Esmeralda's Cafe 1000 E Charleston Blvd #101, Las Vegas, NV 89104 A Throwback Worth Visiting. 4 Stars After hundreds of restaurant reviews, one term you will almost never hear me use is "authentic." Authentic to what? Authentic where? How is it authentic? I think if you're going to use the term authentic, you need to explain why you think it's authentic based on whatever your personal experiences may be. If you've never had a personal experience with the food in the country, region, or culture where it originated, how would you know whether something was authentic or not? That said, Esmeralda's Cafe is a quaint little restaurant on Charleston that felt like a throwback to another era. It reminded me of the small independent neighborhood restaurants of the 1970s. Nothing fancy, nothing slick and nothing manufactured for Instagram. Just a little restaurant serving Mexican and Salvadoran food. I ordered the Pupusas Revueltas, a Taco de Deshebrada and a Wet Chicken Burrito. The food was solid. Everything was prepared properly and everything tasted good. The pupusas were flavorful, the shredded beef in the taco had good meat quality, and the wet chicken burrito was satisfying. You can see from the pictures that the presentation was slightly above average for this type of restaurant, but more importantly, the quality of the ingredients was there. There wasn't anything revolutionary happening on the plate, nor did there need to be. This was simply good food, prepared correctly, in an old-school little neighborhood restaurant. The Big Boy says, "If you're interested in some Mexican and Salvadoran food made by Mexicans and served by Mexicans, this isn't a bad place to go. Solid food, good meat quality and a little throwback atmosphere. 4 Stars." read more

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We walked into a pretty empty restaurant for lunch & held our breath hoping for a good experience. We got just that. It was good, not great. The service was quick. The food was hot. My fish tacos were a little dry & could've used a sauce, but we're decent overall. The horchada was up to par, but there are no free refills so sip carefully. Portions are on the bigger side & the prices were super reasonable for what we got. We were satisfied, but not wowed. read more

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Eastside near Arts District. Come here for the $3 Pupusas! They offer vegan, vegetarian, dairy free, and bean custom options too! Remember to add salt, or their pupusa sauce to it. Credit card charge of 2%. They offer delivery. I've eaten pupusas back in LA Pico Union with a big Salvadorian community, but it's been awhile. I'm pretty limited on Salvadorian food so take my thoughts as a tourist. I think this place is an awesome deal for their $3/$4 pupusas for a snack. Especially when locally, the next best mom pop shop snack are empanadas for like $4.75. Pupusas $2.75-$4.25, mostly $3 (we were suggested by neighbors of this place for their pupusas). Add you salt or the pupusa salty sauce. - They pupusa options without dairy and beans!!! $3 Chicharron pupusas , $4.00 Chicken pupusas, $4.25 Shrimp pupusas all can be made with dairy and beans. Vegan would be the spinach options. - Out of the nondairy nonbean pupusas, the SO like the chicharron pupusa. He'll have to try the regular versions with dairy and/or beans next time. Staff also recommended their House Specials and Soups as popular picks. - House Special Section, $23.99 Beef with Shrimp Combo was suggested. Comes with rice, beans and tortillas. Instead of beans, that can offer salad but stick with beans for the SO to try. And we picked their Handmade tortillas which is pretty thick. Shrimp was big. - Soup Section: We picked $20.99 Seven Seas Soup. Fish was fishy. Soup broth was light and tasty. But overall, they both seemed meh. I can appreciate the lightness of everything though. Also, I don't know the difference of what should be considered good so I might be last to judge on any of this. During major city street construction, our neighbor suggested we visit this place in support of these mom pop spots. We'd like to support and love to keep local prices low. read more

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Not bad. Not great, but not bad at all. No chips and salsa in the beginning, so be aware of that. But the food was fine, the prices are VERY fair. Horchata doesn't come with free refills, but that seems to be the norm. The beans were tasty, the chimi was crispy and the steak inside was juicy and flavorful. My wife liked the fish tacos. For the money, it's a very good deal. read more

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I recently discovered a great local spot for pupusas and wanted to share because places like this deserve support right now. Esmeralda's Restaurante on East Sunset Road is a small Salvadoran and Mexican restaurant that immediately feels welcoming when you walk in. The staff was friendly and took the time to explain the menu, and the food came out hot and fresh. The pupusas were the highlight. They were thick, handmade, and full of flavor. The cheese pupusa was perfectly melted and the revuelta had a great balance of pork, beans, and cheese. The curtido and salsa served with them were fresh and really brought everything together. Everything tasted homemade and authentic, like the kind of food you get in someone's kitchen rather than a chain restaurant. The portions were generous and the prices were very reasonable. What also stood out to me is how important it is to support small local businesses right now. Las Vegas has seen fewer visitors recently, and many family owned restaurants rely on the local community to keep their doors open. Places like this bring real culture and great food to our neighborhoods, and they deserve to succeed. If you enjoy authentic Salvadoran food or have been looking for good pupusas in Las Vegas, this is definitely worth a visit. Supporting local restaurants helps keep our community strong. Location: 2955 E Sunset Rd, Las Vegas Open daily 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM I will definitely be back to try more from the menu. read more

