El Rey Taqueria

SO GOOD! If you’re wanting some amazing Cuban or Mexican food, I highly recommend this place for some affordable, delicious eats in the Houston Heights area. Our table got the beef fajita tacos, beef and chicken empanadas, burrito, and rice plate with meat of choice, beans, plantains/yucca fries, and rice. Everything was flavorful and delicious, at a great price! I especially recommend the beef empanadas, rice plate, and for sure trying the plantains and yucca fries. Staff was very helpful, and our food came out quick!

4 stars for a 4 star experience. The place is a little small. Not a lot of tables inside. It was busy at lunch time so tables were scarce. You order at a counter but yet they expect a tip. Why? You have to come get your own food and own drink. The food is okay. I tried several tacos. They were good but not great. They just lacked really good flavor that I get at my favorite taqueria. I'd come back but I wouldn't drive to it from my home which is 20 plus miles away.

Update! I mentioned what I posted below while still here. I didn't ask for anything, I just wanted to let them know. The manager comped the sliders before I left. That is how you run a restaurant! I've eaten here plenty of times over plenty of years but the New Ropa Viejo sliders are a total rip off. $12 for what is essentially a 6" sandwich cut into thirds. Charge less or include more. This felt like a complete rip off compared to everything else on the menu.

One of my favorite drive through to make dinner happen for the family! Great vegetarian menu, the Veggie Torta... OMG delicious!!!! The yucca frita and cilantro garlic dressing are amazing! I often order plantain and beans so I can make tacos at home with some crema elsalvadoreña.

You can't beat the Taco Tuesday buy 2 get 1 free deal! Add to that the 5 visits equal $5 reward program and you can't go wrong!! The salmon tacos on corn tortillas with the delicious secret cilantro sauce are out of this world! Love, love them!!

during my first visit Elizabeth took my order and was informing me about yalls rewards program aswell as fan favorites on the menu! such a sweet cashier. not to mention the tap code to leave a review never seen anything like it! awesome place all around :)

Haven’t been here in a minute but it’s still as good as it ever was. I love the gotta Diablo and my partner always get the shredded chicken torta. The restaurant is always so clean and the employees always nice and helpful. I also love their chicken tortillas soup especially when I’m sick. A Houston tradition! ❤️

Great food every time. Try the Cuban tacos they will make you dance 💃they taste so good !! The fresh canolope water is refreshing!

Best quesadillas and it's not even close. Always great service. My boyfriend loves their Cuban style burrito. I order breakfast tacos from here almost everyday and it never disappoints!

So disappointed. I've been eating at El Rey's for years. And typically love their food. However when I spend $14 for a salad and they want to charge $2.71 for an extra dressing when the one they gave was nowhere near enough for the size of the salad. They have lost a long time customer. Once I opened the dressing it had the top third missing....... Ugh

Long time fan of El Rey but their service is just terrible. Every time I go drive thru, the order is wrong. LITERALLY EVERY TIME. It's so bad I stopped going but decided to give them a shot this past weekend. Guess what? They got it wrong again. I just asked for no beans on the tacos and pecan coffee. Instead I got beans and regular coffee. Not the end of the world but frustrating nonetheless. And honestly, while El Rey may have been one of the best in the area 15 years ago. Now they're not even close. Taco Joint, Tacos A Go Go and El Calle are just a few that have a better taco and more competent service.

A must stop any time I drive by! Rotisserie chicken tacos and plantains are the top food choices but there's not a single thing on the menu that's not amazing

High hopes. Heard a lot about these taquerias so was excited. Been a few times and meh 1st time, I ordered the fajitas platter - 1/2 chicken, 1/2 beef. Then when I went back, this platter was no longer available, only beef platter. Ok. So the first 2 times were ok. If I'm being honest, the 1st time was the best. The fajitas were perfect as the rice and salsas. The 2nd time was mediocre. The meat was less tender. They say the 3rd time is the charm BUT they didn't even give me any salsas. They just normally put it in the bag without me asking so how did I know that this time, I'd leave with zero salsa. Needless to say,no matter how delicious the beef was, the only joy I got was from the Roja viejas taco we ordered on the side. And the horchata. $30 worth of food and no salsa. Welp, I won't say I won't go back because it is a quick easy fix for dinner BUT I will make sure to ask for salsa every time even if it becomes annoying to them. Sorry, not sorry because I'm sitting here with salsa less fajita tacos.

