El Cholo - The Original

"El Cholo has locations all over LA, but the one you need to concern yourself with is the original in Koreatown. Established in 1923, this sprawling restaurant on Western Ave. feels like a miniature city, except instead of traffic and skyrocketing rent, there are giant enchilada combo platters, a friendly waitstaff and potent margaritas. They’ve been serving the classic El Cholo margarita since 1967 and it’s smoky, tart, and delicious. As far as the food goes, we usually get the Sonora-style enchiladas or fajitas—and several baskets of free tortilla chips." - brant cox, garrett snyder, arden shore

"This legendary family-operated restaurant has hit the century mark. El Cholo remains packed while still churning out classic traditional enchiladas, burritos, tacos, as well as shaken margaritas. The flour tortillas are worth ordering a dozen before leaving the premises." - Matthew Kang, Eater Staff, Mona Holmes

"This legendary family-operated restaurant has hit the century mark. El Cholo remains packed while still churning out classic traditional enchiladas, burritos, tacos, as well as shaken margaritas. The flour tortillas are worth ordering a dozen before leaving the premises." - Matthew Kang, Eater Staff

"One of LA’s oldest Mexican restaurants turned 100 in 2023 and maintains a historic presence on Western Avenue just north of Pico. But there are six bustling SoCal locations serving margaritas, combination platters, and El Cholo’s signature green corn tamales." - Eater Staff

"El Cholo is an LA institution that serves old-school Mexican food in large quantities and quality margaritas (also in large quantities). The space feels like a huge adobe house, with lots of booths and decor that looks like it hasn’t changed since the ’60s. Probably because it hasn’t. The deal: $5 cantina tacos, $7 margaritas, all day." - amy clark, kat hong