Guadalajara Express is a pleasant surprise and something unique in Mexican cuisine. As there is limited signage, and the establishment is small (cozy), it is easy to miss if you're not alert. It's located just west of Raul Longoria in a strip mall, on the south side of Nolana Loop, next to Magnolia Events. To get into the parking you need to approach it from the west (as if you're coming from the expressway I-69-C), because dividers in the road do not allow a left turn if you're coming from the east. But it is well worth the visit! Guadalajara Express specializes in regional Mexican food from the Guadalajara, Jalisco area. I spent my teen years living in Guadalajara so when I heard about them it got my attention! I love the regional cuisine from Guadalajara and there are several things on their menu you cannot find anywhere else in the Valley. Yet I have often been sorely disappointed with Mexican restaurants as most here "americanize" their food. I am thrilled to say that my worries were needless. Guadalajara Express has authentic regional jaliciense food and do it well. I have been twice. The first time I ordered the "carne en su jugo" and the second time I had the torta ahogada. Both were wonderful! I was especially impressed since I knew it takes a special kind of birote (bread) to make the torta ahogada; the usual "bolillo" does not work. The birote is denser so it won't fall apart when they cover it with salsa. The owners / operators are from Guadalajara (once I tasted their food I could have guessed that). They found a bakery that special bakes the birote for their torta ahogadas. The torta ahogada has a dense, toasted birote, filled with carnitas, then covered with a sauce. Back in the 1970's they used to dunk the torta into the salsa, but nowadays it is ladled on. They ladle on a mild salsa, but provide a cruse filled with super hot salsa made with chile de arbol, use with caution, but it IS authentic! The ambience and decor is beautiful, lots of traditional Mexican "artesanias" many made in Tlaquepaque or Tonala, from the Guadalajara metropolitan area. It is a little cluttered, but pleasant. Both times I went it was very clean, service was exceptional, the food was heavenly. Prices seem a tad high, but considering you won't find their specialty offerings anywhere else, I thought it reasonable. I really enjoyed it and think you will too. read more

Guadalajara Express - Torta ahogada!! Estilo Tapatío y con el birote auténtico. ¡Excelente! Speaking as one who grew up in GDL, this is the real deal! - Mexican Near Me - Pharr, Texas

In town for work and place came highly recommend. Went for dinner and it was delicious and price is reasonable. Service was quick would come back again read more

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Found this spot on Yelp and caught my eye as soon as i saw it had carne en su jugo on their menu. Carne en su jugo (meat in its juice). Thin strips of meat in a flavorful broth with frijoles de la olla, bacon pieces, onion and cilantro. So good! This dish originates from Guadalajara, Jalisco. The broth is not easy to make, thats probably the reason most places dont offer this dish. Anyway, meat was cooked good. Broth was flavorful and not salty from the bacon. It all came together. They give you three tiny quesadillas with your meal. Perfect addition. Overall, it was delicious. Will return. read more

Guadalajara Express - Carne en su jugo... - Mexican Near Me - Pharr, Texas

This is a hidden gem off of Nolana Loop in Pharr/ San Juan area. The place is small and very festive. The service was quick and friendly. The owner also came out and was very helpful with the menu. The menu is small but everything tasted very authentic and was well prepared. I liked the salsas that came with the chip strips. We ordered a sampler platter to taste a little of everything and it was all delicious. The only thing is that the menu is pork-heavy with the exception of a burger and quesadillas, so keep that in mind if you have a pork allergy or choose not to eat pork. All in all, I would recommend checking out the menu and trying them out. read more

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Incredible! Visiting the valley with my friends for a wedding and was looking for an authentic Mexican restaurant. The food was so fresh and flavorful! We got the birria tacos, torta ahogada and carne en su jugo. Our favorite was the birria tacos but all of it was fire! The service was so friendly, he even brought us all sombreros to take a fun group picture. I highly recommend Guadalajara! read more

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When I travel, I like to find local family-run restaurants to support. This one was difficult to find but worth looking for! I used some of the driving tips from other reviews to find the place (the yelp map took me in the wrong direction.) The man I assume was the owner was very welcoming. I thought the decor was fun too. The food was delicious!! The salsas were excellent, and the birria tacos were amazing. The free fideo soup starter was a nice touch. I highly recommend this restaurant. read more

