El Toro Blanco
“Happy Hour is 4-7 and includes $4 beer/wines as well as select cocktails & food items.”
“The guacamole was delicious and came with 3 fresh salsa's. The tuna tacos were nice as the pork/ pineapple tacos were incredible.”
“The guac came out with three salsas – mild, medium, and hot – and a bowl of homemade chips and they were all good.”
El Toro Blanco
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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This spot was fine. Just fine.
Chips with salsa and gauc were quite good.
Tacos come 2/plate. Unfortunately, 2 aren't quite enough and 4 are too many. Al pastor were good. Camarones were, meh.
Mexican Street Corn was good.
Nothing bad at all. Nothing special, either.
Who: West Villagers or lower Manhattan locals who know what they're doing.
What: When you sit down, they bring out a bowl of homemade tortilla chips with three different salsas (have your water ready because one of them is deadly). We started with medium spicy guacamole, which was a standard size for 2-4 people to share. El Toro Blanco provides a lengthy choice of entree and drink options. I went with the salad. I had low expectations ordering a salad at a Mexican restaurant. Honestly, it was a really great salad, and seemed bottomless. Although I only went with a house margarita on the rocks, I would be lying if I didn't admit I was hopping a little bit of a buzz by the time I left.
When: brunch and dinner
Where: El Toro Blanco is located in the West Village. There is indoor and outdoor seating. I recommend sitting outside if possible. It's in a great spot to people-watch.
Why (or why not): I was brought here by a former Texan who prides himself on eating only the 'finest' of Mexican cuisines. My expectations were high and they were met. The prices are very fair considering the quality of the food and drinks.
Pretty good Mexican for NYC
We had the al pastor tacos, the chicken enchiladas and the skirt streak. Also started w the queso fundido and guac
The food was much better than the margaritas.
Average margaritas for $82/pitcher. Insane.
Very slow service and not very welcoming staff. The food was very good though and ALMOST made up for the service. The guacamole was a great starter. Amazing tuna ceviche and good drinks.
My friend Anna & I had a hankering for some guac & happy hour, so we found this place close to where she was staying. Happy Hour is 4-7 and includes $4 beer/wines as well as select cocktails & food items. It's a classy little establishment with dark lighting & reasonable noise level.
We came in around 6 PM & the dinner area wasn't overly crowded. The bar was packed for happy hour, & as our evening progressed, the business definitely picked up. So, early dinner is a safe bet, future Yelpers!
The hostess was great & was beyond average accommodating. Pulling the chair out, offering a spot to hang our coats, etc. As I'm a decade-long customer service professional, these little habits definitely go a long way.
Our server did her best while she was training a new server… But, she was REALLY training him, so our service was slooow especially at the getgo. It took approximately 5 minutes for them to come to the table, which may seem overdramatic, but when you're as hungry as we were, every minute hurt.
However, both she & her shadow were pleasant, offering us happy hour specials at the table when they usually are only at the bar. That was cool! But then we had a bit of a hiccup at the end…we were being a little annoying with our payment method as Anna's work would only cover her meal portion (not drinks), so as we were writing out our payment methods clearly/step by step, Anna caught the waitress rolling her eyes as she was walking by. Proooooobably should've waited 'til the kitchen to do that. And wouldn't that be a great training opportunity for the new server to learn how to split payments? I decided not to hold it against her in my rating, though, as the rest of our interactions were quite pleasant.
At the waitress's recommendation, we ordered the coconut margaritas. Strong!!! I was feeling buzzed after just one. Then the guacamole came out, along with chips & a trio of salsas. The mild guacamole was fresh & flavorful. As for the salsas, I enjoyed the verde & the mild. The mild did taste a little like marinara sauce? Which was weird, but in a good way. The spicy salsa was too much for me.
The waitress did warn that the tacos we wanted were tapas sized plates, so they were best enjoyed with a side dish. I opted for the plantains & Anna got the Mexican corn. Now, in my mind, I was picturing corn on the cob which I love but assumed would be a mess. Nope – it's fresh corn served in a dish, but topped with the traditional spices & cheese. I only had a spoonful, but it was so dang good that I regretted not ordering it myself! But I also did devour the plantains & the swordfish tacos. Anna also had chicken tacos which she enjoyed.
Overall, a happy experience!
Stopped for a quick Monday lunch after my daughter read about this place on a blog "betches love this"… And we sure do! Light crowd for lunch on a Monday. Very pleasant staff, nice but not over-the-top or phony. We ordered the chips, salsa and added the veggie sticks. We each had a margharita and We also shared the chicken tacos. The food was very good. For our meals and cocktails it was $60 plus tip. A little high for what we had, but it was relaxing and the waitstaff was very attentive. We would go back again.
The QUESO!!!! OMG this place is so good. I always want to call it overrated because of the neighborhood and price point and annoying hostess station (always!) but it's really really delicious.
The queso is served in a cast iron skillet; it's not the drippy Frito-Lay kind but a firm, spongey, perfectly-broiled pan of high-quality cheese with pico de gallo and other herbs.
My second favorite is the Mexican pizza; we got it topped with shrimp and it was crispy and flat with queso, a generous portion of very fresh shrimp, drizzled with crema.
We also got the lobster ceviche which is fresh and delicious of course. And the guacamole is always awesome; fresh, of course, with big chunks of avocado and a generous portion.
Drinks including margaritas always on point as well.
Sitting outside on a nice day as heavenly; sitting inside is nice to except the music is sometimes loud and random (90s rap? O-K!).
I'd say 3.5 is pretty accurate. It's was good and all, but it wasn't grrrrreat.
Came here for Happy Hour with my friend, so the prices were pretty good for what we got (or good for them at least)
– Raspberry Sangria ($9): not distinctly raspberry, but it was on the sweeter side, which I appreciate.
– Frozen Coconut Margarita ($9): my friend got this, so I didn't try it but I like that they have a coconut flavor
– Chicken Nachos ($8): Great serving size! Most of the chips stayed crispy under all that cheese and beans. I'd pass on getting chicken in this though, since there didn't seem to be much. And the chicken that I did get was only on the bottom of the pile
– Empanadas (2 for $5): Tiny, but stuffed. The flavor is good, and it came with a sauce that tasted barbecue-y.
– Tacos (2 for $5): we got the esquela vieja (old school) ones. I was pretty underwhelmed by them. They were okay, but nothing too amazing.
Since we came here for Happy Hour, we sat in the front section which is pretty small compared to the rest of the restaurant. The bar/counter space is very limited, and we barely had room for all of our plates. The two bartenders were busy, so it was pretty hard to get our meal started (with putting our orders in), but they do hustle!