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El Aguila

4.1 (252 reviews)
InexpensiveMexican, Salad
Open • 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

Order El Aguila Takeout or Delivery

El Aguila Photos

Business Info

EL AGUILA ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Good for kids
Outdoor seating

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Recommended Reviews - El Aguila

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chicken taco  steak taco al pastor taco
Junior C.

El Aguila NYC east harlem Chicken taco 2.7/5 Hella dry and boring I have no idea why they even serve this other than they have the chicken and tortilla its the poor losers fault for ordering this anyways I m sure they use that chicken for something better than the tacos Steak taco - was recommended Solid - was told it was a little fatty and that was true. It's p good though slightly above avg. not much to say about this 3/5 Al pastor taco 3.8/5 This taco was pretty good. I would definitely recommend coming here for this taco with the pineapples . Tortillas 3.3/5 I am not the tortilla whisperer this was def a vibe check for a score idk all i know is I've had a lot better and I've had significantly better so this is probably just a lil below significantly better Toppings - 3/5 Nothing crazy just standard Service - 3.8/5 I know what I said up top but this should let you know how much I care about service Price - 4.5/5 This price scoring is so arbitrary or wtv didn't even want to make this but everyone includes pricing in their scoring so Ill do it too. (This mindset is why the US still uses the imperial system btw)

Chicken tacos with verde salsa
saba k.

Decent spot right outside the 103 station. Good prices. Tamales were good but nothing special. Chicken tacos were good as well but they forgot the salsa and pico that comes with it (had to add). Pinto beans are fire tho. They have great portions for the price, however nothing is really special/missing something.

Goat taco  Pastor taco  Carnitas
Linh V.

Was a bit weary walking into this joint. Some lights are unlit on the awning. The surrounding area look unappealing. But do not judge this book by its cover. El Aguila has some good af tacos. Not the cheapest at $3-$4 ranges but they make it up in being a sizable taco with legit salsas. Had: Carnitas - not bland as usual. Use the red sauce. Fish taco - my favorite out of all. A lot of fish filling. Chivo Goat - unique filling texture is undefeated. Tamale - $2! Good filling to tamale ratio. I ate it with green salsa. Staff is friendly. Locations clean and there's small seating for quick bites eating or quiet low key hangout/date. Very happy to have stopped by here!

Steak Asada taco (grilled steak)
Cassie D.

Soo good. So mad at myself for not trying it sooner, went in for the second time for steak tacos, good both times. The service was okay

Joan S.

I got delivery from El Aguila, which was super fast. The taste was good but the meat was, unfortunately, all dry, which really took away from the enjoyability of the food. I ordered the following off of UberEats: -Non-spicy marinated pork taco (Pastor) ($3) -Roasted pork taco ($3) -Grilled Beef Chopped Steak Taco ($4) -Fresh Grilled Chicken Taco ($3) The portions were great and I was stuffed by the third taco.

Steak taco - dry and overcooked
Lisa F.

Menu changes and quality of their tacos have declined substantially over the last six months. I love finding hidden treasures, gems, undiscovered neighborhoods and even divey hole in the wall places with incredible food. A couple years ago I thought of this place as that, an amazing, authentic Mexican spot for great tacos, and had a five star review drafted. The first time there, a customer in line said he came from another borough occasionally just to get their unmatchable tacos including beef tongue and another interesting type of taco I never had. I was feeling brave so tried his recommendations which were so tender, juicy and delicious. When I visited once during COVID, the menu selection was the same but prices went up, which was fine. However, the recent visit, the menu had changed, and the delicious, interesting tacos were no longer on the menu (citing the beef tongue was too expensive). I ordered three tacos including the steak, fish, and pork: the pork taco was good, the fish taco was decent, and the steak taco was overcooked and dry. The chips were both stale and so greasy the grease seeped through the the bag they were in; and the guacamole was saucy and not good. One thing they still have that I like is the light green moderately spicy sauce for the tacos that is incredible. I would recommend keeping the interesting taco and burrito options and charging more for them. And keeping things fresh like they did in the past. Disappointing downturn for what was a fantastic, authentic divey spot for tacos.

Counter where you order
Christine A.

