El Paisa Taqueria

Would give it a 1 star based on service but will be judging it solely on the food we ate. We are on a road trip from Houston TX do Denver. We’re on the way back and had been craving Mexican food since we left Houston 7 days ago. We stopped here based on the reviews and where hopefully that we were going to get some great food. Unfortunately, the Mexican food here is average at best and it’s a little sad that the locals think this is excellent Mexican food. It’s not bad food, but it’s not something that I would recommend if you’re wanting to eat good Mexican food. The waters we ordered didn’t taste fresh as we were told they were and tasted like they were made from powder. All of our tacos, the tortillas were not warm and were on the colder / room temperature side. They probably do this to avoid the tortillas from breaking when folding them over, however, they still break because they’re cold. Outside of the food the service was very poor. Maybe the workers were having an off night but we were given an attitude when ordering and getting our food. They weren’t rude or nasty just sort of seemed bothered by being at work. The only upside from our food was the salsas and the refried beans. The refried beans were so good we decided to order a bean burrito. The establishment itself is okay it’s definitely not a fancy place but it’s clean and taken care of. It was quiet when we went on a Friday night and it seems like a spot where you could have a conversation over food if that’s what you’re after. Unfortunately this is not a place I can recommend unless you’re in dire need of food and have nowhere else to eat.

Delicious and quick to order street food. Really like the beef tongue taco and other interesting food options. Note: cash only. The food is good and cheap. Takeouts style.

Barbacoa Taco Tender, slow-cooked beef cheekwith rich, smoky flavor. Juicy and deeply savory – a classic favorite! Lengua Taco Made with beef tongue – incredibly soft and buttery when cooked well. Mild taste, melts in your mouth. recommend it! Steak Taco Grilled, seasoned beef strips – hearty and flavorful. Often served with onions, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. A solid choice! Carnitas Taco👍 Slow-braised pork, crispy on the outside and tender inside. Sweet, salty, and full of depth – so satisfying! Horchata A sweet, creamy rice-cinnamon drink. Refreshing, slightly gritty texture, and perfect for balancing spicy tacos

First of all I had to repeat the order three times and they still got it wrong. I wanted 2- tacos pastor and one gordita pastor mais. They added a torta that I didn't order and they didn't correct the order. Tacos were real greasy and tasteless. The gordita pastor was not cooked properly and falling apart. Not a good experience. $20 and greasy fingers. Never again 😞

I ordered the Al Pastor tacos with a side of beans and rice! The pastor was very delicious and tasted freshly cooked. Not the best Mexican food I’ve ever had but certainly not the worst. The red and green chile were also delicious but were packaged in a little plastic baggie that was hard to open. Overall a very no-frills you get what you pay for type establishment. Cash only. You need to park at a gas station across the street since the road to the restaurant is blocked off by construction.

PROS: the food is on point, it was hot, fresh, and flavorful. The prices are reasonable. There’s plenty of parking. The service was great. It’s a no-frills Mexican joint and all the people there were Mexican so that’s a good sign. CONS: cash only, hard to access the parking lot in part due to roadwork, the bathroom was out of order.

One of my favorite places to eat in America! The best horchata i've ever had, I always get the 32 oz and it isn't enough. I could drink a gallon of it. and the tacos are so good! and affordable!

If you want real Mexican tacos, aquas frescas (fruit drinks), tortas (sandwiches) this is the place. It’s a hole in the wall with good food. Prices are reasonable and the sitting area has picnic tables and small tables. You order at the window and wait for your number to be called. They only take cash. Plenty of parking. I recommend the tongue tacos and the pina and horchata drinks. Tacos come with great salsas. 😋 Very casual.

The seating is outside in a patio area and the ordering is at the window in the patio. As off this writing the parking and entrance is from the back because the street in front is being completely redone. Look for large signs down the side street pointing to the restaurant. Truly traditional Mexican food. Mexican coke, menudo, shrimp cocktail and real gorditas. You order in Spanish or English and the food is delicious. Our food came out quickly and just what we ordered. The Gordita with ground beef was perfect. Too often they are doughy. This was cooked completely and then the beef was added, all I had to do was enjoy! We also had carne asada soft tacos. They tasted great, with onion and cilantro. This isn't a sit down inside restaurant. It is more like an outdoor market you might see in another country. But you can experience it right here in Albuquerque. Lucky you. I hope to see you there on my next visit.

