El Farol (The Lantern) is a great little Mexican restaurant right up on Cap Hill. We had just finished checking out the Quality Flea Center across the street and lunch was calling. El Farol answered. We arrived around 2pm so the place was pretty quiet and we had excellent attentive service as a result. Warm homemade tortilla chips and salsa and pico de gallo were provided to us quickly after seating. I really loved those chips as they seemed pretty authentic and not just out of a bag in the back. I had the lunch special Supreme Burrito, my companions had the Wet Burrito and the combo plate with an enchilada, tamale and relleno. The relleno was particularly good, I was told. My Supreme Burrito with chicken was very filling and just what I was looking for. Regarding the somewhat pricey neighborhood, our bill was reasonable and the food portions were right on task. I love the well appointed decor inside with bright greens and yellows on the walls to interesting pictures and dioramas. Very cute. This place is a great stop when you need a quick Mexican American food fix. read more

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Came here during lunch and got their lunch special. I ended up getting the enchilada with mole and chicken. It was pretty good and came with rice and beans. The entire meal wasn't very large but good for a lunch. It was 13.95 so not cheap but not expensive either. Parking in the area is pretty good since this isn't the most walkable part of Capitol Hill. Definitely check them out if you're in the area. read more

I've been coming here for what might be 40 years now dating back to when it was Jalisco. Reliable Tex-Mex, reasonably priced, good portions and while the meal yesterday was delivery - friendly service whenever we've been there in person. I included this kind of goofy picture of the pico de Gallo and salsa because it was a big, tasty container of goodness along with some chips that I didn't have to order as a side. Having chips on the side seems to be the norm these days so it's a nice little bonus. The better half enjoyed her enchiladas and I went with the tamale, enchilada and chile relleno combo. Yum. We're always happy to have a meal from El Farol. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Big pico de Gallo - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I've really come to love this restaurant. It's an undiscovered gem that doesn't look as fancy as the stuff around it, but it's been around for decades. It used to be called Jalisco and it's now run by the son. I know, because I used to eat there when I was a kid. I moved back to Seattle from New York a few years ago And was pleased to learn that despite the name change, it's still a family restaurant. And it tastes like one. Unpretentious, honest Mexican food that hits the spot. I usually get a burrito. Even the decor is pleasant. At first glance, you might think it looks tired and dated. But it also looks like something somebody made by hand and it's been that way since the 80s and I think that's actually really, really cool. Service is good. Price is reasonable. These places are precious and we are losing them. Support local businesses like this. read more

Is it fancy schmancy Mexican? No. But that's the best part. We have been eating here since the late '90s when we lived on the Hill and would climb the hill to 15th Ave to eat here. Almost 30 years later and having moved away over 20 years ago it's still a must every time we are in Seattle. Was so happy to learn just tonight that this is a family-owned business and they are still using the same recipes. Support Herman and Irene and go enjoy a solid delicious meal. Just. Good. Comfort. Food. read more

Sso I am a bean burrito connoisseur from Portland OR, this place has the yummiest most flavorful one I've had! Literally top five in my life. They make it 'wet' style, so I asked for the sauce they put on top on the side Tip: I added onions (thicker chopped ones they have) & ask them to please wrap it like a normal burrito read more

Exactly what we were looking for: yummy, warm, and filling. Great local stop. The margarita was extremely okay, I would pay the extra for the scratch margarita. Staff were extremely friendly. read more

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This is such a great neighborhood spot. My family and plenty of our neighbors have been going here for over 20+ years , back when it was Jalisco's, and it is consistently awesome! Really friendly and kind staff, delicious food, and cozy ambiance. My favorite beans and rice in the city !! :) read more

Such good Mexican food!!! Coming from California I have high expectations for Mexican food and this place did not disappoint. My husband and I stopped in for lunch. We ordered from the lunch special menu. Enchiladas for him and tacos dorado for me. Both were great! The enchilada sauce had great flavor, the beans were wonderful, and the rice had great flavor. Portions were large and I had to take half of it home for dinner. My husband has the Loco alcoholic drink and loved it. Amazing service and very attentive. We will for sure be back next time we visit! read more

Delicious, consistent, hearty, and incredible service, friendly and welcoming! A neighborhood icon!

Amazing authentic Mexican food! Very friendly staff. The inside of the restaurant is small but we normally get the food to go.

