Tacos El Gallito

Meh… we usually go to the one up the street I forget what its called.
This one is OK, but the service was not great the other night. My hubs had to order «3 tacos al pastor and 3 tacos de carne asada» like 6 times and the guy still couldn’t get it right. And this was en espanol. The Coke was warm and you have to ask for napkins.
The spicy red salsa is really hot, very good, and I needed that Coke to be cold. The al pastor and carnitas was much better than the carne in my opinion. The carne was dry and lacking in flavor.
There is nowhere to sit, but on the hood of the car, and hey, that works, right?
I’m going to the other place next time, I think those tacos were mo’ betta.

Lengua get in mah belly
PARKING: Lot — the truck is parked on the corner of a auto body shop. Lots of parking!
FOOD:
–Lengua: I love lengua, and TEG has a pretty decent one. The soft, fall apart texture is what makes it stand out, but the flavor is a bit lacking. Condiment bar to the rescue!
–Mulita: This is by far my favorite multi in LA. You get a separate ticket for your mulita– it takes longer– but the wait is SO worth it.
TIP:
–Don’t forget to hit up the condiment bar. I wish I could bottle this red sauce, and the grilled peppers are a nice touch.

I have been to this location many times over the last year, which makes me sick thinking about it. Not great, but decent tacos and on the way home. Last night, I ordered four tacos and when I received them I started dressing them with condiments and salsa. As I reached up to grab a cup for salsa, I see a COCKROACH crawling out of a crevice by the service window. It scatters back in and another comes out, obviously they have a roach infestation. If you still decide to patronize this truck, check your food closely for roaches.
Disgusting…

We come here almost every Fridays for a couple of months but Friday (⁰⁸⁄₀₈) was our last time there. My kids and I got food poisoned. The next day, I had to deal with fever my kids and I got. And you can imagine the rest especially on kids. Maybe it’s the salsas because everyone get in contact with them but I doubt it since my kids didn’t eat any salsa so I’m pretty sure the meat was bad and they still used them. Sorry but I can’t be their valued customer anymore. :’(

Decent tacos but definitely NOT worth $ 1.50 each.
There is no place to sit but a dirty wall with gum on it. The floors are not swept and are super greasy.
What else is not clean???

Ehhhhh… The other taco truck literally down the street is way tastier!!! The tongue and beef head here is not that flavorful… The hot sauces are even mediocre:(
Oh and it’s $ 1.50+ a taco depending on which taco you want. They also have burritos… All the condiments are DIY which can be a good thing if you are a type that likes a lot of cilantro or onions or salsa. Would I recommend this spot? Nah. I would much rather El Tacquito…(they close earlier, 1am)

As an LA native, I’ve eaten at countless LA taco trucks in my time, and this is one of the best. You know exactly what you’re getting when you go to a taco truck, and this one delivers on all fronts– tasty tacos at cheap prices.
The tacos are pretty tasty. The carne asada is pretty good quality– flavorful, without being greasy, and not much gristle.
And the mulitas here are amazing. If you’ve never had one– it’s kinda of like a quesadilla made with two small corn tortillas. They’re basically two tortillas with meat and cheese sandwiched between, and the tortillas are grilled on both sides.
One special feature about this truck is that they have a bucket os pinto beans that you can load onto your plate, along with cilantro, radish, and several savory sauces.
The truck is located in a large parking lot, so parking is never an issue.

This is the ultimate in mobile Mexican food. I’ve eaten at many a taco truck, and this one is top notch. Better than ALL the Mexican restaurants in Pasadena combined.
Try the quesadilla w/​carne asada. You will not be disappointed. The all meat burrito is good (and for $ 5 dollars, a great deal), and of course, the tacos are incredible.
IMPORTANT:
1. The truck usually doesn’t arrive/​start up until 6pm, but they are open late. On weekends, they stay open for business until 4 am. Don’t look for them during the early afternoon, they won’t be there.
2. This is the YELLOW truck on Fair Oaks & Bellevue. Located in the tire store parking lot. Not to be confused w/​the white truck on California.

build your own taco? yes please!
$ 1.25/taco? gimme more!
i like that they have tubs of sauce and toppings and you build your taco the way you want it. maybe not as sanitary, but ive been eating here for years and have never gotten sick. iron stomach? maybe. but im a total condiment/​topping whore, and i love having the ability to control what goes on my tacos! i also can build my own radish salad.
i always get the carne asada and al pastor tacos. for carnitas tacos i usually go down the street to the other taco truck. :P the quesadillas are also tasty. ive never had a burrito, but my friend told me theyre pretty good.

