Matador Tacoma

Love Matador! Whether it’s happy hour or not, the drinks and food are always on point. I love the rotating seasonal cocktail and plate options and the atmosphere is consistently a vibe. It’s a great spot to meet up with friends or just enjoy a night out. Definitely one of my go-to places but parking in the area can sometimes be rough.

My friends and I loved this place. The food was Mexican but it had its own unique spin to the dishes. The ambiance had my favorite kind of design, rustic and chill. It was also neat how we felt a sense of privacy in our booth though there was people all around us. Drinks were also good.

Went for happy hour, and got all the yummy margs! Drinks are plentiful and delicious. Not the bestest margaritas but they’ll do! Didn’t get a pic of all our drinks because we were thirsty, and they were chilled to perfection. Got the dip flight appetizer and it was wonderful! Must order are the quesobarria tacos!!! They come in a plate of three standalone!! They’re cooked perfectly crispy on the outside with melted cheese inside! Staff and service were great! Super friendly and very attentive to our beverage needs! Only complaint, as it gets busy, it does get loud in the space. I was feeling like I had to speak louder than normal so my friends would hear me.

I wish the reviews allowed for half stars. While the atmosphere and service were fantastic, I’m not sure what they hype about the food is here. It’s good. Don’t get me wrong. Loved the chips and salsa but the love stoped there. Drinks were average and tacos were average. Honestly, not any better than Chipotle’s tacos…IMHO. Although, if ya get the happy hour prices, then it’s worth it! Personally, I find Indita Mia’s food and drinks much more tasty. (It’s just down the road from here).

Went for lunch with my mother and had my go-to street tacos and the grande nachos with ground beef and we both sat by the fire and took in the amazing decor and ambiance of the place. I’d been to the Ballard Seattle location many times but not in downtown Tacoma. Parking is very easy and was a non issue. Great location with a historic vibe up on the bluff with some great views around the corner!

Great service and great food! I loved my enchiladas so it was flavorful and fresh! The only downside was the nachos. Wasn’t a huge fan of it but we got it during happy hour so it was discounted which was nice! The meat we ordered was chicken and was slightly dry for me. My suggestion would be instead of melting cheese on the chips make a cheese sauce! Would make this amazing! Ordered the mojito and it was alright!

We had a great experience here! The food was excellent we ordered the fajitas, and they came out hot, well seasoned, and in generous portions. Everything tasted fresh and high quality. The service was friendly and very attentive without ever feeling rushed. The restaurant also has a great moody, cozy vibe that makes it perfect for a chill lunch or dinner. Definitely a spot I’d come back to again!

Food was amazing. The bacon wrapped jalapeños were cooked to a perfect level of crispness without being burnt. I had the Gaucho Bowl with steak. It was delicious and the portion size was generous. Servers were able to move us away from the door where we were initially seated since the cold air was bothering my wife. Would definitely recommend and I will definitely return.

Food is delicious, authentic and plated beautifully. I absolutely love the decor, it gives for a great ambiance. Perfect for date night or even dining alone. May need to call ahead for reservations on busy nights though, regardless, it's worth the effort...

Food was good! Bacon wrapped jalapeños stuffed w/ goat cheese served w/ ranch were bomb. Coconut shrimp tacos were huge and yummy. Loved the grilled peppers that came w/ the shrimp & steak fajitas. Blackberry margarita was gross, & my wife's drink was good but just tasted like sugar. But food was so good we just drank our waters and were unbothered. Our server was not personable, but she was attentive and busy so. Ambiance is very very loud & dimly lit. Was very hard to hear my wife 2ft across the table. I love that they don't take reservations bc I'm always forgetting to make reservations on Fridays

Our visit, for my wife's birthday, started off slow by the staff. We waited approx. 10-12 min. before being offered tortilla chips and salsa. I chose to seek out the server who seated us in hopes of speeding up service. Once drinks and chips arrived, food and service was excellent. My wife has seasoning sensitivity to some flavors. Our server, Jaden, was very attentive, made more than one trip to the chef in order to check on seasoning. Great job, Jaden, who even took photos of us celebrating my wife's 77th birthday too. When the food arrived, the taste and seasoning was fantastic: carne asada for me; quesadilla for my wife. In sum, it was a near excellent experience-- despite a slow start-- and wonderful afternoon. Thanks.

