Location: 408 Sagamore Pky N, Lafayette, IN (map it)
Phone: 765-449-0270
Cuisine: Mexican
A friend of mine told me that El Meson was pretty good, and since I think I’m running out of places to try, I decided yesterday to go give it a try and was not disappointed. This restaurant is over across from the Home Depot plaza on Sagamore Parkway. Clearly it is located inside a building that was once a fast food restaurant, but I have no idea what it originally was. Maybe a Hardees? I can’t remember what was there. It’s been decorated completely with festive tables and chairs and wall decor. (Actually, I have eaten at an El Meson in Indianapolis before, and from looking at their website, they have many locations all over Indiana.)
I walked in and there were a number of people already seated and eating. I waited to be seated by and was called “amiga,” which is a nice change from ma’am or miss. I like being someone’s friend! I asked for water and it came out quickly with chips and salsa. The salsa, while not made from fresh tomatoes, was really quite good. Spicy enough, but not too spicy.
The menu was extensive. It had all of your standard Mexican fare as well as multiple lunch and dinner combinations, an array of fajitas, and a few things that stood out to me such a the Mexican Pizza, an item made with chicken, steak, and shrimp with kudos on FourSquare. I wasn’t quite brave enough to try the pizza, so I opted for the tacos de carne asada. My friend ordered the El Meson Burrito.
The tacos were awesome. I love steak tacos, but too often they are tough and flavorless. These were tender and full of flavor. The pico de gallo was really good on them as well. Double thumbs up for the tacos de carne asada. My friend who ordered the El Meson Burrito, reported that it was really good as well.I didn’t get rice with my meal, and I’m not really a big fan of Mexican rice, but my friend got rice and assured me that it was even good.
Our server was friendly and attentive. The restaurant was clean. The floors there are standard fast-food restaurant floors with the ubiquitous brown tile, and usually when you see that places it’s almost always disgusting but they had it well taken care of it. The food was fast to arrive as well.
If you are out for Mexican, I’d definitely recommend El Meson.
Kid Friendly: Yes
Price: Very reasonable, my lunch was less than $8.
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(4.83 out of 5)
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
It used to be a Burger King till about 5 years ago, then it was a seafood place for a while before it became El Mason
This is the favorite Mexican of a good friend of mine. I’ve eaten several times with her, and it has been fabulous and friendly every time.
I have to admit that my experience here was not as good as yours. My husband and I ordered guacamole with our chips and salsa. Within 15 minutes the guacamole, which had been a less than brilliant green to begin with, had turned completely brown. Like poo. It did not look appealing. Now I know about oxidation, but I’ve never seen guacamole go so brown so quickly. When the server came by and asked if everything was ok, we complained about the guac. It also hadn’t tasted great when it first came out. Once it turned brown, neither of us wanted more. The server just laughed nervously when we explained the problem. He didn’t offer to take it off the bill. He didn’t apologize for an inferior item. He didn’t offer any explanation. At the cash register, we brought this up again with the girl ringing up the bill. She also just laughed nervously and then avoided eye contact! I thought the rest of our meal was good (with very generous portions), but this failure by two employees to acknowledge our complaint really turned me off going back to El Meson.
My husband and I ate here recently and enjoyed it. The food was tasty and the service friendly. We shared the double portion of mixed fajitas (chicken, steak and shrimp) and were very impressed with the flavor as well as the portion size. We ate heartily and still took home enough for another meal.