Papi’s Tacos

So, finally got my Unilocal account fixed and I’m way behind! Stopped here 3 – 4 weeks ago for lunch and service was great even tho the bar was still busy. Post «prime– time» lunch (approximately 1:30) crowd. Had the tacos with wonderful sweet onions, yum. Great margaritas too. Sign up for their club and get your start on free tacos!

From the firecracker salt on the chips to the happy hour sangria ($ 4!) served in pint glasses, I don’t think you could ask for a better Tex-​Mex place in Baltimore.
The food is served fast and hot. It’s always delicious (I think I’ve tried about ²⁄₃ of the menu and it’s only because I won’t eat seafood that I haven’t had the rest). The choose your own adventure street tacos are my favorite, they are the best way for everyone to get exactly what they want. The staff are incredibly nice whether the place is wall to wall customers or you’re the only table in the place.
It’s become such a mainstay in our house that people who visit make sure we hit Papi’s at least once during their time in Baltimore because it’s one of the best places to eat in Fells.

The plantain appetizer was probably the best thing we had all night. Just the perfect texture and sweetness in each bite. So do not miss out on that!
My chilaquiles were honestly just okay, middle of the road for me. Eggs were cooked nicely with runny yolks, but I just wasn’t a fan of the sauce on the chilaquiles. SX ordered tacos, but was not a fan that there were vegetables in the tacos. He was expecting a more traditional style, with just the meat with onions, cilantro, radishes, and salsa on a corn tortilla.
My sister is a fan of this place, but I’m not completely sold.
There was a bit of a wait when we went, the hostess was able to call us when a table became ready. I’m not sure if it was due to staffing, but they didn’t open the back room for seating, so the wait for a table took awhile.

It would probably be 4.5 if I could. I took a friend of mine who was in from out of town dealing with her husband’s health issues. He is being treated at Johns Hopkins. …she needed a break. The food is exceptional, the ambiance is what I would expect from a hometown Bmore Bar & Grill. I go here for the grill. I always love to show my tourist friends what is NOT on the beaten path. Wonderful veggie tacos. Chips and salsa abound… friendly people… I mean… what else could you ask for.

Great little taco place for lunch in Fell’s Point. The restaurant was split into two different areas: one with the bar, and one without (just tables). Upon seating, the waitress brought my table chips and salsa which were great for munching while looking over the menu.
I ordered the Chicken Tinga and Baha Mahi tacos, authentic style. The fish tacos were a little dry, but the chicken tacos were great. Usually you get two tacos per order, but make sure to make it out on a Tuesday, where they throw in an extra taco (3/​order instead!). Really great deal! Reasonably priced, clean, and friendly staff!

Good stuff! Great service team!
Seated immediately even though there was a line at the bar.
My Shrimp Burrito was delicious, complimented with a cold Dos Equis. Loved the salsa and guacamole too.
My one friend loved his quesadillas and red sangrias.
We’ll definitely be returning another weekend…

I love this place… the drinks are strong and the food is good! They have awesome HH specials and if I recall correctly have weekend specials! This is a hidden gem!

Awesome place, went for the first time last night– sat on the back patio with my date and was really happy we didn’t sit on the street. Very quiet and intimate– nice décor. she had chicken tacos and I had shrimp enchiladas which were fresh and tasty– not as spicy as I would have liked even tho I order there spicer sauce, Oh well — service was excellent — ambiance was on point for the back of a restaurant in fells. Lovely dinner date destination. Will be going back for happy hour very soon!
Had a great time here at happy hour, awesome food deals and excellent service. I love the music and bubbly bartenders. Will be back!!! Quesadillas are awesome and so are the platanos!!! GO!

The food was so much better than I remembered. We went there with 2 adults and 3 kids and the patio was a perfect place to be on a warm December Sunday. My jalepeno margarita was delicious and the fish tacos and quesadilla with veggies was also very good. I think a good time was had by all.

