Axel’s Taco Shop

First time ordering from Axel’s via DoorDash—food arrived hot and fresh. The Buenos Días burrito and shredded beef flautas were both delicious, especially with the BOGO deals (chips & guac and Jamaica drink—both worth it). The guac had great flavor and came with plenty of chips; the Jamaica tasted like cranberry juice and was really good. The burrito was flavorful with well-seasoned potatoes. Only letdown was the red sauce—too runny and bland—but the guac saved it. Definitely recommend this place.

Excellent food and experience. They serve a lengua (tongue) taco that was hands down the best I've ever had. I also ordered the tripa and carne asada. Those were good too. Prices were reasonable for location and portion size. Trust me the meat will be falling out of the taco. They stuff them. The salsa bar is too awesome. They keep it clean and stocked. While I was there someone came to it two different time to wipe down and restock. They have more than just salsas on it too. Looking forward to try their breakfast options too.

I visit this location as I work close in the area, and it’s a quick stop to grab reasonably priced tacos. I am leaving this review because I am very disappointed in the service and quality I received today. On most days, when ordering the 3 TJ tacos, they give you enough on each to make it feel like a decent taco. They only provide one lime slice in this package, however. I’m ordering my food the last 3 days, I have asked for an additional lime. Not only did I not receive an additional lime slice (how pathetic that I have to fight with a business to get a simple lime slice), I got less filling tacos than normal and this feels empty and not worth the money I paid for it. It’s disappointing to feel treated like this as a customer without even an acknowledgment that they won’t add an additional lime, but also not even share that they wouldn’t or offer to purchase another at any cost. I was not given an option to choose to pay more for an additional lime, and it was acknowledged that they recognized I asked for one, but choose to ignore the request, and provide less meat than any other time I visited. This will be the last time I will visit since there are several other options nearby, and it is sad because this could’ve been avoided by just being open with either charging for another slice of lime, or just acknowledging me with the request with a yes or no.

Axel’s Tacos Price: ~$20 Order:6 grilled chicken tacos + 1 Jarritos I ordered the 6 "Tijuanita"ita tacos, no onion, add sour cream. You get six mini tacos made with flat-grilled chicken thighs, topped with guacamole salsa, served on two crispy, hot tortillas per taco, which is a huge win for texture and structure. The chicken itself is the star. You can choose between regular grilled or marinated in a red (non-spicy) sauce, so I went 3 and 3. Both were excellent, juicy, smoky, and well seasoned ,but the marinated chicken adds a deeper, richer flavor that really pops. Every bite hits: Crunch ,from the lightly crisped tortillas Juiciness, from the chicken thighs Creaminess ,from the guac and sour cream Heat control thanks to their salsa bar. Speaking of the salsa bar, major bonus! The salsas range from mild and flavorful to very spicy, so you can build your own heat level. They also have soft, buttered onions and jalapeños, which add a savory, slightly sweet punch that takes the tacos up another notch. Service:Fast and friendly. I had my tacos in under 5 minutes, which is impressive considering the quality. Atmosphere: Nothing crazy very mom and pop joint vibes. Basic, casual, and all about the food rather than the setting. Overall: A straight up flavor bomb. Great textures, bold seasoning, quick service, and solid portions. I Highly recommend if you’re craving legit tacos done right. 🌮🔥

Ordered 40 crunchy tacos over phone. Asked for 20 chicken and 20 beef. They were ready in about 30 minutes from ordering. Got them to the party they held up even having to wait for a little bit. Food was good, gave us tons of sauce. The guy at the register (Angel I think) was cool and kept me up on my order while I was waiting. Everyone enjoyed them and was asking where they were from. Thanks Axel’s!

My first visit. I had the Carne asada combo and my girl had a fish taco with a horchata, and we shared some warm crispy perfect tortilla chips y salsa. Oh, oh, oh so good. Look at the salsa bar!!! So crazy good and even has hot grilled onions. Watch out for that one orange salsa because it taste so good and I ate a lot but it had habanero and maybe some lava. And I hurt, and I will do it again next time too.

