El Adobe Cafe & Sports Bar — Restaurant in Reno

So, I've been eating at El Adobe off and on for about 20 years. I recently went back after a long hiatus. One thing you can say about this restaurant is that it is consistent. The food and drink have all the pluses and minuses that I remember.

For me, the sine qua non of Mexican food is a chile relleno. What could be more delicious? On this score El Adobe is an honorable contender. A delicious poblano chile stuffed with a copious (not gluttonous) amount of cheese and a nice ranchera sauce. I might have preferred a spicier sauce, but still quite delicious. Nicely battered, but not overly so. The chile is well cooked, so if you like your chile with snap, beware. But again, in my opinion, one of the better chile rellenos in town.

Salsas are quite interesting. The red is smooth, not very hot, and contains a cold spice that I can't identify and which I have mixed feelings on. It makes for a very unique tasting red salsa, but do I like it? Well, ok, but I've had more traditional red salsas that I'd like better (how about a smokey fire roasted sauce?). However, any salsa recriminations disappear with the green salsa. I could drink this stuff by the gallon. Just delicious.

Guess I have to talk about the chips that come complementary with the salsa (rare these days, thank you, El Adobe!). Pretty sure that they're homemade, but often definitely not right out of the fryer and a bit thick for an old guy with bad teeth. However, that didn't stop me from eating a whole basket. That frigging green salsa would be good on shoe leather.

Drinks, you ask. For as long as I've been going to El Adobe, they make the best (and strongest) house Margarita in Reno/Sparks. I definitely suggest a designated driver if you intend to imbibe.

The enchiladas and carnitas are good, but unfortunately, the rice and beans are the definition of bland. Filling and inoffensive, but nothing to write home about.

The staff and owners are exemplary. They are really glad to see you and they take pride in their jobs. They're never too busy to stop and say hello.

Is El Adobe the best Mexican restaurant you'll ever have the chance to go to? No, it's not, but if you want good Mexican food and superior drinks in Northern Nevada, you should have El Adobe...

Short: Way overpriced, mediocre food.

Long: Let's start with the chips and salsa, shall we? The red salsa that came with the chips seems an odd cross between BBQ sauce and perhaps a tangy molè sauce. Not at all salsa and not at all good. I requested and was granted a salsa verde which was significantly better. The chips, sadly, were thick and cold like they had been made the day before. These were the exact opposite of the hot chips straight from the oil that some other places provide. We're decidedly off on the wrong foot.

I noticed that the prices are a bit out of reach here so I was hoping for something really special. With optimism I ordered the Natalia's Special, a shredded chicken chimichanga. The menu did not mention rice and beans like it did on other plates so I was pleased to see these two faithful amigos when the plate showed up.

In short: it was ok. The rice and beans could have been culled from an Old El Paso microwave meal. The chimichanga came with a light dollop of sour cream and a light dollop of guacamole (as the menu promised) atop a pretty good portion of spiced shredded chicken. It was, on a scale of 1-10, a solid 5.5, perhaps a 6.

I drank water in defiance of their policy - clearly stated on their menu - that soft drinks are $3.50 and only one refill is allowed.

At this point it has become clear to me that El Adobe Cafe is irredeemable. They seem to miss the mark at every turn, with the exception of an excellent job of interior decorating.

Last, I see a lot of glowing reviews on here leading me to believe that people in Reno are either crazy or unacquainted with good Mexican food (and reasonable prices). Either way, my wallet and I are going to press...

KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS AND CHECK YOUR BANK ACCOUNT!!! I left a cash tip on the table so I wrote a zero tip on the card receipt, turned out that the server ended up adding herself her own tip on top of that on my card. Not only was the food mediocre and the server was rude, she added herself an extra tip and when I called the restaurant to speak to the manager, the employee who answered the phone mocked and laughed about me asking for the manager. This place takes the word "UNPROFESSIONAL" to a whole new level. The server name on the receipt says Beatris, the manager's son is Javier, who still hasn't refunded my card, the manager Raul still hasn't gotten back to me after over a week since the incident. I tried to be patient with them but over a week later they still haven't corrected the charge. AVOID THIS PLACE, the food is very overpriced, their service is terrible, and they're proving to be unprofessional and apparently even corrupt, IT'S NOT WORTH THE TROUBLE, let this place get shut down, it's a shame to good Mexican restaurants. And I just noticed there are several other reviews stating that the same tip scam was done to them at this exact same place, BEWARE!

And then instead of taking care of the corruption issue with their staff, they spend more time replying defensively online with personal information about which city you live in and other irrelevant information, claiming something about TikTok which I never mentioned since I've never had...