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    El Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant

    4.3 (481 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Business Info

    EL REY AZTECA MEXICAN RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Happy hour specials
    Good for groups

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    Veggie Tacos
    Nina M.

    This place is so festive. 2nd time being here because it is not close. The food was amazing and so was the staff. It was my birthday and there were 7 of us and sill everything was fabulous. Thank you El Ray Azteca for making my birthday special. Get the passion fruit lemonade it's delicious.

    Entrance
    Chelsea W.

    Fantástico! We were headed home from Maine - stopped in Wilkes Barre for the night. This was our dinner choice and we were pleasantly surprised. Starting with the clever decoration out and in, immediate greeting and seating, fast and efficient waitstaff and delicious food! The night was great! We sampled a marguerita, pina colada and a Mexican Coke. Queso and chips - dinner was off to a good start. Our party chose, steak tacos, fajita quesadillas and chicken fajitas. All expertly cooked and presented. We were stuffed when we left. This is a definite go to in this area. I hope I'm back someday!

    Just one shot of the area of the restaurant where we sat. The whole restaurant has great art work from the walls to the tables and seating.
    Abi B.

    The wife and I really enjoyed ourselves at this Azteca restaurant. The food was great. The service was great. The atmosphere was fantastic. Everything was hot nicely presented, and cooked to your wishes.

    DuVal W.

    The best Mexican cuisine I had ever had !! Authentic, fresh ingredients! Well done ! !!!!

    Seating area

    Went to El Rey Azteca tonight for dinner with my mother and it was AMAZING! The decor was very artsy and authentic Mexico. The music was a little loud, but good and not so loud that you couldn't carry on a conversation. Daniella was our server and she was very sweet and attentive. The chips and salsa they bring out first were excellent. I had the fish chimichangas and side chile relleno. Food was AMAZING! I am surprised that there weren't more people in this place though! The prices are very reasonable and food is AMAZING! I highly advise giving this place a try! You won't be disappointed!

    Área para fotos
    Brendalyz L.

    La comida estaba muy buena, un servicio excelente tienen mesero a que hablan inglés y español son muy atentos y amables.un ambiente tranquilo.

    Decor
    Just S.

    Best Mexican food ! Great decor & super great service, don't remember out waitress's name but she was super nice & attentive. Love this spot & service. The Salsa alone was great, who the hell pays that much attention & love to salsa? The fondue was delicious, really loved my chicken chimichanga & our waitress gave us 3 different level of pepper sauce, we also got a chicken burrito & a margarita flight that had 4 flavors & we enjoyed them all. Will definitely be back the next time we are this side of Pennsylvania. More than 5 stars

    the inside of a mexican restaurant
    Michelle G.

    From the curbside, you will have no expectations but as soon as you open the door, you will be swept up in the spirit of this place! The decor is spirited and playful - be sure to walk around and admire it all. For our first visit, we tried a lot of options - taco salad, burrito and enchiladas supreme... plus three flights of margaritas. Salsa and chips were brought to our table upon arrival. It took a bit of time for our flights (because making 12 margaritas takes a minute!) but our giant lunch and drinks were worth the wait. Our dishes were not super spicy but favors were great. Proteins were perfectly cooked. We'll be back.

    Side of guacamole and salsa (salsa was very good, guac was okay)
    Ashley M.

    Food was very quick, hot, and fresh. The salsa was very good and the chips (a slighter thicker tortilla chip) tasted as if they had just been cooked (although they were not very good the next day). The side of guacamole was okay, needed more flavor. For our meals we ordered the steak tacos (steak was great, but the tacos themselves needed more flavor), the Chile relleno (a lot of sauce, could use more cheese, and was very large), the Azteca burrito (which was HUGE and had a lot going on, lots of flavors), and some regular beef hard tacos. I did really enjoy the spiced cucumbers and other sauces that came with the tacos, this helped to add different flavors. We would probably try this place out again as the staff was nice and the price was reasonable...though some things lacked flavor, the freshness was great!

    Margarita  Chips and Salsa
    Lora S.

    I had to wait to be seated in a not busy restaurant. The hostess didn't hear me and gave me 2 menus which may be why I had to wait a while to order. Everything came out together. The music is insanely loud. It feels like they are trying to be club. The salsa was just ok. Queso was also just ok. The margarita was not good. Super sweet and almost zero tequila. The Azteca burrito is just ok. Carnitas and verde salsa was the best part. Chorizo was not good and the red sausage was not great either. The part that makes this place the worst is the birthday celebrations. REALLY loud annoying song that plays way too long. Literally heard it twice during my dinner. I did not walk I ran out after I paid.

    This establishment is absolutely phenomenal! If I could give 10 stars I would. Every time I have been the food and service has been nothing short of amazing. Being that I come from Southern California, it is almost impossible to find quality Mexican food in PA. If you also struggle to find quality Mexican food, look no further. Went this fine Saturday evening, and the staff gave out free shots and played fun music, awesome atmosphere and vibe. ¡Viva México!

    the inside of a mexican restaurant
    Cari C.

