El Mariachi Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Jacksonville

Sadly, this could have been a 5 star review based on an excellent meal and good service by my waiter at the bar, Emilio. Wanted to give them a 1 star, but decided on a 2 star due to the good food, and mostly good service from my waiter. My wife and I had dinner at this restaurant a few weeks ago and had a very enjoyable experience, which is why I returned today. I live in Wilmington and now do business in Jacksonville on a regular basis. But today, I left angry. Bottom line, when I received my bill and gave them a VIP coupon from the local Attractions Book, the waiter told me they cannot accept their own $10 coupon from the Attractions book, because I hadn't spent a minimum of $20 in order to use the coupon. I told and showed him that the coupon said nothing about a $20 minimum and I asked to speak to the manager. The manager came over and immediately said, " that coupon isn't any good with alcohol". I informed the manager that I had purchased a meal in addition to the pint of beer. -- total bill $14. He then stated that "the book says that you have to spend $20 to use the coupon". At that moment his phone rang and he abruptly walked away without saying anything more. I then want to my car, retrieved the Attractions Book and brought it back in to show the waiter and manager. Of course the book states nothing about a $20 minimum -- they simply refused to accept their own coupon. Sadly, my wife and I had previously liked this place, and probably would have patronized it monthly in the coming months and years. We even considered having them cater an upcoming party for our business. But no more, they have lost our business forever, over a poor business practice of refusing to honor their own coupon -- with no explanation other then "sorry....". This is dishonest, and I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone who prefers honest businesses who...

• EDIT: Less than a week after my initial review praising the value proposition of this restaurant, the specific dish I pointed out raised in price by two dollars. Another week later and the prices on doordash have increased tremendously. The Arroz Con Pollo that I pointed out as a great value at 10.99 for a lunch now costs $17.40 for the same dish, a 58% increase. Value is a main determining factor in my reviews and this type of increase is unacceptable in my view. Don't get me wrong, this isn't bad food, but with current pricing it no longer stands out in this market, I can no longer recommend El Mariachi over Mi Cabana or El Cerro Grande which offer better experiences at similar prices. *

Authentic vibes and El Mariachi represents the best value Mexican food in the Jacksonville area. Prices are very affordable and highlight what Mexican food is all about - efficient, well seasoned, simple food. Great chips and salsa, the fajitas are very generously portioned and good quality meats, the tortillas are not home made though which may be a turn off for some. The Arroz Con Pollo for 11 bucks is hard to beat, comes with fantastic dipping sauces. It does help to speak Spanish here as many of the servers have limited English and as a result may not be as attentive to English speaking customers. Overall a great value, good solid food and very good when delivered. If you are looking for a great sit down experience there is probably better options but this is definitely worth...

Food is okay, I expected it to be a little better because of the reviews it received. I thought the flavor of everything I had was more salt influenced than the complexity of how well prepared, quality Mexican foods CAN be. Lastly, I felt excessively rushed, before the order and after the we were done eating. When I was asked four times if I was ready to order within 5 minutes and had to explain, EVERY TIME, that I was waiting for the rest of my party(which were there in 5 minutes and the pIace was almost empty at 2pm) I was also asked 3-4 times, after I paid the bill, (with a 30% tip I might add) if I was "All Set!? On the 4th time they asked me, I actually had to ask... is it okay if I finish the half drink I have left? At this point, the place had absolutely no one in it. Maybe it was a lack of understanding that, I've never been there before, so I didn't order within a minute. Believe me, I'm a Dine Out Pro, If I was acting like Joe the dope and sitting there taking my sweet time, waiting for my other party on a busy Friday night. I go out to dinner or lunch at odd times just so that doesn't happen to me. Maybe I'm wrong, but when I'm spending $30 for a picture of Margueritas and twice that on food and a $30 tipf for 3, during there "luncheon specials" time slot? I would've liked a little more respect than getting my balls busted from the time I walked in until I took my last sip. LIVE AND LEARN, I guess. BTW, I like Mi Cabana WAY...