This Mexican restaurant is off E Colorado Blvd…read more My family decided to eat here, as we entered I was blown away with the authentic Mexican decorations, this restaurant is huge! It's super clean & their restrooms, highly organized, and attention to details. This restaurant is very friendly, war, chic, classy, and elegant! We were first greeted by Giovanny M. He took us to our table and gave us our menu, he ask if we had any questions . Which we did and he answered them all beautifully! Anayas has breakfast, Ensaladas "Salads" , appetizers,Sopes, Taco plates, Los Dorados, Flatus, Taquitos, Quesadillas, Burritos, enchiladas, chefs specials, Platots especiales, dulces alegrais "Desserts ",sides, drinks, tequila, premium tequila, mezcal, whiskey, gins, vodka, rums, cognac, dessert cocktails, white wine & rose, reds, sparkling, sweets, drag beer, Mexican beer, soft drinks, agua frescas. Before we order Giovanny gave us Chips and green salad, delicious! We ordered : pollo quesadillas 2 salmon negro, 1 pollo negro, 2 cokes, 2 ice teas, and 1 Doz XX Lager. Everything was super delicious, mouthwatering! Giovanny was so very sweet always making sure if we need anything & would go the extra Mile on getting us our refills on our drinks without asking! Their price points are spot on especially for the quality & quantity of food you get! Giovanny M. Was so super sweet, kind , caring, he is very knowledgeable, very genuine, super sincere & down to earth! Giovanny M. Has this super positive energy about himself that really radiates! He is your rarest Diamond! His shine can never fade! Please treasure him greatly!! I would love to Thank Giovanny M. For terrific, fantastic and memorable visit! I would also like to thank the Manger for also helping too! Thank you so much Anayas for our wonderful visit ! I'll tell all my Family & Friends to visit here !

I came here for lunch and had a really nice experience. The restaurant is located off Colorado…read moreBoulevard, and when I arrived around lunchtime, it wasn't busy at all. There was plenty of seating. Our server was very nice and attentive. I didn't catch his name, but he was constantly refilling our waters and making sure we had everything we needed, including chips, napkins, and anything else we asked for. My friend ordered the chicken mole enchiladas, and I ordered the chicken fajitas. The fajitas were super flavorful and delicious. I also really enjoyed the rice, although I wasn't a big fan of the beans. The chips and salsa were really good as well. The one thing I found a little odd was that they didn't have a red salsa or something like pico de gallo to have with the chips. That was a little disappointing. Overall, though, this was a solid experience. I'd give it 4 stars. I would definitely come back and would recommend giving this place a try!

We have been coming to Cabrera's for a number of years. I was surprised to recently find I had…read morenever posted a review. We discovered Cabrera's during the almost 2 year time span when our then go-to for Mexican, La Fiesta Grande in So. Pasadena, closed and their new location on Glenarm/Marengo opened. We tried a multitude of Pasadena places, including Mijares, Casa del Rey, Margaritas and El Torito (gringo!). Cabrera's was our fave, with a better location for us vs. La Fiesta. Their menu extended beyond the "ordinary", and I liked their plating/presentation. A slice of cucumber or orange adds a lot to a mound of shredded lettuce garnish. Mind you, our family fave for +40 years is still El Tepeyac in Boyle Heights, but that's quite a shlep. Cabrera's has also been around awhile (40 years) and now has 3 locations--Arcadia (the original), Pasadena and Duarte. All are owned/co-owned by 2 families, one named Cabrera. The Pasadena location is near the corner of Lake and Orange Grove, next to popular breakfast spot The Reyn, with which it shares a rear parking lot. All locations have a full bar. I have ordered off the regular menu, breakfast menu and Happy Hour bar menu. The breakfast menu is mostly offered on weekends when they open at 10 am, but you can ask for it weekdays at 11 am opening. My fave dish is the chilaquiles. As stated before, their all-day menu has some unique items, but I stick with the more gringo choices. Their chile rellenos used to be quite large, with the poblano chile clearly visible. They're a bit smaller and more generic now, but still fine. We order it as a 2 or 3-item combo or a la carte. Note their complimentary chips and salsa comes with 2 salsas, one red and one dark green (smoky and quite spicy). Lately we have been coming here for their Tuesday or Wednesday specials. Tuesdays is of course Taco Tuesday, and I love their crispy beef tacos. They have a special avocado salsa on Tuesdays. Every Wednesday, a certain dish is 50% off for the entire month if you order a soft drink, a great value. The most recent specials were fish tacos and steak or chicken fajitas, both delish. As AARP members, we usually arrive at 11 am opening. Inevitably either Christian and/or Guillermo, scions of the 2 founding families, are on duty then (Christian is the Pasadena manager)--shout outs to both of them! We are very comfy and happy with our newish go-to for Mexican food.

