Malena's Taco Shop

Best hole in the wall Mexican food around. Huge portions especially the burrito, beautifully done tamale, very generous with the guacamole and the flavors are sublime. Take out only when we went but a couple tables outside is chill on a nice day. While there check out Macrina Bakery across the street for dessert. Will definitely be back!

This is one of my favorite places to eat in Seattle. The staff are great and the food is delicious. I recommend ordering ahead at lunch time. It gets BUSY. I miss the Ballard location! 😭

These tacos and the food here is CONSISTENTLY amazing. Always happy to eat here. The food feels like a warm hug.

Been coming here for lunch a bit recently and I have to say the prices are cheap and the food is good. You get bottomless chips and salsa for dining in. This place has been here for 20+ years and it seems like it's still going strong. Word of advice though, the combos are HUGE I usually just go for a couple tacos and it's plenty of food and half the cost. This is a great spot in Queen Anne.

All the high reviews are misleading. While the burritos are quite large, they are pricey ($15+), and lack flavor. By that I mean there is literally zero spice, even their sauces are bland. My recommendation is skip this if you want Mexican food, go to the airport and catch a flight to socal or Mexico for a more authentic food experience.

Update to my original review below 1 year later: They've raised the prices, and the burrito isn't as large anymore, but it's still a good meal to treat yourself to every once in a while. ‐--------- YES!!! Unlike much of Seattle, this place is Affordable and reasonably priced because the quality is an A+ in addition to the amount you receive. Ordered a Carne Asada Burrito and y'all, YES. Well seasoned, Freshly made and nice portion. Didnt feel corporate. Will be my new go to spot for Mexican food.

Fantastic rice and beans, killer salsa, and incredible fish tacos. They’ve got other great options like their burritos, quesadillas, and rolled tacos as well. Such a great spot!

One of my favorite spots when in the area. There are a few tables outside to eat or several parks in the area on a nice day. I usually get the hard taco with beef. Meat is plentiful, prices are affordable, and the salsa is tasty. Staff is very friendly and service is quick.

These burritos are HUGE! I got the chorizo and it could feed 3 people. Nicest owners making everything fresh right on the spot. Great flavor, extra salsas for free. I'm gonna be full for a week! 10 out of 10!

Very, very disappointed in my experience after all the hype around this place. We got take out as it's a small establishment with minimal seating. We ordered an adobada burrito and quesadilla. The burrito comes unwrapped, and is prone to falling apart. It is very thick, but not in a fun way. The meat was plentiful, but extremely dry. There were more soggy onions than beans or rice combined. I had to resort to a fork at the halfway mark as the bottom fell out. The quesadilla's meat to cheese ratio was actually terrifying. It had extremely thick cheese in some places with no meat, and the same dry meat in other places with no cheese. Both were dry, bland, messy, and just plain disappointing. Salsa was available but pretty mediocre. Also to note, there are a lot of online menus floating around that have VERY incorrect prices. For example, the burrito was advertised for $5.75 online, and was $15 at the shop. A burrito this bad, may have been worth it for 5.75, but not 15. Do not recommend.

I attempted to try three beef rolled tacos and it came with lettuce tomatoes guacamole and I opened the box eagerly and famished and they were BURNT! WTF so I took it back and they tried to offer me a refund instead I had them make me regular pollo tacos and it still wasn't hitting for me. Come again?? Naw.

Always good! Classic authentic neighborhood taco/burrito spot among residential and small neighborhood commercial street. Always busy with locals. Mostly take out but few tables for dining outside.

Amazing food! Service is great. They do not have seating inside so we usually do take out. Huge portions for a reasonable price

Been coming here for years. Always satisfied. Today Sunday was not good. Carne asada beef burrito had lots of gristle in it, no flavor, not layered equally-- beans and rice one half and other half avocado no flavor. No green peppers or onions. Total $17.

