El Ranchito Taco Shop

This place is one of our go-​to stops when craving mexican.
Have tried many different items on the menu, and have never had a bad meal, very impressed by how consistent they are.
One of their best is the breakfast burrito, no substitutions, just the way it is, awesome!
Also, the carne asada burrito and tacos are great, very flavorful!
The quality is really good.
It is also very clean, as well as the salsa counter, bugs me when the salsa counter is dirty and not clean, as in other places nearby… but they keep it clean in here.
The customer service is very good, everyone who works here seems to have a good attitude and is friendly.
I recommend giving them a try.

I had a BBQ chicken salad with was pretty good
I wish they had more choices of salad dressings
Also the avocado was nasty black in places? And for 8.49 I’d expect fresh avocado

Simple Mexican delight, very good tacos stuffed so full you can barely pick them up. Easy counter service, serving several types of beer, food was fresh and served quickly. Fixing bar with several sauces, limes, lemons, pickled veggies and pico

I came here a few years ago and remember it being okay. I had the opportunity to come back yesterday and it was great! The place was packed at 2pm on Saturday. I ordered a carnitas taco with rice and beans. The girl behind the counter recommended a kid’s meal, so that I could get all of that with a drink for a lower price than ordering separately. I sat near the salsa bar and enjoyed a couple of their salsa offerings. I was pressed for time and wasn’t able to finish my meal. I wish I could have gone back later for more! It will be a must go to place on our next trip to the desert!

Very good casual mexican dining. Chile Verde, tacos, tostada, and enchiladas were all excellent. Salsa bar was loaded a good variety of tasty options.

Legit taco shop, pretty close to Roberto’s. Salsa is just ok but the Carne Asada is awesome. They put sour cream in the Cali burrito instead of guacamole but it’s still really really good.

The tacos are flavorful! The service is quick, with no frills. The kids loved the taquitos, they prepared the order just like we ordered it, with all the taco toppings on the side.

If you like pork and pig greece in everything you touch than this is the place for you. Everything is cooked in pig lard, I think the horchata might have a touch of pig juice too. Good portions and lots of pig fat, good for your arteries. If you eat here and don’t end up on the crapper all night than you will surely survive anything.
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Just okay.
Caring as soft taco was really good. Fresh salsa very good, but even the hot was not very spicy. Enchiladas were just okay, drowned in sauce. Crispy taco shell was okay, shredded chicken boring.
It was pretty loud inside. I may just have picked the wrong time, screaming children and loud teens.

Used to patronize El Ranchito at the Cove in La Quinta 16 years ago and really enjoyed the food and service.
First time to this location and the great thing was the first bite into the hard shell shredded taco immediately brought me back to the first time I ate at the restaurant. What wonderful memories of lunches and dinners at the restaurant.
Food here is excellent and the service is quite and friendly. No need to go anywhere else for Mexican food.

Best taco shop ever. The staff is very attentive. The food is beyond expectation. Salsa bar and great drink selection. Very clean and usually busy, not a lot of seats available. The price is fair, specials
are offered. Inexpensive beer selection. Service is quick. Everything a taco shop should offer. Quality is so good that this place could operate as a full service restaurant. I have been to every location in the chain, and this place is #1. Only regret is the small location that shares a parking lot with fast food chains.

Awesome pitstop on my way home from the desert. Fast serious, good quality Mexican food and very reasonable prices. The fish tacos were huge and the carne burrito hit the spot. Plenty of fresh salsas to help yourself to at the bar as well.
Atmosphere could be better, but it’s a dive and anything fancier would command higher prices, so I’m fine with it.

Food was good for a chain looking place. It came out fast. My carne asada was good along with the guacamole. I got a hard shell taco and the shredded beef was tasty. I dunno what some people said about non-​shredded lettuce because mine was definitely shredded.

Looked Around at the many taco places for lunch and all had 3 stars, except for this place. Holy awesome potato taco meal.
Two of the best tacos in general I have had in a long time can’t remember the last time though that I had better. Homemade hard shell corn tacos with real life cabbage!
Every taco place uses crappy shredded lettuce not this place large shredded delicious cabbage really makes a huge difference!
Chips are bomb and pretty damn good habanero salsa you have to ask for!
Altogether awesome wish we had this place in San Diego!

