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    El Charro Cafe

    3.6 (2.5k reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Order El Charro Cafe Takeout or Delivery

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    EL CHARRO CAFE ATMOSPHERE

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

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    Recommended Reviews - El Charro Cafe

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    Charro Street Taco Platter
    Dee Y.

    We came back on Friday after enjoying our meal in Wednesday. We were placed in the front by the windows with I think his name was Omar. Omar was NOT Martha! He was very slow and I had to ask 4 times for lemons. We were a table of 2 and received our food after a table of 4, who came after us were almost done. Umm what happened. Then we had to sit through the not so great mariachi! I think they must be someone's tios because it was not good. Do why the 4 stars!! Cuz the food is amazing! I took the 1 star away for my previous complaints. I ordered the pozole on recommendation from Omar. I had planned on tortilla soup but he was right! It was DELICIOUS!! My colleague ordered the original beef tacos and said it was very good. We finished the meal with a kids order of charros for each of us. Again... you looking for a good meal, this is the place!

    Seafood Enchiladas
    Natasha W.

    Excellent food and service! Came as an out-of-towner with a very large group including multiple people in wheelchairs. El Charro was so accommodating with our reservation. (Even though we had to add to it last minute during the dinner rush.) Our food was served quickly considering the size of our group and delicious. The atmosphere definitely made you feel like you had slipped away to a favorite Mexican restaurant on vacation. There's a reason this restaurant shows up on recommendation lists. Visit if you can!!

    Prickly pear margarita
    Madelynn F.

    Street taco platter (AMAZING) and prickly pair margaritas (DELICIOUS). The only reason I come here is for those 2 things. I Definitely recommend a reservation if coming in the evenings, FYI, they do not make reservations the day of anymore

    Shrimp Ceviche, shrimp lettuce wraps
    Melody M.

    I will start out with the good: our waitress Mia was fantastic. Friendly, helpful and ensured we had a great experience. The menu has a ton of authentic options and all the food is flavorful. Great selection of drinks too. The mariachi band that played at our table was a fun touch. The not so good: we waited 20 minutes for our reservation, watching other tables get sat before us (who either didn't have reservations or had a reservation at a later time than us). The hostesses were extremely unfriendly... if we hadn't been here before and knew the food was good, we likely wouldn't have waited to even sit. They definitely need some customer service training pronto. Other guests were also shocked at their words and tone.

    The fish dish.
    Nancy S.

    We enjoyed the food, especially the dried beef tacos. Unusual and excellent. The service was just OK, somewhat inattentive. It wasn't that busy, because it was only 5:30 pm, so we were a bit disappointed in how long our waiter left us alone. The ambience was superb! Just which one would expect of a Mexican restaurant in Tucson. Some mariachi singers came around and that could've been fun, but they were the worst singers on earth. I mean, truly bad.

    Seated on waiting porch for about an hour. View of moon with planets on one of those nights everything was aligned.
    Bill R.

    Drove all the way from Wisconsin for some authentic Mexican food. Asked a couple of locals for their recommendation and they both blurted out El Charro. Said it would be busy but worth the wait. We waited over an hour to be seated in a beautiful area by the front door. We were secluded so we could watch people come and go. In addition to chips and salsa, we started with the table side Guacamole which was huge and prepared perfectly - tomato, onions, jalapeño, chunked avocado. Enjoyed the Guac, chips and salsa while we listened to a roaming two man mariachi band. Fun ! Wifey ordered a chicken quesadilla, no frills. It was large but the chicken was sparse and the cheese hard like it had been waiting in the kitchen to come to the table. We were not impressed. I went for adventure and ordered the Monica Plate. Asked our server if that would be a good sampler, answer yes. Well, it came to the table and I was not sure what I was looking at. Three components - corn masa tamale with a tart lemon sauce, dry shredded beef burrito with red sauce and finally a hard shell taco with an unrecognizable piece of beef the size of a shoe heel and as hard covered with a red sauce. A handful of lettuce was under the taco. Beans and rice came as a side. I can't recommend Monica's platter or any of the components. It was expensive and challenged my palate. I've come to the conclusion that I errored ordering or that I do not like authentic Mexican food. Recommend with caution as noted above. The restaurant is beautiful and they have a loyal clientele, but I should have know better.

    Chimichanga
    Dave H.

    El Charro clearly carries strong local nostalgia -- the crowd after the rodeo and UA game made that obvious. The chips and salsa were plentiful and very good, and the Chicken Cheese Crisp and shrimp ceviche appetizers were solid starts. Unfortunately, the entrees didn't live up to the reputation. It took about an hour to receive them, and some arrived hot while others were cooling off. I ordered the green chile beef chimichanga (their house specialty was already sold out by 6pm), and both the beef and red sauce lacked flavor. Others at the table had similar feedback on their dishes. The staff were attentive and working hard, but between the long wait and muted flavors, this ultimately felt like an average experience for us. With so many strong Southwest options in Tucson, it's hard to justify choosing this one beyond its historic appeal.

    Seafood Relleno del Rey
    Desiree B.

    The sauce for the Seafood Relleno del Rey, I could drink that. Yummmm I went after my shift at the Tucson Folk Festival and the food and staff were very friendly to me. The food was very good. I also had a Sangria and it was fresh and very tasty.

    worst customer service in Tucson
    Curt F.

    What a great experience "NOT" 8:05 pm walked up excited and looking forward to trying this place. Go to check in (no line and plenty of open tables). First thing out of the hoist do you have a reservation? We said no and ask if possible can we sit on the patio she turned her back and said the patio is closing. Another girl came up and said do you have a reservation and we said no again. She said sorry the kitchen is closing we aren't seating anyone else tonight. Keep in mind it's 8:05 and the place closes at 9:00pm! If they actually close at 8, that should be made known. I wanted to say if we had a reservation the kitchen would still be open?? Customer service is disappointing for sure at this place! Won't bother coming back, since this is how they treat customers.

