When you walk into a Mexican restaurant, you should look for three things right off the bat: 1) A kitchen jam-packed with Latinos, 2) A dining room with at least some Latinos and 3) Homemade, fresh chips and salsa on every table.
Without meeting these basic requirements, it cannot even be considered to be a Mexican restaurant, much like a burger must consist of at least a beef patty located between two halves of one bun. This is the absolute minimum, mind you.
It is after checking these boxes that I sat down at El Rancho, Lincoln’s newest Mexican eatery, located at 27th and O streets.
Unlike most restaurants serving fare from south of the border, the kitchen is connected to the dining room, open for all to see. This shows that the proprietors aren’t scared of letting the customers see what goes on in “the back,” right away breaking the prejudice some might have towards ethnic places like this.
The dining room was packed late on a Thursday night, also a great sign for someplace located at the best intersection with the worst street access in town.
The friendly, bilingual staff was zigzagging around, being truly attentive and genuine with the visitors.
With that, all of the exterior stuff was in place, but only when the food arrived did I see that I was dealing with a prime time player of a restaurant.
There are more than 70 items on El Rancho’s menu, placing it in an elite category for Lincoln. The tacos, enchiladas, burritos and tostadas are hidden on half a page somewhere in the middle so you might even miss them.
More likely to stand out are the more expensive (naturally) house specialties, like the Parrillada de la Sierra, a chicken breast grilled to perfection served with chimichurri.
Not to be confused with the spooned-on Argentine churrasco-accompanying relish, this is the way Mexicans from the Yucatan refer to grilled chilies, onions and peppers. In other words, it is a fajita of the best quality.
The Carnitas Michoacan are amazingly tender pieces of pork served in a flavorful dark sauce with a side of Frijoles Charros, beans with sausage and bacon mixed in, again proving the old adage that everything is better with bacon.
Unfortunately, I was too full to sample the Ensalada Tibia de Pollo, but at the table next to mine it was consumed quite quickly. The dish is a Jenga-like, precariously perched tower of avocado and chicken with an oregano-based dressing.
The restaurant even offers a few dishes unique to El Salvador, with el Rincon Salvadoreno, Peruvian ceviche and a lengthy breakfast menu.
I am grateful to finally see another Mexican place with horchata, a sweet and creamy non-alcoholic drink that can quench a thirst on a late summer afternoon better than any beer could ever hope to.
Not only is the standard salsa made fresh daily, El Rancho also has two non white-guy varieties behind the counter, available for spicy delight upon request.
Chances are, if you stop by El Rancho at Nebraska-normal mealtime (all too early for my tastes), the corn tortillas will have come right out of the oven. I can assure you that the guacamole is made with fresh avocados (certainly the only time in my dining companion’s life in which her allergy to fresh fruits and vegetables has come in handy).
Obviously I was unable to even make a dent in the broad El Rancho menu, but one type of cuisine remained to be eaten.
Both of the restaurant’s brother/owners, when asked on separate occasions, responded that the highlight of the El Rancho experience is the seafood.
Why, pray tell? Well, in trying to convince me, they revealed a bit of deception on their part.
You see, the sign out front proclaims “Authentic Mexican Restaurant,” but the seafood is the specialty because Oscar the proprietor and his brother (as well as the entire staff) hail from Guatemala, famous for its fruta del mar. So the purveyors of fine comida mexicana are not from Oaxaca or Baja, but rather from the isthmus farther south (this may explain the excellent Central American guayabera shirts sported by the staff).
While not pleased with this little white lie, the horrible street access and parking, nor the price (some seafood dishes are around $20), I can safely recommend El Rancho be put on the waiting list for entrance into Lincoln’s Mexican upper echelon (currently the triumvirate of El Charro, El Chaparro and La Mexicana).
However, those three are much more cutre: dingy, ghetto, hole-in-the-wall-ish and of the working people (my ideal environment).
El Rancho has more of a stale, no frills, yet wannabe-pretentious environment. Oscar even tells me: “Este no es un lugar donde se encuentra comida de la calle:” (This isn’t a place where you find street food.) He wants El Rancho to be singled out from the others in town. I think it should be, as well.
El Rancho
Mexican wannabe-fine dining
Meals $6–$20
Location: 27th & O streets, northeast corner
The gist: Huge menu of fresh everything, plus horchata.
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