I'm plenty fond of this place, and I'm a regular. The fish torta is excellent, if on occasion a bit heavy on the dressing. The tortilla soup is, if not the stuff of legend, at least a really solid local thing. Get it with one of the veggie tortas for a great option. The people are nice, and it's good fresh food.

Pretty good taco stand we often frequent after running errands in the area. Come to think of it, it's almost always been for breakfast. The breakfast tacos are very tasty, the drive through is super convenient. We always get our order piping hot and very fast, and off we go on our busy morning. It's a "little" pricey for the size, but good for the quality and convenience and the fact it's good food with speedy service (ie way better than fast food joints).

I've been going to El Rey for 15 years and recently over the past three years they have up'd their prices drastically. When you order tacos, there's barely any meat in the taco and if you get chips and queso to go, the container is like half filled. $7 for cheese. I can't stand this place.

Service was not consistent..my breakfast taco was half warm and I got food poisoning...not a normal experience I have had with the chain ..

Completely inept employees. Guy at the register seems half baked, can't hear or understand order, regardless of how many times you tell him. YOU must check your order bc the boneheads working here won't give you everything you paid for. Had to tell them several times on order, still got home to see they forgot 4 orders of plantains. So incompetent, it's almost intentional. Better luck at Sheppard location.

$13 nachos with no cheese. And they almost forgot to give me the other half of my order. Here goes another "customer centric home grown business" down the tube

I love this El Rey taqueria since they moved here. Best tacos around, better than all those joints off of Shepherd. Quality, go-to place for the breakfast tacos and best tacos for any other time. Especially love the Cubano Mojo pork, soooooo god. It's a big meal and you might get it to share, but when you open the box you WILL get greedy!!! The service is always on point and fast. Great Fast Food service and you get a home made meal from friendly, smiling folks. Thanks El Rey!!! Love me some El Rey!!!

Love the food, but hate their inability to get an order right. Regardless whether it is via drive thru or third-party delivery, something is ALWAYS wrong. Missing and wrong items in every order. Love their blueberry muffins, but they consistently replace with cranberry muffins which I don't like at all. Love their tortilla soup, but they only put it in the bag half of the time I order it. Love their shrimp salad, but every other order it shows up as salmon salad or chicken salad. If they spent a little more time checking the order for accurancy before sending, they would be great.

Outside of not offering coke products, this is my go to for breakfast tacos in the garden oaks area

El Rey is my go to for breakfast tacos whenever I'm in Houston! They're pretty efficient in the drive thru and I love their breakfast taco that has plantains! Also a solid place to grab coffee. I've never been there for lunch or dinner, but I can guarantee the breakfast is excellent.

One of my first stops when I come to HTx! Can't beat the breakfast burrito, and a latte to fill you up when you have a busy day ahead!

Nachos Mush, I did the drive thru & ended up with the bottom of the can beans, dry, cold and hard. A small glob of sour cream that ended up melted into the bottom of the container. Chips so mushy I don't see how they call them nachos, so soggy & disgusting. I was so Disappointed once I got home 3 miles away, I will stick to Taco Cabana, they know how to keep the chips crunchy.

This restaurant is incredible! Quite possibly the best food in town at an unbeatable price! My family and I eat here once a week sometimes twice! The service and staff is always polite, professional and friendly. Great variety and selection on the menu and food quality is always fantastic! I would 10/10 recommend this restaurant!

"Bean" and cheese tacos somehow took 5 minutes to make and there were almost no beans on them. Incredibly disappointed. Used to love this place. Won't be back. This is not the first time it's been this poor.

