El Mercado

The food was good, just not slap my mama good. I had the Chicken Soup. The soup lacked flavor but was very easy on my stomach so that was a plus. I recommend the chicken soup for anyone like me with Crohns or another stomach problem. Chips and salsa were very good. They did not have sweet tea, only unsweet. My boyfriend had the tacos and a margarita, he enjoyed both.

Stopped in here for dinner this evening. When I entered, the host noted I was walking with a cane and told me to sit wherever I'd be comfortable. I appreciate this as many times I get walked all over the restaurant to be sat at a table. In this case I did choose to sit in the main dining room. For 7:30 on a Friday evening, this place wasn't super busy, but active none the less. When the waitress came to my table I ordered the El Grandote margarita. I typically don't drink flavored margaritas, but I opted for the strawberry one. The drink was quite tasty. While deciding what to order for dinner, the waitress brought chips and salsa. I found the salsa to have an excellent, peppery taste to it. While some reviewers said it was too watery, I found it to be a decent consistency with an appropriate amount of liquid in it. If all I had was the margarita and the salsa it'd have been a good dinner. When it came time to order I was torn between the brisket enchiladas or the shrimp enchiladas. I asked the waitress for her recommendation, she quickly responded that i should go with the brisket enchiladas. Once my food arrived and I got a taste of the enchiladas I knew why she recommended them. The brisket was incredibly moist with a nice smokey flavor to it. I found the rice on the plate to be seasoned well and was light and fluffy. The refried beans were also seasoned well. I did mix some salsa into both to give them a bit of a bite. Overall my meal was excellent and hit the spot. The drink was tasty as well. Customer service was excellent from the host to the waitstaff. I will definitely be back to try more menu items! Hats off to the kitchen staff for some amazing brisket which I was told is made in house. The host did tell me they do carnitas as well so I'll be sure to try that next time.

My wife and I are US expats living in Yucatan, Mexico and visiting Austin for a few nights. Yucatan cuisine is different and we had been missing/craving US style Mexican / TexMex food so we decided to give El Mercado a try Even on a Tuesday evening the the restaurant was 1/2 full, we were seated right away and brought chips and salsa along with some tasty and potent Texas martinis (like a margarita but with a splash of orange and olive juice). My beef enchilada and crispy taco combo was pretty good and our waiter seemed to appear at all the right times when we needed more salsa, more drinks, and when it was time to ask for the check

The gravy on the enchiladas was fantastic, you really couldn't go wrong. (And I would know, between myself and every other member of our dining party we were able to try them all!) My personal favorite was the queso and Tex mex chili cheese sauce atop a beef enchilada, Yum! Service was swift, friendly, and attentive. Presentation was beautiful, food affordable, nearly perfect....I just wanted a fluffier, drier rice. If they find a way to make the rice as fantastic as everything else, this is a definite 5 star. We will be returning.