Taco City Taqueria

🌮 ✨ Taco City Taqueria – A Columbia City Recess & A Call to Action ✨🍸 I’ll be real with you: I didn’t walk into Taco City as a diehard taco fan. Seattle has let me down more times than I can count when it comes to tacos. My standard was set years ago in Georgia, where pastor tacos turned me into a believer. Since then, every attempt in Seattle—besides one Tex-Mex exception—has been underwhelming. That changed when I walked from Brain and Body Recess to Taco City Taqueria, following Dr. Thomas’s recommendation. The Food Experience 🌮 Pastor Tacos – Pineapple-kissed pork with green sauce. Solid flavor and easily the best tacos I’ve had in Washington so far. My only note? If the green sauce had just a little more kick, these would be unstoppable. 🍸 Spiced Watermelon Martini – The true MVP of my plate. Balanced, bold, refreshing—it turned a good meal into an exceptional one. 🌽 Street Corn – Two tasty pieces that held their own. Not as unforgettable as the tacos, but still a solid neighborhood favorite. The Environment 🎶 Nostalgic music wrapped the entire experience in memory and soul. ✨ Chic, stylish, and welcoming—the environment elevated the vibe without a hint of pretension. 🌿 Patio seating that felt like a private retreat. 🏠 Indoors, the space exceeded my expectations—both warm and elevated, a reflection of ownership done right. And here’s where I have to give a special shout-out: the MVP of the entire visit was Cesar, who saved me from a nagging bee determined to take my nearly perfect taco. He not only shooed it away but also set me up in a blocked-off VIP patio area so I could enjoy my meal in peace. 🐝 That kind of care doesn’t go unnoticed. The Service & The People Owner Kenyatta greeted me with grace and patience, setting the tone of welcome from the start. Her husband Jay, also co-owner, impressed me with his leadership presence, checking in on guests and carrying the kind of quiet responsibility that makes businesses thrive. My server seemed more focused on another VIP guest, which meant I didn’t get the full service I had hoped for. But I know as a business owner myself—sometimes a single interaction can misrepresent the heart of a whole establishment. Later, Thayra asked if I needed anything else, which I appreciated as a thoughtful close. 👉 Leadership Reflection: Consistently auditing customer experiences matters. Small oversights can cost revenue and impact perception, even in otherwise outstanding environments. It’s a reminder we all need as leaders. Why This Matters Beyond the Food Seattle doesn’t have many Black and brown-owned restaurants—and in Columbia City, each one matters. Taco City isn’t just about tacos; it’s about culture, representation, and possibility. 📣 Community Call to Action Support Kenyatta and Jay. Support Cesar and the team. Support Taco City. Support Black and Brown-owned businesses in Columbia City. Every dollar is more than a meal—it’s a statement that keeps doors open and shows kids in the neighborhood what’s possible. ⸻ ✨ Final Word Taco City gave me tacos worth craving, a drink worth toasting, and an atmosphere worth savoring. Add Cesar’s bee-saving heroics and the unforgettable Spicy Watermelon Martini, and you’ve got more than a restaurant—you’ve got a rally point for community pride. 📍 Columbia City, Seattle #SupportLocal #BlackOwned #SeattleTacos #ColumbiaCityEats 💛 Overall, this almost-perfect experience left me not only satisfied, but craving more family love.

Very cute taco shop! The vibe is good. The staff was incredibly kind. I like the chairs. Parking was easy. I got 3 tacos and rice and beans. It was very good and very filling. The price is affordable for a sit down spot. I personally don’t drink anymore but seemed like they had some really good options. I will stop back by when I am in the area. I could see myself bringing friends here and getting tacos and yapping. Highly suggest checking it out.

Food was great! Prices were way too high! Should offer happy hour daily! Spent 61$ for 2 people. Tacos and nacho fries shouldn't cost that much. In my opinion* also ordered 1 alcoholic bev. my date had water. The drink I ordered was really really good and had a beautiful presentation however, you mentioned it was from a machine I have nothing against that at all but would suggest that the second one be half off. Just for the 2 beverages served from the machine of course. It'd make for a great sell and I bet people would leave a bigger tip! Just a thought!

