This was our second time there. The first time was during a weekday and we had a lovely dinner. At that time we had the baby back ribs, fajitas, and margs. Everything was wonderful. We booked again and ate on Easter Saturday and brought out of town guests. Both my steak tacos and my husband's steak fajita had over-cooked, chewy meat. Our guests seemed to enjoy their meals (fish taco and chicken fajitas). The margs were fair. I ordered a prickly pear marg and received a raspberry one. Service was very slow. It was quite awhile before anyone took a drink order. Will not go back again.
Jessica P.
Other than the Great ambiance and happy hour offerings, not much to remember unfortunately. The Chicken fajita tacos were simple but not the best we've had. The Ribs had a weird flavor. Chips and Salsa tasted just okay, no authentic Mexican taste and it almost tasted like bottled salsa. The Enchiladas also didn't have any wow factor at all.
MT H.
Still love the ambiance and service after new name/ownership however the food fell below par. The plate was loaded with lettuce over dry rice and soft beans look sloppy slop! My seafood enchiladas was unlike I have had before. It was a soft taco melted with cheese and topped with cream sauce but was dry inside. Sorry, not for me.
Robert P.
Always a fantastic restaurant! From their New Mexico restaurants, to this one in Scottsdale, I highly recommend anyone visit El Patron! The complimentary chips and salsa are to die for. Chips are salted perfectly, which usually makes or break something complimentary. I highly recommend their enchiladas. Especially the blue corn ones. Service was spectacular and we received an amazing welcome from the host.
flutterfly f.
The newest addition to Scottsdale and one of my favorite NEW MEXICAN restaurant. The dishes are full of flavor. The space is open and airy with beautiful decor! A must try is the chicken tacos and coconut margarita! Happy hour offered ALL DAY at the bar & the front patio. Weekends they offer valet service! Staff is friendly and attentive. They are open 7 days a week for lunch & dinner.
Robert F.
First, we love the idea of a great Mexican food restaurant in the neighborhood. The last Mexican restaurant that was in the same spot was not good at all. So when a new owner came in we were excited. Unfortunately, the food here is just ok. My wife ordered chicken enchiladas and she got cheese enchiladas. I ordered a chicken and bean burrito and got a chicken burrito w/no beans. You can tell the staff is working really hard but they may be short staffed and the kitchen only had two people. So I will give them that. The ambiance is great and the bar is nice. We will give it another try but maybe sit at the bar and try something different. I do hope they make it.
Karyn M.
From Albuquerque, El Patron is definitely authentic to New Mexican regional cuisine. So good, I went twice in one day!! Chiles rellenos are some of the best I've ever had! Staff are super welcoming, attentive, fun and knowledgeable. Great decor and music...we will be back asap!
Tristan T.
This is actually my favorite restaurant back in Albuquerque, and I would be at the Montgomery location at least once a week before I moved to Phoenix. I found out about this location on Instagram and was soooo excited to try it. I was also a little nervous because other New Mexican restaurants that come to Phoenix or open in Phoenix tend to dull the spice in their chile for the locals here. However, El Patron is staying true to their spice levels back home! please keep the spice! It's not for the weak, and that's how it's supposed to be. If you can't hang with the spice, I would recommend getting your chile on the side. I always get the shredded beef burrito smothered in green chile in Abq so I stuck with that here as well. It does seem that the burrito (or at least the tortilla) was finished on the grill before it was smothered. This wasn't a bad thing, just made the under side of the burrito a *little* tough. Probably could be cured with a little extra chile on the plate, which I may ask for extra chile next time. The rice back home is also a little more saucy, which I love, but this rice was still very good also. The shredded/braised beef was delicious! Beans were very good. Salsa and guacamole were yummy, but the queso was fantastic! Like hands down one of the best quesos! Again, all of these foods are spicy! If spice is not your thing, please go to an Arizonan Mexican restaurant where they cater to sensitive taste buds. Do not come in here and complain about the spice. You will ruin it for those of who crave this spice. The restaurant itself is much more upscale than the locations back home, but it's absolutely beautiful and very comfortable. Aesthetically pleasing, lots of greenery, and two patios! The restaurant was pretty full, but not insanely busy. We were seated promptly, and were well taken care of. I overheard that there were only two servers working, but you couldn't really tell because the team seemed to work very well together and filled in any gaps. Food came out pretty quickly, drinks stayed full, plates were cleared at the appropriate times, dessert offered, etc. While some of the other desserts sounded and looked wonderful, I had to try the sopapillas! The Abq location's sopapillas tend to be a little yeasty for me, but this location absolutely hit the mark with their sopapillas! Craving satisfied 100%, soo yummy and fluffy! If you've never had a sopapilla, tear the corner off and drench that baby in the honey they provide. You won't regret it! I'm so happy I found my favorite New Mexican restaurant's new location. I will absolutely be back!