The ceviche good (check). When asked if it was Tilapia, I was told No (wrong). The Cuban sandwich good (check) BUT it ain't Miami good. The service (other than not understanding my questions about the menu) were friendly. I couldn't give 5 stars and really would give 3.5 because I asked for extra mustard and extra pickles. To which I was told, "We already put a lot on there." DENIED! Are you kidding me? The least expensive condiment for a restaurant and they can't spare any extra?! My friend marched back to counter (to shut me up likely) and demanded more mustard. However, They did not give extra pickles. Guess their motto ain't, "Have it your way."! Guess morale of this review, if you need extra, bring it yourself and enjoy the rest!

The rice and beans were good enough. Worst shrimp tacos I've ever had. Tacos were all over the place in the plate as if they threw it together. They lied about their prices and the attitude is you need them. No. Sorry. There are plenty of places that have better rice.

We love the quest and the tortilla soup. We get them every time. Ice tea is not good however. It's nice and dark but has a flavor to it that's not clear what it is but it is not good. Is it trying to be flavored tea? If so I want to know as I only like regular brewed tea.

The chicken tacos are juicy and full of flavor! That iced mulata is exactly what I've been searching for and exceeds all the "horchata coffees" I've tried at several places. End it with some tres leches. Perfection.

Unfortunately when I ordered thru Yelp, was charged, and never received my food...the Manager at El Rey said "We have nothing to do with Yelp, you have been scammed, we cannot refund the money you were charged thru Yelp Delivery.".

I am not normally one who frequents places close to their closing time but the Heights closes up early so our choices are slim. We arrive 10-12 minutes prior to closing time and the screens were already shut off and it was made known they weren't interested in taking orders. Both of my chicken tacos were under cooked and not edible according to the color.

This was my first visit to their new location. I honestly had no idea they were such a coffee spot. I wish I'd know prior to ordering - the coffees looked great. Having said that, all previous visits to the old location were via the drive thru. This time, I went inside. Not the friendliest service ever. I felt like I was being stared down while trying to decide. In fact, it kind of bugs me to attempt to look at the menu board while someone is sighing in your general direction because they have to wait for you to pick out your own lunch. In fact, I try to find a certain distance from the counter to communicate that yes, I am in your vicinity, but I have not yet approached the counter to engage with you. It's right there with a cashier shoving a receipt at me before I can put up my card. The food here is really good. Finding plastic-wear is a challenge. I had nachos & a ropa vieja taco. The sizes are substantial, so you really get what you pay for. Just don't expect warm fuzzies from the staff here.

El Rey's Taqueria is one of the only places in this area where you can get authentic and Hearty food at the drive-thru window. Today I got the chicken kale salad, it was absolutely amazing healthy and satisfying. It's tossed with Cuban grilled chicken, cranberries, pistachios, finely shredded cabbage, and a beautiful house wine vinaigrette. You got to try it. When you come to El Rey's, they are fast and efficient. I have yet to be disappointed with everything that I've ordered from here. Another one of my favorites is the Cuban tacos and the fish tacos. Oh! And that lemonade is on point. A little sweet but it's definitely a treat. Don't change anything El Rey's Taqueria, you guys are doing amazing. :*D

I love El Rey and I always try to stop by when I'm in Houston. They changed locations since I last visited (over a year ago) and I do not like this location as much. The drive thru was very slow and the cafe cubano tasted differently. I couldn't put my finger on it, although, it might have been lacking sugar to make a really good espuma (foam). Fortunately, the Cuban plantain breakfast taco tasted the same. If you haven't tried it, you should make it a goal. I never thought of putting plantains in a breakfast taco before and the sweetness makes it so tasty. El Rey is a great stop for breakfast tacos.

The food quality and service has been going downhill. I'm not sure what happened to the place. Maybe under new management?? The service wasn't ever really great but at lease the food was good. Well let me tell you that over the past few months it's gotten worse. Today I ordered some fajita nachos at the drive through and the female voice on the other end responds by saying, "is that all?" I say no and ask for some quesadillas and again she responds, "is that all?" I can take the subpar service as long as the food is good but that wasn't the case today. As soon as I got home and went for the nachos I noticed that they were all soggy chips. Not one fresh, crispy chip in the box. The quesadillas box looked like it had been microwaved because it was warped. I will never return to this place unless I hear that food and service has improved

I fell in love with the El Rey Breakfast Burrito (egg, bacon, potato, refried beans & cheese) I got from the location that was on highway 6 near West. I recently called an order for a breakfast burrito at the location on 610 (233 North Loop W). when I walked in, my order was waiting for me. On another occasion, I went through the drive through for an order of rice and beans and had to wait a little longer than I was expecting to do.