The atmosphere was amazing with the wall to wall side doors open to a street view of broadway was quite amazing. Greeted graciously and vast service on all of our needs. We stopped in for happy hour and have to say, one of the best Mexican food happy hour menus I've ever seen. We unfortunately were only in for a snack. Because after we ate our meal that,BTW was absolutely prepared to perfection, left us craving to try everything else. the prices and portions are unbeatable. We will be back to eventually try everything on the menu. 10/10 recommend. read more

TLDR/ Food: 3/5 Service: 4/5 Ambiance: 3/5 This place is your run of the mill Americanized-Mexican food restaurant. The food was good and not overpriced but it was nothing to write home about. If someone wanted to go there, I would go again but I wouldn't go if I were making the choice, as there are better options in the greater Seattle area. Now I will say the price does make it an attractive family option as it wasn't as expensive as I was expecting for a Seattle area restaurant. I ordered a plate of enchiladas and while they were good, the amount of meat was underwhelming and the cheese to sauce ratio was off for me. The quesadilla my husband ordered was and I quote "good" and he had no other comments or complaints, so my lackluster feelings could be credited to what I ordered. The rice was just ok and the beans equally just ok. The salsa was not overly spicy but still flavorful. The ambiance was gaudy in the way that traditional American-Mexican food restaurants seem to be and there were the same artful paintings of idyllic scenes that I have come to expect from this type of restaurant. It was not trendy, not hipster, and not particularly new feeling but very homey. The restrooms were clean which was nice to see. Overall, the experience was fine. I felt the service was good but not excellent and though the food was not overpriced, it was not something I would seek out again. I could give them 4/5 stars overall but it just wasn't quite that good. If there was a 3.5/5 that is where this place lands for me. What is troublesome though is that I can't quote pin down what could move that designation. It just felt like a place that used to be really good, and now was coasting on its years of faithful patrons and good reviews but now was slightly over mediocre. Try it, maybe it will hit different for you, or strike some sort of nostalgic chord for you that I didn't get. read more

Absolutely the best Mexican food I have had in seattle! Not a particularly fancy place, but has the hole in the wall charm with all of the hidden gem level food. The food is consistently fantastic, exactly what I'm looking for when I want no frills Mexican food. Gotta try it if you haven't!!! read more

This was taken immediately after I got it. I know it doesn't look absolutely horrible- but does it look warm to you? Juicy? Or appetizing? Maybe I am spoiled from the amazing Mexican food I grew up with back in Cali, but seriously Seattle?! This is 4 stars to you? 4 stars, btw, I got charged $15 for 3/4 cups of rice and beans plus barely any carne asada. I loved how the plate was served with the tortillas closed to hide how fragile it looked. Anyways, I asked for some limes because I just knew by looking at it, that tortilla was gonna rip the second I picked it up. I got a single wedge. I almost did not write this review because the staff was very friendly and nice and it was super empty as it was a Monday. But this is just a straight up robbery. Judging by the salsa spice level alone, I quickly realized what type of people were leaving the good reviews. Let me just say, Seattle I am so sorry from the bottom of my heart that this is where you come for "authenticity" but that stops directly when your cold food hits the table. My boyfriend had ordered a burrito which looked flat. Like someone sat on it. A wet burrito should be girthy. Did not get a picture of his meal but if you look at other review pictures, you will see what I am talking about. This place does not make their food with love and it shows. I will not be back. This felt like a slap in my face, honestly but I guess if you don't know any better, this is decent "Mexican" food. I've had better food on Amtrak. Alrighty, waiters were super polite tho. Good luck to them. May they find peace. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - 2 Tacos Lunch Special - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Probably the best Mexican food spot I found while visiting the area. My waiter was super friendly. I ordered wet asada supreme burrito. I asked them to make it smaller than usual since I was on foot and couldn't take leftovers. The asada had a lot of flavor and the table salsa they brought with the chips was fresh and tasty. Going back again today before my flight leaves. Good prices too! Quiet and nice authentic decor. Cheers to good Mex! read more

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1) I love this hidden gem and if you haven't been here yet--I encourage you! (¡Todas son deliciosas, y el sabor es auténtico!) 2) Haven't updated this review in a while because I usually get the same thing--But tonight I tried something new! Their Wet Burrito! (I got the fajita vegetable and my partner got the chicken). 4/5--portion is great and I loved that I got to choose my beans for the filling, but the "wet" part was watered down and less sauce like than I'm used to. Luckily, I had extra salsa from the nacho supreme (5/5 btw you've gotta try these). 3) My partner was equally as impressed! It was his first time here & He liked that the vibe was calm--and we both agreed that the wait staff was similar to family. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Chicken Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I really wish I had a better experience but to be honest, this was the worst Mexican food I've had in Seattle and maybe some of the worst I've had most places. Neither of us finished our food or took leftovers. Nothing looked or tasted fresh or very flavorful. The salsa with the chips was also just kinda sad. With all of the quality issues, the prices were ridiculous and we also experienced similar issues with hand written receipts that didn't add up to the same prices listed on the menu. The margs were ok, but pretty weak and about 1/3 of them was some kind of foam? It appeared there were perhaps two people working who were trying hard and seemed very kind, but it took a while to get seated or order or get our check. They just seemed overwhelmed. The ambiance wasn't great either. The decor was cute but it seems like this was just a spot that families in the neighborhood go to. There were about 4 screaming children tossing food about while we were there, which is not my vibe. This isn't the restaurant's fault, but they seem like the typical patrons. I couldn't really find much to like aside from the kindness of the servers, so I wouldn't recommend or return. read more