Mine and my girls go-to place to have happy hour. I swear they are always packed, but we wait because we love it here! Yummy food and drinks! My fave is the street tacos and jalapeno margarita - yum!!! The place is nice and it's so lovely sitting by the fire. It's always a good time at the Matador!

This place is pretty crowded. You cannot make a reservation, so be prepared for at least an hour wait during dinner. Because of the amount of people, you have quite a wait for drinks and food as well. I ordered a margarita, which was way too overly sweet. I would not order it again. The chicken nachos were tasty, but after the top two layers, the rest of the pile was soggy. I think it would have been better if they were on a bigger plate instead of a high stack. The stuffed jalapenos were super tasty, but not spicy. If I were in the area again and there wasn't a long wait, I'd give them another try. Otherwise, I would not drive out here to eat at this restaurant.

We LOVE Matador. We come here every Halloween for our "date-a-versary" and it never disappoints. We come other times during the year too, and the staff is always friendly! The menu is very good and I haven't had one thing I hate. I would say happy hour is the way to go, thiugh, because you can get super cheap tacos, nachos, drinks, and other various appetizers! It is a pretty good authentic Mexican experience as well, and I always walk away full and happy Thank you Matador!

Usually long waits during weekends but worth the wait. Food was delicious! Great happy hour menu, highly recommend for your next option.

I did not feel overdressed in mink so you know the ambience was romantic and fire-lit & boothy with extraordinary southwest offerings and great drinkies . Absolutely would go again, even to Tacoma , the sister restaurant is not the same !

AMAZING staff & delicious food! Shelby was super helpful with recommending drinks & entrees. Restaurant decor is subtle & super cute, overall amazing environment to be in. Stuffed Jaleoenos & coconut shrimp tacos were DELICIOUS. Amazing experience overall, will definitely be back

Told by a coworker to go there and the food was super good we ordered all apps ‼ the habanero shrimp was hot but so good . Our waitress was so friendly too . Nice atmosphere First but not the last time going there

Matador in Tacoma was the perfect spot to celebrate my latest life milestone, because nothing says "I've made it" like a divine crispy taco appetizer! Seriously, this place had me feeling like royalty from the moment we walked in. The service? Next-level. I'm pretty sure our server could've anticipated my needs before I even realized I had them. And the food? Let's just say I'm still dreaming about those enchiladas--scrumptious little pockets of joy. But then came the chorizo paella, which was so sublime it had me questioning all my previous life decisions (like, why hadn't I discovered this sooner?). The entire meal was a celebration on its own. We enjoyed it all while basking on their gorgeous patio, which is basically a mini oasis in the middle of Tacoma. The restaurant's stunning vibe made me feel like I should've brought a trophy or at least made a speech. Honestly, if you're looking for a place to mark a milestone or just treat yourself like the legend you are, Matador is where it's at!

Was great and sat right away as we were there for a lunch outing; service overall for our trip was great. After arriving the vibe is amazing special the center fire place and seems like it would have even been better as a dinner or after work hour trip as they had a large wall of adult beverages. I decided to go with one of each of the tacos, and in which each one was great.

Still love this place! Went to happy hour on Sunday before a concert. Food was great like always. Tried a passion fruit margarita. It tasted more like lime than passion fruit. Not sure I'd try it again.

Regularly frequent this local Tacoma restaurant and I've been in love since the 1st time! It's perfect for a lunch date, date night, girls night, guys night, happy hour, REVERSE HAPPY HOUR, really ANY NIGHT! The chips and salsa are irresistible. Cocktails are Strong! & Customer service is top notch. Sit at the fire place behind the bar for a nice vibe! Everything I've had here is pretty AMAZING! Favorites would have to be the black bean dip and carne asada dinner. Portions are large and shareable.

