El Vaquero

Came here with my team from lunch, they offer Chase employees a 10% discount. they have a newly revamped menu with more lunch items (lunch is 11am-​2pm) anything after 2pm add extra $ 2. Was a little disappointed because i had hoped the fajitas would be less expensive during lunch, but $ 16.99 for chicken, steak and shrimp… lame. i could go to the Japanese steakhouse and get filet mignon for $ 12. I ordered the choose 3 for $ 12.99 which is offered all day… ordered 4 enchiladas one of chicken, cheese, bean and beef. You can substitute, in which i did two chicken, one cheese and one bean. Also comes with soup or salad and choice of flan or sopapilla for desert. I came with a group of 16 at lunch, staff was attentive in bringing chips and taking orders.

Wonderful experience everytime! Go with friends. Staff is friendly and hospital. Food is great price. The only critique is that you have to dine in in order to get free chips and salsa but take out pay is over priced. Go support your local el vaquero!!!

The food at this restaurant never disappoints! Ive had Fajitas, burritos, and Barbacoa tacos… all delicious. I recommend sitting at the bar if you plan on drinking margaritas. The bartender, Angel, was very attentive and made an amazing margarita. The Texas Margaritas on the rocks with Don Julio Repasado are by far the best margaritas I’ve had. If you’re in the Polaris area and want Mexican cuisine this is the place to visit!

Our waitress last night was awful. When we tried to order, she’d interrupt us to ask for the item number instead of knowing what the item was by name. She did not refill our drinks once. She only brought us an extra bowl of chips once and that was after our meal was brought to us and did not offer more salsa. When I tried to ask a question about the food presented to my husband, she gave me attitude and instead of communicating with me, turned her direction to my parents. We sat after everyone was finished with their food and did not see her for probably 15 minutes or more. And then when I found her, she was hanging out at the front desk instead of caring for the tables she already had. It took her longer to print the stupid receipt than it did for her to return for the change and her tip.
In general, the main dishes are pretty good. They have a decent amount of options for my vegan husband which automatically makes this a place we’d visit again. But the chips are not seasoned very well and the salsa is usually bland or not spicy enough. The service, excluding our waitress last night, is decent.

i enjoy this place. the décor is not as good as the hamilton rd location but to me the food is better. portions are great and you can’t beat the prices. we ordered the carnitas and was not disappointed. they were fresh and not dry! they give you 4 tortilla! i would recommend them !

I love this restaurant. The food is delicious and you don’t have to wait a long time to get it. We always start off with the trio of dips. We love getting this because I love guacamole, but my fiancé doesn’t. We can split the appetizer and both get something we like. I usually get the shrimp enchiladas. Delicious bean enchiladas topped with cheese sauce and shrimp. It is served with delicious rice.
The restaurant is very nice and the waiters are always very attentive. I would suggest going to this location, because like one of the other reviews said this is the best location.

I’ve heard a lot of people go nuts for El Vacquero, saying that it’s the best Columbus Tex-​Mex place. And it does seem very successful. The inside is wide and expansive, with actual tablecloths on the tables. The general décor is kitchy than most stereotypical Tex-​Mex restaurants. I came here with some coworkers for happy hour. It’s an okay happy hour, all alcohol specials and no food specials. I got a jumbo margarita for a $ 7.50.
I ordered the al pastor tacos and they were okay. But I think I set myself up for the meh. I love al pastor from other notable Columbus locations. That isn’t what El Vacquero is known for.
Overall, I’d come back. My experience was honestly okay. But I wasn’t blown away. And isn’t that the sad thing about hype? Nothing can ever live up. And that’s okay.

I got carry out for the office, there were three of us that ordered food. The food was very tasty but there were a few things that caught me off guard. We ordered one meal and two al a cart enchiladas with rice and beans. The amount came to $ 35 which seemed oddly high. We also requested 3 containers of salsa and only got one and a very small bag of chips that seemed less than what you get at the table. Next time I will be eating at the restaurant and not carrying out.

Great food as usual! A variety to choose from. Good happy hour margaritas deals.
My only complaint from my visit last night was that you couldn’t really hear the music through the other noise in the restaurant, and it wasn’t so bust that a crowd’s noise overrode the music. I think music is usually a great part of the atmosphere there.

I usually go to the one in stone ridge plaza off of Hamilton. Great experience there and the food is delicious. At this location was not the same experience. I felt very uncomfortable because all the workers were male and we felt like they were staring and talking and giggling about us the whole time we were trying to eat.

Today my wife spit out a used cigarette butt from her burrito. No, I’m not making this up. In over 30 years of dining, I’ve never experienced something this foul before. They took the butt from her plate and placed it behind the bar, and offered to comp her entrée, but then the host heard what was going on and thankfully offered to take care of the entire meal. Sadly, I was told the owner wasn’t working at the time, nor was there any real manager I could speak with. They asked me to fill out a comment card and put my phone number on it. I still have not heard from anyone. I have had many great meals here, but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to dine here again after something this bad. I can’t even imagine how something like a cigarette butt finds it way into the kitchen, not to mention actually into the ingredients. Be warned.

