El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food

Mexican restaurant · Malden

El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food

Mexican restaurant · Malden

1

97 Medford St, Malden, MA 02148

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El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by Rachel Leah Blumenthal/Eater
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null
El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food by null

Highlights

Snug eatery with a festive backdrop serving huevos rancheros, carne asada & other Mexican dishes.  

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97 Medford St, Malden, MA 02148 Get directions

elmexsalmalden.com

$10–20 · Menu

Reserve

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97 Medford St, Malden, MA 02148 Get directions

+1 781 605 0821
elmexsalmalden.com
elmexsal

$10–20 · Menu

Reserve

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payment credit card
reservations
outdoor seating

Last updated

Jul 11, 2025

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"2021 rule of thumb: If there are birria tacos on the menu, I will order them. New-ish Malden spot El Mexsal happens to serve a particularly good version. —Rachel Leah Blumenthal" - Rachel Leah Blumenthal, Terrence Doyle, Nathan Tavares, Karen Wilber

The Boston Area’s Best Takeout and Delivery of 2021 - Eater Boston
View Postcard for El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food

Sebastien Magloire

Google
What a great place this hole in a wall mom and pops site packs quite the flavor punch. The location is small colorful, and unique. The arroz camaron was an extraordinary dish! I will definitely be a back very soon. The drinks were excellent and robust, left me stumbling! Everyone working in there was friendly and attentive to my needs!

Semmy A

Google
We ordered a large family meal for takeout on Mother’s Day at 9:20pm. We were afraid they wouldn’t be able to make the order since they close at 10pm. They stayed open until 10:20pm to make our order fresh and it was delicious! We got the chicken and beef empanadas, shrimp ceviche, papusas, talipia fish plate x2, chicken and rice plate, shrimp tacos, carne asada plate, and Alfredo pasta. Everything was excellent and tasted very well seasoned. Reasonably priced for the amount of food received. The customer service was great. Will definitely be ordering again!

Alex Girolamo

Google
I ordered “fajita quesadilla” (fajita quesadilla, served with lettuce,guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo ,rice and pinto beans on the side.) please explain how this is a quesadilla? With said “quesadilla,” client can expect to receive 1 teaspoon of guacamole from a squeeze tube and about 2 oz of meat for $15. Taquitos are tasteless and came in a burnt plastic container.

Logan

Google
Really glad we came across El Mexsal Authentic Latin Food! Even during takeout only, the people were very friendly and made the experience as normal as possible. The food was still nice and warm 10 minutes later when we made it home and got the food onto our plates. We will be trying this place again for sure!

Hugh Jankles

Google
I grabbed the Chicken Tortilla Soup and the Beef Fajitas via delivery.. Both were excellent! The soup came separated where the fresh ingredients were in there own container and the broth was in its own to prevent things from getting soggy and I really appreciated that. Once mixed together the soup was delicious. The fajitas were great. But I was bummed they only provide 2 flour tortillas. IMO this dish should come with 4 as you could easily make 4 normal size fajitas with a couple strips of steak inside. The sides for the fajitas came separate and were fresh. Rice tasted fantastic. The beans, IMO, weren't great flavor wise but overall okay to throw onto the fajita. I'm definitely going to order take out from here again. Well worth a shot. EDIT: Dined in and it was simply fantastic. The food is so damn authentic and taste wonderful. Cannot recommend this place enough!!!

Aaron J

Google
I have soured on this place over time. Got charged for water, forced 18% gratuity, credit card fee, and an extra two dollars to the advertised price of my margarita because I'm just a sucker I guess. Good food though.

Amanda Clark

Google
I stopped by with my husband for a sweet dinner date. The owner was super nice. He is clearly pouring his soul into this place. The food was incredible. The chips come with a lovely salsa AND super good bean dip. We ordered enchiladas and a chimichanga; both we incredible! We were allowed to try the homemade vanilla coconut flan with dulce de leche, too, which was incredible. We will definitely be going back because the menu has so much more we want to try. Everyone should support this business. But be warned, the food is cooked fresh, so you have to wait a bit for it. Regardless, service was excellent.

MARLON REDDIE

Google
Great food and great service. This is a very quiet, hide-away hole in the wall restaurant with great food and great service. I would definitely return to this establishment again and again.

Lady G.