What's someone from the Lower East Side doing up here? Going to the Museum of the History of New York. And stopping by El Aguila for a taco lunch. I had the al pastor and fish tacos, and some ice cold horchata. Yum! Al pastor was moist with obvious pineapple pieces. Fish was fried tilapia I think. They had a nice selection of sauces. For NYC Mexican, this place is better than most. It's super casual. Kind of like a Mexican diner with a menu that includes breakfast options. It's a step above a dive--a small step. People were coming and going. The service was nice and fast. The place is clean. The decor makes you feel you're in Mexico. It's not fancy, but good tacos.

As pastor taco ($3) (and torta in the background)
Annuschka B.

I've had this place saved for ages but never visited because most of the people in my small COVID-safe circle have lived in Cali and don't trust NYC Mexican food. Finally got to try and I am so impressed. While the Al Pastor meat is a bit non-traditional, it's still flavorful and tender. The pineapple could be a little more ripe but at least it's fresh and not canned pineapple. They double up on the corn tortillas for the tacos and don't skimp on toppings. Tacos are $3 and the torta $6.99. The plain cheese quesadilla is only $2! And comes with avocado/salad/tomato on the side. The vegetarian tamales (jalapeños & cheese) are by far my favorite and only $1.50! Such an amazing deal. Note that their hot sauces are HOT. First time we got the red sauce and almost didn't enjoy the meal. The second time we got the green (medium) sauce and still had to be careful. In the end I had one of my Cali transplants confirm this is the best Mexican food in NYC!

Carnitas burrito
Anna L.

El Aguila has become my favorite place to get tacos. And they are still open during the quarantine. Most of the taco toppings are an additional cost except for onions, cilantro, and lime, but it tastes delicious just with the basic toppings. They also have four different hot sauces that are complimentary. I love the double corn tortillas and the tender, juicy carnitas. Best carnitas ever! The carnitas and lengua tacos are my go-tos.

al pastor taco and a tamale.

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7 months ago

Food was not worth the cost, feels like it was fiated. There was a cost for the condiments and the experience felt rush.

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3 years ago

Great burritos at reasonable prices! The spicy sauce is amazing and all the ingredients are very fresh! A regular!

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3 years ago

Outstanding tacos, burritos and everything else we ordered. The price was right as well!

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2 years ago

Probably the best burritos I've had in my lifetime. Very authentic as far as I can tell and great ambiance.

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Azara Kitchen - West African Sauce Clair stew with fufu.

Azara Kitchen

4.5(77 reviews)
1.3 mi•Harlem

I actually discovered Azara by chance! I ran into a woman on the street who asked if I had been…read morethere, knowing I'm a foodie. I told her I hadn't, and she highly recommended it, especially the grilled branzino. She said, "You have to try it," and after that recommendation, I knew that was going to be my dinner! I'm so glad I listened. The branzino was cooked to perfection and packed with flavor. The mashed potatoes were whipped beautifully, the plantains were delicious, and the grilled spinach was incredibly flavorful with just the right amount of garlic... exactly how I like it! The restaurant itself is super quaint and cozy, and the staff were warm, friendly, and helpful. My date had the lamb chops and absolutely loved them as well. It was such a lovely dining experience, and I left completely satisfied. I'll definitely be going back before I leave New York. If you're looking for a cozy spot with delicious, flavorful food and great service, I highly recommend Azara!

Clean, welcoming atmosphere. Beautifully decorated space. Both staff members that took care of us…read morewere kind and courteous. Onto the food, overall we really enjoyed our first time trying West African/ Nigerian food. We really liked the fried branzino with jollof rice, plantains and spicy sauce (atteike poisson). The two fish pieces were rather small, I'd recommend just ordering the whole branzino (Cassandra's poisson). In fact, we preferred this over fufu with Egussi soup. There is a bitter aftertaste for the egussi soup that I couldn't overcome. Trying fufu was a fun experience and I would try it again with a different kind of blend. Our egussi with fufu came with only a few small pieces of goat meat. I shared this with the staff and he came back with more goat meat on the house, the egussi blend was out which explained the low quantity of meat. We feel like this could be checked by the chef before serving. There were two instances of disturbance during our meal but the staff was super calm and handled the situations well. I did feel bad when the older woman wasted the staff's time ordering fufu, not liking it without trying it then asking for chicken soup and then not wanting it and just walking out.

