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"This is a hidden gem in the MacArthur Park area. Kind of like Del Rey in the City of Commerce- hidden, unassuming, nice big wooden doors…" read more »
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El Taurino has been my go-to Mexican food place in LA for years. I was first introduced to it 6 years ago when a group of friends decided to drive out from Arcadia just to get some delicious Mexican food. Since then, I have been a constant consumer of tacos, burritos, and tortas.
Over the past 6 years, El Taurino has been the place where I have tasted and experienced all sorts of different "first's." Here are some:
- Hottest Red Sauce in LA
- "Different" meat (lengua is delicious... imagine a smoother and more flavorful carne asada)
- Horchata
- Tortas (because of El Taurino tortas, I now judge every Mexican place by their tortas, if they have them)
- Tostadas (Crisp taco shells, topped with sliced avocados, crema, cheese, tomatoes, and onions)
Each of what I have listed above is what makes El Taurino an experience all in itself. The various different kinds of meat make ordering anything an adventure. The sauces add kick and flavor that no other sauce can (TIP: try mixing red and green together). The tortas are filled with creamy goodness (avocados and crema) along with perfectly cooked onions and a soft, warm bread to sandwich them in between. The tostadas are the texturized brother to the torta, putting all of the same ingredients on top of a crispy shell.
The only thing I dislike about El Taurino are the incredibly inflated prices on drinks. I rarely buy drinks from here because they are so expensive and not worth it. If anything, I walk across the street to the Food4Less to buy a bottle or even a 6 pack of soda instead of paying over 2.50 for a large drink.
So I went again at night to see if my prior experience was just a fluke and I was pretty disappointed. Even more disappointed I dragged my drunk friend and his cousin (who remained in the car yacking his brains out) here swearing to him it was the best Carne Asada burrito joint ever.
The Carne Asada was a bit tough and dry. I got a tamale and it was the same tamale you get from King Taco, pretty bland.
El Taurino is no longer my go-to spot. Maybe if it was around the corner from my house and the wait wasn't freaking like 3million hours at 2AM.. i MAY go here, but now, I'm sad to say.. El Taurino is a boo boo.
Now when I leave Hollyhood - I'm either taking the 10 to SGV or going to Jtown for some late night grubbage.
The place I grown to love has certainly changed.
The hot sauce is still mind blowing hot.
Carne…
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This is the brother of King Taco. Word on the street is that they originated from the same people, which I can believe since they have incredibly similar tastes. El Taurino epitomizes what true hole-in-the-wall mexican food is in LA, and I would vouch to say that its probably better than most mexican taco's I've had in mexico. It's the green sauce that is really the kicker for me. It's packed with flavor that supplements any type of dish served here like peanut butter and jelly, or batman and robin, or girls and jimmy choo shoes. I would recommend trying the all meat burrito, tacos, and the torta's, all of which are amazingly addicting.
I gave them 4 stars because they are often times sheisty with giving out the green sauce, which as mentioned above is the kicker for this place! But definitely worth going to if you're drunk, hung-over, or craving some down and dirty mexican soul food.
I can safely say this is the best Al Pastor taco that I have had in Los Angeles. I haven't tried them all, but El Taurino will be tough to beat simply based on the quality of their pork. 4 Al Pastor tacos and a Carne Asada sope or two and you'll be living the high life.
Not to mention that you'll be burning up pretty bad too. This is the most fiery salsa roja I've tried, but it is fantastic. Nothing a tall horchata can't fix. If you don't think you can handle the heat, they will gladly subtitute the much milder salsa verde for the roja.
Be aware that long lines can form around lunch and any hour on the weekends. It is not the fastest service, but it's about as cheap and flavorful as it gets.
Chicken Tostada - Something different. Tasted very authentic. You may or may not like it, but at least it is worth a try!
Cheese Quesadilla - Average. Nothing spectacular.
Carne Asada Nachos - Not worth it. Nachos with not enough cheese or meat. Oh, and that is all it has. Cheese and meat.
I got guacamole, but I don't know if it was for my quesadilla or for the nachos. The guacamole tasted more like cilantro than avocado. I heard the tacos are good. Small though, so get like three and something else. You have to ask for napkins and they give you just enough. Sour cream is an extra 1.25. They do not give out water, so bring your own.
If I am ever craving a really good carne asada taco, well this is the place! Much, much, much better than El Gran Burrito...!!!!
