Tony and the kitchen crew know homemade Mexican fare really well. This place is exactly what a neighborhood restaurant should be: approachable, dependable and consistent. Highly recommend ordering-in now and stopping in when we are back to normal. Recommending the mole, chilies Colorado and meatballs soup! read more

Totally decent spot to grab a beer. I popped in with a good friend and we killed a good hour or two in here. Bathrooms were spotless, the bartender was kind, and there was tons of space to come eat/drink with friends or just hang out in a small group. I'll have to pop back in and try the food! read more

My wife and I used to go to Tarasco regularly up until not too long ago. It seemed like a good old fashioned Seattle dive restaurant with decent Mexican food and good local beer at reasonable prices. We also liked the waitress at that time. I've waited some time to write this because I've been so pissed off at two things that happened to us there: 1) One evening we went there and stepped through the door and were blasted in the face with the smell of raw sewage. They obviously had a major sewer backup or some similar problem but they continued to keep the doors open to customers. Our waitress had a distressed look on her face and asked us if we wanted to sit on the deck outside. We did, had a couple of beers and left to eat somewhere else. I pulled up the King County Public Health inspection records on the web when we got home and was stunned at their track record. It looks like things may be improving over the past year, and I hope so, but check out their track record over the past nearly 20 years on this website. Clearly their priority is bringing in some cash and not the health of their customers. http://info.kingcounty.gov/health/ehs/foodsafety/inspections/search.aspx 2) That was our last time there of course but not too long before that I noticed on my charge slip that it was $1.00 more than our receipt. I asked the waitress about the difference and she said that the owner was charging a $1.00 service fee for credit card use and that I ought to complain to him about it. She told me that he had been doing this for years. There were no signs stating this was their practice that I could see anywhere, nobody told us about it until that point, and it wasn't broken out on our charge slip. It was a completely hidden fee that you wouldn't catch unless you happened to notice the difference between the charge slip and the receipt. I thought about all the times we'd been there, charged the bill, and basically been ripped off $1.00 each time. That's the kind of treatment loyal customers get here. read more

great authentic mexican flavor in a cool neighborhood joint. Enjoyed their bar and the jukebox as well as the food. Go find this place soon. read more

Not a bad place to have a beer and wait for your table at Delancy. I vote we revoke its status as a Mexican restaurant, though-- when the bartender tells you that the special is "ah-rawz con paul-o," that is sort of adorably wrong. read more

Their garlic prawns are amazing!!! I love how this bar is tucked away in the neighborhood, and has pool tables. Every time I've been here the food is awesome! And JASON rocks! He gave me money for the jukebox, but when I asked JASON for a cigarette, he didn't have an extra one. Oh well I guess I can still give 5 stars!!! read more

Worst food ever. They spent more money making bad food from a can than it would take to make good food from scratch.

Tarasco's is a nice neighborhood joint. Their food is not bad and if you have them make a scratch margarita they are pretty good. The staff has always been friendly when I've stopped by. However, if I want Mexican I'll probably head north to Luisa's or south to La Carta. But if you live nearby it's hard to beat. read more

We had a lot of fun on Trivia night! I would go back and order the Camarones Tarasco anytime!

Tarasco is a cute little bar located in a cute residential part of the Ballard neighborhood. The bar and restaurant area is small but cozy enough to have a few beers and food( which was pretty good, by the way) with a small group of people. read more

Low level of ambience, very expensive drinks. Looks like a cheesy college bar inside but drinks are priced as though it is a speciality cocktail establishment ($11 for a manhattan!) Plus my manhattan was full of chunks of ice and it tasted bland and dirty. It was the worst manhattan I have ever had! read more

Friendly neighborhood bar with decent Mexican food. From the $ on yelp, I was expecting something cheaper than $13 entrees, but it was a huge portion. I wouldn't go out of my way, but it's cool if you're nearby. Pool table & jukebox are also available for the entertainment-starved. read more

This is the best bad in town and Marta is the best bartender ever go there and you will have the best bar experience.

