This remains our go-to when we're in the mood for Mexican food. On our most recent visit we had a…read morebunch of the family, so it was 6 adults and 2 kiddos. We got chips, queso, regular salsa, and hot-hot salsa. The chips are now a lighter type that is just as tasty but not quite as filling. I recommed the Margarita El Toreado-a shaker of the tasty beverage that will top off your glass 2-3 times. A couple of others in our group got the Sex on the Beach cocktail - a fruity blast of juices and alcohol. We got a variety of dinner times. I got the Spicy Burrito, which was very tasty, but not spicy...at least on this visit. My wife got the Seafood Enchilada, which was a nice slightly creamy dish. Others got the Arroz Con Pollo (her go-to), Texas Burrito, and 2 got the Carnitas Tacos (their favs). The kids got the Grilled Chicken - a nicely flavored dish, and the other tot got the Kids Enchilada - she ate the whole plate of enchilada, rice, and beans. Our food came out in just a few minutes, and the servers are always checking in and making sure your experience is great. There is indoor and outdoor seating, and they are always genuinely happy to see you! We'll keep coming back again and again!

Food is the great uniter and what better way to make us enjoy each other's company than a dish…read moreloaded with Street Tacos, Queso, Salsa and Fresh Chips at El Toreado. On Friday Night you can get your happy shoulder Shay on as you listen to the small live combo as you partake of your delicious meal in a very festive atmosphere. The wait staff watches to make sure you have everything to make your meal more enjoyable.

Saturday Night Dinner, this place should be busier! This was the best Mexican food. The chips and…read moresalsa were peak, best restaurant salsa, dare I say, that I've ever had. I had the Street Steak Tacos, my husband had the Quesa Birria Tacos. No notes. Also delish was the raspberry house margarita. Great staff, decor and ambiance. Check this place out.

Service was terrible and food was not hot. margaritas are…read moremade with cheap tequila and mixers but are $15. won't be back

Lived in Des Moines the majority of my life best place I have found. Always consistently good…read morehighly recommend anything on the menu.

We stopped in to waste some time before heading ti the airport. Really, we were dropping our…read morecollege kid off to head back to TX for his spring semester & mom needed a margarita! Margs were $1.99 (Sun/Mon). We ordered fajita nachos to share (we weren't really hungry) but were not disappointed. Our waitress Karina was amazing & we will DEF stop in again when in DSM.

My girlfriend introduced me to this restaurant about a year ago and I'm glad she did. We've gone at…read moreleast once a week since the first time she took me and every time has been just as good as the last. Everything I've ever ordered has been amazing. The chips are always warm and the salsas are very flavorful. The service is wonderful every time, always greeted with a smile and I've never had to wait to be waited on. Overall an amazing restaurant and my current spot I've been recommending to friends and family.

Very good. Salsa wasn't great but some may think otherwise. Service was great. Leftovers were…read moregood too. Thx

Mojito is a fun word to say and now a really good place to eat…read more Weekday evening was a perfect time to go. It in a strip mall area and we had driven by multiple times and finally getting in a stop. Our waitress was a sweetheart. I threw my typical questions at her and she was on top of it. Chips were warm and the salsa was perfect. She brought us our drink orders quickly. The blue margarita was a good suggestion. We enjoyed the chips and the drinks. We were taken aback when our meals arrived. Hubby ordered the CA burrito and it was bigger than this forearm! I ordered the steak chimichanga and it also was way more than I imagined it would be. We both enjoyed our meals. We both were so full that I feel like we were going to have to be rolled out of there. The menus are huge. There is no excuse not to find anything. The restaurant is decent sized, with music playing like you come to expect in a Mexican restaurant. I think it was the manager who came out and checked on us to make sure we were doing alright. We decided that we would be back sooner than later. The price was right and it ended up being another meal for both of us.

Went with a group of friends. Had a great time. Fast attentive service. Great portions. Great food…read more Everyone loved their meals and drinks. No complaints. Would recommend.

Back again! Plenty of parking outside on an early afternoon…read more We stopped back for another company lunch. This time I checked out the lunch menu. I found what will probably be my go to going forward. We were seated close to the bar. This was also a little closer to the kitchen and were attended to right away. The chips and salsa hit the table right away and we ordered up the guacamole and the queso. Everyone is always really nice and helpful. TVs on over the bar and music plays. I ordered the Huevos con Chorizo this time. Two scrambled eggs with chorizo, Mexican sausage, served with rice and beans. I had them hold the beans. Food came fast again. I was doing the happy food dance my eggs were so good. Once again, an all around great experience. 3 times out of 3 so far.

