Really felt like the staff didn't want us there. Wasn't even sure who our waiter was? Kept having to get up and ask the bartender and other employees to help us. Pretty bad experience based on service alone and will not return nor would recommend based on our honest experience. read more

I hadn't heard of El Rey before but when a friend suggested it for Taco Tuesday, I figured why not! Their Taco Tuesday deal is $10 for a set of the 3 same tacos, plus they have happy hours margs 5-7pm. I ordered the shrimp and my friend the pescado and we swapped a taco so I can vouch for both! Plenty of indoor and outdoor seating and with the happy hours and Taco Tuesday deals, definitely an affordable option in the area. read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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Came here with some coworkers for Happy Hour and had a blast. Drinks were delicious and tacos were the special of the night (Taco Tuesday). I tried the Birria tacos on fresh corn tortillas after a recommendation from the staff and they were absolutely delicious! We also shared two batches of nachos for the table and a pitcher of margaritas. Super friendly staff - delicious food at decent prices. Highly recommend and I'll definitely be back! read more

El Rey - Taco Tuesday - Birria tacos on fresh corn tortillas - delicious! - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

This review is based on attending a Magic Mic event at El Rey in September. We came to see our neighbor and several others perform some very good magic tricks. Magic Mic puts on shows on a regular basis and they are worth checking out. While Magic Mic is hosted inside El Rey, there's really no table service inside the "magic lounge". The entire time we were there we were never offered service. We did see an El Rey staffer takes orders from maybe one or two tables, but that was it. And that was towards the beginning of show and then the server completed disappeared. However, a person can walk to the bar inside the front door, outside the magic room, and order drinks at the counter there. Apparently, they also do have food because we saw the one server bring a menu to one table at the start of the show and food was brought to them later. I'm puzzled, El Rey could make money off a much more robust drink and food service, but they choose not to do so. read more

El Rey - Magic Mic show - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Came here for happy hour after work and the food was pretty good to be honest. They had vegan tacos, which was some sort of lentil type deal and they had chicken tacos which were well seasoned. The quesadillas were cheesy and the steak quesadillas were pretty good. The churros were nice and crunchy with a chocolate sauce on the side. Perfect for a quick bite after work. The drinks were a bit watered down so I would skip. Nice staff and quick service. read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Came for lunch and it was pretty good. The Birria Morelo tacos are good. I thought the Al pastor taco was a little dry but the shrimp taco was good. I would comeback on a Tuesday for their taco Tuesday special of 3 tacos for $10 read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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I stopped by on Friday after work, and it was pretty packed inside. Luckily, there's plenty of outdoor seating with picnic tables, which made it easy to grab a spot. You place your order through an app--which I'm not a huge fan of, since it makes it tough to ask questions or customize anything. I ordered the chips, salsa, and guacamole--great portion size. I also had the shrimp and fish tacos, and both were delicious. The side of rice was surprisingly generous too--there was a lot of food overall. I also got a frozen strawberry mango pitcher, and for the amount you get, the price was really reasonable. I am excited to go back and try some more items. read more

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We went to El Rey for a happy hour/dinner and ordered the chips and guac and I got the taco salad. I really liked how quickly the food came out! The food was tasty and I enjoyed everything I ate. The interior of the restaurant is so fun too and everyone was so friendly. The outdoor area is also a great place to meet up with friends when the weather is nice! You can usually just walk in and when we went on a Friday night there were still tables available. All in all had a great experience! read more

El Rey - Chips and guac - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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Ok so boom picture this: it's any given day of the week. You and your girlfriend/partner/whoever need something to eat... omand probably drink. You know you can't suggest anywhere other than El Rey because she basically just wants El Rey every time! So you go to El Rey for a taco or a birria quesadilla and definitely the guacamole. And definitely the spicy margarita she is obsessed with. Trivia fact: we've only taken one picture ever here but the place is a staple in our relationship now. Can get it to upload for some reason I only take away one star because sitting out in that beautiful patio you have to order on your phone which annoys me. But that's just me. read more

