El Corral

Wonderful recommendation. Don’t quite understand how they make money. My filet was much better tasting and as large as the one I had in Phoenix two days ago for only 23?
Tossed salad at table was delightful and prime rib perfect. Broccoli a little a dente, but so what. Our first time but we highly recommend and will be back!

Pretty good steak place at moderate prices. Both myself and co-​worker had the prime rib. It was good, not the best I ever had.
Salad was average and the chicken tortilla soup was not finished by my coworker, he said it wasn’t very good.
The steaks are made on a wood fire grill right in front of you. They all looked good.
Place is large and can accommodate large groups.
All in all, not bad, but Not GREAT! 3 Stars

My husband LOVED his steak — large and cooked perfectly. If he were writing this review, he’d probably give this place 4 stars!
The reasons I am not:
1) I am not a meat eater, but I like restaurants that provide vegetarian entrees for those of us who wish to dine out with our meat eating mates. This place does not.
2) For the prices, I expected the interior ambience to be as stylish as the exterior. It isn’t. We sat in a wooden booth, no cushions, no ambience. Disliked the lighting and how stressed the wait staff rushed about…
I ordered a $ 10 caesar salad — I was shocked at how small and plain it was. With «dressing» that tasted like mayonnaise and loaded with croutons, I was disappointed that it came on the same size plate as my husband’s «SIDE SALAD» that was included in his steak meal.
In addition to the perfectly cooked steak, the waiter was polite, courteous and worthy of a good tip!

clean pleasant quick
prime rib and tamale pie
side of tamale pie was tasty
extra nice salad
extra nice bread basket
just missed the mark on the prime rib
30% too much money

This was not worth it. We eat steak out so rarely and now I remember why. The T-​bone steak I ordered didn’t have a bone. It was way too well done! Table service was awful. The guy had no personality. My daughter got the chicken nuggets and wouldn’t eat them and said, «I never saw chicken like this.» They didn’t seem like real chicken. Management didn’t seem to care about my disappointment almost like they were expecting it. If you want a good dining experience, don’t go here!

Smells like sewer and too cold. Both reasons we didn’t stay and won’t return. Last two times here had to return the steaks because couldn’t cut through the nerves

Wow, big disappointment! I had not been here for decades and as a Tucson born 3^rd generation Arizona native, I love businesses located in historic buildings in my home town. As we were staying at the Westward Look, what better way to compliment our stay than a dinner at El Corral. At least, I hoped. The reviews were ho hum and left me up in the air so decided, give it a try for old time’s sake.
I ordered the El Corral Cut Prime Rib, $ 19.99, which was accompanied by a salad and baked potato. The first go round with my prime rib was a big disappointment. Tough and flavorless. Also, smaller than I expected being it the restaurant cut. Salad was okay with the blue cheese dressing and potato pretty good. When our sweet waitress came around and asked how my prime rib was, I said «kind of tough and not much flavor». She pleasantly said she could take it back and get me a cut off of another prime rib. Well, hoping number two would be a winner, I licked my chops in wait, had a sip off of my nice Snap Dragon Pinot Noir and got into position to dig in once it arrived. Bummer, even tougher and lacking in flavor than the first. Ate about half and took the rest back to our German Shepherd in the hotel. He loved it.
My husband’s Tucson Chicken Breast was fair, nothing to write home about, especially at $ 15.99.
As my husband had never been here, the atmosphere and décor was a treat. Very casual and nice rustic vibe. Not sure I will give it another try. Our dining date was Nov 27.

Went here last night. Got a table right away & by the time we were asked what drinks we wanted had already decided on our order. Filet mignon for me & prime rib for my husband. Salads came out well before dinner. Steaks came out charred on the outside and undercooked inside. The waitress was very sweet and apologetic and took them back to have them grilled some more. Mine came back ok. My husband’s was still undercooked… it honestly looked like it had to start with. So here I am now with an annoyed hungry man and only one tolerable meal, because, say what you will, I will not send a plate back a second time. Asked the manager to come over and even though she so graciously removed the uneaten items from our ticket and provided a gift card, after sharing my meal and my husband I both being physically ill last night/​this morning, I don’t think we will be returning :(Too bad, used to be a great place.

Impressed! I was visiting Tucson a couple of weeks ago and had dinner at El Corral. Everything was wonderful. My filet mignon was delicious. I would never find filet at this price in CA! Sangria, tamale pie, salad table side was all delicious. Disappointed in the mud pie but going back this weekend with my family for a party of 18! Can’t wait!

Wilted iceberg lettuce was used for the colorless, overly sweet, non-​descript «tableside-​prepped» salad. Big whoop.
No ranch beans can even be ordered to go with your steak. Margarine, not butter, is served with the mediocre buns. Chintzy portion of tamale pie as the side. My steak was a tough, flavorless ribeye at $ 21.99. Except for the gritty cinders, as if the cook kept poking the fire, there was no enhancement of the meat by the mequite wood.
Maybe my palate has matured. It seems like it used to be better twenty years ago, but now this place is definitely past its «prime».

