El Chupacabra

This place has some of the best vegan meat I have ever consumed. The vegan red chicken is REALLY GOOD. Also, a big fan of their chipotle pineapple salsa and black bean dip. This location is a very pretty one with a big fireplace. Good for nicer meals with friends — less of a dive-​bar vibe than the Phinney Ridge location (though I personally love the dive-​bar vibe). I would personally appreciate an availability of non-​refried black beans on the menu, but that’s a small thing.

Lakeside seating with some margaritas? Perfect place to be on a warm night!
For four years, friends mentioned El Chupacabra. And I finally made the trip, to leave with every intention on coming back!
The service here is NOT good, let’s start with that before I get into the good stuff. I bought a margarita, and after having finished it, for 15 minutes, was never asked if I’d like another one. So, I had a buzz-​kill but saved some $$ by drinking water.
K, now that that’s out of the way. This restaurant is large and welcoming, as is their menu. So many options, and it’d be a miss if I didn’t mention that their options cater really well to those that eat cruelty-​free.
The «wet» veggie burrito was ridiculousss. Take me back NOW. The enchilada sauce is homemade and perfeccccttt.
Will be back for more this summer!

Walked in on a Sunday evening and sat ourselves per the instructions on the sign by the door. Nice view of the water but our server never came to acknowledge us. We sat there for 15 minutes without anyone even acknowledging we were there. It wasn’t even busy. I tried to wave down three different people but no one came. We got up to leave and a server met us on our way out with two cups of water and said, «Oh I was just bringing you some water if you want to sit back down.» We passed and left.

Poor service. Waitress wouldn’t serve my boyfriend and I a margarita, for no apparent reason. We ordered a burrito – cold, no flavor, and just bad.
Will not return.

Really decent Mexican food. Loved the vegetarian and vegan options. Lots of Morningstar Farms protein options and dairy-​free cheese. Vegan refried beans are delicious. Excellent margaritas, too!

I will say this. I was there when they first started and did not have a crowd. I was one of the first to spread the news to my workplace, coworkers in my department and even fashioned a team event over there. Now, after months of going there, the place has picked up, you have new faces working behind the scene and… it is not the same as if it expanded too fast and was not ready for the volume. Ordered a take out and my order was not complete, the drink was not with my food and the first person behind the counter ignored me to talk with a few ladies (who seemed physically anxious to imbibe alcohol); mind you, they came after my arrival and did not come back to me, he just left. I found that odd and then another person popped up to ask if I were being helped. It seemed like a case where the left and right hand were just not connected by a body.
Now yesterday, I grabbed a table with a coworker. There was a huge delay and learned their system was down from another waitress who knew me but was not the actual waitress of my table. The hour break was almost up. The waitress did not seem concerned to keep us posted and did not frequent my table to see how we were doing. My coworker wanted to leave but I assured him there was a reasonable explanation. Reasonable so, I can understand a rough day but back to back days informs me that this departure from good service is now a pattern.
I notice things were not so right today as well with my meal. The avocados were a bit bad when I looked at my meal. The extra cheese, lettuce, etc., were not placed appropriately. It seemed to have been put together in a rush. I have no ambitions to go back here since I now agree with my coworkers that the service is not up to par for what you pay.

Food was pretty good. Service was horrible. Server forgot to put our drink order in, then didn’t come back for almost an hour. We had to go get our own tray of drinks. Food came out before our couple drinks made it to the table… Then took forever to just run our card… No one would help, no one would pay any attention to us and we had a party of 6. Our server was extremely rude and kept talking about how he would rather we did things so it would be easier on him… God forbid he does his job. This new $ 15/​hr wage is absurd. No one wants to work now… It was ridiculous… We won’t be back. Ps he told us to go to Taco Bell next time.

We moved from Austin and have found some great Mexican food here-​including El Chupacabra. We really love the casual vibe-​but more so the food has always been delicious and I love the salsa! It’s also great for those of us who cannot have dairy-​they offer vegan cheese options. So nice! The servers are just fine-​they do their job well and are helpful.

I like these guys. Never had a problem getting seated even when I’ve had a ridiculously sized group and people who keep trickling in (seriously RSVP people, you are late you go to the kid’s table!) I’m a simple drinker and like that it isn’t loud and is spacious. Servers are chill-​food is legit bar food that is of a Mexican sort.

Came here for lunch with my team. Told we could sit outside and waited easily 20 mins for someone to come clear the table from the previous group. Finally came and took drink orders, returning with warm water in glasses, no ice.
We placed our lunch and drink order. Two of us ordered the carne asada tacos which were lackluster. The meat looked like mystery meat and had no flavor. The only flavor in the tacos was the pico de gallo.
Service was awful, and we were told that their systems were down. Overall a terrible experience and I would not return.

We already liked this place because the margaritas and tacos are definitely fun and delicious.
What compelled me to write this review, however, was the Über driver who drove us here last time. She was very upset that we were going somewhere «Satanic», and «don’t they know that they’re named after something so horrible? There are plenty of nicer places to eat down on the waterfront», plus a final, «God bless you» as we hopped out of the car.
So thanks for the tacos and for making this crazy person uncomfortable, El Chupacabra.

Who puts black olives in Pico de Gallo and calls it «TexMex»? The food was edible but not enjoyable, and didn’t have a lot of flavor. To call this TexMex is a disservice to the good TexMex in Texas. The enchiladas tasted like pizza (?!) And the chimichanga was okay, but lacked real cheese presence or flavor. The margaritas were decent, along with the salsa and guac but, overall, the food was pretty poor.
I will say the service was nice. Not attentive but polite and pleasant to converse with. Will not go back.

