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    El Encanto Latino

    3.8 (25 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

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    Outside
    Harley S.

    This terrific little truck serves legit Mexican street food, with a couple of American crowd pleasers available as well (burrito, cheese steak, french fries...for those just not interested in Mexican street food). El Encanto Latino (also known as Mina's Tamales) is not just a taco truck. In fact the focus here is on tamales, sopes, and quesadillas. Nothing fancy, but it's all made fresh. I can recommend the sopes. If you've never had one, think taco but on a fresh corn based round that's much thicker than a tortilla. Two make for a very satisfying meal. The pork was tender and flavorful, if not terribly juicy (it's sliced, not pulled). I'm eager to try the birria beef next time. You can see the truck's schedule -- and even order your food in advance -- at minatamales.square.site.

    Birria Tacos
    Cynthia L.

    Hubs has a good nose for legit Mexican because well, he is Mexican. We ordered a mix of things and here are areas I would improve: Taquitos - The chicken was a bit dry and tasteless Pork Tamales - It seems like these were pre-made (we get it, it's difficult to serve steaming, fresh, hot tamales from a truck) because the masa was a bit bland and the tamales fell apart, as soon as we opened the wrapper, from being dry. Birria Tacos (both our cheese and non-cheese one) - Fell apart and couldn't be picked up to dip in the consommé; Tacos should not fall apart. Positives: The Birria meat and consommé were tasty. The mild and hot sauce they had were tasty. We might give them another try, if there are some tweaks.

    Crunchy Chicken Taquitos
    Alan N.

    Another food truck that stopped by my area, and honestly I wasn't impressed. I ordered the Crunchy Chicken Taquitos and Chicken Special Burrito. If I could rate them individually, I'd give the taquitos 2 stars, and the burrito 3 stars. The taquitos were basically tasteless, so much so that it even tasted bland after being fully dipped in salsa. Maybe they don't season their chicken properly. The burrito was average, not terrible and not great. If you're going to give this place a try, I recommend passing on the taquitos (even if you typically enjoy them).

    Spicy chorizo tamale; sweet pineapple tamale.
    Ruth C.

    Three and a half stars. We had no problems preordering Mina's Tamales for a neighborhood drop. The birria tacos were decent-- even though the tortillas clearly weren't dipped into the consommé fat before frying, they at least maintained their integrity for dipping into the consommé on the side. Steak 'dilla was alright, but that protein is probably a skip for us next time; at least the salad and sour cream helped round out his meal with a rich horchata. My favorites of the night were the tamales we tried: moist, piping hot, and flavorful. I'd happily get chorizo and pineapple tamales again, and am looking forward to trying their chicken and guajillo pork tamales too.

    In Columbia Pike for an event today
    Dee M.

    Tried their tacos at this Columbia Pike street event today. Pretty good pastor and asada tacos. Flavorful and nice and hot. The pastor taco tasted better than the asada taco in my opinion. They have tacos, tortas, pupusas, burritos, and quesadillas that they were selling from their food truck today, and lots of bebidas (Jarritos).

    Awesome food truck. She was leaving but stayed to make me an order
    Marie G.

    She was so nice and even went out of her way to make my meal before leaving to an event she had to attend. However, they were not very good. The chicken had no taste, the flautas were over cooked and there was no cilantro or onions on it but the service was 5 star. Idk what it is with the food out in Arlington but, they need some flavor here.

    Steak and chorizo tacos and a pupusa.

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    1 year ago

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    3 years ago

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    1 year ago

    The tamales are so authentically Mexican, and they are amazing!! I was raised on them, and these really did live up to my expectations.

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    8 years ago

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    3 years ago

    the tamales are to die for, I mean for the east coast at least. The lady's were great

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    5 years ago

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    6 years ago

    We got food from this food truck last night and everything was incredible! We'll be back!

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    6 years ago

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    7 years ago

    Excellent Traditional Mexican Food w/ Fast Friendly Service..... Usually near the corner of Columbia Pike & George Mason drive....

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    Buena Vida - Butternut Squash Taco

    Buena Vida

    3.9(619 reviews)
    2.0 miClarendon
    $$

    If you asked me where I've had the best mayonnaise nachos I've ever had in my life, I'd answer…read moreBueno Vida. Why? Because I've never had them anywhere else in my life. If you asked me where I've had the worst nachos in my life, well, same answer. I have so many words and so few at the same time, I think it's best I punctuate... .

