El Torito Grill

The food was tasty, but the service was disorganized. I asked for corn tortillas 4 times before I finally got some. By that time I was halfway through my entrée. As I looked around other tables had similar service issues.
This restaurant is trying to compete at a tough price point. Entrees are around 20 bucks. That just a bit high for a casual Mexican place. The décor, menus, bar and server attire are all more upscale than a standard El Torito. However, the service it simply too disorganized to carry off the upscale feel or price.
A damn shame, because my meal was yummy.

Before you skim through the list of very poor reviews for this place, please hear me out first.
You know those rare times when you find out about something truly special in a place where you never expected to find it? Well bomb diggity, this is one of those times.
Being the alcoholics that we are, my friends and I were craving margaritas on a Monday early evening. Too lazy to drag our butts over to Acapulco’s Margarita Mondays, we Unilocaled for a place nearby that served cheap margaritas and good food. Who would have thought that El Torito of all places would pop up on the screen. My friend found out that they did indeed have a happy hour going on at that exact moment, so we decided to check it out.
I had been to El Torito a couple times before this experience and I always enjoyed my meal but didn’t really look to come back for more, however, this was before I was 21.
When we arrived at the venue there was no waiter/​host in sight. So we sat ourselves in the bar area and were attended to almost as soon as we sat down in our booth. I’ve had some pretty memorable waiters in my day and now El Torito’s Patty from Guadalajara has been imprinted in my memory. She literally took us through all the specials during their HH and even told us which ones were the most popular and delicious; I didn’t have to ask a single question.
Basically the appetizers are half off as well as a bunch of margaritas, well drinks, and draft beers. After Guadalajara Patty’s speech, I ordered a Raspberry blended margarita ($ 4.25!!) and an appetizer to split with the bf (~$ 5.00). First thing to note, the margarita was HUGE. The tequila flavor wasn’t as heavy as I normally prefer it to be but one more of those babies and I would have been in a very good place. The Cantina Platter appetizer was pretty delicious (perfect finger foods) and for around $ 5.00, it put me in a very pleasant mood.
So before you dismiss this place as another chain of imitation Mexican restaurants with bad service, give their amazing Happy Hour a chance. It’s on weekdays from 4PM-​8PM and they also have some extended offers on Tuesdays and Thursdays (i.e Endless Enchiladas. oh what now?!)
Who knew such a thing existed right under our noses.

This place is walking distance from my new home so I’m sure I’ll be frequenting this location. Happy Hour everyday from 5 — 8pm. Deals on drinks and food. Love the warm tortillas with honey butter. Steak nachos for $ 5 during happy hour — delicious and affordable! Fresh guac is very tasty as well. $ 2 tacos on Tuesdays. The combo #1 — Chile relleno & grilled chicken and roasted corn enchilada is yummy. Service is excellent. Make sure to get your parking validated for the parking garage.

Went here with my coworkers one night after work before an Angels game to try out their happy hour. I love that it goes til 8 here so you’re not rushing after work to get there by 6 to get food and drinks in before happy hour is over.
Parking isn’t the most obvious. There’s a covered lot in the middle of the apartment complex off of Katella to park in. Be sure you get your parking ticket validated too or you will get charged after a certain amount of time. I’ve never had any trouble finding parking here either.
Great (strong) $ 5 Cadillac Margaritas. The staff was very friendly, quick and helpful with our large party out on the patio. I tried the Salmon Cones (also $ 5) off the happy hour menu. Delicious bite size cones filled with tender salmon, capers and pico de gallo. My coworkers raved about the sliders too. Great chips and salsa and the table side guacamole is always a must order at El Torito Grill. My favorite part though? The abundance of freshly made tortillas you get on your table to dip in the two different salsas, or that you can slather in their sweet butter. I will definitely be coming here again.

I love the Grill. The food is so much better than regular El Torito restaurants. It is like a completely different place that happens to share the same name.
Parking in inside the building and they do validate. Usually there is also a security guard there. I am think the parking validation because the stadium is across the street and people would park there all day for free to go to a game.
I think my favourite entrée is the Chipotle BBQ Shrimp. Although it just underwent a revision to be even more healthy, it is still really good. The fresh made tortillas (both corn and flour here) are delicious (and Free) and come with honey butter. There are also fresh chips and salsas that are unique to the Grill.
The flan is really good, my GF, cannot normally stand Flan, I think it normally is just ok, BUT at the Grill it is different from any Flan, anywhere. I love it here and so does she.

