Obie was our bartender and was the BEST!!!! He recommended our dinners and drinks and we had a blast with him❤️ We will definitely be back when he is working. Thank you Obie

Had a really great experience when dining with my extended family. The servers were so kind and attentive. The food was incredible! Loved the festive atmosphere. This is a wonderful neighborhood gem.

I Can Honestly Say I Love This Place I've Been Going Here Since 2013 Right After Work The Margaritas Are The Best, I Think It May Include Some Sort of Dam Giggly Juice The Laughter Is Automatic After One Sip 😂 & The Mix Sizzling Fajita Skillet to Die For I Rate It 10 Out Of 10 Hands Down

So we live in the neighborhood, always have. So this isn't a new place for us, But it had been a while and apparently I had never had their 3 leches until just this week, and wow! My grandma and I loved it. And their coffee mugs are bigger! -not like those ones that you take 2 sips and you're done. Lol we were 100 percent satisfied.

Came for lunch while on a business trip and couldn't have been more impressed. Service was excellent and the lunch menu went on for days! Food was excellent and affordable. Will be back next time for sure.

Amazing service from Laura and Go Diego! Laura took our order and made sure everything was perfect and it was absolutely delicious. Diego made sure we had everything we needed and checked on us while we ate and made sure we were ok. I really liked the service here and food. Check them out.

Food is delicious and always hot. I do the take out and when I get home it's still piping hot. It's a mom and pop restaurant so they cook like you're apart of their family. Try it u won't be disappointed and try there to go margaritas there delicious

Excellent service. Everybody is so attentive even of they aren't your server. From the host to the food runners to the waiters. Drinks were hella strong, food was well seasoned. Happy hour specials were good. Definitely recommend.

El Ranchero is the best and friendly spot for family and friends. The dishes are delicious and generous!

The food was absolutely delicious

This is a wonderful neighborhood place serving up amazing Mexican food good Margaritas good con queso with chorizo. The Carnitas are very good, and their shrimp dish that's bacon-wrapped with Jalapeno in it is very good. You can tell that they have someone who knows a bit about Mexican food cooking because it doesn't taste like other places that we've been where it tastes kind of fake. You can eat there for pretty inexpensive, but we usually get a couple of their wonderful margaritas, so that adds to the price of the meal, obviously. Plentiful easy free parking.

One of the best dining experiences of my entire life- came highly recommended. After a long 8 hour flight from New England, this was an excellent start to my first trip to Texas. Juan was our waiter, and he catered to our every need, including my severe food sensitivities. Would give more than 5 stars if I could !!!!

Such a great Mexican restaurant. Friendly staff. I wanted to tip everyone because they were jus so helpful. Tons of food for the money. Definitely a value in this day and age!

Neighborhood hang at this local TexMex chain. People are loyal for the consistently crisp chips and hot red salsa. From grilled meats to their excellent guacamole the menu has variety that works for everyone. The staff is super friendly. We go once a week.

Great local spot. Good food, friendly service, nice people. The pollo parilla was delicious! Bar tenders are great. Thanks for always taking such good care of us. Tip: ask for the red sauce 😉

Everything is always perfect. My husband's favorite restaurant 😊

Good margaritas, great hot (temperature) salsa, all the food I have had there for years is good. I love the tortilla soup and quesadillas the best.

The only place I come for tacos! The street tacos with grilled onions and to top it off onions and cilantro. Other restaurants have fake meat and I can tell here the food is ALWAYS top quality and FRESH! Obi always makes the experience top notch! Makes us feel at home. We will come here until the wheels fall off ❤️

Happy Hrs Monday and Tuesday are a MUST! Bar area ask for Obo or Johnny!! Food is good, drinks were great! Get the margarita half n half thank me later.

I travel the whole state of Texas and have to say the food is amazing. I ordered the Platillo Mazatlan....didn't take a pic, saw the food, and dove in. Highly recommend this place..service is amazing.

Excellent place to go to for great tex mex!

My family and I love coming to El Ranchero. The food is fresh and delicious. Drinks are always made well and the staff is friendly and quick. Candi is one of our favorite waitress. She always greets us with a smile and makes sure we are well taken care of. It's hard to find a business with great service, food, and drinks..

That's it found it yess..closest to Cali style,to me!!big portions,cool price definitely the spot

I always sit at the bar because of Johnnie and Obie. Great drinks, neighborhood bar, and quickly prepared food. Had a $15 t-bone which was good.

