You know the issue with Food Poisoning? Not knowing for sure. I loved eating at this place. I had this Venezuela stew, my wife got tamales and the kids were all happy. We swore we would return. That was Saturday, Lunch. For dinner - salad, olives, cheese (it was a big lunch). I was sick by breakfast the next day. My wife was sick by that evening. I ate 90% of my dish, she ate 10%. My wife and I were the only ones to get sick, and it was 100% gastro. So I'm not coming on yelp saying 100% for sure that this place made me sick. I don't know for sure. . .but I have enough evidence that I will avoid. I know it wasn't the whole foods cheese and salad.. .we ate that again. read more

Growing up near Colfax, we are very much aware of its vast majority of growth that we've seen in the last 20 years. My family love El Chalate because we are naturally drawn to it. We ourselves are Salvadoran and take pride when more of our culture expands in the states. Not a lot of people are familiar with Salvadoran dishes and I brought my best friend to try some Pupusas and she absolutely asked herself where she been at all this time?! There is strictly only street parking, DO NOT PARK IN THE DISPENSARY NEXT DOOR. There is a creepy guy who is going to try to write down your plate and get your car towed. Please listen to this advice. Otherwise, when you walk in, lines are literally out the door. They sell Pan Dulce, Quesadillas, Curtido, etc., so much. Super busy, so prepare to enjoy dinner here and call ahead at least 1 hour to get your lunch in on time. read more

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Quesadilla not worth buying I called them to let them know they just don't care everything else is alright read more

I walked in only to be welcomed by no one.Not sanitary, stains on walls. Rude service, delayed food. Gave my food last, rude.

We really enjoy coming to this little hole in the wall. While the place could be a tad cleaner, and there is some curious decor (such as the poster of Sweden on the wall), this is a great find on the "interesting" side of Colfax. There is plenty here for vegetarians - I order the rice and beans, grilled plantains, and cheese and squash pupusas. I love the spicy coleslaw that comes with the pupusas! The service can be slow, but it's always friendly. Try this place! read more

Eaten here before and the food was decent. Decided to try them again today. Walked in at 7:03PM only to find out that now they close their dining room at 7:00PM and only offer to-go orders. This would've been nice to know before wasting expensive gas coming here for nothing. Maybe try publicizing your time changes so patrons can plan accordingly or honor someone coming in 3 minutes late since you didn't do that in the first place. You know, general good customer service would be nice. read more

The pupusas here are bomb, and a bargain at $1.50 each. You can eat like an El Salvadoran king for less than $8. The horchata though is a drink mix with clumps of the powder left on the bottom. And expect to wait 40 minutes for your food - the service leaves much to be desired. read more

Great service and prices, food actually is about the same. What specifically liked about this place is the fact that the waitress pleased in my special requests. This and that made my visit to this restaurant very pleasant. Therefore I would recommend. read more

I ordered a plantain fritter (empanada) and found a sticker inside. I returned to show it to the woman working the front counter. Hopefully, she had a conversation with the kitchen staff about cleanliness. read more

I'll keep this short and sweet. Waited 55 minutes for 4 papusas. Mediocre papusas at that. Save your time and money and go down the street.

They have the best pupusas in town. Reasonably priced. The place itself is not anything to brag about. You're not going there expecting anything fancy, just some solid, filling pupusas. They have some Salvadoran knick knacks for sale, but they're overly priced so don't bother. Just go for the pupusas, curtido, & salsa. Tip: pupusas take a bit to cook so if you want takeout order a good while ahead of time. read more

These guys are great! Family owned and great family staff. They are friendly and will make you feel at home for some of their great pupusas and authentic Salvadoran food. The son and daughter of the owners really do good work of holding that place down. Highly recommend eating here read more

