Reviews El Patron Mexican Restaurant

We’ve been here four times, but our last visit was four years ago, so it was time to try it again, this time with a couple of friends.  We have always been impressed with the food, even though that other reviews site (you know, the four letter word that starts with a y) has quite a few very poor reviews.  The short review:  Three of the four meals were really good, but one was not up to par.  I had the Carne Asada/Chili Relleno combo (Carne Asada y Mas), my wife had a red snapper and shrimp dish (Filete El Patron), one of our friends had the Carne Asada and the other had a dish featuring dried beef and eggs (Machaca Con Huevos).  The first three meals were excellent, the last one had beef that was not quite authentic and had too much egg.  They of course offer the obligatory chips and salsa.  The chips were fine, but the salsa was too wimpy for my wife and me.  I knew from previous visits that they have a hotter salsa which I asked for and got right away.  It was perfect.

Here are some of the other dishes we have had.  

The tortilla soup: very good, although quite different in style from what one normally sees, with a base reminiscent of cream of tomato soup, a good amount of chicken and avocado, and of course tortillas and cheese.

The beef tamale, beef tostada, deluxe burrito and chicken enchilada:  all very good.

The enchiladas mole:  The mole sauce was one of the best my wife has had since we moved up here nine years ago.

The super nachos with beef:  excellent, but too much for two people.

The Chili Colorado:  large chunks of beef in a deep red sauce. The sauce was good, but the beef was just slightly dry.

A shrimp and mushroom dish in a quite spicy red sauce:  I forget the name of this dish but liked it a lot.

The menu here is really long, although I didn't notice too many items that I would consider unusual for a Pacific Northwest Mexican restaurant.  They have a full bar, and serve up great margaritas (We have our own recipe which they cheerfully followed.   I would tell you what it is but then I’d have to kill you).  The drinks sizes are quite generous.  Even the refried beans and rice are good.  This restaurant is well above average for a Mexican joint in Bellingham.  We’ve only had a few below average dishes, and even those were not terrible.  Maybe the bad reviews on that other site were written by people actually eating at the Taco Bell across the street…..

My hubby and I went across the border to get a few groceries and gas. We had looked up Mexican restaurants in the area we would be in and found this one! We decided to try it and are so glad we did! At first I was unsure about it as we were the only diners in there. Service was beyond excellent! Waiter greeted us in Spanish and English, - which was a nice change! After he brought our drinks we were served complimentary warm tortilla chips and homemade salsa while we decided what to get. My hubby ordered the shredded beef chimichanga and I had the pollo chipotle. Both dishes were amazing, and the amount of food for the price was outstanding! This is REAL authentic Mexican food! Not like Taco Bell or taco time! The food was made with love and was the best Mexican food we have ever had!! Even better than the food in Mexico which we figure is Americanized! This place is highly recommended if u are looking for real authentic Mexican food and great super friendly service! Place is clean, simple but clean and smells like tortillas! Yummy! This is now our go to place to eat if we are hungry!! :)

Good food, clean place. We had dinner here based on the single user review, and the fact that the restaurant had only recently opened a few months ago. Their menu is extensive, which can sometimes mean that they don't do anything very well in particular. But, we fortunately found that this wasn't the case. First we ordered a tortilla soup, which we found very tasty with a nice creamy base and grilled chicken, onions and tortilla pieces. We also ordered a platter that featured steak and mushrooms, enchiladas a la crema, and a Burrito Patron. All dishes were very good with clean fresh flavours. I find that some Mexican restaurants have food that tastes like it's been sitting around for a long time. It didn't taste that way in this place; refried beans were light tasting, and the rice was fluffy and not overseasoned or greasy. Being from Vancouver, we don't have much to compare to in the way of authentic Mexican cooking, but nevertheless, the food here is done well, reasonably priced, and flavourful.

Great little restaurant! I was there 20 minutes before they closed and the server was Antonio who was very nice and friendly! I ordered the Patron Special and it was very flavorful! Would recommend it!

Very good margaritas rocks (didnt try blended) and great happy hour prices. Service was excellent as well.