I came here for dinner with some friends on a random Wednesday. They had some great happy hour food specials and wonderful food. I got the nachos and my friends got the tacos and tostados. The service was great. We had people checking in on us regularly even though they had a QR code to ensure we received our food correctly. It's a pretty well-spaced place with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. I could hear my friends and can't wait to go back again! read more

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We came by here for a late night dinner after 9 and the kitchen was super quick with our food! We got the chicken taco salad which was more like a taco bowl, there wasn't much lettuce but there was plenty of chicken and the fried taco shell was great. The birra nachos were awesome with plenty of meat, beans, queso, and some pickled jalapeños on top. It was of food to share! There's a ton of outdoor seating and some indoor seating that I'm sure they can deal with a lot of crowds. They also have margarita pitchers of all their variety for those looking for something alcoholic. read more

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Stopped in for a quick lunch and was not disappointed. My wings were cooked perfectly and PIPING HOT when they came out. The fries were on point. My corn was delicious also. The server was so friendly and very helpful. I'll def be back to try more menu items! And apparently they have bunch. The brunch menu looks so good! read more

The food was delicious! I came on taco Tuesday night where any 3 tacos of the same kind are $10. I got the birria tacos which were very good. The bartender was attentive and the food came out super fast, albeit I came later (7:30pm) when it was not so busy. Overall, a great deal for taco Tuesday! read more

El Rey - Birria tacos - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Great food! Came here with my bestie for a drink and tacos and it was perfect. Its seat yourself and its usually busy so don't come here expecting to be heavily waited on. The wait staff were quick and efficient nonetheless! read more

First restaurant I've been to where you don't really have a waiter, you seat yourself, scan the QR code and order from the phone. I didn't like that you can't just leave the tab open and pay at the end. You have to fully pay each time and add tax/tip which can be annoying if you want to order more drinks. Food was good, the quesabirria my friend really liked. Birria taco was okay. The fish taco was pretty good. Carne asada taco was eh and the DC and Al pastor were both good read more

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This is a fun spot for Mexican in the Ballston area! There is a lot of outdoor seating and the vibes are great. I had the summer smash drink and the grilled chicken tacos. Both were great! Service was quick and you order from your phone. read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

I came to try their 3 for $10 tacos and a drink and I really enjoyed the vibe and atmosphere! The service was great and the decorations are super fun. The only thing is they do drape in front of almost every TV which kind of sucks when you're trying to watch the game but aside from that my boyfriend and I really loved the tacos. We did the chicken and al pastor tacos and I loved the chicken ones!! So good. We ended parking in the exchange garage since it's right underneath and has a door once you get inside the main building that leads to El Rey! Super convenient to beat the cold. read more

This place was so good and prices were reasonable! Located in a nice area in Ballston Quarter right next to Hawkers, indoor and outdoor seating. Birria tacos were really yummy and cheesy. It was my friend's first time trying them and she would give it 5 stars. I enjoyed the shrimp taco. Elote was also delicious, $6 may be a lot for an elote but not outrageous. Nachos are very very filling. Not too spicy and flavorful. The jalapenos are not strong at all, for someone who doesn't really like jalapenos. Service is quick, great place to grab a quick bite to eat and drink with friends. There's sports playing on the TVs. Vibe is very casual. I cannot speak to how authentic this place is, but with my low standards for Mexican food in VA, this was a great find! read more

El Rey - Birria taco (top), shrimp taco (bottom left), elote - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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Excellent food. 4 people dining so Birria tacos, Al pastor, carne asada, and battered fish tacos for a taco Tuesday feast. Excellent chips and queso plus a fully stocked bar. The Mangonada was delicious. Dinner for 4 with plenty of alcohol snuck us out for right around $200 with tip. read more

We come here all the time, and it never fails to disappoint. A fantastic & underrated spot for brunch, delicious tacos (and a wide variety of choices), great patio vibes and indoor happy hour vibes, and even with the QR code ordering option, the servers are always attentive and friendly. read more