Yelp
Terrible una soupa son un guess I un pedaso de carne con gordura que robo horrible no lo recomiendo mejor guardar se su dinero

Erica D.

Yelp
First time trying this spot and it was horrible. From the awkward/uncomfortable service to food that didn't even taste good. we ordered, steak quesadilla, spicy shrimp plate, and arepas through grub hub and picked it up. When I walked in, 2 waitresses was sitting down. 1 lady behind counter and one guy in front all just stared me down, didn't say hi or anything. I mentioned I'm here to pick up an order, and all was still staring. The lady in back asked me for the name which I told her. Then she mumbled something again, and one of the waitresses straight up grilled me then went back into kitchen. I stood there because they didn't tell me if it was ready or anything. After a few more mumbles to the guy, she said 15, and that's it. I said ok thanks I'll come back. Again, no response from them. Came back to pick up the food, again no greetings, didn't tell me if the food was ready. 10 min later, the food was ready. We were a bit excited since it was nice and hot, despite the rude customer service. Went home the quesadilla had rice and beans.... And barely any steak. It looked like dog food The shrimp tasted like water down Buffalo sauce. I ordered pork and cheese arepas but got beans. We tossed it all out. Never coming back, terrible service and food.

Eric S.

Yelp
My third time here. Came here on a Saturday night with some friends. The drinks were all amazing. The food was super including the dessert. Finally, the service waa great. Highly recommend and I will be back many times I am sure!

Christine P.

Yelp
I really liked this little place. They have both Mexican and Salvadoran specialties. I had tacos as prepared the proper Mexican style. My friend had a burrito, which she loved. (I know, not true Mexican). The surprise was they had tamarind margaritas. They were delicious and so, so hard to find in the USA.

Mary D.

Yelp
Really impressed with the quality of the menu items here! I like that you can choose from multiple Latin cusines. The quesadilla was warm, filling and tasty. I have had a few quesadillas recently from other places that included cold ingredients in their quesadillas, which I do not like. If you are looking for a traditional, warm, cheesy treat, this is the spot for you!

Keala R.

Yelp
Empanadas had no flavor and torts was awful. Two men were drunk at the bar talking inappropriately about the server in Spanish. I do not recommend this place. I really wanted to like this place and waited over a year to go :(

Bobby B.

Yelp
Best, most authentic Mexican restaurant in the Boston region. Driving out to Everett is definitely worth it to have your fix of green chicken enchiladas, pupusas, ceviche. Don't stop there, make sure to try a michelada or a few margaritas decked out with a spicy tamarind rim! Make sure the dress warmly though, the inside is not well insulated.

Elena J.

Yelp
My boyfriend and I stumbled upon this hole-in-a-wall spot in Malden and it did not disappoint! Situated in a small house on a residential street, don't let the unassuming nature of the location prevent you from coming by. We had a mango margarita and michelada - both delicious and inexpensive - and enchiladas with mole sauce and pupusas which we devoured. Our waitress, Christina, was very warm and friendly and although the inside of the restaurant is quite simple and understated, the environment was nonetheless festive and welcoming.

Shawn W.

Yelp
REALLY authentic & delicious Mexican & Salvadoran food!! Come for a breakfast or dinner if you are nearby at the casino! The flavored mojitos are fantastic!! We had the typical breakfast, which comes with eggs, beans, salsa, fresh handmade tortillas, hard cheese, and a soft cheese. Absolutely delicious! We will be back to try dinner. I heard the burritos are to die for!!

Matty D.

Yelp
I was so excited, normally small places like this have the best authentic food! Tables and cups were dirty, Really dirty. The food taste like it was cooked in dirty oil and the food had no flavor.

Alexandra M.

Yelp
After driving past this so many times I said we had to try it. And we are already planning on what we're getting next time. Portions are HUGE so maybe just 1 appetizer is needed for 2 people....not the 3 we ordered on top of our chimichangas. Due to our over ordering, we ate for 3 meals and everything held up to being reheated, so don't fret if you fall into the same trap we did of 'oh its inexpensive so it won't be a lot of food'.

Meghan G.

Yelp
Don't order delivery! I used to love this place, but they really screwed me. I ordered delivery but the driver only dropped off half the food. When I called to fix it, they said it was an issue between me and the driver and refused to do anything. Mind you, I didn't order from Ubereats or some third party app. I ordered directly from them. They super rude and I ended up paying $45 for two boxes of rice and beans.

