I really wanted to like this restaurant more, but unfortunately had an overall disappointing experience here at Barrio Tacos. The concept of this restaurant is that you use a pencil and paper to select your taco or taco bowl toppings and options. You can get a pre-made bowl or taco too based on the chef's recommendation. It's a nice trendy location with a full-scale bar, but the vibe definitely feels more casual. While the wait staff was really nice, unfortunately kitchen service was extremely slow. We ordered a few burrito bowls and tacos, but had to wait over half an hour to forty-five minutes for our food since they ran out of rice. The free chips and salsa while we were waiting made the wait a little more bearable. After the long wait, the food was unfortunately not tasty. The bowl was in a standard chipotle size burrito bowl, but was pretty much smushed to the bottom of the bowl and only filled half of the depth. Overall, the meat and toppings were sparse. The food wasn't that expensive, but I could have gotten a much better experience at a fast casual burrito bowl place. So all-in-all, Barrio Tacos was lackluster. I wish I could say I had a better experience. read more

Everything about our experience tonight was disappointing. From the moment we sat down, service was extremely slow despite the restaurant not being busy. We waited a long time just to place our order, and by the time our food arrived, we already needed to ask for drink refills. My sister ordered a flight of margaritas with different flavors, but unfortunately every single one tasted overwhelmingly like triple sec, with very little of the advertised flavors coming through. We also ordered the Tres Amigos appetizer. The queso had a very odd texture, and the corn salsa was essentially just corn and cilantro with very little else. For my meal, I ordered the Bacon Ranch taco, but I'm honestly still not sure what I was served. The chicken's color seemed off, it was very tough, and I ended up not eating it. Overall, between the slow service and the disappointing food, this was a very poor experience. We won't be returning to Barrio. read more

The Margaritas were good, they have a Thursday special for a $10 flight! Our server was very nice and attentive with our table of 10 people. The only downside was the food, I got a rice bowl with chicken and various toppings; the rice was clumpled in balls and the chicken had no flavor, the slaw in the bowl was good. I would go back for the drinks but not the food read more

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This was one of my newly saved restaurants that me and my cousin share in our foodies chat on IG and the bartender confirmed today that's it's only been open for about a month or so. On a random Tuesday out of office, I decided to stop by and have a solo lunch date. Make sure to read the El Jefe Loco Taco Review at the bottom It's a pretty large contemporary looking space, and I decided to sit at the bar so that I was in close proximity to the bartender. There are two types of menus; one where you can build your own tacos or bowls, and the other that has an already curated menu. I was hungry so I took the lazy route. I ordered the El jefe Loco and the La Tierra. While waiting for my food to come out, I did get some chips and salsa and ordered the margarita flight with the passionfruit, mango, and pineapple flavors. For the rim, I was able to select a ginger, cayenne, and I forgot the last flavor. But it's pretty cool that you could select different flavor rims too. The La Tierra taco has a portobello mushroom and pan steak, which was pretty good. Now the El jefe Loco caught me off guard. I took a bite of that taco and began chewing. And they got the loco part right. I nearly lost my mind at the flavors. I couldn't eat that taco fast enough. I didn't want to waste any part of it. Every piece of meat, particles and juice that remained, I scooped up with the chips I had from my chips and dip. I don't know made the chef decide to put this flavorful, addictive concoction together, but this was easily the best taco that I've eaten all year and my taste buds were so happy about that decision. I've eaten a lot of tacos from a lot of different places. Unfortunately, I haven't reviewed all of them, but I REFUSE to pass up this review. So I will be returning, and this time I know better than to get just one of those. But I know I need to try the other tacos on the menu too. read more

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Worth the Try! Went in on a Friday night around 10pm totally expecting a wait but to my surprise it was slow. The bartender explained the "Char-Grill" ordering concept where you check-off what you want. There's a fixed menu and a build your own taco menu. Complimentary chips and salsa. I ordered La Tierra and El Jefe Loco tacos from the fixed menu. Both tacos were soft and hard shells (double tortillas), it ended up being a mouth full as the toppings are loaded in as well. The flavors were awesome, the caramelized onions and cilantro-lime sauce elevated the steak. I wish the steak would have been cut smaller. El Jefe Taco was my favorite of the two, the chorizo, chicken, corn and honey chipotle bbq all paired together nicely. I also had the build your own margarita flight, tons of flavors and salt rim options. For flavors I had the lychee, passionfruit and blackberry. One had a hibiscus-salt rim and the other two had ginger-sugar. Ginger-sugar was my favorite! Super friendly staff, food came out quickly, fresh and hot. I'll be back for the build my own tacos next! read more

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A new option for tacos and Mexican in Raleigh, Barrio Tacos offers up a slightly commercial version of Mexican-American eats. The first location in NC for this Ohio-based chain, Barrio Tacos sits in a prominent corner of Smoky Hollow. Inside it's bright, high energy with some colorful murals. The menu offers up a handful of appetizers, a selection of house tacos and then BYOT (build your own taco) options. You check off boxes on a paper slip and then hand it over to your server. I tried the queso-salso chips appetizer along with some dub shell tacos (soft tortilla, queso, hard shell taco). Portion sizes are solid, the taste/ingredients are pretty good if not super memorable. Overall a good option for tacos in the Glenwood South district but let's face it, the competition is super stiff right now for this genre of sit-down, slightly upscale Mexican eats. read more