El Rey - Chips DC Taco Baja Fish Taco Breakfast Taco Chorizo Hash - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

The food is very good. Only knocking it down one star because I wish the server took our order. It felt too hands off especially since we had questions about the menu as it was our first time. We seated ourselves and the only time we saw our "server" was when he brought us water and then took our plates in the end. Outside of that the restaurant is very nice, clean and the food is some of the Mexican I've had in the DMV. read more

The food has gotten better since the last time I was here but the service had gotten exceptionally worse. Food: 4/5. The tacos have definitely gotten bigger which I'm a big fan of. The birria is delicious, and so is the chorizo. The carne asada is pretty dry, and the DC taco is meh. When they say crispy fried on the taco I expected fries, not shoestring potatoes. Service: 1/5. Absolutely horrible. We saw our waitress once, 5 minutes after we sat down. When we wanted more water we had to go get it ourselves from the waiter cart. Half of us got birria tacos, and only half of those orders came with the consume which is one of the most important parts. We would've asked for it... but no one came by to check on us the entire dinner. Who am I even tipping at this point? TLDR: Food was good but not better than Bar Taco, and service was way worse. Only reason I'd come back is if my friends wanted to. read more

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Cute place in a good location in the Ballston neighborhood :) Both indoor and outdoor seating options were cute. The food was delicious and the margaritas were decently strong. My friend and i split the mango margarita pitcher and it lasted us about 4 drinks each which I'd say is a very good deal! We also split the nachos and got 3 tacos each. The tacos were a pretty good size and were all flavorful :) I'm knocking off 1 star though because the service was pretty slow. They had QR codes to scan to look at the menu, but then we had to wait for someone to take our orders. The restaurant wasn't that busy and yet it still took us a while to order and then we had to wait a bit to get the check. Aside from that, the food and drinks were worth it and I'd come back. read more

My husband and I came on a Saturday and didn't need to make a reservation. It's a seat yourself restaurant and the waiter will find you shortly thereafter and bring a pitcher of ice water. Parking: - Garage parking for $6 if you can't find street parking. - The restaurant is inside a shared building space but you access the main entrance on the outside. Walk past Hawker's Street Food. Food: - We ordered a bunch of tacos and a margarita swirl pitcher. - The tacos were small but FULLY loaded. I ate about 7 honestly, we were both really hungry. - I had the birria, DC (fried chicken with mambo sauce), al pastor, choriqueso, and carne asada. The chicken on the DC was very tender, it was cooked perfectly and the batter on the chicken was golden brown. The al pastor taco had chunks of pork meat, so it was very meaty, Almost like they took a pork loin and cubed it up. The birria was my favorite, the melted cheese and consomme were delicious. - The Tapatio hot sauce on the table was a great addition to almost all the tacos. - The margarita pitcher yields about 6 servings (small glasses) but it's nice and strong. We ordered the lime and strawberry swirl and it was delicious. It needed to be mixed up a bit at the end because the syrup settled at the bottom. It seems like they use quality margarita mixers. Tips: - I think a great way to step up the experience would be to give free salsa to the table when they order tacos. - Chips, salsa, pico de gallo, and guacamole are all available for purchase, but salsa should come included. - We never received any utensils, I'm not sure if this is because we only ordered tacos or what but like i said the tacos were fully loaded, so as meat fell out into the taco basket i had to pick it up with my hands and eat it. - I love places that have extended happy hours and there's is Sun-Thurs 11am-7pm, so I would love to come back for HH prices. My husband spent $109 pre-tip on our meal. In our opinion the tacos weren't as good as Taco Bamba, but that's because El Rey has more traditional tacos and less wild combos. read more