I live right by this place and watched for years as cars would make crazy last second turns to get in the parking lot. After a while I decided to go see what all the fuss was about. As a vegetarian I can always count on Mexican food and this place delivered!! I have now been a long time customer who myself makes crazy turns to get in. Delicious Potato Tacos, Cheese Quesadilla and guacamole, and I cannot recommend enough their fresh squeezed orange juice enough (when it's in season). People are always friendly and food is fast, hot and freshly made. So much better than the chain stores. Please try it. They are 100% worth the effort to get across Lancaster.

Just amazing 😋 and the staff is super friendly, great customer service! My breakfast burrito was huge and the salsa bar had an great variety of salsas.

I went there this afternoon. Had a Carne Asada burrito. It was fantastic. It was burrito was full of meat. No grizzle super fresh. Super hot. Definitely recommend the place. Keep up the good work.

A Tacos Trip! The Carnitas Tacos Let me taco 'bout the carnitas tacos--these bad boys are the real fiesta in a fresh corn tortilla! As a globe-trotting, México-born taco connoisseur, I can confirm the deliciousness of these carnitas, each bite had us saying, "¡Ay, mamacita!" They're tender, juicy, and bursting with flavor--so much so that you might start dancing around the super nice salsa bar in the restaurant with your taco plate in hand. If these tacos were any more loaded, they'd need their own passport stamps! The Environment Axel's Taco Shop is a vibrant, quirky corner of México right here in Salem, OR. The walls are adorned with colorful murals and beyond that, the staff makes it even better--think "Taco 'bout a party!"--that make the atmosphere as festive as a street carnival. Whether you're on a quick lunch run or planning a full-on taco marathon that includes buñuelos, the ambience here is as refreshing as a chilled cerveza Corona on a sunny August afternoon. Amazing Service! Now, let's address the real twist in this tale: our dear Axel--the brilliant college student who, by a hilarious twist of fate, shares his name with this taquería. Axel doesn't work here, doesn't own the place, it's just destiny that brought us together. The staff served up friendly, attentive service that made our visit as memorable as Axel's quirky college antics. Thanks to his accidental nudge, our culinary journey turned into a full-blown fiesta! In short, if you're roaming Salem or on your way to-from Corvallis and Portland, with a hankering for killer carnitas tacos and a side of laughter, Axel's Taco Shop is your destination. Grab a taco, toast with some horchata or jamaica drinks, and enjoy the ride--while giving a nod to our namesake hero, Axel, for the unforgettable referral!

This is the second time I've had their supreme nachos. They're amazing. Got them with corn Asada.

Truly excellent tacos at a fair price, with long hours. Excellent, slightly-charred, rich in flavor carne asada complements fresh onions, cilantro, etc. Even the fish burrito is consistently crispy, savory, and refreshing. Axel's has become my go-to delivery order for, well, anything on their menu. If you're looking for a rich treat, I recommend the Arizona burrito. It can be a bit of a gut punch if you aren't expecting it, but if you need something hearty and flavorful, it can't be beat. The asada is great, the chicken is great, the chorizo is great, even the shrimp is great. I have not had a single item from Axel's that I regretted ordering. I have definitely had items I regretted *eating*, but only because I couldn't resist continuing after I was full because the food is so damn delicious! The biggest "problem" I have with Axel's, if you can call it that, is that they're *so* affordable it feels hard to justify making a delivery order or driving across town. I mean, I'll still do both. All the time. But I feel bad about it. Never change, Axel's.

Fantastic carnitas tacos. The pork is crispy at the edges, just how I like it. Now that I've had their carnitas tacos, I don't know if I'll be able to bring myself to order anything else. ;) I've also had their plain cheese quesadilla. It was standard fare: nothing remarkable about it, but nothing wrong with it either. It did hit the spot when I was craving a quesadilla. The fresh-squeezed orange juice is good too -- but beware, the "large" is VERY large. I should have gotten a medium OJ, even though I was sharing it!

Amazing!!! Best burritos and salsa ! Customer service very good . They are also open late which is great .

