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    El Azteca

    3.5 (30 reviews)
    ModerateMexican
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    El Azteca Photos

    Business Info

    EL AZTECA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Good for groups
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - El Azteca

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    Reviews With Photos

    Outside Women's bathroom door.
    Kris D.

    First of all, I have to say that I hate to have to give this bad review because it's obvious this is a restaurant that is supported by the locals, because most of them knew each other and there was friendly talk between most tables and new customers upon arrival. That aside, being someone from out of town, my husband and I went to El Azteca because it had the highest rating on Yelp of a Mexican restaurant in Commerce. Our disappointment started as we drove by the overgrown landscaping into an almost abandoned parking lot. My husband posted a picture of the broken planter filled with trash that graced the front door. I wish I could post a pic of our menus. Yes, not one, but both of our menus were nasty with evidence of spills having leaked between the plastic covers to discolor and smear the ink of the already low quality, "copy-machine" pages. The waiter hadn't seen a shower in a few days and seemed only half conscious. He was uneducated with regards to the menu and didn't know what kind of beers were available. My beer was only barely cold and the limes were dry and smelly with brown spots. They went unused. The guacamole was pretty good. My husband liked his entree more than I liked mine (chicken fajitas nachos). The bottle of hot sauce that I retrieved from another table was coated with blackened, dried hot sauce from the several uses of patrons before me. We never saw our waiter after he took our order until he brought food to the table next to us at the end of our meal. This was lucky because we were more than ready for our check at that point. Upon exiting, I went to the restroom which had an entryway coated with filth and worn paint, then coated with thick dust on the inside (see pics). The building looks as if it were built years or even decades ago without an ounce of maintenance or improvement since. Not even a coat of paint. There is a broken water fountain in the outside, overgrown yard that has internal pump parts and tubing in the second layer of the fountain, while a green mess of algae forms in the bottom. The one thing I do have to say for this restaurant is that the lady who acted as hostess was friendly and accommodating upon arrival. I even saw her go out of her way to wipe the rain off of a customer's walker's seat before she sat on it. There was also a man who repeatedly brought the plates to the table from the kitchen who was well dressed, friendly, eager to please, and very professional. He sometimes circled the room after he brought out food to make sure we had every thing we needed. Thank goodness, due to the vanishing waiter. He really was a one-man show. I'm sure the restaurant relies heavily on that man. He needs a raise! All in all . . . go somewhere else.

    Emer B.

    This is really good Mexican food. It's really cheap also as you can see from the menu photos that I took. This place has moved and is actually in the building behind the original restaurant. I'm sure they moved because the rent was cheaper. All the pictures I'm seeing is of the old restaurant in front of the new one. This new one is much cleaner. If no one is at the front counter then I just go ahead and seat myself and there is never a problem with that. This restaurant is always busy during peak hours so the food speaks for itself. I had a fajita taco salad and my wife had chicken quesadilla and beans in this particular visit. Everything was great. This is as close to authentic as you will get in the commerce banks crossing area. If your a local that has never been here or someone traveling down interstate 85 then it will be worth it to stop in and have some great Mexican food.

    That's not quinoa. That's garlic.
    Bethany W.

    I've never experienced that level of slowness and disorganization at a restaurant. We stopped because Mexican is usually a quick meal. We stood at the front desk for ten minutes while staff scurried around, no one acknowledged us. We were sat but not given menus. We were approached three times by three different wait staff to get our drink order. Still no menus. Finally menus, and a while later, we order. It's been 30 minutes at this point, and we've gone through six baskets of chips. (We notice that a table we knew was seated when we walked in JUST got their food.) People were waiting to pay, waiting to be seated, all standing at the front looking around for someone to help them. Food came. It's been an hour. Everything tasted ok, except my "shrimp, garlic, tomato and avocado" dish had heaps of garlic... Heaps. I thought it was quinoa there was so much. And I like garlic but wow. Flagged our waitress down to get the check, stood with the mass of people at the front to pay, and left. Took an hour and a half. TLDR: took foreeeeever, tasted ok.

    cars parked in front of a mexican restaurant
    Jeff W.

    Great Homestyle Mexican food. I love this place. Generous portions of extremely well prepared food. Great food and very reasonable prices.