The Cuban sandwich was okay, but just okay. For $8.50 plus tax, the sandwich seemed to be rudimentary and 'fast casual'. The meat was a bit too salty and it was made on what appeared to be baguette bread and not the heftier bread that is often used on torta sandwiches. Finally, it didn't come with any chips or side items; just the sandwich. The staff was great, no complaints about them. My main letdown was the price, what you got for it and the somewhat generic approach of the Cubano sandwich.

I used to go there regularly for the #46 cheese enchilada plate, including taking people there. Then they got new cash register software and increased the price of that plate to be the same as beef enchiladas. All other places charge less for cheese enchiladas and more for beef--makes sense. I love their cheese enchiladas, but I'm BOYCOTTING THEM until they re-program the register, especially since they didn't respond to my email, and I've made several calls (spaced-out by months) and no action has been taken.

Went to the drive thru and placed my order. I had to repeat my order 4 times because the person seem occupied with other conversations. When I got home the order was wrong, and items were missing. When I came to the store I feel like the manager was not sure what he could do to recover my business. I am someone that has been to this location a lot for years, but it seems like the service is going down.

Who cuts a burrito in half ? Dumbest thing ever. Opened my 10$ burrito only to have it fall out everywhere. Should've just put it in a bowl and threw the tortilla on the side. Great food always when I come but this cut burrito is beyond dumb. Complete mess everywhere. I know the people don't take this into account but I actually like to enjoy the food I spend good money on to help keep your place in business. To bad your employees don't have respect for your business. Note to anyone in the future ask for your burrito not to be cut in half.

Do not trust this location. We used to frequent this location until they continued to mess up EVERY SINGLE ORDER of ours. From "forgetting" the main components (the meat) of the tacos to burritos to just forgetting multiple items in the order. To top it all off their solution is to ask you to drive back to their location and bring your food back so they can see if you're telling the truth. Had this happen once, fine. I acknowledge that there needs to be room for human error. But for this to happen 5, yes FIVE, times is ridiculous.

The food here is as great as any El Rey. The rice, beans, and plantains here are insanely good. Vegetarians can find a ton of great things to chow down on. Tortas here are soooo good, and they don't skimp. I love the steak and vegetarian ones. No matter what you do, get a side of plantains with your food. It's always my dessert. If you go through drive through, expect that the line will be long, and don't turn too wide or else your car will fall off the pavement!

After returning from a trip to the airport and surviving Harvey, we wanted something different to eat but couldn't quite figure out what we wanted. Dilemma. Our friends said their "go to fast food place" is El Rey! Since we'd never been, we decided to tag along. And, it was yummy! It hit the spot! I had three shrimp tacos, my friend had chicken tortilla soup, my husband had beef and chicken tacos, and our other friend has something cheesy (maybe an enchiladad). I couldn't tell. We all gobbled it up really quickly and felt happily full. Not stuffed and uncomfortable but full. It was a nice feeling. My mouth is filling with water as I re-imagine this casual yet yummy dining experience. Mmmmmm....tacos.

Five stars , but what happened to the taco salad , no longer has the taco shell bowl. That was my favorite, we need that back asap

Unfortunately this location is not as good as the Washington one. The tacos we had did not taste right.

Great environment. Friendly service. Food was great we had shrimp quesadillas, ropa vieja, king salmon. Everything was great, I love the beans and the plantains! Coffee was great!

Great customer service by Daniel through the drive-through he made ordering simple and easy and when they did not follow instructions on onions in my taco he quickly made sure they fix the mistake

We popped into El Rey more for convenience than intention, but I was certainly hopeful. Not sure if the location is new, but it is nice and looks new. I had the Pastor Torta and i was pretty much ready to give this place a meh rating. I mean it wasn't bad but nowhere near great. How ever my friend has the beef enchiladas after tasting those I was actually impressed. The sandwich didn't come with anything, but the enchiladas came with beans and rice. I liked the rice but the beans not so much. I'd give this place a second chance to try more of the menu. perhaps tacos are their thing.