    Emily L.

    The food was so delicious, you can tell they really put a lot of love and care into their recipes. Mia was our server and she was wonderful. Wish we lived closer cause I'd be here all the time

    Chimichanga Al Pastor (big portions!)
    Alejandro L.

    The oldest authentic Mexican restaurant in the United States--viva Mexico! established 1922!! Came here on a rainy day in Tucson AZ and had to jump right into the Mexican hot chocolate! So yummy, warming, and with a little spice! Very very good!! I ordered the tamales bc I'm all about some tamales! The carnitas and red chile beef -- yes! A quaint spot with a beautiful facade and interior -- seems like it used to be an old house. The service was great and it was a treat on a cold, rainy Dec 24 day -- real cool spot! Oh and btw -- just know...the portions are pretty big!

    Katie W.

    Tasty dinner with good sized portions! We decided to get two of the combos to try a variety of their signature dishes. The corn tamales was our favorite! We also ordered a house margarita which was quite good and the tres leches which was ok but not our favorite.

    The no. 1
    Luis S.

    Food was good. Service was awesome. Nice cool ambiance. Like I say I'm a big history buff and I love to eat so this place has been on my radar for a while. I spkoe with one of the managers. Sorry I forgot his name but he was grwat. Definitely coming back

    Carnitas Chimichanga with Christmas Sauce

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    1 month ago

    Food great as always never disappoints. Service was excellent. Nice and helpful about getting us the right table for our group.

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    El Charro Cafe Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - El Charro Cafe

    Do they allow dogs on the patio?

    yes

    Do they take reservations for parties of 2?

    Yes

    Is this a dine in restaurant?

    Yes it is.

    Do you serve alcohol at the downtown location?

    Yes! All of our El Charro café locations serve delicious cocktails.

    Just wanted to thank you & commend you for the Plant Based options on your menus! We will return! I have a question - as a chile relleno fan - ever test out a PB relleno? Stuffed w/whatever combo of beans, rice, nopales, calabacitas, shrooms?

    View All 6 Questions

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    La Yaquesita Mexican Cuisine - Mozzarella sticks

    La Yaquesita Mexican Cuisine

    (107 reviews)

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    West University

    Delicious food with a very relaxed and inviting atmosphere. The service was excellent. Highly…read morerecommend the Jarritos Paloma, it's delicious! I stopped in for lunch and the food and drinks really hit the spot. I also love all the plants on the patio. It feels like eating at Abuelita's house.

    Overall, the service was good and the food tasted good, but the pricing didn't quite match the…read moreculinary experience for me. Honestly, I wish I could give Yaquesita a little more, maybe half a star more, because this place definitely has potential. Their flavors are good, but compared to similar restaurants the menu feels a bit overpriced. For a party of three we ended up paying around $100, which felt like a bit much for what we got. The restaurant itself is pretty small with only about 3-4 tables inside, but the patio is a decent size and has a cute vibe. It's actually a nice option on cooler days if you don't mind sitting outside. Some items were better than others. The wet-style burrito was delicious and definitely a highlight. The quesabirrias were good, however the birria felt more like fancier shredded beef. It was missing that rich, spicy, slightly acidic, earthy flavor that usually sets birria apart from barbacoa or traditional shredded beef dishes. The bowl was just okay and had lots of lettuce. It felt more like a salad with a bit of meat, rice, and beans. Honestly, Chipotle does bowls better, and that says a lot considering the price. The nachos were good, but I've had better. Seis Kitchen has amazing nachos to share. That said, it's definitely a place I'd come back to mainly out of convenience, not because one particular item on the menu won my heart. I really do hope they continue refining the menu because the flavors are there and this place could easily become a standout spot. Personally I just think at the total price of my ticket other restaurants should not even have room in my mind during my meal. If you're in the area and looking for a safe bet where everyone will probably find something they like, it's worth giving them a try.

    Taqueria Juanito's - Al pastor "mix" burrito

    Taqueria Juanito's

    (599 reviews)

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    Miracle Manor

    I was so excited to visit Taqueria Juanito's restaurant today! I was tipped off by a local…read morerideshare driver that this people building near Grant Ave has the best cabeza tacos in Arizona! I was raised in a very conservative food pallet home like many Americans so trying new items like cabeza tacos is a very foreign choice in cuisine. Let me just say I am on a new adventure of respecting restaurants that honor the entire animal by properly knowing how to prepare each and every inch into a world class experience. These cabeza tacos did not disappoint! It was extremely buttery and melted in your mouth! If you do one thing this year, you owe it to yourself to put this place on your 3rd spot routine. The ambiance is so beautiful in this space too! There are beautiful murals inspired by Mexican culture with luchadores wrestling and oversized monarch butterflies, this place is truly a different dimension!

    Touring Tucson, looking for the best Carne Asada in town. Decided to try here after El Rustico. I…read morewas recommended this place by a person on Facebook. They made it sound like a hidden gem. Let's first go over what makes great Carne Asada. 1. Flavorful 2. Juicy 3. Good cut(minimal to no grisle, bone, not flat/thin cut and not diced into kibble) 4. Tender Juanito's had some flavor, but it was VERY dry and tough and had far too much grisle. I just didn't like it at all. I had to force my way through it it was so dry, I dislike dry meat. I want to try a different meat, maybe it'll gain a star there, but for the Carne Asada? Hard pass. The service wasn't great either.

    El Charro Cafe - tacos - Updated May 2026

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