Rancho Rustico

Cute décor and reasonable prices, a convenient location but we waited for our order to be taken we waited for our food and we waited for chips and salsa and waited for the bill. The servers were pleasant but they had changed the menu and I came for the spinach enchiladas that used to be just on breakfast menu. Then told available only at night. I had a very nondescript taco salad but my hubby had a «wonderful green corn tamale» and also enjoyed the rice and beans. Unfortunately neither of us care for the salsas which seemed like overly season with habernero powder and that and tomato and vinegar were the taste.
I was very dissaponted then the cashier said oh you could order off the dinner menu anytime so you could have the spinach enchiladas. Not what the server said. I have tried both locations and been dissaponted both times.

Came in one weekend with my husband, he ordered the menudo which was really good and I ordered the carne asada plate that also was good. The place is nice small and really cute décor, will totally come back.

Yet another very good dinner. My wife and I had the flaughtas (i had beef, she had chicken), we had them out sauce on the side… kept them crispy that way. The guacamole, sour cream, refried beans, and rice were as good as ever. Attentive wait staff kept drinks, salsa, and chips filled. Great way to get out for an evening getaway. (Family friendly too, but we let my mother-​in-​law eat at home so we could have a break).
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Came here for a late lunch one Sunday afternoon. I had the molcajete which was hearty and tasty. My partner-​in-​dine had the Chili Colorado. Verdict on the food: good but not great. I also liked the décor on the walls which added a nice touch to the ambience of the place. Service was good too. Not our favorite place for Mexican food in Tucson though.

We have stopped in several times in the last year or so and I must say they are consistently good. Even the service is good, food is hot and really good. They have become our new go to spot for Mexican food and they are close by!

We ate here a few weeks ago. We were all very impressed. We all got the enchiladas. My dad and I got chicken enchiladas and my husband got cheese. The beans and rice were great too! The salsa wasn’t my favorite but not bad. We will definitely be back!

The Mexican food here is on spot! Love their chips and salsa! Their Mole plate has to be my favorite. Best Mexican food in the Rita Ranch area.

First, my husband and I are both from border towns (El Paso and Nogales) so we are pretty picky about our Mexican food. We moved to Vail about 2 months ago and have been trying out the food in the area.
We decided to try Rancho Rustico and we are so happy we did! First, the chips and salsa was pretty good. Salsa was a little bit on the sweet side for me but the chips were awesome. My husband always orders Chile Colorado or Chile con Carne where ever we go and he loooved it here! It had tender meat and a rich, flavorful red sauce. Delish! Plus, everyone knows the true measure of a good Mexican restaurant is their beans and rice and this place does not disappoint. Beans and rice were on point! I ordered the 2 entrée meal with a Chile relleno and an enchilada. The Chile relleno was really good. The sauce on the enchilada wasn’t that great but that’s OK.
So, if you live in the area this place is a must try!

We came today because it’s grocery day (oh joy), and this is right by Fry’s, which is by far the best grocery store in the entire flipping world. This one time we went shopping hungry and ended up spending about 600 bones, so we make it a point not to do that.
Enter Sangrias and enchiladas! I’m not a huge drinker, but I’ve had wine two days in a row. Grocery shopping is going to be hilarious for sure! (Don’t worry guys. Husband is driving.) (Sober.) My sangrias were fabulous. My Verde enchiladas were pretty lovely. I had the shredded beef ones. The rice was trademark orange rice, and it was good. The beans were meh. The service was a bit slow, but I’m not complaining. There’s a big red dress on the wall that I think I would look fabulous in, but my husband refuses to let me try it on! He insists that it’s the sangria talking, I’m thinking that I need the red dress on the wall. And some moraccas. And some more sangrias.
I deducted a star because it’s somewhat pricey, but I’ll be back after payday for more sangrias, dress envy, and enchiladas.

Our server was very polite, but took forever to do everything. We were seated immediately, then promptly ignored. After a few minutes they brought us water. Then our server asked for our drink order. It took our server over 7 minutes to bring our drinks. We sat for and additional 12 minutes before we were asked our order. Mind you, it was very slow. There were only three other tables. The food was definitely not worth the price. The prices are ridiculous for the lack of value in the food. There was nothing that separated them from another Mexican-​American restaurant. If you want authentic Mexican food, this is not your stop. Your customer service can only get you so far, you need to have uniquely delicious food to back it.

Our first impression was great. We brought our two small children and their kid’s menu had everything our picky eaters love! I was not a fan of the mild salsa, but the medium was pretty standard.
My son spilled his drink and the wait staff was very patient and kind while helping us take care of the mess. We will be returning :)

Best friends live in Vail and we tried this on a chance for breakfast. They have an American traditional breakfast menu and a Mexican traditional breakfast menu. It is delicious!
Two of us had the chorizo and eggs, served with beans, rice and warm tortillas. Spice was perfect and the chorizo was not at all greasy. My third friend had a spinach and cheese omelette and he loves it.
Service was most excellent, environment was calm and decorated nicely. Will add this as a must come back again.

If there were ten stars, I’d ask for 20. These guys and gals are no joke, no joke.
Phenomenal service, great prices and the best seafood enchiladas I’ve ever had in my life!
We live closer to the one on Tanque Verde and will try that location this week. A++++ guys and gals!

