El Rodeo — Restaurant in Carlisle

El Rodeo: 5 Stars for the Food, the Family Vibes, and the Fact That I Didn’t Have to Sweep

We usually grab carryout from El Rodeo (because getting five picky kids out the door and into chairs at the same time is a logistical miracle). But the other night, we decided to actually eat in to celebrate a dance recital, two piano recitals, and let’s be really honest, to let someone else clean up the mountain of rice and shredded cheese under the table.

After sitting through multiple recitals in a row, my kids had burned through most of their behavior reserves for the day. But El Rodeo didn’t miss a beat, even when our crew forgot their manners and couldn’t stay seated for the entire meal. No side-eyes, no sighs- just kindness, patience, and another round of queso.

El Rodeo is one of our all-time favorites. They know us by our order: 10 quesadillas, a suspicious number of sides of refried beans, and enough white cheese to smother a small village. We’re the ones with a million kids and very specific food requests, and they treat us like absolute family every single time.

The food is always delicious. Even my most “don’t let the rice touch the beans” kid finds something to love. There’s something for everyone here, and that’s no small feat when your dinner table looks like a roaming pack of wild raccoons in sneakers.

Thank you, El Rodeo, for being our go-to celebration spot, chaos and all. Five...

My family stopped at this restaurant because our kid was hungry, and the wife wanted a margarita. The first thing we did is go to the bathroom. The bathroom was so very clean, which is an important thing to take note of about an establishment. The dining area was well/nicely lit and open. Our server was a kind woman, as well as the rest of the staff we interacted with. We ordered 1 chicken quesadilla, 1 Tropical Margarita, 1 Fresh-Made Guacamole, 1 tortilla chips, and 1 ginger ale totaling $45.68 + $7 tip. The quesadilla, was so gah’damn good that I regretted the fact that I already eaten my wife’s cooking before I got there. The chicken was juicy, the cheese was cheesy and all fresh. The guacamole was so good, and I mean SO GOOD…! The chips were great also. I commented to my wife that the chips were similar to other Mexican restaurants chips (which are also unsalted and slightly bland which is good, because the chips are meant for dipping), but these chips were just somehow better and more uniform in texture. The ginger ale was ginger ale. The Tropical Margarita wasn’t as amazing as we’d like though. It tasted as if it was only margarita mix with absolutely no alcohol. Also prices for the drinks are NOT listed on the menu, which can appear somewhat deceptive. Overall.. this is thee best Mexican restaurant I’ve ever been to, and I’ve been to many across...

Great service, fast and kind waiter, but honestly disappointing food and awkward price. I got a San Jose burrito, great portion for the price, chicken was great but the bean/rice/cheese portion was under seasoned. Overall good Wife got tacos that I tried, and we appreciated the menu noting gluten-free options. Tacos where another good portion but with gritty (over stirred, overcooked, idk) beef and still little flavor. Side of rice was very good however. Would visit again but was thrown off by the bill of our table - table got a marg flight, which we expected to be under $15 due to signs advertising $5 margs (no prices in menu, maybe the signs were just outdated decor), but was $19. Kicker was when my mother requested a bit more cheese for her salad (to compensate for what seemed to be a weaker amount of cheese), which was delivered with no issue, but had a $2.25 fee at the end. I've worked in the food industry, I get that objectively it is product coming out of the kitchen, but the inflation of some prices really needed transparency and...