The bread pudding was terrific!! Service not so great, our booth unfortunately was located near a swinging door and servers came blasting out with no warning several times in the hour and a half we were there. Beans were super salty, inedible. We mentioned it to the server who said he'd tell someone. Nothing came of that, however. Beans were uneaten and unreimbursed. This was my first visit and I was with friends who'd been there 3 years ago and longed to return before leaving Gainesville. We were all disappointed. read more

Tucked away in front of the YMCA is Nopal! They are an absolutely delicious nacho average Mexican restaurant. The staff is so friendly, the walls are vibrant and colorful and the margaritas are delicious and STRONG! These are the same owners of Cintrón in Thronebrook. We had a huge party of about 15 and the food was brought quickly, it was warm and flavorful. This place also has the best tres leches ever in the whole world! I would come back in a heartbeat and you should try too! read more

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4-1/2 Stars, with the deduction being for our waiter. Watching and listening toniur server, it is obvious tgat we got the odd man out. The staff was very attentive, our guy was a ditz. Nice drink selection with a full bar. The house special margaritas have an orange hint for a little change of pace. The food was excellent. The chips and salsa are not complimentary, but both a red and tomatillo sauce with thick chips was very tasty. For $3.00 I would rather pay for my chips than everyone who eats much more. The entres were very good. Fresh made, sauces were made in house. Great flavor, oversized portions, cooked properly and nice presentation. Kitchen was quick and they were a little over 50% during our visit. Glad we found this location. Not facing the street, so it takes a little attention to find. Well worth it. We will be definitely be back. read more

Went twice in the last 2 weeks. First visit was great (which is why we came back). We had great service, good food, and was just a great experience. 2nd visit was very bad. Carne Asada was had by 3 of the 5 people in our party. All had very tough cuts with a tremendous amount of fat. The meat was mostly inedible and was left on the plate. We mentioned this to the waitress, but there was no action/follow-up. Drinks were not refilled. We ordered the bottomless chips ($3) and were charged a second time when we asked for a refill. When asked why, the waitress said "because you ordered another one." Quality and service of 2nd visit was bad enough where we won't have a third. read more

A short drive away from the UF campus, but a super nice find! Happy hour is from 4-6 and they have some nice strong drinks and bites on the menu! I got the strawberry margarita with the option of making it spicy, and loved it! The avocado Mexican street corn was absolutely refreshing, light, and delicious. I will probably come back and get this dish every single time. Lots of vegetarian options also- we ordered the vegetable enchiladas, which were more vegetable than cheese so definitely felt healthier. My only criticism is they gave us white rice because their Mexican rice is all cooked with a meat broth. I also would have liked more sauce on the enchiladas, still a great find though!! Will definitely be back! read more

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I was visiting family in Gainesville and they suggested this place. We sat outside on the patio which was very nice. Our waitress was very nice and consistent. Our appetizers were the crispy riblets. They are tossed in a sweet tamarind sauce. The taste was very good, but they are VERY TINY and not that many for the price. About 3" or less in length and barely meat on them. It was mostly bones. It's way over priced in my opinion. The tacos Al pastor were okay. They were different from what I've had at other Mexican restaurants. I personally didn't like them much. The pork belly taco was good. Kind of has an Asian flare to it. My daughter said the chicken enchiladas were good. I like that they use compostable straws as I am big on recycling and using less plastic. It was an okay experience. read more

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Food was absolutely amazing. Just moved to Gainesville and will definitely be coming here often. read more

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Went a second time and took my parents. The portions were smaller and lacked flavor. Was disappointed since I thought they would take off but I don't know if I'll be back . Cintron is amazing so it's hard to top it. read more

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I was so thankful for Nopal because it took a reservation for 14 people on a Mother's day sunday and graduation day. To start off, service was great. The porkbelly tacos are definitely a must when coming here. The steak could've used a little bit more of salt but the flavor was definitely on point. The veggies that come as a side were amazing. We all ordered several drinks and they were all great quality and a very unique taste. I think they're menu is a little limited but I also know they are new in town and might want to stick to a smaller menu for now. Left the place super happy and excited to return and dine in their beautiful outside patio. read more