This place is under new management. But same great taste. The manager Gustavo was very pleasant and attentive. We ordered: Sopa de pastas, Desayuno Tipico, empanadas de frijoles, and of course some pupusas. Ask for his special pupusas sauce. Enjoyed the place and do recommend when in Vegas. read more

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The service is great, the food is delicious. The ambience is very comfortable. A clean place. read more

Esmeralda's Cafe - Mexican Near Me - Las Vegas, Nevada

Food coma alert! Omg! It is so good! I had the bean and cheese pupusa and the cheese and spinach one and they were DELICIOUS! The restaurant is clean and staff are super friendly! We had a great Cinco de Mayo celebration for sure! Looking forward to next time!!! read more

Esmeralda's Cafe - Pupusa Bean and cheese Cheese and spinach - Mexican Near Me - Las Vegas, Nevada

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Restaurant that is a staple to the neighborhood and have been coming here for years! Service and food are great always feels like I'm At home :) read more

Esmeralda's Cafe - Mexican Near Me - Las Vegas, Nevada

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super sweet little place for mexican and salvadoran food! the vibe is actually really cozy and comfortable. food-wise, it didn't completely blow me away, but it's a solid, okay option if you just want a casual bite. read more

Stop by for an event. The staff was friendly. Loved the decor. Had fajita. Enjoyed it.

Stop at this place after new years celebration, service was excellent, owner very attentive, I order machaca with onion,bell pepper,didn't put bell pepper, onion was burn,pupusas needs more flavor ,but service compensate for it,definitely recommended, we will go back ,when we visit Vegas again in February. read more

Great prices - good food - services was good family was very happy to eat here- parking lot was packed I would say probably only bad thing

This is a very special review so I hope you take the time to read it I've been going to Esmeralda's for almost 7 years. It was my husband who originally took me to this restaurant. He has been going to this place since he was a little boy and he grew up down the street. We just went on Sunday and I realized I had never reviewed them. I got to meet the owner she came to our table, I had seen her before but never got the chance to talk. We explained that my husband grew up down the street etc(I'll save you the long story) but she explained to us how she became the owner of this restaurant, how she decided to combine both Mexican & Salvadorian cuisine and her story of hard work to keep it during the pandemic. It was truly so great hearing her story. When you go to this place you are always welcome to seat yourself. I personally love getting the pupusas because the flavor is great but they aren't greasy which I can't say for other places. The drink Ensalada de Frutas is always delicious too. We also tried the enchiladas. Overall the staff is very friendly and attentive. If you've never been definitely stop by you can find the Owner Daisy there 5 days a week. Environment is family friendly and they play music with some TVs on in the background (: read more

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Acabo de salir de allí y nose si la pupusas revueltas sean de puro frijol o mela dieron mal

I'm extremely disappointed at Esmeralda's cafe, I have been a loyal customer since 1999 and today I was in disbelief that they served me uncooked fish and the side of rice was uncooked and salty the beans were spoiled. I ordered a coffee and the coffee was served in a coffee mug that was not properly washed, it had an egg smell. The owner of the restaurant used as an excuse that her kitchen employees were new. She didn't offer an apology she seemed bothered that we returned the food. read more

Esmeralda's Cafe - Mojara - Mexican Near Me - Las Vegas, Nevada

The service was ok nothing that wowed us. The food was pretty good we tried the bean and cheese popusas and chicharron and cheese popusas. The popusas were lacking some cheese they had more beans than cheese. My husband got a caldo de gallina which was pretty good as well. Probably won't be back. Also, I was pretty upset that they did not have plátanos fritos as they were out of plantains. read more

Been going here since my childhood. The waiters are always friendly to us. Their pupusas are still the best I've had in Vegas. The interior is also very nicely decorated, and also this is one of the only places inflation hasn't touched; around $2.50 per pupusa and you can get full on two. Definitey worth a visit! I don't even have a picture of the food because I got hungry and ate it before remembering I was gonna make a review read more

Very good I've been going here since my early twenties and I'm 40 now. Probably some of the best pupusas I also love the plantains with frijoles and creama, steak, everything is honestly good. read more

The menu had many options, and the food was served hot. The place was hopping, and safety measures were taken. I Will be back; the staff was very friendly and helpful to suggest meal items. read more