Horrible service!! The worst we've ever experience here despite being regulars for almost 15 years. We did a call in about 15-20 minutes before arriving. Upon arrival and waiting in the pick up line which was another almost 10 minutes to only be told that my order has not been started yet and if I still wanted it... Not to mention while I was waiting in the pick up as a regular she still didn't put my order in and kept taking walk ups for that almost 10 minutes. After waiting I asked how long to only be told another 10-15.

My family and I are passing through ABQ. I found this place on Yelp so we decided to stop by this local gem and it did not disappoint!! We currently live in San Diego and always hear about how they have the best Mexican food and tacos, El Paisa is putting every Mexican/Taco joint there to shame!! Hands down the BEST carne tacos and rice & beans I've ever had! My husband had the carnitas tacos and shared a carne quesadilla with our daughter! They both cleaned their plates. The homemade salsas where chefs kiss! Perfect size portions esp for the price! The service was amazing and the restaurant was clean and had a nice mom and pop vibe!! If you're a local and haven't ate here, what are you waiting on? If you're visiting ABQ believe the hype and let your tastebuds live a little!! Food was so good we didn't even get to take pics lol I told my husband I'd move here just to be able to eat here regularly

The tacos are amazing!!!! It's cash only, so make sure you have some cash with you to enjoy the great food. The price is very cheap tho, $2.5 for a taco. Their lengua is very tender and juicy, the buche is absolutely flavorful!! The sauce was also very good. They have a large indoor seating area and the wait is short on Saturday evening.

This Missouri boy found a GEM!. The carne asada burrito weighed a pound and was fantastic. Sauce choices are good as well.

You never know where I'm going to show up! This time, I'm on the chase for horchatas ;-). But... if you know me, I'm one for all things non-traditional! This one was at #elpaisataqueria in ABQ and definitely will have to come back here and try their burritos! It's essentially a walk-up window with picnic table benches to sit at. I chose banana... and it was absolutely delicious! Best part? It's only $3 for a large ;-) talk about a nice way to get in the potassium ... #gourmetrecovery #horchata #potassiumbomb

True Mexican culinary heaven! I am thrilled to stumble across El Paisa. This is truly a hole-in-the-wall that takes care of every detail in preparing Mexican food. I had a bit of trouble ordering food. Thankfully, one of the staffs was able to help with translation. I was recommended to try their shrimp soup, as their menudo (i.e. tripe soup) was out. That didn't disappoint! The soup has delicious shrimp flavors, with plenty of shrimps, carrots and celery. It comes with delicious crispy bread. The ambience is casual. Most of its customers are Mexicans. It really speaks to the authenticity of their food. I can't wait to come back to try other items on the menu when I am in the area!

Cash only! Hands down the best meal we had in New Mexico. It is the definition of a hole in the wall, but the food was amazing. They have a variety of burritos, gorditas, tacos and menudo only on Saturday and Sunday. We ordered five different tacos and they were all good. The menudo was so amazing and filled with lots of organs I couldn't name. The horchata was good too and comes in a giant cup. I suggest ordering more than you think you'll eat. It's so cheap! I would have ordered more, but didn't want to wait another 15 min for food. El Paisa has a steady line of customers and it takes a while to get your order. Definately appeals to the working class, but everyone needs to look past the ambiance nd come here.

On the road looking for breakfast and found this hole-in-the-wall. Lots of construction in the area so it's a little difficult, but not impossible to get to. Small parking lot available. Ordered a taco & menudo(served sat/sun only) but sold out. Let's do the Carne Asada Burrito with a soda & Mole Burrito and Horchata for the better half. Cash only - but we were prepared. A brief wait and the order was ready. Looks good, salsa delivered in baggies so we had to get that opened. Burritos were huge, lots of carne asada & a little bit of beans. Delicious & tender beef. The Mole Burrito was made with shredded beef - different because we're used to chicken. Regardless, all mole nothing else. Tender, flavorful and plenty. My wife wasn't a fan of the horchata. It was a texture thing, she didn't like the rice pulp. Prices are reasonable especially for the amount of food served - $20 for both of us. This one is high up on our return visit list. If you want great Mexican food, brave to construction and give these guys a shot.

