El Mex-Kal

Food was COLD and had no flavor. Ordered queso and it was so watered down it ran right off the chips. Again no flavor. Would not recommend this restaurant.

Lousy service, owners kids running around making a lot of noise. Food was awful, I have had better mexican food in a T.V. dinner. WAY overpriced.

Stopped in for lunch with my sister and her husband after checking out Estes Park. The food was really good, as was the service. I ordered the shredded beef enchiladas, they were on point! Check this place out if you have the opportunity!

My husband and I thought the meal we had here today for $ 30 rivaled the excellent meal we had last night for $ 100. He had the pork burrito, I had a crispy relleno and shredded beef enchilada with guac. My daughter had the grilled cheese (not much for Mexican food). About half way through I said I was going to have to stop because I was stuffed, but low and behold we practically licked our plates clean and rolled out of there. The staff was overly accommodating of our special requests and kept our drinks and salsa filled. There wasn’t much ambience, but we felt like we got a lot of bang for our buck! We were visiting from Denver and will definitely hit this place up again next time we’re in town.

My boyfriend and I get Mexican food almost every week and have tried places all over Colorado. This is probably the best I’ve had. We were in town for 24 hours and came here twice — it was that good. Prompt, friendly service; varied menu; AMAZING fajitas; the best free salsa; good (and BIG) margaritas, good tortilla soup. Don’t waste your time elsewhere.

The food was delicious but the restaurant was not prepared to be busy on a Friday night, which was odd considering the Catch the Glow parade occurred today.
There was one waitress for the whole restaurant so service was very slow.
I had the Mexican burrito, which was served lukewarm. My husband was the only one to receive hot food and that was because he had to send his original meal back because they brought him the wrong one.
My daughters Vegetarian burrito contains lettuce, tomato and a handful of beans.
I assume that the numerous 5 star reviews came from evenings where they had sufficient staff

When we ordered our food, there were about 4 other tables seated at the restaurant. We then waited 45 – 50 minutes for our food to be delivered to our table and my husband’s carnitas were burnt. My food was okay, nothing special. My toddler enjoyed her food okay as well. The servers were fast and friendly, but that kitchen needs to get in the game.

A very good local choice. As a local, tourist should understand that whole food costs more in Estes. Will probably be 20 to 30% more than what you are used to.
The Carnitas are very good here. Also, the chicken quesadilla. They do a great roasted jalapeño. I also really enjoy the taste of their salsa. Salsa is a lot like ice cream, everybody likes a different flavor.
They have a nice lunch specials. Having a chicken quesadilla lunch special today. Very good.

We ate here on our vacation. Typical moderate priced Mexican place, which is exactly what we wanted for our family. Menu is varied, margaritas were great, and chips and salsa plentiful. It’s a little off the main drag, but that’s good, lots of available parking and easy in and out.

A little disappointed for a 4^th of July dinner. Walked in with high expectations and walked out with a cold sour taste… Ordered our food and waited about 20 – 30 minutes to receive a cold burrito. I understand they were busy with large groups but its unacceptable to deliver cold food to a customer after waiting so long. We received no apologies, almost felt like no one cared that we decided to walk out and not wait for a new plate to be remade.
As a business that’s been around for a while, on a holiday weekend should ensure proper staffing and especially continuously acknowledge your clients periodically assuring them that food will be up soon!

We shared chicken fajitas. It was good and more than enough for two. The salsa was excellent! We had a Bartender Margarita. It was extremely sweet and not what I like. We used more lime and water to make it tolerable. I may try this again, but order a different drink.

Very disappointed. I read KS’s review and deduced that it was authentic. However if you look at the menu more than half is American fare. It’s also a lot pricier than I anticipated. Combos of 1 item start at $ 11. The chips were a bit stale and the salsa was delicious and spicy, which earned a star.
DONT get the chimichangas. I ended up ordering it and giving it back because wha I received was an oil soaked, soggy burrito. Never in my life have I been served a soggy chimichanga. Not only that but it looked like a mess! Some tomato sauce was poured over without care and it looked like a kindergartener made it (sorry not sorry !) As a cook myself, it was unacceptable to serve.
I also got the bean tostada which had no flavor but otherwise was served a little more appetizing,
The other star was for service. Our waiter Jorge was awesome and the staff always made sure we had drinks and chips. A little better communication is in store. We had one staff bring us drinks and then our waiter after that not knowing. This happened again with chips. We don’t need 4 glasses of water and 4 chip baskets by 2 different waiters.
Finally, this was not the authentic Mexican place I was counting on. Very disappointed. Good for kids (the place was filled with the screaming ones) and American fare plus some tex mex.

