El Patron Mexican Grill - Slidell — Restaurant in Slidell

Hi. 1st time eating here. My last. I arrived before my son and his family and enjoyed sitting out on the porch. It is a pretty building, and a couple of gentlemen who are outside doing some exterior work were both polite. One up a ladder the other over seeing and just making sure everything was going well. Nicely done.My party arrived, and we went in. And it was downhill after that. The 3 employees at the host station did not address us at first. We waited. They talked.(To each other) after begins i Ignore my son , ask if there was a problem. Only 3 other tables were occupied. So it wasn't busy yet as it was only about 4;30. They did seat us (in a booth), plenty of tables available. The waitresses weren't nice or accommodating to get drinks or dips we ordered. 2 different types pluse the one they bring outas courtesy. We were not offered the opportunity to chose guacamole that is prepared table side. Didn't realize they offered it I have had it in the past, and it's a favorite of mine. The waitresses seemed angry. She did the bare minimum. We had to ask for any refilles and chips as the 1 bowl didn't work with 3 dips and 4 people. We couldn't get anyone's attention for refills, but a service person stood against the wall in the door way almost our whole meal 20 ft away But he never responded nor did the waitresses after she slammed our food on the table. It's not a good experience. We wanted to leave, However;my daughter-in-law had been unable to eat because my grandson was tired. And she spent dinner time comforting him. So she wanted a to go plate to box her meal in. Again, no help. She found one in the cabinet. No stopping by or checking on us to make sure we didn't need anything . Though there was wait staff visible around us. They didn't venture near our table after food was slammed on it. I do mean put down hard. The food was ok But the cheese quesadilla that we ordered for my granddaughter.Who is 3?And she loves cheese, was already cold inside the tortilla shell when delivered to the table.Oh and the kicker, we order sweet tea. The tea wasn't sweet . We ask and waitresses told us after she slammed it on the table to just add sugar to it. (It was cold Iced tea) Ya'll know how that tastes 😖rt? They didn't have root beer. It was a disaster outing I won't deal with again I love eating out with family. This was one of those times I didn't. But live and learn from lessons like this. I appreciate good service and don't repeat bad experiences. Marking it...

Keeping in mind the place just opened I hope they read our reviews. Id like to go back in a couple months and see if things have improved.

Food got 3 stars because while it was cooked well and filled our bellies it was rather bland. Steak fajitas, and two versions of chicken quesadillas for the 4 of us. Rice and beans on the side. All perfectly cooked just lacking any seasoning. Especially for the price which is highest in town for Mexican cuizine. Drinks were cold and fresh. Thier beer tap was having an issue, new place problems Im sure. No points lost on me there, things break sometimes. We had an appetizer of queso that was served in a VERY shallow bowl. They cut costs here plain n simple, but our plate servings were above average in size so it balanced out.

Service was immaculate from the hostess to the end. All smiles and pleasant. Our waitress was great. They were quite busy as we arrived shortly after the dinner rush so it took a little extra time to get our food but we were brought extra corn chips and salsa.

Atmosphere was mid. You can clearly tell its a redecorated restaurant of some other type. Not a big deal. Seating is spacious and comfortable the kitchen is kinda loudly heard from where we sat. Id say the overall ambiance is "kinda loud." Not to the point of being bad. The music was fine.

Overall Id say for you to try it. Our 4 top spent $90. The food may be perfectly seasoned in your opinion. We prefer it moreso on...

This is new restaurant so I expected a few growing pains. We arrived at 630pm on a Tuesday. The wait was 20 minutes no problems. Got to the table and it was about 5 minutes before we were greeted. No issues there. The server was very nice.

I gave it 3 stars on food quality alone. I personally ordered the texas fajitas with flour tortillas. After a 30 minute wait our food arrived. My fajitas were delivered no sizzle and cold. Even the cast iron wasn't hot The tortillas were corn and also cold. No real seasoning to the dish. My daughter requested no tomatoes and surprise tomatoes. The other 2 people had warm food that was correct.

Pro for the food is the portions are big and enough to bring home for a full second meal.

The restaurant is new so hopefully they can tighten up the food quality. When I'm paying 25 bucks for a dish I'd like it to be flavorful and hot.

I don't mind waiting to be seated or for my dinner so no issues with the service. With the many options for Mexican in Slidell I'm hopeful they will improve the food quality.

I always say try it and see how you like it. My experience may have just been a one off for...