El Cascabel

Food is tasty and portions aren’t small! Can easily get an entree and drink for under 15$ and the food is pretty high quality. Great atmosphere for the whole family. (Bonus: they have chips and salsa)

We thought this was a delightful experience. The restaurant is located in an expertly restored train depot. The service was friendly and efficient. The food was well-prepared and the menu had a very broad range of offerings.

So happy to have a restaurant retake this beautiful space. The atmosphere was lovely and I like the modern touches and Mexican additions that were made to the walls and decor, though I would say - do even more! If I didn't know, I'd have no idea it was a Mexican restaurant. The food was fine, though I had a pretty straightforward order - a shredded chicken taco, and two enchiladas, one ground beef and one shredded steak. The servers did make mistakes in the checks and some items but were apologetic and kind; I have no complaints. Being a new business, that's inevitable. I have very high hopes for El Cascabel and look forward to visiting again and updating this rating then.

Excellent experience. Food, ambience, and staff were all wonderful. We sampled a variety of foods from street tacos to enchiladas to huevos rancheros. They have a wonderful and diverse menu. Some interesting options you don't usually see in the Midwest. All was prepared and plated with care. Flavor was full and nice. Salsa was fresh and fragrant - very mild (it's Iowa after all). Ask for some of their other salsas and sauces. They offered to me without asking and I was so happy to touch up my tacos and chips with the variety of green salsa, chipotle, verde... Yum! I absolutely love the depot feel in this actually historic railroad depot. I'm not local, but can't wait to go back on the next visit to Grinnell.

Originally a rail road depot. Was previously a fine dining resident. Opened in early January 2024; Visited on 1/26/24 between 8-8:45pm. Good food & service, reasonably priced.