El Meson Mexican Restaurant

408 Sagamore Pkwy N, Lafayette - 47904
156 reviews
Mexican
(765) 449-0270

We were optimistic to give this place a try because of the ratings and photos. We were unbelievably frustrated and disappointed instead. I got there and began waiting in line, there were two groups ahead of us and a man waiting to pay his bill. I got there early to reserve a seat, and my boyfriend came later. The hostess sat the first group, and then went back to her stand and did nothing. Did not help the man get assistance with his bill and did not seat us or the man ahead of us. I waited to be seated, as that is what the sign says. Wait to be seated. She stayed at her stand, on her phone, not making eye contact with those waiting on her, but I chose not to speak up. Big mistake. Then a huge group walks in the doors, she jumps off her phone, asks how many are in the party, and instantly seats them...so I continue to wait. Maybe, somehow, she cannot see the people still waiting...So then another LARGE group comes in, much more than my party of two still waiting on service, and yet again they are instantly seated. Hostess looks around at the people still waiting, does not do anything. Someone then comes in for a pickup order, and by this time me and my boyfriend have been standing for over 30 minutes waiting. Maybe we should have left, but this is where we wanted to eat and we had already invested the time. Another group comes in, and by the way at this moment the man waiting to pay has still not been helped. My boyfriend comes in expecting to see me at a table, as it had already been a long period of time and was surprised to see I was still in line. So this family sees everyone waiting, and asks me about our wait time. I share that the service is awful and the hostess is not servicing customers. At this point I am very upset that I have been skipped over multiple times. I walk up to the stand, simply say party of two, and she grabs menus and seats us, but never spoke to us or apologized for our wait. She also never apologized for rudely skipping us and declining service. After all that, you would think the food must be worth the wait. It was not. The chips and salsa were cold, and the food was just OK. Clearly the waiters were overwhelmed but I can't complain about that because I have worked as hostess, waitress, etc and can understand being busy. What I cannot understand is very obviously ignoring certain customers at the front of the line and making them stand for long periods of time while immediately seating others who had just entered. I would have thought it was a mistake until we went to pay for our meals and she gave us dirty looks. I have never met the hostess before in my life, as I am not from the area, so I could not think of a single reason for her deliberate ill-manners and discourteousness that felt directed towards us. It should be noted that I have quite literally never left a bad review or called to complain, this is the first time I have ever felt disrespected and ignored in a restaurant.

My family and I always enjoy coming here. Great food and good atmosphere. Will continue to eat here.

This was an ok experience. Chips and salsa were fine, had 3 enchiladas, rice and beans and the beans were the star. Not a bad place. Friendly service.

I've only order to go and every time it has been great! The queso with chorizo is wonder and there is so much. I've noticed that I might have a slight addiction cause I always order here when my boyfriend isn't in town. I'll definitely have to actually sit down and eat here one day.

Salsa could of used more cilantro and a touch more heat for my taste. Fajita burrito so was very tasty and had a good amount of queso heated properly. Rice and beans were of the standard.

Good was really tasty and appeared freshly made. Inside temp was chilly and did not feel much warmth but at least food was hot

Very good Mexican food! Have eaten there about a dozen times and it's been fast and very satisfying.

Friendly staff! Great food! Large portions! My husband wasn't too sure about eating here because of how small it is but looks can be deceiving and in this case they were! We were both glad we ate here!! Like the old saying goes, Don't judge a book by its cover!! Highly recommend!

One of the better places in town for Mexican food. Don't question. Just try it!

For whatever reason I had low expectations for this place but it was better than I thought. The service is fast and the food is authentic. The portions are large and they bring you chips and salsa without asking for it. You won’t be disappointed of this place. I am glad I came here with my wife on our date. Also, the tacos are not the usual tiny street tacos, they are larger so you might want order 1-2 less than your normal quantity.