Review El Torito - Brisbane

Had their Rose Mojito Special, it was amazing! Their food never disappoints. Thank you for your great food and service!

Just ordered takeaway (a 5 minute drive from my house) and as you can see the nachos are completely soggy and falling apart. Very disappointing as it is not a cheap place. Better off sticking to Guzman.

This is one of the best Mexican restaurants I have come across in Australia. Whenever I visit Brisbane, I make it a point to visit this place and I have never been disappointed. I have tried all vegetarian dishes. It's delicious and authentic. Do visit and enjoy good food with cool vibes!

Best Mexican food I’ve ever eaten. I had the Mole Poblano which is such a unique dish. I also had some tamales and a delicious margarita. The service was on point. The staff were very diligent and made good recommendations but not overbearing. I have eaten here a few times and the quality of the food is consistently amazing. Recommend calling to make a booking as they can be busy, but sometimes you can walk in.

The real deal for authentic Mexican, having spent significant time in Arizona we're well versed in this style of genuine Mexican food and decor. No unnecessary fancy, high priced spinoffs or adaptions here. Just the classics we've been coming back for, for over 7 years now and will continue to do. Great service and the best classic margaritas you'll find at a price other venues only offer at happy hour.

Seriously, what is all the hype for? I can honestly say that I’ve had better nachos at practically every cafe or pub that I’ve ever ordered them at. These were miserly in serving size and the toppings were strictly rationed and plonked in the centre of the plate with nothing but boring dry chips all around. The chicken chimichanga was bland, small and surrounded by an abundance of shredded lettuce. The second star is purely to the credit of the lovely waitress that served us. Definitely a one visit restaurant for us.

For M on our trip around the world in Brisbane we chose Mexico; and thus went to El Torito to immerse ourselves in a truely authentic Mexican culinary experience. Thank you for the restaurant's warm hospitality, and pride in their food culture, which really shone through in the restaurant's decor, the quality of what was served, and authentic friendly and well informed service. Drinks: We had the special mango and blueberry margaritas and home made lemonade. The regular margaritas also looked enticing, but as I drove, I limited myself to one. Mains we had included: Chochinita Pibil, which was pork marinated with achiote, black peppercorns, orange and lemon juices. Served with rice and whole beans. I'd have to say it was light, with delicate, well balanced flavours that showcased it's ingredients in such a delicious way. The brown rice was fluffy and soft perfection. An ensemble of tacos as recommended by our friendly waitress, a very helpful young Mexican lady, who was rightly proud of her food culture. All of the tacos were delicious, with wonderful flavours and textures that transformed our understanding of tacos. Lastly, the young one ordered nachos minus sour cream. Despite the ingredient deletion, the nachos were also satisfying. Dessert: We had two apple flauta and the caramel flan. All were nicely balanced with their sweetness and flavours, not too sweet, and rounded off our meal nicely, even with the chocolate sauce, which you could adjust to your taste. We had a lovely experience and could only recommend it to others who are looking for a casual and friendly establishment that turns out excellent food, whether passing through on your way to some other places in the area, for which there are many, of just to have a meal in West End, as we did.

The Mexican food is good and quite authentic. We recommend the jalapeño margaritas.

TERRIBLE SERVICE. they made a mistake with our order and didn't include a whole meal but still insisted on charging us for it. orders were taken late (More than 30 min). food was delivered late and they chased us out before we finished our meal. absolutely terrible. don't come here. Our baby (2yrs) was not allowed to finish her meal here even though they were late in order taking and delivery of food. They argued with us when we pointed out that food was incorrect and said it "wasn't fair" to them to complain.

Authentic Mexican Very tasty meals that were served promptly.

Best Mexican food in Brisbane. Hidden gem. My family have been going here for 20 years and it’s still amazing. Their hand made corn tortillas are amazing. The owner is lovely and likes a chat. Him and his wife work mostly in the kitchen to control the quality of the food so it’s sometimes hard to see them.