If I could do less than one star I would. This is the menu. It says $9.99 for tacos before 1 o'clock. We were definitely there before 1 o'clock, we got the tacos that are pictured and the girl came back with the check for $21.99. when we told her that the check was wrong, she told us that we did not ask to have the lunch price. We did not ask to have the lunch price?? That's literally on your menu. Do we need to be specific as to what we want to pay? When we went to pay, we literally had our credit cards in our hand to pay this girl. She got so up in arms and was yelling at us, saying in front of other customers, that we were trying not to pay, we were there just to eat free. This is not the place to eat free, you ate all your food you have to pay! I asked to talk to a manager, so she called the guy that supposedly owns the place. He was just as rude and was yelling at me that we were trying to eat for free. So instead, we paid our $53 bill! BEWARE WHAT A SCAMMMM!! so rude, and in front of all of the customers that were in the restaurant. She kept telling us we are not trying to pay while we are standing there with our credit card in our hand telling her we just want to pay the amount that is shown on the menu! So rude of the girl that worked there and the guy that owns the place. Don't ever go.

I stopped by Taco City on a Wednesday and was pleasantly surprised to find it was all-day Happy Hour! The tacos were fresh and absolutely delicious. I also ordered the guacamole and chips—super flavorful and a perfect side. The real standout was the Watermelon Margarita—so good, it was fire! On top of that, the service was amazing. The staff checked on me regularly and gave great recommendations. I really enjoyed myself and will definitely be back!

Disappointed by Overcharges and Lack of Transparency. I ordered the Dip Trio (guac, salsa, and queso), but was charged extra for guac—even though it’s supposed to be included. I’ve seen others mention the same issue, so this doesn’t seem like a one-time mistake. They also add an extra fee for paying with a credit card, which wasn’t clearly disclosed upfront. On top of that, I wasn’t shown the bill until *after* I paid, and only received a printed copy when I asked. The mango drink was okay, but the other one wasn’t good. Overall, I won’t be coming back due to the overcharges and poor billing transparency.

This is my first time hitting this place up but my people have been here a bunch of times and everything they said about this place is true , good food good service good atmosphere. I'll definitely be back here and will recommend this place to anybody and everybody

A very nice tacqueria in South Seattle. Not the most authentic menu in the world but everything I've tried has been delicous. Great drinks as well. Service is great, the place was clean, no complaints besides parking which they can't really control.

This Mexican restaurant has it ALL! Great food, drinks, and aesthetics! Everything was amazing and you can't go wrong. But my favorite was the birria bao buns, what a great little fusion of two cusines! The queso was a bit watery which I don't love The ceviche portion was HEFTY! And the margs were great and strong 10/10 would recommend

Food was delicious. The taco salad was really good and plentiful. The service was really good too. It was a large group of us and she managed very well. She was attentive and friendly. Food came out fast and they accommodated us when we ordered churros and they came back and informed us they were out. So then improvised and the cook fried flour tortillas and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and topped it with ice cream. The kids loved it. They really wanted something sweet and this was perfect. We sat outside and the weather is getting chilly these days but they had heaters so it was perfect. All in all, this is a great restaurant. Good food, good service and good vibes.

I've been here for brunch a few times and the breakfast is outstanding. Staff is amazing, food is great, kid friendly and a fun atmosphere. It's crazy that this place doesn't have a line out the door during breakfast. Give it a try, the Birria Breakfast Tacos and the Birria Bao Benedict are unbelievable!

Y'all need to go down to taco city and get y'all a drink the food is also super great they also play music and also host event here and then Yall need to go down to taco city

The food here is delicious, the meat is well seasoned and the salsa is addicting! We got the chicken quesadilla, dip trio, and tacos and everything tasted so fresh and authentic. The service was perfect and the ambiance is so charming! We will definitely be back, this is our new favorite taco place!