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I have done a great disservice in not writing this review sooner. This is my favorite new hidden gem. I have only dined in once thus far, BUT, I can tell you this place is SO DANG GOOD! A friend and I stopped in for dinner after helping her move & a late but easy dinner. We got here about 8:30 on a Tuesday & they close at 9p so I was not wanting to hold up the kitchen crew & we made some quick selections. Well turns out they were still quite busy inside & out & the weather took a turn while dining so many others were there late too. Now on to the actual review. Walked in, greeted, sat immediately, amazing service. Tuesdays are free chips and salsa (worth it!). Added a bowl of guacamole (amazingly fresh & so flavorful & very traditional no frills) while we made some choices. Tacos are $3 on Tuesdays. $3! After I tasted the first bite of my pork belly taco, I was blown away. So so good. I am a big fan of BarTaco but the closest locations are Orlando or Tampa so that was my comparison of a great pork belly taco but this surpassed my expectation! Plus, supporting local establishments make me happy! The drinks we ordered were a Diablo which was so so tasty. I love mezcal, grapefruit, and a flavored rim so this was a holy grail cocktail for me. I have been craving it again! The old fashioned was also on their menu & smoked glass without us even having to ask so that goes to show the detail in this craft even late in the evening when they could have told us the bar was closed or on limited menu. All of the tacos were awesome. I wish I would have snapped a picture of the menu to share but really we went in expecting some easy tacos and a drink but the food, quality and service blew me away. Please please show some Nopal some love! I have not been to the sister restaurant Cintron yet either but definitely will now knowing how great this place is! read more

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I had been wanting to try this spot since it was in my recommendations on yelp! Checked it out tonight with a few of our friends and the place is so nice! Love the setup, nice and clean-bar is huge and the outdoor patio is nice! Waitstaff was very friendly! We had an array of things from pork belly sandwiches, carnitas tacos, carne asada tacos, pork belly tacos and calamari! You have the option of corn or flour tortillas and I choose corn; I had the carnitas tacos and 1 of my husbands pork belly tacos with a few of his sweet potato fries and it was all tasty! I loved the fact that I didn't feel heavy after eating; food was satisfying yet filling! The pork belly tacos were my fave! It's a must try, I say! I will be back! I see a few other plate options I want to try! read more

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Awesome food great service. I had the carne asada burrito and it was delicious. Beware the salsa picante is super hot!!!

They have amazing choices of Special. I had carne asada platters. Their margaritas price is reasonable and great.

We loved this place the first time so we went again. The nopal sauce on the wings is delicious, we got that as an appetizer. I like the shrimp tacos; I remembered to asked them to take the cole slaw off so this dish was even better for me and my likings. That mango salsa was amazing. The fries were fresh and hot. The shrimp scampi was fire! Once again, I wish they would take the tails off; it sucks taking the tails off while trying to eat the dish. We got 2 mango margaritas since it was happy hour. The staff was friendly. This is becoming to be a local favorite. Glad this place is close by! read more

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Great food and drinks. The snapper special was amazing. The fact that you can grilled nopales as a side is a plus! Well worth the drive from Ocala! read more

This was our first visit. The view from the outdoor patio is beautiful. The Hogtown Creek is right next to the Restaurant. Has a tropical feel to it. Ordered guacamole and chips appetiser. Guacamole portion is a lot. Make sure you order it when you go. I had Carne Asada tacos, wife had veggie tacos. We really enjoyed them as well as the sides. I tried one of her veggie tacos. It was the best tasting veggie taco I had ever eaten. The server was very nice. I would visit again. Prices are reasonable. read more

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The wings are to die for 10/10.. the quesadilla steak was on another level! service was great. Very lowkey vibes and laid back. Sebastian was a great server with excellent recommendations. Sister and mother loved it all. Highly recommended. read more

Ok food nothing to brag about but refried beans are great. Have had their shrimp tacos. Gone twice to see if they improved but noticed portions were smaller especially calamari. Calamari tasted better at cintron in my opinion. Will forgive since they have just started so we'll see how they improve. read more

Nopal - Mexican Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Let me preface by saying we like Mexican food and we eat it often. I would describe Nopal as elevated Tex-Mex and very, very good!! We had the avocado street corn (awesome), Birria noodle bowl, enchiladas, chips & salsa and corn crème brûlée (that was probably my favorite). We sat on the elevated lanai porch, which was also very cool. Overall we would say the ingredients were flavors were very good but not great. The Birria broth needed more seasoning as did the enchilada meat. Overall I would give it 4.5 stars but that's not an option, so 5 it is. We will definitely be back when in the area. read more

