El Rancho

Came here during the Superbowl game with friends to watch The Broncos Vs The Panthers! Venue isnt pretty bad.
The parking lot is well lit, so it doesnt really look as sketchy! Upon entering the vicinity, I was greeted by a young well groomed hispanic gentleman. Who got me and a group of friends seated by the largest and longest table ever excluding the bar. And I must say, it wasnt large enough, and I got to seated at the end of the table facing everyone, and I didnt have enough leg room to stretch my legs apart.
Now as food goes, the food tastes so amazing! That lit my taste buds on fire that its well money spent… I ordered a meal that came with 2 enchiladas, 1 taco, beans, and rice that was quite full filling!
Now as ordering the margarita, I wished the server has good listening skills. He got me the 2^nd largest one, instead of the smallest one thats good for one person. After seeing how big was the largest one as I was curious about it… And after showing me its size, I said, «OK, give me the small one instead. Thats too big.» And so he brings me back a size smaller from the largest margarita filled with margarita already… Which is little too late to return!
Boy, that was so muchhhhhh! Other than that, not going to knock off that much of a rating for poor listening skills & not enough leg room. However, the food made up for it, and so was good company with friends watching the football game!

I think we have been here probably about 4 times now. Yeah I know we eat out a lot. But food is just life. So the chairs are a little uncomfortable and I really like being comfortable when I am eating food. They bring you chips and salsa to the table, its endless and free. They are good chips always seem to be fresh, the salsa could use a little something to it and I have not been able to figure that out yet. The Burrito California is what my son usually get and its pretty good, served with guacamole that is pretty good considering the location we are in. The Menudo is my go to soup/​food. It always good, and if you like that kind of stuff you should eat it to.

Giant drinks! Cheap food! Great taste! Nothing more really has to be said! I ate here a few years ago and had a GREAT experience and I am just as impressed today as I was then! I highly recommend! 4 out of 5 because it is not the «Best» Mexican food I have ever had BUT you would need to go much farther south to find better!

Cheap, good food. Very authentic food and very large portions. Friendly staff and the restaurant setting is always very beautiful.

We visited on Saturday July 11,2015. It was awful. The food had zero seasoning. The refried beans were watery. The rice was dried out. The ground beef was pulverized. We ordered the #22 combination. 1 taco, 1 burrito, 1 enchilada. When I asked if I could get it made with chicken the server looked at me like I had 3 heads. Then asked if I wanted the burrito or the enchilada made with chicken. I requested ice tea with lemon as a beverage. No lemon was served. She brought chips and salsa with the menus and asked if we were ready to order. The chips definitely came
from a bag. All were the same size. The salsa was in pour bottle. Turned out to be a tasteless sauce not salsa. I hardly ever salt my food in a restaurant. I couldn’t shake enough on this food. We both gave up trying to eat it and had to find our nonexistent server to get the check. She brought it and walked away. Again had to search for her to pay the check. Never were we asked if our meal was okay. My husband is more accepting of bad service and bad food than I am and he was ready to walk out. Again if I could give a zero rating I would. Bad food Bad Service.

This used to be great place to go, but it has sadly gone downhill. We ate there a few days ago and the food had almost no flavor at all. About the only spice that I could detect was salt. Also our waitress while she was quick she had a chip on her shoulder about something. She seemed to want to be anywhere but where she was at.
I really hope this place turns it around as I used to really love it.

Friendly staff and very quick at getting the food to your table. It’s not the best Mexican food I’ve had, but it is definitely the best here on the Coast. The ingredients are fresh and the serving sizes are perfect.

It’s ok. Over priced and wayyy too Americanized for my taste, but better than any of the other places in this town. It’s unfortunate that there isn’t a Mexican restaurant around that at least has a section on their menu with real Mexican food, but that is another issue entirely. I’ve never disliked my food, so it’s ok. Beer could also be colder.

Came here for lunch. Décor and service were decent, but the food far exceeded my expectations. Seeing as how some menu items were spelled phonetically and contained cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets, I assumed it would be more Tex than Mex. The complimentary chips and salsa foreshadowed what was to come, as the salsa was just taco sauce and water. The food itself came in an odd form, as I have never seen a burrito in liquid form. Turns out it was buried under cheese and taco sauce, which would have me believe it would be an enchilada. Apparently not. The kitchen possesses some sort of magical device that removes flavor from anything, which was impressive. I feel like I could have drunkenly prepared something similar if not better than the food I was served. Next time I want mexican for lunch, I would probably just head to Taco Bell or just eat the sugar packets on the table.

If you know anything about real Mexican food, this aint it. Keep looking.