If there's one thing I miss about eating in Los Angeles (okay so there's a lot of things), it's pupusas. Pupuserias were all over in L.A, but here in Denver, you have to do some real hunting. If you have no idea what a pupusa is, it's a Salvadoran treat that is basically a really thick corn tortilla made with cheese, beans, pork, or other ingredients. It's topped with shredded cabbage and carrots and a thin salsa. Oh, and it's delicious. After some research my wife found out about El Chalate, and we made the trek out to east Colfax to give it a try. What kind of neighborhood is it in? The business next door apparently specialized in gold teeth and car stereos. That's not a joke (you'll see if you visit). There was also a store called "Compton Mart", for any L.A. transplants missing the hometown goodness of Compton. But you aren't visiting for the neighborhood ambience, you're coming out here for the rare pupusa treat, and El Chalate delivers. The cheese pupusa was an ooey-gooey thick pancake filled with cheese, probably the cheesiest pupusa I've ever had. I ordered two but was full after one so I packed the other one up for later. They also had some of my favorite sides, like fried plantains and yucca. If you're never had either of these, fried plantains are essentially less-sweet bananas, fried up until the outside is caramelized. Fried yucca strips are like a starchier version of potato fries. I prefer them with a garlic sauce but they're fine on their own. Everyone seemed to really enjoy their lunch, from plain bean pupusas to the pork-tastic chicharrones version. And the best part? Lunch for four with a few sodas was $22. I'll be back, and who knows, maybe I'll get a gold grill while I'm in the neighborhood. read more

I don't know if people in Denver don't yelp, or if they just don't know good food. At any rate-this restaurant is one that's found rarely. Delicious food, humble accommodations, and a price that makes you think "ya know, I'd pay 30% more for that-easy!" I ordered 2 papusas (yep, they're less than a buck and two quarters) and a combo plate (tamale, chicharron burrito, rice, beans) and my total, with tax, came out to barely over $10. Now, after gorging myself, I still have a gargantuan meal of goodness for tomorrow. Ummm, this place is my new favorite in Denver-it mixes top notch food quality with the feeling you've just walked into someone's kitchen at home with value-it truly does not get better than this! read more

Alright--Being introduced to Salvi by a Salvi.. Who himself LOVES when we visit El Chalate!! First--- This is NOT Mexican food--In my opinion the tastes are better.. Sopa De Pollo!!! Amazing.. They cook the chicken in the broth, take it out.. Pan fry it. Serve you the soup, veggies and noodles, along with that fried chicken that is sooooooo tender along with rice. So very good!! Pupusas are always perfect and served with a very good tasting Curtido and Salsa Roja. The cost is amazing as well. The guy misses his Salvi food and will usually grab two entrees.. I get one, and we are still under 20 dollars.. They provide good service and great food. We've been back numerous times and will go back as long as they are there! Best Salvi spot we have been able to find in Colorado! SD read more

Had breakfast there this weekend with my son. Huevos y fritas. Perfectly cooked eggs, a healthy (portion, not nutritionally) pile of perfectly fried plantains, beans, sour cream, queso fresco and thick tortillas, all for $6.75. All that said, I think that either my little eating buddy was not in the mood for that, or I have finally found something that he is not fond of and that totally surprised me. Fried platanos did not turn him on, so I had to eat a few of his too. Also ordered a papusa for him to try and he did not like that either. This is no indictment on El Chalate, but maybe he was having an off-taste day. That all said, Sunday morning at El Chalate saw many El Salvadoran diners having some of the most delicious breakfast dishes. Fish, potatoes, soups and eggs flowed freely. My son and I had a nice time talking about El Salvador and the culture of Central America. The cutest little girls (one was 8) waited on us and it gave me the chance to practice my poor Spanish, though their English was PERFECTO. It also made my son want to work in a restaurant. Good start. read more

I wasn't even sure what a pupusa was, I only knew it was a $1.35 and I had a buck fifty. Delicious corn tortilla stuffed with beans, cheese, chicharron, or a combination. These things are ridiculously filling. After one as a midday snack I was totally satisfied. I returned a little time later to find $1 tamals, I got the pollo. It was super moist being prepared in a banana leaf that kept it from drying out. When you dine in they give you a basket of chips and salsa. Come here for one cheap, delicious, and belly busting meal. You will not be disappointed. As this place is about a 5 minute walk from my house, I will return often till my path takes me from East Coldfacts back to the incomparable Pacific Northwest. read more