Barrio Tacos - Tacos Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

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I was not impressed with this place! I ordered four tacos and a red oak beer, it took at least 15 minutes for my beer to arrive, and around 30 minutes for the tacos. The tacos were the greasiest tacos I have ever eaten in my life! They were literally dripping with grease, which was odd because it didn't even look like there was that much meat in them. The flavor wasn't the best either. They claimed they were short staffed, which may be true but there's really no excuse for not draining the grease off the taco meat before putting it in the tacos! I really don't think I would come back here. read more

Barrio Tacos - Tacos Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

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We tried Barrio for lunch recently. They do have table service but you select what you want on a notepad. The waiter will give you the rundown but there is brunch, build your own, and their own selection of special tacos. Here is where I will tell you to absolutely order the chicken bacon ranch. It is like a Gordita with both a soft and crunchy shell and the flavor combo was killer! You do receive free chips and Roja salsa but they have a plethora of other dips. There is plentiful seating inside and they have a lovely bar and we will definitely be returning for dinner and a margarita! read more

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We came here on a Monday afternoon after returning our U-Haul truck just down the road. The drinks here are great and after trying the food, I'm convinced you should just come here for drinks. The queso was not good. The queso with meat wasn't good. The tacos were strange, containing chip crumbs and corn. I just don't think they tasted particularly good or bad. I would return but only for the drinks. The bartender was excellent and very personable. read more

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Great ambiance. Amazing location. Stopped by during opening week. Probably worse beans I've ever had, the rice was a let down, the Cod taco was 75% pineapple and fruits meanwhile there was very little fish. The Chicken Bacon Ranch Taco was a HIT! Worth trying again forsure! read more

I have visited Barrio a few times now and was not that impressed. I like their beverage options, I've tried a pint of beer, the mocktails and a casa margarita on the rocks. The hot honey guacamole is delicious. The thing that I was not impressed with are the tacos. I wish that they were street sized so I could order more than one to try. I've tried the codfather and el jefe loco and they were both okay. I was going to try one of the tacos on special during my last visit but they were out of one of the main ingredients. They do offer good daily specials and food specials so it's worth checking out. read more

As a Cleveland native, I can't tell you how excited I am to have barrio in Raleigh! The queso and margaritas are THE BEST! You can choose from their specialty tacos or make your own, you can't go wrong either way! They have a nice vibe with walls designed by a Cleveland artist and in a great location! read more

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I wish I would have gotten everyone's names. The bartender was great. The manager was great! The food was amazing. I ordered the crunchy chipotle chicken taco and did a build my own. Absolutely freaking delicious! I sat at the bar top and enjoyed the company. I came in with a heavy heart and left feeling like I could take on the world! I appreciate them for being great people and providing excellent customer service! read more

Barrio Tacos - Crunchy chicken taco - Tacos Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

The ordering system was confusing and when asked the server how it works, we got a very quiet and short answer that didn't explain much. We were the only people in here and the service was still slow. The food itself was pretty good. We got chips and queso and then two tacos each. read more

As two Midwest natives (he's from Cleveland, I'm from "somewhere nearby but with better casseroles"), imagine our shock when I stumbled across a Barrio right here in Raleigh. I literally had to do a double take mid-scroll. I sent my boyfriend the reel like, "Wait... that's not THE Cleveland Barrio, right?!" A few frantic Google searches later, we realized it is, in fact, the real deal, cue us sprinting out the door like we'd just heard "free queso." The verdict? 10/10. The vibe isn't a carbon copy of the CLE spots, but the tacos taste exactly like we remember (aka amazing). The pineapple salsa? Non-negotiable. It's the Beyoncé of toppings: always steals the show. We sat at the bar and met our bartender, Stephanie (yes, elite name choice ), who was super sweet and gave us tons of local recs for newbies. We left with full stomachs and a Raleigh bucket list. Multitasking at its finest. It was a little quiet inside, which honestly just means more tacos for us, but seriously... Raleigh, wake up! You're snoozing on something special here. Oh, and the patio? Dog-friendly. So yes, my pup can now enjoy patio vibes while I eat my weight in tacos. Win-win. read more

We came for margaritas with the plan of coming back for tacos. Not good. The poor bartender was extremely overwhelmed and when she finally got to our drinks one was wrong and one was tiny. She was measuring each shot and not filling them (likely bc of how backed up everything was) but my rocks glass had about 90% ice and was an inch from being filled. Three sips and it was gone. Everything seemed very chaotic. We live close by and were looking for a new spot but this was a let down for sure. read more

