El Charro

It was ok, I’ve had better. I’m truck driver passing through town, I decided to stop & eat. The place was nice. I ordered the California burrito plate. It was a small size burrito considering the price. Usually when a burrito is served on a plate, its covered with red sauce & shredded cheese. They dont do that here.

Welcome to my 100^th review. I always wondered where it would be and always hoped it would be one of my very favorite lunch spots. I always imagined it would be a stellar review unlike any I’d ever written. I am proud to make El Charro my 100^th. This one I totally recommend!
Mexicans, by and large tend to provide exceptional quality so many levels above your typical American restaurant. There are some bad ones, but my observations are that somehow they open a building and they just KNOW exactly what to do. And they do it well. They also are able to provide exceptional service while maintaining a low cost. By and large, my observation is that Mexican restaurants, if run by Mexicans, can survive a very long time. El Charro is no exception to this.
It is no secret that they are willing to work much harder and demand less than the average citizen. Did you know that if it weren’t for their hard work supporting Mexico city, that it would be underground by now? Or how about every time you salt your fries, a Mexican may have dug that out of the ground. They have the largest salt mines in the world.
On one hand, America doesn’t want immigrants to compete in the work force. My belief is that they can they can serve a purpose that we cannot. Especially in the restaurant industry. I’ve never eaten good Mexican food that was not prepared by a Mexican. That includes my own cooking. They do it better. They can even wear shorts and miniskirts here. And idiots can vote! I wish America WOULD prohibit idiots from voting! Yea, I know.
I’ve eaten here about twenty times in ten years. It’s been about six months. My favorite is the molcajete! It is the ultimate. Everything else has always been great! This is five stars for twenty consecutive meals.
I’ll just review my lunch today. Walked in and chose smoking, but walked straight to the bathroom without first selecting a table. When I returned, a waiter was waiting for me to show me a table where chips and salsa were already provided! That my friends is service and I cannot think of a non Mexican restaurant that is so responsive and on their game.
It did not take me very long to select a grilled shrimp and sausage quesadilla from the lunch menu. Within ten minutes it was on my table and it was hot. The plate was hot too. Actually I noticed how well that plate held the heat for most of my meal. The best part was that it filled me up, which is what I came here for!
I also asked for a large DOS EQUIS which turned out to be 25 ounces for $ 4.25! This is a bargain for a beer and I’m positive that they know how to make a profit and please their customers. Why then do other businesses need such a higher markup to survive?
This is exactly what I’m talking about maximizing utility. Granted it isn’t steak, crab, or lobster, but it is shrimp and sausage. It satisfied my need and I’m willing to pay the price again and again.
Some people believe the server’s tip should be proportional to the cost. I reject this notion. My belief is that value adds satisfaction to the meal and better affords the patron to compensate the server. If you feel your meal was worth more than the price, simply add that difference to the tip!
El Charro, you did it again! Thank you for your hard work!

El Charro has been my favorite Mexican restaurant for a long long time. And as times change, so do businesses. One of those changes needs to be NO SMOKING. I honestly cannot believe that they allow smoking inside. However, given my many great experiences here, they get 4 stars. I have always been a fan of their P-​10 (formerly P-​5). Their margaritas are pretty good too. A lot better than the pure sugar ones at Chili’s down the street. I suggest going during happy hour, where their margz are $ 3.

Actually the Mexican food I judge All Mexican restaurants food by… when I eat @ another restaurant closer to home, I try to describe how El charro seasons & cooks my meal (generally chicken fajita)

I wish I could give this place 0 stars. And this is after being a loyal for 11 years. Mexican restaurants are a dime a dozen in the Memphis area, but we always chose to come to El Charro. But we went in this past Sunday for a late lunch, waited 45 minutes for our food, which didn’t even come out as we ordered it, and had to wait even longer for my daughter’s cheese quesadilla. Seriously? There was no manager on duty to speak to, and they were only willing to comp us our sweet teas and the small cheese dip. If this is how they value my continued patronage of over a decade, I don’t plan on ever going back. Their «excuse» was that they had a large group in the back room. NO excuse. I’ve been there on a Friday night when the place was packed and you could barely get in the parking lot and got our food in 15 minutes tops!