El Mezcal
El Mezcal
food, nachos
food, tacos
food
the entrance to a mexican restaurant
Small Guacamole
Free Chips!
Mexican sample
the interior of a mexican restaurant
three bowls of salsa and guacamole
Beef tacos ala carte (3 - $3.99); small guacamole ($3.79); 27 oz margarita ($4.25 on Saturdays) ... WOW!; complimentary chips.
Enchiladas mexicanas family pack
White Cheese (Queso Blanco) Dip
a view of a restaurant with tables and chairs
Cheese and Onion Enchiladas ala Carte
interior
Queso blanco and guacamole ($3.49/each)
Cheese Quesadilla
Beef Tacos ala Carte
Quesadillas
burrito, burritos and wraps, wraps, food
New Interior
Cheese and onion enchiladas $2.15/ea ala carte
Taco "Plater" (I'd spell it "Platter")
Frozen lime margaritas for under $5 today!
Sabrina M.
Jun 15, 2024
Was skeptical after reading the hot/cold reviews, even more skeptical when we pulled up at prime lunchtime and the front parking lot was empty. BUT when we walked in the place was 3/4 full (there is much more parking available). We were greeted with a smile, seated immediately in a comfortable, reasonably quiet booth. Our waitress was prompt, pleasant, courteous and got our high-maintenance orders perfectly. The Carnitas plate was DELICIOUS, I seriously had Carnitas dreams last night. My friend raved about her Polo la crema dish. The negative reviews all look years old, so it appears this place has made some positive changes. You might want to give it another try next time you're in Lawrence & looking for Mexican (on Mass)
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Kara R.
Aug 25, 2024
I struggled with whether I should give 3 stars or 4. The great service deserved the 4 stars but a few things I didn't like about this place. 1: there is an extremely strong smell of cleaning product. As I appreciate a clean restaurant, this was nearly unbearable. 2: the queso was bland and basic. Some positives: our meals were delicious and very reasonable price wise.
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Austin B.
Dec 21, 2023
Might be the best Mexican food/ restaurant i have been to! The service and ambience is second to none here! Me and my party got our food FAST!!!!Every time I come here , I WILL ALWAYS find the time and the appetite to go here!
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Daniel N.
Dec 30, 2021
My server (in November '21) was very attentive. The food I had was excellent.The interior is magnificent!I give it 4 stars only because I've not been there many times.
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Hedrick A.
Nov 21, 2022
The take out order of 6 beef tacos were stone cold by the time I arrived home (a 10 minute trip) so I suspect little care was taken to ensure a decent order. Nevertheless the taste was good.
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Michael P.
Aug 9, 2020
Seated for a table of 4. Our service was very poor. I asked for more water and never received it. In fact we hardly ever saw our server. I had to wave down another guy and ask for more chips for our queso. On top of the bad service my burrito wasn't that great. There are other Mexican spots around that I would much rather go to.
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Scott T.
Apr 14, 2018
Friday night, decided we'd catch some dinner out, a bit of shopping and a movie. Asked the missus where she'd like to have dinner. "Surprise me," she said, and I did. The surprise? How bland and sub-par the food here is.Last here 20 years ago--we remember because our daughter was 2 years old--let's just get the puns out of the way and then dispense with the pain. Upon leaving my wife said, "Gee, that was really good. Let's come back again in 20 years."Lets start with my dish. A combination of one hard shell beef taco, one enchilada, rice and beans. The beef was plain hamburger that had been fried and I can only guess had sat for a long time because it had a distinct unpleasant edge we both noticed. Where was any hint of spices, maybe some cumin, chili pepper, onion, anything? My taco had but maybe two tablespoons of meat, a couple of shreds of lettuce and cheese with a good 1/2" of open air space in the top of the sad little fried pre-made shell that came off some Sysco truck. Should have sent it back.The enchilada was of the same beef with its unpleasant taste, wrapped in a shell that had barely been warmed and covered with an enchilada sauce that had little taste, was not seasoned properly and, well, just looked bad. This was just utterly unpleasant.Rice and beans: Mexican grandmothers are turning in their grave. How hard is it, really, to add a bit of cumin to the rice, a bit of chicken stock to the water, and some salt to season it? Utterly bland. The beans lacked enough salt to impart any flavor. The requisite five strands of melted cheese did not make up for the lack of taste. 90% of the complaints about most restaurants is too much salt. Not here.Sadly, the best thing about the meal was the chips and salsa, the sure sign you're eating Tex-Mex made for Americans. Service was adequate. Total bill (we only had water) a few cents below $20, $24 with tip. Next time I'll take that money and the missus to La Estrella a few blocks away and have a proper feast and throw in two Jarritos for half the price. This was food that would be utterly forgettable were it not so sub-par. Half empty on a Friday night, apparently others know something about the food here we did not take the time to investigate.
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Chris S.
Oct 27, 2016
EL MEZCAL IS OPEN AGAIN - SAME LOCATION, SIMILAR MENU, UPSCALE DECOR, NO MARGARITA SPECIALSOld information and reviews do not apply to "new and improved(?)" El Mezcal. There is a new menu and no great margarita specials like they had before they closed ... "We're still deciding" I was told ... Well, I am still deciding whether or not I want to come back! We used to eat at El Mezcal 3-4 times a month, now we eat there 1-2 times max.Deep fried tacos (3 - $9.99) with shredded beef new on the menu, are a welcome addition, although they are much smaller and skimpier on meat than Mi Ranchito down the street. Unlike Mi Ranchito's deep fried tacos, El Mezcal's fall apart by the time you get to taco #2 and #3 and I do not like having to eat my tacos with a knife and fork. Otherwise, the food is pretty much the same and the decor more upscale after the infamous Italian/Mexican fiasco and expensive building renovation.KU students cannot afford $6+ margaritas, so they should add some margarita specials soon or we and many others will be eating at Mi Ranchito where the food is better. If El Mezcal is trying to make up losses for the expensive renovation, they are going about it the wrong way. I have heard from many friends that the lack of reasonably priced margaritas (like before) is one thing keeping them away and I am sure that is the case with KU students. Cheap, strong margaritas was one of the few things that made the "old" El Mezcal stand out from the other mediocre Mexican restaurants in Lawrence, so they are losing customers and revenue by trying to recuperate losses by charging more for drinks. They could also offer daily specials like $1 tacos (e.g. El Potro) on Monday night ... their place is packed, El Mezcal is not.CombatCritic Gives The "New And Improved" El Mezcal 4 Bombs Out Of 10 With A 2 Bomb Deduction For Expensive Margaritas ... More Bombs Are Better!
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P W.
Nov 18, 2024
at this restaurant, the food is bland. It has no Mexican authentic taste to it at all. The Queso cheese was lukewarm. very disappointed . will probably not go back.
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Renee H.
Apr 3, 2022
We have not been here for years because food was not good. We decided to try it again. It has Improved a lot. Food and service was great. Will go back now.
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