In three years this place has gone from my favorite Mexican to a place I will NEVER go back to. Downtown location with zero parking, long wait times for a table, and no online check in option has made it a place we no longer frequent often. They created MORE seating by using outside place (even in the winter) and the kitchen they have is small and can't keep up with the volume of patrons. They often pull the food out early and bring it to your table before the cheese is even fully melted. As a work around I have told them I want my food cooked "well done" and cooked "longer than normal." Anyway, TODAY was the final straw. We found downtown parking, walked to the restaurant, got on the wait list, and was told they would text us when the table was ready. We came early hoping to avoid a long wait but still had a 35 minute wait time at 5pm. I never got the promised text message that our table was ready. Asked the hostess where we were on the list and was told "she tried to call us" which was not true as I stood feet from her the entire time. We were seated and our server came. She proceeded to ask for ID from all of us as "the entire restaurant is a bar - 21 years of age and older!" Our daughter is 27 years old but did not bring her ID. In the end we had to leave after all that!!! The hostess should have told us this was a bar and that ID was required WHEN WE CHECKED IN!!!! No obvious signs anywhere of the age requirement either. The good news is that we found a new favorite restaurant and will be going there from now on!!! For authentic Mexican food go to MONTEZUMA'S and avoid the wait, the hassle finding parking, and the cold undercooked food. They even provide great service! Matador means "killer" in Spanish and I have officially KILLED this crappy restaurant!!!! You suck!!!

On my weekend quest to try someplace new, I went to Yelp in search of a grilled chicken and rice burrito. Oh did I find one and it was just what I hoped for and more. The Matador is in a great location with a beautiful decor and extremely friendly staff. My husband had the Matador bowl and it was another epic meal. We can't wait to return, and although we like to try a new place every weekend we may be back sooner than we thought.

I would say we make it to Matador probably once a month. The late night happy hour is super appealing we drive 40 minutes to Matador just for this lovely deal. I always try to get a seat around the fire and we had wonderful service provided by Bailey. I like the food more than the alcoholic beverages. Commonly they are way too sweet, but I'm there for the food!!

Picked this place out of the abundance of restaurants in the area and we were not disappointed. When you walk in there is a very cool rustic vibe. Well set up all the way around. We took a seat at the bar and were greeted by the bartender Jeremy who was not only friendly and attentive, but made some fantastic drinks. The ranch water was very fruitful and smooth. The jalepeno cucumber had little spice and was very refreshing. Needless to say we had more than one round. We started off with the dip flight and the ahi tuna tostadas. The tuna was so delicious and the chipotle mayo was also good for scraping the residual off for our chips. The dip flight... all of them were hits. We finished all of them no problem. We later ordered a second round of the ahi tuna, probably could have ordered a third, but we wanted to try other things. The street tacos, 5 for $10 on happy hour? How can you not order it. All were great, though the beef was probably our least favorite. We would come back here in a heartbeat. Service was excellent, bartender was excellent. Zero complaints. I also included a picture of the loaded nachos(which we did not order), but for $7 on happy hour... if you're hungry, they are HUGE and I can almost guarantee that they are worth every penny. If you are in the area and searching for some good tex-mex, look no further!

Upon entering the restaurant during a quieter period at 3 pm, we waited briefly before being seated by a staff member. Our initial interaction with our waitress lacked warmth and didn't smile at all. However, throughout our meal, we noticed a lack of attentiveness; she rarely made eye contact or checked in on our table which was disappointing as there were not many people in the restaurant. Despite attempting to flag her down for assistance, it proved challenging as she seemed preoccupied elsewhere and just walks straight to the kitchen area. We even had to enlist the help of another waitress for a drink refill, which she promised to relay to our assigned server. Unfortunately, the service experience detracted from the enjoyment of the meal. Regarding the food, I opted for the carne asada tacos. Despite trying to enhance the flavor with Tapatio sauce, I found them to be lacking in taste and seasoning.