I am really disappointed...we have been going here for years and they have added things to their menu. I always just ordered these tacos...cannot go wrong with them however the gorditas ..horrible horrible...it is like having 2 deep fried tortillas and glop of sour cream and lettuce and tomatoes...no meat or softness to the tortilla. You may as well. Just have two hard shell tortillas flop together with the meat inside. Don't get me wrong. The meat is very well seasoned but it would be wiser to have a tostada rather than a gordita there no good. The next problem I had was the quesadilla. Their broth was so oily that I could not even enjoy the quesabirria because the broth was so oily do not have the quesabirrias they are horrible. Stick to tacos that is what they do best do not waste ur money on any other items

Come by on a Tuesday!! They have AYCE tacos for $20!!! I missed out on the deal, but if you let the waiter know you're there for Taco Tuesday, they'll serve you unlimited tacos :) The food here was great - I think my favorite out of the items we got were the chips and queso tbh. The tacos were great too don't get me wrong - but the queso dip was to die for. The tacos themselves were pretty good - not the best I've had, but if I were here for taco Tuesday and those came out, I would be more than ecstatic - good quality tacos. I didn't taste much of the broth of the birrias - I think that is something I would want more, but otherwise, it was a delicious meal. For a Tuesday, it was empty and the waiters were super nice to us. 10/10 service!

DID YOU GUYS KNOW TACO CITY DOES BRUNCH?! neither does anyone else in town, apparently. We had the entire place to ourselves for almost two hours last weekend. Divine! We tried the churro waffles, which came with a mezcal chocolate sauce I was worried about for a kid, but it tastes like delicious, rich, dark chocolate. There isn't any alcohol in the sauce, so feel free ordering it for kids. It also came with plenty of whip cream and strawberries, which were also big hits for the kiddo. The texture of the waffles was delightful. Very different from what I make at home or have had in other breakfast joints They're very ready to customize, too. Brunch date ordered scrambled eggs instead of poached for the birria eggs Benedict, and they didn't even bat an eye. My birria hash was a picky eater's dream -- no sauce on top, eggs how you like them, all the components served separately on one plate. Pickled red onion, bell pepper, onion, potato home fries, birria, scrambled eggs, warm tortillas, salsa in hot and mild. It was delicious! The dining area is adorable and there are plenty of outdoor seats in plastic with heaters, too. Staff is so nice and helpful, and drinks are delicious and replenished quickly. I'll definitely be back.

The birria tacos are excellent. The tacos have high quality of meat, tender and perfectly braised, with a great beefy flavor served with a tangy tomatillo salsa that pairs just perfectly. I got tacos before that were good but I would return for those birria tacos. Service was attentive and nice and the pozole was also great but the order here is birria although the server said that the fish tacos were also a customer favorite so I'd be open to other menu items. They also now (since I was last here) have a full brunch menu so I'm interested in trying that, too.

A solid breakfast burrito! Came here with friends on a Sunday and decided to try this spot out. The restaurant has lots of seating both indoor and outdoor. Really cute decor! Love the frenchie with the chain poster on their wall. They have good taste. Service was friendly. You order your food at the counter and then find a seat. The breakfast burrito was yummy! I enjoyed it with the salsa they provided and some ketchup. Our food came out pretty quickly but we did have a few friends who waited a good amount of time for their items.

Stopped in this black-owned taqueria for lunch and it DELIVERED! Food and drinks were GREAT and everyone's energy was top tier. I had the fish and the pork shoulder tacos and would come back tomorrow for these! An added bonus, I made it for happy hour and was able to get a Casamigos Spicy Light Margarita which was so balanced and delicious that I ordered two! A must visit in the Columbia City neighborhood!!!

Great Happy Hour! Brunch every weekend 10am- 2pm. Lots of outdoor seating and dog-friendly patios. Taco Tuesday Specials. Happy Hour every weekday 3-6 and all day Wednesday's.

