El 42 Cantina

Amazing drinks. Very good food. A fun atmosphere — especially on a Friday or Saturday night.
Service can be a bit slow when it’s busy, but the servers are pleasant.
No one under 21 — which is a bummer because their food is good and my teens would enjoy it — but otherwise highly recommended.

We went here for the first time Saturday night with friends. I was a little leery due to some reviews of the service. I found NO problems, in fact our server Diane was great. There were no empty tables when we arrived (just after happy hour ended), so she greeted us, told us it wouldn’t be long, and took our drink order while we waited. We had a table within 10 minutes. She was very helpful describing their many salsa variations and attentive without being pushy. We also got the guacamole — could’ve used a little salt, but easily remedied. My husband had the special short rib burrito, and I tried the crispy fish tacos. Both of us left happy. Their rice and beans are delicious — usually more of an afterthought, but here they’re very flavorful. And I highly recommend the Cadillac margarita — $ 1 more than the house margarita, but so much tastier.

Closes at 1AM? I just called for a pick up and was informed they close at 11:30PM on Saturdays. Easy to get your Unilocal page correct. Not easy to please everyone though. I wish them the best of luck!

There is no place like El 42 Cantina anywhere in Issaquah. The food is delicious and unique compared to other «Mexican» food places. The fish tacos are my favorite! They usually have awesome specials as well. Drinks are high quality. It’s a little pricey for us to go on a regular basis though. El 42 is a kind of a special date night place.

It’s OK. Sometimes I go and it’s fantastic and other times it’s not so good. There does seem to be some inconsistency here. Not sure what the issue is as I’ve ordered the same thing a few times and it was amazing but the last time I got the shrimp enchiladas it was so horribly fishy and disgusting I felt sick. Guacamole and salsas are great but they are a little over the top on their pricing. I definitely have mixed feelings on this place.

Love this place, they have a large assortment of tequilas to taste but our favorite is the El Jefe burger, to start the burger itself is made of high quality meat, it’s topped with cheese, jalapeño bacon, their special guacamole served on a chibata bun. It’s an awesome burger, in my top 2.
They have Happy Hour every day from 4 to 6 and the burgers are half price. They are closed on Mondays.

the good and the bad: They have best chips and what a variety of delicious salsas-​rated from 0 to 10 «stars» heat. We both love, love, love the Happy Hour appetizers.
Here’s the rub: the out-​of-​this-​world-​good Habanero Margarita is unparalleled, but if you ask for a double, they don’t just charge for an extra shot-​the $ 9 margarita is instantly an $ 18 margarita and nobody tells you, until you get the bill. No sympathy, either! the bartender is borderline contemptuous. Yah dude, just sayin’.

We go in here fairly regularly for drinks. We do not eat here. I watched a kitchen worker walk out of the bathroom while I could still hear the toilet flushing, so I knew he had not washed his hands.
I am giving this place 3 stars because the wait staff has almost always been good. We go in here enough that we have had less than stellar service before, but definitely not regularly. The tequila selection is ok, but not as good as I would expect from a tequila bar. They have a «passport» which is a book with tequilas listed in it that you can go through and when you finish it you get a plaque or some shit. We don’t really care about the plaque, but there is something about the passport that feels like a challenge to me, so I kind of enjoy going through the tequilas.
We will continue to go to this establishment as we like issaquah and tequila, so this is kind of a perfect situation.

Came here for a late night drink and food and noticed the happy hour. Tacos were very good (al pastor and steak). Nachos were huge and also tasted good. However service from bartender/​server was terrible. Had to flag her down each time we needed something. We enjoyed the tacos so much we ordered 2 more but couldn’t finish them or half of our nachos. Asked for a box and we were unpleasantly told that was not possible during happy hour. We were told we’d have to pay full price if we wanted a box to take our remaining food home. How stupid was this? It’s not like we ordered a massive amount to just take home on purpose. It was literally our leftovers that they would be throwing in the trash once we left. Felt like the server got joy in telling us this. Inattentive service with not being allowed to take home our happy hour leftovers, no thanks– we will not be spending our money here again.

The guacamole here is super awesome (love the bacon bits taste on top)… If you like something new, try the plantain chips with the guac — super good! The place opens at 4pm so make sure you travel accordingly. .
The Happy Hour food and drink are both good and offers good value for money.
I ordered the El Gringo burger, it was good, but i will try other dishes next time

I would suggest that they hire a new staff entirely. We were traveling front street stopping by different bars and wanted to come here. First we walked in and looked at the drink menu to which the woman behind the bar said «are you going to order something?» In a tone that no one working in customer service should ever have. We decided we would sit outside to which she seemed annoyed that we wanted to sit in the nice weather. When we moved back in, we were given a waitress who was nice and seemed to keep a decent amount of attention between all her growing tables. At one point we thought she literally left. Good drinks, but I suggest if you’re going to specialize in tequila your staff shouldn’t answer «um» when I ask about certain tequilas and pairings. Didn’t try the food, didn’t wanna wait another hour.

The nachos. A-​mazing! Just the basics (cheese, fresh chips, guac, salsa and cream) but probably the best we’ve ever had. We also had the seafood stuffed poblano and it was awesome too. Service was and the friendly establishment is small but well worth it. Tequilas were a couple dollars overpriced compared to Seattle bars.

We were really hoping to try the food based on reviews. It was a slower night and after the menus were dropped off, we waited patiently and watched 4 other tables that came in after us have their orders taken. No eye contact so we left. Not a good 1^st impression.

El 42 Cantina entry way in little unwelcoming and the interior as a little bit of a dive bar feel. But the food is good — especially the maui maui tacos (which our server pronounced Maw-​Ahi Maw-​Ahi).
Our server was TERRIBLE. The restaurant is tiny and we had to flag our server down! I ordered a second glass of wine and the server took the ½ gone first glass and poured into the new glass!!!
I would try it again, but I wouldn’t expect much in the service department!