Every time we come here the food is excellent. Tonight the food was tasty. Though the only down side is the sheer amount of food. Otherwise, the service was good and the food was excellent!

Rancho Rustico
I really wasn’t expecting much but I was pleasantly surprised by some of the items we had tonight for dinner.
I arrived a little before 6pm. I thought I would catch happy hour, but no it ended at 5pm. Happy Hour is from 2pm-​5pm. It is good for the retired folks.
The interior is decorated with saddles and even a Mexican outfit nailed up on the walk. There are many colors but they are the dated Southwest colors, think peach and green.
This is a surprisingly small restaurant and it was almost full early on a weeknight. That was a good sign.
I ordered a beer. They have a lot of Mexican beers on draft and I got a Negra Modelo, $ 4 for 16oz, it seemed like a small glass for a 16oz pour, but sometimes it is hard to tell how much a glass holds.
When I asked our server what types of beer they had she started the list with Michelob Ultra and the other domestics. They do have a multi-​page cocktail menu but it is also just the classics and the basic drinks.
We were brought a BIG basket of chips to start and then two regular salsas. They asked if we wanted spicy salsa and we did. They brought us a bowl of habanero tomatillo salsa. It was spicy. We ate almost all the chips and we still had at least half of the salsa left. I though I might save it for the meal.
When the meal came to the table rice and beans came on a side plate. The beans were good, not watered down. Then came the chile relleno that we ordered a la carte. It was really good. I would definitely order it again.
The molcajete for one person, was big enough for us to split considering we had filled up on chips. I really wish there had been less salsa in the molcajete. It could have had a quarter of the salsa and it would have been better and easier to eat. We were fishing through the salsa the entire time. The salsa was mild and tomatoey. It was just in the way.
I left very full. The portions are good but I think the prices are a little high. There aren’t a lot of restaurant choices in this area of town. So overall, the prices might be justified.
If you are in the area this isn’t a bad basic/​classic Americanized Mexican restaurant. However, it doesn’t really standout considering how many good Mexican restaurants there are in Tucson.

Excellent dinner, margaritas were good (half price at happy hour). Staff friendly and attentive. Salsa was tasty and had a little zip to it, chips crunchy & warm & not uniform in size. I had the Pollo Vallarta and it was wonderful, chicken was thin sliced so it was evenly cooked, moist & tender — shrimp & poblano — oh my. Husband had chicken taco salad — said it was good tasting but was pretty watery on the plate.
Fairly busy with families so looks like the neighborhood go to place.

Don’t let the strip mall location fool you. This place is serving up some tasty Mexican classics. The chips are hot, light and crispy perfection. They offer a regular red salsa and a hotter habañero version upon request. If you’re more of a pico de gallo fan you can purchase a freshly prepared side that will easily feed 4 or more. Shredded beef tacos, cheese enchiladas, chile rellenos and chile verde plates are some of my favorites. They serve ice cold dos equis ambar with lime which perfectly compliments any dish. Surprisingly, they offer breakfast as well which will not disappoint. Huevos rancheros and other egg dishes are fabulous. Friday nights will have a wait with a line outside so be prepared. It’s worth the wait.

If I could call Rick Moranis, get him to re-​invent the machine he built from «Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,» I would have him shrink me down to the size of a thimble so I could literally bathe in the miracle that is their Mocaljete.
I often find myself day-​dreaming about them. I’ve eaten there multiple times since my first review, and it’s just so frighteningly satisfying, that I would almost eat there every day. Every SINGLE DAY!
Margarita, Queso Fundido, Mocaljete, Sopapillas… sorted.

One of the best thing about being a «foodie» is making a great new discovery. Rancho Rustico is a classic Mexican family restaurant featuring huge helpings of classic Mexican dishes. But the best part of this place are the new and unique dishes, such as their Molcajete.
Molcajete, the «house specialty,» literally means a traditional mortar and pestle used for grinding corn. However, at this place it’s also a fantasticly complex dish served bubbling hot in a lava stone mortar. Mine came with marinated steak, chicken, shrimp, avocado, sticks of jack cheese, and green onions, cooked in a rich tomato based sauce and served with totillas. [See my photos]. The sauce has depth and texture beyond any enchilada sauce, giving the dish a stew-​like feel.
This is an ancient Aztec dish which leads to the logical question, «Cortez, how could you have destroyed this civilization?»
There are other gems on the menu that you’ll have to discover for yourself. The huge portions and rich flavors will keep me coming back for more.

I resisted visiting this Rancho Rustico for a while due to a bad combination of not enjoying their Tanque Verde location, and having difficulty finding ANY good food on South Houghton Road. However, many of my fears were misplaced, and I’m pleased to say this location is about twice as good as the one on Tanque Verde. That’s enough to earn it three stars.
The good: The food is plentiful (read: massive) and the atmosphere is nice. The decorations and wall stylings give it that rustic ranch feel (but a chair rail on the wall would help, as there is a long, near-​continuous white gash where the top of the chairs hit the wall). It was also nice to have a second server whose only job appeared to be drink refills.
The bad: Having to ask three times for salsa after the food arrives — there’s not much I like less than watching my food cool. And speaking of salsa, it would be nice to have a «hot» option instead of two dishes of mild salsa at a two-​person table. When I ate my chimichanga, it was wet and soggy; no hint of crispness.
At three stars, this is easily the best restaurant for miles North or South on Houghton. That’s about the best thing I can say about it.