El Toreo

Husband and I live only a few minutes away from the Thirlane location and a co-​worker suggested the burritos, so we decided to give El Toreo a try.
The atmosphere is more Disneyland-​Mexican than authentic Mexican. We were promptly seated at a table with brightly painted, high-​backed wooden chairs with wicker seats (not comfortable.) The tables have thick pillar bases (no footsie allowed), and are a little too wide for two people to comfortably talk above the piped-​in mexican folk music. We were immediately served chips with fresh salsa and white sauce. Good, nothing special, but good.
The restaurant seemed overstaffed for lunch, but it being a Saturday and a holiday, perhaps they were gearing up for dinner. Out waiter was courteous but unimpressive.
They have Coca-​Cola soft drinks (Coke, Sprite, Mr. Pibb) and good water.
We both liked our meals, and only paid about $ 20 + tip — solid value. Nothing amazing, but both meals tasted good. I was disappointed by the rice (which seems to come as a side with every meal) which was dry and had ‘bits’ in that would make it an absolute no-​go for someone who, say, can’t eat corn.
We’ll likely eat there again, but hopefully they do take-​out.

Food is awesome… sometimes…customer service is lacking. Carlos needs to cheer up, make eye contact and stop mumbling.

Stopped in for dinner tonight. There were 4 of us. Around 7:45pm on a Wednesday night. The restaurant is really big. There were plenty of seats available.
We did start with an order of drinks. There was a little language barrier. 2 if us got the big margaritas that they have. They weren’t the best. But it wasn’t horrible.
The food came out quick. The plates were good portions. Most of us didn’t even finish everything because we were so stuffed.
The manager that came around was very nice. He asked us how we were doing a few times. He kept up on our drinks and got us plenty of chips.

Unilocal was right on with this restaurant!
Seated right away, order was taken and we had some Margaritas, which were superb.
Shrimp fajitas were tasty as was the chips and salsa.
Recommended!

On a long road trip we stopped for the night at the Hampton Inn and they suggested this restaurant. I am glad they did. The portion size was large and very reasonably priced. I had the steak fajitas and it was very delicious. I would suggest this restaurant to anyone and If I ever find myself going thru Roanoke again I would with a doubt go here again.

Great restaurant with a fun and colorful atmosphere. The staff were very pleasant and the food came out super quick. Not only did it come out quick but was also very delicious. I would highly recommend this restaurant to everyone.

My husband picked up takeout as a last minute decision. We stopped at the motel across the street after a long day of road tripping. Taking into account we were super hungry and tired, we were glad this place was so close & convenient. We walked our dogs over to pick up the food, didn’t get a good look inside obviously, but the outdoor area is great, very large & quaint.
The food was ready pretty quickly and everything was made perfectly. They added all the extras we asked for and sent us on our way. I don’t eat Mexican cuisine often, so I’m not a connoisseur of it, but my opinion was that the food was pretty good!
Overall, great experience!

Food was good. I called yesterday evening to place an order for pick up and they told me it would be ready in 10 minutes. I walked there from the Quality Inn and it was ready. I walked back to my room and the food was still hot and very good. I ordered the churros and fajitas texanas. If my truck isn’t fixed today i’ll probably order from there again.

The weirdest dinner I’ve ever had in a restaurant!
My hubs and I checked in at the Super 8 across the street a little after 9 PM. We were worried we might be too late for dinner, so we dashed over to El Toreo with our fingers crossed.
NOTE: I’m a native Angelino. I have strong feelings about Mexican food. I sometimes sing to my enchiladas. You know that conversation that New Yorkers have after leaving New York, where they cry and whine and beg and plead for good pizza? I’d feel like that about Mexican food if I couldn’t make it myself.
Sooooooo we get to El Toreo. We are immediately greeted, seated, and given menus in almost frantic way. We put in a drink order, and the waiter brings us chips, a tiny carafe of salsa and a bowl of… ranch dressing?
We order our dinner. We eat some chips. The salsa is pretty good. It probably came from the kitchen, and not a can. I am hopeful, even though they are out of tamales.
The waiter checks on us every thirteen seconds, calling us «amigos» every time. We do not feel like his amigos. We feel like hungry people who arrived thirty minutes before closing. We are as polite as possible for fear the staff might spit in our food.
Someone at the host stand behind us starts playing music videos on his phone. The restaurant plays loud music as well, and occasionally a server breaks into singing that sounds sarcastic, as if he’s heard this song seventeen thousand times today. He probably has. I feel for him. The overall effect is noisy, chaotic, distracting and somehow also depressing.
I ask the waiter what the white sauce is that he brought with the chips, expecting to hear something like: «Oh it’s a garlic crema with herbs.»
He says, «Oh, that’s the white sauce. It’s good. You put on the chips.»
I taste it. It’s ranch dressing. I am deeply confused, and decide not to ask any more questions.
The food comes. My husband’s fajitas are… unappealing. The meat looks as if it’s been boiled, the green peppers are limp. There are no tortillas, so he asks for some when the waiter comes back 13 seconds later.
My husband then asks me how much cocaine I think the waiter is on. I say «all of the cocaine.»
My enchiladas are not worthy of song or photo. Some of my rice is cooked, but not all of it.
Not surprisingly, they try to sell us more alcohol several times before bringing the check we didn’t ask for. We pay it, and I sit there and stare at my husband’s half full glass of beer, wishing we could take it to go, as this dinner has been almost unnervingly odd!

Extremely nice waiters, they even sang a birthday song for our friend who had her birthday and she got a free desert.
I had the pork carnitas and I think it was the best pork I ever ate in my life, it was awesome!
The beer was also cheap and tasted very well, sadly I don’t remember the brand we had, but it was one of the imported ones from Mexico.
Check this place out if you can!

Thanks to the folks at Hampton Inn for recommending this restaurant next door. Service was very nice, food was good, portions are generous, and prices are reasonable. I also loved the bright and cheery and colorful interior.
FAJITAS — $ 13.49
We ordered the steak and chicken combo. The steak tasted low quality and my dad had a hard time chewing the meat — but the chicken was very good. Next time we’d just stick w/​the chicken.
CARNITAS — $ 9.99
Ordered the carnitas since the other reviews raved about it. I wasn’t a huge fan — maybe overwhelmed by the ginormous pieces of pork. They were tender too but I’d probably get something else next time.
TILAPIA TACOS — $ 8.99
They did the authentic double-​layer corn tortillas, and my mom enjoyed her tacos.
The menu is pretty extensive so I’d probably try something else if I ever visit the area again. Overall 3.5 stars rounded to 4.

I must’ve been here on an off night. Chips were stale. Chicken Ench was dry. The «chili rellano» was batter over «beef» with a slice of pablano. The waiter explained to me there is an authentic one they make. That came out and tasted like old grease. The fryer oil definitely needs to be changed. The rellano had a watery cheese in it flowing with hot oil. It tasted musty.
Service was fine. I would not come back or suggest it to anyone. Sorry.