Everything is absolutely amazing! The food. the server, the atmosphere, the taste of the food is ALWAYS 10/10! The shrimp and michelada were so damn good. I love this place! I hope they keep this good quality of food up. Definitely recommend read more

The food is excellent. Staff is gracious and they remembered us. Very welcoming and the food is home. I recommend this place for take out, dining and catering. First experience was eating their food at a birthday party they catered. I was impressed. It's a must try read more

El Chalateco - Chilaquiles Con Carne Carne asada wet burrito - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

El Chalateco has been on my list for a while now and I finally came with coworkers when we were out in the field. El Chalateco is a solid spot for Taco Tuesday special - five for $12. You get two meat options and a pretty generous serving. And free chips and salsa. They charge a $1 if you use card. I'll not sure if they used their trompo (they have one) but I hope to catch them when they do. read more

El Chalateco - $12 for 5 Tacos (Choice of two meats) - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

Having lunch with coworkers and decided to come to El Chalateco. We were greeted by the young lady at the counter as we walked in the door. However, there was a scent that caught our attention right away. We looked over the menu and made our choices. Chips and salsa were brought over for us to snack on while we looked over the menu. Salsa was good and had a bit of a spice to it. I decided to go with the fried yucca with pork, one sope and a side of Mexican rice. The sope was just OK a bit bland but no problem added some salt and then it was OK. The rice had very good texture and seasoning. I really liked it. The star of the show was the fried yucca the pork complemented it however I could've eaten just the yucca it was that good. coworkers had the shrimp entrée that came with white rice, salad and fries. Their fries were cooked to perfection and the shrimp was spicy. The portion was huge enough for two people. Another coworker got the popusas which looked a bit plain, but she seemed to enjoy them. read more

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The service was really good here. I really enjoyed the food. My family and i always order the pupusas here, they taste as if it came from our mother's kitchen. You can really taste the authenticity. The place is very spacious and the environment overall friendly. I wasn't a big fan of the cafe de olla, but i know their fruit juice is amazing! You won't regret coming here if you love pupusas! read more

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I go to this place for Taco Tuesdays. It's a great deal, 5 for $10. I love the trip (extra crispy) tacos. They also sell Papusas. They have other dishes I have yet to try. You can get food to go or sit down to eat. There's plenty of tables, service is fast and staff is friendly. read more

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The food is really good! but the menu doesn't have pricing on it! Meaning that they are able to charge whatever they want once you get to the register! Me and my husband recently went there and they had a 2$ special on al pastor tacos. I had 4 al pastor tacos 8$ total my husband had 2 asada tacos not sure how much they charge for asada. With a side of just rice and beans for my son and two salad waters! When my husband went to go pay she told my husband the total was 49$ lucky my husband caught on! She claimed she didn't know that there was a special on the al pastor tacos but seen her go outside and give the man the food ticket! So she dropped the price down 19$ then the rice and beans were 5.99 each mind you it was a scoop of each! So with all that being said this will be our last time going there! read more

This place is not it. Our food took way too long to come out, one plate of 3 pupusas came out and then 45 minutes later the rest of our food came out . We were a party of 8 and we all ate at separate times . One of us didn't even get to eat their burrito until we were almost all finished because they forgot to bring it out. The service was so unorganized. I also don't appreciate that there are no prices of the food on the menu. The food was okay, but definitely not worth waiting for . It was oily, lacked flavor and only tasted okay if you drowned it in salsa. The highlight of the night was the bottle of coca cola. The pupusas were not bad, however I wouldn't go back just based upon my experience . Ambiance was uncomfortable, it just felt dingy everywhere and the restrooms were a nightmare. Giving this restaurant 2 stars because our waitress was kind, but sadly will not be returning. read more

El Chalateco - Pupusa revueltas - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

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Ordered take out - took about 15 minutes to get our food. We got Salvadorian Pupusas and Mexican Tacos. Really good! Horchata was fantastic. Lively music in the back ground. Definitely a spot to check out! read more

El Chalateco - Inside chaleteco - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

Good spot if you're craving pupusas! There's a variety of dishes to eat and the portion is shareable. The tacos had great flavor and presentation was nice. Price is a bit on the higher side. Restaurant is spacious but English is very limited so please be considerate of that when asking for things. read more

El Chalateco - a plate of mexican food - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

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When I first got my food, it was beautiful. I thought, if the food is half as good as it looks, I'd be happy. The food was better. I loved what I ordered. Not sure the name, but it was like deconstructed enchiladas. Tremendous flavor. The prices were reasonable but as another review mentioned, there are no prices on the menu. I asked about the price before I ordered, so not a big deal, to me. The server was friendly. He didn't speak a ton of English, so he asked the girl at the counter to help. She was more than gracious enough to do so. All in all, a great experience. I came during lunch, so it was not horribly busy. I was extremely happy with the food and service. read more

El Chalateco - Beautiful presentation. - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