I ended up here last night because I was doing some sidework down the street and I had no desire to have fast food or Denny’s.
First thought: No parking? However, if I read the signs, parking is actually in the structure hidden from the street. I almost ended up parking across the street at the Denny’s parking lot.
Second thought: Is this an El Torito? It’s a lot nicer than any El Torito I’ve ever been to. Different menus and the prices seemed a little higher than what I’ve paid before.
Service: Decent. It wasn’t very busy so I felt that my server could have been a little more attentive and that the food could have been served a little faster.
Food: OK — nothing spectacular or worth bashing.
I was hungry and this place served its purpose. It’s a little pricier than I had initially wanted to pay however it wasn’t so bad that I walked out.

Really bummed they don’t have Sunday brunch. The one in Brea is much better. This poor little El Torito grill is like the El Torito time forgot. I never see anyone there. I’ve eaten there a couple times now and yeah, go to the Brea location. Much better everything. Or go to the regular El Torito on State College and Lincoln (?) or Ball (?) — you know, the one by the Benihanas…
Although, they do have happy hour from 2 – 8 pm M-​F. That WOULD be cool IF they actually had a Happy Hour menu… You can get the same stuff anytime… And the HH menu has only 4 things on it…
Take my advice and hit up The Catch on the other corner (Katella and Sportstown) for their 2 – 7 pm Happy Hour M-​F. Amazing food, menu and drink specials…

This is basically a healthier version of El Torito. They sometimes serve endless, fresh, and hot flour tortillas with salsa and butter instead of the regular chips and salsa. I love, love their fresh tortillas!
My favorite dishes:
* Mesquite-​grilled free-​range chicken salad (Includes baby spinach, arugula, blood oranges, pineapple, green beans, mango, cotija cheese mixed in habenero-​lime vinaigrette, and topped with grilled chicken)
*Carne asada y camarones (this is my favorite main course, the skirt steak and grilled shrimp is very flavorful, and I love the cilantro rice that comes with the it!)
*Soft tacos (not the best tacos but does the job; I like the steak tacos most.)
*Blended Mango Margarita (the bf’s favorite)
This is our usual spot for lunch or dinner when we can’t decide where to eat.

We live within walking distance, so have gone here several times. Everytime, we have been slightly disappointed. Yes, we love the freshly made tortillas with butter, and the warm chips & salsa they give you, but really this place is not that good for the price. This is not your typical El Torito. They have fancy things that look good, and tastes good, but not sooooo good that you feel good paying $ 15 – 20 per dish. The portions are pretty decent though. The desserts are beautiful, but again not worth the price.
We have also been here for Taco Tuesdays with tacos being $ 1.50 each, but you have to make them yourself at the bar, and they are just tacos you could probably make at home (with the exception of freshly made tortillas). They offer parmesan cheese (more like powder) rather than grated cheese, so i don’t put any on my tacos. If it weren’t for those tortillas (ask for these with the butter if they don’t give it to you during happy hour), we would probably not come here.
I’ve been there enough times now to think I really don’t want to go back, but probably will once in a while since we live so close and really like those fresh hot tortillas and sweet butter.

I’ve been here a few times & have always been disappointed but kept going back hoping our experience would improve. I ordered the mixed fajitas we chicken & shrimp with rice & beans. Let me tell you, I paid $ 18 dollars for this dish & only received about 3 medium shrimp and 5 thin strips of chicken with a lot of onion and a lot of bell peppers. Not only that, but my beans were cold & the tortillas were cold as well. My boyfriend ordered the Pollo Adobado a la Parilla which was around $ 16 but was one of the smallest chicken breast ever and they were out of sweet corn cake.
I was visibly annoyed yet the manager would only pass by smiling & saying,“hi guys, I hope everything is ok!” but she would not stop long enough for you to answer.
Will NOT be back ever again.

This place is great to come to before a game at the Ducks or Angels. The staff is friendly and they make it an effort to make sure your comfortable.
The bar area is nice, and has a decent amount of TV’s. The drinks are okay. My favorite snack there is the Mexican Platter, I would suggest that.
Good for lunch meetings… but I’m not a fan of their dinner, it’s like fake Mexican food.
PS. Their lemonade is good.