Not sure what the other reviews are all about here. This place, to me, was average. Had 3 tacos: carne asada, chicken and al pastor and a carne asada sopes. It was all painfully average, all 3 meats were dry and lacked any real depth of flavor. Rice and beans were okay and the chips were just meh. The place is affordable and the service was good. I'm just visiting for work, would I go back? No probably not there are better places in ABQ for Mexican food.

I have come to this taco place for over 20 years and I love it here. The ladies that work here always really sweet. I just had the worst experience. I went in the woman who was taking my order asked me how many tacos I wanted I said oh shoot, I realized You only take cash and I was gonna go next-door and get cash at the gas station and then she demanded how many tacos I wanted and I said I'm not sure yet. I'm trying to figure out what I want and I'm looking at then you she's like no I want to know how many tacos you want for each of the people and I said I don't know yet. I'm trying to figure that out. She then went on to scream at me and tell me that she's not serving me tacos because I came off really strong and I said look I just don't know how many tacos I want I came in, my car is overheating. I just came to tacos while my car is cooling down and I wasn't expecting to be treated so horribly. She then told me I was coming off really strong. She was jumping up and down and yelling at me in the back and I said no no you don't understand. I'm not actually upset. I just don't know how many tacos I want please just let me look at the menu for a moment and she said you know what we don't need your business. You get the f**** out of here. I will never come back here again. I'm really sad to say this woman ruined my day. I have been going to this place for years and I will never go back. Guess what I'll pay you for it. You should fire that lady that was so rude! Because next-door is another place where I walked right over and got treated really kindly and got my tacos. There's 1 million places in South Valley to get tacos. You can't be rude, dear loyal customers and expect to have them come back. In case you are concerned about your employee and wish to know who it was. It was whoever was working the front window at approximately 2 PM on Sunday, July 7. I really hope that this person does not continue to work there because I will not come back while she's there once I find out she is no longer there. I will be happy to come back in and continue to buy tacos for the rest of my life as I have done so far with Loyalty.

Great food. Cash only tho. Service was great they just ring you up n u take it to ur table. In door seating and outdoor seating

The horchata was really good, my torta was filling but it was a bit soggy, tacos were a bit oily, salsa is good and spicy but not too spicy so anyone can have it, service was nice and our food was done nice and quickly, a lot of seating, don't let the neighborhood scare you, give it a try:)

CASH ONLY!!! This place is quietly tucked away from the main city but once you find out about it, this has to end up on your list of frequent flyer miles destination. You walk in, make your selection and collect a ticket number (like a raffle ticket) that will be announced loud and clear in English and Spanish from the window. All of their tacos are super tasty, it's a self serve style place, but foot traffic moves quickly. The salsas are also made very fresh and have the range from mild to spicy for all taste profiles. The best is their price point, really hard to beat value for money... excellent! Remember CASH ONLY..!!!

i thoroughly enjoyed my barbacoa burrito the woman at the register was cool the people there seemed like they all come there and i would come back for sure

El Paisa is a no-frills Mexican restaurant that serves up legit Mexican food at cheap prices. The interior features lots of tables however there's no AC. It's bearable but on an extremely hot day I'd recommend taking your food to go. They wrap your tacos in tin foil and give you a plastic bag to carry it in-- it's legit I'm telling you. Note that it's cash only. All the tacos are $1.75! My favorite was the Buche taco. TLDR: Pull through if you're looking for a no-frills place to get good tacos.

The best carne asada I have ever had. Seasoned to perfection. I go with the quesadillas and they are great tasting and filling. Great price point on their food. Staff is great. They all are friendly and help you with the menu. Seating inside and outside are clean. Overall great food

Top favorite place for Mexican food! I moved here from Colorado & didn't know what to expect Mexican food wise but this place hits the spot! It is cash only BUT the amount of food you get for the price is unbeatable.

My review from years ago somehow no longer exists. I come here all the time with friends and visitors. It's a must. Some of the best tacos in the state. I love the salsas too.

This little hole in the wall is absolutely delicious!! I love albondigas, one of my favorite soups - the meatballs were tender and flavorful, the sliced potatoes and carrots al dente and a added surprise, chipotle peppers were in the soup. The Carnitas taco was very tender and tasty. The shredded beef potato refried bean burrito was spicy and delicious. Fast friendly service.

Best Carne asada tacos hands down. The options for salsa are also great, the service has always been pretty fast considering how busy they usually are. Always recommend el paisa.

