We’re El Patron Authentic Mexican Cuisine, and we’re a premier Mexican restaurant in Des Moines, IA. We specialize in authentic Mexican cuisine. We serve traditional Mexican dishes including fajitas, tacos, burritos, mariscos, and more. Our services include dine-in, takeout, patio seating, a full-service bar, and a party room available for events. We’re dedicated to providing an enjoyable dining experience for our guests, and we’re proud to offer a variety of dishes that are sure to please everyone’s taste buds. We’re looking forward to partnering with Urbandale, Johnston, and Ankeny consumers to continue to offer a premier Mexican restaurant experience.
Based on 367 reviews, the restaurant has received a rating of 4.5 stars. Price $
✔️ Dine-in ✔️ Takeout ✔️ Delivery
Address:
4351 Merle Hay Rd, Des Moines, IA 50310
Phone: (515) 254-9453
Website: https://elpatroniowa.com/
Social Profile: 
Hours
| Sunday |
11 AM–9 PM |
| Monday
(Labor Day)
|
11 AM–9 PM
Holiday hours
|
| Tuesday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Wednesday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Thursday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Friday |
11 AM–10 PM |
| Saturday |
11 AM–10 PM |
Menu
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Menu Photos
Photo Gallery
Reviews
Adam C.
Visited El Patron Mexican restaurant recently just after they moved to their Merle Hay Road location. The food is just as good as ever, and margaritas are great. The staff is excellent. Everyone was friendly and the service was prompt. It’s nice that they moved to a larger space. It was fairly busy, but did not feel crowded. We’ll be back again soon!
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Vane Ayala
Best food in town
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Tory Breise
Everyone was so polite, and it felt very authentic. I had the steak street tacos served with rice and beans. It was so good I cleaned my plate!
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Dave
This might be my favorite Birria tacos so far. They’re served with a generous amount of consommé (au-jus of sorts) that still has small bits of beef in it. It’s also a nice touch that they provide a soup spoon so it can be enjoyed by itself. They also include a small cup of a very oily and spicy salsa. Not sure if there is a specific name for it, but it was absolutely delicious! My only complaint is that about half of our tacos were a bit light on ingredients. So a touch more consistency would be nice. Otherwise the flavors and service were excellent! Will definitely try again!
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Jose Casarin
Great Mexican restaurant, my brother in law got the carne asada, great portion, he loved it, my nephew got the Chilaquiles, they were hot but delicious, finished the entire plate, I got the Lengua in green salsa, recommended, little to much lime needs to bring the acidity down a notch, the Lengua flavor gets lost a bit, but, definitely a recommend. Gracias por su servicio. The restaurant decorations, are on point, even the decorations on the tables and the chairs, brings the entire experience together.
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Sarah W
Great Mexican food spot! They have the most amazing crafted margaritas. This one is blue coconut! The only complaint is the price of queso — it’s 5$ for a small bowl of it and the bowl is like 1/2 a cup worth of queso… Other than that, loveeeee!
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Kelli Brooker
This was our first time here and definitely will not be last! This place has excellent food and service. I absolutely loved their red salsa.
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Paige Powell
The two times my partner and I have visited, we have had very absent service. The waitresses stayed away for long periods of time both times we’ve visited.
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Ryan Dueker
Great location and great food! I had the chicken fajita, would recommend. Friendly staff
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Chelsea Funk
I don’t understand the good reviews for this restaurant. My margarita was disgustingly sweet, chips tasted store bought, salsa had very little flavor, and our food was edible but bland. Service was slow although friendly enough. Best thing I can say is beer was relatively cheap. Otherwise, literally nothing impressive. Won’t be back, plenty of other Mexican options to try out around the metro.
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