This Family-Owned Nevada Mexican Restaurant Has Been A Local Favorite For Decades
Tucked along South Virginia Street, Miguel’s has been serving Reno since 1959, quietly becoming part of the city’s rhythm.
It’s the kind of place where families celebrate birthdays, where friends catch up over plates of enchiladas, where the staff remembers your usual. Nothing here feels rushed. The food arrives steady and generous, rooted in recipes passed down for generations.
Whether you’re a longtime regular or a first-time visitor, something about Miguel’s makes it easy to settle in, and hard to forget.
1. Since 1959
Step inside Miguel’s and time slows a little. The walls have heard stories, the floor knows your footsteps, and the kitchen has been steady for over sixty years.
Opened in 1959 by Miguel Ribera, the restaurant began in a modest home just south of downtown Reno. Today, it still feels like walking into someone’s family gathering.
Plenty of places come and go, but Miguel’s remains. That kind of longevity doesn’t happen by accident, it happens because the food stays good, and the people keep coming back.
2. Family Recipes
The sauces here are remembered. Every dish carries a trace of the past, from slow-simmered beans to chile verde rich with memory.
Miguel’s has always taken pride in its recipes, passed down from the founder and still made from scratch. The flavors don’t feel trendy. They feel rooted.
Guests often say the food tastes like home, even if it’s not their own. It’s the kind of cooking that doesn’t need explaining, it just makes you feel like you’ve been welcomed in.
3. South Virginia Staple
You notice Miguel’s before you even see the sign. There’s something about its quiet presence on South Virginia that feels like it’s always been there.
I remember passing it for years before finally going in. When I did, it felt like I was the last to discover what everyone else already knew.
It’s not a flashy place, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s part of the neighborhood in that rare, comforting way that makes you feel like a local, even if you’re not.
4. Handmade Tortillas
They arrive warm and a little steamy, tucked in a soft cloth like they’re being protected from the world.
Miguel’s tortillas are made fresh, and it shows: chewy, a little toasty, the kind of detail you don’t realize you’ve missed until you taste it.
I caught myself pulling one apart just to eat it plain, no salsa, no filling. Just tortilla. That says everything. It’s a quiet kind of perfection, the kind that doesn’t raise its voice but leaves a mark anyway.
5. Sizzling Fajitas
You’ll hear them before you see them, cast-iron skillets arriving like miniature parades, steam curling up with the scent of grilled onions and peppers.
At Miguel’s, fajitas aren’t background noise. They demand attention. Steak, chicken, or shrimp sizzle their way across the dining room, leaving trails of envy in their wake.
There’s a small hush at each table when they land. It’s a meal that arrives mid-sentence and makes everyone forget what they were talking about.
6. Enchilada Classics
These aren’t modern reinventions. They’re old-school, saucy, and satisfying, the kind of enchiladas that show up smothered in red or green, bubbling just a little at the edges.
Miguel’s offers them in nearly every combo plate, with tender shredded beef, seasoned ground beef, or just cheese if that’s your comfort zone.
One table over, a woman told me, “I’ve ordered the same enchiladas since high school.” That stuck with me. Some foods earn your loyalty bite by bite.
7. House Margaritas
Frosted glass, salt rim, the soft clink of ice, Miguel’s margaritas are simple but generous. No frills, just balance.
You can get yours classic or flavored, mango, peach, strawberry, even lemon-lime if you’re a purist. They’re strong enough to matter but never too sharp.
I came in once after a long day and ordered a mango margarita. One sip in, I leaned back and laughed at nothing. It was just the kind of quiet reset I didn’t know I needed.
8. Big Combo Plates
Twenty-six combination plates, each one a full meal in itself. Enchiladas, tacos, chile rellenos, tamales, all stacked and sided.
Miguel’s doesn’t do dainty. You get rice, beans, maybe a little shredded lettuce for crunch. The kind of plate that makes you pause before diving in.
Locals love them because they don’t have to choose just one thing. It’s dinner and a little bit of tomorrow’s lunch, all on one very full platter.
9. Multigenerational Regulars
Some guests know which booth their parents always sat in. Others bring their grandkids now, pointing at the same menu they once learned to read.
Miguel’s has been woven into family tradition for decades. The staff recognizes faces, remembers names, sometimes asks how the wedding or baby shower went.
You can’t manufacture that kind of loyalty. It happens slowly, one birthday, one plate of enchiladas, one memory at a time.
10. Friendly Service
There’s a steadiness to the way you’re treated here. Not overbearing, not rehearsed, just kind, patient, and always present.
Chips appear without asking. Drinks stay filled. You never feel rushed.
I noticed a server lean in to quietly explain the difference between two salsas to an indecisive couple. No eye rolls, no hurry. Just someone making sure they got it right.
11. Old-School Atmosphere
Wrought iron decor, warm tones, framed art from another era—it doesn’t feel retro, it feels kept.
Miguel’s still carries the look and texture of the place it once was, without trying to dress it up.
It’s easy to feel grounded here. Time softens around you, like the restaurant remembers the version of you that walked in hungry.
12. Reno Dining Icon
Miguel’s isn’t one of Reno’s oldest Mexican restaurants by accident. It’s been featured in “oldest restaurant” lists, family restaurant roundups, and neighborhood guides.
But the real mark of legend is how often it’s mentioned without fanfare. “You’ve been to Miguel’s?” is asked like it’s assumed.
When I told a friend I’d gone for the first time, they just smiled and said, “Welcome.” That felt right.