Review update, still one of the only good restaurants in town. This is an amazing place. Very few Mexican restaurants like this where you can tell someone that cares is making the food instead of just opening big cans of salty crap. Build a custom burrito, eat in the store so you can get the free chips and try their amazing salsa. You will thank me. P.S. Its like a small teriyaki place inside, so keep your expectations in check. Couple of tables, strip mall, you get it. read more

This place is decent. I had to stop by the Harbour Freight due to my local one in Everett not having what I needed and I was in town long enough to eat so I first stopped at the Henrys' Donuts for a bacon maple bar and black coffee. As I was chilling and eating an impromptu breakfast I was looking at the strip mall style food area and Taqueria El Rey caught my eye. I love tacos. And they had the meat I almost judge very taqueria on heavily: Tripas. So I was still before opening time so I just let my quick breakfast marinate and digest and hung out in the parking lot for a bit. And as it hit closer to opening time I was a little nervous cuz I had yet to see any movement inside but sure enough close to five minutes before opening I saw a lady move around and then turned the sign on and opened the door. It was early but I had waited long enough lol. I got out and as solan as she turned around for the counter I was ready. I ordered two tripas, carne asada, carnitas and a buche. Water and a can of coke to wash it down with. It came with a side of chips and salad which was alright. The salsa was nothing special but I finished it with some chips left over. When the tacos came you could feel they just left the heat which is always a good sign. I doused them in a little salt and lime and I used the verse sauce. They hit the spot. The tripas had a good sheen of fat and gristle but weren't crispy like I really wanted but they sufficed. The carnitas were ok. Same it's the buche and asada. As hard as it is to find tripas and then have the tripas be stellar it's almost as hard to find good asada these days but nonetheless it was a good meal. The counter person was the same waitress. She was very nice and attentive enough. I finished my food and gave my customary thank you and have great day and she have the same sentiment of welcome and you too. If you're I town and feeling tacos give Taqueria El Rey a try. read more

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Really loved this place and that's that we didn't plan on eating up north this weekend. Their meats were well seasoned and all food was good sized portions. Only thing that was decent was the birria. I'm used to birria being extra flavorful but beyond this is a great option when in Monroe. Staff was also great! Worth trying for sure! read more

This place has some of the best tacos around. been coming here for many years. The food is always very good. The staff is friendly and food is always consistent. read more

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Amazing food!! It's so good I mean really it is the chips and tacos are so freaking amazing I would recommend to everyone especially considering how pretty the waiter is read more

Came here for the first time, and this place was amazing! We got 2 burritos, 1 taco, 1 drink, chips and salsa for under 40$- after tip! The carne asada and carnitas were tender and delicious, with no grizzly bits. It was consistently busy with customers at every table or ordering pickup. The service was speedy and the restaurant clean. The waitress was friendly and gave good recommendations for food options. read more

Awesome little restaurant the free taquitos smells get me every time. We love ordering taquitos to go. The staff is very family like and cheerful. read more

Taqueria El Rey - Chicken & Pork taquitos - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

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Had the carne asada burrito without jalapeños. 10.94 just for the burrito. Not bad. Not well wrapped. It did have a lot of carne compared to others around here however the flavor was bland. Chips were stale and not flavorful. As some have said it had a Teriyaki vibe - some token baskets on the wall. I would come again to find the right dish I liked. The cashier was nice and kept the tables cleaned up. read more

While staying at the Best Western for work I decided to give it a shot for a quick dinner. I am a big eater, so I was skeptical of a 18$ dinner. However, I was delightfully surprised. I ordered an asada burrito and a pork tamale. The food was phenomenal! If I did not live 2.5 hours away I would eat here regularly. read more

My wife and I met our friends here for our monthly Taco Tuesday meet. Free parking can be found in the parking lot. Discover is an accepted form of payment. Indoors is small and similar to a Teriyaki joint (take-out atmosphere). Orders are placed at the counter. Table service is minimal. My wife and I ordered a couple bottles (draft not offered) of Modelo Negro for $4.25 each. When I asked if we could get a glass with our beers I was told they didn't have anymore clean glasses available. Our friends were lucky enough to get a glass with their beers. Complimentary chips and salsa are provided. The chips are on the thicker side, more like fried tortillas. Still tasty though. They would be perfect chips for nachos since they wouldn't get soggy. On Tuesday's, street tacos are $1.50 each. I ordered a carnitas and spicy chicken taco. Both were tasty; however, I loved the spicy chicken taco. This taco alone would be the reason that I returned to El Rey in the future. My wife and I also shared a side of beans for $2.95. The beans were flavorful and the prefect pairing with the chips. Overall, I would only return to El Rey in the future for a take-out order to enjoy at home where I could enjoy better chips, salsa and beer. read more

