El Rodeo

My daughter ordered two soft tacos. She got enough meat, lettuce and cheese for maybe one. The meat should have been strained, way too much grease. The tortilla was way too big. Nobody wants to eat just soft tortilla. Our chips were a darker color, tasted burnt but i think it was the grease they were cooked in that was burnt. Taco salad shell was kinda greasy also. Waitress was nice but not very attentive. Maybe it was just an off day in the kitchen. I’ve been there before and the food was better.

This is the closest El Rodeo location to where I both live and work, so I am here on average once a week, mostly for the spectacular Tuesday and Thursday $ 5 lunch specials. You can’t beat the price or portions, so it’s a good bet this place will be busy. This location (in a former fast food restaurant) is the smallest of the local chain’s and also (I believe) the only to not possess a liquor license. (There are currently no establishments in Lemoyne that serve alcohol).
The salsa is always the same with a little kick. The wait staff is always friendly and prompt. The kitchen is very quick in putting our orders. I can’t think of ever having a bad experience or meal here over the many years I’ve been coming here.
Lunch #6, fajitas picantes, enchiladas Supremas are some of my usual selections. Check out the newly expanded menu and specials. Love this place!

Horrible … Ordered tilapia with rice and veggies. Well, it came with fishy smell, I completely lost my appetite. How come a dish smells like a raw fishy fish??? Even sushi doesn’t smell like that. Tilapia has no taste or flavor, veggies are like from frozen microwaved… I’d rather go to subway.

Better than Unilocal reviews advertise, but neither truly authentic or impressive (not uncommon for the area). No liquor license since at least 1998 or so — indicating many folks are confused about the history here — though most of their other locations throughout the area do carry one. However, with both a state store and a beer distributor within viewing distance, all of your libation needs are covered. Enjoy the Molcajete (Chile Relleno, Fajitas Picante and Carnitas are also very good), smile politely at the Christmas garland that adorns the lighting fixtures and have some fun.

FYI: this review was ONLY for the Carlisle Pk, Mechanicsburg location because we had a much better experience at the Jonestown Rd, Harrisburg location: Inattentive Staff, Flat Margarita and Salty and Cold Food
The inattentive staff did broke the cardinal rule of standing around chatting with other staff instead of checking up with us. Plus, we were ready for our check but we had to ask; the staff did not even ask if we needed a refill on our drinks – our margarita was also flat. My order was salty and cold. Very disappointing so I will not return.

I’m a Texas boy that knows real Mexican food and this was very disappointing.
The food was bland, tasted more like frozen than homemade. Take my advice El Rodeo. visit Texas and learn how to make Mexican food.

Great food at a great price. I recommend it if you’ve never been here. Try the guac with some chips! This one has no liquor license, which disappointed me. That being said, it’s a GREAT lunch spot. You can get a dinner for under $ 15, and a lunch for under $ 8.

Not my first time here but better than Taco Bell. Had their Steak Burritos with some Mexican Rice. They were okay but the steak was a little tough. The rice was good. The only thing that came with it was some shredded Iceburg and a ½ slice of tomato and sour cream. My wife had the stuff chili’s with rice and beans she said they were good.
Our waitress made us feel rushed I felt like she was in a hurrytto close up we got there around 7pm and we ordered our drinks they have a big menu and right after she brought back our drinks she wanted our order I asked for a few more minutes she actually sighed and said oh alright. When she returned about 5 mins later we gave her our order it was deliverd by another waiter.
Anyways after we decided we didn’t want desert she brought our check back and waited till I gave her my card.
Sorry to say it took me a couple of minutes to check out the check before I gave her payment.
Tip reflected my rushed feeling.

When you’re in the mood for some delicious fajitas or nachos over lunch — you should come here. Plain and simple. Fast service.
The food is always hot and cooked just the way I order. The prices are great too. Atmosphere is fun and family friendly. I would suggest any of the salads or nacho dishes for lunch. I’ve never sampled any dessert.
Parking is tight during peak hours; the lot is small and hard to navigate. But street parking is available.

The food is the same at their other locations, which is a notch over Fiesta Mexico, and several notches below the Mexico Lindo taco truck. Yet once when I went there, I saw that they keep their tortilla chips in a garbage can (clean I presume) but who knows how old they were. And this location does not have a liquor license so you cannot get a margarita, overpriced of course.

Always great Mexican food. My wife and I eat here quite often and we are always In and out promptly we a full stomach of el rodeo goodness!

This place gets a big freakin’ ZERO for my experience last night.
On the door they advertised a special for that night — Ceviche. I love Ceviche. The sign said it included shrimp, crab, and octopus.
My son shared it with me. After he had eaten a few bites I realized it didn’t have crab — it had Krab or artificial crab. The artificial crap has artificial food coloring. Artificial food coloring affects my son’s brain severely and he acts psychotic.
We immediately stopped eating the appetizer (priced at over $ 7).
When the manager came by, I explained they had falsely advertised the ingredients and it was going to negatively affect my son. She said, «sorry I hope he’ll be ok». No offer to refund the cost of the appetizer, no offer to do ANYTHING!“
I would love for El Rodeo to pay for the hundreds of dollars of damage my son inflicted on my house last night because of eating that crap.
Dear El Rodeo — false advertising is a CRIME. Essentially poisoning a 4-​yr old is a really crappy thing to do. Not giving a sh*t makes it even worse. By the time the rest of us shoveled the food in our faces to get out of there as soon as possible — the coloring had hit his system and he ran off when leaving the restaurant and almost was hit by a car in the parking lot. I hope to hell you’re happy. You have lost my business for ever!
As a P. S. to everyone else. Not only did they falsely advertise the ingredients (replacing crab with a much cheaper alternative), the chopped up shrimp in the dish had some ammonia flavor (a sign they were going bad) and we only found one tiny piece of octopus. So, we essentially paid good money for a pile of lime dressed cheap, artificially colored crap.

3 of these places within a 5 mile radius seems semi excessive, but they all have great food that is consistent throughout each location. The huge negative of this spot is that it is the only place in the area without a liquor license so like the other review, appreciate your virgins. If you ask them they will say they are going to get one soon. however «soon» has been the last few years. Give the Hawaiian fajitas a shot you don’t have to get it served in the half pineapple if you don’t want to, it just adds to the flair. Tasty tho.

I’m living in Chicago now, and I miss El Rodeo. How’s that possible, right? Sure Chicago’s got some fantastic restaurants, but El Rodeo did Mexican food right — clean, quick, hot, great tasting, and reasonably cheap. The bottomless chips and salsa are a trap, beware! My favorite thing was the pollo chimichunga, though the fajitas were also noteworthy. My husband was a fan of the pollo enchildada verdes. This was my parent’s first Mexican food experience, and they were instant converts. Cons: No alcohol, so as long as you like your drinks virgin…