El Rodeo Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Clovis

For years this was our consistent spot for Mexican food. The service was reasonable, and the food was good. Over the last year or so they've really taken a downturn in service and quality. The wait times have increased and the freshness of their food has worsened.

We decided to give it one last shot. I really wish we hadn't. I ordered the usuals, a pork tamale and a chicken enchilada. When the food came out it looked freshly cooked, not like it had been sitting under a heat lamp, so that was good. The biggest problem was the tamale. There was about a centimeter wide two inch long micro strip of pork in the entire tamale. It was basically a big wad of masa. So I sent it back and asked to have something else. Not a big deal, at least I thought.

Instead of just exchanging the item for another one, a woman came out from the back, I'm assuming the manager, and proceeded to start an argument with me saying that there was pork in the tamale and that I was mistaken. I told her that there was next to none in it and that I would like a replacement item. Then she dug her heels in deeper and started picking the tamale apart in front of me and arguing that there is pork in the tamale. To top it off she gestured like she was going to hand it back to me. Motioning that this is what I got and I had better eat it.

She finally backed down when I told her that I wasn't here to argue with her and that I was here to pay for good quality food and that it shouldn't matter if she was able to spot trace amounts of pork in the tamale, it still wasn't a good tamale.

It's pretty embarrassing having someone come out from the back and instead of just swapping out the item, deciding to pick a fight with a customer in the restaurant for everyone else to see. How humiliating, juvenile and unprofessional.

We went there for years but because of this, we're done with this place. There are better Mexican restaurants in town that won't send staff out to talk down to you if you don't like their food. These guys can sit and spin on their porkless...

This used to be our go-to for a quick and convenient meal. Not anymore.

My husband and I came in on a Saturday around 2 pm. They didn't seem too busy. It took a good five minutes to even be recognized after walking in to be seated. Drinks and chips were quick as usual. We ordered an appetizer and waited. Waited some more. Refilled on chips and salsa. Waited again. We were not the only people waiting for food. Two tables were refilled on margaritas. One table had to bottle feed their baby twice during the time that elapsed.

There was a large group of probably twenty to thirty in the banquet area. When food was being brought out, it went to them. After waiting thirty minutes for a mini chimichanga, we were growing impatient.

One table was brought their food, and then immediately after, the waitress brought them the check and boxes. They didn't ask for it, though. They sat there and ate. Little rude on the waitress's part, in my opinion. I say that because she did it with the next table too.

After 45 minutes, the appetizer arrived. Of course, it's too hot to devour. I looked at my husband and said, "How much do you want to bet our food comes out in five minutes?" He looked into the kitchen, and sure enough, our food was finally being made.

We left. And I do not feel bad at all. We didn't touch the appetizer but did finish our water.

Word of advice to the restaurant: If you have a large party or are short staffed, let the customer know. The waitress could have come by and said, "We are a bit backed up right now. Sorry for the inconvenience." Or something like that. I had to flag her down for more chips when we refilled. If they had pushed out my appetizer like they should have, it would have been fine. It irks me that there was no urgency for the people who weren't in the banquet area. We are just as hungry, ya know!

I was a regular, I tip well, and I always recommended the establishment....

We made reservations for my mother on Mother's Day, which ended up being a huge mistake. When we arrived at the designated time, the host (didn't get his name, but was clearly gay) at the door came off immediately very rude to my mom and I, saying no reservation was made and to wait outside. He came back about 20 minutes later, without apology, saying he just found the reservation on a paper and told us to sit at one of the tables. We considered going to a different restaurant, but decided to give them a chance, which ended up being a bad decision. Our waiter, a young kid named Jose, was completely flustered all night. He kept botching the orders, forgetting to bring us refills on drinks, more chips, to go boxes, and our bill, after we kept reminding him. Once we received our food, it was predictably cold and it took us about 15 minutes for Jose to remember to bring silverware. As customers to this restaurant for 3 years, this has been our worst experience. Also, since my mom and I are Mexican, it seemed like the host was racially discriminating against us, as he was cordial and didn't come off rude to the White customers coming into the restaurant at that time. After we asked them if they would compensate for the horrible service, they refused. We will never be coming back and hope other customers don't waste your money on terrible service and treatment, especially on...