What does one eat before they see a concert at the Honda Center aka the Pond of Anaheim? Great question as we scrambled to find a decent place to grab a couple of drinks and some decent food.
We were in luck it was Taco Tuesday and happy hour lasted until 8pm.
They have a taco station set up in the bar area and for $ 1.50 you get your choice of carnitas, carne asada or chicken. We quickly chowed a couple of those and washed them down with happy hour drinks. I have to remind myself I have yet to find any Mexican restaurant (authentic or non-​authentic) that can make a decent Martini. Ditto for this place. I know I am one of the few who does not like TeKillYa.
Asked for Ceviche but they had not made any that night, so we ordered the table side guacamole but the avocados weren’t ripe and our server killed it with tons of lime juice.
We also tried the BBQ sliders, also a happy hour item, ya, not so much.
Chips and salsa and the tacos were good, price was reasonable and we got out in plenty of time to catch the start of the show.
I would probably go back before or after an Angels game but not for any other reason.

Went in to eat on a Friday Night around 8:00. We sat there about 15 minutes before anyone brought us tortillas. We finally got to order about a half hour later. We waited another 20 minutes for salads that never came. They then brought us chips. We kept waiting another 20 mins and still no dinner. They brought a margarita that was mostly ice. What did we do? Threw down 20 dollars and left without ever having being fed. We went somewhere else.
Horrible experience.

What’s the difference between El Torito Grill and El Torito?
Smaller portions, higher prices, better appetizers, and mole.
Other than that, it’s a coin toss. This particular location has it’s own pros and cons. The wait staff, the fresh tortillas and sweet butter, and the chipotle salsa are all very nice. However, the awkward location and ridiculous parking situation accounts for why you’ll likely be one of the very few customers there. In the end, El Torito Grill is just a failed idea. There isn’t enough to set it apart from El Torito that justifies opting for the Grill.

You had me at fresh homemade flour tortillas. Endlessly brought to the table piping hot, served with butter, salsa and a roasted chipotle salsa. Worth just going for the that.
Mojito was pretty good. Not the greatest we’ve had but still decent.
Hubby ordered the Fajita Salad and liked it. I ordered the Chipotle BBQ Shimp. Not what I was picturing at all by the description but it was really good. The sauce it came in was incredible. Although honestly? I kinda ordered it cause I’m a sucker for plantains. But when it came out I noticed my plate was a little on the lonely side. When I asked my server if maybe I was mistaken but I thought it came with plantains, he told me it didn’t. Could my little peepers be deceiving me? Am I imagining deliciousness where it doesn’t belong? No. I double checked the menu as I walked out. I was right. Snap!

We were at Angel Stadium for Supercross and El Torito is within walking distance from the stadium.
I ordered the cheese enchiladas. The enchiladas themselves were bland. The red chile sauce was quite tasty though. The rice was ok. I am not a big cilantro fan so I requested plain rice to be fair. It also comes with a corn cake. The corn cake was barely the size of a quarter. It tasted ok, but it needs to be at least twice that size to be ok.
Our server was nice, but it took far too long for us to get our food.

I do not like this place, yet I always end up getting dragged here by my family who apparently think it’s the best place ever. They are convinced this is «authentic» Mexican food. Yes, they don’t leave suburbia very often…
I’ll start off with what I DO like here. The tortillas are SUPER good. They are delivered hot and fresh with delicious butter. I also like how the salsa is not too chunky. The sweet corn cake is really moist and tasty as well.
The ambiance is quite nice as well. More fancy than your average Mexican restaurant. They also have a convenient seating system where you can be put in the main dining room, or more towards the back if you’ve got screaming little rugrats that you want to keep away from the general population. Just be careful: If you get put in one of these back areas, you probably won’t get very good service.
What I don’t like: The rest of the food! All they have is black beans. A Mexican restaurant that doesn’t have pinto beans! WTF? The tortillas they serve burritos in are weird. They are red and they are spicy. I prefer plain old flour tortillas for my burritos. Also, the rice is green and tangy. Yuck! The other meals I have seen look plain yucky too.
This place is just trying too hard to be exotic and «authentic». They charge more for their meals because of this, and it seems that a lot of people just lap it up!