Food - the food was pretty good. Not amazing but good. Tried the vegan chicken fried steak and split the churro waffle bites. Loved the waffle bites and the vegan CFS was alright. My companions loved their California burritos and birria tacos so perhaps I just picked the wrong entree. Lots of vegetarian options which I loved too. Not too many drink choices but they do have aguas frescas and jarritos. Service - it's a small set up but they seemed to lose a ticket for someone else and we all ordered at the same time, but we got our food after our two friends had nearly finished theirs. Ambiance - it's a neat little place with an outdoor patio and the inside is cute and has AC. I loved the decor! They do brunch and lunch/dinner.

I came to Taco City Taqueria on a Saturday morning since I was in the area doing errands and happened to notice that the place was relatively busy, so I figured I would give it a shot! The ambiance was nice with some background music playing, and I really liked their outdoor patio, where you could sit under a balcony and enjoy the nice weather. I ended up ordering the breakfast quesadilla with lengua, which was delivered to my table quite quickly. The lengua was very soft, and the quesadillas were super flavorful, being packed with lots of egg, cheese, and other goodies. However, I thought that the quesadillas were too heavy and fatty. While they did serve the quesadillas with tomatoes and salsa, which normally would've helped balance out the heavy dish, there were not enough tomatoes, and the salsa was not very acidic. In fact, the salsa was actually quite dissatisfactory to me, as they were not super flavorful. They neither packed acidity, lots of flavor, nor a spicy kick. I did appreciate that the quesadillas were served with free guac and sour cream, but again, these didn't help much with the heavy, fatty dish. The potatoes were very flavorful, but they were lacking a bit in the texture department, as they lacked in crispiness. Overall, though, the meal was great value, and the dish was very filling.

This is a great little spot with affordable and yummy food. Service is quick and friendly. There's outdoor seating and a full bar with seasonal margaritas. The burrito was loaded up, although the Al pastor was a little greasy for my taste. The enchiladas plate was yummy too. The chicken is a grilled chicken, not the typical shredded. A few parking spots on the side of the holding as well. Recommend!

To clarify, budget isn't the problem- but charging $20 for barely warm microwaved food is. It was advertised for that and thought "wow no way" and gave it a try. You could cut the price in half for HH and it would still have the same review, it doesn't change the fact that it's over cooked, not up to temperature and bland. Thanks for the suggestion though!

Great HH options, especially for cocktails! Loved the variety. Solid food, quick service, and plenty of patio seating.

I like the food, the happy hour, the ambiance, and the service. People are helpful, the decor is thought out, drinks are good and all the food I have tried are delicious. Been here twice and will be back a few more times this summer especially with the outdoor patio.

We had a work happy hour/team dinner here and everything from the service, to the planning, and the delicious food and drinks were perfect! Jen helped coordinate everything and was super responsive to help me me achieve the event on a tight turn around. It all ran so smoothly. The owner was there herself making drinks and checking in on us. The whole team was so kind and helpful. On top of all that the food was genuinely delicious. They had a ton of options for our various dietary needs from veggies, to impossible meat, and even dairy free sour cream. It all tasted so good, and was served really fresh. If you're looking to have a work event, or just really feeling like heading somewhere for tacos I 100% recommend this place. Thank you for making our experience so great!

Food was delicious. No complaints there. Service was a little slow but it was busier than normal so it's okay! We also drank, my girlfriend had a good time.

Went here on a recommendation from a friend and as a socal native I'm always excited to try and find a new Mexican food spot that might be good. Taco City has a great vibe to it and the people working there were fun folks. I got 4 types of tacos with rice + beans and my buddy got birria. The al pastor, pollo, and asada left a lot to be desired but the cochinitas was AMAZING. Easily will come back just for that alone, and my friend said the birria was great too which is high compliments from a man married to a Sonoran woman. Rice and beans felt very "clean" like it was homemade and healthier for you but this is Mexican food baby, I want it dirty and delicious. I do like the onions on the beans move, that's pretty great. My buddy says since they offered radishes for the taco it's Mexico City style which is cool. Will definitely be back and if I get cochinitas and birria and my mind is blown then I'll definitely re-review!

My family has been here 3 times for brunch and we've always had a great experience. Ambiance is super cute, staff is friendly, service is quick, and the food is AMAZING! We've tried the bao benedict, birria tacos, grilled fish tacos, and churro waffles. Everything was delicious and my 4 yo keeps asking me when we can go back. Love that we found this spot!