I was taken excellent care of today by Gilberto, who warmly greeted me and started me off with warm chips and a great red salsa I could not stop reaching for and a refreshing glass of ice tea He came by and inquired what I was in the mood for, to which I replied I'm craving cheese enchiladas. Settling on the number 16, I added a Taco. No regrets. A green sauce is available, too I savored every delicious bite while texting My Man with the news that at long last, I had found our Mexican Restaurant I really enjoyed my visit and took home some "in house made" Flan TO GO I will be a Regular, and excited to try more!

We always enjoy our trips to El Ranchero. The food is good, the atmosphere is nice and the staff always treat us well. We are always greeted warmly when we arrive and are thanked foe coming as we leave.

Amazing service & absolutely delicious food 😋 Certainly a ""hidden gem" with an unmatched atmosphere 💯 Will definitely be returning!

Oby was very nice...the food was great....

Okay so I come to Ranchero a whole lot. like a whole lot. Like multiple times in a week. And never once in all of the years that I've been visiting this restaurant have I ever experienced dry rice or Bland beans not once. The beef is always super tender moist delicious and well seasoned. Always I mean almost every time I walk into this place stuff is perfect I really appreciate their consistency. Keep up the good work my friends

Great spot. Usually sit at the bar and Johnny and Obi are always so attentive, polite and fun. All the staff has always been welcoming and attentive. Happy to have them close to home, food is always great.

Houston TX Good food good place,recommend.!!

We used to live around the area and this place was our go-to! First of all, GREAT staff! Nicest, fast service, always smiling and attentive people. Secondly, I've never had perfectly crisped chips, with right amount of thickness paired with the best salsa I've tasted around Houston. Their beef tacos and enchiladas are my are my comfort food, while my husband's is the BEEF FAJITA (or they call it Al Carbon) that I definitely recommend (BEST FAJITA AROUND HOUSTON). Last but definitely not the least, they offer a very affordable yet tasty margarita, happy hour or not! This place deserves more attention and more tips for the staff! I would definitely drive just to dine here.

My favorite Mex restaurant! We come here about once a week. Anything shrimp is fantastic (Shrimp nachos, queso flameado with shrimp, cheese dip with shrimp, shrimp quessadilla,...), but the rest (chicken, beef,..., dishes) is great too! Beerritas are wonderful! Employees are super friendly. Very family/kids friendly! Down to earth place!

Food was soo A+, got the chicken with mole and the pollo a la parilla. Portion sizes were great, food was Super fresh, flavorful and well priced. The drinks were anlso delicious, and the staff was friendly and attentive. Definitely recommend this spot and will be coming back to try more of the menu

El Ranchero is one of those family restaurants where they know you when you walk in. Wonderful service and delicious food.

Great food, friendly service, and a welcoming atmosphere. Always consistent and worth coming back.

This is the spot my family frequently visits they know my uncle by name the music makes the food taste better get you a Grande Margarita friendly and great customer service food comes out fast

Great Neighborhood Hang! More expensive than a year ago but nice to have regular, friendly servers and I think the food is getting better and more of it!

First meal in Houston and wow. I had the chicken quesadilla. It was packed with flavor. Had the full size portion and it was like two quesadillas in one. Came with guacamole, sour cream and pico de Gallo. It was very fresh and full of Monterey Jack cheese. The service was quick. Will definitely be going back!!!

The servers and bartenders here are always so nice, glad to see this place is so close home

Haven’t been here since the lockdown and it’s still great. Got the fish tacos.

+6

We had the best experience here. Great food, great service! Ask for Johnie and Obie at the bar! They will treat you right and make the best margs!

I go have brunch here with a good friend every other Sunday, and the service has always been top-notch, and their staff are total sweethearts. Yesterday, they had 2 big tables filled (graduation weekend) and still managed to squeeze in whomever came in by separating out other big tables during that Sunday brunch hour. IMPRESSIVE! Highly recommend their margaritas and carne asada. I actually tried their caldo de Cameron for the first time... that was so TASTY! Their plate portions are HUGE for the prices they ask for, and I always have to take my food to go because I could never finish it all. Always worth the commute, and stomach bloating haha 👌 😉

First time visiting. The bartender, Obie, was attentive and made me feel at home. He made sure the experience was excellent. The food was a great value. For under 15$, I got more than I could eat. And the drinks were spot on. Will definitely return.

Delicious food and great service. Our staff goes here once a month to celebrate birthdays.

please keep this place open for as long as you can, this is one of the best places for lunch and dinner, need to go there one morning for their breakfast, their happy hour is amazing I love the margaritas they have, johnny and obe are the best bartenders there, really an amazing place and food.