I need to express how important it is to distinguish this place as a Mexican restaurant. The food they serve here is in fact, strictly Mexican. The pupusas they offer are also explicitly Mexican. They probably fired their original Salvadoran cook (happens more often than you think) and are now trying to serve you glorified quesadillas. How do I know this? Beyond the bland tasting pupusas, they bring you the salsa and cortido that is supposed to be served with it then they add a bowl of hot sauce. No authentic Salvadoran restaurant would ever bring hot sauce to a pupusa meal. That is mostly a Mexican dish thing. So, if you want Mexican food it's a decent spot (duh) but go somewhere else for your Salvadoran foods. This ain't it. I dont appreciate y'all presenting our culture as your own for a quick buck. Side note- the waitress was lovely lol read more

I went to eat here with my friend because she always talks to me about this restaurant and we ordered a mojarra and it was raw, it had such a bad smelled and it made me want to throw up, this is such a bad experience and I don't wish this to nobody. When we went to confront the owner she states that it was because her kitchen people were new, she never gave us an apology or nothing. DO NOT GO HERE!!!!! read more

i like to try different places and this one was not good. I won't go back , service was ok Food was okay I had better in other places read more

Food was good...once it came. Was not busy, seemed to have plenty of staff, yet we waited over an hour for our food.

the empanadas de plátano. that's it. they're amazing. everything else is amazing too but those empanadas. woah

Food was amazing.. Owner friendly n food was excellent.. Will recommend. Place has a family ambiance

Went there for lunch today, food was great. Had 3 papusas, the spinach was my favorite and the ensalada de fruta is absolutely fantastic. Also had the fried plantain and the crema with it was great. read more

We placed a ordered to go, it took a little longer that expected. We ordered pupusas and enpanadas. Like many places their prices have increased. I just don't agree that they increase their prices and the portions are smaller. If you are increasing prices at least leave the portions as they were before. Empanadas were smaller as as the pupusas, the pupusas were a little burned. As always the waitresses provide friendly service. read more

We have been eating at Esmeralda's since 2000. I don't know if they have new owners, new cooks or what. We ordered 6 loroco cheese papusas and 4 pollo tamales for pick up. NONE of them were good. Husband was not amused. It used to be his favorite Salvadoran place to eat. They only gave us a small cup of curtido, which was the only thing passable. We hadn't eaten at Esmeralda's since COVID hit. But we will not be returning. Still have 3 tamales and 3 papusas left. That's how bad it was . read more

This place has good food. That's the best I can say. Atmosphere zero; service 2, chips American, salsa zero. But the food is good. I had a burrito delish; one enchilada shrimp excellent. End of review. Lol read more

Crazy surprised to see Esmeralda's have such low ratings on Yelp. Her cafe's survived the pandemic & in my opinion alone... that's saving something!!! Great food! Awesome, kind, service... I'm loyal custy till the end! God Bless read more

We have always ordered pupusa's to go and they are delicious, we decided to come and actually sit and eat as well explore their menu, the service was horrible I ordered a quesadilla and it took them literally 1 hr to get my food out and mind you there's 3 waiters and the restaurant was dead, and it took them about 30 min to also just bring my drink. My mom had ordered a plate of meat with hand made tortillas, 15 min after they had brought the meat she asked for her tortillas and the lady twice told her yeah we'll bring them, she never got them and was still charged for them. They did not once come and ask if we needed anything they all just sat by the register talking. Never have I left a bad review anywhere but this was the worst service I've ever experienced. Never dining inside again. read more

Been eating here for about 14 years,,, I was on a very tight budget when I moved to the area, they head a special that I could afford to the nickel,,the waitress and the owner gave me a to- go plate out of kindness,,, I never forget that... The food real delicious and plentiful the pupusas are hot and fresh,, and bigger then other restaurants,,Am from Texas,, so this style of food is different,, to me (El Salvador ),, your order can have short delay,,, but fresh and hot,,, some people over exaggerate the wait time,,good bar selection,,,, the prices are not like 4 years ago (I wonder why)::::but still in my range to afford,,some restaurants around here just went out of control with there prices,,, get some friends together shoot the shit talk about old times,, next thing you your meals arrive,,,, good food ,,, I tried many big names on the strip to eat,,the food taste like crap, along with the service,, and long wait time,, nobody say nothing bad cause they feel like dumb- asses to spend all that money,,,, read more