My daughter told me about this place because she and her friends like to come for margaritas. I…read morelike new places so we decided to give it a shot. Plain and simple, I like this place. It's nothing fancy. Friendly and fast service. It had Mexican music playing on the speakers but it was more of a pop/rock Mexican, not the typical music you usually hear in establishments like this. I enjoyed it. Great Mexican beer on tap for what I thought was reasonable prices. Chips and salsa are good. You have to get the Hildago Molcajete. Huge, temperature hot, layers of different stuff, fantastic. Plenty of leftovers. True molcajete served in the stone bowl. No restaurant is cheap anymore. But this place is pretty reasonably priced, and I thought the food is as good as any other local Mexican restaurant

We stopped at El Mariachi in Johnston around 6:30 and sat out on the patio, where a house swallow…read moreloudly judged us the entire time. Honestly, the patio ambiance is always pretty good here, bird commentary included. Service was a little slow, and we had to work harder than we should have just to get water, but our waiter was fine overall. Nothing bad, just nothing exceptional either. The complimentary chips and salsa were very good, and I love that they have El Yucateco sauces on the table if you want to spice things up a bit. I had the Chipotle Tacos with chicken for $13, which came with rice and beans. Kim had the #7 combo for $11, with one burrito, one enchilada, and one taco. Both meals were good, but the chicken in my tacos and Kim's burrito was seriously excellent. Tender, flavorful, and probably the best part of the meal. Kim had a small frozen raspberry house margarita for $6.25, and I had a jumbo house margarita on the rocks for $8. The house margaritas were the one thing I would probably upgrade next time. They were very sweet and not quite the stronger margarita flavor I usually prefer. They do offer several premium margarita options, so I suspect that is probably the better route if the drink is a big part of the visit. But they definitely ask premium prices! Our total bill with tip was about $54, which felt fair for two meals, chips and salsa, and two margaritas. Overall, good food, great chicken, nice patio vibe, and a solid casual stop -- just maybe spring for the upgraded margaritas if you have the cash.

4.6* (out of 5) Food: 5* Atmosphere: 4* Value: 4*…read more Service: 5* Would I go back / Recommend?: 5* (Definitely) Total check/person: $31 04/18/2026 This place has been on my Want to Go list for a while after seeing a recommendation in a publication. The first time we stopped by a number of years ago, we decided against going in due to there not being many cars in the parking lot. That was definitely not the case last night - the parking lot was nearly full and we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table, as they were quite busy. Needless to say, we left quite happy to have stopped - as we really enjoyed the experience. Our initial indicators of a good Mexican restaurant starts with their margaritas and then their chips and salsa. They passed it both areas - as both were above average. We started with a Spicy Jalapeno Margarita (see picture) from the bar while we waited for our table. It was good, but wasn't very spicy. The chips and salsa (see picture) were very good - tasty, fresh salsa that was thick enough to stay on your chips and crispy tortilla chips with enough oil to indicate they were fried fresh. For our meals, my wife ordered the Tacos Carne Asada (see picture), while I opted for the Tacos Carne Asada (see picture) - both based on our waiter Omar's recommendation. Omar was great - loved his recommendations, had a great sense of humor and was quite attentive to our needs! As stated, both my wife and I loved our plates - and yes, we shared with each other as always to both confirm. The only change I made to my plate was requesting corn tortillas - as I much prefer them to flour. I just can't say enough about both plates - not only did we REALLY like them, but there was plenty to bring home for another meal. If you found this review helpful, please show your appreciation with a Like or a Follow. Photos copyright: happyhourdesmoines.com & thefoodanddrinkguy.com

I had the Tacos Alambres, and they were amazing. Great flavors, and the portions were huge. Staff…read morewas very friendly and attentive. The restaurant looks very nice, with the murals on the walls and other Mexican decorations.

Had driven by multiple times decided to stop for dinner on a Friday night and sure glad I did…read more Very attentive server with a cool setup inside of the restaurant. Our table ordered : Chrriopollo - was best I've had in metro Chicken enchilada- feedback was very good Watermelon margarita - could tell was fresh not syrup One additional observation was the meal wasn't dripping in cheese / sour cream / slop like many metro Mexican restaurant rather the flavors spoke for themselves Overall Toro Loco will be in our rotation for future stops.