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This is the closest i can imagine to the comfort food tex-mex I remember growing up in the Midwest. (Compliment, mostly.) The queso was the star of the show. Fajitas were super yummy. Margaritas were ok, but this is definitely a place to order flavored margaritas instead of premium selections. Service was kind and friendly. Restaurant was clean and had a lot of interesting art! The space would be fun to play around with lighting. Very happy with the experience. read more

Don't bother getting the tortas. For $16.99 you are basically getting a sandwich you can recreate at subway for half the price. I was craving a torta after my recent trip to CA and tried the carne asada torta since it was a popular item at this restaurant. Boy, was I disappointed! The meat was completely unseasoned. Like, not even salted. It was also tough and full of grizzle. The sandwich had the smallest slice of avocado. The remaining ingredients were onion, tomato, jalapeños, and...lots of lettuce. The bread was just your basic hoagie bread...which is all wrong. No flavor, no spice. Mediocre and unexciting. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Carne Asada Torta - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

This is my favorite restaurant. Their salsa is the best I've ever had. I get the chicken enchiladas with salsa verde and a diet coke every single time, and it's gotten to the point where the waiter knows my order. My best friend and I come here so frequently, it's laughable. They have churros, and they never stop refilling your chips. The prices are reasonable, and i've never had a bad experience here. I crave el carol constantly. read more

Nice, chill neighborhood spot we go to all the time. Service is very attentive. Good comfort Mexican food with generous portions.

Everything. Great friendly service and delicious food. Love this place! I've been a regular for years and still love it here! Consistently great Mexican food. read more

To;dr: Cozy, but poorly-managed Mexican restaurant with just ok food. The restaurant is cute enough, and was busy when I was there on a Tuesday night. The food was just okay, worse than other Mexican restaurants in Cap Hill in my opinion, and definitely over priced. But my biggest issue was the service. It was slow and I had to ask multiple times for more sour cream (my dish was served with the smallest dollop of sour cream and guacamole I've ever seen). When the check came, they charged me $1.75 for the extra sour cream even though the waitress didn't mention that when I asked. And they gave us a hand-written non-itemized bill, where some of the charges didn't line up with the prices on the menu. We had to decode this bill ourselves and compare the prices to the menu. Wouldn't recommend, but if you do go, double check your bill read more

Fabulous margaritas, and super delicious food. Fresh homemade salsa and endless chips. Just make everything beautiful.

My favorite Mexican restaurant of all times! Best chicken Mole! Margaritas aren't bad either :) Service is always exceptional, we live out of town but whenever in the area definitely make this one of our stops! read more

The pictures speak for themselves: completely stale guacamole, congealed beans and cheese, whatever is happening with this taco... this is the worst experience I've had ordering Mexican food. Mistakes were made. read more

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Everybody was super nice, the food came out quickly, and the ingredients were fresh and delicious. I ordered a burrito, and it was probably one of the best I've had. Even the chips that came as a side were warm and fresh! read more

Three stars because the service is good. But if you're looking for a plate of nothing but melted cheese, this is your place! Personally, I was hoping for a chile relleno, what I got was a plate with a strip of pepper and otherwise just a plate full of cheese. I showed the server who apologized and brought out another pepper for me, but again, just overdone in cheese. Very disappointing. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Chile Relleno- AKA a huge plate of melted cheese and one or two bites of pepper - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

This place is so legit. Amazing hole in the wall family style Mexican restaurant tucked away just off 15th street and ready to welcome with chips, salsa, and a menu full of difficult decisions! We ended up sharing the shrimp fajita and two enchilada plate, that is more than enough for two people. The horchata was amazing as well and comes with a refill included since they know how fast you will drink it! Looking forward to coming back soon to try the wet burritos! read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - el farol mexican restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I've been dining at El Farol (formerly Jalisco's) for years - and I adore this place! The food is always excellent and the service is impeccable!! read more

