T-REX said:

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BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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yea your the only one who doesn't love El con

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Like I said, neither are bad. I eat there. But it seems many that were raised in Waco think it's the best TexMex around and I've just never tasted anything that made me think that. Several of the taquerias in town are substantially better and more flavorful, imho.

BaylorGuy314 said:

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T-REX said:

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BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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yea your the only one who doesn't love El con

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Like I said, neither are bad. I eat there. But it seems many that were raised in Waco think it's the best TexMex around and I've just never tasted anything that made me think that. Several of the taquerias in town are substantially better and more flavorful, imho.

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Oh no by no means the best thing

BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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Yeah they're fine but nothing inspiring. Hell most old school TexMex tastes pretty similar (in a good way).

Brian Ethridge said:

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BaylorHistory said:

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BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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Yeah they're fine but nothing inspiring. Hell most old school TexMex tastes pretty similar (in a good way).

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Tex Mex is just good and greasy. That's a quintessential El Con experience.

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the shredded cheese and the shredded chair pads are amazing

Brian Ethridge said:

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T-REX said:

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Brian Ethridge said:

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BaylorHistory said:

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BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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Yeah they're fine but nothing inspiring. Hell most old school TexMex tastes pretty similar (in a good way).

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Tex Mex is just good and greasy. That's a quintessential El Con experience.

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the shredded cheese and the shredded chair pads are amazing

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And the salsa tastes like home.

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I'm not sure the last time I ate there. Been a couple years I'm sure. Need to make a stop by this fall for a Friday dinner when in town for games. Probably can't find a seat tho since all of LV goes there on game days lol

BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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Nope. I'm always amazed at the people who seem to love these two. Found both very bland. People will bash a chain and then say how great El Con is. I just shake my head. Dullest Mexican available

You don't stay in business for over 50 years by being bland. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I have just formed an opinion on some of you with your definition of "TevMex".

Edmond Bear said:

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CTbruin said:

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You don't stay in business for over 50 years by being bland. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I have just formed an opinion on some of you with your definition of "TevMex".

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Yeah you do. There is a huge Wal-Mart crowd out there that is satisfied with greasy and bland as long as it comes in large portions.

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I've enjoyed reading your posts over the years..This wasn't in your top 10..It's rumored that Abe Lincoln once said that The Lord must love the common people since he made so many of them...While that may be true, if you call someone "common" , watch how fast they'll get in your face! :-) Do you go to George's much? Cupp's? Don't want ti keep beating the drum, but sometimes it's more than just "haute cuisine" that makes a meal enjoyable..Just my dos centavos..

And I've been bashing the west coast elitist.

Bexar Pitts said:

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Edmond Bear said:

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CTbruin said:

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You don't stay in business for over 50 years by being bland. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I have just formed an opinion on some of you with your definition of "TevMex".

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Yeah you do. There is a huge Wal-Mart crowd out there that is satisfied with greasy and bland as long as it comes in large portions.

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I've enjoyed reading your posts over the years..This wasn't in your top 10..It's rumored that Abe Lincoln once said that The Lord must love the common people since he made so many of them...While that may be true, if you call someone "common" , watch how fast they'll get in your face! :-) Do you go to George's much? Cupp's? Don't want ti keep beating the drum, but sometimes it's more than just "haute cuisine" that makes a meal enjoyable..Just my dos centavos..

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All fair points. I am happy to take the constructive feedback.

anyone else remember el colorado or taco loco?

BaylorGuy314 said:

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Am I the only person in Waco that finds both El Con and Casa de Castillo bland and unappealing? Don't get me wrong - neither are bad. But I've been to both dozens (and dozens) of times over the years and just don't get the appeal.

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I think el con is bland. I have some friends that it is their Friday night "cheat" meal and one time a week to eat out place. Same thing every week and we would join them sometimes but it is not that good.

What was the Mexican restaurant that was on the circle that closed due to I35 expansion but then no construction happened that seemed to even touch the grounds where the restaurant was?

El Chico was at the circle

CTbruin said:

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El Chico was at the circle

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If you ever wanted to see a swath of people looking to unwind from 4-6pm, the combination of El Chico happy hour + UHS teachers from across the street made this the hottest spot in Waco for 120 minutes every weekday.

SteamedHams said:

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CTbruin said:

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El Chico was at the circle

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If you ever wanted to see a swath of people looking to unwind from 4-6pm, the combination of El Chico happy hour + UHS teachers from across the street made this the hottest spot in Waco for 120 minutes every weekday.

