Taqueria La Esperanza

As breakfast burrito aficionados, we’ve wanted to try this place for a few months, since we read the review in the Daily Camera. We tend to favor a few locations in the same area and were curious about the breakfast burritos. As I am writing this, my two friends are already planning on a trip back to try the lunch menu… YES, it was that good.
What we loved about Taqueria La Esperanza was the quality and size for the price, and the hospitality! First of all, Ruben is ADORABLE and one to be admired for his hard work, love of what he does, and his welcoming personality. Our smothered breakfast burritos were made fresh to order, not pre-​made and sitting under a lamp, or from ingredients scooped from warming buckets. Ruben started by crisping the chorizo… a burrito MUST, and then finished with all the ingredients (eggs, cheese, potatoes) cooked together so the flavors were able to combine on the hot top. The chorizo was perfectly crispy and the potatoes were not over-​powering in their presence. So often a place will use too much potato as filler to keep costs down… NOT Ruben. The green sauce had the perfect amount of heat and was a delectable finishing compliment to the already delicious burrito. It was well worth passing by that other famous breakfast burrito spot to give Taqueria La Esperanza a try!
Service was friendly and the restaurant was clean. Ruben has an authentic selection of non-​alcoholic drinks, likely something for everyone.
I hear that Ruben’s street tacos and tres leches cake are equally if not more amazing, and look forward to heading back there next week for our second visit.

Stopped in for a breakfast burrito yesterday. Excellent! Perfect combination of simple ingredients-​potatoes, eggs, sausage, chile and cheese– served up nice and hot. Great flavor. Good size for the price of $ 4. Too bad I live an hour away cuz I’d be hitting this spot all the time.

Really good tacos. Got a meal for $ 8 with 3 tacos and one huge horchata. Stay away from the chicharon. It was literally the fat strips from pork. The carnitas and steak were delicious.

We love this place! We live around the corner and it has become our go-​to when we don’t have it in us to cook. We have had tacos, burritos, enchiladas and tamales (a special), all of which were excellent. The meats are always perfectly cooked, and they have some great choices (chicharrones and tongue being our favorites). The sauce they put on their smothered burritos and enchiladas is very spicy, but super tasty. They have recently expanded their dining area and can now accommodate more than twice as many diners, which is nice. Last time we ate in, the owner came out to chat, and he was really welcoming. We feel so lucky to live so close!

Ok considering there aren’t a whole lot of options within a close proximity. I like the Taco Cart in Downtown Lafayette better. The meat in my burrito had a lot of gristle. The green chili was accurately described as «green sauce», and was just ok. There was a lot of beans and nearly no rice in my burrito. The salsa bar was descent. The ambiance was bright and it was nearly empty on a Friday night at 6pm.

Service was wonderful. The staff went went out of their way to make me feel welcome.

Great tacos and other fare. The owner Ruben came by the table and talked for a few min cementing his place as our favorite Mexican food in the area. They have tongue, Chicharrón and other meat selections that are not easy to cook or to find. They are working on getting a liqueur license and hiring more staff for the new expanded dining area. The horchata is great as well!

My husband and I just moved here from California, where there was a taqueria or carniceria on every corner. Wanted to find a place «like home.» Well, we think we have found it! Went in on a whim to try their breakfast burritos, for a quick picnic breakfast at a nearby park. They were made to order (my husband wanted beans instead of potatoes) and they were absolutely delicious! Piping hot and very tasty! We will definitely be back for lunch or dinner very soon! Thanks to Ruben for giving us such a nice welcome to the area.

I’ve lived in both S. California and N. California, and I’ve had more than my fair share of taqueria food. For Colorado, this place fulfills my cravings for authentic street tacos. The price is reasonable and the al pastor and carnitas tacos consistently hit the spot. The burritos are just okay because I hold the SF Mission-​style burrito as the end-​all, be-​all, so this is more the narrower, SW-​style where you can get it smothered with green chile (like others have said, has a substantial kick). The owner is super nice and friendly too. Also, you know the place is legit when many of the patrons are Latino. Support your local taqueria!

Just had a late dinner here tonight with friends and acquaintances. Tasty authentic Mexican food clearly prepared with love. I ordered the special — Chile Rellenos Plate — excellent!
I took photos of the taco plate that someone at my table ordered… it was amazing… but somehow the photo is not on my phone now that I’m ready to upload it. The mysteries of cellphone technology are too much for me.
Everyone at the table seemed happy with their food. The dessert, chocolate flan cake, was delicious. I just had a taste of the birthday person’s flan cake. A microscopic diabetic serving.
I will return to Taqueria La Esperanza. Someday.

