are big on peppers plus it had little cheese- like barely any . The price for these was almost $14 - This is in reality $14 for a cup of peppers !!! Very disappointing my husband's quesadillas were more like hot pocket sized- we were both hungry after- over priced and small portions. read more

El Zarape - Fajita Nachos to go - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

We had been looking forward to eating here all day. We got there at exactly 8:30 PM. They close at 10. The doors were locked, which was confusing, but someone (a manager maybe?) let us in. As soon as we walked in, the host started yelling at him for letting us in. No hello, no welcome. Then she looked at us and said, "You can sit at that booth over there if you want," and walked away. No menus, no one seating us. Right after we sat down, a waiter rushed over and asked for our order. We hadn't even opened the menu yet. We said we needed a minute, so he asked for our drink order He came back less than a minute later and asked if we were ready to order (we weren't, obviously), and when we asked for a little more time, he just stood about 5 feet away from our table, staring at us. When he realized we noticed, he walked back over to the host and the other guy, and the three of them just stood there staring at us like we weren't supposed to be there. It was so uncomfortable that we just got up and left. We didn't raise our voices or do anything wrong -- we were polite the entire time -- but it felt like they didn't want us there from the second we walked in. It honestly ruined our night. We left hungry and upset. I've never experienced anything like that at a restaurant, and I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone based on how we were treated. read more

The service was absolutely terrible. we waited forever just to get seated, and even longer for anyone to take our order. The staff acted like we were a burden instead of customers. When the food finally came out (after what felt like an hour), it was cold, bland, and honestly not worth the wait at all. I've had better Mexican food from a microwave. Nothing tasted fresh, and everything was either overcooked or just thrown together carelessly. read more

The food was really good and filling, but there was a surprise survive Fee for my small party, my service was good until the end where I had to wait 10 or so minutes just to receive the check we had to stand up and ask for the check which was inconvenient. And the environment was nothing special. read more

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The service was terrible and the waiter/server was very rude, on-top of that cops came in and the waiter/server was picking their nose twice. Food needs improvement, my food was dry and could use a little more flavor. After being ignored by our server another server came and helped us. I wish I asked her name and what the rude servers name is. read more

Horrible management! We have eaten here dozens of times and will NEVER return. Although service was exceptionally bad this time, it was the management that makes us not willing to return. Service fee and a cc processing fee. It is hard to pay cash because the register wasn't properly stocked. After being ready to leave for a while (seated to paying our bill was 90 mins and this was supposed to be a quick sit down lunch). The manager happened to be at the register. I brought my bill up to pay and he told me to go sit down and wait on my server....this was after arguing with our waiter and wanting to just pay and get out. Lazy and profit driven management as of two days ago. I will never go back nor will I ever recommend this place to anyone ever! read more

Do not believe the hours they post. We arrived at El Zarape at 9:32 on an evening that they closed at 10:00, and the door was looked. We could see customary tables through the glass. It turns out that the manager decided to close early. read more

First time here and probably the last ... best part of the experience was the mango margarita ... my fiancé and I got the chicken enchiladas but I think the flys and fruit flies enjoyed our meal more than we did .. I could see having these if I were eating outside but inside and at the abundance they were lets me know that this place is not as clean as it may appear. Food was just ok chicken was extremely dry even with the salsa I loaded up on it . Our server was decent . If you're going just for a drink I'd recommend it but I e definitely had better Mexican food here in MHC and without the extra unwanted guests read more

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I had called 2 hours before to make a reservation and asked if they took them and the worker said that they did. When I get there for my reservation I was bitched out by a lady for skipping and a worker who said they did not take my reservation Bc it was 'Friday' but it was thursday. they then turned me away. I will never eat here again and the service was awful. read more

Worst service ever!! Sever was extremely rude, rushed us and when we didn't understand the language one the menu and asked for clarification he got irritated threw his hands up and disappeared for 20 minutes. We got our food one to two at a time with a wait in-between. The last person didn't even get theirs because it took so long they gave up. After being blatantly ignored by our server when we asked for refills we had to ask another server for refills and utensils. The food was...okay. Not the best I've had. The ambiance got a little entertaining when the local cops showed up and arrested one of the kitchen staff. Will most likely never return unless invited by someone else to go. Even then I might suggest another place. There were many other things that were horrible but just too many and too much in 2hrs! read more