Guadalajara Express - Birria tacos - Mexican Near Me - Pharr, Texas

Absolutely delicious flavors to main dishes and sides. Good, quality ingredients. Friendly folks working there and going there. I will be going back. read more

The food here is awesome. Its a tiny hole in the wall kind of place, but don't let that fool you, It's all about the food. The Guacamole is fresh and delish. My wife and I both ordered the Tacos Dorado. This tasty dish has crispy, fried corn tortillas filled with potato. They are then smothered with stewed Carnitas and red onions with Queso Fresco. The hot sauces are crazy good. They don't serve regular tortilla chips, they are strips. Cool idea. The lady that waited on us was extremely sweet and although not bilingual, she managed to communicate with us just fine. She even apologized for her "bad English". No apology needed, dear lady, your awesome service and fantastic food said everything for you. Definitely try this place next time you visit RGV. read more

I am shocked on what the staffed just told me. "We are closed for 30min until shift change" "you can come back if you want" Really? Your staff can't handle a shift change transition. Where's the Manager? I watched three parties leave as well because of it. If you can fix that you will see an increase in your business. Or update your business hours. Your food and drinks are amazing! You have an amazing concept. I want it to last. read more

It's been a while since I walked out of a restaurant and felt that everything I'd had tasted amazing and was made fresh from the chips and drinks to the French fries and bread. The aguas frescas were really tasty. I'm pretty picky about horchata, and this was one of the best I've had in the RGV. The rusa wasn't like the ones you pick up at a raspa stand (which I really like, too), but it was perfectly balanced. You couldn't isolate the flavors of what was in it, and was the right amount of sweet and tangy. The tacos were double tortilla, which made the outside just crispy enough to hold together the juicy meat and cheese inside without falling apart. My youngest had the "snack" which was basically hot dogs and French fries, but was fun for him. Hot dogs split to look like little octopi, (salchi-pulpo) or sliced and wrapped in a corn tortilla (also crispy) to be a salchi-taco. The French fries were hand cut potatoes with skin still on them, which were very tasty, and again, fresh. I'll add that a nice touch when we went in was a video of the owner's story and a customer review that was playing on a tv near the back of the place. It was tastefully done, and I left feeling like this is the kind of story worth contributing my patronage to making it successful. The story became a topic of conversation during the meal. I appreciated the yelp recommendations that led me here, so I wanted to contribute another experience to confirm that it's a place worth visiting and recommending. It's places like this that deserve to be successful in the RGV. read more

Guadalajara Express - Tacos de birria de res y consomé - Mexican Near Me - Pharr, Texas

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Everything was amazing! Tortas ahogadas is one of my all time favorite foods but I've never been able to find it outside of mexico. They nailed it. My friend got the tacos de birria and everything was so good. I'll definitely be back! read more

Guadalajara Express - Torta ahogada - Mexican Near Me - Pharr, Texas

Visiting my Mom and was craving authentic Mexican food. Found this place on Yelp. Small, quaint and nicely decorated. This place does not disappoint. Owner was kind and helpful and very personable. We tried the Botana platter, Birria tacos and Posole. Everything was absolutely delicious! We will be back next time we are in town. read more

The place is small but very clean, the staff was kind and went above and beyond for my two friends and I as they had ran out of a specific soda to make a drink we requested, the waitress went to the gas station next door and purchased the ingredient that was missing to make the drinks we wanted to take to go. We loved the food and everything about this restaurant!! Thank you so much. We will definitely return and recommend to friends and family!! read more

Tacos de birria and the torta ahogada is one of a kind. It is pricey for the "fast food" business but make it your own experience.

We were in the area and I remembered I had seen a YouTube review and decided to check it out for ourselves. We had a guacamole a la Mexicana as an appetizer, $4.99. It was good but for the cost I expected a larger serving. To drink I had agua de Horchata, really good flavor and the cinnamon really came through. My wife had Agua de tamarindo which was extremely good, best tamarindo drink I have ever tasted. I had the Tacos de Birria, they were good and hefty with the double tortilla and the melted cheese. They could have used a bit more meat but overall they were good. I really can't compare to any other birria tacos since this is the first time I have had them. My wife had the tacos dorados, Filled with potato purée and then fried, topped with pork carnitas and fresh salad, they were good and tasty. The free Fideo sample was good as were the red and green salsa. The totopos (tortilla chips) weren't your usual size but were crispy and light. Overall it was a good dining experience. I will visit again as I did see some other items on the menu that I would like to try. read more