El Palenque Taqueria
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: No
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: No
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Lunch
17 reviews
San Mateo, CA
"I used to grab lunch at El Pollo Supremo when I worked in the area. Always had the chicken and it was always consistently GOOD! I have also…" read more »
6 Reviews for El Palenque Taqueria
To echo the responses already on here, El Palenque is a solid, authentic, off-the-beaten path taqueria. You know, the kind of place you assume no one else has discovered on Yelp, only to find five other reviews? ;-)
I came down here with colleagues, and we all walked away raving about the great taste, and AMAZING prices of their burritos and quesadillas.
My favorite part of the visit though? The veterinary supply company poster with pictures of different kinds of chickens and vitamin supplements for your cock fighting hobby.
I heard about this place from a friend who is crazy about burritos; otherwise I would have never, ever known that it existed.
This place is cheap and extremely good. The Super Quesadilla is amazing!!!
Wow this place is really good. Without Yelp I never would have found it even though it's right in San Mateo. The carne asada here is excellent, the place is clean and the people are friendly. They grill the tortillas which is awesome. The green salsa is extremely tasty, and prices are really reasonable. So far I have tried about 4 times and it has been consistently good. Recommended!
This place is out off the beaten path, but it is SOLID. If not for the internet, there would be no way in hell I'd have found it. I'm glad we did however. Perched in a small strip mall with a market, cleaner, boutique and across from an elementary school. It's also close to the frontage road off 101. After ordering we got a basket of chips and the two salsas we got from the bar were super tasty. One red with a good kick and the other green with avocado. A premonition of good things to come?
Between the two of us we had the asada, lengua, cabeza, pollo, al pastor, carnitas and camarone tacos. It's rare that places will have good meats all across the board but this is one of them. Everything was tasty. Again not a great locale but I've found that all the best taquerias in the area were the biggest dives. 4.5 stars.
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It's definitely a hidden, hole-in-the-wall type of restaurant. Yeah I know Pancho Villa is great with their selection, and close by (in San Mateo), but El Palenque is my favorite in the area, especially when the wallet is feeling a little thin. Thanks to my friend MP who found the place!
I don't know how their food tastes so good.. and it's sooo cheap for the portion they give! My friend KK, who is an ex-burrito club officiado, approved as well. All the food is cooked to order: Carne Asada and Carnitas are flavorful and juicy, and for the adventurous... Al Pastor is, quite literally, food-coma inducing (be sure to finish it before the tortilla starts soaking up all the grease). Most of the time, I end up eating half of the super burrito & saving the rest for later.
Free chips and salsa (pre-packaged, choose from: mild salsa, hot salsa, lime green looking variety, red saucy kind, & the tub of peppers/carrots/onions). The green one is really good with a slight kick... sorry for the lame description (someone please help me with the correct terminology).
The staff are nice and very efficient, even to a person that obviously doesn't look Mexican or speak a hint of Spanish. The place is quite small though: for sit down there are two tables that seat 4 each, and the rest are stools over counter shelf. Take-it-to-go is my favorite choice here.
$3.99+tax for Regular Burrito (incl. cheese)
$4.95+tax for Super Burrito (incl. avocado and sour cream).
$4.99+tax for Wet Super Burrito (sauce over Super)
They take MC/VISA! (ok min. charge is $6... so just get a soda with your meal)
Food: 4.5/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Value: 5/5
What is it about a hole-in-the-wall taquerias that makes their tacos and burritos taste so much better than the bigger Mexican chain restaurants? It's the pure simplicity and honesty of their cooking and ingredients. The hole-in-the-wall taquerias don't try to make the food fancy to justify their prices and they just focus on delivering an authentic taste.
This taqueria is located on the east side of the freeway, off the beaten path, and had I not been diverted by the construction going on at the frontage road, I'd probably never drive by this side street. But it so happens that I am driving to downtown SM to grab a bite to eat after working on the boat. The frontage road was detoured to this side street, I noticed this taqueria and decided that I might as well save myself the trouble of going to downtown and try this place.
I ordered a couple of tacos and a burrito, watch the cook make it in front of my eyes in this 4 table restaurant. I sat down at one of the tables and took a bite of my lunch. Mmmmmm.... Delicious, fresh and cheap! After devouring all the food, I knew I will be back next time I'm hankering for lunch while I'm at the boat.
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