This is one of my favorite places to go for fish tacos, shrimp tacos, salmon tacos on corn tortillas . Latinos don't eat seafood tacos on flour tortillas like gringos but hey what do they know about tacos.

I feel like this El Rey is one of the better two locations in the area when it comes to food quality. They are lacking in service for sure. I went and asked for one Cuban on flour one beef fajita on corn with onion cilantro and avocado. The cashier informed me that it was taco Tuesday and I could get a free taco so I asked for another beef made same way. Seems simple enough. Because I always double check my orders here, before I left the window I opened all 3 tacos to discover a Cuban on corn (didn't bother asking for a correction on that one), one beef with onion and cilantro (like I asked) and one beef with lettuce and tomato. I brought this to the attention of the cashier and he took the taco back and returned it to me. They had sprinkled onion and cilantro on top of the lettuce tomato. I then spelled it out - beef, onion, cilantro, avocado. The cashier rudely told me to go to the next window. When he brought the corrected order he handed it to me without a word and walked off like I had inconvenienced them. I wanted to tell him I'm sorry for making you correct the mistake you made. Haha! It's one thing to mess up and order. It's another to catch an attitude because I asked for a correction. I don't think I'll be back soon. You are supposed to give customers what they ask for just like we pay the full amount you ask for.

I probably come here too often but it's for a good reason! The vegan options here are absolutely amazing. I've been coming everyday for a Cuban Vegan Burrito and it's never been less than a 5 star rating! The food has been consistently perfect. The service is always outstanding as well! I've never had an issue with anyone here because everyone is so accommodating and friendly! I've also just recently tried their coffee for the first time and it was phenomenal! You wouldn't believe how of quality their lattes are! Their espresso shots are pulled fresh in front of you and they also have dairy free milk options as well! I have absolutely no complaints about this El Rey (N Loop @Yale)! Everything is perfect! 10/10 on everything including customer service, food quality, food quantity, coffee, vegan options! Everything is perfect!

Wow, just wow. We were so impressed by this fast food restaurant. We were concerned with how they would handle a large order during rush hour dinner time and I honestly have no idea how they did it, but we literally had our food within like 5 minutes of ordering. The food was fresh, hot and amazing! I'm obsessed with their tempura shrimp taco and the tortilla soup is one of the best. I highly recommend this place and we will be back!

Updating my previous review to 3 stars. Just swung by for Taco Tuesday. Place has definitely improved since my last write up. I have found that the attitude of employees/quality of service has changed for the better. The food is still hit or miss but lately has been a little more "hit".

Staff was good, food was alright. I got the Cuban sandwich for $7.50. The first half of it was full of meat, and the other half had a decent amount. Honestly, it tasted like a Cubano mixed with an American sub. I don't recall tasting pickles, or mustard; Or, if they were on, they had a weak flavor. The pork on the sandwich was salty and plain. This visit got 3/5 stars and not 2/5 stars due to the staff being cool, and there being a decent amount of meat on the sandwich (which to me was more quantity and not quality). Wasn't bad here, but won't be in a rush to get the Cuban sandwich again...

I'm so grateful to pay 13 dollars for a Fajita plate and get heaping portion of lettuce and enough beef for a single taco at best. Thanks El Rey!

Honestly, it's not a bad joint... But I've got me some high standards when it comes to Cubanos... Especially when it's posted as the special item on the menu. You're leaving yourself for judgement, buddeh. And it's falling shy of what is expected to make up the typical east coast noms. The bread is... Ok. Not butter pressed. No mustard... I can't even... That's flavor is what ties it all together. Your mother would be ashamed. I can't even right now. And pickles. C'mon guys. Though... The saving grace, that stopped from all the nerd rage... The Carnitas taco... Not something you see too often with trompo and pastor taking the taco joints by storm. It was pretty magical. TLDR, don't bother with the cubano, but I'll be back for the Carnitas tacos. Real tho.