Planning a Birthday Dinner in Orlando? Make It a Mexican Feast
Pick the day, book a table in our main dining room, and order one shared Mexican feast in 3 courses: the Botana Sampler to start, the El Patron Fajita as the centerpiece and Churros to finish. That's what a Mexican birthday feast at our table means: a shared starter, a centerpiece main and a sweet finish, all ordered for the table so the guest of honor never has to study the menu.
We're a family-owned restaurant in Orlando's Lake Buena Vista area, just off Disney property, and we've been cooking a modern twist on traditional Mexican cuisine since October 2007. The whole plan comes down to 3 decisions: the day, the table and the dishes.
Key Takeaways
Here's the birthday plan in 5 facts you can act on today.
- A Mexican birthday feast at El Patron is 3 shared courses: the Botana Sampler, the El Patron Fajita and Churros, ordered for the whole table.
- The Botana Sampler holds 8 pieces across 4 starters: 2 chicken flautas, 2 beef mini chimichangas, 2 empanadas (cheese and chicken) and 2 tamales (rajas and chicken).
- The El Patron Fajita brings 4 proteins (grilled chicken, USDA choice skirt steak, shrimp and bacon) topped with Chihuahua cheese, plus 8 accompaniments.
- Our Churros are 6 mini churros filled with dulce de leche, dusted with cinnamon sugar and served with chocolate and dulce de leche for dipping.
- A birthday dinner at a regular table is booked online, while a private or semi-private party starts with an inquiry on our private events page.
The Short Version
For a birthday dinner in Orlando, book a table in our main dining room and order the Botana Sampler, the El Patron Fajita and Churros to share, because 3 shared courses keep the whole table eating together from the first bite to the last.
What Should You Order for a Mexican Birthday Dinner?
For a Mexican birthday dinner at El Patron, order 3 shared courses: the Botana Sampler, the El Patron Fajita and our Churros for dessert. Everyone eats from the same plates and the guest of honor tastes a bit of everything without making a single choice.
| Course | Dish | What's on the plate | Why it fits a birthday table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter to share | Botana Sampler | 8 pieces across 4 starters: 2 chicken flautas, 2 beef mini chimichangas, 1 cheese and 1 chicken empanada, 1 rajas and 1 chicken tamale | Four different starters let the table taste around while the birthday stories get going. |
| Centerpiece main | El Patron Fajita | 4 proteins (grilled chicken, USDA choice skirt steak, shrimp and bacon) topped with Chihuahua cheese, served with 8 accompaniments: peppers and onions, tortillas, Mexican rice, black beans, lettuce, pico de gallo, guacamole and Mexican cream | Everyone builds a tortilla their own way from one shared spread. |
| Sweet finish | Churros | 6 mini churros filled with dulce de leche, dusted with cinnamon sugar, with chocolate and dulce de leche to dip | Two dips in the middle of the table turn dessert into something the whole group passes around. |
Every course on this menu plan is built to share, which keeps the birthday at one table instead of scattered across separate plates.
Mexican birthdays have their own morning ritual, too. Wikipedia's entry on Las Mañanitas describes it as the traditional Mexican birthday song, written by composer Alfonso Esparza Oteo and usually sung early in the morning to wake the birthday person. By dinnertime, the celebration moves to the table, and a feast made for passing plates carries that same spirit of gathering around one person.
Which Day Is Best for a Birthday Dinner at El Patron?
Any day works for a birthday dinner at El Patron because we're open daily for lunch and dinner, so let the guest of honor choose. Our weekly formats add a few more ways to celebrate, and a weekday lunch, a taco Tuesday or a weekend brunch can each suit a different kind of birthday person.
| Option | Days | Why it suits a birthday |
|---|---|---|
| Birthday dinner in the main dining room | Open daily for lunch and dinner | Room for all 3 shared courses, from the Botana Sampler to the Churros. |
| Weekday lunch buffet | Monday to Friday | A midday celebration for a birthday that falls on a workday. |
| Unlimited Taco Tuesday | Every Tuesday | A natural pick when the guest of honor lives for tacos. |
| Weekend brunch | Saturday and Sunday | A slow weekend start for a birthday that deserves a lazy morning. |
If the birthday lands on a workday, lunch is the easy fit, but the full 3-course feast is at its best over dinner.
Check current hours on our homepage before you settle on a date. We also have live mariachi on select nights (our guide to live mariachi in Orlando covers the music), so plan the date around the guest of honor and treat any music as a bonus.
Should You Book a Dining Room Table or a Private Party?
Book a regular table in El Patron's main dining room for a birthday dinner, and use our private events page for a booked private party. The dining room keeps things simple: you pick the day, book online and order from the menu. A private or semi-private party is a different kind of plan, and we arrange it in-house through an inquiry.
| Question | Regular table in the main dining room | Private or semi-private party |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A birthday dinner at one of our regular tables | A party we host in-house, private or semi-private |
| How you arrange it | Book a table online | Send an inquiry through our private events page |
| What you eat | The 3-course feast or anything else on our menu | The catering options shown on our private events page |
If you're planning a dinner, book the table, and if you're planning an event, start with the inquiry.