Brianda H.

Yelp
After 5 years in the Boston area, I can safely say that I have found the best Mexican / Latino food place in the greater Boston area! Joel puts so much love and attention into each plate and it comes out in the combination of flavors! Everything is so FRESH! Their chips and salsa taste like your grandma/ mom made them. Their plates are portioned extremely well and the taste of EVERYTHING is to die for. The restaurant itself stays true to the character of a real Mexican/Salvadoran restaurant and you feel so at home eating the delicious food. Malden is so lucky to have this place!!!! Definite recommend!!!

Isha R.

Yelp
This spot is a hidden gem!! We came here for the first time last night and the food was DELICIOUS! Tasted very authentic. We ordered spinach and cheese enchiladas with tomatillo sauce, with a side of guac, highly recommend. Margs were awesome too - we tried strawberry, passion fruit and mango flavors. Excellent service for dine in. Can't wait to come back, and even order from this spot for take out!

Mattison C.

Yelp
I've ordered from here twice on Grubhub and both times I got the Tejanas fajitas that has shrimp, steak, and jalapeños that comes with beans, rice, pico, sour cream and guacamole for $17.95! It's a large portion I ate it over two meals. And this style of fajitas is on point! This last time I tried the jalapeño guacamole and it was okay because there were too more jalapeños than there were guacamole. I recommend the regular guacamole because it's tasty! Overall highly recommend.

Krystle V.

Yelp
We feel in love with this place. Pretty good for the local area in Malden. A lot of flavor. Wish they had Mexican cokes. Overall by far best Mexican food around in the Boston area.

Iris S.

Yelp
For Memorial Day brunch, we visited this small place for the first time. We ordered a passion fruit and a soursop juice made fresh that morning with the pulp of the fruits. Delicious! For appetizer we shared a plate of Salvadorean Chicharron, about 8 pieces of fried pork accompanied with a few slices of tomato and cucumber and a little cup of red and creamed sauce.Everything was fresh and really good. We brought half of it home as we wanted to be able to eat the main dish, quesadilla for me, and enchiladas for my husband. I think I never had a better quesadilla. I ate half of it and brought the rest home. My hubby ate all his enchilada and loved it. The enchilada came w refried beans and rice, pico de gallo and guacamole. He ate the 3 enchiladas but left the rest as it is a lot of food. I tried the rice and beans and they were good. I tried the guacamole and found it a little stale. Angelica, our waitress apologized profusely and brought a recently prepared guacamole, the one the menu lists as a side. It was fantastic. Angelica was the best! We will be back to try the pupusas and many of the other tempting delicacies on the menu.

Krista R.

Yelp
Get the pupussas!! Great quesadillas, tacos, and salsas. Friendly service, fantastic prices. Small space that seemed to do a lot of takeout.

Angelica M.

Yelp
Stopped here for lunch. Ordered the Birria while my brother got a steak burrito. Both were sooooo good, but the birria was top notch. Would def come back to eat again. The outside eating area was super cute as well. Was not expecting it to be this good as I'm from south texas ( bordering Mexico) but I was definitely not disappointed. It was actually the best tasting birria I've had so far!

Kalif M.

Yelp
My husband and I eat here often. The food is delicious and Joel the owner/manager really cares about his restaurant and his customers. Prices are very reasonable. Great soups, wonderful chimichangas, delicious meats and flavorful, generously portioned soups. We have tried many items on the menu and loved them all. The restaurant recently got a liquor license and the drinks are great. I loved my sangria! My only criticism..wish their salsa was chunkier It is everything you would expect a neighborhood restaurant to be. Service is friendly, but can sometimes be slow....so watch the Latino soap opera on the screen (no sound) and try to figure out what is going on while you wait!

Nora G.

Yelp
I had seen this place when looking for Mexican food near Malden and the reviews really caught my eye. So we decided to check it out for lunch one day. Great little spot. The staff was warm and friendly. We started with complementary chips and salsa and we ordered a pupusa which was warm and delicious! Then we ordered our main dishes, my husband got the molé chicken dish and I got chicken enchiladas. Everything was fantastic and I can't wait to come back! You definitely should check it out!

JM L.