Went here for weekday dinner with the partner. We ordered the Horchata (non-alcoholic) and Michelada Picosa Beer, which are delicious and refreshingly different.<br/>For mains, we tried the Mole Poblano and the Chochinita Pibil. Generous servings of Mexican comfort food.<br/>Friendly service with one extremely hardworking and lovely waitress. Reasonable prices. Casual ambience with limited indoor table seating.<br/>Overall, a great Mexican option for authentic Mexican cuisine that isn't limited to the mass tacos and burritos found elsewhere.

Never left a bad review in my life but this was pretty awful. Sign outside saying “burrito special $10”. Me and my partner ordered one beef, one pork. Waiter repeated back “two special burritos, beef and pork”. They brought over 2 burritos then the chef came over and told us to “wait, there has been a mistake”. Took one of our meals away and brought back another dish. Bear in mind we hadn’t even complained at this point. Waitress then came back and told us we had messed up our order and ordered “two beef, one pork”. We said we hadn’t and then she said they would be charging us for all three and the one in the back was for us to take away. By this stage this had ruined the dining experience. <br/><br/>Got to the counter and they then tried to also charge us $18 for the pork burrito despite not telling us that it wasn’t part of the $10 deal. Our $20 meal has now turned into almost $40 and we still only had 2 burritos. Tried to explain to the manager that we wouldn’t be paying for their mistake, long story short the manager snatched our cash off the bench and told us to go away. I told him it had been pretty shocking service and he yelled “YOU’RE SHOCKING” back at me with a full restaurant of customers. Nice.

Very friendly and quick staff. Beautiful margaritas for a great price and the food was delicious. Would defiantly drive the half hour over the local Mexican restaurants around logan.

Friendly staff. Nice place.. Food.. Hot mess of some flavor and little substance. I may be picky as a Mexican tasting claimed authentic Mexican food. But even for Australias dismal standards for Mexican food..Sadly disappointing.

Celebrated my 30th birthday here with my husband. We love Mexican food and this by far is the most authentic place we have eaten so far! Highly recommended!

Authentic Mexian homestyle cooking!<br/><br/>El Torito is a West End institution. Thanks to the recommendations from Gabriela we had a wonderful Friday night dinner here - flautas and tamales to start, followed by chicken enchiladas in salsa verde and cochinita pibil (slow cooked pork in a spicy tomato based sauce). The food is very good, the prices are reasonable and the service was genuine and friendly. BYO at $2.00 per head was a plus.

The decor here is pretty bad and it's not the most inviting look, but the food is pretty good. I've had the chimichangas a few times and they are always good. The staff are always friendly too.

Excellent food and service. Authentic Mexican in contrast to the Tex-Mex that chain restaurants provide. <br/><br/>Service was friendly and attentive and showed genuine enthusiasm for their food.

Had been planning on trying this place for ages, and we were terribly disappointed with the experience. The service was extremely lacklustre and flavours were totally bland. Mexican was my favourite cuisine for years (which now holds second place to Thai), so it's very hard for me to leave a Mexican restaurant completely underwhelmed, but they managed that task brilliantly. Fortunately we had a voucher from the entertainment book, and now we know why they were advertising in there

Was really looking foward to checking out this little mexican cantina in the heart of West End.... And then we went there.  The staff hardly spoke english and nearly ordered me 2 cocktails I never asked for.  After quite a wait, the meals were disappointingly very bland and we just couldn't wait to finish and close the door behind us.  Very sad as we would prefer to support the little independants over the big franchises!  Hope you all had a better experience than us.

The food was amazing very authentic like with lots of flavour. Thr pricing was good value for food. The service was good and quick. Great host who was Jorge!

My partner and I went the other night for dinner and were made to feel incredibly welcome by the lovely staff here. On top of great service, they do fantastic food. Lots of selections, including some delicious vegetarian options. Really reasonable pricing as well.

I got the bean tamale and a tortilla to go and they were both very yum (even if it looks a bit messy in the picture). The place has a nice atmosphere and the owner is lovely. I will definitely be back for a full meal.

One of the biggest problems with Mexican restaurants in Australia is getting the right ingredients. El Torito is no exception but they do rather well in spite on the challenge. The service was fast and friendly. The food plentiful and tasty. Unexpectedly​, the chimichanga was not fried but just warmed. Still it did not distract from the flavour but lacked that crispiness.