Esmeralda, you did me wrong girl. I want to preface this review by saying that the pupusas here are delicious. With that being said, I will never return here because the service was terrible. I'm very sad that I'll never eat those pupusas again, but that is a sacrifice I'm willing to make. RIP Esmeralda's pupusas in my life. Read on about this tragedy. My friend and I were on the way to a museum when we stopped for what we thought would be a quick bite to eat. The museum we went to is fairly new and I wanted to get there when they opened and get in line before it got too crowded. We saw this place was just around the corner, so we were like "F yeah we want pupusas!" so we ended up here. Upon entering, it didn't look too crowded for a Saturday around lunch time, yet we waited for a few minutes to be acknowledged. A woman finally saw us and told us to sit whenever. Okay! So, we chose a booth in their lower level seating area and the menus were brought really quickly. That was, I thought, a sign that we would be able to get our food quickly and leave. Wrong! The waitress came back about ten minutes later to take our drink order and we ended up ordering our meal to speed things up. We ordered two horchatas and two pupusas each. Easy. The waitress came back quickly with our horchatas(no water offered) and chips and salsa. Horchata was good and as expected, the chips fine and the salsa super watery(maybe that was supposed to be our water?). We were pretty damn hungry so we were into the chips and super watery salsa that dripped all over the place when you tried to scoop some up. Anyway, the chips vanished quickly and we were left with an empty basket and salsa drippings all over the table. We chatted for what seemed like forever until we started checking our phones for the time. It had been about 45 minutes and no pupusas, no offering of water, no refill on the chips. One waitress quickly walked passed our table and said our food was coming. I thought maybe directly from El Salvador and that Esmeralda had made the food herself. I was still holding onto hope for an experience turn around. Ten more minutes passed and just as I flagged a waitress down, out came our food. Okay. No offer for refills on our nearly empty horchatas, no water offering either, but she did take our empty sad chip basket away. Now like I said, the pupusas were so good. I ordered a cheese and a chicken one and they were both amazing. My mouth is watering just thinking about them. The dough was thick but the filling was a plenty, so there was a nice ratio. Piping hot and super satisfying with the curtido on top. Soooooo good, but were they nearly an hour's wait good? Maybe without the sucky service. I flagged down the waitress once more for the check because we had to go. I let my friend have the last sips of my horchata since she was practically choking and we had no drink left. The waitress said I needed to pay at the front, so I went up to the front area and waited for the group ahead of me to pay. I also noticed another waitress ringing up another party on the other side of the counter and he was complaining about the long ass wait for food, so it wasn't just us. I thought "maybe just a bad day" and proceeded to get my total(about $12) from the woman at the register and hand her my card. "Declined". Nope and I told her as much. She tried again. "Declined". So, this annoyed me obviously, but I remained calm. I explained that it was not declined but she could try another card. That didn't work either. She tried one of her own cards and that didn't work. Yeah, not declined, yo. So, we find out the credit card machine is having issues. I have no cash, so I asked if she has a manual credit card machine(you know, the old school carbon copy crunchers?). She said no and runs off to check the power or something at the far wall. I stood there a bit dumbfounded for a few minutes because this experience is bizarre. She comes back and tells me "It isn't working". Yep, got that. I said I could come back after I go to the bank later but I had somewhere to be. She tells me to go to the liquor store ATM a few doors down(and pay a fee? No.) My friend and I got into my car and drove off. Now now, calm down y'all because I did eventually pay(I don't mess with karma by being a heathen) by mailing them payment but I was not going to pay a liquor store ATM fee. Plus I was already late to where I needed to be after this jenky lunch experience. To sum it up: Divine pupusas but I will never return. I did not feel welcome because the lack of customer service, the wait time was ridiculous, and I was genuinely put off by how the credit card machine issue was approached. Onto the next pupusa place. read more

Tasty food. No frills place. Good service. I especially liked the bean and cheese pupusa.

Yo voy seguido, tienen Muy buena comida tienen mucha variedad, buen servicio y rápido .

I've given this place so many chances since it's right next to my shop. I specifically said over cook mine Salvadoran pupusa's which should be their specialty and I always get them raw. The only thing I will get there is a stomach Ache again if I ever go back. They take way too long and all they could say is unfortunately we are busy even if you place your order 45 minutes in advance I work in customer service and I believe Were they may Do best They don't and it doesn't make up for help at the food is read more

After a 45 minute fucking wait for 6 pupusas and an order of fried bananas with side. Still nothing! Claiming it'll be out it'll be out! Wasn't even packed to begin with and shitty attitude! Never again. Better off ordering ahead of fine and just picking up since that seems to work better for them then actual clients that sit down read more

Pupusas!!! So many kinds to chose from chicharron, shrimp, cheese, beans..etc....... I had the shrimp and pork pupusa..topped with the salad and hot sauce. Delicious!!! Fried bananas to end the meal was just what was needed. Authentic to say the least! read more

The service is excellent all the ladies are so nice it's like having dinner w my tias. The pupusas are always bomb and you need to try the bananas w lechera and the Elote tamales. They are so freakin good! read more