Taco’s El Rey

Disgusting. Dirty. No plates. No forks. Crap service. Eat anywhere else. Don’t eat here ever.

The greatest Mexican food in the Olympia, Centralia area for sure!!! Great prices and portions and the food is legit!!! Los tacos de cabeza are on point! And los sopes are always delicious! All their meats are always so delicious and great. We come down from Oly all the time just to eat here cuz Oly has shitty Mexican food and it’s overpriced. Can you please open up a restaurant in oly? We’d come everyday!!!

El Rey’s food is the best Mexican food I’ve ever had. Been eating there for almost 20 years, I will always give that place 5 stars everytime.

We had the chicken burrito, steak tacos, and a chicken quesadilla. The burrito outshines the rest by far. Very tasty. Excellent flavor, seasonings. The sauces are fabulous. Quick, pleasant service. Lots of seating and it wasn’t dirty like other reviewers said. Just an old building. Lots of locals. We went to another in Moses lake and it was amazing.

El Rey Favorite Chicken Burrito is great. One of the best, if not the best, burrito I have had anywhere. Top with the green sauce– amazing! Recommend. Not the cleanest, but adequate, food more than makes up for it.

Place is a sh*t hole. Dirty and service sucked. Unless you are hispanic… I’ve noticed this BS several times here. It’s not right. Food? It’s damn good, but sometimes it’s a hit n miss.
I’ll be back but getting food to go.

Been coming here since the late 90’s back when it was in a bus. Sopes are crazy good, we make it a point to swing by Tacos El Ray each time we are in town.

This place has excellent food with real south of the border Flavors and live soccer! Will stop here again. It’s a bit of a drive off of I-​5 but not bad. Located in downtown Centralia.

I have been to Tacos El Rey several times and this time may be the last. We waited over 40 minutes for our food. The restaurant was filthy. Cobb webs hanging all over, dirty tables, dirty floors, no ice in the soda fountain, and the service was not great. Our food was just ok. After waiting that long for a small order and it being just okay makes us not want to return.

I really like the food here, it just tastes fresh and not greasy. The service is generally pretty good and the wait is usually reasonable. I would suggest trying their Pork and Pineapple Super Burrito, or their Taco’s El Rey Favorite Chicken Burrito. I have a roommate who ate here everyday for about a month.

They have the widest array of fillings for tacos including seso’s and tripas.
What’s not to like?
******
Am upping my rating to 5 stars
Was there on 4.13.15 and had 2 tacos with tripas and one with buche. with glasses of horchata.
Would have ordered one with chicharones, but they were sold out,
Shared a bowl of birria de chiva with my partner; lots of meat. and very good broth with freshly chopped white onions, limes and cilantro along with hand made tortillas.
Am surprised this restaurant has not been discovered.
Eat your heart out Anthony!

This has to be the best Mexican food I have ever had in the state of Washington. If I could I would give this place 4.5 stars. I wish they would move closer to Seattle because I am certain they would do well. Based on reviews on Unilocal I decided to stop here for a quick dinner run on our way back home as they are also one of the few places that stay open late. I ordered the chicken burrito and one beef taco. Loved my chicken burrito! Thinking about it now makes my mouth water. The beef taco was alright to me but my kids and husband enjoyed it. Their menu had cow tongue, brain, and etc. for those who are into other animal body parts. One last thing… I think there is parking on both sides of the restaurant. Park on the right side if you want a paved lot or you’ll be inhaling dust with gravel parking on the left side where their bus is parked.

I joined Unilocal to write this review! This small spot serves up tasty authentic Mexican fare at a great value. I went with the beef burrito and the steak tacos. Squeeze some lime juice on those tacos, drizzle some hot sauce, throw on the radishes, take a bite and your taste buds will delight.

The house burrito is so delicious. The sauce they use is different and buttery almost. This stop was a lucky one.

No décor. No chips. No salsa bar.
Everything you want, nothing you don’t.
Wi-​fi.
Paper towel rolls on each table.
Tapatio.
Salt.
Booths of nogahide (sp?) splendor.
And just the BEST tripa and al pastor I’ve EVER had. I’ve eaten a ton of amazing Mexican food all up and down the west coast and this little gem in centralia is one I would get off the freeway just to come visit. The young man behind the counter was super polite and awesome, the service took a whole because I think here was only one person making the food, adding to the anticipation.
The tripe was fried and crispy, the al pastor carmelized perfectly. The asana was super flavorful as well. The lengua was good as were the carnitas, but I have had better.
It’s totally worth it. Come here. Drop in. Have some Juicy Whip while you’re at it and a piece of super intense pumpkin candy and you will not be disappointed. Did I mention the price? The tacos are less than two dollars each!
Rave reviews from the rest of the table as well. Enjoy!