This is my regular Mexican.  Good food and I love their drinks - especially the horchata and pina colada. Nice quiet place in a great location at West End. Prices are reasonable. <br/>We had their burrito de la casa (beef, chicken and chorizo) and beef enchiladas for dinner. The burrito de la casa is a favourite of mine, especially with some hot sauce and salsa fresca. Made for an enjoyable dinner. Mrs Kan Do and I felt like we needed to be rolled back to our car.

Most authentic Mexican I have come across! Do yourself a favour and order the Tacos al pastor (pork tacos with a slice of pineapple). Bloody brilliant.

El Torito is my favourite for genuine traditional Mexican food! I couldn't fault any of the meals. The service is fantastic and they are very friendly! Cocktails are amazing as well

Popped in while it was quiet on a Saturday afternoon and we were really happy with the reduced menu lunch specials. It's not fancy, but delicious Mexican never is. Will definitely come back for dinner with the full menu.

I love this place, easily the best Mexican food in Brisbane by a comfortable margin. It is not fancy, it is not well appointed, it is however good, simple and honest food. The owner Jorge always makes us feel like we are home. I could eat here every day and make an effort to go as many times as I'm able.

Displeased with the food experience as a whole. The service was good and prompt so I can give them praise on that front. But unfortunately that's all that is good. The food had come out cold but the plates were piping hot. So clearly something was off. We let the waitress know after one bite and the 2 dishes were sent back. Only to have them reheated in the microwave which the food was still somewhat warmer but not enough. On top of that the lettuce was also flashed in the microwave and it left a very unpleasant smell and taste of the food. Mexican food it supposed to be fresh and full of flavour. Somehow I think the chef has lost his way or the love of his food. I wouldn't recommend it.

Because of the 'good' reviews I've chosen the El torito for my wife's birthday. When I called to make the reservation already felt that the person was not very concerned about details. Neither the name he asked. To summarize, the two meals were warmed, and seemed pre prepared and were in the refrigerator. The service was not bad, but I thought they could have warned the size of the meals. I do not recommend.

Moved up from Melbourne, and tried out El Torito, better than anything I had down there! Very tasty food, cool vibe and great service. The owner was a legend! Will definitely go again.

I'm new to Brisbane, live on the north side, and already I have eaten here about 6 times. in other words- worth crossing the bridge for! I have never been to Mexico, so I don't know what "authentic" Mexican food is.  However, if it is limited to greasy tortilla chips drowned in stodgy cheese then you can keep it.  El Torito's is definitely NOT in that category, the food is fresh and clean and very tasty!  The Burritos are huge and I have yet to be able to finish off an entire serving on my own.  Don't be afraid to try the specials, they are always very flavoursome.  My favourite dish is the Tinga Poblana - so good!  The service is friendly and pretty efficient.  Food comes quicker than I expect but I haven't been there at really busy times.  This is not "cheap" Mexican.  I find the servings to be very generous, even after a hefty workout. The appetisers and starters are smaller of course, but packed with flavour.  Definitely recommend giving it a try.

First of all, the food is fantastic and the atmosphere is great. Everything was flavorful and cooked to perfection. Even though many people would say that the portion is small, I personally think that it's quite enough to make you full. I would have given this a 4.5 stars rating if not for the following reason:<br/><br/>When we received our bill, there were 2 margaritas that we did not order at anytime showed up all the way at the bottom. The alarming thing was that the waitress who took our plates away probably knew full well we did not ordered that, and I'm confident the hostess would also have known that we didn't ordered those as well - since we sat right in front of the cashier. <br/><br/>Not only that, I've also came a review that says El Torito has a history of adding in items to the bill without being ordered. Luckily we only had 2 people so that was easier for us to notice the wrong items right away, but for a larger group I'd be wary. The cashier didn't really showed too apologetic when we pointed out the wrong items either, which we don't really mind, but that did raised questions. <br/><br/>All in all, amazing restaurant for the food - just watch out for the bill :)

We moved here from the Southwest United States and have searched hard for authentic Mexican food in Brisbane - we finally found it.  The food was delicious, portions were generous and the service was great.  The whole family loved this restaurant.  We highly recommend the fajitas and the Chicken Chipotle burrito.