    Great food and cool interior. The service was disappointing. The waitstaff was inattentive and unfriendly. Two people in our party received their food after everyone else was finished, oofff. What a shame, considering the rest of the experience was awesome. A nice gentleman did grab my kid's iPad. Maybe he was part of the A team coming on shift for dinner.

    Menu
    ZuZu S.

    This place is so fun and well decorated! We ordered our food and drinks at the same time and by the time we finished ordering my Pina colada was already on the table! The portions are huge but so tasty!! Our food came out in probably 10 minutes, the service was so fast here. The menus were also iPads which was really fun and unique.

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    Photo of Mandy G.
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    3 months ago

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    1 month ago

    Very good Mexican .I would give them an 8 outta 10. Looking forward to tamales pm me if you make them again

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    10 months ago

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    2 years ago

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    5 months ago

    Been there a few times and food is very good and drinks fine as well. Seems authentic to me.

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    11 months ago

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    7 months ago

    A beautiful place to go. Our waitress was kind and the food was amazing . This place is spotless. The artwork is amazing we will be back !!!

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    2 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    8 months ago

    Never had a bad meal there! Always have to get the Mexican street corn as an appetizer. Staff is super friendly!

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    Gaston R.

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    2 years ago

    Food was good. Steak street tacos were delicious. Beef street tacos were just okay. Tableside guacamole is well worth it.

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    3 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    2 years ago

    The food here is fantastic and the interior of the restaurant is absolutely beautiful.

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    7 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    1 year ago

    Always the best service and food. Love the restaurant, and love hitting their food truck up at the Wilkes-Barre farmer's market. The best!

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    Page 1 of 13

    El Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - El Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant

    Do they have good vegetarian options?

    They are very accommodating. I believe they would make any of their dishes vegetarian for you.

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    They are on the right track!! Because they have been advertising heavily, this restaurant caught my…read moreattention and I wanted to try. One of my friends who is in the restaurant industry told me she heard poor reviews, so, guess what, we went to try without those friends!! We went with a group and happened to go for their valentine day special. Most got their special of "surf and turf", which was a very small piece of fillet and 4 shrimp. First off, I will say, the food itself was very good. No one was a fan of how this dish was presented, all on one large dish to be split by the couple. Once split, it cooled off quickly and looked more like an appetizer or tapas (small plate). My biggest recommendation would be quantity. For example, the salads were very, very skimpy. The "sides" with the surf and turf special were also, very skimpy. Now, we have dined all over the globe in very high end restaurants and understand quantity does not equate to quality, BUT, in this instance, it seems Isabellas is trying to make or remake their name in the local restaurant scene. They are doing so much right, just increase the quantity of a few of the items. For example, the special surf and turf dinner for two, had there been an ever so increase in the potato au gratin side and the spinach (which, I would also say, needed a bit of help, not bad, but one more like Ruth Chris's renowned creamed spinach) would have been better. So, I don't think making those servings just a wee bit larger would increase the cost of goods significantly, but would certainly go a long way in making the average diner feel more satisfied.

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    ¡Vamos a tapear!…read more This is my first time in Wilkes-Barre and after almost a week of eating pizza, and other assorted quick bites across the town, I was in the mood for something more. I'm from Las Vegas, and I can only eat so much pizza! MVD was recommended to me by someone who hasn't even dined here yet if that tells you how much people talk about this place. It's about 12 mins or so from where I am staying near the arena/Kings College area and is easy to access with its own parking lot. When I walked up, I was very impressed. It is so cute and welcoming! There's a bar at the front when you walk in and you're immediately greeted by smiling faces. The face that greeted me belonged to Brian. (I hope it's with an I and not a Y...sorry if not!) He immediately sat me for my solo reservation and made sure I understood the concept and menu and gave me some time to look it over. They are only open from 5-9 and I arrived at 7:15pm. Nearly everything is made fresh in house (even the ravioli are hand stuffed...wow) and Brian couldn't give the chef enough props for what she does there every day. I ordered the chicken empanada, camarones (shrimp), and mini hamburguesas as well as a caipirinha (alcoholic drink). Tapas are small plates, almost like appetizers, and although the servings are not large, the flavors are so rich it feels like they are! Everything made me do a "happy dance" and I even saved the sauce from my shrimp to dip my burger in. It didn't need it at all, but I couldn't let the sauce go! The empanada...jeez. I wish I remembered to take a photo before I dove in. And the mini burgers...Immaculate. The ambiance is so welcoming. I ended up speaking to every diner around me and even got to talk to another foodie couple who traveled there from some towns over after discovering MVD on a prior visit. They told me something I already knew as well: I'll be back to try the things I missed because YOU CANT GO WRONG! Sal, Brian, and there was a woman at the front as well were all great. And they have a promotion where you send a postcard to anyone you want after your meal. So cute!! I will def visit MVD EVERY time I come to Wilkes-Barre and support them bringing new flavors to the town. I can't rave enough!

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    Inside is cute af

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    El Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant - mexican - Updated May 2026

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