El Leoncito

I love this place !!! I always get the enchiladas with extra green sauce which is phenomenal !!! My last visit was the best as of yet. Our waitress Paulina was great along with polite and fast. In the past some of the waiters have not been very good unfortunately, however now we will be asking for her section every time we return. I also always order coronaritas it’s huge and very tasty !!!

I have been all around the world. Lived in Vegas for 8 years and currently lived in the San Francisco Bay Area. OMG! This place is the bomb. I was in town visiting my family. My son suggested that we eat here. I was amazed. First the food. Great taste and large portions. Second the price. The food/​drinks is priced cheap. Third the service was terrific. What more can you ask… Next time I’m in town, this will be the first place I visiti

We were seated by the bathroom and smelled urine until we said something to the waitress who proceeded to spray an entire can of Lysol that now affected 3 tables. When I walked into the restroom it was obvious the staff was using an old urine soaked mop. Try using a fresh mop with bleach!
We moved away from the bathroom and it appeared we angered the staff. Food took over 20 mins to arrive. The salsa was really bad. The steak taco was good.

It’s OK. Not home style cooking by far. More like Las Vegas free food style. Cold soup, when I told the waitress, see said, «No it’s not.» Not recommended by me. Oh yes, the super margaritas are very weak. they want you to order a shot of Tequila at $ 6.99. The margaritas are only $ 3.99 during happy hour. Not a good deal.

Outstanding Steak Burrito plate for two. Still had to take half home for another meal. Great service, atmosphere and band on the night that we attended. Would recommend this place to anyone.

According to their website, El Leoncito has an almost 40 year history. They started in CA and relocated to Titusville in 1995. Any restaurant that’s been open that long can’t be too terrible. But it’s not super great either. I liked the bright, colorful décor of the restaurant, both inside and out. The chips and salsa were slow to come out but tasted good, although I think that’s more to do with me being hungry than the actual salsa itself. I ordered the chile verde in an effort to be somewhat healthy and also because I figured it would make a better lunch the next day than leftover tacos or enchiladas. There was nothing wrong with the food but overall it was bland, especially the beans. At least the pork was tender and the rice was soft. Overall the experience was just okay. I’m not going to be rushing back but if you’re in the area and looking for Mexican food it’s an adequate option.

We love this place. The food is great, & the product is always consistent. Their salsa is the best I have ever had, always fresh. This place is so clean, with great curb appeal. The owner is always so pleasant, & I am guessing a great boss because there doesn’t seem to be a high staff turnover, which is rare in the restaurant business. Go there. Sooo good!

We went in for a quick lunch after roaming around in Titusville. We are truly surprised by the interiors. Totally colorful and carefully decorated.
We were taken good care and I ordered a Cuban dish called bisto de pollo. We didn’t wait long before it came steaming hot. It came with a roasted chicken, Mexican rice, sweet plaintain and black bean soup. The chicken was roasted perfectly and the rice which seemed very plain was indeed flavorful. The sweet plaintains were my favorite and they were roasted to golden brown and had just the right amount of sweetness. The prices were also not so expensive. It was a great restaurant and I have no negative comments about it. If you drive by be sure to dine in and you won’t regret.

Great food and service. I had the enchilada with tamal and salad. Wife had the chalupa tostada. Margaritas are the drink of choice. Generous portions all around. Great flavor! Maricela was our Server and she made us happy. Also worthy of note, at 7:30 pm, with a packed restaurant, the rest rooms were stocked and very clean.

Meh. just meh. If you’re coming here to try to experience great Mexican food or drinks, you may leave desiring more. They try real hard to spruce up the place to look authentic, but the food falls short of expectations, and the watered down margaritas aren’t worth the price. But hey, they have a mariachi band, so that’s something… right?

The only decent thing about this place is the Margaritas. They are a pretty good size and tasty. They have a good amount of alcohol so be careful. The Strawberry flavor is my favorite.
Honestly I would only come here to drink. The food is not very good. They give you an option of Mexican and Cuban food. Not sure why places do this. Stick to one and perfect it. Each table is given chips and salsa which doesn’t go with Cuban food.
My first visit I chose to have Cuban. I ordered the skirt steak with black beans and rice and sweet plantains. Honestly the only thing that I could eat were the plantains. The steak wasn’t seasoned and was very tough. The beans tasted like someone had just cooked them with no seasoning at all.
My second visit I ordered off of the Mexican menu. Honestly if I had to choose, I would order off the Cuban menu because the Mexican side was inedible that I had to send mine back. If you like fake cheese and tasteless meat then order the enchiladas and tacos. Yes the portion sizes are generous but it’s not worth it.

I’m always very hesitant in eating Mexican food anywhere else other than Mexico and SouthWestern states. However, this place was outstanding! I had the Arroz con Pollo (chicken and rice). I will go back for sure!

Lessons learned from this experience:
A restaurant with a five page menu: SKIP IT
Waitress not being excited about explaining food options: RED FLAG
Any restaurant with two styles: STAY AWAY
The specifics, as requested by the owner in response to my initial review:
We ate lunch on 10/​30/​2015.
The margaritas were lacking Tequila, very sweet, and reminded us more of a fruit punch.
My girlfriend had the Special of the day (chipotle costillas) — they were fatty and bland, and looked dry. Given this was the «Special of the day», and at $ 16, she simply expected more. No Chipotle taste, barely any sauce. She asked for yucca frita; it was bland, tasted frozen — we get better yucca in Minnesota. My girlfriend is from the Caribbean, so she knows how good it can be.
I ordered the picadillo, which was ok at $ 7.50. The tostones were not fresh and tasted like frozen ones. The beans were bland as well. It was a sad attempt since they seemed neither Mexican nor Cuban — which is why the restaurant’s menu reminded me of a fusion gimmick.
PS: I appreciate your response to my initial review. I also appreciate family restaurants and prefer them over chains. It seems in this case the cooks were out of touch with your vision and pride for the food you want to serve,

This is the BEST for Cuban food. The Cuban Sandwich is the best! as are all the cuban dishes. I have not yet tried the mexican dishes. The wife love the ²⁄₁ Margeritas on Mondays.
Prices are reasonable.

