La Casa del Patrón

This place is great! service was fantastic it was really clean the food was quick and delicious. Prices and portions are good. My kids loved it!

Love the bean dip and the fresh taste of the taco salad– which they put corn in! Feels like a lighter salad than most other Mexican restaurants. It’s really well decorated, too! We’ve always had great service there! Best place for Mexican in Havelock!

Great bar with huge selection of premiums. They add a dash of Triple Sec to their margaritas. Expect a wait, they are making fresh food. They are seating people even when they are busy now. Tells me they’re working out the kinks of a new restaurant.
We tried sopes with barbacoa; very tasty with fresh masa cooked right. Soft tacos with carnitas; heaven. Ground Beef enchiladas were as expected and like the other two places here in Havelock. The guacamole was fresh, rich, and creamy. Fresh tortillas all around. Fresh rice, re fried beans smooth and creamy. I hope to try their whole beans next trip. I saw the fajitas and they looked fresh.
I’m looking forward to trying their flautitas, aka taquitos because they’re made with corn tortillas. If they can fry without burning I’ll be happy.
They’re busy but are getting organized and food is served within 30 minutes. Remember the fresh comment, they seem to be cooking to order instead of freezing or pre-​cooking their food. Well worth the wait.
They have take out so if you don’t want to wait, call it in. They have ToGo menus available which is the whole menu I think. Ask them for what you want, they’ll tell you if it’s available. At this point no substitutes but if it stays popular I’m betting they’ll get more flexible.
Oh. And for traditionalists, they have Pazole and Menudo as well as Huevos Rancheras. Burritos look promising.
Many of their dishes are rivaling San Jose, CA perfection. They also have the drowned in cheese dishes popular here in Havelock. Prices are reasonable.
I decided to keep it 4 star because they aren’t up there with CA. I’m looking for shredded meat in my enchiladas not ground and the salsa, while ok, is not pico de gallo.
April 2016 Update. We discovered, to our dismay, that if you bring in a birthday cake you also need your own paper plates and plastic utensils.

The food here is wonderful! It takes a little too much time for the chips to get to the table, but other than that, the service is precise and as I already said, the food is wonderful.

We tried this place a few nights ago. It was clean, well lit, and food was on point. They advertise a California Burrito in their menu, but it is not the same thing as a West Coast Cali Burrito (although I’m sure it is good!). Margaritas are fantastic & come in variety of flavors. The only reason I did not give 5 stars is that our waitress was rude and inattentive. Everything else was wonderful: the chips & salsa, our meals, the wait was short, and we even splurged for dessert. Great Mexican food spot!

Wonderful Mexican food! Both salsa and bean dip was delicious. The fish tacos were light and crispy, very tasty. The poblano mole was very good! My margarita, made by Alex was fresh and perfect. First time eating here but it certainly won’t be the last. About a 45 minute drive from where I live but worth it!

A very nice restaurant, well decorated and friendly staff.
Their menu is very extensive, perhaps overwhelmingly. They bring out free chips, salsa, and bean dip.
My family ordered water and I ordered a $ 2.99 no refill Jamaica drink (traditional Mexican drink, sweetened hibiscus tea). I was concerned about it not being free refills but when that cup came it was about 50% bigger than anyone else’s cups and there was minimal ice– you definitely get your money worth and I didn’t even need a refill. Id definitely recommend the Jamaica! (Pronounced like «huh-​mike-​ah»)
I ordered combo #4, it was a good size. Enchilada was good as was the chile relleno, the chile relleno was the star of the show. I didn’t care for the rice or beans it came with though.
My mother Got the vegetable fajita and was a bit let down. My aunt got the shrimp chimichanga and it was smaller than expected, but stuffed full with shrimp and still a suitable portion.
We ordered churros for dessert, it comes with 6. They were okay, a bit burned or dry– I couldn’t tell which.
In summary, friendly service, nice building, suitable food. Id come back.

I’ve only been once so far since I live in Jacksonville, but I was very impressed by the food. Authentic Mexican food has always been a challenge to find here in eastern NC. La Casa del Patron was really quite good. I had the carne asada tacos. Except it’s next to impossible to find carne asada (sometimes called Baja style tacos in California) tacos as they should be made, here. Everything was perfect — from the tortillas to the perfect amount of cilantro and onion. The restaurant is also beautifully decorated. I wish it was closer or I’d probably be in once a week. :)

I’ve been here three times for takeout, and my son and I really like this place. The food is quite tasty and the portion sizes are pretty good. Our favorite dish is the carne asada, which is seasoned quite nicely with carmelized onions. Instead of getting rice and beans on the side, I usually opt for the guacamole salad which is nothing special, but allows me to reduce my carb intake. I have also had the grilled chicken salad, which is a nice portion size with lots of chicken, but could be better if it had more than just diced tomatoes, cheese and shredded lettuce.
The service for take out is great. The food is prepared quickly, and they are really friendly. I highly recommend this place.

I unfortunately have to give this place a 1 :(It is very subpar Mexican food. The food is also very under seasoned for me. The first time I ever went here I found a huge black hair inside of my food and the manager did get me a brand new plate but they still charged me and did nothing to try to compensate me or apologize for the hair. The next times I have went they either forgot our appetizer or a side dish we had ordered. The few times I’ve came here our waiter has NEVER gotten our whole order correct! Their salsa and bean dip they give you at the beginning of the meal is the best part about here! I don’t really want to come back here again after giving them numerous tries to get things right and they have yet to.