Delicious food! The pork and steak tacos were the best of the tacos I tried. Hubby ordered chicken enchiladas, which were also great. Chips and salsa are good too– everything is very authentic. Definitely good for carry-​out: the atmosphere leaves much to be desired (but staff is friendly and service is quick!)!

It was ok. Nothing stood out. Nothing was wrong. If you’re close by it’s perfectly fine.

Just stopped in by chance for lunch. Had both carnitas and fish tacos. They were both very good. Very reasonably priced. Nice people. Guy sitting next to me had menudo said it was great. It looked and smelled excellent. I’ll be back.

I’m new to the area and being from LA and living in downtown Denver visiting the west side of Denver where the best tacos in town can be found I went and tried this place due to the previous reviews. I was ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ on going for lunch. And pretty much i experienced what previous customers did as well.
Cons:
They are short staffed, even though when I pulled up 2 gentleman were in front of me the order went swiftly but I waited close to 20 minutes for my 4 tacos.
The meat was way to greasy. I could not tell the difference between my pastor (pork) or asada (steak) tacos at all. They went really heavy on the cilantro and onions also.
Not sure if they make every order from fresh start but for being a taqueria and being street inspired Mexican food. That shit took forever and came out greasy and flavorless.
Pros
The price was on point $ 1.50 a taco. A fair price for a lunch taco.
Salsa bar was fresh and I went heavy with the green and grilled jalapeños.
Staff was nice and place was clean.
Overall I would like to return and try the pollo in a burrito.
Also I will call ahead to put my order in. I’ll try it again in the future. Not bad but not great just ok.

4.5 stars!
After a couple of rather warm hours at Cottonwood Farm enjoying autumn activities we piled into the family truckster ready for sustenance. TLE looked good so we gave it a go.
A small storefront in a strip mall, the location was convenient and décor pleasant if not basic. We were treated with warm and decent service and the prices were very reasonable.
As for food, the breakfast burritos were very good. Ordered «smothered» they had a solid kick but I powered through the heat as the flavor was great. The portion size was equally great.
Though I am rarely in this area, I’d happily dine here again. Great food for a great deal is a tough 1 – 2 punch to beat.
BTW: If anyone in your party isn’t keen on Mexican food, burgers are available.

Meh — Got there at 11:30 with three tables waiting on food, but I was the first to order. Took 25 minutes for my simple order — 4 orrders in 25 minutes at a Mexican takeout? Really?
Agree with Brody the one is hit with the smell of dirty greese upon entering but isn’t that we should expect from a dive?
As far as the food goes — fish taco was yummy, I thought I was in for a treat. Smothered burrito was not good. Kind of weird. The chicken was diced and not very tasty and there was lots of rice floating around — I only ate a few bites and decided it wasn’t worth the calories. Sad.
Probably won’t go here again with Santiagos, Efrains and that wonderful taco truck just a mile or two from here. Sorry local guys — I wanted to love you, but you disappointed.

One of those amazing, hole-​in-​the-​wall finds… and it’s in MY neighborhood!!! Great flavor, beautifully presented.

This might officially be the lowest rating I have ever given. This place was not good.
From the moment I walked in I was assaulted with the smell of dirty grease. It was so thick I could feel my pores clog as I sat there.
The food was not terrible but it wasn’t great either. Everything was fried in the same nasty grease. Carnitas, Asada, Relleno… all had the same oily, greasy taste.
Service was ok… which is the only reason this place is not getting a 1 rating. Prices were not that bad, but more than the food was worth.

Our new favorite! Great Mexican food, seriously good. Their breakfast burrito puts the others to shame! Tacos are also another great choice.
Once you try it, you’ll be back too!!!

So glad this Taqueria moved into the neighborhood.
But I just read that they were just across the street? How did I not know about this? Well, it was a great move. In the 5 weeks that they have been in their new location, I have been close to a dozen times. Each time trying something new. And it always impresses. I first went to try their breakfast burritos. Chorizo or bacon. Either way you choose, delicious. The chili rellenos are great too! Just tried the huevos rancheros today. Did not disappoint. Walking distance from home. It would be great if they were to get a license to serve cervezas for the hot days ahead of us.