Tacos are 1.25 each, but that .25 is worth it. The meat is nicely marinated with some good acidity (citrus) and seasonings. It's not dry at all like El Gran Burrito.
Not 24 hrs, but they close late until 3am... so it's pretty good. My husband ordered lengua and carnitas pork... and he liked them; he's very particular about his lengua and carnitas pork.
Much cleaner than El Gran Burrito and feels El Taurino has more authenticity rather compared to El Gran Burrito...
There's on thing I like about this place is the Consome.
I dont like the lines, the drunks, and the wait time for your food.
I'm not the biggest Mexican food fan. I just love trying new things and new places. This place was recommended to me by a friend and I would probably recommend it also if someone asked me where some good Mexican food is in Southern California.
I got the 'all-meat-burrito' which I didn't really like. My friend told me to get it, and I sort of wish I didn't. I thought it was all the different kinds of meat in one burrito, but it's not. It's just all the same meat in a burrito without anything else. This is just a warning. Get it if that's what you really want. The horchata was mixed well and I enjoyed it.
I'd love to come back and try another item. The place seems like the most popular place on the block. Since it's open late, everyone goes here after the club or whatever.
I took this place for granted when I was at the USC undergrad campus. Now that I live further away, I appreciate it sooo much more! My friends and I ventured back across LA to eat lunch here today and it was sooo good~ better than I remember! :)
I usually just get carne asada tacos but today, in addition to that, I also got a carne asada torta which is basically like a carne asada burger AND they even put avocados in it! My friends tried the nachos (which usually comes with just meat and cheese, but you can ask them to add onions) and the tostada which looked dang good too. When you're ordering, make sure you ask for the hot sauce on the side, especially if you can't handle spicy food. I personally LOOOVE spicy food but the red sauce here is a little too much for me.
Plenty of parking in the lot and they're open late! Great place to come with friends for a late night taco run!
We ask our Hong Kong USC Architecture studio mate:
"Hey, do you like mexican food?!"
"Ah... no..."
"but have you tried Mexican food before?"
"Ah yes, I tried it before."
"Where at?"
"Ah, EVK."
At that point, my friend immediately turned his car around. We walked in and enjoyed the authentic mexican atmosphere/decor and ordered. Our Hong Kong friend didn't know any spanish and became too scared to order himself..... So we ordered for him; fortunately, the workers can speak enough fluent english... He kept following my friends, but following someone's amount of hot sauce is NOT a good idea. My friend dunked half of the cup of red hot sauce into his burrito, and after my Hong Kong friend dunked the remaining half and began eating the burrito, he officially became scarred from Mexican food.
"Hey, so how is it?"
(shaking) "Ah... I'm only eating this because ahm's so hungry. I would eat all of this in one minute if it not so spicy... I sweating."
Hilarious, but sad. the hot sauce really is hot, so beware.
I ordered one chicken taco and a tamale. Surprisingly and fortunately, both were delicious and satisfied my hungry appetite. The chicken taco was above average, but not spectacular. I recalled hating tamales the first and last time i tried it (at 8 years old), so I decided to go for it one more time at a LEGIT mexican place. Well damn, that was one tasty tamale. I asked them to go light in the sweet cheese, and I couldn't even notice it- it still, was amazing, soft, and smooth.
I didn't order a burrito because they seem overpriced; I wouldn't pay $5 for a small burrito with 80% meat. I left happy, only paying $~2.50 for my meal, while the other guys had to order 2 or 3 extra tacos after their burritos. The total for the other guys was at least $10 (Burrito, horchata, 2 or 3 tacos). Honestly, I don't think it's worth it - I'd rather pay for a $10 meal at a mexican restaurant like Adobe in Santa Ana....
Known for their tacos! I always get the carne asada.
Ask for the salsa on the side or they'll drown your tacos with sauce. You can choose green or red. I usually get both and put a little of both on. (You have to choose one when you order, and then when you pick up your food, you can ask for the other sauce)
Also, they have the BEST tortas I've ever had. I either get carne asada or al pastor. I've even conformed my friends--who swore they would only get tacos. Now they have a dilemma of which one to get. (It usually ends up that they get both, no matter how full they are.)
They're nachos are okay. Just melted cheese and meat. I prefer the crazy nachos with the guacamole, tomatoes, onions, jalepenos, etc....so maybe that's why I'm not a big fan.