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Wow... Taqueria El Rey definitely lives up to its Yelp-review hype. I came here on a quiet Memorial Day Monday. Lots of people would be coming back from the mountains and stuff, but Taqueria El Rey was pretty quiet at 3:00 in the afternoon. There were just two other parties there - they have about 9-10 tables inside, it was clean, bright, and surfing was on on the TV. It was a nice taqueria vibe - simple, down-to-earth, nice. It doesn't seem like they do Online Ordering/GrubHub/Uber Eats/etc... so you just have to get off your butt and go in person. I ordered one thing - the "Super Burrito" - I think it's a normal burrito with fries (aka "California" burrito). Meat of your choice (they have a lot of options - 13 options on their menu), fries, rice, cheese, salsa, crema, beans, and guacamole. You can also just make your own burrito and get whatever you want on it if you're picky. There wasn't a line or anything, so it took them a few mins to make it and I was on my way - fast, easy, no-fuss. Niceeeee. I got the precious, burrito cargo home and went to town. The first thing I pulled out of the bag was the habanero salsa... and it was like... TRULY A HABANERO SALSA - the pale orange color of danger in a good sized little cup. I'm not sure if it cost extra or not - dont remember. I got the carne asada (beef) version of the Super Burrito, and it was just incredible. The meat was super tender and everything was well seasoned throughout - salty but not too salty, a little crisp from the fries, meaty, umami, creamy (from the beans and guac and sour cream or whatever). Oh my heavens. Burritos like this easily fall flat when you miss the salt level, but this was perfection. It was too big for me to eat in one sitting - I stopped probably at about 4/5ths of it eaten - feeling extra plump in my midsection. The habanero salsa was FIREEEE - it was a bit plain (no frills, no filler), but it was PROPERLY SPICY. It went so well with this burrito, though - giving it an extra level of interest. I used only about half of the cup (I saved the extra it because I liked it so much and had it on an egg sandwich the next day, haha). Definitely an amazing experience. I will absolutely be back. I've been to one other taqueria in the area - Taqueria Monte Alban (in Snohomish) - and that's also really good, but I think 'El Rey beats it handily... at least in the California burrito wars of 2023. read more

The asada tacos here are absolutely amazing! Definitely going to have to go back and get some more read more

Taqueria El Rey - Pollo taco and asada tacos - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

Great place for cheap tacos in Monroe! They give a good amount of meat in each taco. The meats and sauces are well flavored! They always have good service, friendly staff! Small place inside but you can eat there too, very clean! read more

Good place for lunch lol. They have all kinds of food here, everything from Mexican cuisine and some Chiken nuggets burgers, good menudo and 7 mares soup. read more

I gave this place 3 chances because we all have off days 2 times my tacos were so greasy i couldnt eat them. The grease was so bad thats all i tasted. Then for my final attempt i ordered a quesadilla with order they forgot it. So i called and asked if they could refund me and she refused she said i can only come pick up a new one right then or another time. When i asked to speak to.the manager she refused. I said i wouldnt be back and she said thats ok. So keep in mind we went 3 times in a row on fridays spending 50 to 60 dollars and thats how i was treated. They stole my money. Buyer beware. Ill be ordering togo somewhere else read more

I've been in the storefront 3 times... food is ok but lackluster. But their mobile truck: AWESOME!!! Location is on west Main St. just past the school buses parking lot, on the left. Service is fast and friendly, and the cook should get a Michelin Star for street foodtruck cooking. This 5 stars are for them!!! read more

The lengua burrito is now $9.50 and tacos is $3.50 each. Just the times we are living in. The good news is the burrito is still chock full of rice, beans, quality lengua, lettuce and pickled jalepeno if I remember correctly. For most, one burrito is enough or more than enough for dinner. It's so big! More importantly, their burrito has a comfort quality feel to it. Whenever I get a burrito at a Mexican restaurant, it's good but it's missing that homey feel. Their red or green sauce gives it that kick. Usually don't call ahead they are quick! read more

Taqueria El Rey - Open daily - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

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A nice, little taco restaurant. Apparently there used to be or is a food truck by the same people or somehow related to this restaurant. I don't know, because I only went to the restaurant. Had asada, pollo, lengua, adobada, and cabeza. All good. Meats done perfectly--juicy and tender--and spiced to perfection. Tasty. They have other food items, but I only had tacos. My only complaint is the chips are a little bit thick. They still taste good, they are just a little thicker than "normal." Place is painted in lively, very appealing colors. It's also a clean place. read more

Stopped by this place on accident and was very pleased with their options and how friendly the service was. I love a good street taco and the steak tacos here hit the spot! The food is fresh and comes out quickly and the pricing does not break your wallet. read more