I honestly don't know how this place has good reviews. Or maybe we came on a bad night? That doesn't excuse poor customer service. Our waitress didn't check on us once or ask how the food was because we barely touched anything. She would just drop plates off and walk away. Wasn't personable or gave any attention to us. Absolutely no customer service at all. Everything we ordered was average or not that good. Nothing was worth coming back to since there's much better Mexican food out there. Two stars for the ambiance and music. If we had decent customer service it would have been four stars but shitty service with "ok" food, made our experience not worth coming back to. Very disappointing

We were lucky to find street parking on this busy concert night. Walked in without a reservation and were seated immediately. Chips and salsa were good, salsa a little smokey, good flavor. My jalapeno margarita had a nice tajin rim and was bursting with flavor, not too sweet like some drinks and a touch of heat. My taco salad with shredded chicken was delicious! Loads of steaming hot meat and vegetables. The dressing was tangy and flavorful and not really needed with the seasoned sour cream and guacamole on it. Hugely filling. The beef enchiladas were richly flavored with sauce and cheese. Everything was fantastic and we would absolutely come back when we're in town.

Came here on a weekend night and it was pretty packed. They don't take reservations on weekends, but you can put your name in and hang around the area. Luckily, it's in a great location in the main downtown area of Tacoma. For food, my husband ordered the nachos and they were good, average. I ordered an enchilada plate that came with both red & green sauce. I preferred the red enchilada as I thought it was more flavorful. The green enchilada was surprisingly spicy and I typically like spicy food. Overall, fun atmosphere and okay food.

Aye I can't even remember how many times I've come here but y'all PLEASE! PLEASE!!' Keep the chips and salsa FREE! For the people yall! I feel like you're the last place that does this and it's greatly appreciated. I bet all my trill folk agree too. Thank you Matador. 5 stars forever.

Food, service, selection, atmosphere, and ambiance is always great. My favorites are their chicken nachos, quesabirria tacos, jalapeño poppers, and rib eye plate. Tequila selection is top notch.

Super duper tasty and great seasonal options. Friendly wait staff. Some of the best Mexican style food I've had in the PNW

Service was slow and seemed like our waitress was maybe a little drunk? The food is yummy but the margaritas are like NOT good. Like sort of okay but not good.

I hadn't been here in years. It's very dimly lit and is pretty warm inside during the summer months. Those grilled bacon wrapped goat cheese jalapeños still hit the spot. The guacamole was a bit too salty for me personally. The sangria was light and refreshing. I had the coconut shrimp tacos, I didn't get a picture, the shrimp were fine but didn't have any coconut flavor. But the salsa they have on them... I would've been probably just happy with that. It's a mango pineapple salsa that's so light and refreshing on these warmer days. I was reminded I don't like their rice, but I never have it's just not my favorite. Overall not a bad outing especially during their happy hour.

Food was good and service was great! Nice place to stop for lunch and parking wasn't terrible

Great service! Ambience and decor! Great date night spot or happy hour with friends. Highly recommend.

Nice place for late nite happy hour. More nachos than a person can eat for 7 bucks. Good food and good drinks. Will come again

This place has a wonderful Ambiance. We sat at the bar. Our server's name was Eric. He was very informative about the drink and food menus and made us feel welcomed. He also provided prompt and excellent customer service. We will definitely be coming back.

Service was slow, salsa taste like tomatoes sauce Gaucho bowl was good food was warm.

Recently went to The Matador for the first time for lunch and had a great experience! It's down in the Pac Ave area so parking is a little tough to come by. Luckily we went on a Saturday early afternoon and it wasn't too crazy just yet and we got a spot right near the front door. The inside is really cool! The vibe is fun, great for a date night or girl's night out. It's 21+ throughout the entire restaurant, so leave the kiddos at home. Their chips & salsa hit the spot, as it always does at any Mexican restaurant. For my main I went with the birria tacos which are on the starter menu. It comes with three tacos and consome, so I ordered rice and beans on the side. I could've skipped that in the end because they gave me an INSANE portion. The tacos were delicious! The consomé wasn't as flavorful as I've had in the past but it helped with the craving. The cadillac margaritas are also tasty and strong! Highly recommend. Overall this was a great experience for lunch and I'm sure we'll return.

Great spot for Mexican food & drinks in Tacoma (they have a few other locations, including Ballard). They offer a lively atmosphere, and are a 21+ establishment. They draw a good crowd and don't take reservations, so I recommend showing up early. The bartender made a tasty spicy margarita, and the ribeye carne asada was phenomenal - tender and full of flavor. Don't order if you don't like butter! The rice and beans were also delicious, and service was friendly.

