El Patron

We come once a year to Las cruces to visit my father in law from cali. Last year we tried this place and boy did I not forget it. Service and food are awesome. I really love this place and glad we got it before we head back tomorrow! The brisket is so good. It’s worth a try!

Mom and Pop and Wow! Still tiny and family-​run, but a lot of the kitschy stuff has thankfully been removed. We had gone once in 2013 and liked the food, but never made the time to go back. Visited this weekend for lunch, and had a great, homestyle New Mexican meal. The green chile chicken enchilada plate special was creamy, not excessively spicy, and delicious. Their brisket is famous, so we also opted for a brisket taco plate and swooned. Tender, well-​seasoned, in excellent corn tortillas that did not disintegrate from the filling. And the albondigas soup was good and hot and loaded with veggies, just like your abuelita would make! It’s much better than I even remembered and we promised ourselves to go back much more frequently in the future. They make lots of homemade cakes for dessert, but you’d be hard pressed to have room with the meal portions as large as they are. The table next to us had a huge platter of the brisket nachos, and walk-​in customers were ordering brisket nachos to go. I just wish we had a larger party so we could have ordered some to split. Someday we will. This place is one of the best! It is on the noisy side, with a radio tuned to a local station, a TV, and lots of background noise. GO. EAT THE BRISKET. REALLY.

In town exploring las cruses and wanted to get off of the typical Loman street Mexican food. It’s a small family run looking place. Tiny. We got it to go, while waiting, the staff was friendly and happy .We ordered the verde buritio and a nachos with Barbacoa and it was pretty darn good. It tasted very much like home style Barbacoa.
We will come back again.

Tiny place with great food. I always order the deluxe brisket burrito smothered in green chile sauce. We also had them cater for us once, and the food was delicious. Very nice family owned business.

This is a very small family run place that’s easy to miss if you’re not looking for it. The sign by the road is small, as is the building. But please, do yourself a favor and get here! The food is great and the brisket is out of this world! I highly recommend anything with the brisket in it (tacos, nachos, quesadilla, etc). They also have other non-​mexican foods incase you have picky kids or go with someone just not in the mood for mexican. It’s all great.

If your taste buds work at all, reward them with the brisket nachos. You won’t leave hungry or dissapointed.

The food was delicious. If you only have time and belly space for one thing, get the brisket. So dang tastey. I got the brisket nachos and brisket fries with green Chile. I HIGHLY recommend both. I will return.

Brisket fries and brisket nachos are unbelievably good. It’s chipped brisket… so tasty. This is what being the best taste like.

Small, family owned Mexican restaurant. Small parking lot. Waiter was very helpful and friendly. Everyone speaks English. Bathroom located in the back thru the kitchen. Food took about 15 minutes to arrive at table. It was worth the wait. Hours are 8 – 3 daily, but they let us in (a family of 7) after 3pm. Awesome.

The runny huevos rancheros plate had mystery chunks of meat and overcooked eggs. My husband returned his plate.
I got the potato, egg and green chile burrito which was OK.
Staff was friendly and nice; they handled the returned food with professionalism.

After reading the reviews here on Unilocal,my husband and I decided to give this place a try. We went for lunch and ordered the brisket burrito. The brisket tasted good but man oh man they put a ton of jalapeño! With the amount of jalapeños that was in it, it totally took over the whole burrito and it just wasn’t enjoyable. Pretty disappointed. Unfortunately I don’t think we will be going back.

So delicious. I go weekly and have always had good food! Every day there is a different soup, special of the day, and homemade dessert. Good prices too!

wow what a find. really great food and friendly staff. Was recommended by some locals and I was not disappointing

My nephew had been wanting to take me to El Patron for what he calls «THE BEST BURRITOS EVER!» He may only be 11 yrs old, but he knows his burritos!
We visited El Patron for a late lunch and luckily it was not full… which isn’t easy because there are only about 6 tables in the place. From what I understand, it can get rather busy and I can see why!
A family owned business that is run with their customers in mind! The family that runs the business recognized my niece and nephews since apparently my parents are regulars there.
I ordered the BBQ sandwich and was pleasantly surprised. Very tender brisket with just the right amount of sauce and diced jalapeños added the perfect touch of spice! The sandwich was delicious! On the side… a crunchy pickle…(In my opinion, a BBQ sandwich is not complete without a pickle on the side!)
They have varying daily specials ranging from meatloaf to baked fish tacos, to soups!
I will definitely be back next time I’m home visiting the family!
Great service and delicious home cooked food! Plus… it’s family run! That is what we need to support, especially in Las Cruces!!!