Yelp
I've been wanting to try this place since it opened. We finally went for lunch, and it did not disappoint. It's a nice, small family owned restaurant. The server was attentive and the food was fresh and delicious. My husband liked it so much we did take out the following night. I don't write a lot of reviews but this place is a must try.

Ariana H.

Yelp
They have both dine-in and takeout. The staff was super nice. The food was amazingly. Please go and support this business especially during this time.

Johnson M.

Yelp
First time coming here for tacos and it was great! I got the Birria tacos it's not on the menu and had it to go. Honestly, it was super amazing. The taste was good, flavor was great, and the crunch . One of my favorite taco spots thus far in Mass.

Olivia C.

Yelp
Great local spot for delicious affordable food. Horchata was excellent and paired well with the dishes. You can get a small for $4 or large for $7.50. Also got yuca fritas, which came with fried pork. Also got a fajita quesadilla and pollo mole. Both came with a side of rice, guac, refried beans, sour cream, and salsa. Total cost was around $51. As far as COVID precautions, they have sanitizer bottles at all the tables. Small-ish place with room for maybe around 4 tables for 2-4 people each. Street parking is available right in front of the store, which is also maybe 10 min walk from Malden Station if you take public transit.

Zarin B.

Yelp
The food here is sooooooooo good!!!! I called for takeout and ordered like 6 things on the menu and not a single thing disappointed. Very good value for the $ too, would highly recommend. One of my new favorite restaurants in the area for sure!

Erica J.

Yelp
I stopped in while I was in the area and turned to trusty yelpers to guide me to the best pupusas and this is the place hands down. The best loroco flower pupusas I've ever had...

Eva H.

Yelp
Delightful little neighborhood gem, kicking myself for not trying it sooner. Friendly services and delicious food. This place fills my void for pupusas and other latin food. The portions for the plates were big and I had to split it into 2-3 meals. Definitely will be back for more :)

Adam S.

Yelp
This place is a great addition to the Malden food scene. It's super clean and the people running it are very friendly and helpful. Ordered a pork and cheese popusa to start. Came out nice and hot and delicious. The side of slaw was a great counter point. Then I had a chicken burrito. Also really good. Was finished on the grill so it had great grill marks and stood up well while eating it. I will most certainly be back for more. Side note, if you dine in expect to wait a bit as it was only a two person operation (at least when I went on a Friday night). Only four tables in the joint. They seemed to do a huge takeout business because the delivery driver was in and out the entire time getting orders.

Dan W.

Yelp
The reviews do not lie: this place is the real deal. Outdoor and indoor seating available. The drink menu includes beer and cocktails, although the beer selection is tiny. For an appetizer, I got pastalitos (chicken and a spinach stuffed version) and would highly recommend the chicken over the spinach (too much cheese in the spinach kind). For an entree, I had the chicken tacos, and they were excellent. They tasted more homemade and less processed. The ingredients were thoughtful and well-applied. They even heat the wrap before creating a burrito... usually, you'd get a room temperature wrap at other restaurants, which might save them time but sacrifices quality. I hope they keep their outdoor seating all winter long because the inside is small.

Steven G.

Yelp
Horrible food tonight everything came cold. On top of it delivery was almost 2 hours just not happy with the food at all not enjoyable. So if u have a long work day and want a good meal and relaxation don't bother here.

Erika O.

Yelp
We checked out this place this past weekend and are really happy to have this addition to the neighborhood. So excited that they have agua frescas. The maracuya and tamarind drinks are awesome. We also love the horchata. I ordered the carne asada and I was amazed at how tender the meat was. The Desayuno Mexsal is so good! So much food! They also have great summer specials going on right now. We tried out their dollar taco special. The barbacoa is definitely our favorite.

Kelly H.

Yelp
I have been wanting to try this place for a while. My father was hinting around to try it. I decided to order it. I ordered a bunch of food. I got the quesadillas, enchiladas, steak burrito and tried the papusa. We have leftovers for tomorrow. Will definitely be returning in the future.

Fabiola V.

Yelp
Finally found a local spot w/Birria tacos! Just wish the hot sauce for the dipping sauce was more spicy

Professor P.

