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    El Original

    4.3 (27 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Burrito
    John K.

    I thought it was a great time with my family. Just moved to Hastings, glad we found a great Mexican restaurant. I love burritos and this was good. There was hot dogs and fries for my 2 year old too. Customer service is great! Just attentive folks that always kept my drink full. Tons of tv too to watch pretty much any sports. Quiet, yet busy, loved it.

    Chicken quesadilla
    Jaci S.

    Margaritas for DAYS! Never have I giggled more than seeing the XL Marg be delivered to our table. My husband's face lit up!! I received a virgin daiquiri that could've had a little more ice, but his margarita was perfection! The interior is the most fun I have ever seen at a Mexican restaurant. Every chair is different & the bright colors were so exciting. The food was okay! My chicken quesadilla was a bit runny for some reason. And so when I picked it up, it would separate before making it to my mouth. Otherwise, service was INCREDIBLE!!!

    Original molcajete
    Lydia D.

    The food was delicious and the service was excellent!! We travel a lot due to my husbands work and this Mexican food has been some of the best we've had in Minnesota.

    Skinny Margarita
    Megan W.

    El original is the place to go when you are looking for staff that will recognize you every time you go and will stop to talk about how you are. I have been to el original multiple times and each time there is always something new to try and it never disappoints. Whether you're going in for a full meal or a girls night to catch up, el original has just what you need from the drinks to the chips and salsa.

    Having moved to Hastings from St. Paul, I was mixing my favorite Mexican restaurant and friends mentioned El Original as being truly an amazing place to try. After having tried the Mexican food truck up in the summer by Walgreens and being blown away by their food, I figured we'd give it a try. We did take out and I had to go with my ultimate favorite Funidad appetizer (as Chorizo is something I can never get enough of). Also ordered the Fajitas and Burrito as a good tester. When I got home, we found they had forgotten 2 items so we called the restaurant and they immediately sent someone over to fix this issue. That is true customer service as some restaurants should learn. I was impressed with this as many restaurants would expect you to bring everything back and check and then fix the issue. Now for the food. The Funidad appetizer is a freaking must for anyone who likes a little spice (not too spicy, but just this app alone will fill you up!) It was just the perfect blend of taste and will make you feel like you're in your favorite New York City Mexican restaurant or in Mexico. It truly is that good as most people in Hastings can attest. Prices are good as the size of the dishes will give you plenty of leftovers. When the Mexican food truck is closed in the winter, El Original is the place to get your Mexcian food fix. Heck any time of the year and we go there once a week now!

    Cantarito con 1800 añejo
    Andrew C.

    Coming from Texas to Minnesota and being recommended by locals to give this place a shot was worth it, the staff was friendly the moment we entered the door to when we left. The food was amazing, the didn't lie when they said La Parrillada would be for more than 2 ppl even though it was recommended for 2....y no se diga las salsas. Me being Mexican I judge the restaurants by their quality of salsas. The place represented Mexico and some of its traditional dishes, colorful art that represented the culture from the chairs, to the table and the art on the walls and the music. This place was better than any Mexican food I've had in Texas. Definitely a must go too!

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    1 month ago

    Good Taco Tuesday drinks and prices. Consistently excellent service. Good Margaritas. Probably the best Mexican restaurant in Hastings.

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    11 months ago

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    11 months ago

    We absolutely love this place! The service and food it worth the visit! Very authentic and alot to choose from.

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    3 years ago

    I M O Food is good but slightly over priced. Service is fine ambiance is a little crowded.

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    Liliana

    Liliana

    4.2
    (66 reviews)
    14.2 mi
    $$$

    The food is amazing I had the veal my wife rotolo. It was fantastic authentic and frankly…read moresurprisingly delicious ... I say surprisingly because let's face it it's in Woodbury MN the land of chain restaurants and 17 year old cooks. This food had pride you could taste. We'll be back wow. Update: So good we went back the next night order the same thing and again fabulous!

    I was really pleased by Liliana! This is located in my city and I'm shocked that I have taken this…read morelong to try it. The fact that they have housemade pasta in all kinds of varieties says a lot, they really care about attention to detail, and it is evident in the menu offerings. We ended up getting a handful of items to include the focaccia with seasonal butter, garlic bread with marinara dipping sauce, hamachi crudo, and the rigatoni. The rigatoni had berbere spices in it which made it super flavorful and unlike any other pasta I've had in the twin cities. The berbere spice is traditional to Ethiopian slow-cooked stews so to find it in a pasta at an Italian restaurant was very intriguing! The flavors were perfect! I am excited to try more things from the menu and try other pastas, the flavors did not miss and I was impressed to say the least. The ambience is also lovely, you'll forget that you're in a shopping center in the burbs. I will say however that the pricing was high for the area, $28 for a lamb bolognese is a little egregious.

