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Excellent place to eat and drink before a Dodger game! Good drinks and great atmosphere
Good food, service and excellent flaming margaritas, such a treat!
Yankee/Dodgers pregame. Made reservations that day and worked out great.
Solid 4 - somethings are higher and some lower but nothing was a 5, maybe 3 in service because just average but not bad. Biggest issue is drinks had no prices on the menu which seemed pretty sketchy.
High energy before a concert or Dodger Game. Great fun. Service was A+++
Food was awesome!!!!!!!! Very friendly staff. Good drinks. Walking distance to Dodgers stadium. Mariachi band totally jammed
It was wonderful
Delicious Mexican "standards" like amazing cheese enchiladas. The place is VERY loud....even at an early hour (we got there at 6pm) so that was a bit of a downside for us....the four of us at our table had to yell to one another to engage in conversation.
El Compadre was a wonderful place to eat. The food was delicious and the service was great. They were very nice to the 2-year-old we had with us also.
Always a good time! Been going here for many, many years!
Nice family environment food was good first time there and enjoyed it close to dodger stadium
The food was very good. The service was great considering it was very busy before the Dodger game. Our first time at El Compadre and we will go back.
I had a reservation and they sat me in the bar section . It felt as though they forgot about me and my group. Food took like 30-40 minutes. We were the only table there. We specially chose this place for the music and food because we were celebrating a birthday. We told the server and then just got a ice cream with a candle handed to us and he left. No a good experience
I would definitely refer El Compadre to my friends. The food is delicious and the menu has a very good variety of selections that are all popular and I'm sure just as delicious as the selections that we chose. I would however have to let them know how loud it was in the restaurant because some people are more sensitive than others about noise. It was extremely loud and we could not talk with each other at our table because we couldn't hear each other even though we were sitting next to one another. It's a small space so the Mariachis as good as they were sounded extremely loud because of the size of the room and on top of that you had people wanting to talk anyway so they were shouting over the mariachi music. In regards to the service, I'm not sure if our waiter was new or there were other issues going on because it was after 10 p.m. when we were seated so you would think that it was definitely not rush hour, but we ordered an appetizer that never came and every time we asked for another cocktail or a refill for the sodas we had to wait almost 10 minutes which in my opinion seems very excessive, especially if you don't have anything else at the table (like water) to drink. Our waiter was very nice but seemed a bit overwhelmed. When we asked for the check he brought it to us obviously without looking it over because the appetizer that he never brought was billed and we had to ask him to remove it from the check. We sat there waiting at least 15 minutes or more for him to come back with the corrected check and by this time we were more than ready to leave. I would go back again because the food was delicious but I would probably call first to find out if there's any down time when the Mariachis don't play and I would definitely ask to be seated as far away from the bar as possible.
Arrived at restaurant and manager became really rude as soon as I said we’d made a reservation. He said we were stupid to think a reservation would be honoured on Memorial Day and started hitting himself in the head shouting “give me a break!” I asked why no one had called/emailed to cancel the reservation and he rolled his eyes and said, “we don’t call people!” Totally bizarre.
Reservation made online was not honored. Ruined our whole afternoon.
Rude bartenders, lazy staff (everyone except the bussers), $9 bottle beers (seriously what?!), forgotten orders, an aloof waiter...worst dining experience I've had in a long time. Staff here seem more interested in talking with themselves than actually working. This place has gone way downhill. Decent food and the novelty of a flaming margarita aren't worth the ridiculously high prices and the incredibly rude and purposely slow bartenders. Will never go back. Far better value and enjoyment at the local taco truck.
Awful
Rude hosts and awful service!
Never going back
The hostess who seated us was very unprofessional and rude. We had a large group of 12 people and decided come here for food and drinks before the Dodgers game. Food was decent but will not be coming here again due the rude hostess. First she told they dont accept reservation. Only after telling her I had reserve a table online and showing her the email did she agree to seat us. Our group spent alot of money there and the hostess was very unprofessional, raising her voice and speaking to us with attitude. We wont be coming here again.
Slow service. Overly salty food. The waiter messed up one of our orders pretty badly.
Food and drinks were good. Went for the trio music but unfortunately we weren't seated in the main dining room where the stage is. Next time I know to ask for a table by the stage. Had the Flaming Margarita which was fun but just a regular margarita. Reasonable prices & good ambiance.
Made a 9pm reservation and arrived on time. The girl at the hostess stand would not even acknowledge me for a few minutes and then just said "someone will be right with you" but seemed very annoyed. Eventually someone else came over and invited us to sit at the bar while we wait for a table to be ready, despite the fact that we could see at least 3 open tables. She explained that her manager asked her to hold off on seating people because the servers were so backed up. I'm annoyed but I get it. So we order drinks and wait and get sat around 9:15. No one comes to take our order until about 9:30. At least once we do, the fast is quick and fairly tasty, but the server got one guests order wrong so he only got one of the tacos he wanted instead of both. Then it's quite a while until we can get our check. Once we do, we write down how much to charge each card on the receipt, put all cards in the book and point out the instructions. The cards and receipt comes back and they have charged each card the same amount, ignoring our instructions. Finally once they remedy this, we realize we have been here for almost 2 hours.
This place is on my short list of places to go and grab a bite and a drink before a Dodger game. You can just walk up the hill (long walk) and you're inside the stadium.