Lori Gay

Excellent food, friendly accommodating service and price is just right. It’s all good !!!

Rhonda Mckell

Love these guys, I have a great time every time I come here. I’ve been gone for some years. I came back to visit with my God mom and we fell in love with Oby the bartender. The food is always good

Jerry Helfand

Update January 2025: Have they upgraded their margaritas? Not sure, but I'm enjoying them more lately. I dunno. However, I'm upgrading my rating on the atmosphere. It recentkt was a cold and miserable rainy day, and I wished for the feel of a British Pub. I also didn't want to drive 7 miles, so we came here and got their soups. Amazingly, though i can't say it's not quite the same as a pub, we did feel cozy in a booth, got warmed by the hearty soups, and left quite contented. Old review: We come here regularly because it's good, relatively lower-priced, good service, and close to home. Margaritas? Meh, but sometimes they fulfill a desire, and they're fun. Note that they'll modify a dish to your tastes with no problems, and I usually end up getting a healthier meal than what you'd expect at a Mexican restaurant.

Brandon Presley

This place is a great restaurant if your looking for stuffing your face with Mexican food 😋 I love it

Vanessa Guajardo

First time eating at this restaurant and I wasn't disappointed. The food was great and the service was awesome! Highly recommend

Keith McKeon

I love coming to El Ranchero! Food and Service is always very very good. It's the kind of place you want to bring people to - I see tables sometimes with 15+ people all having fun. Oobie and the staff are great!

Jack Doan

The best Mexican restaurant I have in year. There home make salsa was delicious. The place located near bayou in Bellaire district. Don't judge the look of the place people. After eating from there food you will return again.

Out & About

Oh my! This is the TexMex I was raised on. Kind of a throwback to the 70's. Great people, good food and nothing but positive vibes. Prices and food is good. Not a gourmet feast but solid TexMex.

Maria Pasalidi

Visiting Houston from NYC and have been recommended this restaurant by the folks from LA !!! Wow ! The real authenticity and hospitality! Came by 2 days in a row ! The street tacos and enchiladas come in huge portion and really made from scratch, the margaritas are huge , cold and strong ! The chips and hot salsa come free before the meal ! The bartender Obie took great care of me , very friendly , on point with the drinks ! The decor is so cool too! If you are foodie or just looking for the good authentic Mexican food this is the place to be !!! 5 stars !!!! Ps ask for the in house made spicy sauce ( spicy ) 🌶🌶🌶

Tim Powers

We live in Galveston Tx And came to see our favorite bartender Obie Best food and customer service Love this place

Nadia Thompson

Recently visited this place after several years and food is still very good and authentic! Devoured the food before I took pictures of it, but did take one of the amazing Margarita!

Keith Lindsey Jr

I really like the food hear, portions are on the “Texas” size, and margaritas are really good. Service has always been good for me as well. A recommend from me.

Yolanda Foster

I Love this place. I go quite often. The food is Always Great! The Service is Always Great as Well. I Love the Raspberry Margaritas!

+8

Angela B

Everything was so perfect ❤ I'm speechless thinking about how perfect this restaurant is! Went in for lunch on a Saturday with my 1 year old who skipped his nap! Kid friendly. Breastfeeding friendly. Clean highchair. Immaculate restrooms. Respectful and attentive staff. Everyone was very welcoming and warm. The music was good Mexican love songs at a nice volume. Lightning is warm. Menu is in English. Staff is bilingual. Booths are comfy. Decorations are cool. We ordered Sizzling Fajitas Mixed for 2 (but really could've served 4 for only $24!!). The food was packed with flavor. Honestly, it all reminded me of home. Will be returning soon! This is truly a perfect Mexican restaurant. 🌟

Nice Tex-mex place with large portions. Their mixed fajitas for one is pretty tender, although chicken was a bit dry. The kids meals of quesadilla and enchilada come with a huge portion of beans and rice. Chips were amazing with a bowl of very hot salsa. Nice service overall. Would come back in a heartbeat.

The food was very good and filling. The staff was excellent when I first came in. It did get busy so it took a little time for me to get my check. Which was fine. Finding the place was a little difficult as the lettering on the building was white and the building was white. It is in the south west corner and the shopping center.

The food's not amazing, but it's ok. The reason why I like it it's because it is my neighborhood place with sweet waiters, familiar faces and a comfortable atmosphere. It's easy, cheap and I can wear pajama pants without feeling weird. They have a great happy hour on wednesdays too, so I appreciate that.