We found Malena's while picking up goodies across the street in the morning, and decided to order takeout for dinner based on reviews. It's a super small spot, essentially just a kitchen with an area to order, so takeout only. They are incredibly friendly, and went over our order with us to make sure they got it right. I also forgot to order a side sour cream for our daughter and they gave it to us for free, which is a small but nice thing to do and wouldn't happen at a lot of places. Our large order was ready right when they said it would be. The food was great: my son loved his cheese quesadilla, and our four orders of chicken fajitas were great: ample chicken which was well cooked and seasoned (not too salty but still flavorful). The rice and beans were rice and beans but the beans come with a ton of cheese, which the kiddos loved. My only nitpick is they only have flour tortillas for burritos, so when we swapped our corn tortillas for flour, we ended up making burritos instead of tacos/ fajitas. Like I said, a nitpick. Overall an excellent experience, and highly recommended.

Love their soft tacos (have tried almost all of them). My favorite of their salsas is the hottest one they offer. Tip: Ask to add onions and cilantro to the chicken and veggie soft tacos.

One of the few places I'm returning over and over. They don't have dine in but have couple tables outside, good for takeout. Usually I order chicken quesadilla which is absolute nice, big and tasty I recommend this place for takeout, and delicious quesadilla!

Great service, this is takeout but they have a couple tables set up outside. They load it all up so be careful for take away as it could get messy. My only complaint I could have used a real knife to cut through my Chile relleno. Huge portions definitely can share.

I love this place! Great food, friendly people, all at a good price. Places like this are becoming a real rarity in these parts, so show them some love, and your tastebuds too!

This is one of those reviews where 5 stars come from customer service. The staff here are very kind and friendly, and we witnessed them show empathy and kindness to an unhoused individual at a time when we often witness the opposite. This spoke volumes for us; we will happily continue eating at Malena's! We ordered pollo asado & carne asada burritos and refreshing Jarritos, which are always a treat for me in Seattle. While I typically prefer burritos without beans & rice, they offered me this option; I opted for beans and rice and probably wouldn't next time as the burrito was thick and hard to fully wrap while eating. Nonetheless, I found the burrito to be tasty, especially with the addition of their house salsa along the way (it could've been spicier, in my opinion, but I am also Mexican ¯\_(ツ)_/¯). I look forward to trying other items, as their menu offers many authentic options, and we were happy with our first visit! Gracias, Malena's, por su amabilidad.

The food is so fresh and so good and authentic here! You can watch them make your food and it's so worth it! The service is so friendly and the people are so nice here! And sooo worth it! The ambience is great! It's a very small space but there is a counter to sit at and if it's nice out there are a couple tables to sit at outside. This place has been here for 47 years and it's obvious why! I hope it's here another 47 years! It deserves to be!

Unexpectedly found Malena's with a friend of mine from Korea and was excited to find some great Mexican food in the city! With really quick service and a little bit of seating outside, Malena's is a great place to come on a Sunny day. We ordered the Chicken Tqcos and it was tasty and the salsa was memorable.

This place is so good! It's tucked away in a cute neighborhood, and everyone here is so kind - the service was great. We came here on a Saturday afternoon, and it wasn't too busy. There are no seats indoors, but there are a few tables outside. We got the carne asada taco, the hard shell beef, the fish taco, chips & guac, and a chicken burrito. The guac was really good although the chips were a bit stale (still yummy though), and the tacos really hit the spot. The best one by far was definitely the fish one. If I came again, I would probably just get the fish and carne asada. Their salsas are all delicious, and I had a lot of fun trying them. The chicken burrito was also pretty good, although it had a lot of beans and I don't really like beans LOL. Would definitely come again, highly recommend!

I've been here three times and each time it was mediocre at best. No seasoning or marinades, I was very disappointed with the bland meat tacos. Also, the wait time is typically over an hour just for take out.

