El Tamarindo

I am so loyal to this place it’s unbelievable. The only reason I’m not giving it 5 stars is because I’m trying to be as objective as possible on this review site, but even then I’m tempted to change it. My family and I have been frequenting this place since before I was born, as my mother and aunt even worked here when they first came to this country from El Salvador
This lovely place is tucked away in Adams Morgan, & is great to go any day of the week. I can only review the pupusas in regards to food, as it is the only thing I have ordered in the 27 years that I’ve been eating here. I always get the pork & cheese pupusas & would probably steer clear of the ones with spinach in them. I’ve never tried them personally but have read and seen several complaints about it, so I’d just stick to what they do best.
Last, but certainly not least, is their happy hour :-). Like any other hole in the wall, you can only expect great happy hour prices and their margaritas come in different flavors as well. El Tamarindo, you have my heart.

The service was great, but what really eclipsed it was their service. I had to go to the bathroom and they kindly allowed me to use their bathroom. I ended up going back there with my friends and the experience was fantastic! It’s funny how a random act of kindness resulted in such a great dining experience :)

First impression, my friend had to use the bathroom terribly bad and even though he wasn’t a customer they let him with arms wide open. Afterward, we went back and everything was awesome. The food and service were awesome. Highly recommended!

My boyfriend and I were coming back from a late movie and wanted something quick to eat. We decided to come to this restaurant since we were fairly close to the neighborhood, We got there at 2:12 am, right before a couple of Caucasian men. They were coming out of a cab while we were parking and just so happen to make it to the door of the restaurant before us. They pulled at the door, but it was locked. It seemed like the restaurant was closed for the night. To their surprise and to our relief, a manager came to the door and let them in. We heard them ask if it was a problem that they were coming in this late. The manager replied that it was okay. We finished parking quickly and made our way to the door. We got there right before the manager closed the door, but he refused to let us in. When we asked why, he said that they were closed. We were confused since he had just let the two guys in right in front of us. We tried to tell him that we were actually here before the two guys, but he still refused to let us in. He lied and said they had ordered their food prior to coming in which we knew was not true due to the dialogue between the manager and the two guys. My boyfriend and I are both African American and in our Mid-​twenties. My boyfriend and I have both worked in the food service industry and make it a point to tip very well as we understand what it takes to work in this industry. However, because of our age and race, we were racially profiled and discriminated against tonight. I had such high hopes for this place, but We will definitely not be returning to this establishment ever again.

Everything is delicious here and service is great! Try the tamarind margarita and the pupusas are a must.

Came to eat at this restaurant at about 3am. Asked for New York strip, medium. The steak came out Well done. Told them, they took it back, brought another one, this one was rare, bloody and all. But I ate it anyways (did not enjoy it). This was the first out of many times I didn’t enjoy the food.
I used to eat here all the time, and the other traditional foods are actually pretty good.
This night though, there was an incident where a young man was eating with his male friend and his obviously girlfriend. The man and his girl started to argue and they stepped outside, he hit her a couple of times and dropped her to the floor. The young man came back inside and continued eating with his male friend while the girl was outside crying. She then came in and sat by the front door still crying and calling (on her cell phone) someone to pick her up. The whole time this is going on, the owner and his staff are there just watching not doing anything about it. After a few minutes, My waitress went to ask the young men if everything was ok, then she asked the young lady if she needed anything. The owner was cowardly just standing like nothing happened.
I decided to say something to the young men eating. I told them that that was wrong and that domestic violence is a serious offense. They didn’t like it and started getting loud with me. Told me to mind my F****ng business. I asked the owner why would he allow that in his restaurant. He also told me to mind my business. I couldn’t believe it.
I asked the young man how would they feel if a guy treated their mothers, sisters, or daughters like that. Of course they didn’t like that. The young man who just beat his girlfriend stood up and started cursing at me, and he pulled out a pocket knife and was coming at me. My two friends stood up and got in the way, but the man wanted me and not my friends, the owner finally stepped in and tried to calm the man down, and made him step out. The owner was very upset at me. Told me a few words and to mind my business. He also kicked me out and told me he doesn’t ever wanted to see me in his restaurant. He was very disrespectful to me. I asked him how could he condone domestic violence in his restaurant. He said he just minds his business. And insisted that I left immediately and to never come back.
The young man was outside with his friend, his girlfriend still inside sobbing. He was waiting for me with his pocket knife smiling. So I told the owner I’m not leaving, until the police comes. Owner refused to call the police, so I decided to call them. Police got there, the owner claimed he didn’t see anything, he accused me of disturbing the peace and tried to get me arrested. I was escorted out by the police along with my friends. I told the owner I couldn’t believe the way he treated me and the way he handled the situation. He told me to be quiet, leave and never come back. I told him I will leave a review on Unilocal about his restaurant. He said he didn’t care.
Because of the whole incident, I decided to write this review.
I left. Don’t know what happened to the other two guys. I do know that the girlfriend defended the young man and said I was lying. The man also somehow threw the pocket knife away because they didn’t find it on him.
I do not condone domestic violence, and I think business owners shouldn’t either. I think it’s their jobs as business owners to make their establishments safe for everyone.