    This place was just a block from our hotel in Arlington, so we went to check it out!…read more The place was upstairs, and it was small, but pretty (also filled with Cherry Blossoms decor)....with these big, open windows with a great view. Sadly, it was SO sunny that the booths by the window was too hot and bright, so we decided to sit away from it. If only we came for dinner when the sun wasn't so bright? So that was a bummer. I'll also mention that when we stopped in (early Saturday), the place was all but empty, but the host would not let us sit at these plushy booths (for 4 or more people), saying that there were reservations. However, these booths stayed empty the whole time we were there...and as we left! That sorta ticked us off. Another thing that ticked me off was that there was this item on the menu that wasn't available. As it was, their brunch menu was really small. BTW, we had the option to go with their AYCE Brunch or a la carte...we chose to do the latter. I resorted to ordering Shrimp Gobernador, and my husband got Huevo Ranchero. The Huevo Ranchero looked really good...and my husband seemed to really enjoy it. My Shrimp Gobernador was OK at best. It was a lot like Shrimp Tacos, but the ingredients inside was smothered and a bit greasy. Not my cup of tea. For the price point, I thought my shrimp dish was really underwhelming. Also, the service was SLOW. It took forever to get our drinks...and we were the only diners in there for awhile! Overall, I felt that the foods were overpriced for what they were. Ambiance was pretty, but we weren't able to even sit by the window because of the glaring sun...and the service was mediocre at best. I just thought it was an OK brunch...but am glad my husband enjoyed his favorite Mexican breakfast!

    Photos
    Buena Vida - Interior

    Interior

    Buena Vida - Mushroom Taco

    Mushroom Taco

    Buena Vida - Lamb Barbacoa Taco

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    Lamb Barbacoa Taco

    Los Chamacos Mexican Restaurant - Campus birria tacos

    Los Chamacos Mexican Restaurant

    4.4(274 reviews)
    0.8 miColumbia Heights
    $$
    Sports on TV
    Catering service

    I had this place saved from IG reels for a while, so I was really excited to finally check Los…read moreChamacos off my list and it definitely lived up to the hype! We came mainly for the birria pizza and birria ramen, and both were absolutely delicious and packed with flavor. The service really stood out too. Staff were polite, and super efficient; I think our food came out in like 15 minutes or less! The space itself is bright, colorful, and has a comfortable, homey vibe. We went on a Friday and were able to walk in and get seats easily, which was a nice surprise. Parking can be a bit tricky in the area though, so you may have to park a little farther away and walk. Prices were very reasonable for the quality and portions. Overall, such a great experience and we will definitely be back next time we are in Virginia!

    The food here was delicious! I had the Steak fajitas and asked for medium rare and that's exactly…read morewhat I got. The refried beans were very good and the rice was cooked to perfection. My son ordered Chicken enchiladas and they were amazing. Son's girlfriend had Torta with Birria, delish! Service was great, we got were seated right away, server was very attentive. The restaurant was clean, full of vibrant colors. You feel welcomed as soon as you walk in. If you live in and around this area I highly recommend this place. I'm visiting from California and I can honestly say there is nothing like this back home. Last thing, you can't beat the prices in this restaurant! The restaurant is on a corner, parking in the back. Came back on Cinco de Mayo since we had such a good experience the other night. We didn't get any chips / salsa (server forgot). They ran out of guacamole, the burrito we ordered had no green salsa ( we asked for it and we paid extra). My fajitas were a little over done, I asked for medium rare. Server didn't bring silverware, we had to ask. Granted it was Cinco de Mayo, but running out of guacamole?? I originally gave a 5 star but had to change it.

    Photos
    Los Chamacos Mexican Restaurant - Festival

    Festival

    Los Chamacos Mexican Restaurant - Famous ceviche

    Famous ceviche

    Los Chamacos Mexican Restaurant - Fajitas chamacos

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    Fajitas chamacos

    El Centro - Tacos Griegos - Not available at the 14th Street location.  Delicious!