This is my girlfriend’s favorite Mexican spot and my second favorite, right behind Hasa Casienda Grill off E Dublin-​Granville Rd (
). We have gone here quite a bit and this place is always pretty busy. This latest visit was no exception. Even with a large amount of people though El Vaquero usually gets you seated within 5 minutes, if not immediately, as they are used to doing the busy crowds. Once seated you will find a pretty nice restaurant that is usually kept pretty clean. Everyone gets the nice, warm tortilla chips with some delicious, but very very mild, salsa. Don’t fill up on chips though! We always do eat a bit more chips though than most because one of the best things to order here is the queso dip. It’s extremely cheesy and delicious and the best queso we have ever ate (even better than Hasa Casienda!).
I’ve eaten just about ¹⁄₅^th of the huge, huge (probably too huge lol) menu of theirs and have only once had a not-​so-​great meal. That is when I got the steak meal, cannot recall the exact name. It wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t the best either. I’d say save ordering the steak for when you go to a steakhouse is all. It was a bit fatty and gristly. Not too awful but I would never order it again. Now don’t get alarmed though, the steak fajitas and steak tacos, those sorts of menu items are awesome. it’s just the actual steak that’s not so awesome. Or perhaps maybe I just got one bad steak of the day.
Last time I went here I was recommended by my fiancé to try the Burrito Rosqueto. If you’re a fan of fajitas then this is something you will love, absolutely LOVE. It’s basically a fajita in a burrito and it’s probably the best thing there save for getting what is my absolute favorite and that is the actual fajitas. I love all of their fajitas but typically get the shrimp or steak fajitas. They come out sizzling and are guaranteed to fill you up with probably a fajita left to take home for a snack later.
Another thing that’s is they will take special requests here, for example I wanted a tostida but with refried beans instead of beef and they made it just like how I requested. So they are very accomodating. However, I will say the one issue I have is that none of the people who work here are very friendly. They are fast, efficient and great at what they do, and they are never ever ever rude or annoying, but they could smile a bit is all and interact a little more in a friendly manner. Of course I think they are like the way they are as this place is just so busy they try to do the job the most efficient way possible and sometimes that means foregoing chit-​chat. So that I totally understand but they still could smile sometimes! It’s a rather minor complaint though I think as their food and great service means an overall very good dining experience.
I would not hesitate to recommend anyone to come here if they are looking for great food done quickly and with a reasonable rate. Speaking of their prices, be sure to keep an eye out for their coupons which can be found frequently in the local ads that are mailed out each week. Just be aware to read the fine print as I don’t believe they are good towards alcohol or work on the weekends.

This was my first visit to this location. I only picked up carryout (fish tacos, which I’ve had before and are a favorite), but looking around at the dining room, I was amazed by how nice it is. White tablecloths, really? The staff was very nice. I’m happy to find a location close to work and am sure will be back.

I’ve been to a number of the El Vaquero locations in town. Have to agree with others, this is by far the better location.
I stopped in here for lunch with a group from work. I was quite pleased for the service and how prompt they were. It is a smaller location. So, if they are busy, you may have trouble getting a table. Same great chips & salsa (don’t fill up on them!) I tried something different than my usual Chimichanga. I went for the new Guadalajara Salad — loved it!
My past experience with the service from other locations has usually been less than satisfied. These folks worked as a team and were right on top of their game. Friendly, personable, quick, and kept my water glass full.
Definitely one of the better Mexican restaurant locations.

Adding a star. Come for the post lunch rush. Fast service, and the Fundido is still awesome.

The food is okay, not good. not authentic. But it’s cheap and fast. There are far better mexican joints all over columbus.

Finding good Mexican food east of the mighty Mississippi seems to be nearly impossible. R and I came here on our anniversary based on the good reviews (and because we haven’t had good Mexican food since like 2009) and were beyond disappointed. Service was glacial (pace, not temperature) and the food was, well, I guess it was food. Humans could eat it and possibly extract nutrients. They shouldn’t though. If you’re going to say that a dish comes with guacamole there should be a detectable amount of it on the plate. If there isn’t and you get called on it, then you should bring more and not charge me for it. Also, your carne asada should ideally be marinated and grilled. The carne asada tasted like nothing at all; seriously, it was suspiciously taste-​free. Next time I want Mexican food of this quality I’ll just go buy some Jose Olé flautas from the grocery store.

Ok, so maybe going on Cinco de Mayo wasn’t the best way to determine how good or bad they are but if you ain’t good when you’re packing then… I had the mango margarita and it tasted like they poured in some mango flavoring into some lime flavoring. Didn’t taste any liquor. The chips and salsa were about as good as anyplace else.
Hubs’ carne asada was seasoned well enough but other than that was a very very thin piece of beef. I had the fajitas with steak, chicken, and shrimp and squash. I’ve had better fajitas. Low on the seasonings and my beef bits were very cooked and dry. I did like the frijoles though.
Don’t think we will be going back… there are more places out there to discover.

We’ve been here couple times recently and both times the experience was OK. Nothing to knock your socks off. The food is good and never disappoints but the service does leave a little to be desired. I think I’ll make another choice next time just because when it takes half hour to be seated you expect the overall experience to compensate for waiting and it just doesn’t.

El Vaquero is in a pretty nice building just off Sancus, near Polaris Parkway. And it has a decent sized patio, which was getting some use today.
It also has a very large menu and it took me a while to make a decision. I ended up choosing Cuco’s (isn’t that weird, with a Cuco’s restaurant on the other side of town) platter which was grilled chicken covered with mushrooms and cheese, and rice and bean. I also got a side order of guacamole. The food was pretty good but I’ve never had that much cheese on a dish before. I want to say that it falls just below Cuco’s and Fiesta Jalisco thus the four stars.
And one other thing. All of the Mexicans working there were doing relatively menial tasks such as bussing tables. All of the waiters were white. Ain’t that strange!