I ordered the taquitos from the dinner menu for $11.99 which seems pretty steep to me especially when the taquitos they serve are the Jose Ole' brand you can find in the frozen section at your local Safeway. My daughter had the cheese nachos from the kids menu and the cheese was melted kraft singles. Disappointing meal all around. The chips and salsa they serve before dinner were even bad. The chips were burnt, and their salsa was watery and lacking any flavor what so ever. This place has been around for some time so how they manage to stay in business with this kind of food astonishes me. Would have rather had Taco Time than this......... read more

This is my second visit here and it wasn't good at all. The first time I came it wasn't good but everyone else kept saying how great it was so I wanted to give them another chance. I ordered the two beef enchiladas with rice and beans to go.... and the enchiladas tasted like they had cinnamon in them, the rice was bland and my meal was ice cold. It was just gross, I'm sorry but I won't be back. read more

I have been going to El Gallito for the last 4.5 years. Family run.. love the hostess Elizabeth.. has always been kind and helpful. I have tried most everything on the menu and enjoy it all. Spicy Salsa is very good.. the guacamole is some of the best I have ever had.. I even bought 12 orders of it to take to an office potluck and it was a hit. read more

Lots of good eats but the cheese and onion enchiladas are a favorite, decent cheap house wine, but it is the guacamole that always brings me back. You have to order some! This is made with real avocados not that premade mix crap. Order a side and extra chips to eat with their great salsas. This is a long time favorite restaurant, family owned, and good food. Food arrives quickly. Good place for a cheap date, quick lunch, or family meal. read more

Carne asada, enchilada and refried beans were delicious and authentic. I'm from California and had a hard time finding a great Mexican joint. This is the place if you know what's up! read more

My all-time favorite Mexican restaurant in Seattle. Not for hipsters! This place evokes a lot of nostalgia. Huge portions, good service, hearty food. read more

One of my Favorite family owned & run restaurants, I always take family & friends who visit Seattle because of their authenticity - it saves me from cooking!! Give it a try! read more

I was disappointed with this place. I work nearby and I was hoping for an authentic Mexican meal for the price. I ordered two tacos with rice and beans. The crispy tacos were obviously made from taco shells, rather than actually fried to order. When a restaurant claims "authentic," they should be genuinely authentic. The beans were fine. The rice didn't have any of the onion or tomato that makes Spanish rice tasty. Skip this place. read more

Another local favorite! Family owned Mexican restaurant, great margaritas and friendly staff! It is definitely a hole in the wall, but appreciated by the surrounding area. The half plate of nachos is large and cheap! Staple. read more

Love the Chile Rellenos at El Gallito. Try the "Two Chile Rellenos" platter with rice & beans......Yum! Also, the Chicken Tortilla Soup would be perfect in this cold weather. They also have the best Pork Verde platter in the city. read more

I Sooo LOVE El Gallito :) Great Food & AWESOME Staff

I believe that hands down this was the worst, and I mean worst food I have ever had. Hailing from a mexican heritage I found it repulsive tha tI could smell the CINNAMON on my enchiladas before they even got to my table. It's a horribly designed establishment with a waiter that was eating with his friends and occasionaly came over to our table. I think that anyone that wants mexican food would be better off going to Bland-teca. Outrageous. read more

Great little gem, one of those places that you might pass by, but you will be rewarded if you venture in. Very good family Mexican food and drinks, in a quiet atmosphere. Reasonable prices, clean, friendly and prompt. The carnitas was quite good. This will be my new favorite local place for after work margaritas. read more

Painfully bland, generic mexican food. Nothing horrible, but certainly nothing special - especially for the prices they're asking.

This is a great neighborhood spot to eat in and take out. Solid service, very good food, and the chance to see your neighbor. Don't miss the guacamole! read more

Best home made salsa. Best Chili Verde (it's amazing. Try it!!!). Prices reasonable. Portions are generous. NM

Great little Mexican restaurant in the Central district! The restaurant is usually pretty quiet and offers a more low key option for Mexican food. AMAZING FISH TACOS! They are the reason I keep going back! Amazing salsa with a kick and authentic carne asada. Other items are hit and miss. Cook time is more on the slow side, even when they aren't super busy. Waitstaff is generally friendly. Definitely recommend if you are in the area. read more

This is my neighborhood Mexican place and I can't think of a better place for a casual dinner with my sweetheart, or a place to work on paperwork for my job, fueled by a strong margarita, or a post-workout splurge. A welcome change from all the overpriced and overhyped places in Pike Pine. The Baja tacos are addictive, the chips always fresh, and the tortilla soup is the perfect cure for a cold, especially after adding lots of Tapatio. I will be very sad if this place goes the way of Piecora's and other longtime neighborhood places. Fingers crossed, they'll be here a long time. read more

This hole in the wall family owned restaurant is fabulous. I am a big fan of their nachos. Cheesy, tomatoey, oniony goodness. Simple yet divine. And their chile colorado tacos-well let's just say I haven't had better around these parts! read more

