If you live in Midland long enough, you stop explaining Nico’s to people and just take them there. It’s a lunch counter-style Mexican spot on Big Spring Street that doesn’t look like much from the parking lot, but at noon on a weekday the line tells you everything you need to know.
The menu is straightforward Tex-Mex — enchiladas, tacos, combination plates, chile rellenos — and nearly everything is made to order behind a short counter where you can watch it happen. The cooks move fast. The portions are generous without being theatrical about it. If you want a plate of beef enchiladas with chile con carne and a side of rice and beans for around ten dollars, this is one of the few places in Midland where that still makes sense in 2024.
Order at the counter, grab a number, and find a seat. The dining room is small and loud at peak hours — tables packed close, ceiling fans running, a television usually on in the corner. Don’t expect ambient lighting or a curated playlist. What you get instead is fast service from people who have clearly done this a thousand times and a basket of chips that arrives before you’ve fully sat down.
The chile relleno is the thing most regulars will tell you to get. It’s a roasted poblano stuffed with cheese, battered and fried, and plated in a red sauce that has some actual heat to it. The fajitas are solid too — the beef comes out still sizzling on a cast iron skillet, with grilled onions and peppers piled on, and the flour tortillas are fresh. Skip the fajita chicken unless you’re already a fan of the milder version; the beef is the move.
For lunch, budget somewhere between nine and fourteen dollars depending on what you order. Combination plates with two items hover around ten to eleven. A la carte tacos are cheaper and a good way to go if you’re in a hurry — the carne guisada taco in particular is worth knowing about. It’s braised beef in a thick, savory gravy, served in a flour tortilla, and it costs a few dollars. It’s the kind of thing you eat over your tray without saying anything for a minute.
Nico’s is open for breakfast and lunch, and closing time is mid-afternoon — so this is not a dinner option. Breakfast runs until around eleven and includes migas, breakfast tacos, and huevos rancheros. The breakfast crowd is loyal and tends to clear out before the lunch rush hits around eleven-thirty. If you want a table without waiting, aim for right when they open or after one o’clock.
Parking is in a small lot directly in front of the building. It fills up fast during peak hours, but turnover is quick because people eat and leave — nobody lingers here over a long lunch. The staff moves the line efficiently even when the room is packed.
Nico’s doesn’t need a redesign or a new concept. It’s doing exactly what it set out to do, and it’s been doing it long enough that a lot of Midlanders would notice immediately if it disappeared. That’s about as good a recommendation as a local lunch spot can get.