Modern Mexican. Must be the best on the Southside. Highly recommended. Wait staff are hot. Chef very passionate. Recommend the Fajitas and chimichangas.

Very disappointed.....<br/><br/>Headed here for cheap and cheerful weekday dinner with the kids - Mexican is their favourite, based on reviews.<br/><br/>We were all disappointed - service was slow (1 person front of house), meals were very small (including the nachos).  We have tried many mexican restaurants, and this would have to be the worst.

Tamales, tamales, tamales! So I'm giving this place a 5 out of 5 for the best (only) tamales in town. Maybe this is over rating it a little, El Torito is probably more of a solid 4 but I can't help but vote with my heart on this one. I love this place. I've been 3 times now and sadly I now no longer want to eat anything else in West End, which is disappointing because there are other places I want to try but will miss. The spicy Mexican allure of El Torito is like a shot of 1800 coconut on a cold winters night, and I want it!<br/><br/>Highlights include but are not limited to the Tamales! The vegetarian burrito which I say knowing full well that if a Mexican place doesn't do a decent burrito burn it to the ground. But this was seriously worth mentioning. And the tequila, Kahlua and horchata cocktail. Get a few friends, smash some craft beers and go to El Torito.

Good. My husband and I wanted good mexican after we went to a different bad restaurant, so we came here after our friends told us it was good. Very good food. The staff are very clean and happy and nice. We are coming back again soon and we like it here, worth the drive. Thankyou very much.

Chimichanga baby!. We were blown away by the deliciousness of our meal here. Do they have a new menu?? Because the last time we ate at El Torito (admittedly at least 3 years ago) it was pretty meh. Not his time round.... my Chimichanga was freaking amazing but even then I had plate envy after trying my husband's Pollo Pibil, it was all kinds of wonderful. Service was charming (and pretty cute). Plus beers were $5 (on Thursdays). Bonus!

Amazing meal. Could not fault anything.

Awesome. Best Mexican in town. And I've eaten everywhere. Even been to Mexico.

The most authentic Mexican restaurant in Brisbane! <br/>The real deal!!<br/>Haven't eaten black beans like that since being in Brazil!<br/>And great staff to boot!

First Encounter. I went on a date with a Mexican girl here the other day. She'd been dying to try the Mole and she said that this had been the closest to Mexican food she'd had in Brisbane! Score. I myself had some fajitas that were very nice. I was however expecting more bang for the buck though. The portions were not worth the cost price, but our meals were fresh and tasty. Service was attentive and the manager was a pleasure. <br/><br/>Food: 7/10<br/>Price:6/10<br/>Decor&Service:7/10<br/>Overall: 7/10

Just spent a perfect evening at El Torito. Delicious authentic Mexican food. Quick friendly service. Well priced. Highly recommended.

Best Mexican. Lovely staff. Fresh food. Generous serving sizes. Superbly cooked and very tasty.

Worst Mexican restaurant ever..long wait. We visited on a Saturday night. There aren't many tables in the restaurant but we still waited over an hour for tiny plates of food..mind you we couldn't even order what we wanted as they had run out. The food portion would have been enough for a snack for my guinea pig. We left hungry, tired and $100 out of pocket. I will never waste a cent on this place again and neither should you!

You must eat here! It's like walking into Mexico. The staff conversing in Spanish, the fresh, delicious food, the decor, the music and carpirina! If you've travelled to South or Central America, come here to be taken baaacccck :)

Delicious food. The chilli is home made and a must to order on the side. The fajitas is definitely the most flavoursome choice on the menu! After visiting Mexico and eating authentic food, this place was a winner.

Disappointed. My nachos took 20min and arrived cold in the middle. When I informed the waitress I was told that it must be cold from the fan...and no effort was made to rectify it. Fresh lemonade also tasted like it was made with rotten lemons. Thanks for nothing, I will not be returning.