Also, they're burritos are okay too. The all-meat burrito is literally ALL-MEAT, so if you want meat with just some tortilla, you should totally get it. But I like the tacos and tortas better.
So many people had recommended El Taurino, and told me how good it was, but I never thought it was anything special.
I lived right down the street from the place for a bit, and used to frequent El Taurino just because it was one of the only late night spots that were open.
The line is pretty long, and food preparation is a bit slow. The patrons are mostly local hispanics, post clubbing crews, and USC students, which is kinda lame....and thats why I usually prefer to go to the salvadorean place at the other corner.
I always get the carne asada burrito with the red hot sauce. I think the HOT sauce is what draws people to El Taurino. Its a habanero hot sauce...Don't order the red sauce if you can't handle spicy food, because it's pretty damn hot.!!!..The burrito wouldn't be that good without the hot sauce.
There's plenty of better burritos to be eaten in L.A.
Best tacos within the borders of the USofA, and I've driven across the country more than a few times... I'm not the greatest fan of Mexican food but the tacos here are just the best. And to boot, their green salsa sauce is next to perfect.
The mood is nice and has a workers'/close community feel to it, which I enjoy.
It'll come to something like 13-15$ including a pitcher of beer for two...
You'll get STUFFED at that rate, and will have a few tacos to take home.
I recommend specifically, the al pastor tacos, and the carne asada tacos...
Beware, at feeding hours, the line can go out the door, and though it moves quickly you'll end up waiting a bit for your food to get done! I try to go in the dead of night after all the traffic has abated, there'll still be a crowd, It's that good...
One of the places I miss in LA. I've never had better al pastor anywhere. The salsa alters my consciousness. Barbacoa on weekends is kicking. Pitchers of beer are cheap. I always visit when I'm in town.
I don't get it?!?! My friends have been raving about this place for who knows how long so I was sooo happy to finally come and see what all the hype was about. One word - DISAPPOINTING. All 2 stars go to the hot sauce because that stuff is legit.
First, I walked over to the truck and snapped a photo - I got reprimanded by a security guard saying "no pictures allowed"! What the - it's a freaking truck with El Taurino written on it. Give me a break, I'm not going to steal your "oh so unique truck restaurant concept".
We then walked around into the actual restaurant portion of El Taurino, stood in line and ordered - 1 carne asada taco, 1 carne asada torta, and 1 carne asada nachos. When our order was called the lady was about to give us 4 hot sauces, but got scolded at and had to TAKE BACK a sauce. Ok, I can understand it being a down economy and all, but seriously?!?! We didn't even get napkins so once we found a seat I went back and asked for napkins - they proceeded to hand me two skimpy napkins (there were 5 of us)... again, seriously!?!?!?
Carne Asada Taco - good, but it was teeeeeensy. The size of the taco takes about 2 bites and is the size of the palm of your hand - it was topped with lots of chopped onions and cilantro and meat on a fried corn tortilla though - lots of flavor here.
Carne Asada Torta - my friends from Norcal would go out of their way just to get this so I couldn't wait to give this a shot. According to them, it's the best torta in California - if only I could say the same. The bread was sooo soggy and they totally skimped on the meat. I found about 2 slices of avocado, lots of melted cheese, and tons of mayo in between two plain white buns. Meh... maybe I came on a bad night, maaaybe.
Carne Asada Nachos - crispy chips & what looked like cheez whiz topped with a meager amount of meat and onions. I'm forever going to remember El Taurino as the most cheapskate restaurant ever! First impressions are everything and my first impression of this place sucked! The meat here was no good either - tough and chewy and dry on all 3 dishes... I've definitely had better.
5 Stars for the bomb ass tortas... and only the tortas. The rest of the food is the exact same as King Taco. Maybe they're both owned by the same peeps?... who knows. But the crazy bull fighting posters are awesome! Nothing beats a carne-asada juicy torta with avocado and the King Taco-style red and green sauce with a beer while checking out the crazy pictures of guys getting thrown into the air by a crazy bull.
5 Stars for that bull too!
After a night of alcohol debauchery in Los Angeles with your posse scoot yourselves over to El Taurino..
A late night out with these gorgeous men: Jack, Jim, Johnny, and Jose (I prefer not all at once) can sure tickle your taste buds for something...CHEAP
Except...El Taurino..is a bit OVERRATED!
Long lines..crowded spaces..a baloon making clown in the corner..