El Chalate...let me sing your praises. How else are you gonna get dinner for 3 for less than 20 bucks, including chips and salsa, an appetizer, sodas, and a main course, as well as a full tip? I am not sure you can do this many other places, and certainly not with all the charm and pizzazz that this place offers, in the middle of one of the sketchier parts of East Colfax. Go for the pupusas...stay to chuckle under your breath at the nearby businesses. Gold n Grillz, my friends. Nuf' said. I love most things Meso-American. But especially pupusas. This is the real deal. If you know much about the "con loroco" ingredients, you're going to seriously wonder how a restaurant in Denver gets a decent supply of them. I suppose specialty food companies deliver everything now, but it still seems too good to be true. El Chalate's pupusas are fantastic, and in comparison with the local competition, "Tacos Y Pupusas", they do everything 90% better. First, you can sit, and get table service. That's an obvious bonus. Second, the menu has a far wider selection of items, even some gringo food, and the prices are way better; compare pupusas at $1.35 at El Chalate, with seriously fabulous and attentive table service, to not sitting and crowding yourself into a tiny booth for $2 pupusas that aren't nearly as good, at Tacos Y Pupusas. The choice should be clear. So I've been to this restaurant twice since June; the first time was a harrowing experience that had nothing at all to do with the amazing service they offer at the restaurant, and everything to do with my kid attempting to run into rush hour traffic on Colfax. After that, both my husband and I shuddered every time we drove by it, because the near-death pass memory was so truly traumatic. They were more than kind to us during that whole ordeal, and we got out of there having had a satisfying dinner for under 10 bucks, served in under 30 minutes. All trauma aside, this was a great trip to great little restaurant. The second time, after having recovered from the first traumatic traffic incident, was magical. We ordered the nachos to truly test the meddle of the place, and they seriously did not disappoint; heaped with beef, beans, cheese and guacamole, they hit the spot for under 5 bucks. This was the first time ever that I have ordered nachos and gotten more toppings than chips. BONUS! Our pupusas, as usual, were hot and savory, filling and delicious, and whatever that San Salvadorean cabbage stuff is, it's for the win. In the end, we got chips and salsa, a big plate of nachos, 5 pupusas, and 3 Jarritos sodas for 16 dollars and some cents. Can you beat that, considering both price and quality? If you can, tell me how, because I want to - I really do. read more

Stop #2 on the October 2011 East Colfax Taco Tour UYE! This is a true Mexican/Salvadoran restaurant, and not a typical taco place. In fact, the tacos here were pretty basic. However, the other food on the menu was quite good. The table salsa and chips are above complaint. The horchata is just okay, I believe it is made to order rather than fountain style. The fried yucca with pork was outstanding. The yucca was densely flavorful, and well cooked. The pork was the kind of chiccaron I enjoy . . . heavy on the meat, light on the fat, and very crunchy. The tomato dipping sauce had subtle, yet enticing flavors. The pupusa was a hockey puck of salty goodness, but maybe a little too filling. The curtido (a Salvadorean condiment resembling coleslaw customarily paired with pupusas) was a huge side. The basic and humble nature of cabbage, carrots, salt, sugar, vinegar and oregano went well together. The chicken tamale was (I think) the weakest offering. It was bland, a little soggy, and mostly masa with a little chicken and (oddly) potato thrown in. What is AMAZING is you can get all three of these items on the #16 platter for $5 or so. We also had an al pastor taco on the side. It had more crunchy bits than I like for this type of taco, but the flavor was solid. read more

2nd stop on the tour. While there were not a lot of Tacos to find on the menu it gave me the chance to try some new and wonderful treats. Fried Yucca - These are very similar to french fries - crisp on the outside and soft and creamy on the outside. YUM. Chiccarones - nice little nibbles, very meaty and favorful - a little gem on the plate, probably my favorite thing we ordered. Chicken Tamale - these were okay - not my favorite. I like mine with pork and more spicy red sauce and these didn't have either so it was a little bit of a let down. Pupusas - these were nice. First time trying these and found them to be lovely and really like the curtido that was served with them. Al Pastor Taco - very nice and it was a little on the crunchy side. read more

Im from Chalatenango and raised in Los Angeles. Moving to Colorado, I missed my moms pupusas and home country pupusas. El Chalate is on point with the pupusas. Only a few options on what kind but still have the best staple favorite and good dishes too. Plátanos fritos ! You have to get a side of that! Best place for a brunch ! I recommend this place if you are hungry. Also- eat your pupusas con las manos, non of that with knives and forks- no no no. Metanle los dedos y disfruten! read more

Love their sopa de Pollo and sopa de Res. Unfortunately, they don't always get the order right. Worth double checking what's in the bag before you leave. Also, super sketchy area after dark. read more

