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Serving Mexican food in Burnaby. Mariachi band on weekends.
I ate lunch here with my wife today. It's on the north side of hastings and was kind of hard to notice. Look up! It's on the second floor. Upon entering, nice cozy little place, very mexican looking inside, nice mexican music playing. Reminded me of when I was in Mexico, until I looked outside to see our gloomy weather :(
When we sat we were given complimentary chips with a salsa verde (green salsa) for dipping. It was excellent, and had a nice fresh taste of lime to it.
We shared a yummy pitcher of sangria for $15.95
I ordered the white fish tacos for 13.95, she ordered the polo con mole for $11.95
We both enjoyed our food and both are looking forward to returning at night time to try out some other menu items and see some live music -)
it's one of those places where it just seems in the wrong spot and not very appealing to go into, however all these years I've been wrong. Finally went and will go again and again.
Flavours are well balanced and tasty. Doesn't make you feel gross like some Mexican restaurants. In fact you feel fresh and wanting to try other items on the menu.
Too many places explain it's the type of cuisine for the reason of overly seasoned or spiced food. El Mariachi proves you don't have to stick with traditional to have light fresh and authentic flavours.
don't come here expecting cheap eats but good food at fair prices.
Had driven by this place a thousand times on my way to somewhere else; finally went there to check it out. Wow, not only were we not disappointed, we were impressed! At first, we thought the prices were a bit steep, owing to so many cheaply priced (and for good reason) Mexican restaurants. Let me tell you, after having been to Mexico and pretty much every Mexican restaurant in Metro Vancouver, this place is worth a special trip. It's a hole-in-the-wall location but that means you are sure to get a table in what is arguably on of the best privately-owned Mexican restaurants in the Lower Mainland.
The food is authentically prepared, to be sure, but at the highest possible quality. There is no ground beef to be found; every beef dish involves meat that has been slow-cooked to fall-apart perfection. We started with a tortilla soup ($7) that was so dense, it could have been a meal on its own. I was so mesmerized at trying to guess the secret of its ingredients, I'll have to go back on an empty stomach to enjoy it as mere food.
The service was great -- the folks who run the place (Carlos and Jenna) are so genuine, we spent a good portion of our time chatting with them.
Mojitos were only $5 ( ! ) but I opted for a fresh lime margarita so good that we ended up ordering a pitcher. After a bowl of soup and complimentary nachos with homemade tomatillo dip, we were barely able to split a plate of mole beef enchiladas (a steal at $12 for three). Oh, and if you've ever wondered how a chocolate-based sauce could ever make its way to a main course, I dare you to try it just once, here. Outstanding!
The main course came with a small but flavourful side of beans (not the usual pile of dried stuff) and just enough delicious rice to be an accompaniment rather than filler. We couldn't have eaten another bite, meaning we will definitely be returning to try out the rest of the menu (the dessert menu boasted specialties you can't get anywhere else). Truthfully, I have no doubt that the filet mignon at $17 will easily be as good as what you'd get elsewhere for $35.
Quality ambience, great music (not overly loud but just festive enough to make you feel like you're on vacation) and warm surroundings leave you thinking you've stumbled onto Burnaby's best-kept secret ... for now. Once people catch on, it will be hard to get a table at El Mariachi.
Dinner for two (soups and one split entree), a pitcher of margaritas (in addition to the first margarita) and a very generous tip (22%): $70. Being among the first to discover what is sure to be voted the best Mexican restaurant in Burnaby, if not the Lower Mainland, priceless!
I've been to El Mariachi several times since being introduced to it by a Mexican shop owner. It's a quiet place that's a bit hard to find, but well worth the extra effort.
The staff at El Mariachi are very warm and helpful. They do an excellent job of making you feel welcome.
The menu has good variety. I've tried many different dishes and have always been impressed with the flavours. (My mouth is actually watering thinking about it)
I've always noticed that after eating at El Mariachi I feel very good - not bloated or tired. To me, this indicates very good quality food - nothing processed. I checked into their chef and he previously worked at a 5 star resort in Mexico.
It's the only place I go for Mexican food.
6 of us went to this place last night for our montly supper club. It was recommended to us by another set of "foodie" friends.
This place is a little hard to find, it's on the north side of Hastings Street, but one block east of Boundary Road. There is street parking and free parking in the rear. The restaurant is located upstairs.
This place is tiny, there's probably not much more than seating for about 40 people or so. I had made reservations, which is fortunate for me, because after 6 pm, they had posted a sign at the front door saying that the restaurant was completely booked with reservations for the remainder of the night.
Food: We ordered the nachos to start. It came with lots of melted cheese and the guacamole was awesome, nice and fresh. They make their own tortilla chips there, which were so crispy and fresh tasting and much thicker than the usual kind. We didn't realize that they also give you chips and salsa to start. Probably shouldn't have ordered the appies, because I was 1/2 full when my entree came.
Lots of choices for dinner and I was told that you can also order the lunch menu for dinner too. I ended up ordering the 3 chicken enchillada plate. It comes with beans, rice and guacamole. I have to say that my meal was excellent, not too spicy and really flavourfull. My other companions ordered the fajitas and chicken in mole sauce. Although they said the fajitas were good, it wasn't what they were expecting. Everyone who had the chicken and mole sauce said that it was good.
We were too stuffed for dessert, maybe next time as I wanted to try the Mexican flan.
Service was attentive and it was $8.95 for a plate of nachos (we got 2), $10.95 for my enchilladas. The other entrees ranged from $12 - $16., which was pretty good value wise. As for ambiance, as previously stated, this place is tiny. It was nicely decorated, felt warm and inviting. Interesting enough, they didn't have coffee, which was kinda a shock to some of my dining companions who wanted an after diner coffee.
There was a mariachi band that played around 7 pm. They were really good, but quite loud, considering the tiny room. You couldn't really carry on a conversation while they were playing.
I would definitely return for those chips and nachos.
Two of us visited in early May. Place was busy but we were seated promptly.
Excellent salsa verde. Standard chips. Margarita was not exciting; no authentic beers...
Fajita was only ok. Tilapia was still frozen / raw inside; but server was fabulous and replaced entre promptly.
The kitchen throws alot of chopped garlic on everything, which was not desired.
The musicians were lovely but are very loud for this small space.
We would not return.
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