We just left El Torito celebrating my sister's birthday! We've been coming to this location for brunch for 38 years and each time we've come it gets better and better. This time in particular one person stood out, Roberto! I cannot say enough about him and the service he provided us, he felt like family, and went above and beyond for us and our table, truly made us feel soooo special and taken care of. The restaurant was packed, but never made us feel like he wasn't available, out waters or mimosas were never empty. He was always asking if we needed anything and how we were doing. I now feel like we were spoiled and want him to serve us every time. Thank you so much Roberto for our experience today! Just an amazing server! read more

El Torito - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

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Love the ambiance here had an amazing birthday brunch with my friends. Great food and service is impeccable highly recommend for groups. Roberto was an amazing server.he made our brunch experience awesome read more

El Torito - Bottomless mimosas - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

José the host did such an amazing job fitting us in and finding us a great seating arrangement for me and my friends. Just want to say thank you for the amazing customer service. Definitely will be coming back especially with the service Jose Provided in the beginning. read more

Been coming to this location for many years now. Lots of memories here with my family. We always come during their Sunday brunch. Today's customer service was amazing! Connie was our server so shoutout to her. She was terrific! Food was amazing too! Menudo was definitely hitting the spot! Can't wait to come back! read more

Mother's Day brunch was not it. I understand it's Mother's Day but why am I paying $45+ per person to have premade, soggy sausages? It was disgusting. Other food was okay. Had the posole (good) enchiladas (good), tacos - meat was meh. Premade egg dishes that didn't look appetizing, so didn't touch it. Not to mention, the check in was disorganized. Went to the check in booth outside, gave our name. She checked our names off. Then, the most awkward 30 seconds. She's staring off into the parking lot. Im staring at her, like what now. Then, we just stood there staring at each other. What's happening? So I was like "can we go inside now?". No direction other than "just go wait over there (points to the patio). Okayyyyy? That was weird. What comes next? Who knows cuz no one is communicating. After waiting some time I go inside and give them my name and right away get seated. Like, why is this not better organized? Why is communication so hard for people. Oh, and no one told us about a 90-minute time limit. A worker came up to our table and said, "we have a 90-minute time limit and you have 5 minutes left". The fk??? Why didn't our server tell us this and why wasnt this mentioned when making our reservation. Quality of food? Ass Service? Do better Will I come again? Not for $45 a plate. Trippin. read more

We were very disappointed with the Mother's Day brunch at El Torito in Irvine. We had a reservation and arrived early, but still had to wait to be seated. Once we were seated, the buffet was poorly stocked and several stations were empty throughout our visit. Some food items appeared undercooked, and the overall quality did not meet expectations. Service was slow, and it seemed the restaurant was overwhelmed by the number of guests. Several dishes were unavailable during our visit, and the restaurant had stopped making churros before we were seated. In addition, the downstairs restroom was in very poor condition and was completely out of toilet paper for well over an hour, which added to the overall negative experience. Our party of four paid $44.99 per person (approximately $180 before tax and tip), and for that price we expected a much better experience, especially for a special occasion like Mother's Day. read more

5% hidden surcharge on your bill! Check the fine print at the bottom of the menu. They add this extra charge -- it's always charged but only written on the full menu. Came in for Taco Tuesday and ordered off the smaller bar menu and table stand menu. Tacos are just ordered direct from server. Never saw the 5% notice until received the bill. I asked our server if maybe it subsidizes health insurance from the company for the staff, etc. Her response. No, I don't see any of it. Just raise your menu prices instead of slipping in these extra charges. Outside of these deceptive practices, the food and drinks were good and tortillas super fresh for Taco Tuesday. read more

A casual restaurant with good happy hour deals for shareable apps! We tried many small dishes during happy hour, with my favorite being the chicken flautas. They were very crispy and came with an addicting sauce. I would definitely skip the street corn next time, it was way too sour and almost inedible. The new chicken wings were also not my favorite, the wings were on the smaller side and they were also too tangy for my taste. I went on a Saturday afternoon for happy hour, and it was pretty empty. Our waiter was great and came around frequently to refill our chips and salsa. read more

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I came here with my son for Taco Tuesday -- $3 for any taco. Choice of meats were beef, chicken, carnitas, and pork with pineapple. The taco bar looked pretty good. A server warms up the tortillas and fills them up with your choice of meat. You can add your toppings. One disappointment was that they don't offer rice as an option for topping. While it looked good I thought everything was a bit dry and salty -- it makes some sense since the meat is on heating dishes for the whole evening. The carnitas weren't dry, of course, but they were pretty salty ... Again, that makes sense, since they're simmering for hours, though it doesn't change the fact they're salty. There are a lot of servers and they're friendly. But service was still pretty slow. Maybe I'll try something from the menu next time. But I'm not doing tacos ... Even though they were cheap. read more