If you’re heading westbound on the 10 from Arizona and getting hungry for something other than a fast food chain, El Ranchito is your savior. Freeway close (but without freeway signage and not visible from the freeway), it’s part of a large shopping center and next to El Pollo Loco and Del Taco. Most importantly, they serve up good food, quickly, with large portions, at good prices.
It’s an order at the counter place with your standard SoCal Mexican fare — soft tacos, crunchy tacos, enchiladas, tortas, burritos, a salsa bar, and your typical combo plates that come with beans and rice. The chips are fresh and crispy, and the crunchy tacos have good texture and can stand up to the fillings inside without being greasy or too thick. The soft tacos are overflowing, and the asada and carnitas are tasty (or «on point» as the kids seem to say). Both enchiladas and quesadillas are filled tons of cheese, and the big flour tortillas they use are excellent.
The fountain drink sizes are enormous — one drink can serve at least two people — but I wasn’t too keen on the horchata. Nonetheless, it was an excellent experience and a place I’ll come back to when driving on the 10.

First impression I almost turned around and walked out as this is not a sit down waitress at table dining experience.
That would have been a BIG MISTAKE! Greeter pleasant. Hispanic speaking. Big smile. Speed: barely got thru the first plate of chips and my number was called. Quantity. Could not finish. Quality. Fresh. Hot. Delicious. Atmosphere. If this place was on the beach and not a retail center it would be the bomb! Still awesome though. Carry out or dine in experience. If your looking for casual and fast. This is it. If you want to dwell and enjoy this is it too! Yes. Five stars. Stop in if you are in Palm Desert and need delicious Mexican food fast.

Really really great food.
Was looking for somewhere to stop on our way to Norwalk California. Kids were starving and so we decided to stop here based on the price and reviews. So happy we did, the Asada tacos and torta were delish and my nephew really liked the carnitas. I always judge a Mexican food restaurant based on their beans and this place had awesome beans. The flavor was a point, will be back the next time we come to California great find, clean restaurant and bathrooms and staff is pleasant

Value and Cheese!
$ 6.49 Special for combo plate with enchilada, taco, tostada, and giant horchata!
I’ve never eaten so much cheese! The lettuce is crisp and the cheese abounds! However, I found the food average at best. The special comes out on a small plate piled high with lettuce and cheese. I also tried the machado which was extremely salty. The horchata was a tad watery. The restaurant is super clean and quite cozy.
Overall, there are super nice people working here. I might eat here again because there is super value with cheap prices. You get a ton of food for just several dollars. However, the taste is average and there is no uniqueness to the food.
Craving cheese? This place is for you. Looking for valuu? That’s what this place is. You get a lot of food for your money.

So to stay true to my vow that I made in 2015 to be more positive and forgiving, I’m going to start this review off with a description of ease of finding the location and price.
El Ranchito is easy to find. It’s just off the freeway, a right turn and then a left turn into a strip mall and right across Walmart: it doesn’t get much easier. And if that’s not a positive start, how about this? El ranchero, has probably the cheapest food to dollar ratio I’ve seen. I mean come on, that plate’s loaded for $ 7.95. It’s just a shame that the taste to dollar ratio was 0 to 1.
There really isn’t much to say positive about the meal. The chips seemed like they were over fried in old oil. The enchilada sauce essentially tasted like hunts tomato sauce with some water and maybe a sprig of cilantro. And the vegetables didn’t seem like they were the freshest in the world. Oh yes, I almost forgot. The guacamole and the salsa were a couple notches below par.
All in all I give it a star for ease of finding it, price, and one additional star because at least they spoke Spanish which gave it a feel of authenticity.
So do I get a point for being positive?

We were staying at a resort nearby and an employee told us we could get some good Mexican food here. It’s a small spot but cute inside with Spanish music playing and colorful Mexican art on the walls.
They have a salsa bar, beer, self serve fountain drinks and sides of jalapeños, carrots, lemons, limes, etc. for grabs. They have daily lunch specials and are decently priced.
It’s supposed to be authentic Mexican food but I didn’t think so. I did however enjoy my order of beef tacos. It is hard shell tacos with shredded beef and topped with cheese, lettuce and tomato. The shells are cooked right at time of order. They do put a lot of meat and toppings so in the end it’s like I’m eating a salad. The mild salsas I tried were okay but all together it was yummy.
I also tried the potato tacos with just cojita cheese. They normally come with lettuce and tomato but my daughter likes plain stuff. I thought the potato had a great flavor but the shells on these were slightly over cooked. The refried beans were seasoned well too! Overall it’s a good spot for some hard shell tacos!