One of the best things about the Disneyland Resort (undoubtedly) is the FOOD and it’s even better when the price is super affordable!

It’s no secret that if you’re looking to save a buck or two at the Disney Parks, quick service is the way to go. These restaurants sacrifice comfort and luxury dining for quick and cheap meals that are perfect if you’re on the go. Fortunately, Disneyland has a ton of very good quick service options, including an incredibly underrated one over at Frontierland in Disneyland Park!

We recently visited Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante in Disneyland to see if it still holds up as one of the best Disneyland restaurants and we have plenty of thoughts. Let’s dive in!

Atmosphere

Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante is found near Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland and is open for daily lunch and dinner service.

This Mexican restaurant features plenty of Spanish/Mexican influence with colorful painted tiles, fountains, adobe archways, and hanging plants. It also has an abundance of shade with both indoor and covered outdoor seating. It can get pretty busy but on most days you should be able to find seating.

The interior features a couple of quick-service counters where you can order meals and desserts.

Behind the ordering stations is a beverage station where you’ll find plenty of options.

All in all, Rancho del Zocalo is a quaint oasis in Disneyland that offers a respite from the hustle and bustle of Disneyland. The literal English translation of Rancho del Zocalo is “Ranch of the Square” and this restaurant definitely gives off town square vibes.Be there or be square! But how is the food? Let’s take a look!

Menu

As you would expect, this Mexican Restaurant serves — you guessed it — Mexican cuisine! Disney bills the food at Rancho del Zocalo as “Authentic Mexican”, and while we slightly disagree, it still has a ton of classic Mexican fare you can find all over the United States in addition to seasonal agua frescas. This restaurant also serves bean and cheese burritos and chicken tacos for kids.

The big thing here is the price. If you’re on a budget, this quick-service restaurant should be one of your go-to spots. The pricing is very fair for all the food you get with each order. But how does the food taste? We have plenty of thoughts!

Eats

For our review, we tried the Cheese Enchiladas with Red Sauces, Trio of Street Tacos, Cucumber-mint Agua Fresca, and Cinnamon Crisps.

We started out with the Cheese Enchiladas with Red Sauce and were immediately blown away. This meal comes with three cheese enchiladas with red sauce and served with Mexican rice and refried beans for $12.99.

The enchiladas were nice and moist with a bit of a kick from the sauce. The cheese was packed with flavor and our tortillas were the perfect level of thickness to hold it all together. We also found the enchiladas to be well-seasoned and a great recommendation for vegetarians.

The side of beans also had a surprising amount of seasoning, but the texture was thick and the aftertaste was kind of smoky. While we weren’t huge fans of the beans, the rice was more of a winner. It had some kick and was a nice complimentary piece to the enchiladas.

Overall, the price is more than fair and if you don’t mind spicy food, give this a try!

Up next is the Trio of Street Tacos for $13.99.  These are served with beef, chicken, and cauliflower alongside Mexican rice and refried beans.

Al tacos were double-layered, which was greatly appreciated. The cauliflower taco had a nice earthy flavor with a spicy aftertaste and the cilantro and onions provided a crispy tanginess to create an earthy and sweet blend.

The beef taco had way more flavor than we were expecting. Moist with some sweetness, the beefy flavor cuts through the salsa unlike with the cauliflower taco (which was a little too spicy), making the protein the star of the show. This was our favorite taco of the three.

Finally, the chicken taco was the simplest of the three. The cilantro mixed best with this taco and it wasn’t as spicy as the other two, but it still had a subtle kick. The chicken was also seasoned nicely and, while simple, got the job done.

A word of warning, generally the salsa on these tacos was pretty hot, even for us. So if you don’t like the heat, avoid this one in the Rancho del Zocalo kitchen. Otherwise, we thought the price was pretty fair and the food was solid. Not as good as local Southern California tacos or the enchiladas, but pretty good overall.

But how was the dessert? We tried the Cinnamon Crisps for $4.49 and WOW, these were definitely a highlight!

We aren’t joking when we say these had the perfect texture, fantastic crunch, a liberal amount of cinnamon, were sit-down restaurant quality, and were incredibly addicting. You get a ton of chips for the price and we would’ve easily gone back for more. We LOVED this and can’t recommend them enough!

Finally, we have to talk about our drink — the seasonal Cucumber-mint Agua Fresca! This drink is made with cucumber agua with a hint of mint for $6.99.

The mint in this drink was super light and it tasted mostly of cucumber, especially with the small bits in it. Still, the mint came through enough and blended well with the cucumber to create a very refreshing, cucumber-mint julep-like beverage that hit the spot on a hot day. If you don’t like cucumber, you probably won’t like this, but overall we think it was a very pleasant and aromatic drink!

So did Rancho del Zocalo meet our expectations in this most recent review?

Overall

Overall, the answer to that question is a resounding YES! Aside from the fact that the food is very tasty, the pricing of everything was beyond fair and those enchiladas were outstanding!

While we think the meals can get a bit spicy, if that doesn’t put you off, there are a lot of great flavors to enjoy here as well as snacks and drinks that are great if you’re looking to bring something with you on your journey through the park!

Nosh or Not?

Ride on down to Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante if…

• You’re on a budget. Rancho del Zocalo’s prices are fair and the portions are filling. It’s tough to find better deals anywhere at the Disneyland Resort. If you have a Magic Key Pass, those prices get even lower.
• You want a good meal without making reservations. Ample seating and its tucked-away nature make Rancho del Zocalo a not-so-hidden gem of Disneyland. It’s usually easy to get a meal and dine here, but there is also some seating nearby if you experience a rare occasion where seating is hard to find.
• You’re craving Mexican cuisine. Rancho del Zocalo may not be the best restaurant in Disneyland, but it goes toe-to-toe with the best quick-service options the park has to offer. We found the food here to be very tasty and it fits in with the land theming and Southern California vibes quite well!

Hitch your horse to another restaurant if…

• You can’t handle any spice. The menu’s offerings are pretty spicy by Disney standards and if you or anyone in your party can’t handle even the smallest amount of heat, you may want to pass on dining here. You can get the meals without sauce and salsa and you’ll find the Golden Horseshoe — which serves affordable standard American fare — just a few steps, but if you want to ere on the side of caution, it might be wise to give this place a pass.
• You want an unforgettable experience. Rancho del Zocalo is great, but it doesn’t hold up to the quality and theming of a place like the Blue Bayou in New Orleans Square. Also, while the theming is nice, seating is mostly outside and not specifically Disney-themed. If you want each Disneyland dining experience to be memorable and are willing to spend a bit more, Rancho del Zocalo probably shouldn’t be at the top of your list.
• You have no appetite. Despite being a quick-service restaurant, Rancho del Zocalo doesn’t skimp on portion size. While you probably won’t be served enough to share plates, you’ll probably still feel full and satisfied at the end of the meal. Food carts and other quick-service locations may give you the smaller amount of food you’re looking for, although the pricing might not be as nice, ironically.

Thanks for checking out our review of Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante in Disneyland and be sure to stay tuned here at DFB for all the latest Disneyland news, tips, and food reviews!

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Have you eaten at Rancho del Zocalo before? Share your review in the comments below!

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