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- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
19 reviews for El Rey
Review Highlights
"The lunch counter serves the best chicken tacos in..."
(in 3 reviews)
"Meat and produce prices are super low."
(in 9 reviews)
"Bakery has nice selections of breads and sweets."
(in 5 reviews)
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19 reviews in English
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Review from Joanna T.
1/2/2012 1 Check-in Here
I love my El Rey on 35th but this location....it pains me to say it...is better. It's the best El Rey, hands down.
*In house taqueria. You aren't supposed to shop on an empty stomach, right? You can get a tasty, cheap meal here and do all of your shopping after.
*Produce area is VERY large, well stocked/organized and priced reasonably.
*Extensive selection of staples, both Hispanic and not.
*Great deli. It's my favorite part of any El Rey. Carnitas, tamales, rice, beans or more. This location stocks barbacoa and birra too.
*This particular store is big & clean, with vibrant murals on the walls. It still manages to be crowded and chaotic as aisles are pretty narrow.
*Big butcher counter where you can get anything (and I mean anything) cut to order.
*They sell beer and a limited selection of liquor here, the other locations don't
I've said it before and I'll say it again...I love you El Rey.Listed in: Anno Centum, Grocery Getters, Ethnic Groceries, El Rey = Bueno!
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Review from Jake N.
11/3/2011 ROTD 12/3/2011
I work by the El Rey on 13th street. I eat here frequently. I am a fan of the flautas and the pork tamales. I used to eat the pork tamales more often than I'd like to admit, but since the price increases (they now run like 9 bucks) I have been eating them less. Plus I can't help but put salsa roja on it and El Rey's is spicy! Delicious, but spicy! My body appreciates me not eating this as often as I did.
Produce prices are dirt cheap. Yeah suck it Pick N Save. Employees at this location understand Spanglish pretty well. I never had any issues with clients or staff. -
Review from Jay S.
Coming from Chicago and living in Latino/Hispanic neighborhood most of my life, it felt like home when I walked in to El Rey. They have a lot of the stuff that you'll need from a regular grocer, everything you might need for Mexican cuisine, a good meat counter, and a good little taqueria (which I may or may not have spelled wrong). Plus, they have awesome tamales.
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Review from George T.
So much to say about this great super market. Bakery has nice selections of breads and sweets. Great prices for deli foods and produce.
This was my first chance to stop into the new El Rey. Prices have definitely gone up for beer and hot deli items. Limes are still the best price in town but they are 10% smaller. 15 for a buck. The weekday shopping was less busy but it was busy nonetheless. Parking was tight at this location. Security with armed guard was nice. Deli staff and clerks were attentive. Loaded up on corn tortillas 3 bags for a buck. Menudo, three bundles of tamales, carnitas, chicharones chico are delicious. A nice trip to our version of Mexico North of the border. And I can still drink the water. -
Review from Kip G.
Milwaukee, WI
2/26/2011 ROTD 8/9/2011
El Rey is a very beautiful thing. It's almost like going on vacation while your only minutes away from where you live. The selection overwhelms me as I'm not up to speed with cooking most of the things I enjoy eating. I honestly think finding a recipe or two before going to El Rey the next time would make for a more enlightening experience. This trip I left with only guacamole, pico de gallo, and a Limon Jarritos. That was enough to put a smile on my face though.
Didn't get to experience the maggots and rude customer service others reported though. I'll smoke more crack before pulling in the lot next time? -
Review from Billy D.
5/18/2011
Why do I love El Ray?
1. It's close to downtown, but still feels like you're getting away.
2. The new store is super nice (wayyyyyy better than the old location), clean, and the employees are helpful.
3. Their brand of tortilla chips
4. Meat and produce prices are super low. Limes 20/$1? Sure.
5. Taquería is a great place to grab a quick snack
6. Hot tamales - right by the registers -
Review from navdeesh g.
Milwaukee, WI
3/29/2011 ROTD 4/7/2011
Fresh Fruits and Vegetables! Unique selection.... I got delicious fresh chickpeas (garbanzo beans) still in the pod yummy! They are way cheaper then the stupid chain grocery store Pick n Save and have a wider selection your not limited into choosing out of 6 bell peppers.
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Review from Yan S.
Milwaukee, WI
6/30/2009
I'm telling you...... BUY your fruit and veggies here. You will save money like crazy. Also, BUY your bulk meat here. You will save money like whoa.
For example, limes 20 for $1 or avocados for $0.39. PicknSave will rape you compared to El Rey.
Preferably go to the El Rey on 35th and Burnham for the freshest meats and produce. -
Review from Christopher H.
Milwaukee, WI
11/16/2009
Ok...right up front I will mention that my fiance's parents work at El Rey and have for years. But I won't let that keep me from telling the truth about this wonderful place. The lunch counter serves the best chicken tacos in Milwaukee. The flavors of the sour cream (heavenly and I don't normally like sour cream) and the salsa (chile rojo) blend so perfectly with the seasoned chicken, grilled peppers and onions, and the two corn tortillas (the way tacos are served in Mexico). I have a hard time having anything else they are so delicious. But almost as good are the many other things they serve: quesadillas, tortas, soups, a huge variety of Mexican food for reasonable prices.
16th and National is where the "newish" bigger market location is and it is worth a visit if you have never been there. -
Review from Kerry D.
