Manuel's Mexican Restaurant & Cantina - Tempe

This is a favorite of mine, and hands down one of my top 5 authentic Mexican food spots in North America. (Granted my list isn't exactly the Forbes 100)

Anytime I'm in Arizona, I make time to get to a Manuel's, for what is always a fun, vibrant and delicious time. I always start off with a cheese crisp, (I order it well done to ensure it's extra crispy too!). I usually follow this up with either a cheese enchilada, seafood enchilada or my new favorite the green chili corn tamales. This is truly one of the most insanely epic Mexican dishes.

The service is always friendly. The food is always great, and the prices are incredibly reasonable. Add to this, an easy to get in and out atmosphere and parking situation, and it's easy to call this place a favorite spot.

Do yourself a favor the next time you're in Phx metro and want Mexican, find a Manuel's.

Been a while. I want to like this place but the food is gross. We basically spent $100 and ate nothing. Old gross guacamole. The tacos soggy crispy tacos with beef so salty it tasted like straight salt.

Enchiladas don't have enough sauce not even covered

sopapilla had a few sprinkles of sugar

Cooks making slop. Why do I keep giving this place another try?

Deserves to go on the boycott list

Yes, inflation has hit us all hard, but my visit to Manuel's yesterday with my friend for lunch sort of shocked us. Over the last few years my favorite lunch dish is the lunch special taco salad. The price of of the dish has crept up steadily and is nearly double what it was a few years ago. That was not unexpected, but I am pretty sure that customers are not making double the income from what they were making a few years ago.
What really shocked us was the "shrink-flation" change with the serving size, it is now about half of what it was about 6 months ago. So, double the price and half the serving size.
Now the positives include being seated immediately, terrific service, easy parking, and a traditional Mexican decor. Chips and salsa are still included in your meal.

Incredible food thank you so much! Adorable place with great staff and wonderful food!!

I arrived with my friends to Manuel's Mexican Restaurant after receiving a glowing recommendation from one of my dear friends who has spent time in Arizona. We had a big group and were expecting a wait the length of the Titanic feature film. However, they were able to accommodate our sizable party with delight. They PROMPTLY brought us some chips and salsa. The chips seemed as though they needed a splash of that sensational Arizona sun, as they appeared a tad pale in nature. However, the taste of the tortilla chips did not disappoint, especially paired with the guacamole that was filled with cheese and other smackerels of goodness. The servers checked in on us FREQUENTLY so we never had to wait to order more delicacies from their menu. Each bite of food felt as though I was transported to Mexico and back to Tempe. The margaritas also filled my soul with purpose. I am a margarita enthusiast and was thrilled by the tequila infusion in my veins each time that the straw journeyed its way to my mouth and I began to slurp upon the authentic flavors of Mexico. The staff and my friends all together made this experience at Manuel's one that I will hold dear to my heart until it stops beating. I do not currently reside in this area but tonight at Manuel's has convinced me that I must pack up my life and start over in this area to allow me to consume the nourishment that this establishment provided to my taste buds. I recommend this place to anyone who eats and drinks.

We drove by around 7pm on the way to run an errand and the parking lot was packed. Neither one of us have been to Manuel's before even though it seems to be a long standing family chain.
It was about 810pm when we went by again so we stopped in. The staff are all very friendly and our server Jonathan was excellent. Very friendly and answered any questions we had. He helped steer us towards the Thursday special of carnitas plate. We easily could have shared just that it was plenty of food. But I also ordered the mini chimi's thinking an appetizer of food would be doable. It was so much food and all tasting good :)

So we left with 2 boxes of leftovers to enjoy at home. We both had a cocktail and I had to order the fried ice cream since it's only $2.25 today. I haven't had this dessert in such a long time, very nostalgic and tasty.

This location has what I'd say is an outdated decor and it appears on the older side but it's clean and has good ambiance for what it is.

I'm glad we stopped in and I'm sure we will go back for the Thursday specials.

Me and my husband go here often burritos and street tacos are pretty good. They are always busy which means the food is good. The staff is very nice and will explain anything about the menu when you need it. The prices are pretty reasonable.

Amazing as always. The food is great. Service is the best with wonderful customer staff.
Best Tamales take the home!

The food was delicious. The service was fantastic. And the company was superb. Overall it was a Maravillosa experience!

Manuel's has good food and pleasant atmosphere. Last Christmas I bought 3 dozen tamales that were chicken and mild. One night at dinner at our house, I found gristle in a tamale! Yuck! That was one times too many. Returned them all back to Manuel's!!! Never again!