Best Salvadorian food in Colorado!!! 5 Stars for having authentic Salvadorian food!!! The pupusas, yucca con chicharon, sopa de pollo (chicken soup) amazing & delicious!!! I know they are authentic because I am Salavdorian and let me tell you I have had a lot of Salvadorian food in my life. When I go an eat here or I order to take out the food is always delicious, fresh & very affordable. When I have their food I feel like I am back in my aunts or mom's kitchen where even the curtido is made from scratch. Yummy food.... I can not get enough of their pupusas, neither can my husband or my co-workers who are non Salvadorian or non-hispanics. Thank you El Chalate for bringing the taste of El Salvador to my house!!! I am a customer for life!! read more

Quite a find on East Colfax. Generous portions of good Mexican and El Salvadorean food for low prices. I speak basically no Spanish and had no problem at all, though I had to have a few things on the menu translated. One star off for not having something available because nobody orders it. If you can't serve it, then leave it off the menu. I bet they make good chile rellenos too... oh well. I went with the vegetarian combo and a queso papusa, both quite good. The meal also came with a basket of chips and salsa. Quite good and all for less than $7. Will definitely be back to try the fried platanos with a glass of horchata. Quite a find in a rather dead and sometimes shady area of Colfax among a number of auto body shops and such. read more

Sketchy? Oh hell yeah! Dirt cheap? You bet! Delicious? If you know what to order...absolutely! I'm a fan of crispy, meaty chicharrons like I use to get in New Mexico...not the soft floppy ones or the pork rinds I find else where. This place has what I have been missing for so long! The chicharron burritos are excellent and an absolute steal at $6.00 for 2 of them. The fried yucca is addictive and their beans and rice is legit! The servers are incredibly nice and willing to help a gringo like me navigate the menu. Sure, they often get my order wrong. But every time they do they simple make me yet another plate of food and insist I take the first one home for left overs. I feel guilty each time as I hobble out of there barely able to walk because I am so full and my check has never exceeded $10.00. I've quickly become a regular here. A regular with a cholesterol count that is rising at a frightening rate. read more

Delicious food, good atmosphere, and the staff were very nice and attentive! Food is also priced very well for the amount you get too. I had the pupusas, which were very well cheesed and some steak with rice. All the food came out hot and delicious! read more

I had a mojarra frita. Beans were great, but the mojarra was super (extremely) salty :( . I loved melon juice. / Yo comí mojarra frita. Los fríjoles estaban geniales pero la mojarra estaba pasada mucho de sal. Me encantó el jugo de melón. read more

El Chalate - Mexican Near Me - Denver, Colorado

My coworkers and I went to El Chalate for lunch today. Service was pretty lousy, but they were slammed. Our food took over 30 minutes to get to the table after it taking about 20 minutes for the waitress to collect our order. However, they still get four stars. The food was delicious. I can't imagine how much I would've enjoyed it had I not been in a party of six. Or had it come hot from the oven. The combination pupusas (a tasty stuffed El Salvadorian corn cake) and tamales were fantastic. South-of-the-border Coke and Jarritos served in a cold bottle washed things down. I recommend going, but be patient. And maybe go with a smaller group. And try not to take the head-turn, record-scratch look you get when you walk in personally. Maybe it was my purple shirt? read more

My cheese pupusas and vegetarian combo were delicious and cheap! The guacamole was creamy and fresh. The lady that served us was sincerely helpful and translated things on the menu for me. The atmosphere made me feel like I was happily traveling abroad. Sooo... Hellllllloooooooooooooooooooo new favorite place to eat. Our lady also gave me a tip that on weekends they make a couple special desserts... Central American versions of banana bread and CHEESECAKE (in quesadilla form)! read more

I have recently found this restaurant and have been 3 times in a month for dinner. I've enjoyed a new dish on each visit and all have been very good. Their chicharrons are wonderful. The burritos are HUGE and the prices are ridiculously low. I don't know how they can afford to stay in business with prices so low. read more

I would recommend this place for Salvadoran food first and foremost. The place looks homey with large family tables in 2 sections. By the entrance, the section seemed a LOT warmer than the inside where we sat. Polite staff but minimal conversations - if you know Spanish, that would be a great benefit to be friendly with the staff and get recs.This place will have your wallet singing "thank you" songs - ultra affordable!!!! Food: They dropped off the obligatory chips and salsa. Unfortunately, the chips were room temp and the salsa was not dancing on the palate but very subdued (we were a bit surprised). We got the pollo tamales, pupusas (loroco and chicharron) and the fried plaintains with beans and sour cream. The pupusas and plaintains were a hit out of the park!! Moist pupusas with a nice outside crunch and gooey insides. LOVED the loroco filling. The plaintains were perfectly fried and the beans were really flavorful (again making that salsa a bit of a head scratcher). I did not care too much for the tamales - the filling was a mix of ck and potatoes and that meant very little chicken. the texture was too mushy and the ck had pieces of smashed up bones (now thats a choking hazard) and kinda made me do a search & rescue before each bite. So after seeing a family of 6 or 7 order up a large plate of pupusas, I think thats where are going to end up next time. And in spite of the tamale miss, this place is a cheap eats neighborhood gem. Definitely worth a visit. read more