A great taco shop among many in the Salem area. However, Axel's has two things that set it apart. First, the street tacos have guacamole and pico de gallo instead of just onions and cilantro. Second, while they (sadly) don't have quesabirria tacos, they have crispy tacos. Crispy tacos are what would happen if a street taco had a beautiful baby with a tortilla chip. Delicious! The variety of sauces is also a nice touch. Would recommend and will be back.

Stopped by because its the only Mexican place in Salem thats open for breakfast burritos at 10am, but one burrito was not made correctly and the horchata does not taste good at all. Just straight cinnamon so we didnt drink it.

i've stopped by a few more times and the food has been consistently fresh and delicious!

Great service. Delicious tacos. We had Adobada Tacos. The pork was crunchy and so tasty. The tacos came with guac and pico de gallo The salsa bar was amazing!

Friendly service and great food. Open late for late night munchies. Lots of seating and parking available. Check it out if you're craving burritos!

Pros Affordable Salsa bar is great Variety Convenient location Cons Limited space Service is okay

Great disappointment after trying over (7) different items and meats when we ordered the (2) tamales and from 50 years of eating tamales at many different locations these by Axel were machine made like from Costco or Trader Joe's because the masa texture was not solid like the handmade ones. Sad because the amount of money paid. This being said we will still be patronizing the place from the items that were made well but I would not recommend their tamales.

The service was fine. Ambiance, fast food. Good salsa bar, but the pickled carrots were rubbery. Charred peppers and onions cooked perfectly. Unfortunately the rest was all low quality. Refried beans too salty, red sauce, too. Rice, beef taco lacked flavor. Fish taco overwhelmed by the sauce, couldn't taste the fish. Guacamole too thin and portion way too small with no onions or tomatoes or cilantro from what I could see or taste. Even the napkins were the cheapest. Chile relleno not much cheese inside, not much batter outside, too much lettuce, red sauce too salty and cotillo salty too. This place desperately needs better ingredients and a cook with more discerning taste buds. IMHO.

Salem has many of these taquerias scattered throughout the city and surrounding area. From the outside most of them look the same and on the inside most of the are. Same menu, same offerings and price point. The trick to finding the few that excel is you have to get a good, unbiased recommendation or, even better is to actually eat at one. Axel's hits all the notes! Broad menu featuring all the standard taco-burrito-enchiladas combos but also a nice selection of authentic Mexican dishes like. Lengua, Pozole, and Torta's. The condiments bar is outstanding with multiple fresh salas, fresh, pickled, and roasted veggies and to go containers to take some home. They even provide aluminum foil to wrap your leftovers, which there will be given the generous portions. A big fountain dispensing Aguas Frescas is a sure sign Axel's is not focused on the Taco Bell clientele (not that there is anything wrong with Taco Bell, it has its place) Fast service, reasonably priced items and squeaky clean tables makes Axel's an good bet when the taco gods

They have some decent food, but the customer service is absolutely horrendous at times. They don't know how to run a drive-thru. I've waited at the window for 15 minutes before someone shows up and tries to give me the wrong order. They've tried to double-charge me in the past. I think everybody in the kitchen is stoned out of their minds. It's hit-or-miss, but mostly miss sadly. They really need to train their staff better and start drug testing.

Nice little spot. Cool that they had the salsa bar including the onions, jalapeños, and chiles toreados. We went there for the first time and got the Salem fries, torta, and some tacos. Fries were good. Torta was alright but missing a lot of classic stuff like lettuce, beans, and queso fresco. Only had pico and guac. Tacos were made with what seemed like mission tortillas, pretty much tacos I could make at home. Service was quick and good. Honestly wasn't bad but I'd consider this place a good place after a long night or after drinking. Satisfied the cravings but nothing special.

We live nearby and love Mexican food. We were not impressed with Axel's unfortunately! The Carne asada was chewy and you could tell it had been hanging around for a few days. Definitely will not be returning!

Place was small yet tidy, the staff was extremely inviting and friendly, they welcomed us in and thanked us for our business when we left. They even asked if it was OK to vacuum the floor while our 2 month old was present. The food was piping hot and most of all delicious! There wasn't anything that we ate that we didn't like. This was our first time here and it will not be our last. I highly recommend giving it a try. P.S There are no pictures because after the first bite, we demolished everything!