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I came here to enjoy a delicious meal with my family and I had the amazing awesome funny kind sweet server named Carla help us and she was so warm and kind to my kid. She was so attentive. The food was amazing. The environment was fun. I definitely wanna come back and I found out that she will be working on Mother's Day this year so I definitely want to bring my family and show our support to Carla who is also an amazing mother to her kid. I couldn't believe that there are still some locations like this around and the fact that the service was amazing, especially by Carla. I want to come back and get served by her again and again I really hope this place does not go away because this is the closest location to me and I love that I can get a few cocktails on the days that I do not come with my child the price and the food and the drinks are very reasonable and affordable read more

I've been going to El Torito for 25 plus years. Our locations keep closing so today went to McArthur by SNA and the food was not great, carne asada over cooked, enchiladas burnt on the bottom, rice was cold and the service was terrible. At the end I even ordered something to go for someone at home and they screwed that order up too. Won't return. read more

Very nice location the food is was amazing. And the service Roberto gave us was top notch! He was very attentive, polite and helpful. He went above and beyond, we came for my sister's birthday brunch and Roberto kept making sure everyone was comfortable especially the birthday girl. We had a large party and Roberto made a special accommodations for us to sit all together with plenty of space. The mariachi group was great, plenty of options in the all you can eat brunch, there was something for everyone. Parking is plentiful, and the rest of the staff was also very attentive. read more

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Came here for Thanksgiving brunch and was really happy with our choice. At $43.99 per person for the holiday buffet, it's one of the more affordable options we found - especially for a holiday. The buffet had plenty of variety, so everyone in our group found things they liked. Service was good and the staff was pleasant throughout our meal. Perfect spot if you want to skip the cooking and cleanup but don't want to break the bank. Would definitely consider coming back for future holidays. read more

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We had a subpar experience here. The seafood tacos are incredibly spicy if you order the shrimp option, and there is no mention of that in the menu, and our server didn't bother to mention it. I had to trade food with my fiancee and my mom because they both couldn't eat them. And yes, I can confirm that they were way too spicy to not mention it to customers. Our server also forgot a drink. And finally, the only working restroom was up a large flight of stairs, and my mom is handicapped. I came here to treat my mom to dinner for Mother's Day. But between the spicy tacos she couldn't eat, and the restroom she could barely access, it simply wasn't good. read more

We were regulars for the Mother's Day brunch at Acapulco on Bristol for many years. The food there was always top notch, the Mexican food especially. We were shocked when they closed a few weeks ago but figured we would go to El Torito instead. Sadly, this was a really bad experience. The food was very poor quality. The enchiladas, tamales, etc. were inedible. Almost uncooked. The bacon was uncooked. The meats were of poor quality. Most of the food stations were empty or just plain awful. The restaurant is also quite run down and old. The staff was totally overwhelmed, they simply had too many people to serve. The management needs to scale back the patrons and concentrate on the quality of the food. I would not recommend this to anyone for Mother's Day. read more

El Torito is located off MacArthur Blvd and Michelson Drive across the street from John Wayne Airport. It's a good spot to stop at if you're hungry, you want to avoid the premium prices restaurants inside the airport charge, and you have time for a sit down meal before catching your flight. If half stars were an option, I'd rate them a solid 3.5. I recommend visiting on a Tuesday between 4-9 pm so you can take advantage of both their happy hour menu and Taco Tuesday. At the time of this review, El Torito is serving up street tacos with your choice of chicken, carnitas, al pastor and/or steak for only $3 each! I wouldn't expect the highest quality Mexican food but I will say their food is consistent. They also offer great buffets during the holidays you'll def need to make a reservation ahead of time for. Buen provecho! read more

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Food is always good; however, we were a bit disappointed that they were "out" of carnitas. It seems like a lack of planning to be out of a main menu item. Also, the dining room needs tender loving care. The vinyl on the booths is torn and tattered and the woodwork scratched and dinged. It appears that salsa was spilled near our table and was congealed and sticky on the floor. The floor as a whole is in need of a good deep steam clean. read more

Always a vibe love the service and food. Roberto was very attentive and made sure we were all taken care of. Great brunch spot for groups read more

El Torito - Bday brunch - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

I drove past this place on the way home so made it a point to stop in for a lunch date. I loved that they had table side guacamole so we decided to share that along with a taco platter. The guy brought over the cart to make us the guacamole but will say I was a bit underwhelmed with the flavor. The tacos were okay but the meat was a bit dry so had to add a decent amount of salsa to each of my tacos. Lunch was okay but I don't know if I'd go out of my way to return. read more

El Torito - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

Happy hour options are a GREAT bargain and delish! Highly recommend the mini tacos (4) and sopes (3). Drinks not bad for the discounted price, and Happy Hour is EVERY DAY until 9 p.m. venue is a little dated and is showing its age, but staff is very friendly and hospitable. read more

El Torito - Happy hour food menu - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

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Love the Sunday brunches here! The team is very attentive and on top of it! We came for the Cinco de mayo weekend and the live mariachi was fun! The buffet had so many good options and food was amazing! Our server, Connie, was amazing. I love how she would check up on us constantly to make sure we were doing good. Also make sure to hit up the taco bar and ask for Joanna. She made sure we were taken care of and our tacos were tasting good! Last but not least, stop by the bar before you go and ask for Gary! Loved the drinks he made for us! We'll be back soon! read more

Let me start off by saying the service was disappointing in the front desk until my table server Roberto made up for it ! He was attentive to my family super friendly and helpful . We had the brunch buffet which was delicious . The food was cooked very well. The ambiance was your typical Mexican restaurant and they had live music playing which was nice ! Overall just wanted to say thank you to Roberto for being super professional and cordial with my family thank you ! read more

Food was great, drinks were great, and our server Connie is a sweetheart! We'll be back soon!

