Pancho Villa Restaurant

04/01/09

Awesome!

by Wayzatajim

We arranged to have a celebration dinner at Poncho Villa for 30 people, at 9:00 PM on a Saturday night. The owner was prepared for us when we arrived, and we proceeded to have a fantastic night. Margaritas, chips and chipotle sauce (the BEST!) were brought promptly to the table. The dinner orders were out soon after, and were spot on.

The karaoke was a bit loud, but it added to the overall ambiance and fun!

As noted elsewhere, parking is tough, however, we were asked 3 separate times by the wait staff where we parked, just to make sure that we wouldn’t be towed.

• Pros: Great food, Great Atmosphere and Great prices
• Cons: Loud.. but expected

02/15/09

Never again

by minneapolite

We had the worst experience at Pancho Vs. We've been there several times, for 2-for-1 happy hour and decent mexican 'greasy spoon' food, and more often then not been satisfied, but the last time was terrible. The food was cold and soggy, it was bright and loud inside, and when we left, our car had been towed. We were in the gravel area at the back of the lot, and tried to tell that to the towing company and the servers in the restaurant, but they didn't care. Then we saw the security guard out in the parking lot watching people walk in to the restaurants on both sides, and on his cell phone, with the towing company I assume. He wouldn't even talk to us. What a scam. That $250 bill was the last we'll pay to Pancho Villa.

06/28/08

Great food and now featuring new improved interiors

by mintchutney

I have always liked this place and now I adore it even more. Pancho Villas recently upgraded their furniture as well as interior-the place is now bigger and a lot more inviting. And also the smell of old carpets/deodorizers is gone. Welcome to new Pancho Villas. The food has improved in quality.

Few recommendations I have for them: the mens restroom location needs to be changed, The door is right there in the main dining area-not pretty at all. Overall 4 stars for me.

• Pros: Quick seating, great food-value for money
• Cons: Restroom location

Editorial Review

by Contributor

Gigantic portions and a huge selection of tequila make this Eat Street restaurant is a great spot to party; don't miss the fab happy hour.

02/12/08

great mexican food

by fanya01

The service was decent but thats not why you would go to this place.

Fantastic authentic mexican is why. The portions are huge and the prices are low. This is a definate hole in the wall that I will be visiting again.

• Pros: Delicious food
• Cons: Waitresses speak broken english

11/28/07

Great food, great prices, great service

by bobberdobber

Pancho Villa is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Minneapolis and one of my favorites anywhere. The menu is huge, with something for everyone. They have an excellent seafood selection and many great family-style meals. Try a plate of oysters for starters, or one of their shrimp cocktails. Then get a whole tilapia, cooked to flaky perfection and served with warm tortillas. Or just try to avoid ordering the fajitas after an aromatic, sizzling platter has passed by your table. My personal favorites are the Camarones a la Veracruzana, the fish cooked in white wine, and the enchiladas with chipotle salsa (the mole is great too--best I've had outside of Mexico City--but the chipotle totally rocks). I haven't tried the desserts yet because I'm always too stuffed after eating my meal, but they look wonderful.

The bar is fully stocked, and includes a very impressive selection of tequila. I'm not usually a marguerita fan, but the margueritas here are perfect. Plus all the standard great, weird Mexican concoctions, including burning drinks that you're supposed to slurp through a straw before the straw (or your face) starts on fire.

This is not your standard Americanized Mexican restautrant. This is the real deal. The food here is authentic and the place is usually packed with Mexicans. I love the atmosphere here--very friendly and family-oriented. Soccer nights can get a little insane if Mexico is playing, and karaoke nights are always packed with soulful, out-of-tune singers dying to show off their lack of singing skills. It all just adds to the happy, wonderful, family vibe. Great jukebox. Happy hour drink specials all day, Monday through Friday. The prices are very reasonable and the only bad deal I've found on the menu is the plain burrito for $6.99 (just a plain old burrito with no sides--you can do way better here).

• Pros: The best Mexican food in Minneapolis
• Cons: If it gets any more popular I won't be able to get in

07/03/07

Great customer service

by calla100

There were five of us and we requested to sit outside on the "patio" (actually on the sidewalk in the space in front of the building). Even though there were only two-person tables set up, the waiters quickly catered to our needs and pushed some tables together - even kindly asking a man to move down a spot (my apologies to the kind man).

However, the food and margaritas did not meet my expecations. I thought the margaritas were a tidbit salty, and the food was somewhat dry (I had a combo plate with an enchilada, tostada, and taco). I suppose I would go back again and try something else.....it could have been an off day.

The prices were very reasonable, especially with the 2-4-1 margaritas. My bill totaled to $12 and change.

• Pros: Customer service
• Cons: Food and drinks not up to expectaions

05/30/07

Holy Cow.

by jhill4mpls

Yes, its that good. Casual, cheap drinks, and AMAZING food. They have a patio area to sit but inside is nice too. Best hole in the wall joint you will find in that neighborhood.

• Pros: Great service and yummy food.
• Cons: Hard to get a table

05/03/07

Awesome Tacos, Awesome 2-4-1's!

by nenechan

This place, for the last 4 years, has been my favorite Mexican restaurant. The food is delicious, some of my favorites being the the carnitas (roasted pork) and lengua (beef tongue) tacos. The carnitas is fantastic; slow cooked tender pieces of pork that's roasted until the fat in the meat crisps up, the taste and texture combination will make your lengua cry, it's so good! You can either get them the authentic way, with chopped cilantro and onions on two small thin soft stacked corn tortillas or you can get them durazo style, a more familiar hard corn shell with tomatoes lettuce and sour cream. I'm a big fan of the former, but I've never tried it durazo. Another favorite is the caldo de siete mares (soup of the seven seas) which is a rich seafood stew. Highly spiced (but not too hot) and hearty with chunks of potatoes carrots and lots of shrimp fish and crab pieces, it reminds of chigae, which is a spicy Korean stew, if you're familiar with that cuisine. I've often split the stew with friends (2-3 other people) and the waitresses will split it for you into separate bowls, and make sure you each get the same amount of shrimp and crab legs! That's great service!

Their happy hour is, I believe, all day long, with two for one drinks being their special. They have a huge tequila selection, so that you can try something that's not just Cuervo or Patron.

The restaurant itself is huge and is split up into two rooms. If you bring 6 friends on your birthday, you eat for free!

Most of the wait staff don't speak a ton of English, but they'll forgive us for not speaking Spanish as they are friendly and sweet, so don't forget to leave them a fat tip as you'll probably being going back to Pancho Villa again!

• Pros: Great food, attentive staff, 2-4-1's all day, inexpensive
• Cons: Cafeteria-like, T.V.'s on all the time, can be really loud, esp. karoke Th-Su nights

07/25/06

Cheap and Tasty

by kklive

VERY CASUAL & cheep décor (good place to wear the sweatpants). They do have great Mexican food and the drink specials are amazing!!! It was $4 for two margaritas and $2.75 for two beers!!! The staff was also very nice.

• Pros: Food, Drinks, Service
• Cons: Hole-in-the-wall