Sorry stud..but I'd rather chase taco trucks..actually more like stalk them around Los Angeles than to stand in line and wait 5 days for King Taco...whoops did I say that...? I meant El Taurino...
Whatever...same difference...
I must say though, their lengua and cabeza tacos...are a lot better than some of the ones I've had around town... for once acquiring some sort of marinated flavor and minus the overpowering taste of grease
but after consuming...10,000 calories at the bar...(As IF! I was sooo not counting) what's a little bit of grease right??
While gorging on my cabeza and lengua taco...my imaginative brain starts ticking...and paranoid eyes wondering
"Umm why are those bull heads staring at me?"
::Must be the guilt of eating lengua and cabeza::
but then ...I snap out of it..and think..I'm too much of a carnivore...to even care about these things...
I sometimes crave for the Carne Asado Tacos...
... I live 3,000 miles away. Ugh.
TOSTADAAAAASSSSS!
-1 star for the ridiculous wait at 2AM, or any fri/sat night
One of my top 5 restaurants. Been eating/craving El taurino for about a decade now. I'm in OC, so it's a real treat whenever I go to LA and have El taurino. I love their al pastor tortas, carne asada burritos, carne asada tostadas, lengua tacos and LOOOOOOOOVE their intense hot sauce. That stuff is so rich and strong, just how I like it. It really burns going down... but it's not just BURN that I like about this sauce... it has this amazing, savory flavor too! Anyway, I big warning to anyone trying El taurino for the first time... be prepared to frequent the "restroom" afterwards. eek!
Okay, I was expecting something good after I read the reviews! It was NOT good at all, I could get better tacos at the taco truck! The burritos were small too! OMG, we were so disappointed!
The best sopes in the entire city. The corn patty is soft and fresh, the meat perfectly cooked (they have some of the best al pastor around) and enough cheese to cool your mouth from the lava they call salsa (its really good though.)
My first time here i got 3 tacos and 2 sopes, and the sopes were so good i have yet to try anything else. Im told the torta's are delicious, and looking at the picture on here i think i will have to try one next time.
This is where i take anyone who wants to try really good Mexican food, or thinks tito's taco's are "the bomb."
Final Decision: Overrated...
I've definitely had better food elsewhere. I came to this spot in search of a mysterious post by a yelper that there was some carne asada fries that existed at this spot. Completely the opposite and the yelper does not know what they are talking about. The food here was definitely not the greatest and was overpriced for some of the portion that I ordered.
Carne Asada Tacos - not bad, overpowering with the lime juice. I would still prefer to go to Lincoln Height to a taco stand there that allows myself to add how much cilantro, pico de gallo and etc.
Al Pastor Tacos - moist and flavorful, but again there seems to be too much lime juice.
Nachos con Carne - extremely small portion and not enough carne nor cheese sauce. The pictures on the wall were actual images of how much they would provide for food. In nachos you would think they would hook you up with some guac and sour cream...but this one resembled nachos you would get at the Staple center or Dodger stadium minus the jalapenos.
Definitely an overrated spot. I really wouldn't understand how people can rate this place so highly. They truly would need to visit the local taco stands or burrito trucks before they roll by here again.
Food: This place is like the White Castle of Mexican food. Dirt cheap and tiny tacos, like tiny burgers. I can finish either in 2 bites. The carne asada tacos were flavored like beef in the perfectly oiled tortilla, nothing else, nothing fancy. Just hits home after a night of drinking. Wish the jalapeño tamales were spicier though.
Drink: First time drinking horchata. Wow, have gots to have that every time I eat Mexican now, washes away the grease and spiciness.
Service: Not much, order food at counter, like a fast food joint.
Ambiance/Crowd: Predominantly Mexicans and then your usual late night crowd of buzzed/drunk people. Pretty run down layout, looks like how McD's would look like in the early 90's.
The best tostadas & tacos! Burritos & the nachos are not the greatest and can find something better elsewhere, but the tostadas are to die for! Customer service isn't the best either just cause they barely speak English..but whatever...the food is bombbbbb!
I just created a Yelp account and decided to choose El Taurino for my first entry because I absolutely LOVE this place. I found out not too long ago that my mom used to bring us tacos from El Taurino ever since we were young.. so maybe that's why I love it so much. But yeah, PLEASE try the all-meat carne asada burrito!!! It seems like it's too much.. but it's perfect. Sometimes the food takes a long time to come out but it's always worth it.