I had a fish taco, veggie taco, and al pastor taco, with rice and beans. Coming from the SF Bay Area, were there are a ton of good Mexican restaurant options, this place hit the spot. Excellent food and service. Cool vibe.

Such a very chill vibe. Servers and owners are so personable and amazing service all around. Drinks are great and come out fast! Will be coming back

Guys, I dream about the beef burrito with everything in it. It is that good. Then again, I am a suburban girl who loves Chipotle, but dang--this place has a bombass burrito. The salsa is homemade and so fresh--such awesome chips and salsa--straight up fuego! I am drooling thinking about it. The beef is so smoky, the guac is fresh, and the beans are so homey. I want one right now!!!

Good service but they don't have ground beef and I have trouble chewing on the meat but I love Mexican food and miss having ground beef in my tacos. Friendly people good drinks

Love the vibe in here! Definitely a go to for my friends and I for good food, good drinks, and a good time! The service is great. I got the cali fries with al pastor and the mangoyada. Excited to try to their other drinks in the future for their HH!

This is my favorite place to go in Columbia City! Their brunch is amazing! I'm a big Benedict person and their Birria Benedict is ‍!!! Their wait staff is inviting with amazing personalities and their speciality cocktails are delicious and fun! The cherry on top is their music selection and vibe!

Wow! This place is really-vamped and sooooo much fun. $20 all you can eat tacos on TUESDAY??? I had the watermelon mint margarita, and it was incredible. DJ was playing great music and the owners touched every table. Best Taco Tuesday in a loooooong time. Can't wait to come back. Thought about taking a picture waaaayyyy after my margarita lol

I want to like this place, but it keeps giving me the squirts. I love shrimp burritos, but I'm three for three now with eating a delicious wet shrimp burrito from here and then evacuating my bowels into my terlet like Krakatoa emptying into the ocean.

one of the first taco places i've tried in seattle area. the birria meat was dry and the consume didn't have much flavor unfortunately. :( the salsa was actually spicy though which i did like! and the tortilla was crunchy, which was also another plus. however it was pretty expensive, $20 or so for 4 tacos that didn't taste all that great. i'll try a taco truck next!

Everything from the vibe, the crew and the food was 5 star. The decor has a sexy fun feel to it that gives you lounge vibes. The crew was personable, helpful and attentive. We ordered the chips and salsa and Mac and cheese to start. The salsa was meh for me but the showstopper was the flavorful Mac and cheese. We love a gooey stringy cheese pull. My husband and I ordered a few different tacos. Carne asada, pollo asada, al pastor, chorizo and camarones. Each taco had a different distinct flavor profile that made you stop after each bite and savor the flavors that exploded in your mouth. Will definitely be returning. Especially on Taco Tuesday (all you can eat tacos for $20!) or Wednesdays for all day happy hour!

My go to is a chicken burrito with green salsa and it never misses. Kinda reminds me of Taco Time (which is a favorite) but way better. Customer service is always superb.

This is such an epic place to grab dinner. The restaurant is super cute. The staff is friendly and knows their menu. Everything we had was super tasty. The queso fundido and salsa, the birria tacos were flavorful, enchiladas were delicious, and the torta was huge and had amazing texture and flavor.

This was my first time eating here and the food was so BOMB!!! The service is amazing, great happy hour prices and prices in general, the aesthetics are very cute and I absolutely enjoyed myself. I will definitely be coming back!!

Food tasted microwaved, which would be somewhat okay during happy hour but their happy hour is not clear and they will excuse themselves afterwards. Service is terrible, would advise communication between customers and their food selection for better experience. Feeling like they just want to get your money and go tbh. Won't be coming back and similar response in every yelp review seems like there is a lack of care and no desire to genuinely improve. Just avoid the place.