Arrived hungry on a Friday evening coming to town. Seated promptly. friendly server. Delicious mixed fajitas-huge portion. Will come back for those.... read more

There aren't a lot of restaurants locally, so we decided to try this place because we were hungry from a day at the beach. Upon walking in, we eventually received a greeting from a hostess who apparently did not want to be at work that evening. We were seated right at the front near the door, and were left waiting a very long time before our server even showed up to the table. We didn't take long to order, and even ordered an app of Choriqueso to start with. On a constant basis, we were left waiting for refills for all of our drinks. The queso was so-so, and it took a very long time for our food to come out. When our food finally reached the table, it was not even room temperature anymore. Not even Luke warm. We ordered crab enchiladas, camarones de diablo, and a children's quesadilla plate. None of us, including our child could choke down what was served. Our server again, barely showed his face. We eventually ate what we could stand and paid and left. Please save your money and either eat elsewhere, or go to the grocery store and cook if you have the means to do so. This was a poor excuse for "authentic Mexican", and a slap in the face to your wallet. Nothing about this establishment was even close to a one star. read more

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Service was terrible from start to finish. Waiters are all rude and act like their mistakes are your fault. Drinks go empty and unfilled. The wait staff hangs out at the bar and is more interested in talking to one another than doing their job. A manager is somehow never there. Our table was dirty when we were seated. The food came out fast but that was the only positive thing about the experience. There are WAY better restaurants to spend your money at than at this place. Do yourself a favor and drive across the bridge to eat - you will be angry at yourself for deciding to eat here! read more

Usually love it here but they lost a customer who comes often. We ordered off the lunch menu, asking the waiter several questions about the lunch specifically and ordered the "lunch specials" off the menu at $9.95. i was charged over $16 each meal, a $7 difference on top of the ridiculously high soda prices and "service fees". what was going to be a $25 bill turned into $57. this is the first time i've ever not tipped a waiter, but it would have been very easy to let us know that lunch was not available that day instead of charging us before we found that out. i will say one waiter was kind enough to let me know he understood and wouldn't have let that happen if he was my waiter. so hopefully anyone who goes there for lunch gets someone who actually values SERVICE like him read more

I gave this place two stars only because the lack of taste the speed of my food and the waiter acted like he didn't want to work there today he was dragging his ass really. Si te entiendo que ala mejor no quería trabajar pero no mames trabaja con ganas me preguntas si quiero coca y nunca veniste asta que te pregunte otra ves. I don't recommend this place to anyone unless it's your last option. Or just try @ your own risk and don't forget I didn't tell you so ! read more

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Service was great but food was disappointing. Salsa waaaay too spicy and all food sodium packed.

Sunday lunch, great food and great service. I had the Hawaiian Fajita, which was delicious. I also had chips with salsa, hot salsa, and cheese dip, which were very good. I will be sure to visit again if I ever find myself in this neck of the woods. read more

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The only place in town without a line on a Saturday night. Decent, average, run of the mill Mexican spot. Sitting at the bar was not that great, they do not have a full time barkeep, so we had three or four different servers, basically whoever we could flag down. No biggy. The Margaritas are tasty albeit out of a machine. Decent pour of liquor. I ordered the lunch Carnitas Special, pretty much a chimichanga. Port had decent flavor. I took a picture of their hot salsa sauce, it will curl your toes. I like stuff hot, this was another level. Be advised........ read more

El Zarape - Hot++++++ Red Salsa, curl your toes and eyes bleed hot. - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

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Service was great, food was lousy. I got the three tacos, 1 chorizo way to salty, 1 pork and salt was the only flavor I could taste and steak was inedible had a taste I could not pick out. Even adding the cilantro, onions and tomatillo sauce it was hard to eat. Also got chili reinello which was ok but arrived to the table luke warm. The salsa with the chips was delicious and the beer was cold. They do give you a lot of food. read more

Today our service was excellent. We tried a variety of traditional Mexican dishes, Carne Asada, enchiladas, Fish tacos, shrimp tacos, and it was all wonderful. The portions are very large and we left with five containers full of food. The highlight for me was are the fresh Salsa and warm and light tortilla chips. I tried the guacamole and it was superb. We also had the tongue tacos - a traditional Mexican dish and it was very tender and flavorful. read more

El Zarape - Beef Tongue tacos. - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

Tiffany was the server and she was top notch! Food was delicious and hot and they were packed in that restaurant but the kitchen was keeping up and everyone was pleased. They also kept the restaurant tidy amidst it all!! 5stars and we'll be back ;) read more

Nice little Mexican restaurant find near the beach. Clean, friendly and fast staff. Perfect for a quick fajita fix when surrounded by seafood read more

Great Mexican food. Service was great. The Chili Relleno was spot on! It's been over 12 years since I was here. They haven't dropped a beat. read more

Some of the best Mexican food I've had in a long time! The staff was friendly and efficient. The ambience was great as well.