Seriously, everything that I tried here was amazing. My husband and I came with friends and ordered so many things on the menu; they were all good. The ceviche, the guacamole, the tacos, the cocktails were all outstanding and the service was friendly. We enjoyed having the entire back patio to ourselves and had a blast.

This place is not tasty at all – Pay attention to the reviews. Everyone is talking about the bar.
We had the street tacos and a burrito. These were the smallest tacos I’ve ever seen in my life. I’m from San Diego, California so I have high standards when it comes to Mexican food, but I’m actually pretty reasonable and went to this place with an open mind.
The meat was not good. Taco shells have to specially ordered to be that small. Toppings aren’t fresh either. There were some extremely drunk people here so that is why the food probably tasted decent to them.
Disappointing to say the least.

Sorry! I wish that I had taken a pix of the tacos! Lol YUM! They were delish! 3 for 5 during HH… which ends at 7!
Andre was our bartender /​waiter! He ROCKS! The classic margaritas– yum! The first basket of chips and salsa are free? You can’t go wrong!!!
Small and quaint! Nice for a gathering of friends!

Papi’s is really fantastic. We decided to stop in to break the monotony of a 7 hours drive back to northern Virginia with our three kids in the car. My wife, and former Baltimore resident suggested we head over to her old stomping ground. Somewhere around Aberdeen she zoomed in on Papi’s.
So, here is the review. I had a margarita as it was happy hour and it was very good and extremely authentic. I suggest you go with the house, vigorously shaken and with two straws. So off to a good start.
For dinner I enjoyed the fish (mahi) tacos. WOW! These grilled delights tantalized my pallet! The lightness of the fish coupled with the slightly sweet pineapple salsa was truly a perfect summer dish. I went with the traditional style ie non-​gringo which meant no lettuce, cheese or traditional salsa and it didn’t disappoint.
My wife had the beef short rib taco. She ordered this at the recommendation of our server (Lynnsey) and the the only words out of my wife’s mouth were, «fabulous, fabulous, fabulous.» And that means a lot.
I hope you enjoy the food as much as we did.

I really like Papi’s. Love the build your own street tacos and margs. I always get my tacos Gringo style, I’ve had the chicken, chorizo, and carnitas– all were great. They use the right amount of spice without making your tongue feel like it wants to crawl out of your mouth. Margs are always strong and tasty. Really like the free chips and salsa, their salsa is real good too not like that tomato-​y garbage they give you at most Mexican places. The have a pretty great happy hour as well.
The place is kind of small in the bar area, but they have quite a few tables in the back and to the side if you need more room. The bartenders and servers are always attentive and personable. Food and drinks come out really fast.

In a city where one typically must choose between authentic Mexican and American Mexican, Papi’s offers the best of both worlds. Specializing in a wide array of meats, fixings, toppings, and styles for their tacos, groups can get just about any style of Mexican food their little hearts desire.
Sad to see some of the negative reviews, as both of my visits to Papi’s have been a huge success! I’ve tried the plantains, yuca, and queso as apps. Everything was well prepared, with the plantains and yuca’s savory sweetness complementing the rich white queso laden with bits of spicy chorizo. Their complementary homemade chips are perfectly fried: light and crunchy tortillas that dissolve in your mouth. The salsa is fresh and bright with just enough heat.
I’ve always steered straight for the taco front when it comes to entrees at Papi’s. So far, I’ve tried the braised short rib, chipotle roasted chicken, maggi and butter braised lobster, and the margarita marinated fish with salsa pina. Having gone with both the authentic and gringo style, I prefer the former with soft corn tortillas. It’s really up to personal preference though, they’ve delivered on everythign I’ve ordered thus far.
On top of the tasty tacos and apps, Papi’s has an awesome vibe both inside and out. Out front, there’s the traditional patio seating — great for sunlight and people watching. Prefer a more secluded, perhapos romantic setting, but still want the fresh air and outdoor feel? Try their back patio: high brick walls with ivy climbing, low lighting by candle and twinkle lights… if you’re not careful you’ll end up thinking you stumbled into a seaside café in Zihuatanejo. Not one to bear the elements while you chow down? Zip on inside and snag a table inside, or a seat at the bar. Papi’s has you covered when it comes to options.

