El Vaquero Restaurant

Delicious and the best service! I’ve had a couple of their tortas, taquitos, and burritos and they have all been really good!

Barbacoa. Tacos. Dorados. I am so excited to have discovered this gem after reading a write up in the LA Weekly. And it has been right around the corner from me all the time! The sweetest owners… the definition of a local mom and pop restaurant. Everything supr homemade and high quality. Clean, cozy, delicious. I will be dreaming of those tacos until I get back the next time, which now that I have discovered it, will undoubtedly be a pretty regular occurrence. So good.

Came in for breakfast yesterday morning. I ordered the Chilaquiles plate for me and the huevos rancheros for a friend. This was our first ever visit here and the food was amazing, and other than the Chilaquiles, which I loved, the Mexican rice was the best I’d ever had in a restaurant. A well deserved 5 stars.

Tried this place for the first time, as we just moved into the neighborhood. Food was good and staff was amazing!

Walked in and when I tried the asada burrito I was very pleased with the quality of beef.

After church on Sunday’s we may have brunch here. Good food, no nonsense Mexican food. Everything looks good and the prices are inexpensive too. Had the tacos, torta ahogada (not really my favorite) but the food comes quickly and service is great. The horchata is really yummy !! The kids always enjoy the food here. But it’s super hot inside …

Their food is a hit and miss, their service is S… l…o…w! Ifvyou have the time go for it.

Food is nice
Not bad
Its always kinda empty in there tho
Better then the taco stands in el sereno

I was in the area so I whipped out my big Unilocal to see what was good and cheap (like me!). I found this this little joint with good reviews that was right next door. The place was surprising empty for 12:30pm on a Friday (which was fine by me). I ordered the burrito ahogado de lengua. Meanwhile, the waitress brought out chips with two kinds of salsa. VERY good fresh salsa. The burrito in red sauce was amazingly tasty. I loved the strips of grilled onion that adorned the top of the burrito. I washed it down with a bottle of Mexican Coke. All this for about $ 8. Muy bueno dealo! I look forward to coming back– especially since I realized I forgot to tip the waitress as I drove away. Can’t win ‘em all.

Second time here. Wanted to give this place a chance, but their customer service is dismal. Too bad their food is good. It almost has me coming back, but i witnessed orders going back to the kitchen due to errors and the exercise was way too slow. When a restaurant can’t get it together with just 3 clients, it means they seriously need help.

Tacos de barbacoa, tacos dorado and their salsa are very good. The negative thing about here is that they take too long. Called ahead of time because we already know they take long, arrived and food wasn’t ready yet. We sat down and waited for our food about 10 minutes, we were never offered any drinks until we were done eating so we didn’t order any.
Hope their speed in the kitchen get better and I will definitely give them a 5.

The food always good plus the service super friendly is like eat in family the breakfast is the best food … the best part is super afordable prices…

I have been here twice and the food is Awesome and Delicious. My favorite plate has to be the taquitos de pollo. The pozole is very good too. The service and prices are unbeatable. Their carne asada soft tacos are great. This is my new favorite weekend spot.

First time eating here, Food is good and very afordable. The service is very good and I really love how the place is decorated.

Even though I have dined here with no complaints, their service was royally terrible today.
I ordered over the phone and once I arrived they not only took half hour to give me my hour, but they stared at me and bickered about me while they cooked… Obviously they were angry that they had forgotten and took it out on me. I don’t even trust their food quality not to mention they don’t even use gloves!!!
My mom spoke to the manager in person and she was rude and curt, even when found at fault. Take note of this people. And someone plz tell them to wear gloves while wiping the sweat from their foreheads.

Stopped in with the hubs here while running errands. We were jonesing for tacos. Man, I can’t believe I have never been here. For 5 bucks we got two tacos, rice, beans, chips and a yummy salsa. Nothing shocking or different from any other hole in the wall but it satisfied my hunger and the carnitas was good.
Small place, no fountain drinks.