    This was the view from my table.
    Julie S.

    Wow! After reading the reviews I have to wonder if we all went to the same place! When we first drove up we did not see a handicap accessible entrance so we left. I was curious so I called them and they said yes in fact they did and it was to the right of the stairs and the young man on the phone said he would meet us out front! I was impressed, I said turn around and go back! That was where it all went sideways! We get there and unload my mother in law (who is in a wheelchair) and a young man comes running down what appears to be the KITCHEN entrance, he greets us and leads us that way, it was not very safe as it is quite uneven on the pavement. Needless to say we enter through a VERY nasty door and are not sent to the front to be seated rather we are seated next to the huge trash can and noisy kitchen. (I've posted pictures) We immediately get to order or drinks but then are ignored for 35 minutes, chips ran out, salsa ran out, my mil's drink ran out! This gave new plenty of time to look around and realize how nasty this place was. We considered leaving but everyone was just tired and hungry. When the food came out they got my mil's dish wrong and my dish was tasteless! My husband was so tired I thought he would just ignore everything when he piped up and said 'NEVER AGAIN' I knew I wasn't alone in dreading the decision to come here. Again no one is serving us, we sit chipLESS, and I start to complain. It's really odd because the staff seems to be running themselves ragged but not really getting any work done! By this time in assuming it was the owner who was at our table kept saying the server was new and we didn't explain what we wanted well enough so now we are partially to blame for this horrible experience. She had quite an attitude! We finally asked for the check and I wrote the words HORRIBLE SERVICE on it and gave it to her, she never apologized at all. When my husband signed the receipt I again wrote horrible service and we shouldn't have even have had to pay! If I could give this place 0 stars I'd do it! Horrible, just horrible!

    Is that toilet paper?

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    10 years ago

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    13 years ago

    Friendly family service, good salsa and chips, and margaritas. Generous portions. Recommend the spicy Chili Colorado with a margarita.

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    13 years ago

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    6 years ago

    steff is a gorgeous hispanic young talented waiter!! we loved having her.

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    13 years ago

    Great Mexican restaurant! Awesome service! Never had an empty glass or basket of chips! Really good food!

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    Review Highlights - El Azteca

    We were having a roadside overnight in Commerce at the Days Inn & Suites ...

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    La Hacienda - Queso Birria Tacos

    La Hacienda

    (133 reviews)

    $$

    We were staying nearby for work and this place was walkable (like less than a min walk) so we gave…read moreit a shot. We absolutely loved it! The environment is bright & lively.. just fun. We went twice and had a few different dishes (Fajitas, Quesadilla & Texas Dip) and they all were great. The Texas Dip was a meal in itself and I loved it. The real star is the staff - they were all amazing and it's obvious they have fun at their job which is rare to see. A special call out to the Bartenders, as we sat at the bar both times - they were so kind and helpful. If we lived in the area this would be a regular stop for us.. sadly we live about 8 hours away. To anyone in Commerce, I highly recommend it for a fun, casual, delicious and fairly priced meal.

    We decided to try this newly remodeled restaurant on a Friday night. The space looks beautiful, and…read morethe evening started off well--but unfortunately, the service at the end completely ruined the experience. When placing our order, we asked if the shrimp in the Pollo à la Piña could be replaced with an extra side of chicken. Our server said we would be charged an additional fee for the chicken, which we understood--but he also refused to remove the cost of the shrimp we were not getting. When we questioned this, his response was simply, "that's not how it's done." We let it go and continued with dinner. About 30 minutes went by, and our server never checked on us once. When we needed the bill, we had to ask another waiter to find him. Even then, it took another 15 minutes, during which our server walked past our table visibly upset and ignored us--even when I politely tried to get his attention. When he finally brought the check, he said nothing. After running the card, he returned and literally tossed the receipt onto the table without a single word--not even a "thank you" or "good night." It was a very disappointing experience. The restaurant itself has great potential, and it's clear a lot of effort went into the remodel. However, service like this overshadows everything. As a business owner, I understand how challenging operations can be--but as a customer, this level of service is simply unacceptable. Unfortunately, we won't be returning

    El Azteca - mexican - Updated May 2026

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