One Saturday night on a drive back from the Alum Rock Hills, my partner and I were in need of some food. We had recently tried some excellent tacos at Tacos Al Cabron in East LA, and were in the mood for some Al Pastor. Driving down Alum Rock, I spotted a taquero cooking outside of a Salvadoran restaurant called Chalateco across from the Mexican Heritage Plaza. He was shaving succulent cuts of Al Pastor off of the spinning spit grill on top of perfect little corn tortillas then flicking pineapple for the finishing touch. We had found a gem. That location (@1694 Alum Rock Ave) is now permanently closed, and their flagship restaurant is now at 2 N. Jackson St (at the corner of Alum Rock and Jackson). I point out the address because I was not able to find it on Yelp, so I created a new entry. There are a couple other Chalateco locations in Mountain View and West SJ, but I found that they were not quite at the level of cooking of the east side flagship. I could've picked just about any restaurant for my birthday with my extended family last week, and I chose Chalateco on Jackson. I've never been disappointed by any meal here or at the previous Alum Rock location. After trying a lot more of their extensive menu items over the past year, nothing has changed my mind. Their tacos are fantastic. The best Al Pastor tacos I've had in the city. They are served with a succulent shaving of spit-grilled al pastor pork, cilantro, onion and topped with a flick of pineapple and either red or green salsa, which seems completely random. The small tortillas are doubled and thin. They cover just enough to curl everything inside the tortilla when you pick it up. Take a bite and tell me I'm a liar. The rest of their menu is enormous. They have Pupusas, Tamal, Huarache, Consome (chicken broth) with Barbacoa or Chicken, Tortas, Fajitas, Aguachile (damn near burned my tongue off!), Burritos, Ceviche, Enchiladas, and entree plates of different meats. Then you've got huge goblets of Michelada, their Agua Frescas (Horchata, Arrayan, Jamaica and Frutas, a nice fresh fruit punch). Then there's flan and plaintains with cream. As for the ambience, there are a lot of tv's around, with yellow and red painted seats and interior. It used to be a Carl's Jr. and the building still kinda has that vibe. Usually it's pretty busy at night, but it's a spacious dining area that could probably seat about 60 people. They also have a good-sized parking lot in the back. As of December 2022, they only take cash, but there is an ATM near the register. If you haven't yet been to Chalateco, I happily recommend it. read more

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My Salvadoran friend raves about this place so we have to go each time he's in town. I recommend the revueltas papusa and pastor tacos. I don't like the fact that the menu does not have any prices on them, so you won't find out how much you've spent until you get the bill (that's not itemized). The bathrooms are old and dirty. They also sell Mexican tacos so it's not all Salvordan food. The staff are nice. They really need to upgrade the restaurant a bit to make it more clean read more

El Chalateco - papusa - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

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Fui al desayuno la verdad el servicio es pésimo la mesera que realmente no sé su nombre se les hace preguntas acerca de la comida y hacen caras feas como si un favor le están haciendo al responder. La comida no está muy buena y la presentación menos ya que sus platos son muy grandes no recomiendo ni el lugar y mucho menos el servicio he ido dos ocasiones siempre me ha tocado la misma mesera cabello negro en moño y es pésima en su trabajo nunca se acerca a preguntar si todo bien y eso que el lugar casi siempre está súper solo. read more

Tuve una muy mala experiencia en este lugar. El caldo estaba extremadamente salado y grasoso, lo cual lo hizo incomible. Además, la gordita que pedí estaba muy grasosa. Cuando le mencioné esto a nuestra mesera, ella dijo que los cocineros afirmaban que no era así. No volveré. read more

El Chalateco - Caldo de camarón con extra grasa y sal - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

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My wife and I have been coming to this restaurant for years, and we have always received good service. However, for the past eight months, there has been a male waiter who consistently gets our orders wrong or forgets what he's doing. Just today, I ordered a michelada and a shrimp cocktail. He first brought my wife's food, and then after about four minutes, he brought my drink. As he was approaching our table, he remarked, "Oh, you already have the shrimp cocktail." I replied, "Yes, I do." He then went back to the server and said that she already had the shrimp cocktail. The kitchen staff corrected him, saying, "No, she does not; she has a michelada." When he finally arrived at my table, I asked him to please pay attention. read more

El Chalateco - Guys - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

Definitely missed cali for the food! Short stay but had to stop. If in this area absolutely stop and try the food. Parking is easy in and out. read more

El Chalateco - Cabaza tacos. Amazing!! - Salvadoran Near Me - San Jose, California

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Pesimismo Servicio te atienden cuando ellos quieren. Unprofessionalism from the waiters read more

Costumer service was so bad . Not professional it all. Server never say her name or nothing and not even check on us to make if everything was okay . Food quality was not great either . I won't go back here again . read more

Great casual restaurant with many tables to accommodate groups. It was a little tricky to order for a large group and it is cash only, but they have an ATM available. Our whole group thought the food was excellent. They had a fruit punch with fresh fruit that is highly recommended. read more

Food is ok but pricey better off going to a taqueria better tasting and cheaper Had a couple tiny tracos and 2 cheese papusas was about $25 with beverage read more

Ambiance: zero, customer service: zero: price: secret, their menu doesn't show any pricing . . . it's mysterious! And too EXPENSIVE for one guava juice, one soda, one order of plantain with sour cream and beans, 4 tacos = $52.00!!! And the cashier did not give itemized receipt, just handed us the total bill. Food: mediocre. Will not come back at all! Very dishonest business! read more

Food is really great, great service only reason not a 5 due to the bathrooms are not very clean

The best Al Pastor tacos I've had in northern California! I used to live near Leo's in Los Angeles which is known to have the best Al Pastor in the city. This is the only place I've seen up north with an actual rotating spit like Leo's. Highly recommend! read more

The service left a lot to be desired. The waiter seemed to be lost and overburdened with serving multiple tables at the same time. This resulted in a delay in my order for my drink and food. Although the food itself was enjoyable, the price was a little high, and the wait time made it difficult to fully appreciate the food. I found the restaurant's cleanliness to be bad since tables were left uncleaned, and there was leftover food on the floor. read more