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Hahaha!!! You ain't lyin. You had a better chance avoiding a wreck parking your car on the I-35 shoulder than the El Chico parking lot at 7:00.

You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

IndyYes said:

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You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

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Still open

IndyYes said:

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You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

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It is still open.

The place I was referring to was indeed el Chico. It was next to Texas Roadhouse and when it closed the news article said it was for i35 expansion but no expansion ever happened at that spot.

pico's?

anyone. anyone.

good fajitas and drive thru beer.

- KKM

BITD.

I've lived here a year or so and best Mexican food I've found is Mexicano Grille on Hewitt Dr. Great margaritas too!

Stacked enchiladas

swart dra mislei jou said:

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That was real easy picking for a college senior looking for young newly independent teachers.

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of baby bearing age too just for you

Now I'm curious. I have not been on 35 in Waco much since 2019 when the construction started and have not paid attention to this when I have. Is the El Chico building still there?

Building is gone. Parking lot still intact.

Bubba's 33, across I35 from the old El Chico is the new hangout for the teacher crowd

cowboycwr said:

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IndyYes said:

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You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

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It is still open.

The place I was referring to was indeed el Chico. It was next to Texas Roadhouse and when it closed the news article said it was for i35 expansion but no expansion ever happened at that spot.

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Expansion on that part of 35(south of 12th to Hwy6/340) is supposed to begin about 5-6 years after current expansion is completed to give the area a break if they can get it funded which it currently isn't... Therefore land in that stretch that is needed was bought by the state before any construction began.

Weston Rogers said:

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cowboycwr said:

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IndyYes said:

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You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

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It is still open.

The place I was referring to was indeed el Chico. It was next to Texas Roadhouse and when it closed the news article said it was for i35 expansion but no expansion ever happened at that spot.

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Expansion on that part of 35(south of 12th to Hwy6/340) is supposed to begin about 5-6 years after current expansion is completed to give the area a break if they can get it funded which it currently isn't... Therefore land in that stretch that is needed was bought by the state before any construction began.

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That is the explanation I have heard for years. But it just makes no sense to me. If you look on google maps (or other site with satellite view) you can see where the building was and that the current Texas Roadhouse building and parking lot are closer to 35 than El Chico was. Also, no other land seems to have been bought and cleared and there isn't much extra land there by the other stuff along the 35 part of the circle (Rudy's Magnolia table, etc.) and same for the other side where new construction is STILL going up by the frontage road along Valley Mills.

Or short way of saying it... I don't understand how one specific spot is needed for expansion but all the land further north or south is not needed.

cowboycwr said:

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Weston Rogers said:

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cowboycwr said:

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IndyYes said:

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You could be referring to Trujillo's. Not sure if it is still in operation but it was on the Circle and was a good place for cheap margarita's in the late 80's. I know it was still open about 3 years ago.

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It is still open.

The place I was referring to was indeed el Chico. It was next to Texas Roadhouse and when it closed the news article said it was for i35 expansion but no expansion ever happened at that spot.

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Expansion on that part of 35(south of 12th to Hwy6/340) is supposed to begin about 5-6 years after current expansion is completed to give the area a break if they can get it funded which it currently isn't... Therefore land in that stretch that is needed was bought by the state before any construction began.

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That is the explanation I have heard for years. But it just makes no sense to me. If you look on google maps (or other site with satellite view) you can see where the building was and that the current Texas Roadhouse building and parking lot are closer to 35 than El Chico was. Also, no other land seems to have been bought and cleared and there isn't much extra land there by the other stuff along the 35 part of the circle (Rudy's Magnolia table, etc.) and same for the other side where new construction is STILL going up by the frontage road along Valley Mills.

Or short way of saying it... I don't understand how one specific spot is needed for expansion but all the land further north or south is not needed.

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There's a good possibility they make an exit there. And while Roadhouse may be "closer to 35" on the footprint (it is not), it is also further south than Chico by 1 block, so the angle of an exit ramp was taken into account.

Perhaps the plan is to expand the over pass over onto the land on which El Chico once sat. It does seem however they sold the property a little soon.

Update I just looked up their website. There are only 19 locations left 17 in the US and 2 of which are in Dubai interestingly. Only seven of them are in Texas. So perhaps the chain is going under and they just wanted to close the Waco one anyway. So if the TXDot wanted to buy the property, they could have at it.