IN THE KITCHEN El Mariachi is about as Mexican as it gets, from the kitchen to the décor to the staff: Call before hours, and you may get someone speaking only Spanish.

Pretty much everyone speaks Spanish here, including the wait staffers, who are happy to help you, so don’t be shy about trying to pronounce menu items. El Mariachi is a small, family-run chain; it opened in Wareham last year, with other locations in Easton, Taunton, and Seekonk, all owned by Jose Lopez. His nephew, Luis Contreras, from Union de Tula in the central-western Mexican state of Jalisco, manages the Wareham location, having started in the family business busing tables.

When Contreras opened this spot last year, he enlisted the culinary aid of a longtime friend and chef from Mexico, Christian Brambila, who works with Lopez in designing the menu.

THE LOCALE The 80-seat restaurant is heavy on Mexican décor, with art and artifacts reflecting the country’s heritage. This had been the former Webster Hall, a dark place that Lopez’s renovations have brightened up considerably. It can be noisy on busy nights, so try grabbing a quieter table by the windows facing Main Street. Service can also lag when it’s jammed, but to pass the time order guacamole ($8.50) from a rolling cart, where it is made fresh at your table.

ON THE MENU Start off with a wide range of margaritas, made from 100 percent agave tequilas, including the jalapeno ($9), a very spicy concoction of Altos Tequila, Cointreau, triple sec, fresh lime juice, and slices of jalapeno. We followed up with two of several appetizer options, the very tasty, crunchy taquito bites ($7.75), a handful of rolled corn tacos stuffed with shredded chicken or beef, with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, and guacamole; and a cup of sopa de Albondigas ($5.25), a soup of savory meatballs of beef and pork simmered in broth with veggies and served with diced onions, cilantro, and tortillas.

Being in a coastal area, El Mariachi uses as much fresh local fish, as well as produce, as possible, and the menu reflects that. We had the Vallarta salad ($12) with filet of fish over romaine lettuce and spinach with tomatoes, corn, onions, and cucumber, served with avocado and mango slices, tortilla strips, and dressed with mango citrus vinaigrette — a whopping dish that’s hard to finish. The taco salad ($10) is another bountiful affair, with a huge taco shell filled with lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, sour cream, and guacamole, and topped with choices of seasoned ground beef, chicken, or pork.

A burrito lover in our group of four went with the arre burrito ($12), an absolutely giant roll you can get stuffed with beef, chicken, pork, or chile Colorado, and smothered with rice and beans topped with enchilada sauce and served with tomatoes, onions, cilantro, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, and guacamole. This is another dish that’s a challenge to finish.

If you like spicy, you can’t go wrong with the camarones diablo ($15.75), a fiery dish we’d been warned about by our server, Priscilla, but we went with it anyway. The resultant head sweat it created was testimony to its savory heat. It is a deliciously hot option, with ample amounts of shrimp sautéed in butter with garlic, mushrooms, and three heat sources: paprika, cayenne, and red pepper flakes. The heat is cut somewhat by accompanying rice, avocado, and tomatoes.

Dessert may be a tight fit, but they have several options, including churros ($4.75), classic Mexican fried dough strips dusted with cinnamon and sugar and served with caramel sauce, whipped cream, and berry sauce; and fried ice cream ($4.95).

El Mariachi Mexican Restaurant, 207 Main St., Wareham, 774-678-4550, www.elmariachimexicanrestaurant.net.

Paul E. Kandarian

Paul E. Kandarian can be reached at pkandarian@aol.com.