Catrinas Mexican Restaurant

Funky, fresh, and flavorful! Those are the words that come to mind after my first visit to Catrina’s. The assembly line of fresh meats (10+ different options), and flavorful toppings and sauces, like habanero pineapple or Salsa de Arbol, allow you to create a custom meal. You can have these offerings on taco shells, burritos, as a salad, or in a bowl. The friendly staff offers advice as you move through the line building your meal and is great at recommending sauce and meat combinations. As a first timer, I was a little overwhelmed by all of the options as I stared at the chalkboard determining what to order. I had the very tasty carnitas. If they had offered a 3 taco combo, with suggested meats and toppings, that didn’t require decision making, that would have been great for the days one might not want to think. Catrina’s offers a friendly, casual environment in an easy to get to location with plenty of parking. My friend recommended Catrina’s and he was right. Judging by the line that formed after we arrived, Catrina’s is definitely in demand and I’ll be back to try other options.

I have to jump on the 5 star bandwagon. Been here 3 times now and this place is the real deal. The meat is delicious and there are so many different options to choose from. My favorite meat is the Tinga, which is shredded chicken marinated in their chipotle pepper sauce. Makes my mouth water just typing this review. If you are not sure what sauce goes well with your meats ask the staff, trust me they really know their stuff. They will even let you sample a sauce or two on a chip to make sure it is something you can handle. I recommend this place to everyone who is new or visiting the area.

So how does a modest establishment in a nondescript strip mall in a decidedly untrendy part of town merit five stars? By focusing on good food, great service and real value for the money. It doesn’t hurt that it’s locally owned and operated.
I stopped by with a friend the other day. He’d been several times previously and raved about his experience. Tipped off by my veteran pal, I introduced myself to the fellow behind the counter as a newbie. He grinned, took out the lid for a burrito bowl and heaped on samplings of their various meats and then offered a few chips for a salsa tasting. What a terrific, customer friendly gesture.
I ended up with a bowl containing a mix of carnitas and chorizo, black beans, white rice, fajita veggies and two sauces, Salsa de Arbol and Ghost Pepper. There was some genuine heat found in this fresh, flavorful, savory mix.
It also happened to be a Wednesday so we split an order of delicious tamales (one pork and one chicken) with the salsa of day on the side.
I hope Catrina’s eventually opens a branch in my neck of the woods (Western suburbs). In the mean time, they’re expanding to Nordeast Minneapolis.

What’s this?! A spicy taco joint? In Minnesota!?! Shut the front door! No, seriously… shut it, it’s really effin’ cold outside.
After living in Texas for the last so-​many-​years I thought to myself: «Why is it so damn cold up here!?». I also thought: «There is no way this can compare to Taco Deli.» Well, I will happily admit I was dead wrong. This place is legit!
Calling this place a Chipotle clone would be a disservice. While it is a counter-​service place where you pick things that you want to throw inside a bowl, burrito, or taco, that is the only similarity to the corporate giant. Everything else about Catrinas is better. The quality, the selection, and the people are all several steps above what you get at the other similar paces.
The meats are great, the veggies were fresh, and the sauces were yummy (and quite spicy!). The only down side I had was that the tacos I had were pretty sloppy. They were greasy, sauce spilled out everywhere, and they were just a general mess to eat.
That is not nearly enough to steer me away from this place though. This is yet another place that I will be adding to my «gotta go» list when we visit the North.

It’s a better version of Chipotle! Staff is awesome. We have eaten in and gotten to go. Picked up for a party of 8. They are always helpful. Food is great. The chicken is awesome and the salsa selection is awesome.

Catrina’s is one of the better places I’ve come across as a haughty Californian marooned in the desolate Mexican food wasteland that is the Midwest. Fashioned as a mom-​and-​pop Chipotle, the food is fine, but not worth the drive out from downtown Minneapolis.

