El Patio Mexican Restaurant — Restaurant in Louisiana

Food was good, but service was sub-par at best. We walk in and our greeting was table of 5 to the back, pointing towards the backroom by the bathrooms was what appeared to be the manager (who was fielding a personal phone call on his cell phone). So we sat ourselves at a table and waited. Finally after about 5 minutes a lady brought us chips and salsa, didn't offer any hello, hi or anything. After finishing both baskets of chips having no napkins, no silverware, no menus and no drinks about 10 minutes had passed and a server showed up apologizing she had to deal with a to-go order and couldn't get to us sooner. We explained how we had no menus, silverware etc .. she took our drink order apologizing and letting us know she would bring us menus, silverware and napkins. We got our drinks quick and she left, reappeared a few minutes later to set some extra napkins down at the end of the table as she passed by, stating I'll be right back to get your order. Now mind you we have no menus. Upon returning she knelt at the table and offered to take our order. I again informed her we didn't have menus. She returned again with menus apologizing more, finally handing us straws for our drinks and silverware at that time. We'd had our drinks over 5 mintues at that point to finally receive straws. After a while she returned and we ordered, but she didn't even know her menu. She had to have the menu open on the table next to her in order to see what the ordered meals came with to put on the ticket and even asked me personally to show her where the "Choripollo" was on the menu because she's never seen it. I oblidged and showed her. She said food would be right out and that was not the case, it seemed to take forever. Once it arrived there wasn't any complaints. But it shouldn't be such a chore to get to that point. We spent right at an hour and a half to eat. Only about 20mintues of that time was us actually having our food. When we arrived the restaurant was not busy, only about a half doz or so tables were sat with several people at the bar. If you dare to spend the time, the food was good, but not worth it to me with the service...

Today was an absolute disappointment. We have been here numerous times and while we have never had great service, we definitely have never had the terrible service like we did today. First, we were skipped to get drink orders taken. We tried to order food at the same time and he cut us off and walked off to the next table who had already been put ahead of us once already. We had to stop him again to order. 15 mins later we got the drinks and I was given Diet Coke instead of sweet tea. When he finally came back around so I could tell him that it was wrong it took him ANOTHER 15 min to bring back the correct drink. We ordered our food before the other tables around us and they all got their food before us after we sat there for an hour. When we told him that and told him to bring a ticket for the tea he laughed and said oh it’s coming. Well it should’ve been out BEFORE the other tables that ordered AFTER us. He had an arrogant attitude the entire time and got mad because we wanted the ticket. Maybe this particular restaurant can’t handle an influx of people on holidays like Father’s Day. If that’s the case, then don’t seat more people than what you can handle. Also, a server should NOT get drinks or food for more than one table at a time and then sit the tray down on someones table then bring the other table their drinks. That is why I got Diet Coke and the other table got my sweet tea. I also don’t want my OPEN drink around another table of people breathing...

Overall, usually our go-to mexican restaurant in the area. The quality is okay, waits are usually not long, and the staff is usually nice.

Location: off the road at the end of town, which is great for people on that side. Near a gas station and market basket. I do hate their driveway- it's usually full of holes to dodge. Parking is also available in the back.

Service: friendly most of the time but there have been instances where orders were wrong or we were overcharged. When we brought it to their attention, their body language and unapologetic manner made it seem intentional. So we definitely double check receipts now.

Food: good variety. Tacos, burritos, enchiladas, queso, nachos, chili relleno, salsa, taco salad, etc. Prices are good. I usually order 3 tacos with no beans/rice for about $6-8. Their queso is also really good. We have been given the wrong margaritas.

Atmosphere: booths and tables available. Sometimes it can feel crowded if you have a large group. I recommend calling ahead if you have more than 4-6 people (if you dnt think all of you can fit at one booth). They can push tables together. Outdoor seating is also a good place for large groups.

Birthdays: if you let them know, they will help celebrate. Be prepared to have whipped cream...