Stop whatever you are doing and come here. No joke. The food is delicious. Like being in LA... but in Salem. I will drive out of my way to come here. It's that good. Their salsa, sautéed onions and peppers, extensive burrito list. Bring the tums.... You'll need it but it'll be worth it.

The food is very good but their prices are ridiculous. Overnight their prices went up two dollars for most all their items. I understand inflation but this is just too much. It's a shame, I just can't go back there anymore.

This is our go to for SoCal style Mexican food. Their Pitufo breakfast burritos are the bomb! Try the flautas! They rival the best high end restaurant. The people are friendly and accommodating. The shop is tidy and kept up nice. We drive by the other guys to get our Axel's on!

ordered a beef burrito the meat was old dry and stale strings of meat. the taco was so stale it couldn't be eaten. requested new food the staff refused to make us fredh food and there was only two bites taken. they also refused a refund. basically told us to take the bad food or leave without the $35 dollars and food. we will never go back horrible food and customer service. who puts bell pepper in a beef burrito awful!!

Dependable, fast, fresh & delicious! Great service and it's awesome that they have a drive-thru.

Carne asada is flavorful and tender - good portions for the price - salsa bar is well supplied

This is for my experience on Saturday May 24. It's unfortunate that after at least 15 visits I have to give a bad review! I order the carne Asada plate thinking th meat would be cut up. The steak was 2 thin pieces but I had difficulty cutting with plastic knife. After a couple of minutes struggling to cut it I walked to front and politely asked if they could cut the meat in back. They said once a plate leaves the kitchen it can't come back. Then she said she would ask manager. 10 minutes later no manager no response I walked up and took 2 to go boxes to take home since my wife had finished her food and I was still struggling and working trying to cut meat. The other lady who was training in front saw me and offered a bag to put my boxes in. I walked up and got the bag and told the other lady I was dissatisfied that the manager never came and talked to me. I will be back but you have list my business for at least a few months! Food is always very good but if I have to work at eating it or have to take it home it's not enjoyable. Theirs a bunch of good Mexican food restaurants in Salem. I've worked in restaurants for over 40 years and never cold a customer that I can't take food back to kitchen to fix it in any ways. I've worked at 5 stars restaurants the last 35 years and not once have we ever denied such a simple request!

Axel's Taco shop is amazing. The food was beyond good with huge portions. I got the monster burrito and my partner got the king burrito. The tasted great. 10 out of 10 with the food. The service was quick and you can tell it is all home made. Even the sauces on the sauce bar were tasty. The place is a little small but clean and nice.

Been going to Axel's for a while now and everything is amazing and the food is great. Hate the drive thru though, but that isn't their problem.

Food was great and the customer service was excellent. Many different choices of salsa and the agua frescas were great. Limited space but overall good food.

I have been meaning to try this Taco Shop for a while now and after tonight's visit I regret not coming in sooner! The staff was very friendly and accomodating. They took the time to answer my questions about a few of yheir dishes without getting impatient the way staff at a few other restaurant's I've been to recently would. The restaurant is clean, but there are a few spots that could use some touch up paint, notably on the ceiling. Also, there was one vent that looked like it could use a wipe down. The atmosphere felt more Mexican American than traditional Mexican, at least to me. In this case it's a good thing, in that it helps them to stand out from other similar restaurants. Now for the food... I came in on a Tuesday, so of course I had to order Tacos. I ordered the Carne Asada ones and they were delicious! The lady who helped me actually let me know what options were available regarding how they could prepare them, but I went for a fairly basic order. I also ordered the Burrito A La Diabla, sin camarones, con pollo. I substituted the shrimp for chicken. I try to eat Kosher when possible, for health reasons. The burrito lives up to it's name. It was the spiciest burrito I have had recently. It was amazing!

The best Mexican food I've found so far in Salem. Great customer service. Orders are out fast.

Delicious food! fast service !! Everyone that works here is very polite , good customer service. all the salsas have a good flavor

I got the number 10 and my husband got pollo Ashdod burrito and it's delicious. We recommend it.