Service was good. Started with a shrimp cocktail which was really good. My boyfriend had the shrimp enchiladas, they were the best thing that I tasted there. I had the combo plate with a Chile relleno, chimichanga burrito with shredded beef, and a chicken enchilada. It wasn’t anything I’d go back for. It wasn’t very good. And the shredded beef tasted funky so I didn’t eat any more than the one bite of that, don’t wanna be sick tomorrow. Horchata was good. Salsa and chips were good. Nothing was spectacular. Nice server.

Notice how there are no check-​in regulars? Yeah, there’s a reason for that. The food was decent but the service was terrible. We got there and it took them about five minutes to send a server over. Finally one came over and took our drink order. He then disappeared into whatever void servers go hide at this place because we didn’t see him for another ten minutes. In the interim, this bus girl came over and brought one bowl of chips… for a table of six. We set the bowl in the center of the table, which was fine for me but not so much for my 8 year old who then proceeded to knock over his water all over the table. I immediately scrambled to find something to clean up the water. I went to the same bus girl who had brought us the chips. She was sitting on her ass in the back. I told her what happened and she just stared at me because not working is hard. Finally I asked for something to clean up the mess and she gave me a handful of napkins. Thanks. You’re helpful. So we clean up the water. The server comes out of hiding to take our order but doesn’t assist in any way. I’m not expecting him to clean up the mess but an offer of at least a rag would’ve been nice. He takes our order and then goes back in to the Server protection program. We drain our margaritas down and set them on the edge of the table. Where they sit for the duration of our stay. I guess they don’t need the money that our over priced drinks bring in. We sit there and sit there and sit there. The couple that came in 20 minutes after us get their food and depart while we wait. Finally we get our food. It’s palatable but nothing to write home about. Server never asks if we want more margaritas. We leave after an hour and a half (almost on the nose). Definitely won’t be a return visit.

We have spent years living in Colorado missing great Mexican food. I grew up on Arizona Mexican food and my husband grew up on the real deal in southern CA. Everything people in CO rave about to us ends up being tex-​mex or a Midwest version of Mexican food, but we continue to search. This is the real deal! We have tried every Mexican restaurant that exists in Estes Park over the years and been disappointed every time. Eating here is like being back home in Arizona or southern CA. Wish it was located in the south end of Denver!!!

Very poor quality food and terrible service. Take my advice and do not waste your time or money on this restaurant. There is much better in Estes Park. The avocado tostada was awful. At first glance it appeared okay but the shell was mush. It must have sat in the kitchen and absorbed the liquid. My Mom tried to improvise and just add chips to make her tostada crispy. My onion and cheese enchiladas were literally loaded with onions and that’s all I tasted. The iced tea was instant and bitter tasting. The total experience was highly disappointing and it took a very long time for the waiter to come back for our order and also for the food to be brought. I love Mexican and it’s a shame this one is not good. Will not ever go back. I wouldn’t have even given this restaurant a one star.

My favorite Mexican food in Estes Park! The service is friendly and the Margs are good so I will return time and time again.

This was absolutely the worst Mexican food I’ve ever put in my mouth. Clotted cheese in the chilie rellenos and the blandest sauce and rice. I ate the pepper and left the rest. My friend had fish tacos and she could only eat three bites. I tasted it and it was some type of smoked white fish in sour cream. Our margaritas were warm at the bottom despite the ice on top and the waiter told us they were all pre-​made. We wondered about how safe that was for margaritas to be stored warm. Our bill was over $ 50 and we didn’t finish anything, not even our drinks. What a rip off.

Now this is some Mexican food I’ve been looking for! I’ve been here twice on trips to Estes, think I had a burrito once and a chimi the other time. Both times they were excellent, both times they were huge, though I would have liked to finish them, and both times I ended up very satisfied.
I’m not sure how long it will be around, though. It’s not in Estes Park’s prime location in its downtown and both times we went was in the evening and things were fairly quiet. And my fellow reviewers don’t seem to share my enthusiasm. The interior is simple, mostly booths, in a well lit and pleasant atmosphere. I’m hoping this place gets the attention that I think it deserves.

El Mex-​Kal is our FAVE Mexican restaurant in EP. As a local, I can highly recommend their food, service and prices. The Mgr is always quick to come by and say hello– and the service is always fast and courteous.
The burritos are the bomb and for the price you get a ton of food!
coolest place to see and be seen– but if you are looking for a reasonably priced meal with excellent food– This is your spot.