I've been coming to Cabrera's more often lately for lunch, especially when there's a game on like…read morethe World Cup. They have plenty of TVs, so it's a fun spot to grab a bite and watch soccer. The main reason I've been coming back is Taco Tuesday. The tacos are around $2 each, come with a decent amount of meat, and they also give you chips and salsa. They usually have carne asada, chicken, carnitas, and chorizo. I can normally eat about 4 to 5 tacos and be pretty stuffed, so I think it's a great deal and definitely worth stopping by on Tuesdays. I've had some of their other menu items before, and they were just okay. But between the Taco Tuesday special and all the TVs for watching games, I've definitely found myself coming back more often. If you're looking for a casual place to catch a soccer match or other sporting events and grab some affordable tacos, this is a solid spot.

The food was excellent and the pricing was great. The ambiance is pretty good. It's simple but very…read morehispanic, decor and clean. My chile relleno was out of this world, and i'm very picky about that. I will definitely be going back. Our service was pretty good.She was pretty busy, so I'll give her that much.But it could have been a little better, but not bad.

hit and miss!…read more sometimes great. enchiladas on point. very good. sometimes asada on nachos is nauseating!!! order nachos with asada will be almost great sometimes. then sometimes it comes with nassty pieces of rubberery fatttt clusters!! was perfect for 3 orders straight, then i got an order that was nasty!! bunch of fat clusters, damnnnnnnn i love this place, wtf first 5 scooos of my asada pollo nachos was beef fat gross clusters that i had to remove from my mouth without throwing up. was trash gross horrific don't put fattt clusters on the nachos. thats a snack fusion that doesn't need rubbery fat attached to meet or full on fatt clusters. 22 dollars for chips beens and salsa with hit and miss asada. fatttt clusters not cool. please, i beg u, pay more attention to nachos. i was loving them till the last order saturday aug 8th was trash. i really liked the 1s b4 but damn, the 1 on saturday evening was fatyyyy on my snackyyy no bueno literally turns a good thing into trash. u must be consistent nacchhoosss. please. i had a gross experience on what i usually get. so gross, trying to get over it! please b more careful so i can remove this unfortunate review!!! fat on nachos not acceptable. we stopped ordering from don pillo because they always use nasty asada pieces and started ordering from u because asada was good. i couldn't eat the first three scoops of last asada nachos than threw it in the trash. nauseating was my last 5 bites. i hope this becomes constructive criticism because we are neighbors. best regards

The Birria taco, chefs kiss! The service is equally as good. I live in Orange County but I will…read morehappily make the drive to Pasadena.

Was in Pasadena and looking for an early lunch and stumbled upon Madrid Maiz. Small inside seating…read morewith a decent sized patio for seating. Ordered a chicken burrito, arrachera specialty taco, and a mango aqua freaca. Staff was nice, it was clean and it was quiet in arrival but guests started coming quickly for the lunch rush. Burrito was huge! Toasted nicely with a good amount of chicken and a lot of rice but it was delicious. Would definitely get it again but I'd try a different protein. Arrachera taco was definitely a special treat! The blue corn tortilla held perfectly and the meat had just the right texture. I wouldn't get this all the time as it's pricey, but worth it if you're looking to treat yourself. Mango Fresca was right up my alley. It's not too sweet with a little pulp, I'd definitely get this again. Would definitely recommend, I'll be coming back.

