Pepino’s Taco Stand

This joint is a freakin joke! Possibly worse burritos than the frozen jobbies made in Mongolia by camel herders and shipped through North Korea, 50 cents a dozen in your 7 – 11 frozen foods section. The guy warned me that the burrito would be small, but I figured for 4 dollars it has to at least be more than 3 bites? Never thought I would say to anyone «Go to Taco Bell instead». Hard to believe, maybe that is what people mean with «Maine-​Mex».

I was super excited to have a Mexican restaurant in downtown Bangor. But I’d been to pepinos on Stillwater Ave in Bangor and hadn’t been impressed. I thought I’d give this place another try after many friends had visited. I love this location it’s cool to have 3 different rooms. But the food is… meh. I ordered a burrito and enchilada combo. Plain and blah. The burrito was just shredded dry chicken and cheese, and the enchilada was dry shredded chicken, no cheese, no green chiles or beans, and a little sauce, topped with lettuce and tomato. I didn’t bother to eat the enchilada. And the burrito hardly filled me. The rice that came on the side looked the most interesting but still no flavor. We also had guacamole that didn’t taste authentic, more like it had been squeezed from a tube. And most meals were $ 10-​$ 15? For canned chicken and cheese? Bland, boring, blah. Had a great drink though and the accommodated our large party quickly despite their early closing hour. But I wouldn’t return. Oh well!

Acceptable food. It will keep you alive.

Pretty good New England Mexican food. The hot sauces are hot and the highlight of this extablishment. If you are expecting a big california rice and beans burrito, check those expectations at the chalkboard menu! These are simple burritos, think frozen burrito size and filings. Tasty but not incredible. We laughed at the small size of our +$ 20 order, but for the area it beats the other options.

I have been coming to Pepino’s quite literally all my life – my parents lived right across the street at the time I was born, so I was in there as a baby. Every time we have come back to Bangor, we have made a point of eating here, and it continues to be quite pleasant. Everything we had was delicious, and I highly recommend them.

This place has improved significantly over the past few years. They easily have some of the best fish tacos in the state right now. The standard American beef tacos are okay, but the specialty tacos are what you need to go here for. The house made hot sauces are also excellent. Good value, great tacos, win.