We are there last night with a large group. They refused to seat us until half our group arrived, even though we had all arrived. First red flag. Then they started bringing food we hadn't ordered, guacamole dip and cheese dip, which we hadn't ordered. We asked and they just told us it was part of the chips and dip you get at Mexican restaurants. Second red flag. They didn't have any wait staff working our group and then pulled our group representative aside and told us we had to order food or leave. Third red flag. Finally they started taking drink orders but didn't try and separate the bills. They did the same with the food orders. When it came time to leave we all had to line up at the cashier and tell Them what we had. The cashier and the waiter didn't speak much English. When I settled out my meal they charged me for drinks I didn't order, food I didn't eat and put a large convenience fee on the bill. I tried to protest but got nowhere. The whole meal was a cluster and the wait staff was horrendous. I don not recommend eating there. If you want Mexican go elsewhere. read more

Great food and service! No waiting and very clean! I had the Steak Fajitas which were delicious and the chips and their salsa was very good! Would definitely recommend! read more

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I went here for lunch today. It was .3 miles away from my house. They serve mexican style food. I couldnt really understand the menu read more

El Zarape - Water - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

The foods great. 5 stars, but ponchos son is a dick, like damn frfr the Texas fajita is the bomb.com Ps. Ryan likes dick pills read more

Glass empty..bc it was so tasty! Have been coming to this place for almost a decade. Classic marg on the rock never disappoints! read more

El Zarape - Glass empty..bc it was so tasty! Have been coming to this place for almost a decade. Classic marg on the rock never disappoints! - Mexican Near Me - Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

worst service ever...we waited in line for 30 minutes and no one even said anything about a wait.

Great place and awesome food! We haven't dined inside yet, however we frequently carry out and have enjoyed the food. read more

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This review is for the El Zarape on Arendell but is relevant because the issue is with the owner of the chain. My family and I had our worst ever dining experience at El Zarape this evening. TLDR; the server was very sweet but the kitchen messed up most of our order, the OWNER refused to comp meals that were inedible or that we didn't receive, and he VERY maturely punched the candy machine when I confronted him inside the restaurant about our problems after he refused to come to our table to discuss. We will never return to any of their locations. We arrived at 7:30pm and waited to be served anything other than chips for about 20 minutes. Once our server was able to take our order things seemed okay; however, we didn't receive any food until 8:30pm and it was only half our order. Some of our food trickled out over the next half hour but four of our meals were either missing items or the beans were ice cold and inedible. One meal came out with flour tortillas (after specifying we needed corn due to an allergy) and when we tried to send it back we were told they couldn't (or wouldn't) remake it. Our server tried to get items removed from our bill after no luck getting the items we ordered, and asked the manager and owner to come speak with us. He apparently refused and left the items on the bill (including the one we had to send back). I eventually got fed up and went into the restaurant to confront the manager/owner myself. When I told him we had been there for two hours, had only received or could eat half the food we ordered, and that I wanted items removed from our bill, his only response was "well I'm short staffed." I explained that I understood that, but didn't want to pay for food we didn't receive or couldn't eat. He twice pretended to remove items and then aggressively shoved the same bill at me and ran away. After the second time of me finding and cornering him to fix the issue he walked off and very maturely punched the candy machine as he walked by, grumbling something to himself. Throughout all of this, the owner was also treating the server horribly while she apologized profusely to us about our experience. We ultimately paid the bill despite our extreme frustration with the owner and his lack of customer service and professionalism, but only because we did not want our server to be stuck with paying our bill. There were several other tables that also appeared dissatisfied and one large group that was turned away at 8pm. I wish we had been so lucky. We can understand mistakes and slow service but the level of disrespect and lack of professionalism was inexcusable. We will never return to any of his restaurants. read more

Food was amazing! Do not get a margarita those happen to be trash. But everything food wise was awesome! Our server was so busy had tables all across the restaurant and was still able to provide excellent care! read more