    El Centro

    3.3(1.4k reviews)
    3.8 miGeorgetown
    $$

    I work down the street from here, and actually found out about it as I was perusing different…read morerestaurants to check out for Restaurant Week. I liked their menu and wanted to give it a try. I got there shortly after they opened up and it was pretty empty. I got a seat right by the door, and had a view of the street and watched as the restaurant began to fill up. Lots of college kids came in as the evening went on and it seemed like a popular restaurant. I thought my server was very good. He checked in regularly and had a lot of tables he was responsible for. For my meal, I started with Queso Fundido and that was probably my favorite. The cheese was really hot and very delicious. It also came with three types of salsa on the side (a salsa verde, a chili salsa, and a third one I'm not sure what it was). I did like the chili one. The flour tortillas were very hot and fresh. I enjoyed it. For my entree, I had the Achiote Hanger Steak Fajitas. This was my least favorite part of the meal. I had asked the waiter if they were good and he told me he always recommends it. I didn't mind the sides that came with it. The rice and beans were pretty good and I liked the guacamole. What I didn't like was the actual steak. It was very tough and hard to bite into. What was weird is it was completely red in the middle so I believe it was medium to medium rare, but the steak wasn't tender at all. It also wasn't very seasoned and the peppers and onions under it just seemed to be sitting in oil. I did ask for salt and pepper, but even with it, I didn't like it. I ended up not finishing the meal. Finally, I had ordered the corn cheesecake as a dessert. I now realize they sent out churros instead, but I guess I wasn't paying attention until after the fact.The churros were OK. I would have preferred more chocolate sauce on mine. I wish I would have spoken up because I was actually looking forward to trying the cheesecake. For me the food was ok, and not spectacular. I'd be willing to try out something else and come back to at least try their cheesecake, but if I never returned that'd be fine with me too.

    The service was good, ambiance was good, a little loud, but the space is limited…read more I ordered the taco combination trio. The shrimp and chicken were very good and flavorful. The steak meat seemed to be overcooked and was a little dry, with not a lot of flavor. The queso dip was a little bit too thick, so it was a difficult to serve, as the cheese was too stringy and gooey.

    Photos
    El Centro - Braised Beef Shortrib Casuela with tamarind mole and root vegetables.

    Braised Beef Shortrib Casuela with tamarind mole and root vegetables.

    El Centro - Vuelve a la Vida Tacos, with grilled octopus, shrimp, chorizo and tomatillo salsa.

    Vuelve a la Vida Tacos, with grilled octopus, shrimp, chorizo and tomatillo salsa.

    El Centro - Chocolate Cigars!  Made on site and served with espresso ice cream (not shown).  Awesome!

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    Chocolate Cigars! Made on site and served with espresso ice cream (not shown). Awesome!

    Tacos Los Primos

    Tacos Los Primos

    4.8(87 reviews)
    2.5 miRosslyn
    $

    Had an amazing Chori/Pollo Burrito, two exceptional tacos, and surprisingly tasty tortas of some…read moresort. So much food, but so delicious. Can't wait to go back

    I recently moved from Kent Island, MD to Arlington and I've slowly been checking out local food…read morespots to fill the a void I have with some places I miss back home. One such place was a Mexican place as my old fav Mexican place on Kent Island (Señors Chile) had great but extremely greasy birria tacos. So you can imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon this food truck that read "Tacos Los Primos". The spot made me curious. So I went to visit a friend who lives in walking distance from the spot for lunch recently. She ordered the veggie burrito and I ordered (pic below) Quesabirria tacos (no onion). When we got back I was WOW'd by not only how yummy my food was but how it wasn't oozing with grease! The consume that comes with for dipping is just enough for me personally and bursting with flavor. As you'd expect from most food trucks the service is made to order. When you go up to the counter and tell them what you want they make it fresh! The truck is parked on Rhoside Green Park (sandwiched between Courthouse and Rosslyn) so if you live in either neighborhood it's easy to access from walking distance. And since it's near an Arlington green space there's usually some seating nearby you can pop a squat and eat lunch. Given spring time is approaching this seems more doable. Just yesterday I was driving by to visit the same friend and saw a long line for this place! Most people in Arlington know how great this spot is, it is a terribly kept secret! Can't comment much on how long the line was busted as I went during a time when it was windy (but warm) and it was mid day. When I drove by it was pushing dinner time past 7pm. I love the food here! But since I live closer to the storefront location in Lyon Park I usually end up ordering food from there (review on that location is coming soon)! If you like authentic Mexican food that's fresh and delicious, you'll enjoy this spot!

    Photos
    Tacos Los Primos
    Tacos Los Primos - Birria tacos

    Birria tacos

    Tacos Los Primos

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    El Encanto Latino - foodtrucks - Updated September 2026

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