El Tapatio

El Tapatio                 For any restaurant to be successful it takes excellent customer service. Excellent customer service consist of friendly, patient staff, good food quality, and an inviting atmosphere to make you feel welcomed. These are all qualities that we (Kelsey, Danielle, and Shelby,) were looking for Thursday when we went to El Tapatio for lunch.



The atmosphere of El Tapatio was great. When you first walk in there was tile, the tile was clean and swept. When we walked in there was a lady upfront who greeted us and took us to our table, but she didn't smile. The floor in the dining area was also tile and very clean. We sat down and had complementary chips and salsa. As we sat waiting to get our order taken you could smell them cooking it, it wasn't overpowering but it was enough to make you hungry. The decor made you feel comfortable and at home. The tables and chairs seemed to look like what it would be in an actual Mexican Restaurant in Mexico. While eating our food they had Hispanic music playing which made our visit even better.



The Dining Area



Sample Menu

The food at El Tapatio is very authentic Mexican cuisine. Our group ordered different items on the menu, being that there was a lot to choose from the choice was very hard.  Aside from just the entrees, their menu also had appetizers and many things ranging from alcoholic beverages to (if you have someone that doesn’t like Mexican) hamburgers.  Right when we were sat at our table our waitress took our drink orders and gave us the main menu. The time limit on the food was about ten to fifteen minutes, which I think for a “sit-down” restaurant, is very fair. The quality of the food was great! Everything was fresh and made to order. When the food was brought to our table it was at the right temperature and the order accuracy was correct, there were no mess ups or trade-ins.  When you come into El Tapatio be ready to be hungry and eat, because you get a lot of food. But I think for the quality and how much food you get, the price set was very fair. For three meals and one drink it was $29.00.

When we first arrived at El Tapatio, we didn't feel very welcomed. The waitress didn't greet us with a smile and didn't seem like she wanted to be there. She took us to our table, took our drink order, and then came back and took our food order. Our waitress checked on us every now and then to see if we were okay or if we needed a refill on our drink. When we finished and were ready to pay, she didn't tell us that we had to pay upfront so we waited at our table for awhile. Overall, the staff was just okay, but it could have been better.
 
 
 

Our overall experience was pleasant. The atmosphere was overall satisfying, the service was descent, and the food quality was accurate and fresh. The time to get our food wasn't a long wait. Even though the service wasn't the best we've had, we would recommend El Tapatio to anyone because the quality of their authentic Mexican cuisine.  
 
http://eltapatiograndisland.com/