The food was ok at best. The portion was small and the seasoning was not very good. The chips were heavy and not warm and the salsa was not spicy and was very bland. The drinks come out in pitchers which i found odd.
If i was starving i would go again but i didn’t think it was any better than taco bell.

Decided to eat here with my husband out of convenience. We were pleasantly surprised at the décor inside. It was festive and clean. The service was very prompt and friendly and they have a wide selection for food (which was tasty)!

Ok so im from Ca and this place had the worst service! The server couldn’t handle multiple orders n lucky for him his tip was included in the bill. I disagree with all the other reviews. The food was passable I ordered the carne asada plate n the only 2 things which were good was the beans n the tortillas! Ths meat was so bland the salsa tasted like tomato sauce. The margaritas were so watered down it tasted like juice! I do not recommend this place to anyone!!!

El Rancho is exactly what it seems to be: a good, mid-​range, family restaurant offering Mexican food. (There is also a full service bar if your taste runs to Margaritas and such.) The menu is very large, and although the waitstaff is sometimes a bit slow, once the order is in, the food comes to the table quickly. My own favorites are the taco salad, fajitas, chimachanga – well, to be honest, I’ve never had a bad meal here. Recommended.

The BEST Mexican restaurant in town! Pollo con quezo, flautas, mojara and fajitas were my favorite food when I was there in MS.

I think I got a good meal here a few years ago, and so from time to time I come back, hoping to re-​experience that bygone day. Alas… things have changed.
El Rancho has a quiet and relaxing atmosphere. The service is adequate, and there is a full bar for those who love a margarita and who don’t yet have diabetes. Sadly, it’s the food that brings this house down. I had the chile relleno and a burrito. They arrived fresh from the microwave along with those too-​ordinary rice and beans. The relleno was limp and soggy, and tasted strongly of the freezer box in which it evidently had lived for months. The burrito consisted of spiced meat wrapped in sad and soggy tortilla. Overall, the food just seemed limp and dead. There was no excitement, no pride. Even the waiter seemed embarrassed to lay this plate in front of me. I was very hungry, so I ate enough to get my blood sugar up and then paid and left.
The restaurant serves free chips and salsa, both of which are unremarkable. I wish the salsa had a little heat. Instead it was a finely processed, tomato-​y slurry. Not altogether bad, but… mehh. The iced tea is very sweet and comes in a miniature pitcher with a straw. Many people find this charming. I do not.
El Rancho is very close to my home. I wish it was better.

El Rancho may not look like much from the outside, but the atmosphere is nice and food is tasty. Service was fast and friendly. Solid mexican food, check it out when you get bored of seafood or bbq.

Service was great, salsa and chips great. We ordered the Chicken Enchilada and the chicken was almost nonexistent and food was very Bland. Would definitely Not go back
lol
should have reread my own review. We gave it another try and i’ve downgraded from two stars to one. Salsa dish arrived dirty I mean really dirty. Same Bland food, chicken was scarce, no onions, peppers or anything. Then the coup de gras! Our chicken quesadilla’s were $ 6.50 on the lunch menu but when the bill came we were charged $ 8.50. No big deal but I had to ask why the discrepancy. Well, apparently it was extra cause it was Saturday! Why did they give me the menu with the wrong prices? Habla Ingles?
This was a dealbreaker for us we will DEFINITELY not be back and apparently others feel the same way. Two other diners at the peak lunch time on Saturday.

Out of Agua Fresca, slow service, mediocre food, incompetent cashier.

Good authentic Mexican food.
I love that the drinks come in mini pitcher. The chips and salsa are addicting and most of the time going with 3 or 4 people you will go through 2 baskets. Chips came out warm each time weve gone.
The food has been hit and miss, most of the time its good but if your order any changes to your meal don’t bet on getting it that way. Majority of the time I order no beans or sour cream and majority of the time i get both sour cream and beans. On the positive the food always comes out very hot and the servers are fast and friendly.

When I first arrived on the Coast this was where I went to get my mexican food fix. Being from So Cal. and Mexican, Mexican food is a staple much like blood to a vampire. As far as authenticity goes the food is o.k. The salsa taste like its out of a can (As it does at all the mexican restaurants on the Coast), they pour a cheese sauce on everything, (Another Coast favorite) and the spices seem to taste the same.
When I go I usually order the garlic fried tilapia. (not on the menu) I also enjoy that their soft drinks are brought out in these mini pitcher sized mugs. Generally one refill is all it will take no matter how much soda you drink. The staff is friendly and will remember your face and their is plenty of room and parking.
The prices are moderate and the servings tend to run on the heavy size. This is a great place for group and volunteer dinners. Many of the groups who have come down to rebuild the Coast have their celebration dinners here.
Just remember that most of the Mexican restaurants on the Coast are owned by two families so alot of the menus and recipes are redundant.