Writing this review is bittersweet. I want everyone to know how hard this place works for your business, but I like that it’s a «secret» for us locals.
Located next to a crummy little pawnshop, you wouldn’t even know it existed without Unilocal.Catrinas has a wonderful variety of meats, vegetables and salsas for your tacos and burritos. As stated many times, they’re similar to Chipotle but the food is much more flavorful and the dining area is comfortable and welcoming. If you’re a first-​timer, they’ll gladly offer samples of anything you’d like to try. They have fountain drinks, but also a nice selection of beer and bottled beverages. I love the old leather-​and-​wood seating.
They epitomize everything about a high-​quality small business, and I wish them many years of success.
Stop in and give it a try!

My initial thought was that it would be like Chipotle. Although it is the same concept, this food tasted fresher and more authentic. If they had a chain they would give Chipotle a run for their money.
A definite 5 star place with 5 start service. Small and quaint but fresh and authentic.

Lorenzo and the crew have done a fantastic job with this place. The first time I went, I was offered a sample platter of the meats and they were all so good I couldn’t decide which protein to go with for my meal! Everything is fresh, never frozen and delicious. I don’t even bother with Chipotle anymore.

Worth the hype. My son had a chicken burrito (he devoured it) while I had the tacos. Charming little spot, great service, made to order food in a quirky but convenient location to us. Can’t complain — I would rather give my money to this shop than Chipotle. We will be back!

The hidden treasure of St Paul. I love chorizo and barbacoa burrito. The flavors are bursting in your mouth with every bite. You can choose a variety of veggies, including fresh pineapple. Customer service is outstanding. I will be coming for more!!!
Keep up the great work, Catrina!

The only problem with this places is it is not a secret anymore. The line is what stops me from going there. If I have time or there is no long line, I am definitely stopping when hungry and
in the neighborhood.

At first glance, you might think this place has been done, but give it a chance. It has a lot to offer, and is very different than other BYO Mexican meal joints. First off there are options for tacos, burritos, bowl, tortas and tamales. I went with the tacos, so that I could try 3 different combos of meat and ingredients.
Instead of guessing, the kind man behind the counter spent time sharing with me all the protein options. I asked for no beef and there were still over 5 options for me to choose. The kind man even paired the best salsa match with a meat to help me decide. I went with one of each of the chicken tingas with pineapple habanero salsa, and the third taco with chorizo and pico. I also loaded them up with veggies, cheese and guacamole. My food was amazing! The fresh ingredients were loaded with deep flavors. I tried to eat my food slowly to enjoy each bite. Don’t forget to add the homemade chips to complete the meal!
Be sure to check out all the awesome décor. There are lots of Dia de los Muertos paintings of women. The best one is on your way to the bathroom.
Bonus: They have a frequent buyer program card. After so many purchased you will get a free meal. Then write your name on it and post it to the wall of fame.

This place is like Chipotle on steroids. They have an array of meats to choose from. All the food is fresh. They gave me a free sample of 6 different proteins because I was a first time customer. I ordered the three tacos with the pulled beef and all the fixins. They were totally excellent and under $ 8. You can get guacamole on your tacos at no extra charge. I would definitely definitely recommend Catrina’s fine Mexican cuisine

Location, location, location. The all important motto of a good retailer… or restaurateur. But that cuts both ways as some out of the way places like this face less competition and probably build more loyal clientele. This casual, inexpensive, and tasty restaurant either already is or is sure to become a favorite to the nearby 3M’ers. They even get a 10% discount.
Ever walk into a place and just know you’re being served by the owner? This is that place. Passion for authentic Mexican food and even more passion for making the customer so happy they’ll stop back over and over again.
As for the food itself, think Chipotle in terms of the menu items and how you order but much tastier. The food here is prepared, not assembled. Big difference.
I don’t live or work on the east side of the metro but if I did then this would be way higher on my list than any Chipotle, Five Guys, or other fast casual place.

Here from out of town for business and wanted Mexican for lunch. Found this place on Unilocal only a couple of miles away. I saw 5 stars with 91 reviews and thought «Wow, I’ve got to check this place out!»
Man, I can definitely see what everyone was raving about. The food here is amazing! We tried the sampler and everything was delicious, it was so hard to choose. I ended up with the carnitas burrito with the ghost pepper salsa. Awesome! I wanted to take a bottle of it home.
Not only was the food great, but you can’t beat the customer service. You could tell that the owner Lorenzo was very proud of his business.
It’s too bad I’m only here for another day. I’m going to tell the guys here to be sure to stop by. Great food at a great price, a winning combination.

