El Rancho

Sub par all around. They try to rip you off when you order specials. The bartender is as creepy as creepy gets… Ask for an itemised receipt… otherwise you may be paying for something you never ordered. Shady all the way around. You could go to Chipotle and get better food and service.
I have to update as I don’t want bad karmathey actually got rid of the bartender that was so creepy amongst other things… Now there is a wonderful bartender who is on point. The food was always good, the service just sucked. Pleased to update this and restore balance in the universe! Kudos to the fabulous service. I will be back for sure!

A great local hangout that never seems to be too busy. The owner is almost always on site and the staff go out of their way to make you feel as comfortable as possible. There is a small arcade/​game room in the back of the restaurant that makes the place popular with the kiddos. Dollar tacos on Mondays, but I’d recommend the Charro Beans, Fajitas or the Choripollo for a better dining experience.

If I could give this place a half of a star, I would. My boyfriend and I decided to dine here and the waiter we had was extremely rude. He never once refilled our drinks or our chips. He didn’t even serve us our food, someone else did. He came only once and that was to drop off the check which was extremely expensive. Who charges $ 1.50 for a dollop of sour cream? We were standing at our table waiting for someone to pick up the check and the hostess and another worker were drinking on the job. Won’t be coming here again. Great customer service is a must, and my boyfriend and I didn’t receive it!

Love this place. We’ve been dining here for two years. The staff is always friendly and they have started to recognize us when we walk in. They have a huge menu and everything on it is awesome. There are always good specials, but we like the Saturday pitcher. Never have to wait for a table even when the place seems packed and the food is always fast and fresh. I was recently near the Mexican border and visited a different restaurant and longed for our el rancho.

El Rancho is a Monday night must! Mondays are dollar taco days, and they are delicious! Some restaurants will give smaller portions or charge for toppings on dollar taco days, but not El Rancho! I highly suggest the chicken tacos on the soft corn shells.
The salsa and chips are also worth the trip. The salsa has just the right amount of spices, and the chips are usually fresh out of the fryer.
The management is always appreciative of your business, and always makes sure your dining experience is satisfactory.

Chips and salsa. The chips huge and salsa not very flavorful. Good deal on beers $ 3.50. ;not impressed with rice kinda hard. The enchilada was good as well as enchilada sauce taco not bad. Service ok had to ask several time for water. Can’t say I’d rush back as soon many other really good Mexican restaurants

Overall: Not particularly authentic, but good enough when the craving for Mexican strikes.
Food: Chips for the chips and salsa were not particularly high quality. The entrees were well flavored and a good portion size. We had ordered the flautas and chipotle chicken fajitas, which I recommend. The magaritas were strong, but nothing special.
Service: Service is acceptable for a Mexican restaurant. A little disorganized, and there was some confusion regarding the specials. But they kept our water filled.
Atmosphere: Large restaurant with tables and boothes. Lighting is intimate.

This is the best Mexican restaurant in the Akron area. We drive about 25 minutes from the Kent area just to get good, authentic food. It’s affordable, delicious, quick and there’s a HUGE menu. The margaritas are strong and fairly priced. I get the chimichangas almost every time I’m there, and I’ve never been disappointed. The free chips and salsa are both very good.
I have noticed that they recently changed their wait staff. No complaints here, just an observation. Also, be wary of the specials /​coupons they offer. You can only do one per order. I went there once during the margarita happy hour, and they wouldn’t let me use a 25% off coupon, which I thought was a bit ridiculous.
Would highly recommend!

This is your run of the mill Mexican Restaurant. Nothing special. Good food with Mediocre service. Today I called ahead for pick up and still waited 30 minutes when I got there. Pretty disappointing.

First off it was a Saturday at 7pm, the place was a ghost town, the first sign I should have went 10min down the street to a better restaurant. So we decided to give it one more try, the first visit was sub par, very salty food. So Saturday’s special was pitchers of Margaritas for 12.99. They tasted like someone took lime Popsicle, let them met and poured them over ice. Has to order two shots of Jose Cuervo (7.99each?!) just to get past the cheap flavor of the margaritas. My date couldn’t drink the margarita at all so I was left to finish it. She ordered a #62 $ 14 burrito that came with grilled chicken and pineapple. The chicken was the quality of Taco Bell’s and the pineapple was straight from a can. I ordered a side Grilled Chicken Quesadilla for $ 6.99. The chicken was poor frozen quality, the portion was absolutely unreasonable, I left hungry. I have gone to other margarita specials at other Mexican restaurants and they were 100% better, you could taste that there was tequila in them. I have gotten bigger portions, fresher food for way less. For two people it was $ 61 and I left hungry. I could have had any other Mexican place for $ 20 less than that and had so much food I would be taking it home. Will not be returning for this place even if it’s free, frozen food, canned fruits and cheap over sweetened weak margaritas. The end. Don’t go here, it’s terrible quality and portions.