My friend raved about this place. And she was right. 14 of us and we had a range from the menu and it was all delicious. I had the vegetable fajita which was yummy! Would so recommend this place to anyone who likes Mexican! 5

Below Average. Very poor excuse for Mexican cuisine. Save yourself the money and go somewhere else. Absolutely nothing was good. Had to fork out $35 for a set menu for a friends 'farewell' dinner. Food was beyond lousy; My Pork Chilli Con Carne tasted like a weak Japanese curry with limited flavour and chewy meet <br/><br/>SPARE YOURSELF!

Terrible food, paid $35 for a "set menu" for 10 people, weren't allowed to order anything else from the main menu. It tasted like a bad home cooked meal.

Quite similar to montezumas. Re heated and sloppy. The chimichangas are soggy not crunchy. Just not the quality you would hope for the price and location. Service was lovely though but you pay for the food not the smiles.

Great Mexican. Excellent choice, nice food, friendly service, reasonable prices. Pretty authentic Mex cuisine as well. I will be very likely to return.

Good breakfast option. We noticed that El Torito had recently started doing a weekend breakfast, so thought we'd check it out. Value for money is excellent, as breakfast range from $9 - $12, and good selection to choose from. I had the Huevos Rancheros, while my partner had the Mexican Breakfast, which included eggs, chorizo, grilled banana, refried beans and a few sauces. Iced tea was great as well. The atmosphere was definitely quiet, and its quite dark inside, but overall its great to have a different breakfast option to the many bacon & egg places around. Would definitely go back from breakfast.

Wednesday night service was amazing! Efficient when taking our orders. The entree was out within 5 minutes and the main followed just over 5 mins later! Will be back!!

Service is hit and miss, ie the staff go missing, but the food is great and reasonably traditional. It is a little expensive though but still fair value

Not impressed! The food appeared to be reheated and was a mix of hot and cold. The chimichangas were soggy and seemed to have been deep fried at some point but again reheated. The entrees came out after and during the main meal. Had to wait a while for food (which if it had been cooked fresh would have been fine). Pricing was reasonable but definitely wasn't impressed with the food quality. The service was good. The restaurant itself was quite hot and very loud, we couldn't hold a conversation easily.

Bad service and not impressed with food. We were 4, got a table around 8.30 on a Saturday.There were 3 more tables at the same time.we had to wait for an hour for our food which frankly was very disappointing (wanna have good Mexican food than go to La Pachanga):no spices at all, no salsa and too pricy for the quality. Requested a spicy sauce and received a cheap crappy bottled one.<br/>We didn't even finish eating and they were already cleaning all around us.we got the message and left rather disappointed. Not going back.

Just okay. The food is just okay... nothing to rave about!

Cigarette smoke from the kitchen!. Had a very enjoyable weekday lunch there. Having a pram for our baby we were put in the table in the corner near the kitchen. We were put off by the cigarette smoke wafting from the kitchen after the lunch was served. Went back another day hoping that the smoke was a one-off - because we did enjoy the food. More smoke. Made a hasty escape, as it wasn't the atmosphere to be in with our 6 month old baby. Hopefully they will read this.

Shiteous.. Service was shocking, main was mediocre, dessert was disgusting, and the place is so noisy and crowded you can't hear the person at the other end of your table.<br/><br/>Service: We were approached 4 times in approximately 3-5 minutes by the waitresses asking us if we're ready to order - each time we were still talking and looking at our OPEN menus and had given no indication whatsoever that we were ready. After an hour and a half I noticed a middle aged man (perhaps the owner) berrating one of the waitresses behind the counter, waving his arms around in an angry manner and frowning, and staring and pointing at our table. We were shortly thereafter asked to leave by the waitress because the table had been booked for 8pm and the rest of the place was booked out. Despite not having been told this at the time of booking. I mean, really, a group of 5 ordering entres, mains and desserts, and they kick us out after an hour and a half? Clearly they're concerned more about quick turnovers than creating an experience/reputation.<br/><br/>Main: I ordered the bean chimichangas. Usually mex is quite large portions and very filling, and it doesn't take much to fill me either way. I found that not only was I not full, but I was still actually HUNGRY. Which would have been okay had it at least tasted amazing - which it didn't. Very average, nothing special. You might be saying hey, what did I expect for $16? Well, I expected it to be better/bigger/at least at the same level as G Y G, which it definitely wasn't. In future I will prefer to pay $9 for their burritos and leave stuffed.<br/><br/>Dessert: I ordered the caramel flan. The consistency was disgusting, and the taste certainly didn't make up for it as it tasted really artificially sweet and non-home made. Oh, and I still wasn't full - probably because I only ate two spoonfulls of it.<br/><br/>Ambience: The place was noisy (literally a dull roar), tiny, and really enclosed. Not a fan.<br/><br/>I wouldn't waste my time, and I'm annoyed that I wasted $16 and that I didn't go somewhere else for dessert so wasted another $7 or so. These people don't know how to feed people, how to treat people, how to make food.