Good quick fix for Mexican. Had a carne asada burrito, and it was fresh with good flavor. That and a Mexican Coke was about $11. Service was friendly and the burrito took under 10 minutes easily. Homemade hot sauce is flavorful and the red one is particularly spicy. Docked one star because the burrito was poorly wrapped (pretty much open once I unwrapped it from the foil). Was able to quickly perform surgery and get it wrapped to the point where it was easy to eat. Catch 22 since it was packed full. read more

This place rocks!!! First off the service from our cashier was unbelievable, a bit of a language barrier but before you knew it the English speaking gentleman chimed right in, I know this establishment runs very well because they instantly switched jobs like it was clockwork. Now don't even get me started on the Horchata's that's some of the best White I've ever had, too top it off the Quesabirra tacos were off the charts, knock your shorts off good. Last of all the place was little but had a great home-like welcoming feel. Couldn't recommend anything else besides Taqueria El Rey! read more

Muy delicioso! This place has some of the best tacos ever. I had the carne asada & birria tacos. They were so good! Service was quick, food was fresh. The green sauce is delicious. The red sauce was also good, but a bit hotter --though not too hot! Sorry no pics I was too hungry to take pics first. Staff was friendly. read more

If I didnt know any better, id assume my mouth and stomach just had sex, after winning the lottery, on the day they got a raise! God damn it was good. The tacos were right on the border of fully loaded/easy to handle. Real Rojo that was actually spicy and smoky and Verde that was sweet and refreshing. Literally about to drop hella money here for a long time. Actually I take that back, every price was super reasonable! Also the service was really prompt and the lady was really friendly and I'm not sure how, but my very fresh order was in my face in less than a minute, and the place was pretty busy at that. Damn fine food for a great deal from really nice people!! read more

Taqueria El Rey - How I feel when eat here - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

Tacos, burrito, and horchata were all delicious and priced fairly! Great chips and salsa as well :)

Always great service and good food. The pozole soup is excellent and well priced. The location is easy to find with a well lit parking lot for late night dinners. read more

Quick and tasty to go... some great items some soso... Tamales! Are good! Street tacos, build it burritos, chicken mole', tasty. read more

Taqueria El Rey - the interior of a restaurant - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

For sure, we Seattleites are spoiled with all the great Mexican food in White Center (and the food trucks everywhere), but the 5-star reviews of this place inspired us to give it a try when we were passing through Monroe. Sadly, our experience just didn't measure up. We stopped in for a late lunch on a Sunday, around 1:30, but the place was still busy -- almost all of the tables were occupied and people were placing takeout orders. It seemed like they were understaffed, because one cashier/server was taking all the orders and running all the food, and that definitely wasn't enough. I got an adobada burrito ($6.49) and asked for extra avocado ($1). My dining companion had the carne asada ($12.49). Cans of soda are $2.25, which seems high, but my meal was still about $10, which isn't bad. They offered complimentary chips and salsa, but the server forgot about it until he brought our entrees. The chips turned out to be kind of hard and cold anyway, so it was no great loss. The burrito was generously portioned for the price, and the adobada was spicy and good, but when I went to unwrap the foil to eat it, it completely fell apart -- it was so loosely wrapped that it wouldn't stay together at all. Once it fell apart, I opened it up to add salsa, and that's when I saw that the "extra avocado" was three tiny slivers buried in the lettuce. It seemed so skimpy that I mentioned it to the server when he stopped by, and he said that there should be five pieces -- but even five pieces that small would have added up to less than a quarter of an avocado! He offered to bring some extra, which I took him up on, but the original amount given was totally not worth $1 extra. Meanwhile, the carne asada was very thinly sliced, even for asada, so it ended up getting overdone and being kind of tough. Overall, just a mediocre experience and not someplace I'd recommend or go back to. read more

Taqueria El Rey - Extra avocado... - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

Tough for me to give a 5 but these guys are close. Chips are legit Carnitas is delicious Sopitas are yummy I will certainly come back!! They are super friendly read more

Taqueria El Rey - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

Walked in wanted to order 4 beef tacos n a orange soda paid $16 End up getting this stringy type of meat instead tasted awful... strongly recommended the taco truck by the laundry mat there's just no comparison... those guys over there know how to make some tacos. Could've got the same meal for $6 less and it tastes a million times better. SHAME read more

Hunger on our way back from Leavenworth. Found this place. My carne asada burrito with meat, cheese, fries, and beans was fine. Hubby pissed his breakfast burrito had tomatoes and onions when he specifically said no onions nor salsa. Felt bad so tried to share my burrito. Sad that they didn't get his order correct even though gave a 20% tip on to go order. Feel read more

Best asada I've had in Skagit/Whatcom county! Great kids menu, family friendly place. Definitely worth a stop in!!

