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Taco Libre

3.4 (205 reviews)
ModerateMexican
Closed 10:00 am - 10:00 pm

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TACO LIBRE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Trendy
Dogs allowed
Good for kids

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Recommended Reviews - Taco Libre

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Reviews With Photos

Ruby M.

I was in the area and we decided to get Mexican, this was conveniently located on the busy old town Pasadena area. I ordered one taco of carne asada, pollo asado and a birria taco. The carne asada taco was the best one of the three. The birria taco was too salty for my liking. I would not say anything on the menu stood out to me, they were standard tacos and the best part of the visit to me was the flavorful salsas.

outside
Lucy M.

Visited taco libre since it was part of a coupon book (sgv food passport) and it had friendly service! Got to try the birria taco and the queso carne asada taco. Both were good quality and the queso taco reminded me of a mulita. However, I can't bring it to myself to rate Taco Libre highly based on this visit. Because the price point is higher than your typical street taco trucks/stands and the food didn't hit as hard -- it isn't necessarily better or more unique compared to what around town, or maybe I didn't get the right items. Nonetheless, there was a fatal issue of no lime or lemon in the condiments section. Not sure if that was normal.

Toppings and salsa bar
Adam K.

This is a tucked away taco joint in an alleyway that you can easily miss if you're not looking at the right signs pointing to it. There's a nice shaded outdoor patio area for outdoor seating, and a good amount of indoor seating as well. It's bustling with the constant sounds of the kitchen cooking fresh meat, and a TV playing loudly in the background. It feels like a no-frills taqueria, but feels like a more modern one with the decor and setting. Ordering is straightforward with the kiosk next to the register. The tacos and burritos are on the more expensive side, but 1/2 off Taco Tuesdays is a thing here! There's a self-serve condiment bar with diced onions, cilantro, sliced radish, a myriad of salsas. For the meats, it's pretty standard proteins without the more exotic ones like lengua or buche. I got a birria and al pastor taco. Both tacos were served on a corn tortilla, which unfortunately fell apart under the amount of meat on each- which is a great thing! The tacos were both equally juicy, flavorful, and seasoned perfectly. Topped with the condiments and sauces I got, and it made for a decent afternoon snack. A pretty good spot if you're craving tacos, but come on Tuesdays to get your money's worth!

Birria taco and pastor taco with chips
Francisco M.

This is located within an alley. There's street and structure parking. They have both indoor and outdoor seating. Although the alley can occasionally get a bit smelly so sit outside with caution. The inside could be cleaner. There was a wash rag left abandoned on one of the tables. The staff were good and nice. And they have a kiosk! I got the pastor taco and birria taco. They were okay. Both could've been more hot and juicy. They were savory enough to taste fine but there's better options. The price per taco is also a bit steep.

Inside seating
Jan J.

Really like this place for good Mexican food in old town that is reasonably priced. A few seats outside and inside. Always tastes fresh and flour tortillas are yummy. I got a couple of street tacos for $3 each. My wife got a chicken burrito and we split that.

Taco plate (al pastor tacos) with rice and beans
Nicole M.

Conveniently located in old town and they offer a good selection of Mexican food. I got the taco plate with al pastor tacos, rice and beans and as you can see a tiny amount of chips. I know the plate isn't expensive and times are tough for businesses but please, I think you could fill it up, at least add more chips. The food is alright but personally I prefer King Taco, I just didn't want to walk the extra block. The ambiance is cool, plenty of indoor seating and some outdoor as well. The condiments are self serve (salsa, radish, etc.) but sadly, there's no limes. The employees are nice, it's simple and easy to order. They also have a kiosk if you don't want to chat with anyone. Overall, decent taco place that is skimping on chips.

Tee W.

This place is okay. I came here because of the SGV podcast passport I had. It was to redeem a "Buy 1 Get 1 Free Taco and Fountain Drink." I decided on shrimp and the employee told me that wasn't allowed, he said anything else. But, I looked at the passport and nowhere did it say that shrimp was excluded. He agreed, but said shrimp isn't meat, so they can't honor the passport because of that. Huh? Anyway. So, I bought one shrimp taco and redeemed a chicken taco instead. It took about 20 minutes to get my food. It wasn't very busy when I was there, but maybe they forgot about me? Not sure. The volume from their tv/radio was loud so people dining at to speak louder to their company they were with. Food was okay, slightly on the salty side which needs water to wash it down with.

Tiffany L.

I tried their asada and pastor tacos, and I really enjoyed both! Flavor wise, it's not the best I've had, but I still really liked the way they marinated the pork and seasoned the beef. The pieces were tender and not too dry. The onions, radish and cilantro were all very fresh. The flour tortillas were soft yet pliable.