We arrived on time and they told us it would be 1-1/2 hour to two hour wait. When I asked him what the deal was and that we had a reservation he did not care one bit. He said we did not make the reservation with them and he did not have to honor the online reservation. I have eaten there many times before, but this was the first time I made a reservation. I will not go back there again.
Planning since February for this special occasion. Going to dodger stadium for a concert and El Compare was recommended by a friend as a good place close to the stadium. First were told no parking available by valet. After we told him we had a reservation and begged for a spot he gave us one. At check in were told it would be at least 45 minutes for a table. Decided to order a drink at the bar which took forever. Decided we didn't want to be late for the concert do were stuck eating nasty overpriced food at the stadium. Would give 0 stars if I could.
We made a reservation and were told when we arrived that we would have to wait another hour to be seated. The host was rude and tried to deny that I had a reservation until I showed him my confirmation email on my phone.
Really enjoyed my birthday dinner with friends at the restaurant, good was delicious and people really friendly and service was great.
Food is excellent, the service was horrible. Our reservation were for 7:45, we did not get seated until 8:20 our order was not taken until 8:50 food did not come to the table until 9:40. Drinks were only offered twice the waiter only showed up at our table three times the entire time. The hostess brought the bill and picked up the bill and they added a 20% tip which for a party of eight I normally don't mind but based on the lack of service they would have been lucky to get 10%.
I will have been to the restaurant a couple times and will not be back!
I use to love EL Compadre, the flaming margarita, delicious salsa, delicious food but these past couple visits have been horrible! They are constantly under staffed and the workers are extremely rude, we had to wait for long periods of time to get anything. They constantly messed up the orders and would forget about our table on several occasions. I'm done with this place.
The food was good, but we order Fajitas that did not come out on a fajita plate sizzling. They came out on a regular plate. When I asked why they didn't come out on a Fajita plate they replied, they didn't have any available because they had a big party. Ordered a shot of tequila which seemed to be watered down and it was very hot inside the restaurant. Didn't like sitting by the kitchen, they should have doors or even curtains there. It is also too dark and they shouldn't charge $5.00 for valet parking when you park your own car in the small parking lot.
My party of three arrived on-time. We were seated immediately. After 15 minutes I had to get the hostess to find our waiter to order drinks and food. We went before the dodger game and the restaurant was crowded, but they should plan for the crowd.
When I called to confirm my group of 20 people, Mario was extremely rude. When I arrived, the hostess must've asked me three times if I was sure all 20 guests were showing up. YES!!!! The spot they put us in was not big enough. Mind you I made these reservations two weeks prior. Our server was rude and wasn't too attentive to my party. Food was good. Drinks were great. I will not be making coming back here w a big party, though.
Great place to go before or after a dodger game. Within walking distance of the stadium. Love the ability to make a reservation so you are guaranteed a table.
I've been here plenty of times, great food, the flaming margaritas, authentic mariachi music...i love it. But my review is on this website to book a reservation. I had family in town & wanted to be sure we had a table right away (cuz i have had to wait 15-20 minutes before for a table). I received a confirmation email stating the restaurant had my reservation at 7p for 5 people. We get there at 6:55p & no reservation. The hostess seemed confused to the idea that i could make a reservation online. Luckily, they had a table to accommodate. Now writing this, I'm not sure who's "fault" it is, restaurant or website but it definitely did not work.
The food is very savory, the decor is unique, but the waitress was horrific. Would not crack a smile and was very rude. I have been coming here for years and if your looking for a good late night drink this is the place for you.
The restaurant staff is always warm and welcoming, and the overall ambience is full of vigor and fun. The food is excellent and plentiful.
I forget our server's name, maybe it was Carlos, but he was very good, and quick to bring our drinks and our food. Your parking lot attendant is most helpful as well. Parking in that area can be a problem, and it is good to have the lot.
Adriana got us moved when she could see that the noise was getting to us, and seated us in the quietest booth. Everything is wonderful, except that the level of the noise makes conversation difficult.
The Holiday spirit was reflected in the decorations, the music, and the evident cheer.
El Compadre is always a staple when we visit our friends in LA. We love this place. The food is really great and consistently so. Unlike really heavy Mexican food, it is light, served without piling everything together etc. The seafood or lobster enchiladas are great! As is the chili rellenos. The schtick of the flaming margaritas adds to the charm. You can get a "skinny" marg, too, without all the sweetness of the sweet and sour mix. You won't regret checking this out.
There is a group of friends who met once a month at Barragan's for many years. After their Echo Park location closed, we searched for a new "home". We liked El Compadre, but the front of the restaurant was too noisy for us. Then, we discovered the back room, which is much quieter, and six of us fit comfortably into a booth with a small table attached. The staff was most welcoming and patient with our various food questions and choices. We plan to meet there on the first Friday of the month. We were most happy with our new "home" and with the extremely pleasant and helpful staff.
Food is delicious, service amazing. Loud before the Dodger game. Only problem is parking.
Not a particularly thrilling experience. Our party of four arrived at 6:00pm at the time of our reservation, but were told we'd have at least a 20 minute wait due to previous parties having not left yet (we were seated around 6:25pm, cutting it close for the 8:00pm Paul McCartney concert we were heading to at Dodger Stadium). Service was slow and we had to prompt our waitress for pretty much everything. She also took our order without writing anything down and my cheese-free taco request was served with, well, cheese, and my friend's request for steak and shrimp fajitas arrived with only shrimp. Non gracias.