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El Rey Arlington has really stepped up their game lately! Went for happy hour and almost got knocked out by two perfectly strong frozen margaritas. The food was pretty standard bar fare, but I was pleasantly surprised at how big the food portions were. You can expect a good number of pretty big shrimp in the quesadilla. FYI the nachos in the photo is the regular portion and not the thursday special, but I don't know if there's a difference. If you can grab a table in the outdoor patio area, it's a great spot with plenty of shade on a hot day. Ordering with the QR codes was a breeze and service is pretty quick. Next time I go back, I'll need to try getting an entire pitcher of margarita.... but I'll need to bring a team to back me up~ read more

El Rey - Nachos w/ chicken - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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Food was good and very filing. Service was fast we ordered ourselves via qr code on the table. read more

El Rey - 3 Birria Morelos Tacos - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

I was surprised this wasn't rated higher. The tacos were great and taco Tuesday made it even better. 3 tacos for $10 that were a very large portion compared to other street tacos. Will definitely be back ! Fast service and allow you to order by QR code so no waiting for servers unless you want to read more

Solid Mexican, nothing to write home about. A bit over salted. I would likely only come back for the drinks. read more

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Stopped by El Ray this past weekend for lunch and loved it! Super fast service with self seating and a QR code menu which you order directly from. Staff was still easy to grab is needed. Nice outdoor seating in a pretty area. Very vibrant with lots of people out, dogs, etc. I would definitely recommend for a nice day! I got the chicken burrito which was excellent and a great deal for the price given how large it was. read more

El Rey - Chicken Burrito - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

I stopped by Friday afterwork. It was not crowded. This is a Mexican restaurant and they serve classic Mexican food. I started with a glass of the White Sangria and that was very sweet. The glass of Margarita strawberry did not taste good. It was too bitter. I watered it down, but it did not improve the taste. I ordered a Pumpkin Quesadilla and that consisted of pinta bread with cheese inside that was heated. The pumpkin is a dip that you dip the Quesadilla into. That is the only thing Pumpkin about it. I finished off with a Plantain sweet. This heated plantain with some vanilla ice cream on top. The service was very good. I was not impressed by the food. The ambiance consists of very loud music that gave me a headache. Will not return. read more

This place is fine, y'all. I was there for lunch and it was practically barren, but I could see it getting swamped on an evening. Service was not intrusive but welcoming--I appreciated the taco recommendations, my Diet Coke was always filled, and I was in and out in no time. My mahi taco (a daily special) was good, the birria was delightful (and came with consumme), and the rice was downright bland but did what I wanted. I wouldn't make this a destination stop, but I was fresh off an airplane and just wanted food. This fit the bill. Bonus: reasonable prices. read more

Finally got here in person. Wow the burritos at the table next to us really looked good! Anyway..I ordered the same thing I ordered for takeout last time but this time I got them on flour tortilla. Food was really good. Outdoor lights add a special ambiance. Weird situation with the bill. I would not pay in cash again. Tip is included. We were not notified of this but noticed it. We put large bills down and waited. We never got change. read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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My family was excited to see a new restaurant opening up in the area (coming soon signs have been there for a long time), so we went in and tried it today. It is a huge space where the NSF daycare used to be located in Ballston Exchange. It's clean, and It has a fun, modern feel. The waitress brought us over a carafe of ice water when we sat down, which they were good about refilling. We tried the chips with salsa and queso to start, some chicken tamales, an assortment of tacos, and the brunch griddle cakes. Unfortunately, we were not fans of most of it. I think we are biased by the great variety of very good tacos nearby, as some of them weren't all that bad, just much worse than other nearby options. Specifically: The chips taste like they are from a bag at a grocery store (actually, worse than a lot of those). The queso was very thick and tasted strongly of velveeta; It thickened to be inedible about halfway through our meal. We liked the salsa - it was fresh, a little spicy, and flavorful. The tamales were not good - the masa was incredibly mushy, giving them an unappetizing texture. The al pastor was the best taco we had. It was pretty good but didn't hold a candle to ones I've had at Taco Bamba about a block away (or the pork belly tacos at Bartaco - a block the other direction). The DC taco and carne asada taco were surprisingly underseasoned and lacking in flavor - I didn't finish either of them. The Thai Shrimp taco had no Thai flavor - maybe Vietnamese? It was overcooked shrimp, with Banh Mi like daikon and carrots, and DROWNED in sriracha Mayo - I took one bite. The griddle cakes were probably one of the best tasting things we had, but they were more like the consistency of crepes - very, very thin. The service was good, and they did keep asking us if we needed anything. I would have complained about the food, but it wasn't like they served us raw chicken or anything like that, it just didn't taste very good (especially compared to nearby alternatives). I do not plan to return, as my family and I greatly prefer Taco Bamba, Bartaco, Uncle Julio's, and La Union. I hope they take this criticism constructively, because I would like to see something succeed in the space. read more