Our private events page opens with an invitation to let us host your next event and welcomes guests to celebrate in our restaurant space. For a birthday dinner at a regular table, the planning that's left is the fun part: the food.
Start the Birthday Table With the Botana Sampler
The Botana Sampler is the strongest birthday starter at El Patron because it puts 4 different Mexican starters on one platter for the table. You get 8 pieces in all: 2 chicken flautas, 2 beef mini chimichangas, 1 cheese and 1 chicken empanada, plus 1 rajas and 1 chicken tamale.
You'll find the full description on our Botana Sampler page.
A starter with this much range does real work at a birthday table. Guests reach for different pieces, trade opinions on the tamales versus the flautas, and the conversation gets going before the main course arrives. If you're curious about the word itself, we've explained what a botana is in a separate article.
What Main Should the Whole Birthday Table Share?
Share the El Patron Fajita as the birthday centerpiece, since it brings grilled chicken, USDA choice skirt steak, shrimp and bacon to the table. Those 4 proteins come topped with Chihuahua cheese, and 8 accompaniments let everyone build their own tortilla: peppers and onions, tortillas, Mexican rice, black beans, lettuce, pico de gallo, guacamole and Mexican cream.
In our photo of the El Patron Fajita, the shrimp, chicken and steak sit in a black skillet with peppers, melted white cheese and bacon bits. Next to it are a small skillet of Mexican rice and black beans and a plate of guacamole, lettuce, pico de gallo and Mexican cream. Every component is listed on the El Patron Fajita page.
A build-your-own main suits a birthday because each guest makes the plate they want while everyone still eats from the same spread. One guest goes heavy on steak and guacamole, another stacks shrimp with pico de gallo, and nobody waits on a separate order. For the background on the dish family, read our explainer on what fajitas are.
End the Birthday on Churros Filled With Dulce de Leche
Our Churros make the sweetest birthday finish at El Patron: 6 mini churros filled with dulce de leche and dusted with cinnamon sugar. They come with chocolate and dulce de leche for dipping, so the last course stays as shared as the first two.
Filled churros have a clear Mexican connection. The Wikipedia entry on churros traces them to Spanish and Portuguese cuisine and notes that filled churros in Mexico usually carry dulce de leche or cajeta. Ours are mini deep fried strips of dough, and the full description sits on our Churros page.
In the photo, looped cinnamon-sugar churros rest on a white plate, one dipped into a cup of chocolate sauce beside a cup of dulce de leche. That's the moment a birthday dinner wraps up well: 6 churros, 2 dips, and the whole table reaching for the last one.
Plan the Day, Book the Table, Share the Feast
A birthday dinner at El Patron takes 3 steps: pick the day, book a table in our main dining room and order the feast. Start with the Botana Sampler, share the El Patron Fajita and finish with Churros and their 2 dips. The guest of honor gets every course, and nobody at the table has to order alone.
Once the date's set, book your birthday table and bring your appetite.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the questions people ask most while planning a birthday meal with us.
Is a Mexican restaurant a good pick for a birthday dinner?
Yes, because a Mexican meal is easy to share: starters to pass around, platters with tortillas and fillings, and desserts made for dipping. That style keeps the whole table eating together, which is the point of a birthday dinner. At El Patron, a shared starter, a centerpiece main and a sweet finish give the guest of honor a full meal without anyone ordering separately.
Can I celebrate a birthday at home with El Patron food?
Yes. You can get pickup or delivery through elpatronorlando.com/online-ordering when the guest of honor would rather celebrate on the couch. The 3-course birthday feast is planned around dining in, though, so for that plan we'd point you to a table in our main dining room.
Where is El Patron in Orlando?
We're at 12167 S Apopka Vineland Rd., Orlando, FL 32836, (407) 238-5300. That's Orlando's Lake Buena Vista area, just off Disney property and near Dr. Phillips. You can get directions on our contact page before you head over for the birthday dinner.
How long has El Patron been around?
We've been family-owned since October 2007. Our kitchen puts a modern twist on traditional Mexican cuisine, from artisan tacos to a weekday lunch buffet and a weekend brunch buffet, alongside shareable dishes like the Botana Sampler, the El Patron Fajita and our Churros.
Can we order something besides the 3-course feast?
Yes. The 3 courses are a suggestion for sharing, and the guest of honor can order anything from our full menu, including our artisan tacos. Browse our menu before the dinner so the birthday person can pick a few favorites ahead of time and the table knows what's coming.
References
- Las Mañanitas, Wikipedia.
- Churro, Wikipedia.
Disclaimer
Menus, dishes and ingredients can change without notice, so check the current menu on our site before you plan your visit. This guide is general food and culinary information, not allergy, dietary or medical advice.