One of our staples
DESCRIPTION: There are two Mexican restaurants in town that we frequent: Senor Tequila's and Casa Manana. When we don't feel like driving to Senor's, we'll go to the Casa. A meal here starts off well enough. Once you get past the complimentary flour tortilla chips -- which always feel a bit too thick and wooden -- the good here is much better than the average Mexican place. The wonderfully flavorful tortilla soup is spicy but not in a sear-your-mouth sort of way. And the margaritas always hit the spot, even if they're sometimes over-generous with the tequila. We're quite fond of both the Casa Manana Burrito and the Chile Verde dishes here, and any number of the combination plates serve well also. We haven't strayed much from our staples, but we've never been disappointed either. Bottom line is it fills ya up good. The servers are highly attentive. You will never want for drinks, chips, salsa, or agua, and you usually won't have to wait long for your order either. This is true whether you dine inside or out back on the deck. Your only major issues might be finding a parking space in that tiny, crowded lot, and dealing with a blind curve exiting the lot onto busy Cantrell street. Other than that it's certainly worth a stop if you're in the neighborhood.
DATE: 2004-07-13
FOODRATING : 8
SERVICERATING : 10
AMBIANCERATING : 6
OVERALLRATING : 6
RECOMMENDED DISHES : Casa Manana Burrito; Chile Verde

The Best in Mexican
DESCRIPTION: El Porton has been my family's favorite Mexican restaurant since it first opened! They have the best white cheese dip ever! And for those that like to have a cocktail with their dinner, try the frozen Margaritta...It will knock your socks off! The portions are perfect. You will not leave here disappointed!
DATE: 2004-01-06
FOODRATING : 10
SERVICERATING : 8
AMBIANCERATING : 8
OVERALLRATING : 10
RECOMMENDED DISHES : There is not one that I would NOT recommend

I guess watching the soccer game is more important than serving customers
DESCRIPTION: I am of Hispanic origin and on the night of my graduation I thought I'd give El Porton a try. It seemed close to authentic, food was great, they give you large helpings and everything. But the table we sat at was by the bar and close to the kitchen. There wasn't many people in the restaurant so the waiters sat by the bar watching a soccer game. I found it rude that the waiters take advantage of some of their customers not being able to speak Spanish, they were cussing up a storm. With children present, might I add. The service was awful, our drinks stayed empty most of the time, not even toritas were given to us when we got our fajita plates. It was awful, the waiters just sat around cussing, watching the soccer game and worst of all..ignoring us. One of my party members, desperate for service even asked a waiter at the bar. He acted as if he didn't hear her. At the end of the meal my father was angry and started to complain. We ended up getting a discount, only paying somewhere around $47 dollars for 5 of us. Even though the food was good, we can go somewhere else for good food and get great service. But that restaurant seems that its gotten too big to even realize what made them what they are today, their customers.
DATE: 2004-05-31
FOODRATING : 8
SERVICERATING : 2
AMBIANCERATING : 6
OVERALLRATING : 4