I was introduced to this joint recently despite having lived down the hill on Queen Anne for over three years ... Damn. Best asada burrito in town, in my humble opinion. You won't find a burrito stuffed with more flavorful ingredients (meat) anywhere else in town for a more reasonable price. Great hot sauce too. Go to any other more trendy Mexican or Tex-Mex restaurant and you'll pay more for ginormous burritos stuffed to the gills with filler (rice and beans) with very little meat and very few peppers. Not so at Malena's. Don't judge this book by its cover ... Awesome local hole-in-the-wall Mexican food.

Delicious food. So unexpected from this little shop! Carne Asada Burrito was massive and tasty. Fell apart before I could finish it, but that was ok. I'll be back to try more things.

My quesadilla: About a pound of cheddar cheese, store bought tortilla, absolutely zero seasoning shredded chicken, diced tomato and shredded iceberg on the side. Nothing about this quesadilla was inspiring. I could've bought a rotisserie chicken from Safeway and made the exact same thing myself. The store was at least 85 degrees inside which was not so much a problem for me but I was legit concerned for the employees well-being. There are a few tables outside to sit at which was nice. The chips tasted exactly like the corn tortilla chips from Costco and so did the guacamole. The only thing that was great was the salsa. My friend had a fish and a shrimp taco and said they were decent but tasted very Americanized. Simple ingredients very little seasoning, tasted nothing like good street tacos. More like tex mex without the sour cream. Not my cup of tea but based off the ratings it seems like it is somebody else cup of tea. Perhaps we ordered the wrong thing.

Average Mexican food with very mild flavors, makes sense given the neighborhood but it's truly worth a drive elsewhere for good authentic Mexican cuisine

I haven't been this impressed with a new taco shop in forever! Huge tacos, kind service, the crispiest carnitas!

Food is always awesome, call in to go orders. Takes 10 minutes!! On my way to my friends house.. we indulge..

Amazing food. I am so excited and prices are great. All take out but really best Mexican we have had since Mexico. I don't even want to spread the news. It's a gem

Our favorite spot! We moved to Seattle and someone brought us tacos from here the first night. We haven't stopped going since. We love everything we have tried but my favorite is the hard shell chicken taco. The salsa is some of the best we have had. Add the guacamole, but buy your favorite chips at the local grocery store (Ken's).

Stopped here for a quick bite before an appointment. Easy street parking. Convenient location. Quick turn around for a carne asada taco that was packed with meat and a yummy pork tamale. The salsa was roasty and there was even a small salad with tomatoes. $8 after tip. I sat outside at one of their few tables - it's a small place, but I was the only one sitting in rather than taking out. I might make Malena's a regular thing when I'm in the area!

This place slaps. Carne asada tacos are the best thing on the menu and come loaded with guac and seared crispy steak. Great value and great food.

I ordered a shredded beef taco, and the asada tacos with extra rice. The asada was tender, flavorful, and fresh. It came with onion, Cilantro, and tomato on top! It was really good, and and rice on the side was perfect. I liked the salsa that came on the side, it was kind of mild in flavor, but still good. The star of the show was the shredded beef taco. I wish I ordered more of those. The hard shell was obviously home made and it was extremely crispy and delicious. I don't remember the last time I had a hard shell that was as delicious as this one. The shredded beef was good and tender, and the cheese inside the taco just completed it! I ordered my food to go, but there was on small table inside and a small bench seat if you wanted to eat inside. But I got the vibe this was more of a to go kind of place. Very yummy and affordable, check it out!

Love this place. I used to eat at their Ballard location all the time. They do whole beans and I'm a big fan. The salsa is great. I don't try ink you can go wrong with anything you order here.

Expensive (for what you get). Bland and flavorless (the beans, the rice, the industrially-manufactured tortillas, the wan iceberg lettuce and tomato vegetable topping) The place just has an "OK" in terms of its health department rating The only reason I'm giving it 2 stars is its roasted tomato salsa is pretty good.