After buying a place in Pasadena, I decided to look around for local place to get decent tacos. I came across this place and El Taquito Mexicano Truck (which is only a block and a half south of this one). Most people on Unilocal gave the other truck higher stars; but I will give this place a higher rating for a few reasons:
1. Their meat tastes better
2. They offer a variety of mexican food (burritos, tacos, quesadillas, and more), where as the other truck only offers tacos
3. They have a very good green taco sauce and have an abundance of condiments (onions, cilantro, jalapeños, etc.) on the side ready for you to use
I would definitely recommend trying this taco truck!

A very regular stop on my way home from work!
It’s so hard to beet getting dinner for $ 5…
Had the tripas tacos the other night, very good.
Tend to go with carnitas.
Was a king taco guy for a long time until I found this gem.
What makes even better is the parking they have.
Probally one of the most convinient locations I
have ever found for one of these trucks.

The Health Department needs to shut this taco truck down!!!
The dirty buckets of salsa are kept in such a sub-​standard set-​up…
Nothing is kept on ice or cold at all, the handles of the scooping ladles are completely submerged into the tomatoes, salsa, and condiments… so one must put their hand into the salsa to get the ladle… SICK.
My poor boyfriend is on day #3 of a horrific food-​borne illness after eating here. and we are positive the illness came form here, like totally positive.
Oh, and the carne asada was DRY!
i love love love Taco Trucks, just not this one!!!
BEWARE…
xo–
andrea

I know it’s not as good as the El Taquito Mexicano truck, but this place has ample parking and it has easier access points than the Nishikawa Auto Service lot.
My girlfriend Jennie T. ordered the Al Pastor quesadilla, and it was an instant hit. The meat has a certain spice (nutmeg? cinnamon? possibly both?) which gives it a unique flavor. It isn’t overly salted.. .the seasoning is just right. I was so hooked, I went again the next day with my friend for seconds (although I have to admit, the quesadilla is frighteningly greasy.)
I also ordered the beef tongue (not very good) and chicken soft tacos. The meat was well salted, but the taste was just.. .bland compared to El Taquito Mexicano. The lengua was also really chewy and not very tender. But other than that, I’d come back for their quesadillas.. .maybe chicken next time?

Recently, after a night of fun and drinks, we were looking for a place to grub on. Some of the time, we usually go to a Cantonese café in Monterey Park or Alhambra to get our late night fix. But this night, we decided on Tacos!!!
Tacos El Gallito is a taco truck located on Fair Oaks in Pasadena. They have a wide range of Mexican specialities. Brain, Beef, Chicken, Pork, etc. in the form of burritos and tacos. Not wanting to have a brick in my stomach, I decided on a couple of tacos. Since I don’t eat much beef, I settles on the Carnitas and Al Pastor — both pork.
Unfortunately, I can’t tell the difference between Tacos El Gallito and King Taco. To me, with the untrained Mexican taste, they are very similar. Coupled with the late night cravings with the buzz from the alcohol, just an hour ago.. . Tacos El Gallito is the best thing EVER — well at that time for me, at least.
Anyways.. . since it is in Pasadena, Tacos El Gallito is a nice little late night joint that I would recommend to anyone.

Decided to get some tacos to cure my gout attack. That would be suicide on any other day but surprisingly my foot felt better the next day. Must have been the two carnitas tacos I ate.
El Gallito has good tacos. Not the best but good enough. It’s cheap and fast. I prefer this joint over the other «taco only» truck off Fair Oaks. We got a chicken quesadilla, carne asada burrito, four tacos, and a horchata for $ 14. My favorite meat had to be the carnitas. Carne asada was off limits since I had gout.
It’s situated in a well lit parking lot. Not sketchy at all to dine around the truck. I’d definitely come back again.

So yesterday, my homies and I are celebrating my birthday and we’re driving down Fair Oaks to eat at Beckham’s Grill and have some prime rib. Then we see El Gallito Taco truck. My friends suggest tacos and I agreed so they can save some money and we can go see a movie that much quicker.
I didn’t remember the name of the taco truck that is so highly revered on Unilocal (el taquito) but I figured this is Pasadena and there’s no way they have 2 taco trucks on Fair Oaks. Well I was majorly wrong. El Gallito is the poser.
The tacos were okay and I also had a mulita. They had the essential salsas including guacamole so that’s why it get’s 3 stars. However, I don’t think I’d eat here again. Everything was just average.

