El Merendero is one of those places you should take visitors to get a feel for Mexican food—Tucson style. The décor is simple, the servers are friendly, portions are huge, and the menu is filled with an array of good, solid choices. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served seven days a week, and the food can hold its own against the other choices available on South 12th Avenue.
We did breakfast and lunch and stuck with traditional favorites (or at least our favorites). If we should return for dinner, one of the seafood choices would certainly be an option.
Chips come to the table with two sauces and a bowl of limes. One sauce is chunky and mild (although every now and then a bit of heat popped up). The other sauce had been blended smooth and was decidedly hotter and more piquant. There wasn’t a clear favorite.
The dining space is divided into two rooms: a small, square room in the back and a long, narrow space in the front. Booths line the windowed walls in the front room. The color scheme is tones of brown, and the circle patterns in the upholstery are repeated in the few pieces of art on the walls in the back room; nothing fancy, by any means, but certainly comfortable and clean. In its earliest incarnation El Merendero was an A&W drive-in, and if you use your imagination you can see the bones of earlier times. El Merendero means an open-air café, and I guess that’s what a drive-in is, in some ways.
We found the place to be nearly empty when we stopped in for breakfast on a rainy midmorning. Customers arrived in dribs and drabs, and as far as we could tell there was only one server.
As you’d expect, there’s a breakfast burro ($3.99) on the menu. It comes with beans and eggs, and additional ingredients range from potatoes and cheese (99 cents) to ham, chorizo, sausage and carne seca (50 cents each). We decided to go with huevos rancheros ($6.50) and scrambled eggs with carne seca ($6.50). Coffee ($1.99) and a large orange juice ($1.99) completed our order.
It took some time for the food to arrive, but we chalked that up to everything being prepped to order.
These were breakfasts for hungry people: creamy refried beans, hash brown potatoes, a tortilla with the scrambled eggs and hefty portions of both entrees.
The scrambled eggs were fluffy and cooked through without being dry. The beef added a nice texture and deep flavor. The beans were smooth and full of all those flavors that make refries so damn good; strips of the warm, flour tortilla were all they needed. The potatoes could’ve been crisper, but there was so much other food they were almost unnecessary.
The huevos rancheros—fried corn tortillas topped with well-cooked over-easy eggs and a tomato ranchero sauce rich with chiles—were most satisfying. All those textures and flavors came together well, especially with a dollop of the beans included.
Our lunch choices were the three-taco special ($3.99 on Mondays) and a chile relleno ($8.99). Beans and rice accompanied both plates.
The tacos—like everything else at El Merendero—were good sized and packed with tender, shredded beef, lots of lettuce and white farmer’s cheese. This was the very definition of a beef taco.
The chile relleno had some of the same ranchero sauce as the eggs, but here it took on a more substantial role. The chile was filled with hot, melted jack cheese. Its stem peeked out from the light, eggy batter (which meant a fresh chile rather than the canned ones that so many places use). Again, this was a fine example of what a dish is supposed to be. I’d order it again in a heartbeat.
El Merendero is in many ways the kind of restaurant I ate at when I came to Tucson many years ago. It’s small and homey, with well-prepared food and large portions. You really can’t go wrong.
This article appears in Feb 7-13, 2013.
Yawn…. what a boring food scene Tucson has. Its a joke.
Love, love, love El Merendero – especially the Saturday seafood soup special. Yum!
Bobbylou, please go to Scottsdale or some other place that wants you.
I’m gonna try El Merendero: I love places like this.
Baba Louie, I mean Bobbylou, where are you from?
I am from a lot of places. All of them with better food. I realize that you have to justify your job but come on.How many taco places can you review? I love a good taco but its all essentially the same menu and preparations.Is the orange cheese brighter here?
I think we do a pretty good mix of restaurants. Did you read last week’s review by Jacqui? Or her review of Epazote? Or mine of Amelia grey’s? Just asking. Not trying to get defensive but I don’t get the complaints. I think Tucson has great Mexican food, way better than places in California. We should highlight them.
For every Epazote there are 10 Betos types. I completely disagree about the Mexican food here.I am curious about El Cisne.