Well, the place isn't as rough here and the bartenders are still friendly but they still have a terrible KJ who puts the same singers up over and over again while you wait for hours for the chance to sing one song EVEN WHEN YOU TIP. I thought time might have mellowed things but no dice. We'll stick to absolute karaoke venues where people are treated fairly. read more

Not busy, but server spent all time with one regular rather that anyone else. Also changed the sports on TV to an old episode of Family Feud ON ALL THE TVs!! Need to share: The fluffy guacamole was very good, but be aware it will set you back $6.00 for a very small amount!!!! With parking so bad there, not worth another visit for sure!! read more

Us ladies like to frequent here after work and tear up the karaoke floor! I enjoy their list of songs which includes my finale performance, "Enter Sandman". I love it! The bar isn't fancy but doesn't need to be. Very straight forward with pool tables, TVs, karaoke and alcohol. That's all you need! The bartenders are always nice and make good drinks. We'll keep making this our go-to spot to unwind after a busy night! read more

Phil and Sean are awesome! Good service and good food. Check it out! Not a big fan of the karaoke in the late evenings. read more

This place is a couple blocks from my house and I can't say I dislike the place but I don't like it either. The food is cheap and you get what you pay for. The folks at the bar make up for the quality of food. Happy bartenders, good neighborhood conversation and karaoke on the weekends. If you just want some munchies while you have a cold craft brew during the game, this place is great. read more

Best place ever. Great karaoke great food great drink. Everybody should go here. If you are worth anything you WILL GO HERE

I really like this place. I'll go ahead and let it be known that I go here pretty regularly, and live in the neighborhood. If you're still reading, here's my impartial opinion- the good and bad. This is a bar. A bar with some really good food, as long as you look beyond the Tex-mex thats offered for something familiar. This is NOT what they do best. If you want Azteca, go there. Instead, try the Arroz con Pollo (one of the best dishes they make). Try the Carne Asada, served with with the best fresh-made guacamole you are ever likely to have. My girlfriend usually orders a side by itself and a spoon. Anything on the menu involving chorizo is unbelievable- also house-made. If you're reading this- just ask your server whats good! Theres only a few of them, so they know the menu. On the weekends this place is a badass karaoke bar. I'm not a big karaoke guy, but I can hang around for a bit if it's run well. Josh and Kurt (depends on the night) run a quality and fair (everyone sings) evening. Which brings me to the bad. That said, Friday and Saturday nights are BUSY! The place runs on a minimal crew, so service can slow on the weekends. I'll admit, I have waited 10 min for a drink at times and maybe longer to cash out. That sucks, but it's pretty rare. Summary is, if you want really good Mexican food (actual Mexican food), or want to go to a quiet little local neighborhood bar to play some pool or darts and watch the game, or if you want to go get your sing on on the weekend, this is a great place. If you're looking for a theme, flash, or hipness, skip it. Did I mention the tortilla soup or the menudo? No? How about the ... the food is Really good! read more

All I gotta say about people that feel the necessity to go out n yelp... Maybe before you rate someplace, you should take a little more time to get in the joint first! It's a restaurant..they don't open until 4pm.. Big whoop! If you're truly that interested, it's not that hard to figure out! Tarascos rocks in my mind. Down n out authentic Mexican food! With some badasses running the joint! Tony rocks! read more

Just flat out sucks. Booth seats are broken, no matter which ones you choose. Poor layout to the whole place. Rude waitstaff (sheesh, girlie, what was up YOUR crack all night?) didn't earn my tip. It is considered poor service to snatch a glass from a customer's hand, even if it IS empty. Karaoke is too loud, and their stupid "power hours" let people jump into rotation out of turn, making the rest of us wait....and wait..... and WAIT..... I'm sorry, but a rotation of 10 people should NOT take almost 2 hours. Props to the karaoke person, the ONLY reason this place earned the one star I'm giving it. read more