This place is a staple for me… I love it! While «some» of the severs are so-​so (hit and miss)… You’ll have great views of the Marina and you WILL have a fantastic experience if you’re lucky enough to get JOSH as your bartender! He’s very attentive, cool to talk with and… He’s a new Dad, so wish him well! I love their large Burrito, stuffed with chicken, pork or steak… Then «make it wet» with a split of their red and green sauces. Awesome! The burrito is huge for around $ 9-​$ 12 depending on small, large or if you make it wet… The price is great and you’ll be stuffed! Don’t walk… Run to El Chupacabra!!! (But don’t run with scissors, haven’t you learned your lesson yet?!?) :)

Really good food. The salsa and guacamole must be made in house.
I had the soft corn tortilla tacos (Pork carnitas) with whole pinto beans and rice. She has a grilled fish taco and a fried fish taco. Both were fresh and the fresh ingredients were the key.
Check this place out. NOT the regular Tex-​Mex type place. Really good.

As you walk into the parking lot, you don’t see the entrance. You walk around the corner and the front door just sneaks up on you.
Lunch on a dreary day. We were a group of 10.
Mission Style Burrito: Choice of Small (10″) or Large (12″) sized flour tortilla filled with Spanish rice, whole pinto beans, jack & cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado slices, pico de gallo & your Choice of Meat. Make it «Wet» Smothered in melted cheese, sour cream & our famous Red (or Green) Enchilada Sauce. Extra tasty!
Well, that’s what’s on the menu. I chose carne asada and a «wet» burrito. Somehow that «wet» or «dry» seemed to be a marketing opportunity screaming for improvement.
I ordered a small one and that was huge! It was delicious! I loved that the sauce was very flavorful. I was surprized it wasn’t spicier though. The chunks of meat were grilled. Love that. I like a lot of sauce so loved my burritto being smothered with sauce. Served with chips. Chips seemed pretty fresh.
Service was OK, but how is it that me being the reviewer gets their meal last. LOL. We got our meals within a 10 minute window.

El Chupacabra, now with Lake Union view!
I like this location. The floor space is open and inviting compared to the other locations and it’s a little bit more «clean cut.» Service was actually moving at a reasonable pace, which is something I haven’t experienced at the other locations, so huge props there!
I was happy to see $ 4 mimosas on the menu ($ 18 for a pitcher), which were really good! Perfectly made both times, which makes me a happy camper. I took a chance and went with mock steak in my dish (one of the more difficult fake meats to cook correctly) and it was fantastically done.
Just like with the other locations, they strongly encourage customization and there are many meats (both actual meat and veggie) that you can choose to create your perfect Mexican meal.

Situated on the bench of Lake Union it offers a great view additionally to some pretty good mexican style food.
It’s sort of a sports bar with lots of TVs, not really my favorite kind of thing but when you’re into sports, go for it!
The food was pretty good (Chimichanga with beef, Nachos with Salsa and Guacamole) and the drinks were cold. Everybody was satisfied and we had a good time here. The waitress wasn’t the fastest or brightest one on earth but in the end she did her job and that is what counts.

We came here on a Saturday night and it was very, very quiet. Awkwardly so, and that’s coming from someone who prefers quieter dining experiences. If the space were a bit smaller, I think it would’ve made the place feel less like a dead zone.
The house margaritas were good, but I wouldn’t go back to El Chupacabra for them. BUT I would go back for the soft tacos! I got the soft corn tacos with pork carnitas. They were minimally garnished with onion (I nixed the cilantro because I’m a hater) and lime, and so spicy and delicious. I still think about those tacos, you guys, even when I’m eating other food. Those tacos are my lunch mistress.
Only downside is that if you’ve got a growing boy’s appetite despite being a girl who has stopped growing (save for sideways, as Peregrin Took would say), one order won’t be enough.
The others in my group got giant burritos, and those looked okay, though like the margaritas, nothing spectacular. Get the tacos.
Final note: this place is difficult to find, but keep in mind that it’s next to a parking garage by the water.

This restaurant is located on prime real estate with gorgeous views of Lake Union. The restaurant is quite large on the inside and doesn’t feel as kitschy or tiny as the Phinney Ridge location. I came in on a Sunday night and it was absolutely dead… probably since the weather was awful, people didn’t bother going to SLU.
Parking was a little disappointing as I didn’t realize that all of the parking was paid, and not free. And the rates were pretty steep, starting at $ 6 for up to 2 hours. There might be cheaper/​free parking nearby but I didn’t get a chance to look.
The restaurant is huge with lots of big booths, so there’s plenty of space for large groups. There were also a bunch of large TVs throughout the restaurant, making this a good place to stop by if you’re with a group and want to keep up with a game on TV.
The food was good but nothing spectacular. I had the Tex Mex tacos with carne asada. The carne asada was alright and definitely overshadowed by the massive amount of fixings on the taco– it was overflowing with lettuce, cheese, and avocado! I appreciate that they have a generous set of salsas on every table so that your food can be dressed to your preference. All of the taco/​burrito/​etc places come without rice and beans unless you opt to add them on, but three massive tacos by themselves were plenty for me. Service was relatively attentive and very friendly.
Overall, this is probably the cheapest and best bang for your buck meal that you can get in the area (considering you’re surrounded by more upscale/​far more expensive restaurants). The food is not revelatory but its good, and the restaurant has a great ambiance.

I adore the El Chupa on Phinney and am so happy they’ve moved a little bit south! n I love this new location. Definitely a little more upscale than their Phinney Ridge location, which fits in nicely among the fancier joints along the lake. They continue to make a mean margarita!
My favorite feature has got to be the glass garage door wall. I came on a wetter evening, but it’s going to be an awesome place to sit next summer!