Pupusas here are quite tasty and you get free chips and salsa when dining in. Did I mention it's comically cheap? Pupusas are not light and healthy fare so don't come here expecting that. Try the fried plantains -- they are just the right side of carmelized and have a correspondingly delicious sweetness. Their horchata wasn't very good and isn't served in a metal cup (so isn't über cold) so I'd pass. read more

We love it here. My girl is from Salvador and loves this place for its authenticity and hole in the wall feel. Very patriotically Salvadoran with turquoise blue walls, yucca, Loroco, chicharron, ayote...its all delicious and we love to support this family and their business. Very clean restaurant with small market area of Salvadoran groceries and Kolashampan! You can't beat these prices and their friendly staff. I believe the restaurant owners and family live at the site so it's cool to really be supporting a family's business and livelihood. read more

I went here last night after reading about it all damn day at work and salivating on the keyboard. I went for the pupusas, and got one of each, but the highlight of my meal was the fried yucca. Not the one with little dried fish. The yucca itself was like a slightly sweet giant french fry. The sauce it was swimming in was perfect. Some of the pork chunks were slightly hard and dry. I've never had this dish before, so I don't know if that's how they were supposed to be or not. Either way, it was incredibly tasty and satisfying. My pupusas were good. I didn't get around to the cheese con locoro one until it was getting cold, which (hopefully) did not do it justice. I took the rest of it home to reheat and finish today. The refried beans were the biggest disappointment. They tasted burned. They also tasted BBQ-ed, which is different but okay, and were pretty salty. We weren't charged for any of our drinks, but they run from $1-$1.50. I was warned about the horchata but got it anyway. It was too sweet and thin and brown to be ideal, but I chugged it anyway. Service was minimal but polite. She split our orders on the bill so we didn't have to hunt to find what each of us ordered. Take your check up to the register when you're ready to pay. I got out of there for around $9 plus tip, and I had a LOT of food. I took it home and still have enough for two more meals. I'm definitely a fan. I may be working just down the street from it soon. I could be in trouble. read more

Great place for pupusas in Denver! Granted, this is the only place I've tried, but it definitely satisfies both in taste and value. Even in Los Angeles, it was hard to find a pupusa place that had good curtido and salsa to go along with them. They are all good here. I come here to satisfy my cravings for chicharron, yucca and platanos as well. On the down side, the torrejas are not good at all. read more

Great authentic salvadorean food. Their pupusa selection isn't the greatest but what they do have a selection of is excellent. My personal favorite here is the chicken soup! read more

Went out on a limb based on Yelp reviews to try something new and we are glad we did. Not sure we will go back but we like to try new places/cuisines and we enjoyed our visit and meal. Warmly greeted when we arrived, very family oriented establishment. Hispanic TV station on and menu is all Spanish. Our server helped us with the menu and answered our seemingly endless questions We had to try papusas based on the reviews so we ordered a queso and an ayote (squash). We also ordered fried yuca with pork (chicarron) and pasteles de papa con pollo (a chicken and potato pastry/empanada). They brought the papusas first and they were tasty with the cabbage. The pork with the yuca was over cooked and a bit dry but the pasteles were good. I also tried horchata to drink and that was sweet and interesting. As someone else posted this place is inexpensive Our total bill was $13 so I double tipped for December and made it $20. We left full, satisfied and glad we tried Salvadorian food read more

We have always been looking for a great pupuseria, we were very glad when we found this place. All because our youngest daughter wanted pupusas after a Volleyball tourney!! We have been coming here ever since, this is a great place to have pupusas, yuca Frits, pastel iris, etc... read more

My wife and I have been looking for a pupusa place in Denver and this spot did not disappoint. Super reasonable. Service was excellent. Definitely bringing our family here for pupusas soon. read more

The menu offers a wide variety of adventures. High quality food. Salvadoran cuisine is delicious. The soups are excellent. Very good prices.