Framingham, MA
7/25/2010
My #1 place to visit in Milwaukee. The little restaurant tucked in the back of the grocery store has the best Mexican food you can find anywhere for super cheap. Definitely more of a casual lunch outing!
Stock up on their amazing spice selection while you are there! -
Review from Dave S.
Milwaukee, WI
12/10/2007
El Rey has three free-standing locations on the south side of the city, as well as a stand at the Milwaukee Public Market.
Their stores feature a lunch counter serving up the best Mexican lunch in Milwaukee, period. Pull up a chair to this friendly diner and enjoy authentic, reasonably priced standards like tacos, burritos, etc, as well as a variety of specials including soups and stews. Their San Diego fish tacos and tongue tacos (tacos de lengua) are to die for.
When you eat lunch at El Rey you rub elbows with the diversity that is Milwaukee's Latino community. Construction workers wearing dusty work boots and hard hats dine next to businessmen in suits. It's a mostly Spanish-speaking environment, but the servers are all conversent en ingles. Only once was I left to resort to my weak Spanish and exaggerated hand gestures to get a point across about an order.
While you're there check out the grocery store. The new location on Cesar Chavez Drive is the Whole Foods of Latin grocery. It's bright, expansive and comprehensive. A full service bakery, meat counter, and a knock-out produce selection.Listed in: Ethnic Milwaukee
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Review from Julie M.
Milwaukee, WI
5/5/2011
I'm a BIG El Rey Fan. There is nothing like it in the city. Cheap, high quality meats & produce. Plus, you get to brush up on your Spanish skills... :)
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Review from Ben R.
Milwaukee, WI
4/18/2011
I love going to El Rey. Even though many supermarkets carry a lot more Latin food products than they used to even a few years ago, thenbenefits of shopping here are too many to name them all but I will definitely name a few. The first, as you walk in the door is the bakery with the smell of fresh churros, then you see the produce, all fresh and so much! I would come here if they only sold limes! I bought 20 limes for $1 here this past Sunday, at PickNSave they were 70 cents a piece and worse quality. All of the peppers you could every want, fresh and dried. Real Mexican crema, melting and crumbling cheeses. The people are incredibly nice too and there is always a woman cooking up cheeses to sample. I just absolutely love this place, I could spend hours just looking at everything. Oh and there is a restaurant inside.
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Review from Lacey B.
1/21/2011
My boyfriend took me here a few times. He and his former roommate loved it and he wanted me to try it. I thought it was just so-so. Not bad, but not great. The prices were very reasonable, however. We had eaten there together a few times, maybe 3 or 4 times, and on our last trip there, as we were at the counter paying our bill, I happened to look down into this small acrylic display case where they kept desserts and what do I see??? Maggots. That's right... maggots. We haven't been back since. I'm not one to go around slandering restaurants' reputations and always try to make fair assessments, but maggots are where I draw the line. Check out El Rey on Dirty Dining sometime.
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Review from Daniel M.
Oconomowoc, WI
1/24/2011
I love this place. The best mexican grocery store in the state, El Rey is serving up some delicious stuff at their deli and amazing prices on things like avocado and limes. I highly recommend the shredded pork called "carnitas" on a corn tortilla with fresh lime juice, cilantro and onions, something you can make at home in a flash for an easy and delicious, authentic Mexican dinner.
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Review from Jennifer W.
San Diego, CA
9/6/2010
Ummm yeah I did it- I went and sat at the lunch counter all by my lonely English speaking self. I mean I know a little bit of Spanish, but I wasn't about to try it out here. Luckily the waitress had good intuition and asked for my order in English. I had a bean taco, which was authentically fantastic and wonderfully priced ($2). I also stopped by the bakery and picked up a churro, which was honestly not that good and I didn't end up eating it. The store itself is fun to shop around. I love looking at different products from other countries!
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Review from Wes M.
6/15/2010
This 5 star review is coming from a non-local so take it as you may, but when I visited here with my GF and her parents (the parents are the locals), I was amazed at the greatness of this store. Dallas, TX has some kick butt mercados but this place was soooo nice and clean and well put together. I always make sure to grab several bags of their chips to carry on to the plane back to Dallas! I have eaten there as well and their taqueria is tops! Keep up the good work and even though we are well saturated with this type of store back home, I would welcome an El Rey in my neck of the woods.
Listed in: Who's up for Mexican food?…
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Review from Nana H.
Milwaukee, WI
8/1/2009
I go to the location on I6th and National. They have a wonderful deli, produce and my personal favorite the bakery. The location on Mineral is St is still open. I get my plantains, avocados and habanero pepper They used to be a location at the Milwaukee Public Market but the closed down in April.
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Review from Laura F.
4/22/2006
If you want to know what a grocery store is like in another country, check out the El Rey on Cesar Chavez before they relocate (not sure when that's happening, but its more than rumored). Although there is something to say for the space, light, and convenience of the Pick N Saves of the world, El Rey wins on character. First consider buying an elote (corn on the cob or in a cup with mayonaise, chili and lime) or a taco out front. Enter in and enjoy the crowded atmosphere humming with activity and the clashing of raw foods. They have an impressive array of interesting produce, some of which hard to come by in other parts of the city, as well as an inside cafe/taqueria that serves good tacos, tortas and other basic Mexican food. The place is so jam-packed with stuff that the aisles seem crowded in. This is definitely the place in Milwaukee for an array of Mexican cheeses, tortillas, spices, meats, produce and other items. Spanish not required but definitely a plus.
Listed in: My Neighborhood
