EL VECINO Reviews

At our shop we all eat together on Friday's. We change from Chinese, Seafood, Italian and Mexican foods. Today it was Mexican and every time we eat Mexican the standing joke is, should we give El Fenix Another shot at us. The reason we say that is something always goes wrong when we get takeout from there. Today we sat on the phone for seven minutes waiting for someone to take or order. After waiting so long I was about to pee in my pants, so I went to the bathroom and missed the answer from them. Thinking that this was a sign of how lunch was going to go we called El Vecino. I hardly ever think to call them because I'm 60 years old and have grown up and out eating El Fenix. I called them placed the order, picked it up got it back to the shop and low and behold it was right. The guy on the phone was friendly very understandable and the food was great. The chips are excellent they taste just like Matt's chips my favorite. Our new go to. Mark Loving

We live in the neighborhood and have eaten at El Vecino multiple times. I often crave those light and crispy chips and queso with a side of margaritas! I really like this place - it's clean, colorful, and the staff is always friendly. The food is good. They offer the usual tex mex and also some pricier more authentic dishes. The owner set out to establish a neighborhood spot to enjoy good food and I think he did exactly that! Come here on a weeknight or a Sunday and you'll be seated immediately, Otherwise, sit in the first come-first serve bar area and sip those margaritas to your heart's content!

Went on a Friday night before it got too busy. Did not even know they have Happy Hour 3-6pm, with $5 margaritas! Wife tried the Veracruz Red Snapper and loved it. The sauce was incredibly flavorful, and the fish was cooked perfectly. I went with Big John's platter--huge plate with a tamale, two enchiladas, beans, rice, and crispy taco. Too much for one person! Flavors were great. Service is attentive and fast. This is one great Tex-Mex restaurant, as good as any you'll find in Dallas area.

Delicious Mexican fare served in a true neighborhood setting. Often the owner greets you when you walk in. This place is a true gem where everybody knows your name.

First time trying El Vecino...found them when I delivered for Uber Eats. Was worth the trip to my favorite neighborhood...Lakehighlands. Had the Pollo con Mole with black beans and Mexican rice...OMG! My friend had the cheese enchiladas and she loved them. The food was so fresh, chips and 2 kinds of hot sauce were excellent. I can't wait to go back. Prices are reasonable and I believe fair for what you get. The chicken breast was 2 servings for me. Decor is really creative. They are only a few miles from Whiterock Lake walk path and park area so you can walk off a meal on a beautiful day like today!

We were given a recommendation to try this place. We LOVE texmex, so we went on a Friday night. The place was packed and we waited about 30 minutes for a table. The waitresses were so attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. I tried Ryan's plate and my hubby had the tortilla soup with extra avacado and a side of rice. We ordered the churros for dessert. The cream was so fluffy and complimented the hot and fresh churros. The restaurant has a weekly special that changes each Thursday. We really enjoyed the food and atmosphere. Food arrived hot, fresh, and quick!

Went yesterday for the first time and I'm baffled as to why I haven't been here before. We live about a mile away. Everything was Awesome! Service was the best we've had anywhere! I've been in the service industry for over 30 years and this place is great! Drinks were Great, brunch specials and the regular one's. Not over priced like a lot of places! Our waitress was training a new one and that definitely did not hurt our service! We had the Cochinita and the Mixto Fajitas Picosa and it was all Awesome! The salsas were great especially the green! Picoso queso was Awesome as well. Loved the chips! We had just gotten back from Mexico the night before where I had Cochinita everyday for a week and the stuff here was just as good! This will definitely be our new weekly place to go!!

White Rock Neighborhood Mexican Restaurant, located in small shopping center. Large menu with enchilada's, tacos, fajitas and other entrees. Small outdoor dining area. Can get crowded but the wait isn't usually too long.

As a recent addition to the multiple east Dallas neighborhood Tex-Mex restaurant options....we REALLY wanted to be blown away due to "all the hype", however left feeling just okay. Most notably, although cute...the salsa containers (set of three) are just too small as were the chip containers. Our salsas were never filled back up or replaced and only received new chips for a table of eight after requesting more. Although the menu options are extensive, our food was delivered luke warm. Will certainly give it another try, perhaps weekday lunch, but honestly too many proven options in Dallas.