Yelp
This place is great. Any time I went before COVID lockdown, the staff were soooo incredibly friendly. One time I got a pork quesadilla here and let me tell you it was truly one of the best things I have ever eaten in my life...Also the cebada/pink horchata? I didn't know what to expect but I loved it AND it was pretty. AND their regular horchata is also really good. The pupusas are a favorite among my friends too. I can't remember everything I've tried here but I can tell you they were all tasty. I promise you you'll like this place. There's so many options and everything is delicious and this is seriously one of the best staff ever and now that I'm on here I'm seeing that they have desserts too?? Authentic, fair priced, large meals and 10/10 taste - please order from here they deserve your business.

Olga S.

Yelp
To be completely honest this rating is based off how bad the service is at this place. My boyfriend and I walked in. No one was there, the lady saw me walk inside and she went back to the kitchen not giving a greeting what so ever. She came back 10 minutes later. They have some menus in the front counter so we grabbed those or else we would have been sitting there waiting. She comes out and just stares at us, we initiate in what we want. We couldn't find the Birria tacos in the menu. So we asked if they have them. She gave a simple "yes" response. We had to of coarse ask how many and if it came with the soup on the side. We ordered that and pupusas. The birria tacos in my opinion we're alright. I've had better. The pupusas were good, but not good enough to have to deal with their horrible attitude. As we waited another lady came. We thought maybe we will have better service, we were wrong she was slightly worse. Horrible attitude, ignored us, did the bare minimum.

Paolo P.

Yelp
Been looking for a place close to my house with big portions and priced reasonably. This is the place, tried the fajitas and a couple of other stuff and everything was delicious. Definitely recommend it.

Marco M.

Yelp
This cozy little place has amazing food and excellent service. We had the chicken Milanese and the steak, both dishes were really good. We are definitely coming back.... highly recommended..

Carlos G.

Yelp
The best place all around. Great food. Joel is the best patron! He's always friendly. Food is excellent. Love coming to this place for good pupusas. Everything is good and authentic style!

Brett H.

Yelp
This place is amazing! The food was fantastic - shrimp and pork tacos. Hot sauce wasn't too spicy and had great flavor. I ordered online and arrived too early - they gave me chips and salsa while I waited!! You could tell everything from the tacos to the rice& beans was so fresh - I work around Boston a lot and this is my new go to for Mexican food.

Rebecca M.

Yelp
This food is ah-mazing... just ordered on Uber Eats, and we are really loving the torta, plentiful portions, taquitos! So good- we will order here again!

Jill T.

Yelp
We love El Mexsal! The food is fresh and tasty and the service is great. This has become our go-to take out spot. We've eaten inside the restaurant, too, and Joel and his employees have gone above and beyond to make sure we had a great experience. The ceviche is delicious and one of my favorite items on the menu- loaded with shrimp. The fajitas come with tons of food and the flavors are on point. Times are hard on restaurants during COVID and this is one of those places that deserves all the support.

Scott M.

Yelp
Amazing food. Best Latin food delivery in the area by far. Super fresh and authentic food. 5/5 will order again.

Abbey H.

Yelp
The food was amazing and the people working were super friendly! The portions were perfect and I will order again. Thank you for being open during covid19!

Jose R.

Yelp
Finally I had the chance to try this place and it's AWESOME. Real authentic latin food. Great flavor. Good quantity for the price. I'm glad they are still open during this difficult circumstances. I tipped them extra. Keep going! My new favorite place to eat homemade food!!! Looking forward to try more dishes of their menu.

Shannon W.

Yelp
Every time my husband and I order froM here it is delicious. Consistently good. After the like 10th time I said, now I need to write a yelp review. Best Burritos.

Amanda W.

Yelp
I ordered takeout today and it was delicious. They're brand new. They have a nice area where people can sit down and eat. I ordered the steak tacos, papusas and shrimp chimichanga. It was all very good. Since moving back to the Boston area after being in DC, I've found it difficult to find good Mexican food that doesn't taste like fast food and this place was great!

Sashae W.

Yelp
My roommates and I have visited mexsal many times since moving to malden. The food is delicious! Authentic food had been something we were looking for and thankfully found it here. The ranchero salad is typically our go to. Also We have been loving the tacos, PupUsas and his tostones are to die for!! HUGE portions here. Friendly service. 10/10 recommend!!

Andy B.

Yelp
Please for the love of the quesadilla gods may this place survive. Since ive lived in Malden this is the best mex around...parking sucks so use a delivery service