The food selection and prices for happy hour are really good. Nice atmosphere and friendly service.

Wife and I stop by here on a whim. We were surprised by the cozy atmosphere and ambiance. We ordered a few appetizers and two dishes which were delicious. Definitely worth a revisit with friends and date night

Stopped by for a lunch date with my husband and had a lovely time. We arrived shortly after they opened and our server was great. For an appetizer we tried the queso con chorizo and it was magnificent. I ordered the habanero enchiladas and my husband ordered the grilled carne asada surf & turf entree. Everything was delicious and I can definitely say I highly recommend coming by. If you want to avoid a long wait then lunch time is probably the perfect time to visit too.

Went during late night happy hour with some girlfriends and were luckily sat very quickly with a large party. Smaller parties had about a 30 minute wait. Ambiance is very dimly lit so if you need more light probably not a great spot but we loved it. The music was 10/10 our favorite. Lots of r&b and hip hop (current and from 90s). Food was really yummy! Loved the dessert tacos, fun twist on the ice cream truck staple. Giving 4/5 stars because it was weirdly hot in the restaurant we started sweating but unsure if it was residual heat from the kitchen. Would recommend and come again! Additional things to note, parking is only street and first come first serve. Come early to find parking!

Love the matador. One of the few places that have regular dark beers on tap other than the Mexican drafts

Visited the Matador as a "pre-game" before my friend and I kicked off our girls night on a Friday night. The place was busy but we were able to get ourselves a seat in the bar area. For margaritas, we ordered: -Tamarind-Ginger - bold cinnamon flavor in a subtly sweet drink -Passionfruit - sweet and sour Both margaritas were loaded with tequila. They do not cut you short. For food, we ordered: The appetizer we ordered the Bacon Wrapped Jalapeños. I am biased/picky when it comes to this dish because my husband's family specializes in jalapeño poppers, so this just did not meet expectations. The bacon was overcooked and the jalapeños were not spicy. The smaller the jalapeño, the spicier it should be. That wasnt the case with these. The entrees we ordered were the Verde Chicken Burrito and Mango Steak Tacos. The Verde Chicken was SPICY and the chicken wasnt dry. The Mango Tacos, she noted, were sour, but not bad at all. Service was great. Despite how busy it was, the waitress gave us some space to catch up and talk. She did not rush us to order or rush us to leave. Overall, I recommend this place. When they say they specialize in Tequila, they really mean it. Good place to relax, catch up, and enjoy some good Mexican food.

Always amazing. I did a quick check for a Margarita and Tortilla Soupvto break up the day.

Great place to have a bite to eat. Brussels Sprouts are a fave of mine. Nachos were enough to share.

Food is always delicious here! Love their Ribeye tacos and shrimp ceviche! Services and atmosphere is top tier! Highly recommend and will definitely be back!

This review is for Matador's happy hour. The restaurant has a lively atmosphere and our service was friendly and efficient. We ordered the steak and fish tacos with the shrimp ceviche. Our tacos weren't bad at all, and the ceviche came with a decent amount of shrimp, but could've used more flavor. The margarita offerings seemed impressive with a ton of options like passion fruit, blood orange, and watermelon, but we were pretty underwhelmed and a little disappointed. They were overly sweet and we could barely taste any tequila - there was also no salt/lime or margarita glass, so the appearances matched the taste. It was just a letdown in contrast to the overall vibe as an upscale/hip Mexican spot - you always assume the margaritas will be delicious and beautiful!