Amazing best tacos in the state people should definitely try this also really nice workers

$17 for a burrito that's half onion/bell pepper and half low quality meat? No cheese? No flavor?? I hate to be a bummer with local foods- especially this place, I've had great food here before. But charging this much for what customers are receiving is highway robbery. I was expecting to cut into a worthy $17 burrito. In hindsight, I'm better off cooking at home.

Staying at an Airbnb in Queen Anne and I was looking for some cheap eats and I found this small gem. Prices are good the serving sizes. The soft tacos are so filling and the tamales are fresh. Came back again two days later and ordered the adobada burrito and chips and salsa. Burrito is huge! And the salsa has a unique taste to it, quite good, small kick to it. Staff is friendly too. Quite a popular place, people were waiting outside Saturday evening. Appreciate the small shop with good food'

Oh Yeah! Two BIG thumbs up to Malena's Taco Shop!! Headed there last night to take care of the taco cravings that we were having late that night. It was the first time I went there, but had heard great things. The positive reviews were right ... Malena's is flat out good! Ordered two #2 combinations. Simple, yet delicious, beef tacos. The beef they serve is shredded (not ground, which I'm more used to). I absolutely loved their beef - especially the crispy edges that got a cooked a wee bit more than other parts of the meat. Served with lettuce, tomato, and cheese - we added sour cream and guac for good measure. They also provide a nice medium spiced salsa to go on top. The combos come with an order of rice and beans, which were equally great! All in all, it was a very filling and satisfying meal. Can't wait to go back and try something else on their menu. Maybe a burrito, or an enchilada, or ... well ... anything! If you're in the neighborhood and have a hankering for delicious and authentic Mexican food, look no further than Malena's. You'll be glad you stopped.

My boyfriend raved about this place so I had very high expectations going in. I was a little disappointed to be honest. I got the asada burrito and it is definitely loaded up with meat, but it was extremely bland. I found myself needing to pour hot sauce on every bite because it lacked flavor so much. It was also overly oily inside. They do give you a ton a chips (bag filled to the top), but the chips are very obviously Tostitos, so do with that info what you will. The service was fast and friendly, and the burrito wasn't horrible, but I probably won't return here.

This place always makes me happy! My go to are either the shrimp tacos or shrimp burrito. 3 tacos fills you up and the burrito is a monster!!! My ONLY thing that bums me out is that they stopped making their own chips which use to be amazing! I believe they now buy them from Costco. All in all, I love this place and they are are always super nice and fast!

Excellent Carnitas tacos, only taco salad I've found done with rice and beans at the bottom, all top notch and for a great price.

very reasonably priced tacos! current price is only $4 each and they are larger than street size tacos. staff was very nice and our food was ready right when they said it would be, only a 20 minute wait for 6 tacos. they did go a little heavy on the onion but that's just personal preference

Worst burrito I've ever had. It was honestly more like a heavy amount of meat slapped on top of a flour tortilla with some grilled vegetables and guacamole. No beans or rice... which feels like it should be included in a burrito without having to ask. The burrito was given on a plate and it literally was not wrapped. I had to eat the meat out of the "burrito" with a fork. Totally disappointed and for $11, I'd expect much more. Definitely not coming back. Sad to write this review because I like to support small businesses, especially in these times but there was nothing acceptable about this order.

Malena's has been saving us during COVID. We go once a week on average, and we typically order either their bean burritos, chile relleno burritos/plate, or the adobada burritos. All are delicious, fresh, filling and satisfying. I've also had the fish burrito and the fajita burritos and those were really good as well. Also their salsas are out of this world delicious, grab a couple extra and you won't be sorry. Thanks Malena's!!

Four words: pollo a la crema. It's messy but SO delicious. Just plan on getting takeout due to the small location.

Soooo yummy! Malena's used to have a location in ballard that I would go to constantly they closed down and I thought I had lost them forever! I was craving mexican food and Melena's popped up and I am so glad I found them! I will definitely be returning regularly!

