El Cafetal Mexican Restaurant

I usually order a chicken burrito for take out at this place, but today I thought I should live a little and ordered a shrimp burrito instead. I had a really good one from another restaurant this past week and I was dreaming something similar I guess… Well, at least I expected some beans and rice in it. The chef was more imaginative than me, because he thought that boiled carrots and shrimp should work well together. The burrito is consisted of 60% frozen and boiled vegetables, 10% shrimp and 30% rice. Disgusting. I called to ask if I got somebody else’s order or something, and the lady was very nice, asking me if I want more food delivered (of course, they never offered to refund my money), but what’s the point? My appetite is ruined. They even charged me more for not having the chicken burrito…
There are much better and even less expensive restaurants in the neighborhood. Just to give you an example, it makes more sense to me financially and time-​wise to order for delivery much more delicious food from a restaurant 2 train stops away, rather than waiting there for food I threw away along with my $ 13 dollars (for a burrito. in Astoria. for real)

I simply LOVE this place! I mean I have never been to mexico but something tells it does not get any better than this. My only issue is that the food takes a long time to make but I guess thats a good thing anyways. :)

Love this place! The food is delicious and always so thoughtfully and beautifully presented. I also always find the service warm and friendly. It’s a great neighborhood spot for a casual bite and a beer! Definitely give it a try.

I agree with the reviews posted about this «restaurant» being unprofessional.
I walked in and ordered Enchiladas Suizas, after a 20 minute wait I took my food to go. (Enchiladas Suizas consists of sour cream and cheese) So When I arrived at my job, my enchiladas looked funny. They also tasted funny but I kept eating. After, my throat felt funny and I knew that something was wrong. Looking closely at my enchiladas I noticed that the problem was the sour cream. I don’t know if the sour cream was bad from the start, or if it went bad because the enchiladas were hot.
So I called the restaurant to tell them about the Enchiladas being bad.
The lady told me to go back to show her the food.
Since the problem was ONLY with the enchiladas, I didn’t bother to bring the separate container of the rice and beans it came with.
When I arrived to the restaurant and showed her the food she agreed that in fact the sour cream was bad by the looks of it. But since I had eaten half of my meal, she claimed she couldn’t do nothing about it which I found to be absurd! She then said «If you would’ve came with the rice and beans I would’ve refunded your money with no problem.»
I then told her I wasn’t going to have time to go back to my job and come back with the rice but that I will take it back to the restaurant later on if that was the problem. She then called the owner and told her the problem and she said that I will be receiving my refund.
So I returned 3 hours later with the rice and beans and the lady gave me a nasty attitude and said «You didn’t have to bring it anymore, either way the owner was going to refund your money!» I then told her, «You were complaining about me not bringing your rice and beans so here is your RICE AND BEANS!
I never received my refund.
NEVER AGAIN STEPPING TO THIS PLACE AGAIN!

Unreliable and unprofessional. Do not trust them with your loved ones.
Just keep nachos safe oh people of the food industry !!
Waited patiently for an hour and a half, gave them a call at midnight. You know, hello I ordered some food, and nachos, just making sure all is okay over there, are my nachos safe?
Wait a minute. Too late for delivery? But I didn’t order now. I have evidence! What is this deception! The world is a lie!
But what about my nachos, you ask?
I think of them now, alone and afraid, and my heart aches.
The staff of this questionable establishment to whom I foolishly entrusted my evening — well, they paid no mind. Needless to say «Sorry mami» didn’t suffice.
Now I can’t sleep and am showcasing my mental instability on the netherweb.
Food very well may be good here (I could eat my shoe right now) but after reading these reviews, delivery is surely a gamble. Gambling kills (nacho dreams).
If I were the owner I’d be ashamed of such nonchalant destruction of hope and love.
This city has better to offer — go somewhere else.

I have ordered here numerous times and have been content; however, I recently ordered online and when the delivery guy arrived at my apartment he gave me an order that was not that one that I had requested. When I called the restaurant to speak to the employee (s) in order to notify the delivery guy to return the lady who answered the phone did not speak any English. Thus, she did not understand the situation at hand. I was stuck with someone else’s order. =\ Not a great experience.

Best steak tacos in astoria.
the seafood soup with their red spice is the remedy for any hangover. Delivery is always quick and never had any bad experience with any orders.

For the price that you pay, you get a VERY good deal on the serving size. Add to that the amazing taste and flavours of the food and you get a win win combo! This is one of the best Mexican places I’ve tried in NYC/​Astoria and they even do delivery in the Astoria area! A definite must-​try if you’re craving late night Mexican nosh.

I always stop here to grab a quick dinner after work. The proportions of their tacos are bigger then other places I’ve been to, they always give me three tacos, and I can NEVER finish it, which is a plus, because it’s shareable. I decided to give the last one to my brother the other night when I got home, and I really thought he wouldn’t like it (because he never likes anything) but he surprisingly loved it.