Preface-Been here several times and never had a bad experience (hence 5 stars)…read more OK, I'm a West LA type of gal but this visit was because I had other business to tend to in the Pasadena area. That, coupled with the fact that I am a Hawaii resident who craves decent mexican food when in SoCal. This time, it was Mijares. It was Sunday, Weekends are their brunch days. I take a look at the brunch layout and got totally stuffed just looking at it. OK, I could eat all that so I chose the menu..... GARAGE BURRITO please with carne asada. (I saw another guest have this burrito on my previous visit so decided to give it a try. And a great decision that was. It was huge enough to share so my dining partner and I had bites and I had a third more to carry off for my later dinner. CUCUMBER MEZCAL MARGARITA was my beverage of choice. Now I am not a mezcal type of gal but decided to try it with the encouragement of our waiter. Smoked flavor cut the bite of the mezcal I think. Cucumber continued to enhance the clean flavor of the beverage (a must try if you are there) Fun Facts: Mijares is a 4 generation establishment which was originally opened by Jesucita (Grandma- 1st generation) Then came Alice (daughter of Jesucita, 2nd generation). Then came and continues to run the show is Tom (son to Alice, 3rd generation) and last but not least, is Mary Alice (niece to Tom, the generation Social Media Director for Mijares) Fun Fact 2- I found Mijares a few visits ago and had the absolute pleasure of meeting Tom and Mary Alice. Their hospitality and compassion for the Establishment kept Mijares on my mind hence, continued visits. Go there or Be Sqaure

I was in the area and since I was super hungry and hadn't been to Mijares in over 10 years, I…read morefigured there was no time like the present. We went on a Friday late afternoon and sat outside in the patio area I had always loved. I can't put my finger on it, but there were many reasons this wasn't a 5-star experience. Maybe it was the time of day, but the ambience was just off. Yes, four stars is still good, but I really expected better. The blood orange margarita was just okay. Compared to other Mexican restaurants (and boy, have I been to plenty), the margarita was considerably smaller and weaker in terms of alcohol content, but the price didn't reflect this. When I spend $16-20 for a margarita, it's usually money well spent. The 3 tacos plate was great: chicken, carne asada, and al pastor. The carne asada burrito was also very flavorful. The House salsa was fantastic and fresh. I could have done without my very basic veggie tostada, though. Other places have grilled veggies and just a lot more flavor to their veggie tostadas. This one didn't taste like anything authentic at all. I was the slowest diner of the group, and the server asked me twice if I was finished when I still had half of my plate left. He kinda reached in to grab the plate, too, which was awkward. The third time he asked, I had like a quarter left, but I Just let him take it. It was kinda annoying. In the past when servers were going on break or leaving for the day, they've told me and I've closed out the tab. I'm not sure if this was the case, but I felt rushed although it wasn't busy outside at all (we were one of two occupied tables.) Overall, the experience fell short, and even though I'd return in the future, I'm not rushing back anytime soon.

An amazing brewery that offers lots of options for IPAs, seltzers, ale, and non-alcoholic drinks;…read morefor those who want to hang out and vibe but don't necessarily drink alcohol! My group of friends and I went during the World Cup craziness. We had just come from another bar after the game had concluded and with an hour left before closing the hospitality was still as great as ever! I can imagine how crazy busy they might have been before we arrived but I'm glad the quality of service we received was good. I didn't know what to try and the sweet lady at the register gave me some great recommendations. I went with a seltzer and it was amazing (especially coming from another bar I wanted something light haha & no I was not driving). I will definitely be returning and with a group of friends again because the space is very nice and the vibes were great! Perfect spot for game days or an outing with some buddies. As for parking, it's located in the busy area of Pasadena and centered around a residential area expect to park far or in a parking structure; that means walking! Although, that's not a deal breaker as the area offers plenty to do and all within walking distance.