My wife and I were on our way back from a drive along the coast and were starting to get hungry. We saw a busy parking lot and figured we’d the food must be good to draw a crowd like this so we pulled in. I quickly pulled up Unilocal and saw that the reviews were mixed but overall but saw more good than bad posted recently so we decided to give it a try.
We walked in and the girls at the counter were very friendly and seated us immediately. Our server came the table with some chips and salsa and asked what we wanted to drink. I ordered some iced tea with lime for me and a Margarita for my wife. When he returned with our drinks he simply said, «Are you ready to order?» and that was it. I asked what the special of the day was and he said «One special for you and for her?» and I said… «I was only asking what the special was.» and he said «OK and for her?» so I said… «Give us a minute»
We tried the chips and salsa and to be blunt… The salsa tasted like cheap tomato sauce with a few spices added but said her drink was great. My wife wanted to go and I SHOULD have listened but I wanted a break from the driver seat so I talked her into staying and motioned to the server waiting on the section next to us. She came over and I asked if my server was new and she said no. I then asked her if she could take over our table and after a few minutes she returned to assist us.
She recommended the Churrasco and the Ropa Vieja which is what we ended up ordering after a few questions about the items on the menu. My wife wanted the Churrasco and a side salad with Yuuca and I opted for the Ropa Vieja wnd a cup of Black bean soup. She came with the salad but not the black bean soup. It was nothing special, just a basic salad BUT the fork was laid across the top of the salad.
Finally the rest of our order arrives and after taking my pictures we dug in. My wife started with her Churrasco and it was tough and bland. The piece I tried was so bad I spit it into my napkin. The yucca was frozen breaded yucca that was just deep fried and was OK at best. The Ropa Vieja was tough and chewy but at least the flavor was not bad. the rice was too salty but properly cooked. The plantain was not very sweet and it tasted like they were just deep fried in old grease. The black bean soup was bland and lacking in flavor. It was pretty clear to us that people were coming here for the cheap drinks and NOT the food.
Our server returned and asked how everything was. I told her about what we thought of the food and suggested that she have the chef taste to food we were sending back. I told her to bill be for the drinks and the salad we ate but we were going elsewhere for dinner. After a few minutes a man comes to the table and hands me a check and never said a single word to us. I could only assume he was the manager. We waited a few minutes but the server was busy so we went to the counter to pay. We were charged $ 6.50 for the drink and I left the server a $ 5.00 tip.
The girl asked what happened and I told her about our experience. After being told how bad TexMex was by the one hostess I let her know that I my wife was from Texas and we are very aware of the difference between Mexican food and TexMex. I also informed her that some of the best Mexican food I have had in the US is in San Diego in Old Town. The manager finally spoke up and said… «We have been here a long time and have never had any complaints.» and my wife said… «Customers generally do not complain, they just do not return.» and we left.
Food — FAIL
Margarita — 4
first server — FAIL
second server — 4
Manager — FAIL
If you want a decent margarita for $ 6.50, they are your place but the food is a disaster. The manager did not want to know what was wrong so he could fix it, he just seemed more interested in letting us know he does not get complaints. The second server did her job and the kitchen staff and manager let her down. That is why I tipped her because it was not her fault our meal was awful.

Not my favorite place in town but a good backup. The food is good but not fantastic. I think they are mostly popular due to the margaritas which are famous in this town. It’s a family friendly place. The service is hit or miss.

I have been eating here for over a decade. Their first location was conveniently across the street from me.
Recently, El Leoncito has become my husband and I’s local default restaurant. Whether you decide to eat from their Cuban or Mexican menu, you can’t go wrong. This is where I recommended out-​of-​towners to eat.
The palomilla steak is amazing as are the black beans. Everyone loves the black beans. Most people I know live for their margaritas but I am not a tequila drinker so I won’t comment.
This joint is always busy and for good reason. The only place where I don’t like to be seated is near the bar against the far wall. It’s a little too close for comfort to the other patrons.
Don’t fill up on chips– they’re addicting!

Simply awesome.
We always go for the food and margaritas. Best Mexican in the area that we can find.

My family went here for 2 for 1 margaritas on a Monday. We were planning on staying for dinner, but pretty quickly changed our minds.
We sat outside because it was pleasant after the rain. the Margaritas game quickly and were ok, though the requested salt rim on my girl’s watermelon rita came out as sugar. We ordered the guacamole and queso for a snack. The guac was fair, but the queso was cheezwiz and had no flavor or spice. The chips were greasy. We asked for napkins no less than 4 times for napkins and never received them. Our server disappeared and didn’t return — we had to go find her to ask for a check. No me gusta.

Unfortunately I cannot give a good review here. We walked in and sat down and waited to be seen. For 15 minutes at 11:30 am, on a weekend. it wasn’t overly crowded. We had no water, no one stopped at our table. We left and went to a Vietnamese place instead.