Friendly bar service and food was satisfying. I had the steak quesadillas with a house margarita.

I would rather not give them any stars at all. I have patronized this establishment numerous times and have NEVER experienced "service" in this manner. The manager was horrible and unaccomidating when my food was incorrect. His attitude was very arrogant and nonchalant about me receiving the incorrect order. We never received service after the incident until it was time for the check. This was an awful experience at El Ranchero and I believe management needs to be changed and improved. Update: my family and I visited on yesterday and had a totally different and pleasant experience. Our waiter was amazing; friendly, fast, and accurate with our food orders. The change in employees made our visit so much better.

Good food for a good price. Pricy on extra items. Horchata not that good

A good old fashioned family style restaurant. I've been in the Bar/Restaurant industry over 20 years and not many times have I had a margarita as good as I had yesterday. Unless I make it😉. Honestly pretty good service. Pretty good food. Really good drinks!

Regular here. Employees are very inviting. Drinks are good. Nice chill spot.

Food was ok. It's tex Mex. Atmosphere was nice. Music was nice. The drinks looked good but I was working so I couldn't try them but for sure they looked good. Make sure you ask what is in your food since they catter to a more Texan palette.

This place is so local and easy. They have really good Tex Mex and the staff is so friendly. I love the flavors and their good margarita is my go to! Their homemade salsa is served warm and it’s delicious with just the right amount of spice. Traditional taco salad is stuffed and in a crispy shell. It’s delicious with lots of filling. I love their cheese enchiladas with the gravy sauce. I can’t say enough about this Tex Mex place. This is just a Meyerland place that is worth supporting.

We came in Sunday afternoon and it was pretty empty. This was my first time so I was a little worried. My wife is vegan and my kids don't like anything spicy so I was also concerned about finding good options. I got the summer platter, my wife had the veggie fajitas, and my kids split a taco plate. Of the 3 I felt the veggie fajitas were the best thing we ordered. The beef tacos were good and the cheese puffs are always going to be a winner, but the variety of veggies and the seasoning was outstanding for the price. I really liked the salsa too. My only gripe was the margaritas had too much cheap mixer in them, and I was charged for a top shelf when that isn't what I had. The server was polite and quick to fix the order. Long story short we will be back! This place reminds me of the Mexican restaurant I grew up near. The prices are great, the service is good and the food is simple but on the money. Check it out!

Loved the service (wish I would've of gotten our server's name) and food was great😋! The frozen or on the rocks margaritas are 💣!!! 🤤

We ordered the cheese enchiladas and a combination plate of cheese enchiladas and a taco Al carbon. Overall place was nice, had a good atmosphere. Food was good, not anything mind blowing but it’s a good choice for Tex mex. We will be back for their happy hour! Drinks looked great and they had the Astros on! Good service as well.

The quesadillas are the best!!! Great prices too. Margaritas are hands down best in town. Chips and salsa are a great filler too. Wait/bar staff are very hard working. Hostesses are cool too. Great place to wind down after a day's work or just to chill to watch the big games going on.

I love the food here, so.. good👍 can't wait to try their other menu. We def. come back.💗

My friend eats here every week? She's on a first name basis. It's solid Mexican (TexMex). You aren't going to get gourmet food, think casual dining. But, you will leave satisfied. The free chips and salsa are delish. The staff is friendly, bilingual, Super accommodating and great at their jobs. What to get: Stuffed Avocado with Fajita; Jalapeno & Cheese Bacon Wrapped Shrimp Friend pick: Chile Relleno

Cameron Sigler

Food is decent but the margaritas are really below par. Wish our neighborhood texmex place made a good margarita but at least food is pretty good and staff is always nice and welcoming. Please work on your margarita recipe though!! 2oz tequila 1oz triple sec or cointreau 1.5oz FRESH lime juice or a quality sour mix****

Good atmosphere with lots of families. The food was not particularly fresh and they barely any guacamole in my godmother's burrito that she had to ask if there was any it. Service was attentive but also slow

Shared the beef, chicken, and ribs sizzling plate (for 1) with the wife. Definitely enough for 2 people if you munch on the chips and salsa ans order extra tortillas. Wife got the jumbo strawberry margarita. It was okay at best. But at over 6$, I've had better. I had the happy hour regular flavored margarita. For 3$, it was good. For the complaints: 1. I ordered corn tortillas for myself, flour for the wife. We got two flour. 2. I ordered 2 tamales on the side. It never arrived. 3. I asked for sugar on the margarita. It came with salt.