Helen L.

Good deal for taco Tuesdays, select tacos are half off. I tried every option available for their taco Tuesday special - carne asada, carnitas, grilled chicken, birria, and Al pastor. My favorite was the crunchy taco and cheesy taco versions. They also have lettuce wrapped tacos! They were good and have a little self serve hot sauce and pickled peppers/onions bar.

Tacos
Maria R.

Taco Tuesday $1.75 tacos i ordered online for pick up. Pick experience was easy went in there and told them my order number. They have sauces on the side the avocado one is amazing a hint of spicy but not overwhelming. I was about to try the others but afraid of the spicy ones maybe next time. I ordered 3 tacos and 1 cheese melted taco (i don't remember the actual name) the seasoning of the taco meat was on point. If you ordered online grab like i did my tacos did not have onions or the cilantro idk why since i didn't deselect it but u can grab those on the side where all the sauces are at. Please note that the taco liver is an alley. Overall delicious flavors.

Tracey F.

This location is next to Burke Williams and I always get to crispy chicken tacos after my massage! So good!!!!

In the alley.  06/2025
Danny M.

Ordered hard shell Beef tacos, Quac, and a Bean & Cheese Burrito. Tacos had great crunch and the meat was tender (machaca style) and had great flavor. Bean & Cheese burrito was tasty (refried beans). I like that they have a good condiments bar with onions, cilantro, and a few salsas. Had a red salsa, which was mild, not hot, but had great flavor. They appear to also have a Habanero salsa, so if you like heat...Quac was also pretty tasty. Why not 5 stars? Just misses that mark as a price / value ratio. Quac was a little on skimpy side, and meat in taco was a tad skimpy. Otherwise, yes I'd eat here again.

Geoff J.

Taco Tuesday is the best deal around. It's our go-to. We like the birria and the crispy beef

Tostada Salad

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9 months ago

I randomly tried this spot and thought it was decent! I tried the cali burger and liked it. The portion and price was good as well!

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Mercado - Pasadena

Mercado - Pasadena

(1.1k reviews)

$$

This is a must try off of lake in Pasadena…read more Reliably good food every time I have been here. Chips and salsa with WARM chips. A to die for pork tomahawk. Amazing happy hour and I highly recommend the dos gringos. Every detail of that dish is made with thought and precision down to the proportions given and the wonderful crisp on the tortilla. Amazing deal! Be careful when ordering sparkling water because they'll bring you an overpriced bottle of sparkling water instead of just their fountain soda water without asking for clarification. I've made that mistake a couple times. Otherwise, I highly recommend Mercado; you can't really go wrong.

A little pricey, but it's well worth it! Came here with baby and my parents on a saturday and was…read moresurprising to find that they weren't all that busy. Their patio is nestled in a small little mall complex, and therefore is a bit more quiet and relaxing than the bustling Lake Ave in Pasadena. We went on a perfect weather day, and most people opted to sit outside instead of inside the store. We sat inside since we had a sleeping baby in a stroller, and was surprised to find there are a few others doing the same with a stroller also! Plenty of space for all of us too. Between the 3 adults, we had ordered 2 main dishes and 1 ceviche to share. It was the perfect amount of food and I'm glad we weren't overzealous and ordered 3 mains as it would've been too much. We got a mole enchilada, ceviche tropical, and the carnitas chilaquiles. everything tasted amazing and it was the perfect dish to introduce my parents to the unique mole flavor. staff members were very friendly and super accommodating, glad we ventured out to Mercado!

Madre Maiz Taqueria - Madre Maiz Logo

Madre Maiz Taqueria

(469 reviews)

$$

We rolled up to Madre Maiz Taqueria on a full-blown Mexican food craving mission and honestly... it…read moredelivered with personality!!! My coworker and I went all in on the birria lineup, because the whole office was talking about birria so we grabbed the Birria Papas (w added guacamole) and Birria Tacos. The papas came out swinging: legit hand-cut fries piled high like they had something to prove. Messy, loaded, and worth every napkin. The tacos were a little on the petite side, like "did I accidentally order the sample version?" but still tasty enough to keep me from complaining too loudly. Now let's talk about the secret hot sauce. First of all, why is it secret?!?!? 2nd of all, I get it. That stuff is not playing around. One bite and my mouth was on fire!!! If you like heat that punches back, this is your moment!! The spot itself is super clean, the staff is genuinely nice (not the fake "have a nice day" nice), and everything just felt easy and welcoming. Prices won't make your wallet cry either, which is always a bonus, esp how expensive everything is these days!! Only downside, the parking is a bit of a game of luck. We got there early and snagged a spot, but otherwise, you might want to park across the street and pretend it was your plan all along. Overall: great food, spicy surprises, and zero regrets!!! Would absolutely go back. Make sure to ask for the "secret hot sauce" you won't regret it!!!