They have food? I forgot. I come here for the Karaoke! Fri & Sat! My friends love their nachos, which are great when you are drinking. I love the unpretentious atmosphere and bar. It's just a chill neighborhood type place. It can get crowded sometimes. I've never been here when it was in "restaurant-format," only for karaoke, and I never ate anything besides the nachos, so my review is strictly as a karaoke bar, and for that, I do enjoy this place. Best to bring friends/interpretive dancers because you won't sing a whole lot, but you will have fun. read more

OK I was knocked out by the 2 buck Rainier's, 2 buck Mikes hard lemonade, 3 buck shots of Cuervos and one of the funniest chubby old guy singers in Seattle, The service was great, the other patrons treated the place like it was their Grandmas house and she was out of town. The chubby old guy sang Mack the Knife and blew the crowd away and when his song was over he asked everyone in the place to bring their mom's in next week because he needs a date for his prom, There was a doctor who sang Heartbreak hotel and some of the more intoxicated young ladies did an impromptu bump and grind that made him blush. And there was a woman with a great voice and even better cleavage that had me sweating. Serious damn fun. Great people and great karaoke host. read more

Great food, drinks and people. A nice place to meet with friends, No carpets Craig, (Holly G) you're just venting because you are no longer able to go there. read more

Nice little local hangout, very friendly staff. Avoid the pretentiousness across the street and come here instead.

I live suuuuuper close to this bar and in 3+ yrs I've never been there. ...till last Friday. I showed up for some ruckus in the form of karaoke & possible whiskey shots. The bar was full of costumed people ready to belt it out in honor of Halloween. It was a really great time just observing all the singers; good, bad or drunky. I would recommend this small joint for a karaoke night on Fri or Sat when you're not feeling like a big ol bar with tons & tons of people. It was a cool place and I'm glad I finally walked in. I realize that Fidel Castro & Hello Kitty won't be there to do duets but I can hope the singers that night will still entertain all the same... read more

Karaoke, shots, and good food. I had shrimp and a quesadilla and they were excellent.

Best shrimp tacos I've had in a while. Not too bad at 3 for $7, sans beans and rice. Affordable Mexican is ridiculously hard to come by in Seattle. read more

KJ Kurt does an awesome job! He plays current music in between songs and gets the crowd going! Fun place to sing!

What a great breakfast! We stopped in for brunch and had a great meal. I ordered the eggs benedict which were really good, and my husband had the Mexican french toast. It had a special syrup that really made the dish. We didn't have any breakfast cocktails but the drink prices were definitely reasonable. The Seahawks game was on, and I liked that it was on so we could pay attention if we wanted, but not overly loud so we had to pay attention if we didn't want to. We were able to talk and hear each other easily. Breakfast is new for them but I would totally go back. read more

This place has been my go to restaurant and dive bar for over 20 years. Their Mole' is the best in town, because the owner Tony is from the birthplace of Mole' Puebla Mexico. I believe his food is the best in Seattle. I also love to sing Karaoke on the weekends...a great out of the way neighborhood place. read more

Super fun and affordable place to meet up delicious Sangria and fresh tortillas. Awesome karaoke and DJ, friendly staff and owner. I'll be back!! read more

My husband and I are fairly new to Ballard and we are just getting settled in our house. We wanted a meal out and we strolled along to Tarasco. We had passed this restaurant many times while visiting in Seattle but had never tried it. We were very pleasantly surprised. We were warmly welcomed and politely served with very good food. We will return. read more

Fun crowd and $4 beers. Fun time with a good sound system. Lots of karaoke song choices but they need a song book by artist. It's too hard to search by artist. read more

Service was great, the bartender/waitress was very nice. Food was just OK, not great, but not terrible. It was a Tuesday night so it wasn't busy, us and maybe 6 other patrons and they were all seated at the bar talking to the bartender. In the middle of dinner out of nowhere they started blasting some weird, eccentric music that even Soundhound couldn't make out. read more