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Got two tacos (birria morelos & al pastor) for $4 each. The birria came with a soup/dipping sauce (consumé). These were probably one of the smallest tacos I've ever gotten. If you look at the picture I attached, you can see that both tacos (folded) were roughly the size of my hand. And no, I don't have very large hands to begin with. The taste of the al pastor wasn't very memorable and looked more like suspicious lunch meat. The chipotle aioli sauce that came with it was OK. The dipping sauce for the birria was probably enough for like five tacos. Birria was flavorful but $4 for a small lil taco is just not it. I asked for corn tortillas for both tacos and they gave me flour tortillas. Overall, I would not recommend getting the tacos here unless you want to be ripped off. My friend got a quesadilla here for $15 here and thought the portions were pretty big so I was able to try some of it. Good meat flavor but the cheese flavor was overall lacking and sad. read more

El Rey - Two very small tacos... $4 each - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

This place is a prime example of why automatic 20% gratuities should be reconsidered. Our waiter was rude, inattentive, and rarely around--and yet still added nearly $200 in gratuity while we were celebrating a friend's birthday. Tips are earned through service, not guaranteed just for showing up. After nearly 15 years in the industry, I've always understood that. This establishment would do well to remember those value read more

Solid taco spot. Definitely walked around the block looking for it, but that's user error :) my friend and I went for dinner and drinks and had a good time. Nice vibe in there, tons of seating options, and service was great! We both ordered margaritas and probably should've gotten a pitcher to share (tip for you!) we shared the esquites which were delicious! We both really liked the Thai shrimp and fish taco. I ordered the DC taco, comes with chicken tender, but I think it was too dry for my liking. Nice spot in Ballston! Will definitely come back again. read more

El Rey - Esquites - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

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If you're looking to get blown away by the food and authenticity, this place is not it. That said, the service here is one of the best I have ever had and I would come back here, even if the food isn't all that great. Despite it being a very busy night, the service was quick and accurate, and I truly appreciate how attentive our servers were. The one thing that did stand out among the rest was the roasted pork taco. Dip this in a consume soup and it will kick up an otherwise ho-hum taco a notch. The desserts here look good and tasted just fine, but nothing to write home about. Change the menu a little bit and focus on spices and ingredients and this place will go from a 3-star to a 5-star rating. Again, great service. read more

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Came here for brunch, but ended up getting the quac and chips with the Baja fish and DC taco. Both were a 10/10. Would definitely come back to try other tacos! read more

El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Place is decent. Good service and good, but nothing too extravagant about it. Pretty standard Mexican place. Imagine an Outback- just make it Hispanic. The guac is solid. And the quesadillas were really good. Doesn't hurt to stop by, but doesn't hurt to miss. read more

My husband and I hosted our wedding rehearsal dinner and wedding welcome party at El Rey & had a fabulous experience. We could not have been more impressed by the attentiveness of the staff to all of our needs (shoutout in particular to Hamza!!!). The food was fantastic, the bartenders were great and kept the line moving with ease, and the venue was just an awesome fit for our event. Hamza was also impressively responsive as we worked to plan the events and provided expert recommendations on the types and amounts of food to serve. Many of our guests commented on how tasty everything was and how much they liked the venue. Thank you El Rey for helping make our wedding weekend so awesome!! read more