Alright, so I gotta say food is pretty darn good. Just few things I can say that need improvement…read morebut all in all great flavors and service. Lots of seating, lots of parking( lot in the back). From the design and thought put into the decor, menu and all the other options (like candy, liquor, beer and wine) you get, it's pretty amazing. We ordered a plethora of items to see what would be our favorite. I gotta say it was pretty much everything. Super polite staff and the flavors of the food made you feel good. You're truly in for a treat. Asada burrito super bomb, great flavor decent size and for the price it's great. See I like to eat(like you!) so I wouldn't have minded if it was tad bit bigger and tad bit heavier. But flavor was super delicious. Crunchy potato tacos, like finger food, once I saw someone else's tacos I was like uh oh I'm gonna need a lot more tacos. Except we stuck to ordering a few items to just see how it goes. And yeah, like I said tacos are SMALL. Like baby size. Not normal if you ask me but to each their own I guess. Birria cup lacked meat, but the flavor was amazing, you get 3 baby sized corn tortillas and that's pretty much it. You would expect more meat but after looking at the taco sizes yeah. You ain't getting anymore! So order more! Asada fries as well, portion wise could have been more giving. Loved the house made fries, great touch. Or atleast I am assuming they are house made, tasted very fresh cut if you know what I mean. Except the portion is tiny, like everything else. So if anyone is understanding my lingo is that Madre Maiz doesn't really put out large portions, which makes you want to order more and spend more. Then again they have their flavor to compensate for the quantity? Last can't leave out the guacamole, fresh and delicious with the bag of chips. Now that food portion has been expressed, let's talk about the meat being slightly on the dryer side. Soft but definitely dryer than majority of the taquerias I have been too. The asada 100% was dry and lacked any form of juiciness. Flavor was there but just dry. 100% needed sauce. The red sauce was chipotle based, the orange was habanero, and the green was cilantro/maybe avocado based(no heat in the green). Every bit of sauce helped every bite. Was it worth trying and reviewing? Yes. Will I ever go back? 100% cause that burrito was pretty good. For 12-13 bucks it's not bad at all, might need two. Beautiful decor, and plenty of seating outside and limited on the inside.

Mijares Mexican Restaurant - Baja Special

Mijares Mexican Restaurant

(1k reviews)

$$

Happy Hour margs, need I say more?! Hard to believe that this restaurant is over 100 years old, not…read moremany establishments can say that. It is a real cornerstone of Pasadena dining, there is a love or hate feeling when you bring up this restaurant among locals. Chips and salsa is provided with orders so it is the perfect after work stop. They do have better the ability to make quality margaritas for full price which is almost 2-3 times happy hour but if you like mezcal it might be worth it for a more refined taste. Conveniently located by the 210/134 freeway entrances, it has it's own lot that says a lot for Pasadena establishments.

Came here to have a nice lunch with the family. I was excited because I had seen the pictures of…read morethe food and everything looked good. This was not the case when we had our dining experience. We got the plate of chile relleno with a beef enchilada, the mole plate and a kids quesadilla with rice and beans. 1. The chile in the chile relleno was soooo tiny, the battered egg was big and fluffy which is why it looks big. The rice was crunchy and had pieces of overcooked rice. The beef on the enchilada was on top of the enchilada NOT inside and it tasted like boiled beef with no flavor! I put it to the side. The inside just had a bit of shredded marble cheese. So disappointed. The beans were ok, restaurant quality, canned flavored. 2. The mole was very sweet and although that's not a bad thing, it still didn't have any kind of authenticity in the flavor it was as though it was just packaged sauce dumped on the chicken. 3. The kids quesadilla has bellpeppers and onions inside! Which was not disclosed on the menu. My kid likes bellpeppers but not the green ones and not in her quesadillas... come on. I had to pick them off. Over all I'm glad I live far away from here because it was really bad quality food. The service was nice and attentive. The ambiance was empty and almost abandoned... and I even went on a weekend.

Cerveceria Del Pueblo - Pau Hana Hawaiian Sour available in the taproom and in cans to go while supplies last!

Cerveceria Del Pueblo

(204 reviews)

$$

Great little beer spot in old town Pasadena…read more We arrived around 6pm on a Saturday and the place was packed, but we were able to find 2 seats at a communal picnic table inside. Small joint but they have a few bar seats and picnic tables inside and a nice outdoor patio with more seating. They don't offer food but usually have a food truck outside. We ordered a flight of beer to try a few different styles. The guy behind the bar was great and the beers were tasty.

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!

Taco Libre - mexican - Updated May 2026

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