Absolutely delicious. I love the food. Chill atmosphere. the reasonable price more than makes it worth your while.

The Mexican food we all crave at my work place! These guys have gone out of their way to deliver to us and always more than enough sauces and extras! Their red chilaquiles are devilishly good, chicken is flavorful and their guacamole and chops are legit. Heard their shrimp soup and burritos are good too!

Poor staff, bad customer service

Just ordered take out from seamless. After waiting 45 mins for them to deliver my burrito. I went to my confirmation email and called them– the phone just rang and rang. Then I check on their website and it was a completely different phone number. I called them asked what the hold up was and tried to explain how they had the wrong number on their seamless account. The women said you have a differnt number okay what is it?!
I said is there anyone that speaks English she said no — an hour it took — a kid comes to the door and I explained to him my frustration he said he just delivers the food — I then thought I should tip him because like he said he just delivers and he didn’t have change of a 20 and proceed to charge me for my meal when I had already paid for it through seamless. Horrible customer service! They don’t know any English! Sorry I’m hungry and ordered an hour ago for one single mean when your less than a mile away!

AMAZING AND DELICIOUS food. Good price and fast delivery. Nothing more to say.

I was here last week. It was nothing special although the servings were big… The service was slow even though we were the only people in the restaurant. I’ve experienced better. Sorry El Cafetal.

Review is way over due! This authentic Mexican spot is right around the corner and it really is SO good. Been here more than a handful of times… Obsessed with nachos! Must get them with the chicken and the beef… The tacos are also delicious topped off with onions and cilantro. first time ordering breakfast (western omelette)… And it was perfectly made. Comes with home fries, toast, coffee – all for $ 7.95… You can’t beat that!

When I lived on 30^th Ave., I frequently ordered Yummy Taco, so I was bummed when I moved to Ditmars, where the only good Mexican food was from Mojave — delicious, but expensive.
I was on Seamless one day and stumbled upon El Cafetal and decided to give them a go, and now they’re a go-​to option when I’m craving delivery.
My favorite dish is their cheese quesadilla. Trust me, it’s more exciting than it sounds. The tortillas are fresh and delicious, and drizzled in crema, sprinkled with cotija cheese, and topped with slices of avocado.
How is that not something to love?
I’ve also had the guacamole and house-​made tortilla chips, which are fantastic. The lime-​y flavor of the guac is my favorite.
Oh, and let’s not forget their tostadas. Also a hit.
My fiancé likes their burritos, but I try not to let him have them because they are massive (great value, but probably not great for you).

Food is good but omg I waited nearly 2 hours for a delivery of tacos and I live half a block away!!! Terrible service.

I am a Mexican-​American born and raised in California, so since moving to NYC years ago I’ve been on a search for half-​way decent Mexican food to no avail. Then after living in the same apartment in Astoria for 4 years, I found El Cafetal right around the corner from my place! It was right under my nose this whole time! Anyway, the food is AUTHENTIC Mexican food. No shredded cheese. No Tex-​Mex. No Californiafied-​Mexican. The food is delicious and portions are generous. I have never been disappointed in a dish I’ve ordered from there, but I love the tacos al pastor the best.
If you’ve ever been to the place, you’ll know it’s a hole-​in-​the-​wall. The ambiance and the décor are not the reasons to go here. You go for the food. I’ve ordered delivery and yes it does take a while. It’s because they’re making your food to order and it’s well-​worth the wait. Mostly, I do carry out and call ahead the minute I get above ground on the N. I’ve never done Seamless ordering, but speaking with the staff, I wouldn’t. They only take cash, so I don’t understand why they’d do Seamless. Nevertheless, they’re a small, but dedicated staff. Granted, I speak Spanish, so I don’t have to worry about communication barriers. My suggestion to non-​Spanish speakers, if you’re ever in the area eat-​in or do carry out (communication in broken Spanish/​English is easier in person).

When you put together the price, the quality of ingredients (fresh!) and the amount of care they put into the preparation of each dish regardless of what you order, what you get is one hell of a delicious and fully satisfying meal.
Satisfaction on all fronts is difficult to achieve and although you can’t expect black tie service from a place like this, it’s all about their effort here. They certainly aim to please.
Everyone’s heard «don’t judge a book by its cover» and this is certainly one of those places. The windows are covered with menus and pictures and makes it a little difficult to see in, couple this with the occasionally uninviting loiterers out front, small footprint and unassuming signs and you can easily skip right over it.
It’s located conveniently at the base of the stairs to the Astoria Blvd stop and is definitely worth stopping off at before hitting up after work on the way home (or if you don’t live in the area and are just heading to the airport before catching the LGA bus).
Even basic things like the burritos and tacos are prepared with the freshest cut avocado, generous wedges of lime and plated nicely.
Make sure you get the guacamole here too, it’s just that good.