Bar Luchador

"Best Nachos in the World" claims the menu and they aren't lying! I recently visited Bar Luchador on a Saturday afternoon for margaritas and tacos. To be perfectly honest I wasn't expecting much from from this Dinkytown bar known as the pride of the Stadium Village Mall. The service here was outstanding. OUTSTANDING! Our server Aiden was awesome. He was friendly, attentive and came loaded with plenty of recommendations and made some killer drinks!

As to be expected the drinks were cheaply priced and I'm not complaining. A small but decent tap selection ranging between $4.50-$6.00 per pint was accompanied by a nice little speciality cocktail menu including margaritas as well as a few different whisky drinks and vodka drinks between $6.00-$8.00 each. Their Spicy Margarita made with habanero infused Altos Plata tequila (absolutely amazing with just the right amount of heat to dance on your tongue yet still be refreshing).

With a claim like "Best Nachos in the World" I absolutely had to try them even though I originally planned on only sampling the tacos. Boy I'm glad I did. We ordered the "Chilaquiles Nachos" which was a full tray piled high and loaded with Achiote Chicken, Queso Fresco, Pickled Peppers and Cilantro. The chips come tossed in a Tomatillo and Avocado sauce which was kinda messy but freaking delicious. We opted to pay the addition $.50 for an extra hit of the hot sauce which I feel could have been a little spicier but still not a disappointment at all. Tacos were also delicious. I tried the Chorizo, the Pastor, the Fish and the Buffalo Shrimp. All unique and delicious in their own way. I would recommend the Pastor, it's a classic.

Absolutely cannot wait for another visit.

The nachos are delicious! And are a great size to share with a group of people. Margaritas and mojitos are definitely not watered down at all and are dangerously delicious. My favorite tacos are the fried chicken and fried shrimp tacos and you can choose corn or flour tortillas.

Last time I went, I ordered a fried chicken torta. It used to be on their main menu but I think they have since moved it to a "weekly special". The aioli sauce that comes with the fry was so deli ious, and thr sandwich itself was very crunchy. It was very heavily breaded but the pickled veggies in it balanced the bread out.

Bar Luchador is always a must when we want the best nachos in Minneapolis. This time we tried the quesadilla. The carnitas is amazing with the caramelized onions. The rice is super tasty.
They need to create a Spotify playlist.

You're a student on the UMN campus, craving Mexican food and a good cocktail. You've just finished finals, happy hour is calling, and you and your friends are free. If you're smart, you'd be at Bar Luchador.

The above scenario was me when I was in college, but thankfully, you don't have to be in college to go to Bar Luchador - there is street parking around the area, but nothing about the place screams college bar. Sure, many of your fellow diners may be college students, but the drinks are anything but young and flashy. The margarita is sweet and tangy enough to keep you awake after a long day of work, and the mojito is refreshing with the right amount of bite from the mint. But my personal favorite, the Paloma, is a steal for $5 and has that perfect bitter punch that will keep you coming back for more.

The tacos are okay, nothing to write home about, and the Luchador nachos could use some more toppings. The quesadillas are pretty good, nice and flavorful, and fairly large servings for the price. But Bar Luchador is a bar first, restaurant later, an attitude that clearly shows with their fantastic mixed drinks.

My bestie and I were seeking some eats before heading to the airport to catch our flight home to Denver. Being the taco-fiend that I am (hi, my name is Carly P and I have a taco addiction), I picked Bar Luchador... So what are the odds that the day my friends and I chose to check out Bar Luchador, they would be doing an Italian pop-up dinner? Slim right? Well it totally happened!

We walked in (right past the sign on the door announcing the special dinner) and were greeted by delish smelling food and red and white checked table cloths. We sat down and browsed the menu only to realize it was not the Mexican-fare we were expecting. We inquired with the waiter and he explained that once a month they do a "pop-up" dinner, where the feature a special menu created by a guest chef. Fun! Though disappointing for us. He was very kind about the situation and said that he wouldn't hold it against us if we left. We chose to stay.