Not bad but not great either. I had the coco loco to drink which was good flavor and the ginger/sugar rim was delicious but the drink was very heavy with ice so that was the only downside. For food I got the La Tierra and Chicken Bacon Ranch tacos, the La Tierra was delicious and flavorful and had a good portion of steak. The chicken bacon ranch was not that great. Chicken was good but the pico de gallo wasn't. Everyone at the table ended up scraping off the pico from their tacos. It was made with big cubes of what was maybe old squishy tomatoes and there was lack of flavor. Maybe it was the batch that day, not sure if it's usually like that. Each taco was between $5-7 and they're pretty big. We also had the ballpark nachos which were pretty good. read more

Barrio Tacos - La Tierra and Chicken bacon ranch - Tacos Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

Barrio Tacos is a new gem in downtown Raleigh's Smoky Hollow District! The Green Goddess taco is absolutely to die for--you have to try it. I love how customizable the menu is, with endless options to add whatever you'd like to your tacos. The staff is friendly and welcoming, and the outdoor patio is very dog-friendly, which makes it a great spot to relax and enjoy good food. Oh, and I almost forgot... The margaritas are delicious! read more

We came here on a Saturday for lunch. I saw about 4 servers/ one bartender and about 25 guests total in the restaurant. We ordered our drinks and food within 10 minutes of sitting down. Looking around me everyone was waiting on something. Food, drinks, refills etc. it had been 40 minutes and I didn't even have my beer. I go up to the bartender and ask if I could get my beer real quick. She has attitude with me and tells me she's super backed up and whenever it is ready it will come out. She had four guests at the bar... I work in a restaurant and I know how weeded we can get but to grab a beer takes 5 seconds. I went back to my table and could hear the bartender talking shit about me to a coworker saying "do you not see my bar" basically yelling. I wanted to speak to a manager but that pronnaly would've taken 30 minutes to get one over. I will not be returning!!! read more

I walked in, saw there was 3 people at the bar already enjoying food and drinks. Relatively empty in my opinion. I sat at the bar, wasn't greeted for several minutes, when the bartender finally addressed that I was there, she said "are you still doing ok?" As if I had been helped already. The food was great but the service was average at best. read more

First off. Yikes. Decided to try a new spot and it failed so hard. I ordered two tacos and they came out with room temp meat. Waitress tried to say it was because of the cold salsa but I know what room temp meat is like, not an ounce of my food was even warm. She offered to make new ones but did not offer to remove them from the bill. I don't like sending food back, so I didn't eat dinner. I asked for the check and she just came over with the tap to pay machine. I tapped and tipped and thank goodness I asked for a printer receipt after I paid. Turned out I was charged for two margarita flights (we drank water). So then she voids that transaction and came back saying "this f%#*ing day" in front of my child. Honestly not sure why I tipped her 20%. She was nice enough besides the cursing in front of my kid and not comping the cold food. They only had three tables occupied (should have been a clue). My kid wanted nachos and he liked his food so at least there was that. It will be out of business soon. You want good Mexican near by go to La Santa or La Mala or Gym Tacos. Adios Barrio read more

Amazing food and fabulous drinks. Good vibes. Mackenzie and Tiffany behind the bar made excellent recommendations and cocktails. The Lalo classic margarita and the bacon jam queso are the closest to heaven Ive ever been. Definitely will be back. read more

The service here is really fast and pretty nice but the food is a 2 out of 10. The tacos are insanely greasy. My friend didn't finish her food. I finished my Smashburger taco and my stomach has been on BS bubbly since. I picked the place out because the ambience seemed nice, definitely let down. unfortunately won't be back, you can definitely make better tacos at home. read more

There's not too many places in Raleigh that's actually tasty and delicious. But this place is definitely one of them! I love their unique takes on different style tacos and they're really good. For them to taste good as take out I can only imagine how good they are in person! Highly recommend! I had the Smashburger taco and La Terria taco. And the churro cheesecake! all so good read more

Absolutely loved our visit -- the tacos were packed with flavor, the drinks were perfect, and the vibe was great. We'll definitely be back!

Barria Tacos is one of our favorite Raleigh restaurants. Its has great tasting food and lively ambiance! Perfect for all taco lovers.

Great menu. The flavors are complex and delicious! I enjoyed the margarita flight; I was happy to not have to drive.

Stopped in on a Friday night - been to Barrio in Cleveland and it was awesome so we were excited when we saw it was opening in Raleigh so we could get some Green Goddess Tacos back in our lives. Overall, it was a very underwhelming experience. I know that they are new so we will give them 6 months or so to work out the kinks and will try again at a later date. It wasn't that busy and we were sat right away but it took a very long time for tacos to come out and when they did - they were stone cold. Not the Barrio experience we had hoped for. read more

Food is mediocre. Service is terrible. Ordering process cumbersome. We won't be going back again.

Strongly recommend the Blackened Cod bowl, it's delicious! Great Ambiance! .

Creative menu, fun ambiance, and everything tastes amazing. The queso and chips were fantastic--don't skip them! Definitely, will be coming back. read more

Great drinks, and great service! Recommend the trios when it comes to dips, and margs. Bartender was super helpful in helping with our complex margarita orders! Definitely a great place to hangout at. Will be coming back. read more

love the food here and the ambience. there service was very good. their margaritas are the best!