The driest beans I've ever had.. So I've been here twice. The first time it was pretty ordinary. Not fantastic, but not bad. I got the bean enchilada and the portion was pretty small if you ask me. <br/><br/>So I went back the other day with a bunch of friends, and we were actually the first to get served as the restaurant just opened up for the evening. As we sat, it took them forever to take our order, even though we were the only ones in there. Ten min after they took our order, the waitress came back and told us half of things we ordered they had ran out of. Which is weird cause we were the only ones there and the place had just opened for the evening. They wouldn't substitute anything or be flexible on the combo meals since they ran out of half the stuff. The Waitress was nice about it, but totally inflexible on the choices.<br/><br/>We get our food. Gross. I got the beans and it looked like they had been microwaved cause they were super dry and crumbly. With enough sour cream it tasted OK...but that isn't good. The "Mexican rice" was just white rice with carrots in it. My friends said the chicken and carne con chile was really dry too. Like it all was microwaved. <br/><br/>So I continue my search for good Mexican food in Brisbane. Does it exist?

Blah.... This place has seriously gone downhill! Used to be my fave mexican restaurant in Brisbane, and seemed more authentic than any others. The refried beans were these gorgeously spiced black beans and the dishes seemed fresh and healthy. But now? It seems they are cutting corners trying to save money, because the refried beans looked like they were out of a can and had a dry crust on them, the rice was bland and gluggy, and my meal had NO spice whatsoever, despite asking for extra chili in the meal, and ordering chili on the side. Serious letdown. I can honestly make better mexican at home, so I won't be back.

Was looking for Indian, but ended up here. I'm not a local, but thank goodness this isn't my local Mexican. It was edible, but bland and soggy. I won't be back.

Meh?!?! Hot Sauce made the dish. 2.5*Stars (from 5)<br/>It sometimes feels like I am on a mission to find Brisbane's best Mexican. That elusive toss up between, food quality & flavour, restaurant style, atmosphere, and of course Value!<br/>Unfortunately El Torito isn't going to win any of these categories.<br/><br/>So please bare in mind I did order take-away, BUT I did see enough to make an educated assumption on a total experience.<br/><br/>I ordered Chimichungas in combo 6 ( 1 beef + 1 Chicken) So I have had Chimichungas in the states (where I am sure they are from) as well as at other Mexican places in AUS, and these were nothing like I expected. Pretty much Kebab-style burritos. The filling inside was plain and the only thing that gave me any real excitement in the dish was drowning the dish in hot sauce.<br/><br/>Not to put a dampener on the restaurant if you are heading there at the request of friends but I would suggest perhaps heading toward the "house special Mole" it looked pretty good (size and smell) And I would take a heap of booze and forget about the food!<br/><br/>2.5*Stars (from 5)

One word, terrible. I am so surprised that there are positive reviews about this resturant. Firstly started off with warm flat coke. When we asked for some ice a glass was plonked down in front of us. I had the chicken enchilada which was barely warm even though the plate was piping hot. The beans were the most unappetizing colour of dark brown which had formed a hard dry crust. The enchilada it's self was mushy and had avocado out of a jar baked ontop of it. The rice was also terrible. Overall the meal was edible but I had a terrible taste left in my mouth after we left. I was also looking forward to a margarita but when we arrived found out it was byo so was stuck with flat coke. Overall extremely dissapointing, I will never go back.