Absolute Scam ! I wouldn't even give this 1 star . Went out to dinner with my husband ordered a side of rice and beans and because I don't speak Spanish ! She charged for rice and beans 4 times !!! $16 instead of $5! Once confronted she said I don't understands and acted like she didn't understand English all of the sudden when confronted .. If you want mediocre food at a bull s*** price . Be my guest . read more

Food was excellent and the service was very good. Obviously others agree because the place was packed but it was so well run that we got our meals quickly and enjoyed ourselves. read more

First the map shows this place in the Safeway parking lot. It's not. It's in the same parking lot as the Burger King and Kami Teriyaki. This wonderful place has updated their menu for the better. Big menu and great food. I'm Mexican and born and raised in East LA. I know good Mexican food and up until I found this place I haven't had anyyyyy good Mexican food in this state. All these people in town said go to Mi Tierra. Pffffft . Garbage. Not authentic at all. Finally I have my Mexican joint. El Rey has phenomenal food with hand made tortillas. And. Dare I say.... the best Tripa I've ever had. No joke. I can't believe I'm saying that about anything in this state (the food in WA is so blah) but it's true. If you like Americanized Mexican food, there's plenty of mediocre places in town for that. You want a taste of the authentic, come here. Oh and the people who work here are always polite and pleasant. read more

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Surprisingly good Mexican food in this area! I dined here in late 2019, pre COVID-19. Didn't take any photos and forgot what we ordered, but I remember enjoying the food a lot. read more

The food was good, but, and I say this being like a bit of a Horchata fan, if you liquified the world's best cinnamon roll, it would taste exactly like their horchata. read more

My husband and I stayed in Monroe the past few days and have been told to try the Mexican food in town. We chose this restaurant for dinner for our last night in town and it did not disappoint! We both ordered the carne asada street tacos and they were 10/10 so amazing. I would absolutely recommend stopping by and eating here. read more

Taqueria El Rey - Carne Asada - Mexican Near Me - Monroe, Washington

It's pretty tough to say any Mexican place in the Puget Sound region is operating at this level. The dining room is ultra-plain, but the prices are dirt cheap, so focus on the food when you come in. The food here is off the charts. This is a little strip mall fronting right up on Highway 2. There are fast food places and auto parts places and other places in every direction--it's the absolute opposite of a lyrical, pastoral setting, but there's plenty of parking, and it's easy to get to, easy to find. Walk in and you see a handful of tables and chairs, a few fake plants, some of those different free community newspapers, a couple TVs tuned to Univision or some such. It's a classic example of a casual order-at-the-counter joint. There's a cooler full of Jarritos, Mexican Coke, and other pops right by the counter. Up on the wall is the rogue's gallery of 15-20 house specialties in placemat-sized glamor shots. I can never remember exactly what a sopito looks like versus a tostada versus a mulita and so on. These pictures help sort all that out, for people like me who can remember what a taco, burrito, and quesadilla look like, but nothing else. We had tamales (they always have pork and chicken tamales), a little taco combo, and a sopito, mulita, and tostada. The taco shells were simmered in red salsa, then served hot with melting cotija sprinkled over the top. They were spectacularly flavorful, with every texture right in balance. The carne asada sopito was spectacular, one of the best bites of food I've had in a while--deeply seasoned, explosively flavorful, complex and interesting. Great crunch and easy to pick up and eat with your hands. Tamales and mulita were quite good. The only disappointment was the shrimp ceviche tostada, which was the ketchupy style ceviche, rather than the brightly flavored acidic lemon and lime style. It was okay when drenched with hot salsa, but not very interesting plain. The salsas are fantastic--a fiery red one with tons of flavor, a peppery warm green one, a creamy avocado one, and a deeply tasty fresca. The fresca comes out in a little dish with chips, the others are cold in squeeze bottles. They're all fantastic. I used so much of the red one I ended up with tears running down my face. This kind of food sets a great tone for your whole day, and even with trying as many different things as we did, still only ran about $30. I'm not in Monroe very often, but I'll definitely be back as often as possible. This place is just insanely good. read more

I ordered catering for birthday party last Saturday and they provided excellent tacos, sides and the works to make the party a success. Very happy with the service, food and ability to make it all happen last minute on my part. :) Thank you guys! read more

Whoa, what?! In town on business. Wish I had of eaten these tacos the whole time I was here. I'm not only a Thai food connoisseur, I also hunt down tacos! And these carnitas were the BEST I've had so far. I also got one carne asada... but the carnitas! Full of flavor, crispy, not dry. Carne asada was tender, flavorful, but those carnitas!! Okay, okay. And homemade tortillas?! I ordered to go. I got some chips and salsa. Chips, were they homemade too?! So good. Salsa was spicy, but I dipped chips anyway. Small salsas to put on tacos I did not use, I only wanted to taste that deliciousness! So, so good. read more