These 2 stars could be a little presumptu…
HOLY SH*T MY PICTURE IS UP ON THE «Are these photos helpful» thing below!!!
So Sunday after Barbarella, a few of us (which dwindled down to me, Felicia, and Tim) wanted to get tacos. So we headed to El Taquito Mexicano taco truck just down the street because I guess apparently that’s the one Felicia goes to. I knew I loved her for a reason.
As we’re eating our tacos, we somehow get onto the topic of this truck. I had been told this truck sucks from credible sources, so I never went. Well, Tim suggested that we go compare. «Sure… why not» both Fel and I agreed. We walk up and get in line.
Things work a little differently here. The guy you order from doesn’t make the tacos. And you pay first. Move along down to the pick up window and they call your number for your taco. Now, the salsa and condiment bar is self-​serve, so the tacos come as naked as the Mexican God first made them.
I get the taco and the first thing I notice, just as Tim had told us and Felicia says in her review, the meat is cut into bigger chunks and not «minced» like down at ETM.
I ordered one cabeza. It’s not loaded with grease like at ETM (which I kinda like) but I figure hey, that’s why I’m comparing. I add some onions and cilantro, grap a lime and a couple of slices of radishes and head for the salsas. They’ve got the salsa verde and salsa roja just like at ETM, but unlike ETM, they’ve also got an avocado salsa, which a few trucks in LA carry. I put some of the salsa verde on one half (to truely compare) and the avocado salsa on the other because I just love anything avocado. Except for something like the avocado mousse that Radhika made on this past season of Top Chef. But I digress.
I take a bite and… meh. It wasn’t horrible per se, but the meat was kind of flavorless and a little on the dry side. At least dry compared to ETM. Me and Felicia both agreed on that characteristic. We both weren’t feeling the big chunks of meat.
We did however agree that the salsas are better here. Tim still had a couple of his tacos from ETM and snuck in for some of the red sauce. Good times.
And that is what lead me to take the picture below that you see under the «Are these photos helpful?» section.

Okay, so let’s talk tacos.
The other day, after our most recent visit to the beloved Pasadena taco truck (
), Austin S., Tim C. and I decided to drop by the taco truck up the street (you know, to just check it out).
Now, all three of us have already dubbed El Taquito Mexicano to be THE BEST TACO TRUCK OF ALL TIME so needless to say, we’re a little biased to begin with. But really, after getting a lengua taco at Tacos El Gallito, I see why one business listing has 10x more reviews than the other.
First thing I noticed was the meat — at El Taquito Mexicano, the meat is tender and cut finely whereas the lengua here came in huge cubes, cut in no particular way. It wasn’t as tender nor did it have as much flavor either.
You put your toppings on yourself (which is probably one of the nicer perks of this truck) so I loaded up on onion, cilantro and what Tim C. considers the most awesome red sauce ever. The sauce was pretty good — very smokey and not as spicy as the red sauce down the street.
Overall though, the meat is a deal-​breaker. If only I could get the best of both worlds — Tacos El Gallito sauce on El Taquito Mexicano meat… but alas, that’s not going to happen. So I’m choosing the better overall winner and walking back down Fair Oaks to my beloved truck.
**SEE PICTURES POSTED**

There are very few things better at 2 AM after a night of crazy partying than a bunch of delicious tacos… and although Del Taco has its charms, it doesn’t get better than some authentic tacos from those little vehicles sent from heaven… the taco truck.
My friend who lives in Pasadena hits this spot everytime he goes out, and he made us walk the 10 blocks to this truck because he considered it the prime drunken munchie place. Although walking 10 blocks with a bunch of very drunk people was quite the feat, it was well worth the effort. The tacos were DELICIOUS and everything that one could want when ordering from a taco trunk.
For me, I only look for 2 things… taste and price. In regards of taste, the tacos are delicious, with my particular faves being the asada and the pastor. Plus, they let you put on as much cilantro/​onions/​tomatoes/​lime/​sauce as you want, which guarantees an EXPLOSION of flavor every time. In terms of price, nothing beats being able to get two tacos and a horchata for less than $ 4.
If you’re in the area late at night and have those late-​night munchies, don’t feel afraid to stop by here Unilocalers!

Recommended to me by my sister, I can’t get enough of this place.
Great for when in the mood for tacos or after a long night of drinking.
Have tried all the meats but favor the chorizo, al pastor and cabeza meats.
The taco is served to you with just the meat and the tortilla. Onions, cilantro, green and red salsas, tomatoes, radishes are on the outside of the truck and you put as much or little as you want.