    Photos
    Bar area
    Bar area
    Prosciutto bruschetta
    Prosciutto bruschetta
    Pasta window

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    Pasta window
    Local Rumor

    Local Rumor

    4.4
    (47 reviews)
    20.1 mi

    I tend to reserve 5 stars for like life changing meals, but this place is a 5/5 on a number of…read morefronts. A few notes to set the scene I went today for lunch on a lovely 70 degree Spring day after getting a haircut across the street to check some work emails, grab a beer and quick lunch to go order. Full disclosure: I'm slightly biased bc I grew up about a mile away and just moved home recently, so any cool vibey place in the old neighborhood has a special place in my heart. That said, it has a very cozy/hip neighborhood feel and understated sophistication for what is a pretty residential and quiet area of St Paul The 5/5 elements... Scott (who I think may be the owner?) is super cool, was serving/tending bar and running around to manage the patio while chatting me up & giving great recs on beer/food based on my half hearted description while I multi tasked on work nonsense. Awesome guy, and reason enough to check this place out The vibe/softly playing music and entrancing Twin Cities flyover footage playing in the background on the TV at the bar was oddly soothing Ordered brisket tacos, brussels sprouts, and fried chicken sandwich for myself + a friend to go. Yamahama, I'm not gonna cheat and double check the menu, but the brussels have a delicious umami flavor from either duck fat or facsimile that perfectly balances the acid from the balsamic/vinegar situation. Fried chicken sandwich is a KILLER, highly recommend. Friend loved the brisket tacos as well Highly recommend this place should you find yourself near Merriam Park in St Paul for lunch, dinner, or happy hour. Must try spot. Cheers

    The interior of this place is incredible, such a cute spot with moody lighting, intimate seating,…read moreand vibey music. It's a great place for drinks and appetizers. The drinks were good, and they also have a solid selection of beer on tap. The food portion are a bit small imo but I will say the Mac and cheese was pretty darn tasty!

    Photos
    Elevated mocktail program
    Elevated mocktail program
    Local Rumor
    Local Rumor

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    The Port

    The Port

    4.1
    (38 reviews)
    21.2 mi
    $$$

    Tony our server took very good care of us last night for our first time back to the Port since it…read morereopened. We live in Red Wing and we need more chef driven Restaurants . I consider myself a "obsessed foodie " so I was pleased when Cory the chef came out of the kitchen and walked around the dining room. We were having a cocktail at the bar so we waved him over to ask what he recommended . I took his advice and ordered the scallops. They were cooked perfectly. Very tender and paired really well with the roasted corn and bacon. The whipped feta was very cold, which was interesting, but the flavor was tangy so it offset the richness of the bacon and scallops. The beef tenderloin was delicious cooked perfect medium rare. The broccolini was a little tough and the blue cheese sauce could have been a little thicker. It was kind of runny. I will be back to try more items on the menu. Excited the restaurant is open again.

    Service was excellent drinks were great. the food was sub par for the price unfortunately as this…read moreis a beautiful restaurant. the $50 steak dinner was a steak that should have been seared and served with a steak knife and the vegetables were under cooked the pasta was missing flavor, they were completely out of grilled asparagus and the menu is so small that was extremely disappointing that there was not a proper plan for amounts of food needed ( our reservation was early in the evening . The Char was great but the navy bean veggies underneath were so salty they were not edible. Hopefully these are things that can be improved. Probably won't return for the food.

    Photos
    The Port
    Beef tenderloin broccolini blue cheese cream sauce capers
    Beef tenderloin broccolini blue cheese cream sauce capers
    Malbec, Elsa Bianchi - Mendoza, Argentina

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    Malbec, Elsa Bianchi - Mendoza, Argentina
    The Quarry Taphouse

    The Quarry Taphouse

    3.9
    (49 reviews)
    2.1 mi

    We stopped here on the way home from TI. Admittedly I saw it from a Yelp Event that I didn't go to…read moreand it piqued my interest. We stopped and grabbed some drinks, I got a beer and then saw the drinks of the month and had to try the watermelon mule. It was fantastic! Really enjoyed it! The hubby just sipped on a beer. We got 2 small buckets of rocks for $2 and went to the area to throw some rocks. The $1 a bucket was totally a great deal and simple enough without dropping major money on something so novel, but also really great. The service was a bit to be desired as despite multiple bartenders (and not many people) it took a while to get drinks or service, but the quality was great of the drinks.

    We were invited to try The Quarry Taphouse, what a fun evening at a really nice venue. I like the…read moreidea of tossing rocks at a wall full of fun things to hit vs. tossing an Ax, seems like such a better idea. We got a bucket of rocks to toss at the wall filled with lots of metal objects, a chime, some Tonka trucks. They also had a fun crane that you can pickup blocks and try to stack them up or build something. The venue is an old Hastings building that has a ton of character. The Tap Wall has a good variety of beers and ciders. They change them up weekly. The costs per/ounce seems reasonable. They have the types of beverage broken down by type (IPA/Dark...) which is helpful. The cost/ounce varies depending on what you are getting. We tried several different menu items and all were good - the three different kinds of cheese curds along with the wide variety of wings (both bone in and boneless). They also have a lot of great sauces to add to your wings or curds. I also tried the Caprese flat bread, yum. We also tried a couple of the specialty cocktails, I really like the Honey Jalapeno Marg! The wait staff was very friendly and helpful with any questions we had.

    Photos
    The Quarry Taphouse
    Mushroom Swiss Smash Burger with Sweet Potato Waafle Fries
    Mushroom Swiss Smash Burger with Sweet Potato Waafle Fries
    Outside

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    Outside

    El Original - cocktailbars - Updated August 2026

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