Tip: If you can't handle too spicy, get the sauce on the side because it's really, really spicy.. Sometimes they're cheap about their sauce so they only give you one. In that case, I usually ask them to give me half red and half green and it's really good!
Since when do you find good 24 hour food joints that can fulfill your sober AND drunken cravings? It doesn't happen too often for me but I finally had a chance to experience the El Taurino hype that my west coast friends always spoke of, and my east coast friends were fiends for. After all of our drunken adventures throughout Koreatown, we all had the drunchies (drunk munchies) and weren't quite ready to go home yet. El Taurino was perfect. Still open (always open for that matter), close by, served delicious food, was cheap, and it was a spot for us to all settle down.
We got there, and there was already a line of people?! Well, good thing they've learned to work with crowds so I knew this was no problemo. I got up front, ordered my 3 carne asada tacos, and a large horchata. My order was called and the server asked me if I wanted red or green sauce. Of course my natural decision was to go with the spicier one--RED IT IS. 2 minutes later--my mouth is burning and the senses on my tongue have gone numb...I forgot that my taste buds are amplified 100x when I'm drunk...and the red sauce didn't help. Not saying it was bad because it was delicious...but just keep in mind it's spicier than the hot sauce at your average Mexican food spots. Nothing a little horchata couldn't fix anyway. Overall, $1.25 tacos and a $1.89 drink--cheap no?
I was happy with my meal, it didn't beat up my wallet, and it's got my back at any hour of the day. What more can you ask for?
I'm fairly certain I've never eaten here sober.
But a plate of El Taurino tacos while boozed tastes much more heavenly than any meal I've had at any Michelin-rated restaurant while undrunk.
Much of the magic can be attributed to the famous red hot sauce. I never checked, but I believe they offer a less spicy sauce. Ask for that, however, and you will most likely get an angry visit from Xochiquetzal, the Aztec goddess of embroidery, who will promptly stab you with a scissor.
So, bottom line: El Taurino is better than French Laundry.
But don't just take my word for it. Here are actual messages I received from two friends whom I'd taken to El Taurino for their first times last week:
"My stomach still reels from the burrito of death of Monday night. I hurt ... deep inside ..."
- Roger
"I shit six times from the hot sauce."
- Alex
This place has great burritos, tacos, and tortas. You can easily order several tacos and a tostada, then go back for a burrito another day.
GET A TOSTADA! Most people don't know about it, but it's like an open face burger in taco form.
Make sure you get both sauces, as one is spicy and the other is mild, but remember, the spicy red one will make you sweat.
The service is crap, and you end up spending about $10 for the meal anyway with a drink, but the food is certainly worth its weight in stomach problems.
I don't really get this place. I think somehow it became really popular, kind of like a cult status type of thing. The food is standard fare to say the least. Also it seems as if they bathe the asada in lime juice all night, which is a technique to prolong aging meat. Yeah, obviously it has a huge following, but like I said... I just don't get it. I'd rather go to El Tepeyac in East Los.
I felt a little uneasy sitting at a table waiting for my food. I felt like someone was staring at me. I couldn't shake the feeling. My eyes dart around the room and all I see are Mexicans and Koreans. But... nobody is looking at me. Wtf? Am I just paranoid??
Then I looked up. Oh holy mother of jeebus, there's a big fat bull head staring at me. Those large, extremely frightening eyes are taunting me, laughing at me because of the long line of patrons ahead of me waiting for their food. Please! Stop staring at me... I didn't do anything. I'm just enjoying my horchata (mediocre) and waiting for my darn tacos. I try to look away, but something about that bulls cabeza drove me loco. I try to turn around as to not fixate on the monstrosity up ahead and BAM! Another cabeza de taurino. AHH!!!! Pleaseeeeee let my people go. Wtf, I happen to pick the table right smack in the middle of the two mounted bull heads. It's going to be a long night.
Well. The wait wasn't pretty. I kept hearing them rattle off numbers... seis... seis... wait that was six, I learned my numbers in spanish class wayyyyy back when. BLAST the stupid microphone. What the hell is she saying? We sent the roommate up to wait. Patiently, patiently.
Finally, what seemed like an eternity later, FOOD! I got my al pastor and carnitas taco, in an effort to remain on a tight diet (haha who am I kidding, these diets last less than a minute). Well two tacos is a good night, at least I exercised self control. Let me just say from the items I ate and stole a bite (or two) from (burritos - carne asada and al pastor), skip the rest of the menu and go al pastor all the way. Al pastor will definitely make you forget about the crazy cabezas staring at you.