After indulging in DineLA I decided to go back to the basics and checked out this place for the first time, and let me tell you… no one needs DineLA when this restaurant offers full dinner plates for $ 4.99!!!
No promos needed here, just an appetite for authentic Mexican food.
I was craving a torta ahogada and El Vaquero delivered. My friend ordered the chicken flautas plate which looked equally as appetizing. Beverages included a little horchata and a Mexican coke. I think I can eat here everyday or at least once a week.
Also worth noting is that El Vaquero is also a comfortable and clean sit down Mexican restaurant. While it may not be anything fancy, it is certainly both comfortable and clean.

Absolutely the BEST tortas ahogadas (that’s like a Mexican French dip my gabacho readers). This delicious treat is best experienced with an ice cold Mexican coke. The bread is fresh, crusty on the outside (for the regular tortas) soft, fluffy inside. The chicken was juicy and the carnitas were well cooked with a little bit of crisp to them. Onions on top were vinegary and flavorful, with a smokey salsa, right amount of spice. Lots of traditional favorites as well of you’re in the mood for a taco or mole. But stick to the Tortas. Mmmm.

Some things, you just KNOW you’ll like or dislike, before you even try them.
This was how I’ve felt for months, about tortas ahogadas. I mean, how could it go wrong? A torta ahogada contains three of my favorite things:
Sauce mopped up with bread
Pork
Spicy
Somehow, I had an inkling suspicion that it would be El Vaquero, to whom I give my torta ahogada virginity. I just had to wait for the right time. You see, my boyfriend watches his carbs and my metabolism is akin to a termite’s. To shove a torta ahogada into my face, right in front of him, would be sadistic.
I strolled in and placed my order at the counter. I ordered in Spanish, but when I asked for the spicy sauce, the woman behind the counter heaved a bit of a sigh, probably thinking ‘this guera has no idea what she’s in for.’
«Are you SURE you want it spicy?» she asked, in English. «Have you had one before?»
She coaxed me into half spicy sauce, half mild. Well, fair enough.
A few minutes later, my sandwich arrived, as predicted, with only one side drowning in the spicy sauce. (The other one was just mild sauce.)
Both sauces were rich with flavor. The spicy sauce had quite a kick to it and nice, tart, tomatoey taste to it. I could taste a strong flavor of oregano. Inside, the sandwich contained a nice smear of beans and delicious carnitas. Red-​hued pickled onions topped this masterpiece.
The bread was nice and hearty and crusty. It held up well in it’s bath of sauces. I was mostly able to eat it with my hands, but toward the end, I had to clean up a few stray strands of pork and onions with a fork.
There’s something so self-​sufficient about this sandwich; everyone loves cleaning up a good sauce with a piece of bread, but the torta ahogada arrives ready to take on this need, all on it’s own.
I’ll admit that toward the end, my eyes started to water and I had to blow my nose, but that, to me, was part of the experience.
It’s a cute little restaurant, too. I’ll come back again and try the barbacoa or the potato tacos.
On my way out, I thanked the woman at the counter and said, «Next time, full spicy!»

awsome tacos dorados and tortas ohgadas. freindly atmospere.

So tonight I didn’t feel like going any place «fabo,» just a place to grab a taco. .. and bam, I remembered this place. I went to the one in Alhambra, which is only 5 blocks away from me; but they were closed…
So since I wanted a taco, I thought, hey I’ll cruise to El Sereno because we all know Alhambra is known for their Asian food joints.
Well low and behold. .. as my friend Anel and I were cruising down Huntington Dr., I remembered this location and as I drove by, they were still open.
I make a U-​turn, parked in front and ordered 3 tacos dorados de barbacoa. These tacos were heavenly bliss. .. this place will definitely be my «go to» joint for a quick delicious meal…
I’ve been here before for their menudo. .. it’s really good; as well as their «potato tacos,» too. They serve you corn chips & salsa, which aren’t the «best,» but I don’t come for chips. .. I don’t really care for the «red» salsa, but the other one that they serve is yummy.
I say come one, come all. .. the tacos dorados de barbacoa, they
are the bomb!!! I wish I would have had more tacos, but didn’t want to be a piggy wiggy. .. Oink!