Great food, have gone a couple times in the last few weeks when craving tacos and it always hits the spot! Love the salsas that come with

Food: nice they have veg options but boy, the tacos (pork and chicken varieties) are super greasy. Soaks right through the tortillas and made them mushy. Service: attentive and quick Ambiance: this Colombian wants to know why the hell you'd hang a picture of Pablo Escobar on the wall next to Frida Kahlo?? Smh

the food was amazing! The owner was great host & very welcoming. You MUST get the mango yada! soooooo goood. Overall 10/10 experience. Will be back again!!!

Absolutely fantastic. Excellent food, drinks and service. Such a cute place. So glad I randomly found it!

Great burrito substance! And they have a wonderful kids menu. Cute designing inside, with full bar. It would be a cute little taco night date night. Service was ni

I randomly chose Taco City Taqueria to eat some nachos with friends after a 5k and i'm so happy i randomly selected this place. It so rare to find both a pretty looking place that also has high quality food but this place was it!!!!! the drinks and food were soooo delicious. Each nacho plate we ate was tasty and everything we wanted. our taste buds were so pleased and the food tasted exceptionally well. I rarely leave a place feeling 100% satisfied but this place was amazing !!!

birria tacos & churros were a hit! great service and owners definitely a must try if you're ever in the columbia city area!!

Service was lacking. Came here with 4 other people and we ordered tacos and a few appetizers. The waitress comes out a few minutes to let us know that the ceviche was unavailable and told us she would remove it off our tab. 10 minutes later she comes with everyone's food, I ask her about my Al pastor taco combo, she said it'll be out soon. I'm waiting an additional 20 minutes and everyone's basically done with their food. My cousin flags her down again, she tell us the cooks are still making the food and that it'll be coming out soon. At this point, I've lost my appetite and it feels awkward to be the only one eating, so I ask if we could forget the food, and request the check, but the other waiter comes by with my food. Truthfully, it would be fair to have everyone be served relatively at the same time rather than make someone wait awkwardly until everyone finishes their food. It's awkward to see other customers who were seated after you receive their food before you get yours.

Not my favorite spot for tacos. Came here for lunch to try out a local spot and would say it's pretty much your average taco restaurant. Had the taco combo with the grilled fish tacos. They have a ton of different taco options but it's a shame you can't mix and match your taco combo - they all have to be the same type. Combo came with a small cup of beans and a small serving of rice, both items were really just there to fill the plate, nothing special about it. The grilled fish tacos could've been better. The flavor was bland and left me desiring more. Had to ask for more hot sauce to give it some sense of flavor. The fish itself was cooked well, but the taco in general lacked that flavor. It's a clean nice looking with a great outdoor dining area. They also have a small bar inside which was really cool. I agree with other reviewers that they have room for improvement. But nothing about this place right now really excelled enough for me to return unless I'm in the area.

Love coming here for happy hour on Wednesdays! Staff is super nice and friendly and the food is delicious. My go to place for hanging out with friends.

Glad we decided to come back & try a second time. Since we tried them around the time they opened, their flavor has improved! We stopped by and ordered the Cali, carne asada fries. If we came about 30 mins earlier, we could have taken advantage for their HH & saved 50% off. It took abt 15 mins for the food to be ready. Happy they included the guac without extra cost for the fries. The carne asada was well seasoned this time around. I wish the cheese on top were melted and warm more. From my experience I've consumed a looooooot of carne asada fries - I would have included some onions, cilantro & jalapeños. I was disappointed that I could not order just 1 taco (as you have to order the 3 taco plate, $16). Was turned off, tacos overpriced and you can get a taco plate for half that price elsewhere. Times are challenging especially during a pandemic, but would be great to offer individual priced tacos. Probably would come back mostly for HH (daily from 5-6pm), as prices are much for reasonable. On a positive note, they seem to be cognizant and following COVID safety protocols. All their employees (including the ones in the back cooking) were all wearing their masks. You need your immunization record for dine in seating. After we were sitting at the table while waiting for our food, they immediately cleaned the table after we left. Good to see!

Everything we ordered was perfect! Try the bao birria off the appetizer menu, and the torta was amazing too! Service was terrific too.

Service is amazing Food is amazing The vibes cool too Idk very cool restaurant should visit if in Columbia city