My wife and I love El Tapatio. It is the most authentic Mexican restaurant around. We have been going there for the last 2 years and have never had a bad experience. The food is delicious, the service is great, and we also like the atmosphere. It can be loud and crowded in there on a weekend night, but during the week it is quiet. They have gotten my order slightly wrong a couple times, but they are always willing to fix it and even when it is wrong, the food is so good that I don't really care too much. The chips and salsa are always good and fresh, the meat is always seasoned and cooked well, the salsa and queso are flavorful with a bit of spice, and the Margaritas are huge. The best part about El Tapatio is the price. My wife and I spent about $50 for what is in the pictures below. Two entrees, an appetizer, a jumbo margarita and a horchata. The portions are also very generously sized. Highly recommend El Tapatio to anyone who wants authentic delicious Mexican food for a very reasonable price.
Was really looking forward to good Mexican food & a margarita. Too bad it didn't happen. Menu boasts margaritas with Patron tequila. Placed order with server. Server returned to say they didn't have Patron. She should have known that. Should have taken that as a sign that I should leave. The chips were super thick and had no salt. The salsa was more like tomato sauce as it didn't have any spice or flavor. I asked for salt for the chips & the server looked at me like my hair was on fire. She said she wasn't sure where it was but did finally bring me some. I ordered a tostaguac. Menu said ground beef, lettuce, tomato, and guacamole. There was no beef. The guacamole was like the mild guacamole available at the grocery store. The beans were so runny it looked more like bean soup & had no taste whatsoever. The lettuce & tomato made a nice little salad. I couldn't ask for a different menu option, but the server never returned. In a positive note, she did tell me the plate was hot. Way too many strikes in this balk game. Strike out & game over. Never again.
We have had food here twice within the last 2 months. First time we ordered to-go, got the fajita dinner for 2, and had so much food we had leftovers for two days after, and it was great. We were very impressed, even considering the awkward interaction with the hostess when we tried asking for help getting our order. We still had this in mind for a second try.Decided to dine in this past Saturday for dinner, and we realized we were probably taking a gamble on it, since the other two Mexican restaurants we tried were slammed. Got seated surprisingly quickly, but eating in restaurant was a much different experience. We each ordered a margarita, both were so watered down my boyfriend asked for a second shot of tequila…it didn’t help. My fajita quesadilla was basically raw—vegetables barely cooked, all shoved into a tortilla right out of a grocery store bag (it looked the complete opposite of the picture in the review below—but also guess they expect you to eat a quesadilla with a fork and knife…??). The waiter was also less than helpful when it was obvious we weren’t enjoying our experience and my boyfriend asked to order another entree—didn’t bother asking how to make it better. Not to mention the wall next to us had food smeared all over and looked like it had never been cleaned.So disappointed after our first experience with takeout was so good. Thankfully they comped us the tequila shot—because we asked. On top of it, I was terribly sick the next day. We won’t be back.(Go to Taco Lucha in Aggieville—just went here for the first time tonight. It’s very popular and a bit of a wait—and we don’t really like Aggieville. But SO worth it. Should have waited it out on Saturday—5 stars!!!!)
Hadn't been here before, but had been meaning to try it, so my son and I did tonight. Service was prompt and polite, food was good, servings very ample, and price quite reasonable for what we got. The physical facility could use some touching up, but the food and service were great.
It's ElTap. It's a favorite place and a classic resturaunt in Manhattan. Some of the best and authentic Mexican I can find, let alone in the midwest. 10/10 would reccomend.
Great food Great service.
After multiple lackluster experiences, we had hoped that just one more chance was all this restaurant needed. Sadly this was not the case. Simply upon entering we were greeted with impatience and annoyance. The customer service was awful. Punctuality was not a thing. The waitress clearly could not separate home and work by the way she was on the phone arguing with her children and focusing more on getting things taken care of outside of work rather than seating and helping customers. 10 minutes standing by the door, 15 minutes waiting to order a drink, 15-20 minutes waiting to order food which ended up being bland and terrible. The entire mood of the place was tense and uncomfortable. Overall this last experience was so bad that we’ll not be back.
We keep giving this place a chance but they just can’t seem to get it together. Tonight, they said our take out order would be ready in 15 minutes. FIFTY FIVE MINUTES LATER….it was finally ready. No tortillas that we paid for. And the steak burrito we ordered was chicken. This is extremely frustrating for people that have specific diets. After YEARS of hoping they would get it together, we’re finally going elsewhere.
Great authentic Mexican food. Unfortunately had gotten my order wrong multiple times and the server was not friendly at all. Will still keep going for the taste though!
Food was great. Service was a little slow. Drinks sat unfilled, we had to ask for refills.