TLDR/ Food: 5/5 Delicious Price: 4/5 $$$ Slightly expensive Service: 5/5 Stellar Ambiance: 5/5 Moody and rich, like the tequila they serve. This place really hits all the right notes. I and my husband went for an early dinner on our anniversary. This was a great choice. I don't think we have enjoyed the food, service, and atmosphere more at any other restaurant we have gone to on any previous anniversary. It was just perfect. The slightly dark atmosphere with warm lighting from colored glass lamps, a myriad of candles arrayed about, and a centralized circular fire pit (surrounded by bar seating), made for a romantic and moody meal. It matched the heady scent of the grill and the sharp notes of quality tequila floating over from the bar and up from my specialty drink (a blood orange margarita), perfectly. The meal was flavorful from start to finish. We ordered appetizers as we had been out all day exploring and were excited to see it was happy hour. The steak quesadilla and romaine salad were both great choices. We also ordered the chorizo queso and the bacon-wrapped jalapeños. Normally I don't go into detail but for this great of a meal I will. The quesadilla was a good size, filled with cheese and had a reasonable amount of meat for an appetizer. There was dipping sauce and a nice sprinkle of fresh greens to complement and contrast the cheese. The chorizo queso came to the table in a cast iron skillet and was piled with charred bits of chorizo, and crumbled cheese the added depth to the already flavorful molten cheese bath. The bacon-wrapped jalapeños were wonderful. There was a slight char on the jalapeños and the bacon was cooked well. The dipping sauce was flavorful but not overpowering and the goat cheese filling was a nice departure from the norm of cream cheese and gave each bite a bit more texture and elevation than any similar app I have had in the past. I couldn't have made them better and that is high praise. The star of the appetizers was completely unexpected. The romaine salad, which I was expecting to be just ok was maybe the best salad I have ever eaten in my life and certainly the best appetizer salad (and on happy hour as well). The salad came with a cilantro pepita dressing but I asked for a side of ranch as well (just in case the vinaigrette was not to my taste). I didn't need to, as the dressing was a wonderful blend of complex flavors that combined perfectly with the toasted pepitas and fresh chopped vegetables that cascaded across the crisp romaine hearts and made my tastebuds dance in jubilant exhortation. Seriously folks, this salad kept me coming back, wanting another bite, until it was completely gone -- A salad -- Not a steak, not a gooey cheese sandwich, a salad did this. I was floored, I still am, as I write this review. I would drive back tomorrow even though we are not Tacoma natives, just for this salad alone. We ended up ordering a Cali-style burrito and a 3 shredded beef enchilada plate but took the majority home, as the appetizers filled us up. My only complaints are that the chips were a bit crispy and salsa was slightly sweet (not as cilantro or onion forward as I would have liked), and the enchiladas came made with flour tortillas (which isn't my jam, but I was so dazzled by the appetizers, I honestly didn't even notice it was listed on the menu that way), also, the rice had too much tomato flavor for me, but again, that's a preference really, not a complaint. For dessert, what a surprise that they had revived the Chocolate Taco of my youth, their take on the now extinct choco-taco was simple and flavorful. I would recommend it highly as it brought back memories of childhood in the best way. I enjoyed every single bite. I would go here again, I would have a large party come with me. I would bring my Mom. I would invite my pastor and his family. I would literally come here with my worst enemy and we would leave friends because the service and the food would remind us both of what is right with humanity and make us want to be our best selves. If there was an equivalent Dr. Seuss book like "green eggs and ham" for Mexican food, then I would be Sam, and would be singing its praises from a box, a train, a car, and in the rain, that was gentle pattering on the long panes of tinted glass as my anniversary was made better by our server Justin and his wonderful counterparts. Come, enjoy, relax, and bask in the perfectly pleasant experience that awaits you here, at El Matador. Its name is apt because you will be dying to come back.

The food is always consistent here. Best Happy Hour in the city. Service is always hit or miss which is ok because the food makes up for it. 21 and up no kids which makes it a peaceful adult atmosphere.

Great food great service, parking can be tricky, everything tasted great, great atmosphere

I've never been here before but I will definitely be back! Delicious chicken tortilla soup, and the steak and habanero burrito was SO good! I'm stuffed and taking home leftovers. Service was awesome and so was the cucumber/jalapeño margarita!

Saliena, maybe salena, maybe saleena, idk, But honestly the best service I got in a long time. She spent time getting to know us and knew a lot about the menu. She is extremely goofy and is amazing at her job. She is very attentive and knows exactly what to say. The fireplaces are also really cozy. Thank you. 100/10