Wife and I eat here at least once a week. Excellent service. Good food. Fair prices. Even if you don’t live near-by, it’s worth the trip. They compete with the others with their Wednesday special. They have a small bar area and a nice sized restaurant seating area. The queso is excellent. The chips are fresh. The basics are served hot off the grill. It is a very good Tex-Mex restaurant.

Going in, I really did not have high expectations. I thought it would be some mediocre restaurant in old East Dallas serving barely passable Tex-Mex. I was wrong. The food is very good, not quite Meso Maya, but very solid Tex-Mex in a city that has literally thousands of Tex-Mex choices. This restaurant fills a void in that particular East Dallas neighborhood and I predict it will be successful for a long time as long they keep doing what they are doing. We started with Ultimate queso that was really good, maybe not quite to Mariano's level but very tasty ($7.95). Chips were not greasy, although we needed more. The portions are big here so we decided to split the Big John Platter ($14.95) that has a crispy taco, tamale, two enchiladas, and rice and beans. Wow, everything was really, really good. We loved the sour cream enchilada, one of the best I ever had. Chicken was tender and flavorful. The cheese enchilada with chili con carne was the best I ever had. The tamale was also excellent. It was the perfect dish to share and we both left full but not stuffed. Margaritas were good. I had two. The second was stronger and better. Our server Armando was friendly and really seemed to care that we had a good time and good food. We'll be returning for sure.

... will pretty much always add up to a good dining experience. Add in reasonable prices and creative, innovative menu selections and the only thing to do is come back ... often!

Excellent Tex Mex food. Price reasonable, and service very good. This restaurant matches the quality of the best Tex Mex in the city. Nice character in the establishment. Fast service. Will go back soon.

Wonderful restaurant with great Tex Mex. Service is always friendly and excellent. They have Wednesday night enchilada specials and great lunch specials too. We eat here often. I highly recommend El Vecino!

Our group of four stopped by for lunch and were pleasantly surprised. Not with the food, we suspected it would be good, but with the management of the restaurant. Well run, efficient, polite, and attentive. Beware though, the table sauce is really spicy. The queso is excellent and the basic lunches are affordable and very good. Just an excellent restaurant.

Great new Tex-Mex restaurant that really stands up against the other Tex-Mex spots in Dallas! My family (dad, stepmom, brother, and little sister) and I went to El Vecino for lunch near the Christmas holiday, and we all loved it! Since it was our first visit, we decided to share the poco de todo platter (steak nachos, brisket quesadilla, chicken taquitos, guacamole, queso picoso, sour cream, and jalapenos). Other than the queso, which, while it grew on me, had kind of a weird taste, this was a great way to start our meal. Everything was delicious - even my 11-year-old sister liked it all (she stole all the taquitos). Everyone got something different and liked what they ordered. They have your basics: taco salad, fajitas, enchiladas, tortilla soup, tacos, etc. They also serve breakfast all day (huevos rancheros, chilaquiles, enchilada omelette, steak and eggs), which I LOVE. But - and this is where they got me - they also have great classic Mexican dishes (many from the Yucatan and Veracruz regions! Red snapper a la veracruzana (fish a la veracruzana is so delicious - I almost ordered this), chicken breast rolled and stuffed with huitlacoche (also known as corn smut or Mexican truffle - it's fungus that grows on corn; it's a delicacy and it's delicious), chicken mole, etc. There are so many things on this menu that I'd happily order. But my brain said "STOP" when I saw cochinita pibil. Cochiniti pibil is a Yucatecan dish traditionally made in a pibil (an earth oven) in which the pork slow cooks for hours in banana leaves with orange juice, achiote, garlic and other spices. It's like Mexican pulled pork only way, way, way better than any pulled pork I've ever had. El Vecino probably doesn't use a pib to cook their cochiniti pibil, but it slow cooked in a banana leaf. And it's delicious. Delicious. It's served with mini tortillas, poblano rice, beans, and a little bit of a pico). Delicious. That's all I have to say. (I shared it, and it was a good portion to share if you're not starving. It's a lot of pork.) Everyone liked their food so much that we couldn't say no to dessert. Cajeta (goat milk caramel) filled churros with whipped cream. To say they were delicious was an understatement. We almost fought over the last bites even though we were extremely full. (And I'm not even a dessert person.) We were so impressed by the food, but that didn't stop us from noticing the GREAT service (our waiter was awesome, and the manager stopped to welcome us as well) and the beautiful decor. It was simply a great meal. One I hope to repeat when I next visit my family in my hometown!