What the smell is al pastor? It's some secret sauce marinade of pork, rotisseried and cooked with pineapple on top. At least that is what google tells me. Otherwise, all I know was that I had a mouth full of delicious, definitely tasted some delicious grilled onions, some magic sauce with vinegary sweetness , and very tender pork.
Next time I'm driving back west from DTLA, I'll definitely make a pit stop to wait, wait, wait for al pastor tacos. But maybe I'll pick seats away from the bull cabezas.
Wow. I must say, I am supremely disappointed in El Taurino. I have heard nothing but excellent things about this place, as its gotten more than 300 reviews on Yelp alone. As a HUGE fan of Mexican food, I am constantly scoping out new restaurants in all the cities I visit and live in. Los Angeles has been the clear winner in food quality and since I was in town for the weekend, I thought I would try to find me a new haunt.
First, the line was almost out the door when we arrived. It is an "order at the window and wait for your number to be called" type of place. This was fine with me; I didn't much mind, especially since I expected the food to be amazing. The line moved relatively fast. We placed our order and then proceeded to a new window where we were to wait for our food. We waited. And waited. And waited. The dining room is filled with people milling around, most of them also waiting for their food, so there's lots of chaos; not the kind of place you want to go to relax. Yet, again; I was expecting a great meal, so I was willing to put up with just about anything.
About 20-25 minutes after we ordered, our food was finally ready. I had been very hungry upon arrival so this amount of wait was quite long for me. Once we got the food, I asked the guy behind the counter about our beers. He then directed me to a separate line that was dedicated to beer. My friend sat down with the food while I waited for at least 5 minutes more to get our beers.
Alas! Time to eat. I was so excited. We ordered two steak sopes, a barbacoa taco, nachos, a chicken tamale and a cubana. We immediately dove into the nachos. They were in a styrofoam container and my friend popped the top open. Suddenly, we were confronted with thick corn tortilla chips covered in globby, yellow "cheese" substance. It was actually shocking to see this, considering all the rave reviews I've been seeing on here. I'm sorry; if a restaurant is good, it skimps on nothing. Nothing; not even something as pedestrian as nachos. But these guys did. Not only did these nachos look terrible, but after a bite, we realized they tasted terrible, too. They were stale, overly salty, and covered with this weird velveeta substance. Disgusting. Honestly.
Soon afterwards we closed the container because we couldn't stand to look at it anymore and moved onto the other dishes. The sopes were very good; we both agreed on that. My friend did not like the pork cutlet that was in the cubana because it was too fried. I thought it was fine, but the bread wasn't very good, and I did find the sandwich to be strangely moist and poorly put together. The taco was fine, but it wasn't barbacoa like we ordered. I think it was pork.
Finally, they were out of the cheese tamales so we ended up with a chicken one. It was fine, but nothing to write home about. Yet, not as bad as the nachos, either.
The hot sauce was probably the standout from this restaurant. It was a smoky, spicy red sauce with absolutely excellent flavor. If I had eaten just the sauce and the sopes, I'd have been happy. But really, the rest of the meal was such a deep disappointment that I wouldn't consider returning to this place ever again, and I would strongly discourage anyone else from doing so.
Sorry El Taurino. Two thumbs down.
Came here this past Saturday at 2:30 AM and apparently so did everyone else and their mamas... the lines inside were long, the lines outside were long, the wait for food was long, the whole damn place was filled and crowded (you were lucky if you were able to find a seat).. BUT the food was still as mouth-watering as ever and worth the wait!!
Ordered the carne asada torta with green sauce (ALWAYS go with the green sauce here!) which came out to $5.21 (including tax). The carne asada is sooooo damn soft, flavorful and tender. The onions were crunchier than I'd like them but still really good. The bread could have been toastier. The cheese was melted nicely with my carne asada. The green sauce--still to die for as always (I really wish I had their recipe for the green sauce, but alas ...it is secret). The torta was really large--perfect for when you've got the munchies or in my case, incredibly starved after dancing all night in Hollywood.
Don't ever get anything con queso here (with cheese) unless you are vegetarian because all their meats here are worth the extra bucks as they are always soft, tender and flavorful.
Left here very satisfied (despite the wait) and can't wait to come back for more!