I ordered the chili relleno combo. I've never seen such a pile of crap. These guys should be ashamed of themselves. Canned california chilies, super thin egg, and a ton of cheddar cheese. Beans and rice were basic. I tried to eat it because it cost $26 through grubhub and I'm stuck at work. I just couldn't stomach it. Thankfully I got a refund, and can order from Azteca. They don't suck. I don't know how you guys stay in business selling this garbage. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

What a find!!! The food was delicious. I had the super enchilada. The chips salsa were so damn good I had to get 3 servings, it was that good. read more

Just a great wonderful stop . Fantastic food and service . Great menu selection .Price was why you expect. Clean efficient. read more

I can't speak to its authenticity but as a person who loves this cuisine, it was splendid. The flavor was really good. The enchiladas were not dry. Usually the shredded chicken in my experience has been dry and unseasoned (I'm probably eating at the wrong places) this place however was just right. I got their chicken enchiladas to go. The portion was great I saved it for a late night meal. They also gave me some chips and salsa with the order. The salsa tasted great! Mild but flavorful. I'll definitely order again. read more

I don't normally like writing negative reviews but what a rip off. Ordered pork burrito lunch special. It said it was $12.50 on the menu but dude charged me $13.50 plus tax it's $15.00. Pretty much only received beans, rice and a soggy ass tortilla. This is all that was inside my tortilla. Maybe 3 oz of food. read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Pork burrito lunch special. Soggy ass tortilla with almost nothing inside for $15 - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Food safety rating is only ok. Food is has lots of cheese. Plenty of seating and attractive restaurant.

There are reasons to eat here, but you have to sacrifice authenticity of the food, flavors and quality. I gave El Farol a second chance, after hating the food a few months ago, I really wanted to like them, its a local restaurant run by a Mexican family. In these times especially, helping local business is important. However, this is taco bell type of food, or Ixtapa, they serve franchise style of americanized flavors with Mexican names, and inside this category its still very low quality. Maybe it was ok many years ago when they were probably founded, and perhaps they pioneered something and this was the proper formula, but its unacceptable today with so many Mexican places close by in the area. It is also not cheap compared to other places with better quality. If you want better Mexican food and much cheaper, go to Chuckis, if you want an experience and better food go to Poquitos or El Fogon, they are all walking distance. If you go a bit further you get even better options with DeSanta for example. I really tried paisanos, pero tire la comida, no me la puede comer. read more

Great service however it BYFAR contrasts the quality of the food! Food was horrible. We decided to take out to try to avoid them staying later. I had the Burrito and my wife had the Flautas. Burrito was super soggy and splattered from being squished through poor packaging. More rice than anything else inside. We witnessed both of our orders being put into the microwave. My wife's meat was way dry and overcooked on the flautas outside and inside. The cheese on the beans melted into a form of plastic from microwaving it. The beans were super salty to the point of having to use plenty of lime, salsa, and sour cream to balance it (it didn't work - threw it away). Asked for spicier salsa and it tasted super bitter once we tried it at home (probably old salsa). The food is a total disgrace and an insult to true Mexican cuisine (Writer of this review is from Guadalajara, Mexico). I've had Mexican food in Hawaii with a lot less access to true Mexican ingredients that had better quality in execution of its preparation and flavor profiles than this. Presentation of the food single handed lay speaks that the food is not made with any form of pride for culture, experience or aesthetics (Green Bell Peppers...really?!) Soggy burrito eaten with cutlery - yuck! Sub-par food incompetent to Taco Bell quality for the price of Gastro Pub Gourmet Dining. An unforgettable bitter note of our anniversary celebration. STAY AWAY or lower your expectations to what you would expect for Mexican food in the Middle East payed in US dollars. NO ES BUENO‼ UPDATE AFTER OWNER'S COMMENT Half hearted apology to excuse the service and lack of attention to the issues. (The meat was overcooked inside too) "Sorry our beans tonight were salty (but our past glories make up for it)". Wet burritos are wet through serving salsa on the top not by sinking them in water. Had I known that Water Burritos is what this restaurant understands for "Burritos", I never would have ordered one. Passive aggressive excuses don't improve experience any better either. What a sad experience all throughout even to the feedback of a past order. read more

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basic Mexican fare up in cap hill! The interior feels a little dingy but the service was very friendly! I felt a little bad showing up less than an hour before closing time but the service was still spot on. Meals come with nice basket of warm tortilla chips and salsa. I tried the chile relleno which is one of my go to items at Mexican restaurants. The version here is more like an omelette style with poblano slices mixed with egg and cheese. Different from the poblano pepper stuffed with cheese. The portions were quite generous for the price! read more

El Farol Mexican Restaurant - Chile Relleno (omelet style) - Mexican Near Me - Seattle, Washington