Let Down. After reading great reviews this week went to El Torito last night, unfortunately it was a huge let down. Coke was flat and hot, while the plates were extremely hot the food was barely warm, the shredded beef in chimichanga was tough & chewy, was expecting a crispy chimichanga but sadly it was soft and "mushy", guacamole did not look like guacamole, meals looked unappetizing and sad to say the whole experience did not live up to the recent good publicity this place received. Sorry to say it's the worst Mexican food I have had in Brisbane!, Don't like it!!

Not happy. This was probably the worst mexican food and service i have ever experienced. Starting with a flat drink, to which the waitress replied 'i know, the coke zero is like that'! then the meal was pretty much just mush on a plate! not at all impressed

Fresh and tasty. The food is always fresh, filling and cheap. Love the decor and love the BYO everything. It gets loud when it's full but that's really the only negative. Mole poblano is great.

Very authentic Mexican food. Burritos are a good value for money at this place. Average service and loud but overall I'm satisfied with El Torito.

Lovely little place. Out of all the 'ethnic' restaurants in west end this would be the most ethnic. day of the dead decorations, Mexican colours, and a shrine to our blessed lady of guadalupe, you cant get more authentic than that!!!<br/>Food was nice, nothing mind blowing but a good meal never-the-less. not much in the way of customer service but it may have been a busy night. all-in-all a great little place to eat.

Authentically Great. Good service and great mexican! I've visited once for dinner and once for lunch. I recommend chicken enchiladas with mole sauce; though the sauce is a bit rich, the flavors are well-rounded of a typical mole. Great lunch deal is the $11 burrito which is huge, fresh, and delicious. The manager is from El Salvador and was very friendly and genuinely appreciative of our business. BYO plus typical bright Mexican decor makes it a great atmosphere for a casual night out.

:-(. Very disappointing. <br/>Extensive menu looked good - authentic decor. After receiving our drinks we were hoping the flat coke wasn't a sign of things to come ...<br/>Meals tasted like there was no fresh ingredients used, rice was gluggy and tasted it like it had been frozen and re-heated a few times. 2 of us ordered the same meals and got completely different dishes. Overpriced for the quality of food!

Best Mexican food in Brisbane and authentic.

Cheap, tasty, good serving size. Cool ambience. Crap dessert choices.

Tasty and authentic. I went here for dinner with a friend the other night and was really impressed. cheap, tasty food and friendly, efficient service. I tried the bean chimichanga and it was delicious. they use black beans and the food is just like what you would be served in mexico.

We went as a big group on a Wednesday night. It was very busy and the service was very friendly but sporadic It took an hour or so to get our meals. When they came one of the group missed out and had to wait another 20mins. The meals were fresh and not oily but tasted much the same, also most of them were also stone cold. It wasn't awful, but I don't think we'd go back.

John Smith. Just got back from the restaurant an hour or so ago. The sole reason I went to this place was because I had tried a local Mexican restaurant that wasn't very tasty and did some online digging and found this one was well received. so I recommended it to my friends and we went there tonight. <br/><br/>There were four of us, two of us enjoyed our meals above average the other two didn't. Firstly the staff were brilliant, the waitresses were friendly and attentive, the food came out pretty fast and the owner gave us a miniscule discount because we gave the wrong amount and were scrambling around for change (a matter of a few cents difference but it was really appreciated). The fact the place was BYO is also a plus at restaurants these days imo, the corkage fee ($2 per person) was a little frustrating however (it's not too bad but I prefer flat fees rather than per person)<br/><br/>Now onto the food, as the menu indicates, it's really well priced, and the portions are really good. The combo's aren't that much bigger (as the price reflects) so stick to the one meal if you think the combo's are going to be super large. I got a combo and the downside is that it's a choice between "all chicken, all beef, all beans" rather than individual fillings for two different items. It is a nice large portion and super filling, but so are the meals by themselves. <br/><br/>I did enjoy mine, I the beans were less mushy and gross than other Mexican restaurants I've been too and way above average. It was a really nice homestyle meal. The problem was that my friends pointed out, was there was no real 'kick' to the meals. There was no distinct flavour. Sure the ingredients went well together, but it was all very bland, no amazing blend of spices, nothing was spicy, there was no rich tomato flavour. <br/><br/>Personally, as a vegetarian and having been to other Mexican restaurants and having to eat beans that are the equivalent to mush, I really enjoyed this meal. There wasn't too much going on but I liked it, simple and hearty. My friends who all chose meat dishes however found the food very bland and tasteless, two of them couldn't finish their meals. They won't be going back, but I might :)