We had lunch at El Vecino recently. What a nice surprise! Nicely appointed interior and very friendly, family-owned restaurant. We started with the fresh guacamole, which was excellent with their crisp chips. I had the No 7 lunch special, the Chica Fajita salad with steak and the chipotle Catalina dressing. Yum! We got an order of churros to go (caramel in the center) served with whipped cream. Also delicious. We'll be back soon to try some other dishes.

We had eaten here when it first opened and were not impressed but on our return trip last night it was great! Friendly waiter, great chips and two kinds of salsa. Red was thick and hot, green was fresh tasting and spicy. My wife had traditional cheese enchiladas with chili con carne that actually had meat in it. I had Charlie's choice which had a chicken mole enchilada (mole sauce was excellent), a brisket enchilada with red sauce, and a shrimp enchilada with tomatillo sauce. Sides were black beans which I prefer over refried, and poblano rice. We did split churros for dessert. They were not too sugary sweet it gooey with caramel and were dipped in whipped cream. We will go back. We like it better than Matt's or Mariano's.

We made a return visit to El Vecino for dinner. I had the special, Carne de Rajas, served with small corn tortillas, guacamole, salsa and rice and beans. The beef was very tender and well seasoned and the portion size was generous. It was delicious. I would order it again! Service was excellent as always. Our go-to local Tex-Mex restaurant.

Excellent food and outstanding service. Not easy to find but well worth the trouble. I will definitely return!!

I love the staff here! Even a vegetarian feels quite at home :) They welcome me bringing my own vegies, and then I go to town on their AMAZING guacamole!!

This was our second trip this week! Abundant servings and everything comes with rice and beans, the refreshing beans are excellent! There is usually a wait and the drinks are strong. There is a large waiting area but it’s outside. The tilapia melts in your mouth! Ask for Fabrizio!

When it was announced that an authentic Tex Mex restaurant was moving into the small shopping center around the corner from our house I was excited. When I found out that the owner was John Michael McBride I was ecstatic knowing his family history in the restaurant business and having eaten at his other restaurant The Lot and loving the food there I could only wait and check on the progress as the build out progressed. Now that El Vecino (The Neighbor) is open we will be regulars. The space is bright and open with a small bar and a friendly staff. The food is excellent and classic Tex Mex with some true Mexican dishes as well. We've had the beef Quesadillas, Steak Fajitas with Eggs (all the egg dishes are available for both lunch and dinner) and the Mushroom and Poblano Queso. All delicious and we can't wait to go back and work our way through the menu. Bravo John Michael and thank you for coming to the neighborhood!

Ate here the other day with my wife and daughter. Daughter had street tacos and thought them pretty good. Wife had enchiladas and I had a burrito. Food was good but not great -- not in my opinion as good as the El Fenix up the road in Casa Linda Plaza. Glad to have a new restaurant in the neighborhood and we may give it another try. It was good. Just not great.

Friday night. A solid choice for Tex-Mex. Ample free parking. No wait @ 6. Attentive service. Good enchiladas--shrimp, brisket, and chicken mole. Good chips. My main comment is the food is very mild, including the salsas. Good value.

Been to El Vecinos many times but tonight was best ever . Had Nonny’ s dinner special with chicken over spinach and charro beans with Delgalito Margaritas . Little bit of wait because it was enchiladas night , but service was great and food better yet

This came as a tip from some mates who live locally and for whom it has become their go-to local. It's Tex Mex but with good quality meats and a presentation that is a cut above other places. Standard chips were lifted by a lovely tomatillo salsa, our mixed fajitas and the carne asada with mole were delicious with great textures and flavours. The service was a bit ditzy, with a smile, as we arrived just before closing time but that was more than made up by the quality of the food. We'll be back.

Been visiting here since it opened. Food is above average but seems to be getting more average. Today, a Saturday, we visited in the afternoon. Maybe about a quarter full. Again, food was average. But the service was noticeably bad. No refills on anything. Waited on our check for over 15 minutes while the waitress and a waiter sat-and talked. Guess I’ll find another go to for my Mexican fix.

