Mexican Restaurants in Clarksville

June 14, 2026

Clarksville’s Mexican dining scene is shaped by family-owned restaurants spread along Fort Campbell Boulevard and the Sango area, serving a fast-growing community near the Kentucky line. Clarksville is Tennessee’s fifth-largest city, with a population of roughly 176,000 as of 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau), and its restaurants range from full-service sit-down operations with bars to neighborhood kitchens cooking family recipes passed down through generations. For diners, the meaningful distinction is usually between a restaurant built around tableside service and a more casual taqueria-style kitchen, and knowing a restaurant’s format and specialties helps set expectations before going.

Most diners weigh cuisine and specialties, the choice between dine-in and takeout, and how food safety is handled. In Tennessee, every restaurant must hold a food-service establishment permit and pass routine inspections. In Montgomery County those inspections are conducted by the Tennessee Department of Health, which oversees food-service inspections in counties without a separate metropolitan health department. Inspection scores are public record. Whether a kitchen is searing fajitas or simmering birria, it operates under the same permit-and-inspection framework, which gives diners a consistent baseline for cleanliness and safe food handling across restaurants of every size and price point.

Taxes and alcohol licensing also shape the experience. Prepared restaurant food in Clarksville is taxed at the combined sales-tax rate of 9.50% in Montgomery County, which is higher than the reduced rate Tennessee applies to most grocery food, so a restaurant check will reflect that rate on food and non-alcoholic drinks. A restaurant that serves margaritas, beer, or a full bar needs the appropriate license or permit from the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC), and liquor-by-the-drink sales carry an additional state tax. The contrast is visible between a kitchen pouring only horchata and aguas frescas and a full-service restaurant with a cantina, and that distinction often tracks with how the menu and service are organized.

Authenticity in Clarksville frequently comes down to regional cooking and from-scratch preparation rather than marketing language. Several of the city’s Mexican restaurants are family owned and operated, with recipes carried from Mexico and prepared fresh daily, and some have served the area for years or even decades. The Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs administers the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (TCA 47-18-104), which covers deceptive business practices and is the avenue for complaints about advertising or billing, while food-safety concerns go to the Tennessee Department of Health. The three restaurants below are established, locally owned Clarksville operations whose details were verified against their own published information and other sources.

Top Mexican Restaurants Providers in Clarksville

1. Manzanillo Mexican Restaurant

Address: 3373 Highway 41-A South, Clarksville, TN 37043
Phone: (931) 368-1234
Website: https://www.manzanillomexicanrestaurant.com
Services: dine-in, takeout, fajitas, street tacos, homemade salsas, white cheese dip, enchiladas
Description: Manzanillo Mexican Restaurant is a family-owned restaurant in the Sango Village area of Clarksville that has served authentic Mexican cuisine since 2006. The kitchen is known for generous portions, fresh ingredients, and a customer-favorite white cheese dip, alongside sizzling fajitas, street tacos, and homemade salsas. The menu also features El Paso enchiladas, quesadillas, burritos, chimichangas, shrimp tacos, and churros. The restaurant operates from a single Highway 41-A South location and offers both dine-in and takeout, keeping evening and weekend hours while closing on Tuesdays. Its long run in the Sango area and emphasis on fresh, made-in-house staples place it among Clarksville’s established neighborhood Mexican restaurants.

2. El Toro De Don Jose Mexican Restaurant

Address: 1200 Fort Campbell Blvd, Clarksville, TN 37042
Phone: (931) 553-4272
Website: https://eltoroclarksville.com
Services: dine-in, takeout, online ordering, catering, private events, birria tacos, molcajete, fajita bowls
Description: El Toro De Don Jose Mexican Restaurant is an authentic Mexican restaurant on Fort Campbell Boulevard with more than thirty years of operating history and family recipes passed down through generations. The menu blends traditional plates with contemporary dishes, including beef birria tacos, a molcajete bowl, chile relleno, chicken and steak fajita bowls, enchiladas, quesadillas, and burritos, along with house specialties such as eggrolls al pastor, a shrimp salad, and a chimichanga cheesecake. The restaurant runs a bar with margaritas and offers dine-in, takeout and online ordering, catering, and private events. Its mix of long-standing family cooking and newer menu items places it among the more full-featured Mexican restaurants in Clarksville.

3. Los Hermanos Mexican Grill

Address: 1302 Fort Campbell Blvd, Clarksville, TN 37042
Phone: (931) 218-2265
Website: https://www.facebook.com/LosHermanosGrill/
Services: dine-in, drive-thru, takeout, birria tacos, super burritos, fresh seafood, drive-thru margaritas
Description: Los Hermanos Mexican Grill is a family-owned restaurant on Fort Campbell Boulevard run by the Correa family, originally from Mexico. The name means “the brothers” in Spanish, reflecting the five Correa brothers, Adan, Juan, Ruben, Adrian, and Luis, with the youngest daughter, Patricia Correa, serving as general manager of the Clarksville location. The family relocated from Nashville to the Dickson area before opening the restaurant together, and the kitchen prepares authentic Mexican food fresh daily, with heaping portions and warm hospitality. Signature dishes include birria tacos, super burritos, fresh fish dishes, and the mariscada chica, and the restaurant added a drive-thru, including drive-thru margaritas, during the 2020 period, giving it both dine-in and quick-service options.

Frequently Asked Questions About Mexican Restaurants in Clarksville

Q: Do Mexican restaurants in Clarksville need a permit to operate?

Yes. Every restaurant in Tennessee must hold a food-service establishment permit and pass routine inspections. In Montgomery County, those inspections are conducted by the Tennessee Department of Health, which handles food-service inspections in counties without a separate metropolitan health department. Inspection scores are public record, so diners can check a restaurant’s most recent score through the state.

Q: How much is sales tax on a restaurant meal in Clarksville?

Prepared restaurant food in Clarksville is taxed at the combined sales-tax rate of 9.50% in Montgomery County. That is higher than the reduced rate Tennessee applies to most grocery food. Restaurants that sell liquor by the drink also collect an additional state alcohol tax, which appears on checks that include cocktails, beer, or wine.

Q: What is the difference between a taqueria and a full-service Mexican restaurant?

A taqueria is generally a counter-service operation focused on tacos, tortas, and house salsas, often serving aguas frescas rather than offering a bar, while a full-service restaurant provides tableside service, a broader menu, and frequently a cantina with margaritas and other cocktails. Clarksville has examples across that range, and the distinction usually tracks with whether the restaurant holds an alcohol license and how its service is structured.

Q: Do Clarksville Mexican restaurants serve alcohol, and is it taxed differently?

Many do. A restaurant that serves margaritas, beer, or a full bar needs the appropriate license or permit from the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC). Liquor-by-the-drink sales carry an additional state tax on top of the regular sales tax, so the alcohol portion of a check is taxed differently from the food portion.

Q: How can I tell if a Clarksville Mexican restaurant serves authentic regional food?

Authenticity usually shows in scratch preparation and family recipes rather than marketing claims. Several Clarksville restaurants are family owned, with recipes carried from Mexico and food prepared fresh daily, and some make their own salsas and traditional plates in house. Looking for specialties such as birria, fresh seafood, fajitas, and homemade salsas, and noting whether the kitchen prepares them from scratch, is more reliable than any single label.

Q: How do I file a complaint about a Clarksville Mexican restaurant?

For food-safety concerns, contact the Tennessee Department of Health, which handles restaurant inspections in Montgomery County. For complaints about deceptive business practices, advertising, or billing, the Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs administers the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (TCA 47-18-104). Keeping receipts and notes about the visit strengthens any complaint.