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I tried a variety of dishes from Nopal as take-out last night, so bear in mind this is writing from the take-out experience and not the dine-in experience and the latter I believe is much more where the restaurant places its emphasis and truly probably excels. I suspect if you dine in, you will have a better experience than I did and if you like to drink and go there with friends you'll probably enjoy it. I realize I'm writing somewhat clinically here, really looking at the food as cuisine and not the encompassing going out to dinner experience which is what a lot of restaurants like this one count on as a selling factor. We had various tacos, enchiladas, an order of the calamari, and chips and salsa. The tacos failed to impress me: they seemed influenced by traditional Mexican street tacos but were a bit dull to me. The enchiladas were much better; they were flavorful and robust yet still seemed missing something. The calamari was alright but would have been better in the restaurant, it's not something that travels well even a very short distance. The sauces that came with the calamari however were very good. Indeed, the homemade sauces and salsas were the highlight of the meal. The chips were ok, the salsa--again--very good. I'm not quite clear how Nopal is positioning itself: it seems to want to stand out from Tex-Mex type Mexican, Americanized Mexican, but it lacks a lot of things that would suggest more authentic Mexican as well: no al pastor tacos, no enchiladas with mole sauce, it's like there's kind of an emphasis on street tacos and more authenticity but then it drops off to the tried and true. Granted, Mexico actually has numerous regional cuisines but still surprised at the lack of al pastor. The restaurant is cute, it's the sort of place that should do well: it seems decently upscale but laid-back at the same time, it has a full bar, they'll probably do "Margarita Mondays" or something like that. I think the menu is off to a decent start but could be expanded. It seems crying out to be unique but not sure exactly what its reaching for and the tacos did not impress me at all. Actually, while the enchiladas were alright they can't compare to La Hacienda in Ocala or other authentic places I've been in Florida. But I think Nopal has potential all the same and I think it will do just fine. read more

This is a really nice place! Had the grilled blackened mahi sandwich. It was great! The chips and salsa were good too!

Just tried it for lunch and it was great. I recommend the enchiladas with chicken and tomatillo sauce and charro beans. My husband had the michelada and carne asada burrito. The only thing I wasn't a fan was the queso fundido it was bland needs some spicy kick to it. You can even watch the game outside while you eat. read more

Had dinner with friends here and loved it. I had Mahi and it was prepared perfectly. Thanks for the wonderful food. They could use a little more atmosphere on the inside but the food is so good I can overlook the indoor decor. read more

Friendly service, excellent food. The outdoor patio was charming. I had the barbacoa tacos and they were tender and flavorful.

Ordered the scampi last Saturday and was disappointed. Pathetic, small amount of pasta, (like a side dish) and too soupy. $19?!? The other meals, kids and grandkids were fine but the pasta was paltry. read more

Based on recommendations from a local group, I went to Nopal by Cintron one Sunday, and I was so hungry I got a little overwhelmed by all of the amazing options. I immediately texted a friend that we were going to have to come back soon so I didn't order everything in that moment. Both trips did not disappoint. So far I've had the Crispy Riblet app, Enchiladas Camarón, Carne Asada Torta, Mexican Street Corn Avocado app. The view of the creek in the outdoor seating area with the music going really takes you away. read more

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It was a great patio atmosphere overlooking a creek! Super friendly staff and great quality food! read more

Nopal - Mexican Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

This was my first time coming to Nopal and I am so happy I did. I have always been hesitant to go because it is pretty far from campus, but it was worth the drive. The restaurant is a cleaner and classier version of La Tienda. They have a cute screened in porch with a back bar and TVs. The inside is also spacious and nice. Service was great with friendly servers and staff. The food is definitely authentic and the chef makes all his sauces and things in house! The brussel sprouts appetizer should be added to their permanent menu... it was amazing with chorizo and Queso on top. The only thing I did not like is that they brought our entrees out before we were finished with our appetizer. In addition, the sides that come with the tacos are good but not amazing. Very traditional Mexican sides though, so I understand why. The pricing was a bit high, but very typical for a restaurant with unique, authentic Mexican dishes. I left super full and happy! I recommend making the drive out because it is one of the few nice sit down Mexican places in Gainesville. Other places serve very greasy dishes and it is not as flavorful. Come out and try it for yourself! read more