Want some Right NOW!
So I came here, finally, with some school mates after much rave and debate whether to go here or to King Taco for a quick bite near campus.
The place ain't more than of hole in the wall decked out in a tauromachy theme/decor which was cool, though a bit tacky.
I was surprised and perplexed when i read the menus, since I thought we'd chosen El Taurino, over King Taco...yet the menus were suspiciously similar, aesthetically and almost identical offerings...And the taste you may ask...non surprisingly about the same.
Don't get me wrong, the tacos and sopes are good, yet uninspiring. Nothing special here; at least nothing i can't get in nearly half of all the other restaurants and King Taco's around town.
Unless you're in a crunch for time, or just happen to be starving and in the immediate vicinity, I'd skip this place all together.
Follow other yelpers, a.nd now my advise too...go chase a taco truck, or go to La Loteria instead.
C'mon people, how could you hate on a place that'll happily serve you up a pitcher of cheap suds with a plate full of tacos at 10am and do it for a ten spot? Don't look the gift horse in the mouth, my friends.
Sure I've had better tacos at some stands and trucks around town but what I really dig here is the lengua. Tongue tacos and some of the hottest salsa in the land washed down with cheap beer. That's what I'm talkin' about. They also do these absolutely obscene taco meat stuffed tortas. Not really my bag but every time I've had a bite I can see why someone would go crazy over it. Come to think of it, thats probably the biggest draw here but those lengua tacos... what can I say. I must be a creature of taco habit 'cause they get me every time.
As the name would suggest, they've got an awesome array of bullfighting memorabilia that always gets me to thinking how large a handbag I'd need to make off with some of it. Vintage posters (my favorite), old sombreros and, of course, more than one bull with you in its hollow sights from above. If anyone has a plan to make off with a few hundred pound vintage mounted bull's head complete with horns, shoot me a note, will ya?
Don't bother trying to park on the street. There's a little lot out back complete with security guard. Most of the time at least. What did I tell you? Don't look the gift horse in the mouth!
I love this place so so much! The tacos and burritos are incredible!!!
Its perfect for a night after dancing or a night at home with the familia. The only thing is that since they are so damn good and popular the staff is really rude, its super pricey (for food that come out of a truck) and always packed! But I am a sucker for their carne asada burritos and their tacos al pastor. Their hot sauce is amazing: *WARNING* their red hot sauce is suicidal!!! The green is yummy!
Go ahead and try it, its amazing but be prepared for long lines, pricey tacos and some rude staff but enjoy every bite of their burritos.
The Best carne asada burrito i have tasted so far!!! Just to let some people know, King Taco on Alvarado is runned by the same owner. There tostados is also excellent!
If anyone else knows a place which is comparable to this restaurant, please let me know!!!
O M G.
I LOVE THIS PLACE! How have I not had this before?
OK...the meat is not the BEST I've ever had.
But what makes this place is their hot sauce. Mind blasting!
I shall be back, El Taurino. I'm going to crave this place.
i do think this place is a little overrated...or maybe i just came with high expectations? maybe i got the wrong thing?
this place looks pretty legit, and definitely not as ghetto as other mexican food places i've been to. it was really crowded, which was a good sign, considering there's so many other similar places in the area.
$1.25/taco..not bad, pretty reasonable. i got 2 carne asada tacos, and i wasn't too thrilled with it. carne asada is my fave meat when i go to mexican places...but the carne asada here was sooo dry..maybe it was an off day? my friend told me i got the wrong meat and should've gotten something else.. =(
my bf got sopes here and i've only gotten sopes in san diego at this place famous for them, so it's the only place i have to compare it to ---and this does not hold a candle to the other place..the fried tortilla thing on the bottom tasted stale..
how did we get through this meal? with everything drenched in the spicy, delicious hot sauce, followed by many gulps of horchata to relieve the burningggggg! man, when everyone said the sauce was spicy, i thought they were just wimps that couldn't handle spicy..i was wrong...pretty spicy..lol BUT GOOD!
Celebrate Day of the Dead
Neighborhood: Chinatown
We Are Now Open For Dinner!
Neighborhood: South Los Angeles
Neighborhood: Pico Union
Category: Mexican
Neighborhood: Pico Union
Category: Restaurants
Los Angeles, CA
Category: Burgers
Los Angeles, CA
Category: Mexican
Neighborhood: South East LA
Category: Mexican
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