This place is a hidden gem near the 3M headquarters. It’s a chipotle-​esque restaurant, only with much more and better options. Their staff is very kind and seems genuinely interested in pleasing the customers. I believe its a tradition here to give a sampler to their first time customers, to my surprise the owner was onsite and offered us a sample of their best selling proteins. The samplers were so good, I couldn’t decide one and ended up choosing 3 tacos with 3 different meats. They also have a variety of salsa’s to choose from, i believe 8 different salsas. Everything we ordered was tasty, fresh, flavorful, hot and with authentic ingredients.
Try this place, i bet you wouldn’t regret it.

To try Catrinas or go to Chipotle… I decided to try something new, Catrinas. Upon arriving we were provided a plate to sample their protein choices. There were too many choices.
I decided on two tacos Al Pastor and one Carnitas topped with garlic hot sauce, sour cream, cilantro, fresh jalapeño, and lime. Al Pastor was missig it’s char that I’m used to whether dining in CA restaurant or food truck. Carnitas were moist and juicy. I’m glad that I decided on two tortillas per taco, which I am unsure why they ask (since in CA street tacos are served with two tortillas without their asking the customer). After sampling the plate of protein choices, I could barely finish my 3^rd taco.
We also had the guacamole and chips. The guacamole was good, but chips tasted as like they came from a bag. It is unfortunate that they home-​make their proteins/​guacamole and do not apply the same attemps of authenticity to their tortilla chips.
I have yet to find a comparable mexican restaurant in MN that once satisfied my mexican food cravings as they did in CA. I should have decided on a satisfying meal at Chipotle instead. I’m unsure if I will be back but glad I gave it a try.

As others have pointed out, Catrinas lies somewhere between the Chipotle model of fast food and a more traditional taqueria. The usual suspects of tacos and burritos are available, but they also have tortas, tamales and a few other menu items.
You get your choice of about eight different proteins (tinga, pastor, carnitas, chorizo, barbacoa, etc.), and there are a number of house made salsas and ingredients to load up on. I have enjoyed the various bowls, tacos and tortas I have had thus far and it’s nice to have a quick option near the workplace. It’s still fast food, but it’s good, affordable and convenient.
The people working here, including the owner, are very friendly and clearly passionate about their business. Oh, and they also have a handful of bottled beer choices available now, which never hurts.

¡Comida Buenisima! Ambiente informal pero divertido. Hasta dejan probar las diferentes carnes que tienen. Regresaremos a menudo.

Imitation game
Like Chipotle, but better
Call it flattery
As the Barenaked Ladies sang, «It’s all been done before.» So when I say that Catrinas is imitating Chipotle, I in no way mean that as a criticism. The similarities are they serve burritos, tacos and bowls with a similar counter and check-​out style as Chipotle. However, Catrinas has far more choices in the meat and salsa department than Chipotle. They have eight different salsas and probably six-​eight choices of meat.
I had read the mostly glowing reviews on here since they opened, but was somewhat skeptical as it seemed like they were all coming from people with few reviews. My shill alarm was going off. Then I saw Kara D give it five stars. That sealed the deal for me. It was just a question of how soon I would find the time to check it out.
Had kind of had my heart set on getting a bowl with carnitas as I have been deprived by the recent lack thereof at Chipotle. One customer in front of me when I got there and two guys behind the counter. It was the first time there for both me and the other customer. They let us sample most of the different meats that they have available. The chicken was so moist and tender that I changed my mind and went with it in my bowl instead.
The salsas are lined up behind the counter from mildest to hottest. One of the ones slightly less than the hottest was the Ghost Salsa. Asked one of the guys if it was blazing hot, and he said it had some kick but not their hottest by any means. It was just about perfect for me. Provided just a slight amount of discomfort which I enjoy. Had to get up to get a refill on my soda one time to wash down the heat. The hot salsa at Chipotle does nothing for my spice buds whatsoever.
Torn between a four and a five but since they have cerveza (although, I did not partake today), I am going five. If it was next to my work or house, I would probably never go to Chipotle again. Nice to support the little guy rather than our corporate masters.