As described by the other existing review, El Patron is a tiny, tiny restaurant on Solano. It’s hard to find; but if you know where COAS is, it’s located right behind the Solano COAS. We went for lunch at noon on a Friday and there was room to sit.
inside, the very small restaurant is pleasant and clean, but it was a little noisy due to the TV on the wall. There is a good selection of food on the menu, and today’s special was fish tacos. Having heard all the buzz about the brisket, I ordered the brisket plate, and Mike ordered the hamburger.
The hamburger was giant, from a homemade patty, served on a huge buttered bun, but with a side of frozen fries that were probably not as good as the homemade fries at Habaneros down the street. The brisket was good although it could have been saucier. .. it was a little dry. Probably would have been better in the nachos or in a burrito because cheese would add some more. .. mobility or something, not sure what word I am looking for. Rounding out the brisket plate were some good rice and beans, lettuce and tomato, a little tower of rice and a buttered roll.
All in all, this was a super lunch value for $ 15 for two people. The service was fast. I wish I could have ordered dessert, as there were some homemade cakes sitting on the sideboard that were making my eyes pop out.

NICE LITTLE FAMILY RUN PLACE WITH GREAT BURGERS AND BRISKET
El Patron Café on South Solano is a little family run café that serves Mexican food, burgers, and some delicious homemade cakes and pastries. This business is a labor of love and is very bright, clean, and charming inside. The place definately has a certain «warmth» to it. They serve outstanding breakfasts and lunches. Everytime I have eaten there I was served by the owner’s daughter Annette, a very attractive and pleasant young woman who makes everyone feel at home. Annette and her mom make El Patron a very friendly little place.
Don’t be put off by the unpaved parking lot or the smallness of the building. This is a very nice restaurant. It may be advisable, however, to go there at a slightly off hour as 10 – 11:00 am or 2:30 — 3:30 in the afternoon as there is limited seating. Trust me… your trip will be worth it. Rate the ambiance at El Patron Café about a B to B+.
The menu at El Patron is somewhat limited… mostly tacos, burritos, nachos, burgers, and Mexican breakfasts. They do have chile con carne and brisket. Drinks are served from the can.
On my first visit I discovered their chips served before the meal to be among the best, but the salsa, a thin reddish type, I found was high on the heat, but not the most tasty. I honestly can only rate the salsa a B minus. They really could use improvement here.
I ordered a burrito plate with green chile con carne and smothered. The little side salad, rice, and refried beans were the norm. The burrito itself was high on the heat and had little chunks of beef, but I felt the flavor of the chile was a little disappointing. It didn’t have that real good green chile flavor. Rate this burrito a C+ to B minus.
So, why do I recommend El Patron to people and rate it four stars? For the same reason why I continue to return there… their great El Jefe Burger and their terrific brisket. The El Jefe is one outstanding burger. The burger patty is high quality and very flavorful. Cooked just right. Large thick pieces of bacon cover the burger and the bun is one of the better ones around these parts. The burger bun itself is slightly warmed on the grill. Plenty of cheese, tomato, lettuce, chopped onion, green chile, and guacamole round out an almost PERFECT BURGER. This is an outstanding production, clearly one of the top green chile cheeseburgers in town, if not the best. Rate this bad boy an «A» for exceptional!
The fries accompanying the El Jefe are just ok. They could improve on these.
But what if you don’t want a burger? Get the brisket… either in the world’s best nachos or in tacos. The brisket nachos are superb (A). It is hard to imagine how the nachos could be improved upon??? Tortilla chips covered with a little refried beans, shredded lettuce, pieces of tomato, onions, peppers, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and the most tender, juicy, and flavorful brisket around. The brisket has a wonderful smoked flavor to it. If you don’t want nachos, by all means order brisket tacos. Rate the brisket and brisket nachos an «A» for excellent. If there are any better nachos in Las Cruces I have not encountered them.
Overall, this is a great little casual café… with much warmth and charm… great for either breakfast or lunch. Out of five possible I rate this bistro FOUR STARS. I would encourage everyone to give it a try.