El Rodeo

You’ve got to ask for Yosa! Her energy is so infectious and uplifting. She was such a breath of fresh air and super attentive. And to top, food came out speedy fast. Beats our original plan of pizza! We even got hooked up with homemade hot sauce to go! Now that’s service.

Have been going for years and usually have a good experience – great food, speedy service, etc. Went last night and found the experience lacking. Our server seemed distracted, took10 minutes to get us our drinks (ice water), and the chips were quite simply stale. They have revamped the menu again (seems to happen yearly) and while it is less cluttered and more streamlined, they also took off the bowl dishes I’d come to order each time. We were seated in the room at the rear of the restaurant and the floor always has a slimy feel and I’m always worried about slipping when I’m in that room..

Delicious food! I ordered the Texas Quesadilla. I’m totally satisfied! Good, friendly service. I’ll definitely be back.

LOVE this place! The margaritas are fresh and delicious and the food is excellent. I always have to ask for my favorite server, Angel! Everyone else there seems lovely also but Angel is just the best!

I could not believe how fast our food came out. The portion sizes are huge and the chips were fresh. Our waitress was on top of her game, we never had to ask for napkins or refills. This is now one of my favorite MEXICAN restaurants in Raleigh. #IloveElRodeo

Read a lot of the reviews on this site and then decided to try it. It was worth it. The food was great, the price and the service too. I Will definitely go there again. Thank you Unilocal

Our favorite neighborhood Mexican place, they are always so friendly, and the food is good and very consistent! We love Rodeo!

Being from Texas I had a hard time looking for real good Mexican food. I came across this little charming place and I have to admit the food was delicious. The service was awesome and everyone was extremely friendly. I will be back many more times.

No bueno. Food is less than mediocre. They put spicy mayo on everything. The salsa tasted like it had ketchup in it. This is not even close to authentic Mexican cuisine. If you want heartburn and an upset stomach, go here.

Considering that I am a Mexican food junkie, I have tried many Mexican restaurants around town. First of all, I always judge a Mexican restaurant by their salsa. If the salsa is not good, most likely the food will follow suit. In regards to their salsa, I could drink that stuff. It is delicious. Secondly, I love steak tacos. El Rodeo’s blend of avacado, steak, lime, and hot salsa is enough to make me never want to leave the place. I highly recommend anyone looking for a good meal, great atmosphere, and happy bellies to come here.

My wife and I eat here all the time. Best food for the price. And I like Jorge. Nicest guy. Not that I have any problems with anyone else. He’s just great

We LOVE this place. Been here many times and have never been disappointed. Big place with nice décor and ample seating.
The food is delicious with large portions. We’ve had a couple of different steak and chicken options. All delicious. Be careful when ordering a spicy dish… they really mean it! Drinks are spot on.
Service is great. Very attentive and fast. Definitely our go-​to Mexican spot.

I grew up coming to this restaurant — it’s always been my go-​to Mexican place because they are usually fast, accurate and very friendly. I recently ate here for dinner and I unfortunately cannot say the it’s the same.
They have recently updated their menu and revamped the look of their food. However the price doesn’t match the taste or quality.
They are trying to push people to sit in their newly opened upstairs bar by use of horrible business tactics. Be careful when reading specials! Most only apply when sitting in the upstairs bar. HOWEVER, they serve the exact same tacos for $ 1.50 in the bar that they serve downstairs for $ 3.50 — nothing is different about them (other than you not sitting in the bar).
We ordered the special from the waiter downstairs and he let us order it without letting us know it only applied in the bar and when we got the bill it was double what we expected. No big deal — just would have been nice to know prior to placing the order. Management came and fixed our bill — but blamed it on the owners.
Either way it was a very poorly managed promotion and deal. I highly doubt I will be back and I will NEVER recommend any of my friends or family to eat here again.

I love a Tex-​Mex restaurant that doesn’t try to be something it’s not. I like lunch and dinner combos. I like food dishes that can be ordered by number. I like friendly staff members that remember your face and make you feel welcome. Consistently good food. Consistently good service. Reasonable prices. You should go.

We just had a wonderful late lunch at this festive restaurant. Food was fresh and delicious, especially the guacamole that’s prepared at the table. Service was efficient and friendly. Nestor was an excellent waiter — prompt, engaging and helpful. Restrooms clean. Spring margaritas with blue salt on the rim were quite good. This place was such a nice surprise — we’ll definitely be back!

Finding a great Mexican place has been tough. I am from Ca where we have nothing but authentic Mexican. El Rodeos is good but it isn’t great. Or at least not what we ordered. We ordered the carne asada and the chicken rolls which the chicken rolls were very good but the asada was so so. It was a bit too greasy.

Excellent ambiance and excellent food every time. I have been there six times during this past year

We called for take out, their website was down. It was redirected to Go Daddy. Com. So I pulled up the El Rodeo Durham website /​menu.
I ordered the especial quillesa el rodeo (sp)
And was told they did not have that. But they asked what it was, I read to them from the other (Durham) menu. It was $ 8.50 for 1, $ 12.50 for two. They said they could make it and it would be the same price .ruce & beans were $ 1 more. Per durhams website!
I then ordered Fajitas Texansas for my husband.
We also ordered extra guacamole ($ 4.40) and cheese sauce ($ 3.50). Our bill was over $ 41!
When I called to ask them what the price was for the especial they made me, all I got was yelled at and talked over by the manager. We have been there many times, but we will NEVER go back!

This is probably my favorite El Rodeo in the area. It’s tucked away in the Pleasant Valley shopping center off Glenwood, and is large enough so you never have much of a wait. The staff is friendly and fast, and you can always count on drink specials and delicious food. I typically order the chicken fajitas and end up bringing home leftovers for the next day. The fajitas come with fresh guacamole (not the pre-​packaged goop at some restaurants) and crema. Remember to ask for extra tortillas with your leftovers so you are all set for lunch the next day!

My first visit to El Rodeo… and I ended up with a mixed bag. First, the food was fine, no major complaints. The prices were inline with other Mexican restaurants in the area. The Blue Margarita is both perfect and a real eye-​catcher. But…
The service leaves a lot to be desired. It is rare that I allow poor service to result in a two-​star deduction, but in this case I feel it is warranted. From the moment we walked in, all of the employees that we came in contact with were less than friendly. It almost seemed as though we were bothering them. At first, we were led to a table near the back of the restaurant. When we requested a booth, the hostess simply changed directions and led us to a booth — without saying a word the entire time. Once the waitress arrived, it was a similar story. She had a very simple, «just the facts» attitude that was rather sedate… almost zombie like.
The food is fine, the price is reasonable, service is quick… but they need to do a little bit better job with the waitstaff. I am not asking them to fall all over the guests and roll out the red carpet… but the ho-​hum attitude of the employees certainly needs to change.