Overall: El Paisa serves up good Mexican food for a low price. Cash only. Food: 4.5 Carne Asada Quesadilla (Single): This large quesadilla came with guacamole and refried beans. The carne asada had a delicious crispy smokey char. It isn't super cheesy but that's how I like it. The guacamole was a little too acidic for my taste though. Service: 5 Order at the counter and wait for your number to be called. It does take about 10 minutes to get your food. Ambiance: 3 El Paisa looks exactly like the taco shops in Mexico. It's clean though but does not seem to have AC.

Do not misinterpret the 5 stars as a high end, expensive place. This is a local Mexican joint where locals eat. Get your food to go unless you want to sit and eat at a picnic table. The food is plentiful and authentic. And really reasonable. Order at the window, pay and wait for your number. This place knows what they are doing with food.

Food took awhile but it was good! Got a carnitas torta, turkey tail torta, picadillo burrito, Al pastor taco, lengua taco, Carne asada taco & chicken taco! Everyone loved their food! I'll be back to try more items. Oh their sandia Agua Fresca is good too!!

Where to begin... Price is right! I ordered 6 tacos... the meats tasted old, the wait it not worth the taste. Services was amazing, good people. I can't say to much about the place. Im just trying out this place for the best food. Try it! Just cuz i didn't like it, does not me you won't! The place is authentic! There are tables for dine in. Family oriented.

Cheap. Simple. Delicious. Reminds me of the great Mexican hole in the walls in San Diego.

I'm visiting from Kansas City, and I saw this place had good reviews so I decided to check it out, each taco was 1.75 which is what their normally are. When I got my tacos I asked for 3 sauces and they said I could only get 2 and if I wanted more I'd get charged, with that being said they also charged me extra for the limes and cilantro. The tacos only had one tortilla which made me confused because tacos come with 2. The meat didn't have a pastor flavor to them and they had a refrigerated taste, there was also more fat than the actual meat.

This place might be known for their tacos, but their caldo de pescado is also amazing. The soup is super rich, thick and savory, and they do not skimp at all with the fish. The soup comes with a choice of bread, corn tortillas or flour tortillas. I got the corn tortillas, which paired perfectly either to wrap a piece of fish and salsa, or dipped in the soup. Truly a gem of a hole-in-the-wall restaurant.

Cash only! I don't normally carry much cash, so we weren't able to sample as much as we might have, but the tacos we had were delicious.

Yumm... I am so happy that I randomly found this place! First of all everyone in here was so friendly and helpful! It really felt like you were eating at someone's home. Everything tasted great! I got their tacos and they were so flavorful and good! I really liked their drinks. Also, the prices of everything was so affordable. I would go back if I am in this area!

Following in line with the rest. Great, authentic, no frills tacos. Cash only. English speaker so that's not a issue ordering. The tacos were not greasy, not overstuffed, onion/cilantro. Horchata wasn't the best i've had. Very clean, lots of parking, single gender bathrooms.

Our food came out fast and we tried each taco and they were all the best ive had. No downsides. The aguas are great too and its very cheap

Wow! The food here is amazing! We've ordered a few things in the past, but I keep coming back to the chicken molé burrito. Hard to find molé, much less fantastic molé. The burritos here are filling and delicious. The staff are nice and very appreciative of compliments. We will continue to stop whenever we are in Albuquerque. If I knew it would freeze well I'd bring some home with us.

Great albondigas soup. Needed more veg in the soup but excellent meatballs and flavorful broth. The soup temperature was so hot, I took it to go so it could cool off. The soup was much better after cooling. I tore up the flour tortilla and added to soup. Very tasty.

Ordered my food by phone .. in SPANISH.. I sent my white gf. they treated her horribly.. SO RUDE TO HER.. they gave her the worst attitude. we always go there together NOT ONCE. Have they ever been so rude. They even tried to rob her money by not giving her the correct change.. I've been going there since 7yrs.. this is the LAST time I will EVER go. VERY RACIST PLACE FOR WHITES. this place has gone down hill.

One place where you can eat with no flies. Very mom and pop restaurant. And food is so delicious!

One of the best burrito spots in ABQ. Just wished it wasn't cash only so I didn't hafta hit up the ATM before going here.

Best place to get carne asada tacos in my opinion! And the salsas are so tasty and perfectly spicy! The service has always been friendly. This place is very welcoming and comfortable enough to sit down and eat tacos! They have so many food options and the taste never disappoints.