I didn’t know what to really expect when coming here other than I was going to eat some tacos.
Tiny little joint with very minimal seating. I’m not sure if there is more seating in the back of the restaurant or not, but from what I saw it was just bar seating, two person high-​tops, and some seating outside. Came right at lunch time so was easy to grab a seat at the bar, but it did start get more crowded as we sat there.
The free chips & salsa is always a favorite for me whenever I go out to mexican/​tex-​mex joints. The salsa here was decent, but I wasn’t blown away by it.
Ordered two tacos street style, but wish I would’ve ordered two more because they were quite excellent. That pork was amazing.
The service was a bit slow, though the bartender/​server did have a bit of a mix up with our order, he lost our paper, and we ended having to repeat our order to him. Other than that the guy was pretty friendly and never let our water cups empty.
Can’t wait to come back and try some other stuff on the menu.

Yum! Decided to come here for dinner after getting my nails done around the corner. My boyfriend biked down and met up with me. We were seated inside– tight seating but not family style.
Chips were good put we added heat to the salsa. Overall good though!
We decided to get the street tacos and share. We ordered four different ones and the only one I didn’t care for was the chicken– there was something either slightly smokey about it or some flavor that just didn’t sit with me. They don’t skimp on the meat and there’s plenty of hot sauce at the table for those of us who want it. I also got a small guac and that was a perfect size.
I had the Pomegranate Margarita and my boyfriend had one of the other margs. These will put you on your ass if you aren’t careful. They’re delicious but make sure you have a DD.
Service was good, attentive and quick, even with it being as noisy as it was.

I love going to Happy Hours here. (M-​F 4−7pm) $ 4 Sangrias, Margaritas and $ 1 tacos and $ 3 draft beers. Price is too good. The white sangria is my favorite and you can add in extra fruit flavors for 0.50 cents. The margarita was a bit too salty for my taste. And you can’t beat dollar tacos.
Oh and they give you free chips with salsa :) The only thing is that service is kind of slow. We went in at 4pm and there weren’t even that many people but it took a while to get a servers attention.

I would say and 4.5 stars! This is a fabulous spot in Fells Point that I hope to visit over and over. Came for brunch on a Sunday and really enjoyed the whole experience. I really liked the options for meat that weren’t just chicken, steak and beef. They offer short ribs, chorizo, fish, shrimp, veggies and so many others!
I had the shrimp enchiladas and they are a perfect size with the verde sauce. The meal was so flavorful and perfect. My boyfriend had a dish I’de never seen before — Chicharrones Preparados it was also excellent. For brunch they offer all you can drink for $ 12 or $ 3 a drink and they make a fabulous sunrise! In addition to great food and drinks the atmosphere is really stunning we sat «out back» and it was really neat. The whole place is really cool. The -.5 is for no reservations/​no one picking up the phone to answer a few questions prior to coming.
Can’t wait to go back.

I was about to give an extra star for the outlets in the bar that you can use to charge your phone, but after I read my review, I just couldn’t justify a 4 star rating for this place. The bartender said they put the outlets in partially for their own convenience (not having customers constantly ask to put their phone behind the bar), but I dig it so much. My phone is always dying, and I love that I could charge it here without issue.
Points for cheap tacos and margaritas during happy hour. The tacos were tasty and well put-​together. The margaritas weren’t anything to write home about, but they were cheap in price but not in taste. I didn’t dig the sangria really. I don’t know what was off about it, but it just wasn’t a fave for me.
The atmosphere/​service was meh. Happy hour was pretty laid back and tame which I liked, but as we moved out and the Friday night crowd moved it, it was starting to get a little too packed for my taste. Also, the bartenders were not as attentive as I would have liked. We were sitting AT the bar and our drinks went unrefreshed for a little longer than necessary. Overall, not a bad experience, but not one to go out of the way for either. We will definitely be back in nice weather to check out the patio seating, so maybe another review is to come.