Small local brewery in Pasadena that's beneficial to the community, have seen people reserve a few…read moretables for parties and they have meet-ups. For example, they have a Spanish Language Brewery Meet-up every 3rd Thursday from 7:30-9:30pm monthly. Parking is street only so be mindful of the neighbors. There is no food service at this location but they seem to partner with a couple food trucks serving tacos. Some inside open air seating but the main draw is the relaxing patio. I liked their hard seltzers with fun flavors as jicama, tamarindo and passionfruit. I didn't like so much their signature Yerba Mate Pale Ale, but thought it was an interesting concept. The happy hour special is Monday all day and Tuesday-Friday open until 6pm $2 off full pours. Very family friendly, I always see a couple tables with children and dogs at them. Maybe I'm getting to be an old fuddy duddy but I hate when parents let their kids go free range. Screaming and running around like the establishment is a park these kids becoming trip hazards. There needs to be a revamp of their board game collection. There three boxes of games that looked incomplete or used up, not good with such games as Scrabble and Pictionary. Free Wifi with log-in is a bonus!

Yummy food and good ambience! The service was friendly and inviting. I enjoyed mole enchiladas…read morestuffed with chicken, Spanish rice and black beans were savory. I only wish the temperature on the mole sauce was hotter or tortillas under heated I don't know I guess I'm picky about details like that. Overall good place for a happy hour or group gathering with friends for a tasty experience. I'll be back to try some combo plates which look delicious

I love El Portal. The food is delicious, the portions are generous, and the prices feel fair for…read morewhat you get. It really hits the spot when you're craving comforting, flavorful Mexican food. The chips are fresh, the salsa is good, and the menu has offerings that feel more authentic and varied than a lot of other places. I especially appreciate that they have Yucatán cuisine options, which you do not always see at every Mexican restaurant. I am also very fussy with mole and typically do not like it at all, but I actually really enjoy the mole from El Portal. It has been a real eye-opener for me and honestly inspired me to give mole another shot elsewhere. One thing to keep in mind: a lot of the combo plates are smothered in delicious red sauce and plenty of cheese, so if you are not a big cheese person, just be aware before ordering. The enchiladas are good, though sometimes they could use a little more sauce, as the tortillas can come out a bit dry. The margaritas are tasty, but they do feel a little small for the price (Roughly $16 for a 8oz glass?!) The staff are friendly, the vibe is nice, and overall the food is consistently good. The only other heads-up is that some of the tables and booths are pretty small, so it can feel a little cramped in the main dining room. Also, **make sure you get your parking validated**. This is important because if you do not, the parking lot can be extremely expensive. You can also look for street parking on Green Street. Still, El Portal is a spot I really enjoy and it is on our regular rotation of places to dine.

Lively atmosphere with great service!…read more Looking for pretty drinks? Loved the margarita flight with bits of fresh fruits and purées. The sizing was perfect for trying the different types of margaritas and it is so beautifully presented. The food is reasonably priced. There were many choices available on the combo plate. I enjoyed the enchilada de mole, potato (sweet potato) taquito and chile relleno. Will be back for Happy Hour and Margarita Monday for sure!

I came here for lunch with my coworkers. I ordered the mi madre salad with chicken. It was a…read moretostada salad. It's ok, it's served with mixed green, black beans with corn. The chicken is a little dry. While having lunch, I saw the happy hour menu with some attractive appetizers. Margaritas are $10 so I came back for happy hour with my boyfriend the following day. I ordered a pineapple margaritas and it was a good size, very delish. We ordered the tacos, spicy chicken wings, taquitos and the asada fries. I'd say the taquitos are good but the rest of the appetizers are just Ok.