Where in Tucson does one get : Cabrito, Moles from Michoacan, Puebla, Guererro, Oaxaca etc? Chorizo Verde from Toluca, Cochinita Pibil, Poc Chuc, Alhambre, Tortas Ahogadas,Pipian, Mexico City style Alto Cocina and a million other things, Handmade to order corn tortillas or flour for that matter? Southern California has it all. Tucson has Sonoran food. The bastard child of Mexican American cuisine. No comparison.
http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=Oaxac…
http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=Oaxac… oops
Tucson does indeed have great Mexican food. That most of it’s Sonoran is a reflection of geography and history. I can remember getting a frosted mug of A&W root beer off the tray attached to our Ford Falcon at that 12th Ave. location back in the day.
Hand made corn tortillas…La Fresita on St Mary’s Road and Pico de Gallo on south sixth. Flour tortillas? St Mary’s tortilla factory and Anita Street Market, La Estrella bakery. moles? Either Poca Cosa. Pibil can be found there too. it’s out there folks.
Cafe Poca Cosa isnt authentic or any good for that matter. Anyway, its one place. You didnt mention where all of the other things could be found. Other than a couple of places that make tortillas.
Hersheys syrup with cumin isnt mole by the way.
I guess that you are not answering me due to your ridiculous assertion that California doesnt have Mexican food on a par with Tucson. Despite massive evidence to the contrary. You truly do yourself , and this publication, a disservice by A: Not knowing anything ( food writer?” about food and B : Trying to bullshit your way out of it due to your position at the “paper”. Frankly, its laughable.
“I think Tucson has great Mexican food, way better than places in California. We should highlight them.” R. Connelly.
No, I just stopped because it wasn’t worth my time. There’s nothing anyone could say to make you change your mind. You might want to try the Michoacan restaurant on Flowing Wells between Prince and Miracle Mile or Restaurant Sinaloa on West Prince, they have seafood cooked in many styles. There’s a new Mexican restaurant opening
Downtown that claims to have “authentic” Mexican food. Please try it when it opens and get back to us. I’m sure we’re all curious what you think.
Lol. Will do.
Bobby Lou, let me know if you go to either Sinaloa or Michoacan. They’re down home and I like one better than the other (considerably so.) but I’m curious to see how “authentic” you think they are.
Sinaloa is great. Where is this Michoacan restaurant?. Whats the name?
Does this restaurant make any of the dishes of Michoacan?http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/2430-th… : or is it a burrito place with a tenuous relationship to Michoacan?
and why do you like puttting authentic in quotes?
Rita, if you keep digging we will discuss “authentic” Chinese food. Panda Express isnt it.
I haven’t been to Michoacan (that’s its name) for a long time. I don’t think they have those items, but the prep on some items is different. It’s on Flowing Wells Road across from Walter Douglas School west of Prince on the west side of the street. It is still very much a taqueria style place.
Regarding the word authentic – I think it has lost all meaning. People throw it around these days like crazy. I feel the same way about bistro and tapas. Don’t get me started on organic. What about “authentic” Italian?
Rita – you’re wasting your energy. I get tired of types like Bobbylou. They are SO cool and sophisticated, bad mouth Tucson but somehow choose to live here. Please go back to California and with the attitude because we know it is so great…….. thats why people have come here by the thousands bringing the cesspool with them.
There is Italian American food and their is regional Italian food. Food that hasnt been co-opted by American tastes. Its a difficult thing to pull off in a small market like this. People slowly but surely demand more American ized versions of dishes until they become practically unrecognizable to purists or natives of that country.. Dont get me wrong. I love a good burrito/ Chimi etc with yellow cheese. Its great stuff when done right. Its just not the real thing. jwh, you seem quite small minded and petty.
BTW, I am not from California. I’m from New Jersey. Tucson has better Mexican food than Jersey.
My family went to El Merendero this weekend. It was delicious! The Saturday special seafood soup was fantastic, the cocido was good but not amazing, and the enchiladas, tacos, rice and beans were excellent. My wife and I have eaten a lot of combination plates and this was the best we have ever had. The cheese enchiladas stood out in particular. The enchilada sauce was perfect! The refried beans were revelatory. We will be going back. The prices are reasonable too: one beer, one horchata, one seafood soup, one cocido, and one combination plate cost us all of $30 (before taxes and tip). Thanks for the recommendation Rita!