Ramona's serves up affordable Mexican food

Ramona’s, a lively restaurant just off the 10 freeway in Beaumont, provides locals with a dependable place to eat flavorful Mexican food.

The inside of Ramona’s is decorated with colorful vases, pots, and wall coverings. There are two areas  in which to eat; the left side of the restaurant has a smaller area with just a few booths, while the main dining room is deceptively large. When we walked in and it was empty, it didn’t seem that big, but when we left during the lunch rush hour we realized just how many tables there are in there.

Each table is brought a bowl (or several bowls, for larger parties) of chips and a trio of salsas. I only tried the bright red salsa, which had more of the consistency of hot sauce. There were two dishes of the red salsa, and one that was chunkier, filled with green chiles and carrot.

After looking over the extensive menu, I settled on the taquito combo, which came with refried beans, rice, guacamole and a salad. Diners have the option of selecting either chicken or shredded beef taquitos; I asked if I could have one of each, and was told no. So, I decided on shredded beef. My dining companions chose a quesadilla and a chorizo and egg burrito, respectively. Most of the items on the menu are well below $10, including combination plates.

The salad came out first, and it was your average salad in a bag, consisting of iceberg lettuce and shreds of carrot. The blue cheese dressing that accompanied it was fine, but altogether it was rather unremarkable. The taquitos were another story. Smothered in fresh guacamole, the taquitos were large and rolled tightly, filled to the brim with shredded beef. They were not overly greasy, and the beef was not fatty. The refried beans were delicious; cooked to perfection, they were topped with shredded cheddar cheese and seemed to melt in your mouth. The rice wasn’t bad, but compared to the flavorful beans, was under seasoned. The guacamole seemed to be homemade, and was also tasty.

My friend loved the quesadilla she ordered, which was simple and just filled with cheese. It also came with a salad, the same type that I was served. The cheese was oozing out of the tortillas, and although it was obviously cheddar cheese, she asked our waitress if there was anything else mixed in with it to make it taste so good. She told us that nope, it’s straight cheddar.

The third member of our party got his burrito to go, but he has eaten it in the past, and said it was very tasty. He didn’t unwrap the burrito in front of us, but I could tell that it was large.

The service was swift and efficient. We stayed there a long time, and even after we had paid our bill the waitress kept returning to make sure we were doing fine and to see if we needed any refills on our drinks. It was nice to not feel rushed, and to have her still check in on us even after we were finished with our meals.

With its comfortable booths and pleasant environment, I would recommend Ramona’s when you’re in the mood for Mexican food and don’t want to spend too much money. If you’re feeling adventurous, go for the Nasty Burrito, which our waitress said was extremely popular; it involves a large tortilla filled with meat and more, topped with two fried eggs. 

249 W. 6th St., Beaumont. (951) 845-2509