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To me, a five star rating means my socks were knocked off and the couple of times I have been at Nopal, my socks are in orbit! Nopal is a scaled down version of their flagship restaurant - Cintrón, which is located in another section of Gainesville. Nopal can be difficult to find. They have a sign by the road but if you aren't looking for it, you'll drive by. The restaurant is nestled behind another business off and across the parking lot from a Russian grocery. There is parking out front and elsewhere in the parking to but parking can get difficult is they are busy. Nopal offer indoor as well outdoor seating. (Note: I would recommend taking advantage of the put door seating if you can. The patio is surrounded by local wildlife and vegetation.) Walking, there is ample seating, the place is welcoming and isn't over the top. The staff is outstanding! They couldn't be more friendly and make your dining experience better. The last time I visited Nopal, I ordered the barbacoa enchiladas with Guajillo sauce, Oaxaca cheese, Mexican creama, Queso Fresco, lettuce, and radishes. The enchiladas were served with rice and Charro beans. I always ask my server what they would recommend and these enchiladas with the Guajillo sauce and the Carro beans were on the top of his list. Here is where my socks were blown off and are no orbiting the earth. The Guajillo sauce is outstanding. It is earthy, rich, and delicious! It is the perfect choice for the barbacoa. They also have a Tomatillo sauce which I am sure is equally good. The steak was perfectly shredded and moist. The toppings were a combination of sweet, salty, and bitter which complimented the enchiladas. Now, the Charro beans... what can I say? If I had a second pair of socks, they would be in orbit along with the first pair! What magic were these pinto beans put through? The beans were flavored well, had a great chew, and with mixed with some onions, cilantro, and these chucks of meat! It has been over a week since I was there and the thought of the beans still makes my mouth water! Oh, and the drinks aren't bad either.... lol If you are in Gainesville for any reason, please go and visit Nopal. It is worth any effort you put to it. I can't wait too go back! read more

Nopal - Barbacoa enchiladas with the Gaujillo sauce and a side of the Charro beans. - Mexican Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Consistently delicious food and attentive service. This place is a favorite. Great cocktails. Wonderful fish dishes. The street corn avocado is amazing. The baby ribs in tamarind glaze are delicious. Salads are crazy good. I like the blackened fish in verse sauce. Tasty! Thank you. read more

Never disappoints! We come here often since we live down the street. Food is clean, flavorful, delicious every single time. No complaints. Hope to update my review with pictures on our next visit! read more

Me and my friends love this place! Such good foods and delicious drinks! And excellent customer service. If you believe in supporting Local, family-owned business, give Nopal a shot! read more

We decided to have a late lunch on Sunday, and we were impressed by the great service and the outstanding food! We split the queso fundido with chorizo and an order of the pollo tinga tacos, which was a ton of delicious food! read more

Nopal - Pollo Tinga Taco - Mexican Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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Amazing service! The bathroom and the interior was very in themed and mexi-modern. The food was delicious. The staff is super fast and they do the credit card table side. read more

Had such high expectations for this place! Unfortunately it's not worth it! The food is so bland I almost asked for salt. Service was slow. Honestly for the prices just go to a real Mexican restaurant. read more

My Favorite Mexican restaurant in North Florida! Let start with the food, that's what you're coming for. The menu isn't your typical "rice n beans" mom and pops place. El Nopal offers a decent sized menu that'll satisfy many tasteful cravings, with the chef's own touch. Chef Jesus has plans for a bigger menu that I'm sure will not disappoint. The staff definitely has a high standard. Making you feel like family every time you visit. 10/10 recommended for couples and groups. Brought a few of my coworkers here and had a few rounds after dinner. It was unforgettable, well enough to say that'll I'll stop in and eat every time I'm in the area. read more

Not an attractive restaurant. Old and rundown looking inside.Tow seater tables converted to four seaters by adding plywood to the top. (At least cover them with a tablecloth) food was nothing special (fish and shrimp tacos were just ok) one visit to the men's room sealed the deal on my decision to never go back! read more

Best Mexican food in Gainesville! Super tasty and [[HIGHLIGHT]]great outdoor patio area[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]. The owner is super nice and professional! read more

I had the appetizer special, ahi tuna with mango and a slightly spicy sauce. It was amazing! I sat out back and the setting is just gorgeous. If I lived here I would be here all the time! read more

Amazing fusion Mexican. This is a place my sister introduced me to. I got the special and it was amazing! Blackened salmon topped with a mango salsa on a bed of corn and spinach casserole. Def coming back. read more