First of all let me just say that it pains me to write this review. 6 months ago I would have rated this place 5 stars. I was a regular at Tarasco for years and enjoyed it every time I went there. Staff were friendly and attentive. The clientele were also fun and friendly. My last visit just killed it for me. First of all, the server got my drink wrong. 20 minutes later she came back and I notified her of the mistake. I was willing to look past this error as she quickly corrected it once she knew. So this same server comes by and asks us if we wanted more drinks and we give her our drink order. She proceeds to go behind the bar, eat and shoot the shit with some other patrons. 15 to 20 minutes later, the bartender comes over to serve a different table and we proceed to flag him down. We tell him of our drink order, and he responds by saying, "you want me to punch her in the head?" No, I want our friggen drinks we ordered 20 minutes ago. So, after all that, when I was pretty sure it couldn't get any worse, the server walks to the 3 other tables that were being used and gets their drinks order and completely ignores us. We did get some of our drinks comped, but I've said it before, bad service is bad service. Not sure what it was about us, but it was like we were the only ones being ignored. This place does not have the friendly neighborhood bar feel it once had and given a choice, I would rather go somewhere where you at least feel welcome. read more

wow. this is by far the second-worst service i have ever received(see my review of the waterwheel). i live two blocks away, as do my friends(twins) who turned twenty-one last night. i got there around 12:30, said hi to my friends and went up to the bar. i ordered two drinks - a beer for me and a shot for the birthday boy. the bartender JASON asked me very rudely if the shot was for the girl(the other twin, who in all fairness was a little drunk). i said no, it was for the other person having a birthday. a grunt later i get an extremely measured shot( i'm surprised there wasn't a ruler involved), and an under-poured beer. the shot is understandable, but i drink beer, and i was happy to see they had maritime ipa. which i know doesn't make a beer with a head that grows to an inch, and then vanishes in less than a minute. at this point, i know i'm not going to be staying here long at all. i pay for the drinks, tip a dollar for each, and close out my tab. i meet back with my friends, and tell them about the bartender JASON. they all tell me how rude JASON was to each of them. we play some pool, and everyone is pretty subdued. here comes JASON reminding everyone in a snotty tone not to take your drinks out the front door- even though nobody had whatsoever. three out of the five of us have worked in bars or restaurants - we know the rules, and nobody was creating a problem at all. now i'm really ready to go. but the birthday kids want to sing a karaoke song first. so i go up to the bar for my second beer. i order the same thing, and JASON uses my same warm glass from my first beer. ugh! i know it wasn't that busy to run out of pint glasses, so what gives? i pay with a ten dollar bill this time, and hand it to JASON. he completely snatches it out of my hand. so now, i am mad. i ALWAYS tip. i cannot remember a time i didn't. not this time. i come to find out later from one of my friends, that he didn't tip either. good for him. we all leave and talk to some other patrons outside. they tell us how JASON was rude to them as well, and how he always is like that. awesome. way to treat your customers, JASON. well tarasco, you could have had three regular customers from the neighborhood. instead, i will never return to your establishment. i will tell everyone i know to stay away from your restaurant, and my four friends will as well. one crummy bartender named JASON ruined two people's 21st birthdays and the nights of three others. guess you guys don't want/need our money. which is fine, because we'll be taking it to places who do. read more

This is not the Tarasco's of years gone by. Used to have fond memories of this place. It's said you cannot go home again. How right that is. Been a few years. Oh heavens to Mergatroid what have they done to this place. Waste of time, waste of money and I won't be going back here ever again. Sad, it used to be a good place to eat. PATHETIC. read more

One of few remaining cool neighborhood joints in Ballard. The food is muy authentico and the drinks are kick ass... you really can not go wrong. Even if you are not a regular you will be treated as one. The real McCoy art rounds out the place well. Avoid late Saturday nights, unless Karreookee is your cup. If so, be sure to check out Mitch - he does an outstanding Jim Morrison and Joe Cocker! read more