I LOVE El Torito Grill. It has become one of my favorite restaurants these past couple of months.
They make some of the best chips and salsa ever! And if you have read some of my reviews, then by now you know that chips and salsa is my favorite food. My third favorite food is ceviche. I haven’t decided what my second favorite food is yet.
Anyway, I tried the shrimp cocktail for the first time the last time I came, and by shrimp cocktail I mean the Mexican version. So it has a tomato-​lemony brothy thingy with shrimp, avocado, onion, tomato, and cilantro. The server makes it for you at the table and asks you how spicy you want the broth. The result is perfection!!! This shrimp cocktail tastes exactly like my dad makes. And I am very picky because my parents are AMAZING cooks. :D Sooo good. Mmm.
Well I have tried the carnitas from here, and they are delicious. Also, the enchiladas are good and so is the rice and beans!!!
The fried ice cream is also delicious if you need something sweet at the end of your meal. :D
I have tried the micheladas from here, and they are very good! :D

Yankees vs Angels Game 5 — Angels Win, and So do I !!!
My friend Oscar and I were starving from the marvelous never ending 12^th inning game, the hot dog and pretzel did no justice for our tummy. We spot out El Toritio Grill at the corner just minding its own business and we interrupted.
Once inside, I thought about regular El Toritos vs El Torito Grill. Much fancier, much more modern, and they even have the desserts on plates for you to see (They totally went Claim Jumper on this one) as youre walking by.
Our waitor was fantastic, he knew the menu like left to right along with the ingredients and specials of the day, need I say he also gave his favorites and made us almost want to get the whole damn menu. The way he was describing the taste and ingredients of the dishes… the more saliva went slipping out my mouth.
SCORE! We ordered two main dishes, and one dessert. I do have to say i missed the tortilla and chips as your complimentary appetizer but the tortillas and salsa kept us entertained.
I definitely will be coming back again!

The older girls wanted to go to Cheesecake factory at the Anaheim Garden Walk, but being 7PM on a Friday night, there was a huge crowd waiting outside. We knew the wait would be at least an hour, so we drove on by, and saw this this El Torito Grill a little further down on Katella. Parked our van in a lot, and we were seated immediately.
This is an upscale version of the El Torito chain, mostly located in Southern California. None in Norcal.
After we were seated and handed our menus, fresh, hot tortillas with salsa fresca, chipotle salsa, and butter were served. This is the signiture of this chain. Kids loved them, and the waiter brought out more for us. After studying the menu, we ordered the following:
–Guacamole: One of the waiters came by with 2 Hass avocados, slices in half. Asked if we like it spicy. Michael A and I like it spicy, but not sure about everyone else, so asked for medium spiciness. The waiter scooped out the avocados, added Serrano chiles, tomatoes, diced onions, cilantro and fresh squeezed lime. Served with crisp tostaditas, or little round tostadas. Also dropped off a basket of multicolored tortilla chips. Right amount of spiciness, and the avocados were nice and coarsely smashed.
–beef fajita burrito: mesquite-​grilled steak with roasted pasilla chiles and jack cheese wrapped in red chile corn crepes. Came with side of pinto and black beans, rice, and sweet corn cake. Pretty large, only finished half.
–Mexican platter: This was an appetizer plate with chicken and shrimp taquitos, steak nachos, cheese quesadilla, chipotle barbecue ribs, tomatillo-​avocado sauce and red pepper dip. Instead of an entrée, Michael A ordered this for himself. There’s a lot on this appetizer plate. I tried the BBQ chipotle ribs. These were baby back ribs, and the meat fell right off the bone. Nice smoky taste from the chipotle.
–Each kid ordered a kid’s entrée: beef fajitas, chicken quesadillas with fries, chicken fajitas. All of them were pretty good sized for a kids meal.
–Tortilla soup: Wfe ordered this for the youngest. Didn’t have a chance to try this soup, but lots of veggies, and soup was more of a clear soup.
–Carnitas Yucatan: I ordered this. The pork is marinated with garlic, achiote, fresh lime and orange juices and spices. It’s topped with citrus-​habanero marinated red onions and comes with red and black beans, rice, avocado relish and sweet corn cake. The carnitas had a citrus taste, but not overly citrusy. Also a smokey taste from the spices, and the meat was very moist. Great with the freshly made tortillas.
It was pretty busy that night, but the service was pretty attentive, and the food come out quickly. Still remains one of my favorite chains in Southern Cal.