It’s a good place to eat when you’re craving mexican. There’s nothing phenomenal about it, but prices are fair, portions are large, and service has always been fast and friendly. It’s close to my house, which is probably the biggest reason this is my staple mexican restaurant.

Best Mexican in the area! I go all the time, everyone is happy you’re there and the food is excellent.

If I wanted a watered down marg I would have just gone to save a lot. Horrible service. The bartender was shitty towards me. Never coming back

This is in our neighborhood and we keep returning — at least once a month usually. Only one bad experience but that still didn’t deter us. We started when it first opened and changed from Yoconos years ago. Back then, Friday and Saturdays they hosted authentic music — mariachi style.
I’ll start by saying we have a toddler. We go here because we know that the food is quick, always correct, hot and decent. The servers are nice — my toddler likes to flirt with the guys and they humor her.
I have ordered everything from enchiladas to fajitas to burritos and have not been disappointed. The margaritas are strong enough for me and I’ve been known to leave a bit tipsy. A plus in my book after a rough day! We always order the queso for our warm chips and the salsa is fresh and served right upon seating. Most fajitas I see come out with the sizzle. (So I’m not sure of the previous review of «unsizzling» fajitas…)
Crowd is everyone from regulars from the neighborhood, families with kids (presumably here for the same reason we are), 20 somethings, to older singles at the bar. Comfortable family run business and good food.

The food was so tasty. I wish I had more.
I got the fish (red snapper) tacos with a side of guacamole. As a fish taco fanatic, I have to say they were delicious. This restaurant uses high quality ingredients. The fish was moist and flaky and the pico de gallo with the creamy cole slaw (very delicious by the way) was incredible. You also get a very generous portion: 3 full tacos supplemented with rice. For so much quality food, the price point was great. $ 13.
And can you believe I haven’t even gotten to the service yet! I servers were super attentive. Our table was never chip and salsa-​less. They were so generous, I had to take more than half of my food home which I loved because I could savor the flavors for later.
I would absolutely visit again. I really want to try the seafood tacos.

Fairly standard American Mexican fare, but I give it four stars because the salsa is AMAZING. Seriously, the best I have ever had. Also, dollar tacos on Mondays. And they are generous portions, not the weak tacos you’ll get at a lot of places.
Bean dip is very good too. Service is fine.

I have been to El Rancho before and have always had a good meal. Service was always attentive and the staff has been friendly and accommodating. So it was when eating there with six friends last Sunday.
Chips are warm when brought to the table and the salsa, while a bit watery, was good. Ordered the beef chimichangas and they came with just the perfect amount of crunch. The white cheese sauce had the right amount of spice, such that I think I’ll order a bowl to dip chips in on my next visit. Overall, everyone at the table enjoyed their meals without complaint. Unfortunately, there are no drink specials on Sunday (probably why they weren’t very crowded) so my next visit will be during a weekday Happy Hour or on Saturday.

From the moment we walked in the server has had a horrible attitude. As if we are bothering him by being here. Ordered a pitcher of margarita… or should I say a pitcher of ice?!? Literally was 80% ice. Asked for some ice to be removed and was told we would have to be charged extra. Server told us «I don’t know what to tell you, that’s how we make it «
Was brought the wrong food. The food we did order was sub par. Will not eat here again.

We went to the original location once again. And I ordered the same dish I have previously … With the exception of having it served over lettuce — instead of with tortillas. My daughter ordered a burrito combo. Well… 3 tables of four guests got served before we did and it was very upsetting. We’ve had good service prior to this visit and it really upset me because the waiter didn’t come over even one time to apologize or offer an explanation why our food was taking so long. It had been 40 mins and like I said— 3 tables of four ppl that got their food before us.
So we walked out.
I don’t understand why this happened and it really disappointed me. An apology and a discount would have kept us there waiting anxiously for out food. Customer service it key ppl!

I had this bookmarked for awhile and decided to give it a try.
Very clean and decent décor. That’s about where it ends for me…
Our server was cocky– never made eye contact, didn’t listen to what we ordered, chewed his gum, etc. He mixed up everyone’s waters 2 – 3 time! Placed my daughters order incorrectly, twice!
Good chips & salsa– perfect spice level!
Food was the worst I’ve had in as long as I can remember! Fajitas were cold and not sizzling. Beans & rice were mediocre, at best. Gauc was horrible. Ordered a tamale & it never came.
I would not return or recommend to any one. Might be a good place for drinks & chips, but not so much a meal.
1 star for cleanliness & 1 star for chips/​salsa= generous 2 stars!
Glad to remove the bookmark!