Barb Z.
Excellent. Very good food, drinks, excellent service. HH food yummy. Try those fajita tacos and red Chile BBQ ribs. Fall off the bone tender. 2 great patios, best bar seats, and best bathroom towels. Lol, but they were awesome.
Krystal H
They really captured the Hispanic flavors in their food, the salsa is top notch, I have the Montgomery because I wanted to sample a little of their food, chili relleno was my favorite, the cheese sauce in the relleno was on spot!! We will definitely be back!! Try their food, you will fall in love.
Fantastic service! Food was amazing and the ambiance was so relaxing and fun! This will be our go to every time we come to Scottsdale!
Angela B.
Service was exceptional!!! Food and drinks are the best I've had in years!!! Great manager ! Do yourself a favor , enjoy this restaurant! The patio was amazing !
Cactus P.
Had a nice time. We sat at the front covered patio by a heater. The all day happy hour queso was very good. Our fish and blue corn flat enchiladas were also very good. The red and green chile are spicy and distinctive. Looking forward to returning soon.
Adam V.
Very nice location and atmosphere. Queso was pretty good. Ribs were very overcooked then sauced up in a decently tasty sauce. Bartenders were nice when it was slow then it got busy and they were panicking and very rude to nearby guests. They claim to not have "ABC" to watch a simple sports game, they just don't know how to work the TVs. Over all experience - why would I ever go back? NM food isn't that desirable and your staff is very questionable. OWNER IS EXTREMELY RUDE
Karen D.
El Patron in ABQ is our go to when visiting family so we were super excited to have one open in our area. We went after a Diamondbacks spring training game and received a discount. The service was prompt and attentive throughout our dinning experience. My favorite green chile chicken lasagna was as delicious as I remembered and my husband had the enchilada casserole which he also enjoyed. But both entries were way over priced and did not come with the traditional sides. But most disappointing was the El Patron margarita. I think they completely forgot a margarita is supposed to have tequila. It was happy hour pricing but come on. Overall disappointing experience and don't think we will be back.
This was our second time there. The first time was during a weekday and we had a lovely dinner. At that time we had the baby back ribs, fajitas, and margs. Everything was wonderful. We booked again and ate on Easter Saturday and brought out of town guests. Both my steak tacos and my husband's steak fajita had over-cooked, chewy meat. Our guests seemed to enjoy their meals (fish taco and chicken fajitas). The margs were fair. I ordered a prickly pear marg and received a raspberry one. Service was very slow. It was quite awhile before anyone took a drink order. Will not go back again.
Other than the Great ambiance and happy hour offerings, not much to remember unfortunately. The Chicken fajita tacos were simple but not the best we've had. The Ribs had a weird flavor. Chips and Salsa tasted just okay, no authentic Mexican taste and it almost tasted like bottled salsa. The Enchiladas also didn't have any wow factor at all.
Still love the ambiance and service after new name/ownership however the food fell below par. The plate was loaded with lettuce over dry rice and soft beans look sloppy slop! My seafood enchiladas was unlike I have had before. It was a soft taco melted with cheese and topped with cream sauce but was dry inside. Sorry, not for me.
Always a fantastic restaurant! From their New Mexico restaurants, to this one in Scottsdale, I highly recommend anyone visit El Patron! The complimentary chips and salsa are to die for. Chips are salted perfectly, which usually makes or break something complimentary. I highly recommend their enchiladas. Especially the blue corn ones. Service was spectacular and we received an amazing welcome from the host.
The newest addition to Scottsdale and one of my favorite NEW MEXICAN restaurant. The dishes are full of flavor. The space is open and airy with beautiful decor! A must try is the chicken tacos and coconut margarita! Happy hour offered ALL DAY at the bar & the front patio. Weekends they offer valet service! Staff is friendly and attentive. They are open 7 days a week for lunch & dinner.
First, we love the idea of a great Mexican food restaurant in the neighborhood. The last Mexican restaurant that was in the same spot was not good at all. So when a new owner came in we were excited. Unfortunately, the food here is just ok. My wife ordered chicken enchiladas and she got cheese enchiladas. I ordered a chicken and bean burrito and got a chicken burrito w/no beans. You can tell the staff is working really hard but they may be short staffed and the kitchen only had two people. So I will give them that. The ambiance is great and the bar is nice. We will give it another try but maybe sit at the bar and try something different. I do hope they make it.