Second time eating here. Tried another Mexican joint nearby and was unimpressed. Came back to del Patron to see if it held up over time. It totally does. Between my wife and I we have enjoyed 4 different meals, all of which were tasty. The best thing I have had is the Carne Con Papas. It is very spicy. Unlike some places though it’s not just hot but actually really well spiced. Some of the heat is toned down if you eat it with some rice and beans.
The service both times have been amazing and accommodating. Have only come during weekday lunches.
Very baby friendly, again during weekday lunch.
Price point seems fair. The lower cost meal I had last time had less food than the higher cost food. $ 12 carnitas plate has more than enough for tomorrow’s lunch.

Amazing food. Amazing service. Big bar with delicious drinks. Definitely a step up for havelock. If you want real Mexican food you need to visit La Casa Del Patron

This place has great atmosphere, friendly staff, and good food. We ate early so we didn’t wait for a table. Enjoyed the bean dip with the salsa. Guacamole was fresh and creamy, but needed something (maybe a splash of lime). I think next time we’d get the table side guacamole.
I got the fajitas vegetales, which was amazing! Hubby enjoyed his burrito California. It took awhile for the food to arrive, but I believe it’s made fresh to order. Everyone was pleased with their meal. Definitely would eat here again!

I went with my family and really enjoyed the atmosphere. The food was good I order the carnitas and it was delicious. I really like that they offer the bean dip in addition to the salsa dip. I would definitely go back I just wish they had homemade tortillas. That would make it that much better and a a step up from el cerro.

This place is the best for authentic Mexican dishes anywhere near here. The food has been excellent and the wait staff is extremely accommodating. I had the Barbacoa and the tres leche. Both were great.
People complain of a long wait, we’ve been twice and never waited more than 25 minutes. They are new, the demand is there, it’s not typical fast Mexican food.
Relax, have a drink, talk and enjoy your night out.

I went with a hope this place would be better than the Mexican places in Havelock, which I would consider a half step above Taco Bell. El Cerros is a disgusting excuse for Mexican cuisine. La Casa Del Patron is a few steps above them. You can tell that someone with heart made the food, but it is severely lacking. I got enchiladas, which we’re dry, had no mole sauce and were teeny tiny. My dish was cheap — only $ 6, I think– but it was pretty small, portion wise. Their rice was flavorless and dry as well. It also had peas, corn and carrots in it — what the heck is that? Our service was very good; our waitress checked on us multiple times. Their salsa was pretty good but nothing special, and they provided a bean dip… which literally tasted like refined beans. Good, but I’ve never had anything like that before and I felt kind of silly eating it because it tasted like the canned bean dip from a gas station.
Overall, the décor and service is great. The food… tastes like your typical North Carolina «Mexican food». I don’t know if they’re catering to the white locals or they really just can’t cook, but I honestly expected MUCH better of the food since they claim to be authentic Mexican cuisine. It was like wanting authentic Italian food and getting Kraft Macaroni and cheese. Sure, it wasn’t nauseating, but it definitely wasn’t authentic or what I really wanted out of a Mexican restaurant. I’d definitely recommend El Taco Loco in New Bern if you want authentic Mexican food.

If you’re interested in subpar Mexican food look no further than this restaurant. On top of cold tamales and 45 minute wait times for your appetizer you can also in enjoy an entrée with less food than worth the money you paid for it. At least they have a steady supply of tortilla chips.

Overall, the food was really great! I had the carnitas fajitas. The carnitas made here were definitely better than anything else in the area. The meats just had a better taste in general. I had a taste of the Diablo burrito, steak nachos, flautas, and tortas. All great.
The service on the other hand was terrible. We had 6 people on a Friday night so I knew we would have to wait a bit. No problem. We sat waiting to get our drinks on order for about 15 minutes. By then, everyone already knew what they wanted. They come to take our order eventually but they only take our drink order when we said we were ready to order everything. Bar drinks took another 15 minutes to get to the table. All of our food came at separate times too. By the time I got my food, everyone else was already done. My fajitas weren’t sizzling when it came out and looked like they’d been sitting back there for a while and they just forgot about it. The side of beans had gotten a hard layer on top from sitting out and we’re cold. The guacamole had the look it gets when you leave it out too long at a party. While we were eating, the waiter didn’t pay us any attention. We sat around waiting for our checks for a while too. We were never asked for dessert or had our plates cleared away as we finished.
Overall, it just took too long for everything.
We arrived at 7:30 and didnt leave until almost 10. The restaurant has potential. They just need to find their tempo and get into the hang of things. I’ll only take one star because they’re new and all working things out. I’ll definitely try again in a month or two to see if things have changed. If their service stays the same then they’ll see the same fate as the last two restaurants that were at that location.

Obviously new, service was prompt and our waitress was nice. My husband liked his burrito, forget which one exactly. I ordered the carne asada con papas? Basically carne asada meat with potatoes. Holy mother of fire I couldn’t finish it because it was too spicy for me. Should’ve read the rest of the description to see if it was spicy. I’ll definitely try something else next time.

Let’s be real, the standard for good food in Havelock, NC is low. The fact that this place is already active on social media and has a website with their menu posted goes to show that they’re going to out-​do any existing restaurant in this municipality.
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I can’t help, but be excited for the future of this place.
My wife and I ate here on opening night. As you might expect, the staff was still working out some kinks. The wait for a table wasn’t so bad, but the wait for the drinks, chips, appetizer, and meals got close to out of hand. I don’t want the focus of the review to be on the wait times though! The food was really good, the atmosphere very nice, and most importantly I no longer have to leave the city limits to get something good to eat!
I’ll be coming back regularly until I’ve sampled the rest of the menu.