The food is outstandingly tasty! Their duck confit taquitos are the best, they will melt in your mouth. A little pricey but worth it! They have plantain chips sided with a type of peanut sauce which is amazing!
The staff is very friendly and fast. They have a cool painted indoor deck out back.

Great atmosphere, good margaritas, service and food. The chili relleno is the bomb. We’ll be going back again. Best Mexican food I’ve had since moving to Washington from CA.

Thank you Unilocal!
El 42 Cantina is one of those restaurants I would never have tried had I not used Unilocal.I don’t frequently visit Issaquah, and it’s not in a part of Issaquah I’ve ever been in the decade and a half I’ve lived in the county. When I first saw it from the outside I even second guessed my decision, all based on Unilocal,because the windows were so dark, parking was difficult to find, and the restaurant was so tiny and red.
The red was really the first thing I noticed. Bold red walls that absolutely pop! And it is very small with tables open to whoever wants to grab them. Not sure where to sit I sheepishly took a table in the corner and the last of my reserves melted away when my super nice server came over.
My server was phenomenal. She was attentive, and friendly. She was casual without being absent, funny without being corny, and just genuine. I can’t speak to the level of service this place has.
I was there for happy hour so I ordered two grilled beef tacos ala carte with rojo rice and beans. My friend ordered the nachos and I drank a sangria. The sangria was great, but was quickly forgotten when it came to the food. The tacos were delectable, the rice a kick of spice, and the beans scrumptious. I was very happy! Though I was still hungry after finishing this off, so we ordered the churros for dessert.
Now, let me back up. Long ago the first churro I ever ate was fantastic. It was crunchy on the outside, soft in the inside, with the perfect coating of cinnamon and sugar that stuck on with every bite. Since every churro I had has been ok, but not great. These churros were amazing. Six delicious perfectly sized churros with a strawberry and chocolate to dip them into. I was tempted to lick the plate afterward it was that good!
So thank you Unilocal for this incredible recommendation!

I was certain I had reviewed 42 before, but maybe not. Too bad, because it may mean somebody has missed out! The place is another offshoot from the owners of Jaks, which is right next door. I do not care for Jaks, but 42 makes up for it! I love love love this place.
Happy hour options are great — do not miss the house margarita with a habanero infusion.
My first visit I chose the tacos el pastor and was very satisfied. But I watched another table get served several plates of what appeared to be incredible burgers. Next time…
Next time I did it — the El Jefe Picante burger. You will never have a more satisfying burger. It comes on a bun from a Filipino bakery in the I District that is amazing. I plan on getting some and using for an Italian Beef sandwich (you know what I’m sayin’ if you know what I’m sayin’). There is aioli and avocado and bacon and cheese and high quality melt in your mouth — my oh my.
Get the plantain chips too!
Tons of salsa to choose from. After a few visits I have my preference down. Verde, arbor, and the basic red. I mix in the Arbol with the red to give it he kick it needs, but the Arbol on its own is wicked hot. And this comes from a hothead who always chooses habanero.
Service is always attentive no matter how busy, but all my visits have been on the earlier side during happy hour.
See you there!

Good selection of wine by the glass. The jalapeño burger is excellent. Salads are average. The plantains and guacamole are delicious. They sometimes gets crowded. Great Issaquah Location

So much to like about this place! But for everything I liked, there were things that I didn’t like. Definitely a trade off.
There was no wait, we were seated in the cantina right away. The restaurant was busy but not overcrowded. Great option for a Saturday night out with my husband. We both agreed that this would be a great place to bring friends to or maybe work colleagues. It’s a little dressier than most of the Mexican restaurants in the area, but still casual enough I got away with wearing yoga pants without any weird looks! Haha! Nice mix!
We started with an order of El Jefe guacamole to share. It was SPICEY! The jalapeño bacon bits have an intense after taste that definitely cleared my sinuses, made my eyes water and made me sit up a little straighter! Woah! The hubby really liked it though and after he scraped the hot little bacon bits of evil over to his side, I was able to enjoy the guacamole again.
Highly highly recommend the tortilla chips! Find the chips and dip combo that sounds best to you on the menu and get them! The tortilla chips were my favorite part of the whole meal!
I ordered the Prawns and Lobster Salsa Verde Enchiladas which were just plain decadent! So sweet and juicy! I loved every bite! They were very ooey gooey all melted together in a bunch of jack cheese — so I opted to finish them off cut into smaller bites and scooped up on those delectable tortilla chips! SO good!
The rice and beans were okay but I think the hubby was more impressed with their chipotle hints than I was. They have the option of substituting a salad instead — next time I’ll go that route I think.
Cons:
— Everything was a level of spicy. Even the mild stuff had a spice zing to it.
— The Cantina is decorated in skulls. I understand it’s a trendy artsy thing right now, but I just think they are grotesque looking.
— A basket of tortilla chips is not complimentary.
Pros:
— The homemade tortilla chips are thick, crispy and completely amazing!
–The restaurant is cozy but still has plenty of seating in one of 3 sections: The bar, the cantina or the alley.
— The waitstaff are very friendly, helpful with the menu and attentive.
— The menu is full of delicious sounding and varied options. Chicken, beef, seafood, even duck is on the menu!
— The flour tortillas are lovely! Thick, fluffy, sweet and about the size of the palm of my hand. Easy to eat for sure!
A good solid «Okay.» Would I go again? Yes, but next time I’ll sit in the alley (indoor «Alleyway» patio section) that looked beautiful painted in a beachy theme. I want to try some of the fresh tacos next time and a side order of plantain chips!