EL VECINO is a bustling Tex Mex restaurant that has the best Tex Mex in Dallas! I had the Fish Tacos which was Tilapia lightly breaded in a flower soft taco shell and was delicious! The waiter was kind of slow to take our order but got the food out quickly after we ordered. He was very attentive after he got started with us. I got my delicious Margarita on the rocks immediately! Granted we were there on a cold wet day perfect for Tex Mex. The parking lot was full! My wife had the Steak Fajita Nachos and was impressed because she could get a small order that left her satisfied with no waste. We recommend EL VECINO highly!!

Had an incredible Prickly Pear Ranch water last Saturday. Perfect addition to an afternoon of Football, Chips & Queso & friends… Love this place..

A newly opened (5 days ago) Tex-Mex restaurant. Food was very good - service was great. Especially liked the queso picoso (spicy) filled with chunks of chiles. Pollo con mole was good but had a bit more cinnamon than I like. Black beans were great.

Our first visit and we were not disappointed. The drinks were fantastic and food was good. Get there early for dinner. The dining room is not very big so we were glad we arrived before the dinner crowds.

Worst meal we have experienced in years. I know it’s a hole in the wall, but come on. It is not inexpensive. My wife had the salmon salad and said it was not edible. Wilted lettuce and the salmon was so over cooked and dry, it was more like salmon jerky. I had a soft ground beef taco dinner that was literally swimming in grease/lard . How do you screw up soft tacos. They tried to seat us way in the back by the emergency exit even though the place was mostly empty. Never again.

The wait staff and owners are always so warm and friendly. The food is wonderful. I go here often. A jewel right in our neighborhood with the lake just a short distance away.

Good basic Tex Mex with no real surprises or complaints. Nothing really stood out food wise. The service was excellent despite it being very busy. Our waiter was very friendly. The decor is charming and pleasant and very well decorated with bright and unusual colors.

This place is awesome. The staff are so friendly and helpful. We’ve been here several times but I never remembered to write a review. I’ve had several items on the menu and I’ve never been disappointed. Tip of the day: Order the white queso as an appetizer. Delicious!

We arrived there for lunch and I ordered the lunch special with two enchiladas with rice and beans. My colleague ordered the beef fajita nachos. I received my order first (enchiladas) which looked amazing!! My friend received her order only without the fajita meat. My friend informed the waiter who took the nachos back and came back with the nachos with the fajita. There was something still not right and so he had to take the nachos back and came back with a fresh order of nachos. The owner of the restaurant came over and said he would take care of our meal. It was such a nice gesture! So surprised when I get great customer service! I will be back because the food was superb overall. TIP: If you are in the mood for dessert please order the churros with cajeta...they are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They are made fresh and are served piping hot with fresh whipped cream. That was the icing on the cake for us.

Underwhelmed probably we went twice when they were overwhelmed and the kitchen just tossed stuff together and ran it out.

Just wanted to try something new for date night and we were not disappointed. Excellent food and excellent service. We will definitely come back.

Great new Mexican in East Dallas neighborhood. Good margaritas. Good Mexican coffee. Sat with family in bar area and had a pleasant experience.

Friday night. While it's great to have a good Tex-Mex option in east Dallas, El Vecino must step up its game to compete. The fish tacos were average, the brisket street tacos were average, and the three enchilada plate was bland. Rice and beans were El Fenix quality. And please choose a higher grade of corn tortillas. Service was attentive. Colorful decor. Prices reasonable. Return trip iffy.

This place has turned into one of our favorites and is a gem of a neighborhood restaurant. The $5 margaritas during happy hour (M-F, 3-6) are a great deal. The wife loves the Huachinango a la Veracruz which is a whole snapper in sauce. The fish is cooked perfectly and is delicious. I usually try something different each time but this last time I ordered the carne asada. The meat was marinated well and had great flavor, but the quality of the meat was not quite as good as Meso Maya. It was good but not great. Service is friendly and helpful. We really like this place and will undoubtedly return.

I live 5 minutes away and would move in if they would let me. Love the food, best Tex-Mex in Dallas and best Bloody Mary's in town. The service is excellent. I ate there four times last week. Anytime people want to go eat with me, they always want to go to El Vecino. The staff is great. The prices are great too. I would highly recommend it. Ann Dotson