Great portions, great prices. This is a Tex-mex restaurant, food is ok at best. If you are looking for good authentic Mexican food this is not the place.

Nicole Warren

We came for lunch on a Friday (holiday week) so it was not busy at all. Everyone was so friendly and the atmosphere was great. I wanted to love the food, but unfortunately I can’t say that I did. We ordered a simple taco plate with beef and the seafood enchiladas. The ground beef was rather dry and the enchiladas were very salty. Would not eat here again.

The food is very mediocre but the atmosphere is nice. I didn't taste much flavor in the food and the drink didn't even make my eyes tingle a little. It was ok for a walk to a neighborhood spot but I'd give it a 6 out of 10.

Asyia Cyn

My boyfriend and I dined in for the first time since the restaurant is close to home. The food was great, though the service was lacking—our server barely checked in. Despite that, we enjoyed the food enough to give it another try and ordered takeout the second time. Unfortunately, that was a mistake. Not sure if the food had been sitting out too long or what happened, but I became ill shortly after eating and couldn’t keep anything down. Even my boyfriend mentioned the food didn’t taste quite right. Sadly, we haven’t returned since and don’t plan to.

UPDATED REVIEW. Unfortunately, we have gotten food poisoning twice from eating here. The first time, we thought it was just a fluke, but yesterday we both got horribly sick, vomiting and diarrhea. My wife said maybe they reuse the salsa? Hopefully not! We had vegetable fajitas, salsa, guacamole and chips. I left the previous review below Consistently good. Sometimes the service gets a little slow. They usually accommodate items that used to be on the menu, which means I can still get my favorite. Salsa is excellent, chips are a good, a little too thick.

It doesn't matter how good the service in the atmosphere was. The food was so bland so lifeless so blah and I spent $80 with my mom. Total waste of money will never come back to this place again. Their queso isn't real queso. It's just Kraft cheese melted down. Save yourselves some money. Save yourselves resentment and just go to Los tios

Been coming here for years, since before hurricane harvey. Last night i went for dinner with my husband and we shared fajitas combination for 2. The food came out within 5 minutes and we were hungry! Once we started eating we both were disappoined because the food had NO FLAVOR! The meat was so bland even with salsa. Kind of disappointed we picked this place for our weekly date and it tasted like garbage. I cant believe that happened to us. We won't be returning

Close to my home, so its convenient Wait staff is quick and attentive, but thats about it. Food is bland, and to be honest, has made me ill the three times I and my family has eaten there. My neighbors go frequently and love it, not sure why I experience it differently.

Valesv

To start, the server didn't check on us more than twice during our dinner. Food was ok. Drinks were watery (margaritas on the rocks) either the bar tender was new or the server taking too long to bring drinks out. I saw her taking margaritas to other tables and they looked the same (all water down drinks). Please treat everyone the same and provide the same great service to everyone not just to white people. (I could tell they treat us differently). If the bar tender is new, he needs to do better. Or if the problem is the server, she needs to improve 😩

alisia houston

I did a take out on Sunday November 30, 2025 as myself and daughter had a taste for tacos. I suggested this place as previous visit over the years food was good. I placed three orders of combination hard shell tacos beef and chicken along with a side order or tortilla soup. The gentleman taking the order was kind and answered question recording the food. The food was prepared quickly within 10 minutes.I was very disappointed the tacos shells was soggy due to the abundance of tomatoes and lettuce on top of them. The chicken was old. The soup contain a lot of vegetables and lacked seasoning. The tortilla chips was hard slightly burnt and tasteless. The food was put in the trash for fear of getting sick with old appearing chicken and soggy taco shells. A waste of money and dissatisfaction. It’s been a few years since visiting this location on braeswood and not sure if under new management. It would be nice if food is fresh and better prepared.

jenna jacobson

Im leaving a one star review because I always order from here, it’s in my weekly rotation. Today, they got my order wrong! Instead of correcting THEIR mistake, the lady told me it was my fault! I ordered a side of refried beans for my daughter. I get that everytime I order. I am not expecting anyone to remember my order. When I say “a side of refried beans”, I expect refried beans. The girl on the phone asked would I like a small or large. I told her a large side of refried beans! When I got home, NO REFRIED BEANS! What did I have? Charro beans. When I called the lady had the nerve to say I ordered bean soup! I’ve never said bean soup, I’ve never ordered bean soup. Instead of telling me I can bring this “soup” back and get what I ordered, she told me that’s what I ordered. I’ve never said bean soup. I’m REALLY disappointed they wouldn’t correct it! I will keep on posting until I feel justice is served!