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Azara Kitchen - Tender steak slices on a toasted baguette with caramelized onions, arugula, and tangy aioli. Served with crispy fries, it's a bold,

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Archer & Goat

Archer & Goat

4.4(262 reviews)
0.9 mi•Harlem
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I'm surprised I've never written a review for this place considering how often I come here. It's…read moreeasily one of my favorite neighborhood spots in Harlem. The vibe is chill, relaxed, and very neighborhood-friendly. Even when it's busy, it never feels overwhelming, and they're usually very accommodating with walk-ins. The service is also some of the best I've experienced in Harlem. My go-to is the roasted duck, which is consistently excellent. It's cooked medium to medium-rare and comes with mango, onions, vegetables, and greens. Easily one of my favorite dishes in the neighborhood. The drinks are great too. I recently had the Nas, their take on a Manhattan, and it was incredibly smooth--one of the best whiskey cocktails I've had in a while. Overall, 10/10. A hidden gem on Lenox between 119th and 120th and definitely one of the best spots in Harlem.

Came in for NY Restaurant week! Ordered the Sage Knees and the Crime of Passion for our drinks…read more(both were enjoyed). We both had Brussel Sprouts, good, but the bites without the sauce did taste like bland Brussel sprouts. I had the lamb ribs, very good. They do warn you before that the ribs have a bit of fat on them, I think in the context of NY restaurant week I'm happy to pay it but as a solo entree, the amount of fat vs meat would have annoyed me. My friend had the duck, she enjoyed it. But it is very much salad with a side of duck, I believe she had 6 pieces of duck (pictured) and then a mango, arugula and onion salad. Dessert was very good, but I do hope those are not the usual portion sizes and maybe they just served smaller for NY restaurant week. Which I really didn't mind as I was full from the entree and sprouts. Servers were really nice, this place seems to have its regulars and a nice garden sitting area towards the back. Would overall recommend

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Archer & Goat - NYC Restaurant Week Winter 2026

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The Edge Harlem - Dark Cocoa: (Listed As A Mousse- But It's More Like A Pudding)

The Edge Harlem

4.1(869 reviews)
2.0 mi•Harlem
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Amazing food selections, excellent customer service, great vibe amongst staff and customers…read more The ambiance is comfortable and inviting. The owners are amazing. Great for date night, family or girls/boyz night out.

The Edge's menu purports to blend "the flavors of Jamaica & England with a little New York…read moreattitude." My friend and I were excited to try the Jamaican side of the menu. We started with drinks. She ordered the passion fruit margarita and I went with the tamarind mango margarita. We were told the margaritas are made with a wine based cocktail instead of tequila or mezcal since the restaurant only serves beer and wine. We've never had margaritas made with wine before, which should have been our first clue to skip the cocktails. Unfortunately we were feeling adventurous and neither of us ended up enjoying our drinks. Mine lacked any hint of tamarind, had a subtle mango flavor, and tasted more like a mocktail. My friend said hers tasted like a tart beverage. We ordered the codfish fritters to start and they were a delicious appetizer. We shared the jerk chicken and pancakes and the plantain crusted crab cakes for our entrees. The pancakes were light and fluffy. Unfortunately the jerk chicken was a huge letdown. We were expecting authentic Jamaican flavors. As someone who grew up eating jerk chicken and has enjoyed the real thing in Jamaica numerous times, this wasn't it! I was also surprised to be served a chicken cutlet instead of an actual breast, thigh, or wing portion of chicken. We did not enjoy the chicken. The crab cakes were well done and topped with a stale tasting chip. The fried plantains that accompanied the dish were mushy. We did not enjoy this dish either. My friend ordered the housemade chocolate chip bread pudding, which she said had everything under the sun on it. She enjoyed it, but said it didn't taste like any bread pudding she had ever tasted. Overall, the restaurant's concept is cool, but not well executed. The service was good minus the delayed water glass refills. Unfortunately, the food and drinks were a huge disappointment!

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The Edge Harlem - Bar area

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El Aguila - mexican - Updated October 2026

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