Dependable Mexican food on Queen Anne that won't break the bank. They've managed to remain consistent for the 12 years I have lived here and is my go to lunch place when I need something quick. There are a couple of other spots on Queen Anne, but this is as close to a California burrito spot that you get.

Left earlier from work, but I-5 South had the typical traffic crunch. Meandered around Seattle neighborhoods, somehow ended up at my former stomping grounds on W. McGraw. Free parking karma dictates where I usually end up at. Looks like my former residence is no longer a salon/spa, but divvied up as a handful of businesses. Both Bustle and Macrina were closing, so by default I ended up at Malena's Taco Shop. After glancing at the menu board, I decided on a Carne Asada burrito. Friendly counter person, they take cards, and grill was located immediately to the right. The person who was manning that showed decent skill with all the walk-in and takeout traffic. This was a massive burrito and served piping hot from the grill. I sat at a three top by the entrance to catch some of the outdoor breeze. I also received some chips and salsa, the latter I doused my burrito with. It was chockful of grilled beef, cilantro, onions, tomato, avocado/guacamole, and green peppers. Wished it had cheese or sour cream though and none of the green peppers. It was okay, but lacked that flavorful salty, limey char that I associate with carne asada. Nice to spontaneously revisit the top of Queen Anne 6th/7th along W. McGraw. Now time to walk off some of that burrito and enjoy this summer weather!

Love the convenience of this place - friendly, neighborhood mexican restaurant with great taco plates and burritos - homemade salsa is SO good!

It's been a while since we moved away, but decided to make an effort to come back for a visit. Amazed at their consistency- to be honest their burrito is BETTER than I remembered it! The slight crunchy char on the adobada pork with just the right proportion of rice (ie for flavor & NOT filler) smooth avocado to go with their addictive salsa (TIP: get enough to pour some for each bite) Portions should is larger than a single sitting (but I didn't care and still finished it). If you haven't been there, you need to check them out. I'm still actively looking for a better (adobada) burrito, but as of now I haven't found it outside of Malena's. Until next time....

I LOVE this place and wish I could order delivery but their guac price on grubhub is wrong - it says guac is something like $14 when that has to be a typo, because it is nowhere near that price in store. So, I rely on calling and ordering for pick up instead. Their line is busy every time I call. I usually just wait it out and call like six times until someone answers. The wait can be very, very long if you don't order ahead. But I love their asada quesadilla and guac, and so it's worth it.

Our new favorite taco shop! We got take out from here twice already and were so very satisfied with our food - fish tacos, carne asada tacos, shrimp tacos, tamales, and rice and beans. This is a hidden gem in the neighborhood. The prices aren't steep and the portion sizes are a little generous. Highly recommend!

Not a bad experience but not necessarily the greatest either. With the end result I wanted to like Malena's more but it just didn't pan out that way. I got the Chile Relleno combination and they gave me free chips and salsa. The combination included rice and beans. Everything tasted pretty good and the service was good but the Chile Relleno kind of gave me stomach trouble. Granted, what Chile Relleno doesn't have a lot of cheese in it? The one I had here plenty did... perhaps a bit too much because it kind of turned into a block and was unsettling my stomach the rest of the evening. I do realize that some of this could be related to me having the metabolism of a middle aged man but I don't think it is JUST that. I have had two other Rellenos at two other places in the past few months and neither one of those meals gave me trouble later and there was cheese involved with those.As I was eating the Relleno it looked like an enormous amount of cheese on my plate but I feel like not eating it would have been a terrible waste but a little blip did indeed flag me in the back of my mind that I might not feel 100% afterwards. As the name of the restaurant implies they specialize in tacos so perhaps that is should have been what I ordered... typically those are on the lighter side compared to a Chile Relleno.

We order from here nearly once a week it's so good!! My favorite is their rice and beans which is always so good, and my boyfriend has been going here for years and loves their asada tacos! Plus they have real mexican sodas in their coke machine! I'd post a picture but it was so good I ate it all before writing this ;)