El Tamarindo is a lovely place in the AdMo/​DuPont area for some pupusas, especially if you aren’t able to venture to Columbia Heights.
FOOD — The pupusas are tasty and I love the free chips. I had the variety plate (~$ 14) and I felt that while the food is mostly good and what you would expect of it, it was not great value.
SPACE — It’s more spacious than it looks from the outside! Very clean.
SERVICE — Yarmi was our waiter and he was awesome! Great memory too — he remembered my friend and her order from before, lol.
While I believe there are other places in DC that serve better value for this type of food, I did enjoy my time here (and I can check this place off my list!).

The beauty of this place is how late it’s open — great for late night drunk munchies. The service is good. Prices are a bit high for the quality of the food. Yuca fries are delicious, as is the stuffed portobello mushroom.

Came here after a recommendation from a friend. It was delicious! We ordered a ton of food, but the bill was so inexpensive, we kept checking to be sure they charged us enough. We rotated around the following: Pork and Cheese Pupusas, Tamal de Elote, Yucca con Chiccaron, and Chicken Pupusas. Also, a very large pitcher of Red Sangria. 4 of us, totally stuffed, left with money in our pocket. Stop in, the staff is super friendly and helpful with recommendations.

El T has one flaw… they aren’t open early in the AM (like 7 or 8 or even 9 AM). (The Unilocal!hours are wrong, they open at 10 AM every day). This is a problem because their breakfast/​eggs menu is off the hook good. I get El Tradicional which is an amazing combination of eggs, plantains (cooked perfectly), avocado, refried beans, and awesome cheese. I’d eat here 3x a week if they were open normal breakfast hours! Everything I’ve had here has been delicious and the place has been there forever. A very under the radar, wonderful, and longlasting restaurant that is a pillar of the Adams Morgan/​Dupont restaurant scene. (And oh yeah, they have parking!).

Laid back place with nice interior. Waitresses are nice, food is ok, dessert is not their forte… tres leches should be dripping moist, not dry.

El Tamarindo is my favorite Mexican restaurant in DC. I’ve never had to wait for a table, food is tasty and always comes quickly, and the happy hour can’t be beat!
My favorite things to order are the pork & cheese pupusas and the trio dip. Delicious!

Friendly, cozy, consistent and reasonably priced.
This place is definitely in the top three for casual date night restaurants.
The staff is beyond friendly and the food comes out very quickly. I was raised on El Salvadorian food, so this tastes like home to me. Also a good place to get food if you’re cautious of trying new cuisine. They cover their bases with traditional ES food and more well known menu items.
The corn tamale is delicious. Pupusas are on point. And the margarita sizes are generous.
All in all, one of my favorite places in DC.

The food is pretty good here. After having a disastrous experience at another Mexican joint, I really wanted my taste buds to experience better Mexican food. The restaurant is pretty spacious. We were seated immediately on a Saturday night after 8pm. Service can be a bit better… I could have definitely used another Piña colada but didn’t feel like stalking my waitress’ every move. Drinks were good. The food, very tasty. We had plantains and pupusas as starters… very good. As main dishes– fried fish, enchiladas, and quesadillas. If we are ever back in the neighborhood, we will give it another try.