Hate that it's cash only BUT these were the top tacos that I had throughout my Roadtrip. On 4th of July I decided to go get some tacos from here and go see the fireworks at the top of the mountain. I got 3 carne asadas and a jugo natural de limón *chefs kiss*. Highly recommend checking this place out

We have been coming here for years-everything is delicious! Cash only and they have seating if you want to stay. Salsa is hot!! We especially recommend any of the gorditas (corn)- carnitas, carne asada, chile relleno, pilladillo, mole- all incredible. Tacos and burritos are likewise incredible!

Came here for some late night tacos and I was impressed. Food was delicious, especially for the price. $1.75 per taco is hard to beat. My favorite was the carnitas / al pastor and I tried all the meats. I would come back for the burrito. Ordering was easy but there was a wait. Highly suggest you preorder if you're in a rush.

Yummy tacos! The pastor was my favorite with the asada coming in second. Excellent seasoning and authentic street tacos. Nice seating area too

$1.50 street tacos? Yes. Please. We popped in around 3PM and were surprised by how packed the place was. They have the line moving constantly, so it wasn't too much of a wait to order. It was a little frustrating that it took us three tries to figure out what taco meats they still had as they had run out of quite a few of them. However, the carne asada street tacos have got to be some of the best steak tacos I've ever had. The steak was beautifully marinated and cooked, pairing absolutely amazingly with the cilantro, onions, limes and green salsa. The carnitas were equally delicious, so I was very satisfied with I ended up ordering. They were out of the barbacoa and lengua, so I'm planning on coming back earlier to try those! There was about a 20 minute wait for tacos, which wasn't awful, but be warned their indoor dining area has no AC, so it did get pretty warm in there. Also, don't forget the cash!

Great prices and portions. Love the salsa baggies. Would recommend to anyone visiting the area.

If I could give 0 stars I would. Ordered a few tacos and a torta and it took almost 30 min to come out. Food wasn't even hot or edible. The carne asada tacos had massive tough chunks of meat with fat still on them. Pretty sure it wasn't beef either. More like road kill. Torta bread was disintegrating from how old and stale it was. Plain bland low quality food. On the way out we saw a cucaracha by the door. Run far away!

El paisa isn't the same compared to 20 years ago; carne asada and el pastor was super tough and dry. Price definitely has gone wayyy up; but the quality of the food has gone wayyy down. Service was acceptable; nothing to brag about. No ambiance at all, so don't take your date there. Better place down the street, I hate to see a old stable like el paisa ending up like this.

DO NOT trust the reviews that talk so good about this place, I'm 100% sure this is not authentic Mexican, and I can say that because I'm from Mexico. I asked for campechanos which is beef and chorizo with melted cheese, it's a staple in Mexican tacos and they didn't even know what that is. So I eventually decided to go with Al pastor and buche.... Got my tacos (total of 6) and the buche looked disgusting (sorry) but I'm a taco lover so I decided to eat at least one. They are NOT even close to real buche, didn't even eat the second one. Moved on to Al pastor, the meat didn't have good flavor some of it was overcooked and hard and dry, I was really hungry so I just sucked it up and ate 3/4 Al pastor I had ordered. Didn't even touch the last one, that's IF you call that at taco (picture). Bottom line...if you're really, really in the mood for tacos definitely try something else because I promise you they WILL disappoint. And lastly the "Lime" water is just coolaid mix type. Not fresh squeezed lime.

Horchata: 5/5 Would chata again. Carnitas Tacos: 3/5 Porky and greasy. Not my thing. Tacos Al Pastor: 5/5 Clean tasting, good flavor. Service: 3/5 This is is the kind of place where people yell at you. Cleanliness: 1/5 Flies, so many flies. Sticky tables. Cash only. So yeah, for the price? A great bargain. But it is a bargain, and comes with some downsides, mainly the experience of ordering and eating at the restaurant. Would suggest takeaway over dine-in, and it would be even better if they delivered.

This is one of my favorite tacos shops . Every time we come here everything is on point and done perfect . Simple butdelicious.

By far some of the best Barbacoa I've consumed. Mr Taco in Brownsville has a slight lead, but not by much! The meat flavor is delicious and the texture is almost creamy (in a good way). I purposely chose this area for my morning MTB ride just so I had an excuse to stop in. If you're on the fence about where to get authentic street style tacos....this is the place.