El Caporal Mexican Restaurant Chesterfield — Restaurant in Virginia

Horrible service AND food.... even the water (in a plastic glass, with a short straw) was disgusting and lukewarm. Will probably never return there. Started with the waitress (I should have asked for her name!) - who never introduced herself; as we entered the door, she picked the menus and told us (2 of us) to follow her. No greeting whatsoever. We looked behind thinking she was talking to someone else! The restaurant was not even 1/4 full - she took forever to come back to take the order. By that time, we already knew what we wanted and ordered very quickly and simply: an entreé and a combo. She looked impatient - like if we were in her way or something. Really awful: a robot would have been nicer! No joke. Food arrived: O.M.G. - if you have hypertension - make sure to call an ambulance in advance, and let them stand-by. Unbelievably salty. I think they use a ready-made seasoning mixture and double the amount recommended. I could not finish even 1/4 of my rice and beans (equally salted to the extreme.) The fish in the tacos was not bad tasting (but also very salty,) but there was ony a few tiny pieces of fish (squares) in a small soft tortilla, with a couple of lettuce. They might use Sazon (or the alike) to season everything: there was one flavor for all, plus 1/2 pound of salt! With the horrible water, all that seasoning junk (I bet it was loaded with MSG - monosodium glutamate), and not a soda drinker... I had to leave and go home to get something to dilute that salt! After finishing eating 1/4 of the food - we had to grab another gentleman (server) to get the 'flavorless' waitress, to give us the check, which I regret paying for. (My fault: I was not in the 'quarreling mood' and was very hungry arriving there. Waitress 'mad-face' never, once, came back to check on us or see if we needed something. Again, I should have reported to a manager - but at that point, I thought: "They are probably a family or all the same. Why get more upset for nothing!" We just decide to never go there again; that is a bigger loss. Not sure if the positive, 5 stars here, are from reviewers who were paid to give high stars; or they went there at a different time; or if they got free food to give a good review. Unfortunately, there is a lot of that. But, some people had the same bad experience, as we did. Believe us! I usually write lots of reviews, and am brutally honest. If they were great, I would definitely...

UPDATE: A Disappointing Decline After Years of Loyalty

We’ve been loyal customers of El Caporal since 2019. Over the years, we’ve always enjoyed delicious food, fast service, and a consistently great dining experience. Sadly, our recent Father’s Day lunch was a major letdown—and likely our last visit.

Upon arrival, things seemed normal. We were seated immediately, and our server took our drink orders. I asked for sweet tea—something I’ve ordered for years—only to be told they were out. That had never happened before.

From there, it went downhill. We waited around 20 minutes, only to be served the wrong orders—food clearly meant for two other tables. Our actual meals didn’t arrive until 30 minutes after we were seated, which is double their usual time. My husband and daughter’s orders were correct, but mine was missing.

When my food finally came out (35 minutes in), it was wrong. I had ordered a chicken tamale and a burrito with rice, but they brought me a beef enchilada and burrito. The server who delivered it disappeared so quickly I couldn’t even say anything. I had to get up to find our waitress. She came back and, surprisingly, insisted the food was correct—even though it was clearly not what I ordered. I know what a tamale looks like.

Eventually, she returned to inform me they were out of tamales—information that would have been helpful before making me wait even longer. I settled for the enchilada, but by the time it arrived, my family was already three-quarters through their meals.

Unfortunately, the food didn’t redeem the experience. My enchilada tasted nothing like what I’ve come to expect from El Caporal. It was overly salty, and the sauce had an off-putting, tomato-heavy flavor—more like spaghetti sauce with a dash of cumin than authentic enchilada sauce. I barely touched it and didn’t bother taking it home.

I asked about the issues and was told there was a new cook. But that doesn’t explain the wrong orders, the long waits, or the overall disorganization.

We were so disappointed. What should have been a special Father’s Day lunch turned into a frustrating, subpar experience. After years of great food and service, this visit was a complete letdown. Sadly, we do not plan to return.

The hunt for a new favorite Mexican restaurant begins....

Always had good experiences at El Caporal, however, the last trip was subpar. Ordered food from my car, in the parking lot, and had already paid and was waiting inside when they brought it out. Went straight home, about 5 minutes away, and the food was already cold. We ordered 3 fried chimichangas, none of them were fried. Ordered. beef & bean and chicken & bean burritos. Neither had beans in them. Even worse than the food, however, was the poor customer service. They had just closed, but we called and had to argue with the salesperson about how our food was not right. He just continued to assert that our food had been fried and tried to say it was just soggy from the 5 minute ride home. After pressing him in what he intended to do to make it right, and suggesting he offer to provide a free replacement on our next visit, he reluctantly agreed. We offered to give him our name since he didn't ask for it. We're dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and a lot of employee have been laid off or are not coming in to work and most restaurants are now offering takeout exclusively. Some are doing a better job than others. I don't know if that is the reason for today's missteps, but hopefully El Caporal can bounce back because we've enjoyed their food up...