Excellent, authentic Mexican food! I am getting more and more convinced that Centralia may be the best place to go for this kind of food! I have been to three Mexican restaurants in this town now and all of them have been excellent!
I have been here twice now and both times the food was wonderful! The Asada tacos are tasty and infectious!
The last time I was here I got the Super Burrito which was so big and so good!
Other notable mentions go to the Carnitas as well! Simply wonderful tasting Mexican food!
The place may look a little rough going into as the outside windows are boarded because they are damaged and cracked but do not let that be a deterrent for going in here. Some of the best restaurants out there are not the showy ones! On the inside the place is nice and clean with good, friendly service! Really some good eats here!

This place may look a little «iffy» but the food is spectacular! My all time favorite is the Carne torta, its just heaven! It comes with Jalapenos on it, I just take them off rather than ordering it with out them, as it leaves a tiny bit of the flavor, with out the heat, which is perfect for me. The seasonings and flavors of the food they serve is outstanding, but I do wish the restaurant was nicer. I have to preface it with, «I know it doesnt look like much but…»

As a born and raised San Diegan, I know good Mexican food when I try it. And this place has the good stuff! It’s amazing!
The food here is not only authentic, but it’s down right tasty! So far I’ve tried their carnitas, carne asada, and lengua. All were superb! Whether you have any of the meats in a taco, burrito, torta, etc., you just can’t go wrong.
Even better are the prices. You can get items a la carte, which allows you to order specific items (typically between $ 1.50-$ 5.99). Or you can get one of their combination plates, which are very affordable and VERY filling ($ 8). Either way, you won’t be breaking the bank at this place.
And of course, I should mention that they carry very traditional Mexican dishes, such as goat stew and menudo. I haven’t had either, but I bet they are very authentic and therefore tasty as well.
All in all, this is my new to-​go place for authentic Mexican food when I’m on a budget… and in a hurry! Did I mention their service is quick and dependable!!!

OMG I died and went to heaven. This is the authentic Mexican food I’ve been searching Washington for. This little hole in the wall place is truly some of the best Mexican food I’ve had, California included. I know that’s a bold statement to make, but I take my Mexican food very seriously and this place is legit.
How can you not love the yellow walls or the giant cushy seating or the spanish channels on the TVs?! This all adds to the ambiance of this place. They have an extensive menu, including a lots of meats that a lot of other «Mexican» places don’t carry (menudo yes!) For $ 8 you can choose from a bunch of combos with get this… any meat you want! Yes, that includes barbacoa, adobada, carne, carne asada, pollo, lengua, carnitas and more. I set my sights on the number three consisting of a burrito, taco, and flauta each with carnitas, and rice and beans.
Everything about the carnitas was juicy and delish and just damn amazing!
I finally found a cheap Mexican place that has great food! Plus it’s open everyday, and it’s open late! Score!

We came here as a backup when our La Tarasca plan fell through. It was cheap, fast, and the food was OK, but not especially great. It’s pretty bare bones inside as far as décor (a roll of paper towels on every table, no sauces set out) and wasn’t very well heated — although it looks like most people just come in for take-​out, so maybe that’s not an issue.
Prices are cheap; the only thing I saw that was over $ 10 was the fajitas. My boyfriend had the carnitas platter ($ 9), which had generous portions but tasted pretty bland. The iceberg lettuce salad was covered in jalapeño peppers and cilantro, and kind of blah. My a la carte tacos ($ 1.50 each) were much better — the abodaba, recommended by other reviewers, was good and the al pastor was excellent.
Other reviewers mentioned the lack of cleanliness. The bathroom was a bit dodgy but I didn’t think it looked unsafe to eat there or anything. There are two big flat-​screen TVs blaring nonstop, which can be distracting. Overall, a good place to grab a quick bite if you’re on the road, or pick something up for takeout, but not a place you want to linger and soak up the ambience. I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat here again.