Come hungry to El Charro Cafe! https://www.elcharrocafe.com/ This is a family owned business for the last hundred years. Located in Tucson, Arizona, they have their act together when it comes to making good food.
But on the other hand, don’t come too hungry. You might have a long wait. There are no reservations for El Charro unless you are a party of eight. So when we got to the restaurant Michael dropped me off to reserve a table while he went to park. I was surprised to see quite a few people outside milling around , mingling or sitting at outside tables and benches. That, however, didn’t surprise me as much as when they informed me it would be a possible two hour wait. My third surprise came when Michael got there and I told him the news. Unflustered he told me, “OK. That’s fine.”
I am usually not a fan of waiting, either. But there was an all over laid back party atmosphere out front. People were milling around and in between, talking, laughing. I found some seats for both of us at one of the tables. Michael went through the yellow door with Toma! painted on the wall by the entrance. He was off to get a Margarita, as everyone else seemed to be doing. Toma! means Drink! If you haven’t guessed it, this was a bar next to and part of El Charro. Soon, we too were drinking margaritas and talking with people at the table next to us.
We were lucky. We were called in after about an hour and a half of waiting. I was afraid they would seat us in an isolated table in the back. But no, every section of the restaurant would have been a pleasure. Everyone, including our waitress, seemed upbeat and happy. And the food, I will add, was good! We both ordered the enchiladas. (See below).
So take your pick. Either come not too hungry because you might have to wait. Or come really hungry because the food is really good.
