El Caporal - Sunriver

My wife and I were craving cheesy, crispy food and she wanted a pina colada. Mexican it is! El Caporal is a restaurant in the village in Sunriver, OR. Inside is average size, clean and mildly decorated with about 15 tables. We went on a Wednesday for an early dinner, about 5 pm, and there were 2 other tables occupied. Bathrooms were ok, stocked and neither messy nor great smelling, just ok. Our server, Cesar, was awesome from beginning until end. Chips and salsa were served along with ice water. The salsa is delicious a bit spicy and smooth, not chunky. My wife got her pina colada $9) and we had the cheese crispy appetizer. It was a large flour tortilla fried flat, then topped with cheddar cheese and baked in the oven $8.50), nothing special. Her entree was one of the house specials, camarones al mojo de ajo $24). Very tasty. I am a huge fan of taco salads in the shell, so I ordered the shrimp salad $19.95), excited to see some new variations of fillings, thinking it would come in the shell, but to my dissatisfaction it didn't. Even though on the menu it says the salads come in a shell. Nor did I get a choice of dressing, and the ranchero cheese was missing. The salads was very bland, and the shrimp seemed boiled instead of grilled or sautéed. I'm so glad that I added on a side beef tamale, which was deliciously soft and hot! Oh well, I know to ask next time. The menu is quite large, and covers all the choices you usually have at a Mexican restaurant, plus some. Perhaps it was the cook that day, or that's just the way things are served, but some sour cream or salsa sides would have gone a long way. Maybe not in Sunriver, but in my opinion there are much better Mexican restaurant choices out there, such as Hola. Service: Dine in Meal type: Dinner Price per person: $20–30 Food: 3 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 3

As a top 30% google reviewer I have to say this is probably the best food I have had in the area. I have had Mexican food by the river or in the town over, there are two places side by side. I ordered a asada burrito and some fried jalapenos. The peppers were cooked perfectly and came in a dish with lime juice. The meat I could nearly slice with a fork across the grain. Their bathroom and floors were not the cleanest it the world but I maintain a 5 star review due to the amazing food and great service. Highly recommend this place. Service: Dine in Meal type: Lunch Price per person: $30–50 Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 5 Recommended dishes: Carne Asada Burrito

Delicious food and very nice wait staff! The food portions were generous and fresh. Everything tasted great and it was a well rounded experience. There was also an impressive variety of margaritas on the menu. The menu was very large and plentiful. Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 3

Service: Dine in Meal type: Lunch Price per person: $10–20 Food: 4 Service: 4 Atmosphere: 4

Always consistently good Service: Dine in Meal type: Lunch Price per person: $10–20 Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 5