Extremely disappointed in the service I received. I don’t understand what the point of calling ahead for a table is when you still have to wait the normal, if not longer, time to get seated. Unfortunately, it didn’t end there. We were seated at a table and were blatantly overlooked by all wait staff. When the manager finally made it to our table, she had an attitude and was not interested in what we had to say. Not a good experience and it will be a very long time, if not forever, before I come back.

I remember going here a long time ago and now that I live close by, decided to check it out again.
Went for dinner on Tuesday around 5, but there was no host/​hostess at the door. Around dinner time, it would help to have someone close by/​monitoring the door so you don’t feel as if you’re in the wrong place.
The bar was under construction, but I stopped by the existing one for a drink before the rest of my party arrived. The bartender was nice, gave me a cold glass for my beer, and directed me to the big reading room for a more comfortable spot. Good call.
As far as the dinner itself: pretty good. Our server was very friendly and she knew the menu. It felt weird to be rushed to order after a couple minutes but then not get our food for about 30 – 45 min. And it wasn’t very crowded.
I ordered the prime rib, med-​rare, with the tamale pie. Our server informed us the fryers weren’t working so no fries for me, but I wasn’t disappointed with the tamale pie. A very unique side.
Prime rib could’ve used more seasoning, but cooked nicely. Yes, I could’ve asked for horseradish that comes with the au jus, but it seems to be a hard thing to miss if you’re in the kitchen. I stole a couple of my dad’s ribs, and they were nicely sauced and very meaty. Very good portions for the price, with leftovers the next day.
I think El Corral is a go-​to steakhouse in Tucson because of the history and that giant neon sign out front that you can’t miss. Plus the parking lot is almost always packed. Is it the best place for a steak? No. I would plunk down more for Sullivan’s or Fleming’s. But it’s a cozy, authentic, local place with decent service and decent food. Tighten the whole operation up a bit, and this place could be 4 – 5 stars.

My wife and I ate at El Corral in May, 2015. Being new to the Tucson area, we were looking for an excellent steak or prime rib. My wife had lived in Tucson years before and remembered how her family enjoyed El Corral, so we tried it for dinner during the week. I had the prime rib which was a bit over-​cooked (I ordered rare) but worse, it was tough and tasteless – a disappointment. My wife had a small filet, which she said was very good but not excellent. The service was very good. We would probably not return.
To be fair, by now (Sept. 2015), I have tried many of Tucson’s and Oro Valley’s steak houses and have found all of them wanting in the area of an excellent filet or prime rib. I have not tried Sullivan’s or Flemming’s as yet. I’m still on the quest…

We used to frequent quite often, but then service and food went off a bit. We have been back several times over the last year and have been very happy with each visit. Great service, great food and the prices are right. Totally recommend if your looking for a really great piece of prime rib, or a good steak or ribs. Be sure to order the tamale pie and let them make your salad table side!
Try them once, you’ll never go back to someplace like «Longhorn Stinkhouse»! Go to El Corral and enjoy!

Worst service in the world. We arrived at 5:30 and didn’t leave until 8:00. The chairs are hard and uncomfortable and the ribs are dry. Go somewhere else.

Cowboy steakhouse.
Get the prime rib with au jus and horseradish. Everything else is a bit overpriced, but the prime rib is a huge win. There are multiple sizes; avoid petite, because you’re at a cowboy steakhouse.

I drive by here all the time and have always wondered how it is — so I was excited when one of my friends invited me to go with him and some buddies.
The atmosphere inside isn’t as cool as I thought it would be considering the outside looks pretty sweet. The table we were at was cramped and wobbly and the chairs were the same.
The food was about ⁶⁄₁₀ and closer to ⁴⁄₁₀ for the price.
Our server was nice and knew what he was doing, but kind of seemed like he didn’t want to be there.
I may be back, but only if someone drags me here.

I have been going to this amazing restaurant since the 1970’s when I was in high school on dates! It has NEVER disappointed me! Last night, we took two of our missionary friends to the restaurant and they were treated with nothing but RESPECT! Our server, Gabe, was amazing. The food is ALWAYS great. Their Tamale Pie is to die-​for and I get it every single time as a side dish! We also had prime rib, minestrone soup, salad and stroganoff. All were quite good.
If you are looking for a restaurant where you can take out-​of-​town guests, this place will not disappoint! It has my highest recommendation.

Looking for a steak dinner and was referred here. Steak was great and the service was attentive. Enjoyed the potato skins and green chilis appetizers and I got the blue cheese salad and ribeye, which was med well done and it melted in my mouth. GREAT place to visit and eat dinner.

Old Western ambience with a fire pit grill! I had the rib combo consisting of fall of the bone ribs and a nice Prime Rib w/​mash and gravy on the side! The ribs were good but not the best I ever had, but the Prime Rib (med) cooked to perfection with an au jour sauce fit nicely.