We ordered a couple Margarita's (one regular and one spicy) and a beer for starters. For our main dishes we chose two Meatball Grinders and Geoff's Cream Pasta. Everything was super tasty! My spicy Margarita and Meatball Grinder were a bit of an odd couple pair, but they tasted great! The Meatball grinder was large and filling. While my spicy Margarita had just the right amount of heat. Geoff's Cream Pasta featured some delish homemade noodles, cream sauce, and parmesan bread crumbs. They left out the sweet corn at my friends request. We were all thoroughly satisfied with our meals.

The server caught me sneaking some pictures of the luchador pop art pictures on the walls and let me know that the luchadors featured are actually the owner and the bartender that are amateur luchadors! How fun is that! They were also playing a WWE match on the tvs. Apparently my bestie has never seen WWE and was slightly horrified. Def loved the candid info!

Literally the only reason I am knocking off a star is because I didn't get a chance to experience their usual menu! I just can't give a business a 5-star rating when I didn't get to savor their "typical" menu.

Bar Luchador is at the TOP of my list to check out during my next visit to Minneapolis. Gotta get me some of those bomb-dot-com tacos!

**Pro Tip: Follow them on Facebook to stay in the loop about their pop-up dinners! I def recommend checking them out!

I remember when this place used to be Campus Pizza, a cheesey casual place you could go to hang out and do karaoke, so when I stepped in here for the first time since Bar luchador moved on in, it was an interesting feeling. I like what they have done with the place but the bathroom has not changed lol.

Let's get to the main stuff, the food. So I am not really a taco person but I have read about this place and it's solid reviews convinced me to give it a try. Not to mention its Cinco de mayo so a friend and I checked it out.

To start, we had the chips and quacamole! Chips were crunchy, nice, and salty. The quacamole was a good portion but too cold at first, so I waited for a bit for it to get to room temperature.

I had the Horchata and a fried chicken taco. The waitress asked if I wanted a corn or flour toco and I got the flour, nice and soft. I loved my fried chicken taco. The flavor was great and I didn't need anything else.

Super quick service, I had to ask did they had a Jeanie back there because once we ordered with the waitress, another person swung around with our food.

Damn! This spot was so good!

That chorizo queso? The pitcher of margaritas? The tacos? All delicious. Great service, food came wildly fast, and it was all bomb. 10/10.

Probably the best grande nachos on campus! There are so many different great restaurants in the area, but if you want a spicy margarita and some nachos... this is your place! Very affordable. Great daily specials. Always a great environment!

Have been here twice and wasn't disappointed either time, but still didn't get the "I can't wait to come back here" vibe at all when I was leaving. The first time I wanted to try it since I heard good things, the second time friends picked the place and I tagged along for company.

I love the fried chicken taco, so if I came back I would only get that. I also tried the fish taco and it was pretty good, but for non-authentic fish tacos I'd rather opt for the real deal somewhere else. The guac here is decent, probably would give it a 3.5/5. It tastes somewhat fresh, but doesn't have a ton of flavor. The chips they use are good and unique, somewhat fluffy yet crispy.

The best thing on the menu (bang for buck and good shareable) is the nachos. You can split this with another person for a meal-- that's how much food you get. I split it with two friends and we also split an order of three tacos and I was incredibly full after all of that food.

We also went during happy hour and decided to try some drinks. The Yarder was listed as a "boozy Arnold Palmer" but tasted NOTHING like an Arnold Palmer-- just black tea with alcohol! Wouldn't recommend at all. Also tasted a friend's mojito-- let's just say I wish I didn't drink anything at all over dinner.

We went to @barluchador last night and took part in @icantbelieveitsveganmpls #4. They sure didn't disappoint! We tried a number of items but one was the Lemongrass Meatball Banh Mi. The sweet chili glazed impossible meatballs were laid on a perfectly toasted bun with sriracha mayo, spicy pickles, & a four herb blend. It was absolutely delicious! Savory, a little sweet and a great crunch/crisp to the meatballs. Loved them! Highly recommend their vegan options!!