Fresh, authentic Mexican food. We've been going to El Torito for 2 years now, and the food has been consistently great! No surprises at this place. We love everything on their menu - fresh, authentic Mexican food at affordable prices.

Mex without the tex. Great authentic latin american food without the gringo influence.

Best Mexican in Town. I'm not a massive mexican fan, but this place is awesome. It's genuine mexican cuisine! The meals are normal in size and fresh ingredients make the meals.<br/><br/>They're not too salty or too spicy. In my opinion, this place makes a joke of montezumas.<br/><br/>Give it a go - you wont regret it!

Best Mexican in Brisbane. Food is great consistently. BYO. 5 years this was my local weekly Mexican fix. Love it.

The good : fantastic food The bad : was refused a seat on a Friday night as we didn't have a reservation , so I simply called from outside the restaurant and was told a table was available in 5 mins time Found that a bit weird but the food really was good

Small but interesting space with yummy food! The mole poblano was tasty and a little spicy, perfect. Other dishes were good and the staff were friendly. Good place!

Fun and inexpensive. Homey Mexican fare. Am not familiar with Mexican food, but got introduced and now have to bring back some other friends. Fantastic authentic food that tasted very fresh and light on the stomach (which surprised me, as I am used to more heavier Mexican previously)

Greek or Mexican? We were still deciding where to eat, even after I had booked for dinner at El Torito. The thing that put me slightly off was that the restaurant was rather empty at 630pm for dinner, even though the venues near by were rather busy. For me, this isn't a good sign, as it can indicate the popularity, and hence, the quality of the food. However, we ended up with Mexican anyway. Given our menus and time to browse, I ended up choosing the Mole Poblano: Grilled chicken breast, smothered in mole sauce, that's served with rice and two tortillas. I had this dish at another Mexican establishment. I couldn't help but compare El Torito to La Quinta, as La Quinta was my first ever proper Mexican dinner experience. The chicken meat wasn't as moist and flavoursome as La Quinta, and the dish at the latter place had more elements to the dish, and it looked more appetising. The mole sauce is different, and I personally would've preferred a bit more spice to it. Overall, for me, it was a

If you want the most authentic Mexican experience in Brisbane, El Torito is where you go. Not only will you feel like you’re a native surrounded by the colourful decor throughout, the chef himself is from south of the boarder and serves dishes from his native country. You will find slow cooked beef stewed and chorizo quesadillas on the menu but for me the must-have dish is the El Torito Nachoes – generously topped with beef, chicken and beans, what more could you want?

El Torito has excellent, delicious and balanced food (however, the service could be sped up a little) - I would definitely eat here again - great for vegetarians with their wide selection of vegetarian options. 4 stars (out of five)!

The sauce on the Mole Poblano was thick and dark. After tasting it, I thought the sauce was very rich and the chicken breast was moist and tender. It seems that the sweetness of chocolate, spiciness of the chilli and all the other ingredients in the sauce were interacting with each other to create this distinct flavour. This dish has led my taste buds into a new territory that I have never experienced before.

El Torito has to have the honour of being the only Mexican place in town that isn’t fast food or rubbish; it does well in this regard and is all round a very good place to eat it’s also BYO including beer which is always a fantastic thing. It being the first Thursday in a while that I’ve had money to afford dinner meant that I had to go to dinner, so I called on some reliable friends for a meet at west end. It has been a few years since I last sat down at El Torito, last time I ate there the food was quite nice, but lacked a particular intangible that I can’t quite remember or determine. This time the stars lined up and the meal was fantastic.