Roberto took care of my family and I on Sunday brunch.! Excellent service, beautiful music, delicious food and the drinks kept coming! I am going to return again because of Roberto's service. Appreciate everything sir. read more

El Torito - Mimosas and tacos Al pastor - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

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We had a good experience we celebrated our sister birthday. Server Roberto was awesome thank you!!! read more

El Torito - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

Roberto was server he was awesome very attentive, great food, great service, we will definitely be back soon!

Connie our server was very sweet and attentive. This was me and my bfs first time at this location and although we had to wait a little longer, the brunch was worth it :) Out favorite is the omelette station! read more

Sat down, didn't have anyone serve us for about 10 minutes. Ordered drinks, another 10 minutes. It took almost 30 minutes to even put in an order. If you have all day to wait to be spoken to and served, sure come here. It was not even busy, there were 4 other tables. I ended up asking them to get my food to go. The drinks were bad, I left the whole flight. I'd rather pay extra to get better service, food, and drinks for Palmilla in NB, or Javier's. Experience here was sooooo subpar. It's cheap, but you literally get what u pay for in all ways. read more

Yanith was an amazing host. She checked on us several times. She was so patient and had great customer service. The food was amazing.

Had a big catering order to be picked up at 11:15 and Liz helped me out. Food was ready on time, the portions were perfect (if it says for 10 it did serve 10 people!) Our office liked everything and will definitely be adding this place to our rotation. read more

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Had a Sunday fun day TODAY they had Msriachi playing. My bartender Jerry was great best bartender ever always smiling and making you feel read more

Had the best time having brunch with my girlies at El Torito! Our server, Jerry, was the best! So attentive, never let our mimosas go dry, and never let our dirty dishes sit for longer than a minute. Could not have asked for a better server read more

El Torito - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

This El Torito is a staple every time we come back home while visiting from Florida. The restaurant is always clean, the host/hostess is always friendly and helpful and the food is amazing. This trip our server was Connie- she was kind, attentive and helpful, if only all servers were as good as her. Cant wait to come back on our next visit! read more

El Torito - Large Mexican Cesar Salad with no protein. - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

We lived on the memory of our nearby old El Torito that closed. The mexican caesar salad was as good as we remembered, but the faiitas were really meh, dried and kinda flavorless tbh. Disappointing. Service was ok and the ambiance is as you can expect, it is just the food didn't measure up. read more

Thank you El Torito for my free BDay entree! The shrimp fajitas were sizzling and delicious! I always appreciate the friendly and quick service, along with the relaxed setting. See you soon! Cheers read more

El Torito - Mexican Near Me - Irvine, California

I have been to El Torito plenty of times at several locations but unfortunately this location did not meet my expectations. The service was horrible, we went during a time the restaurant was slow we got seated right away but then they took forever to attend us, when the server finally attended us he took our drink and food order and when he dropped off the drinks he gave us one wrong drink which is a tiny red flag but we moved on from that mistakes happen. The food then came out promptly which was delicious but then when it came to drink refills the server came to check on us so late I was already done eating by the time I got to ask for a drink refill. The server seemed to be in a mood and he stated he was "busy" and I understand but that is not an excuse to neglect guests. I even saw another table get up and leave because of how long the servers took. Overall, we enjoyed the food, they have happy hour from 3-9pm everyday which is nice but a big part of dining at a restaurant is the service which this location lacks. read more

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Roberto was great! Super friendly, professional, and paid attention to every detail. He made the whole experience easy and comfortable, and the results turned out even better than expected. I would definitely recommend him to anyone looking for quality service! read more

Went here to have some dinner while waiting for my family to arrive at John Wayne. Easy parking and easy to go back and forth to the airport for multiple incoming flights. Our server was attentive and friendly. However the food was sub par, unlike other El Torito experiences. It was served cold, as if the rice was scooped from the fridge and not reheated enough. Our salsa had multiple long hairs which the server told me was actually cilantro cut the wrong way creating this effect. I chose to believe him so I wouldn't gag. He told me another lady had the same complaint and the chef told him this was the case. Before we left, I went to the restroom and upon exiting, I had to step over the largest cockroach I have ever seen. Location is great, service was good, but they need to clean up their act. read more

Last Friday after work, we order the shrimp enchiladas , around 1:30 PM they took forever to give us our order, then enchiladas were so horrible, each one has three shrimps, the flavor wasn't even there, we were so hungry we ate rice and beans, we are so disappointed read more

Came for brunch & it was delicious! Bottomless mimosas! Our server Connie was amazing!