Super nice server in forth of July at 11pm, food was served pretty fast and most of the items were delicious like guacamole, salsa and enchiladas. Beergarita was big and tasted okay. Overall a good experience.

OVERVIEW: The $ 3.50 happy hour margaritas were really the best part of the evening. The service was attentive, but nothing special considering it was a very slow night. Overpriced, clearly a late night novelty.
FOOD
Refried beans were watery
Salsa was flavorful and fresh enough
Steak in the fajitas were grossly overcooked – a huge disappointment for a $ 17 price tag
Enchilada was well-​received, however Nathan said the beef was overdone
Rice lacked flavor, but had a fluffy texture

Came here with my date for brunch on a sunny day 07/​25/​2915. We waited for a while before we saw anyone who was working. The place had several tables and some were eating. Finally a hostess appeared and sat us next to the window. Large window, good view of the outside. Table was clean but the decorations hanging from the ceiling were so dusty, I was afraid dusty would fall on me or the food. Chips and salsa were complimentary. Chips were oily, salsa was mediocre.
We ordered steak al caballo, el tradicional, and bottomless mimosas. The steak al caballo was requested medium, but steak came out well done. Eggs were way over cooked. There were soggy vegetables over the steak and eggs. The beans for both dishes were mashed. Not a single whole bean in the rice and beans. The rice was not Spanish rice, tasted and looked like it was microwaved and from a box. El Tradicional platter had scrambled eggs with tomatoes, 2 white hard cheese (forgot what it’s called) but tasty, 2 slices avacado, 2 plantains. Did not feel satisfied after the meal. They ran out of orange juice so we had mango juice for the last few glasses of mimosas.
Date got sick from brunch. Food did not agree with his body for the rest of the day. Luckily I did not eat too much from his plate. Friendly server but we will not go back.

Sigh, maybe I just have terrible luck with Mexican food in Dupont. I have been to El Tamarindo a bunch of times, and generally it’s pretty good.
However, my fiancé and I had friends in town last weekend, and after enjoying a local parade, we were all starving. So, we decided to go to El Tamarindo. We were excited they could easily seat 7 on a Saturday night without reservations, a rarity in Dupont. We immediately ordered a few pitchers and some queso, which came out quickly. But that’s where the good stuff ends. We ordered entrees, and then over an hour later we were still waiting on our food. The restaurant wasn’t busy, but somehow we never saw our waiter. We asked the manager about our food order, and he said «oh it’ll be right out». Another twenty minutes, and we still had no food, no apologies, and were waiting on another round of drinks with no hope of receiving anything.
Needless to say, at this point we had all lost patience and were starving so we asked for the check. They didn’t offer to remove anything from the bill, only handed us the check and paid us out. We ended up paying out and grabbing takeout from a nearby restaurant.
Really disappointed in the service, it was embarrassing we brought friends from out of town to such a poorly run place. Definitely won’t be coming back or recommending to anyone else.

Please note that I was a little tipsy when we decided to go here.
A couple of girls and I went to Chi Cha Lounge and didn’t want your typically late night pizza. So, we found this place that is open to the wee hours.
I ordered the chicken fajitas. They came with your typically sides — fresh guacamole, sour cream, fresh salsa and lettuce. My one improvement would be for them to cut up the veggies because they were to big to fit in the tortilla.
My friends had the shrimp enchiladas and shrimp quesadilla. Now, they both enjoyed it but say they only come late night when they have been drinking.
I would try this place sober and then do another review…
Sidenote: Very quiet and it looks like you can always get a seat without waiting…

Deliciosa comida!!! Estilo casero!!! De los mejores restaurantes de comida típica, muy Buena sazón, presentación de los platos. Recomendadísimo

Since my allegiance to a neighborhood haunt (Lauriol) has been waning, I started to look for Mexican restaurants within a block or two from my home. Could not believe that I had never tried El Tamarindo. Loved it.
It is a welcoming place with simple, delicious Mexican fare. I knew it was going to be special when I had a margarita on the rocks. Excellent. Could definitely taste the tequila (i.e., not too sweet)
But the real surprise was how delicious and complex the mole enchiladas were (one beef, one chicken). Wow. Even the grilled plantains served with it were flavorful.
I would highly recommend this place — and not just as a second choice when Lauriol is overflowing. It was a very pleasant surprise!