From Albuquerque, El Patron is definitely authentic to New Mexican regional cuisine. So good, I went twice in one day!! Chiles rellenos are some of the best I've ever had! Staff are super welcoming, attentive, fun and knowledgeable. Great decor and music...we will be back asap!
This is actually my favorite restaurant back in Albuquerque, and I would be at the Montgomery location at least once a week before I moved to Phoenix. I found out about this location on Instagram and was soooo excited to try it. I was also a little nervous because other New Mexican restaurants that come to Phoenix or open in Phoenix tend to dull the spice in their chile for the locals here. However, El Patron is staying true to their spice levels back home! please keep the spice! It's not for the weak, and that's how it's supposed to be. If you can't hang with the spice, I would recommend getting your chile on the side. I always get the shredded beef burrito smothered in green chile in Abq so I stuck with that here as well. It does seem that the burrito (or at least the tortilla) was finished on the grill before it was smothered. This wasn't a bad thing, just made the under side of the burrito a *little* tough. Probably could be cured with a little extra chile on the plate, which I may ask for extra chile next time. The rice back home is also a little more saucy, which I love, but this rice was still very good also. The shredded/braised beef was delicious! Beans were very good. Salsa and guacamole were yummy, but the queso was fantastic! Like hands down one of the best quesos! Again, all of these foods are spicy! If spice is not your thing, please go to an Arizonan Mexican restaurant where they cater to sensitive taste buds. Do not come in here and complain about the spice. You will ruin it for those of who crave this spice. The restaurant itself is much more upscale than the locations back home, but it's absolutely beautiful and very comfortable. Aesthetically pleasing, lots of greenery, and two patios! The restaurant was pretty full, but not insanely busy. We were seated promptly, and were well taken care of. I overheard that there were only two servers working, but you couldn't really tell because the team seemed to work very well together and filled in any gaps. Food came out pretty quickly, drinks stayed full, plates were cleared at the appropriate times, dessert offered, etc. While some of the other desserts sounded and looked wonderful, I had to try the sopapillas! The Abq location's sopapillas tend to be a little yeasty for me, but this location absolutely hit the mark with their sopapillas! Craving satisfied 100%, soo yummy and fluffy! If you've never had a sopapilla, tear the corner off and drench that baby in the honey they provide. You won't regret it! I'm so happy I found my favorite New Mexican restaurant's new location. I will absolutely be back!
Excellent. Very good food, drinks, excellent service. HH food yummy. Try those fajita tacos and red Chile BBQ ribs. Fall off the bone tender. 2 great patios, best bar seats, and best bathroom towels. Lol, but they were awesome.
They really captured the Hispanic flavors in their food, the salsa is top notch, I have the Montgomery because I wanted to sample a little of their food, chili relleno was my favorite, the cheese sauce in the relleno was on spot!! We will definitely be back!! Try their food, you will fall in love.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Fantastic service! Food was amazing and the ambiance was so relaxing and fun! This will be our go to every time we come to Scottsdale!
Service was exceptional!!! Food and drinks are the best I've had in years!!! Great manager ! Do yourself a favor , enjoy this restaurant! The patio was amazing !
Had a nice time. We sat at the front covered patio by a heater. The all day happy hour queso was very good. Our fish and blue corn flat enchiladas were also very good. The red and green chile are spicy and distinctive. Looking forward to returning soon.
Very nice location and atmosphere. Queso was pretty good. Ribs were very overcooked then sauced up in a decently tasty sauce. Bartenders were nice when it was slow then it got busy and they were panicking and very rude to nearby guests. They claim to not have "ABC" to watch a simple sports game, they just don't know how to work the TVs. Over all experience - why would I ever go back? NM food isn't that desirable and your staff is very questionable. OWNER IS EXTREMELY RUDE
El Patron in ABQ is our go to when visiting family so we were super excited to have one open in our area. We went after a Diamondbacks spring training game and received a discount. The service was prompt and attentive throughout our dinning experience. My favorite green chile chicken lasagna was as delicious as I remembered and my husband had the enchilada casserole which he also enjoyed. But both entries were way over priced and did not come with the traditional sides. But most disappointing was the El Patron margarita. I think they completely forgot a margarita is supposed to have tequila. It was happy hour pricing but come on. Overall disappointing experience and don't think we will be back.