So many things here are very good. The Carne Asada is smoky and delicious, the Chile Verde has great flavor and succulent pork, the Chicken en Mole has the perfect balance of savory chocolate, their Tortas are served on fresh delicious Telera rolls, their homemade horchata is AMAZING, and their guacamole is nearly perfect. I love their chunky flavorful salsa too, it's got just the right mix of heat and flavor for me. Simple things like their flour tortillas are also just spot on, with little bits of crispy charring on edges. I could go on and on, but I have to go pick up my to-go order. I've been coming here for around 10 years, and I am still discovering new things on the menu that delight me. read more

Hands down, my favorite Mexican restaurant in Seattle!!! I discovered this gem in the eighties and they have been making great food ever since! The sauces are made from scratch. Nothing fancy about the decor, I like it the way it is, modest with a kind of LA feel to it. The food is fantastic, I think they use a little garlic in the beans, they taste great. It's family owned with passion. If you are in search for the best Mexican restaurant, give this one a try!!! read more

All you staple Mexican fare. Decent sized space. Fairly well kept. If your craving cheesey beany plates, this is the place for you. Treat yourself to some horchata. read more

Yummy. Service was great. Gives chips and salsa. If you are drinking order a Cadillac Margareta!

I cannot waste any time on this review---only to say if anyone comes in here thinking this is good Mexican food, then I can only feel sorry for them that they have never experienced how delicious Mexican food can be. And now I've already wasted way too much time. read more

Hmmm, I liked the food actually. The chips were crisp and warm, the salsa not too hot. The chicken in my enchilada was a bit too dry, with not enough melted cheese on top, but it was still pretty good. Even street parking is a breeze on this stretch of Madison. My issue is the service: it is atrocious. With so few patrons, and we literally had to wait for someone to take our drink order, and receive the food, and then receive the check, and get water refills...it was ridiculous. And the place doesn't have much in the way of ambiance. Voices echo off the walls and the harsh overhead lighting and from the kitchen glare into the main dining space. I hate to hate on a place that is so close to my neighborhood, but I'm just not feeling it. read more

I love this place and the family that runs it. The first time I visited here was twenty years ago. My friend forgot her wallet, but didn't realize it. The owner drove it to her house and personally made sure she got it back right away. The food tastes pretty authentic. I like a hint of cinnamon in my beans, and they do that here. The wait staff are their kids generally. Very sweet and they take work seriously. This is a lively family business that deserves a look. Get in there! read more

We really like this locally owned family friendly Mexican place. My favorite dish is the Pollo Mexicana- tacos which is very authentic and kind of like fajitas. The kids menu is good, my wife always likes her food, the guacamole and margaritas are spot on. Highly recommended. read more

Food was very delicious for something a bit more on the gourmet side. Definitely not a dive, but it's family friendly and it's reflective in their selection. Great food, extremely nice staff. read more

Chili Verde or Chili Colorado!! These two dishes are so good you don't even need the rest of the menu, except the margaritas which are equally amazing. read more

I have to treat myself to their carne asada every few months, otherwise I start dreaming about eating it. They keep the fresh tortilla chips and salsa coming, the staff is incredibly friendly and they have good flan. What can I say, that's as good as it gets! read more

Best Mexican food in Seattle, hands down. There are a few taco trucks in the area that can give you something a bit more "authentic", but if you are looking to sit down indoors for your meal, you can't go wrong with El Gallito. read more

Homemade tamales and tall margaritas make El Gallito a cock-a-doodle yummy destination if you happen to be on the eastern side of town. It has lost some of its seedy charm in the recent expansion from microscopic cinderblock hut to merely small digs. The green chile dishes are heavy on the black pepper. It would be better if they stepped away from the Azteca formula of drippy beans and spanish rice, but it's still good. read more

The only thing this place has going for it is proximity to my job, and considering I've heard two reports of people getting sick there in the last week, I'm not sure that's enough of a draw. The waitstaff is nice half of the time, but other times they seem bored and or distracted, even if the place is otherwise empty. The food has never been bad, but I can't say that it's ever been all that good either. It's merely adequate, and that's just a shame. Something just doesn't work at this place. It's just so mediocre, but people keep going (probably due to proximity), so they have no incentive to make it better. *sigh* read more

Really nice people - really good food (but maybe because I was there with some "regulars") Great for kids- they can run around and goof off because it is such a family oriented place. GREAT Margs- even the virgin ones (I was still prego last time I was there). read more

The perfect neighborhood Mexican place. Great chips and salsa, good margaritas, awesome tacos. Read some reviews before going so I was a little nervous but I love this place. Maybe not worth driving to but if you are within walking distance it is so worthwhile. The wait staff is a little slow but they get the job done. read more

Very friendly staff, but this Mexican is just average and not that good . They need to adjust their menu - maybe spice it up next time!

I had the steak tacos. They were decent, even if I was longing for something more deep fried like a traditional taqueria. They still provided fresh ingredients even if the taco shell and chips were more generic in quality. It's not a blowaway great place but it's not bad. Compared to other Mexican joints you could certainly do worse. read more

Short and sweet: Good food, middling service. Here's the breakdown -- food-wise, this joint is a greatest hits collection of all the classic Tex-Mex fare you'll find in restaurants all over the Southwest and California. Flautas, Combo plates, Three Taco Plates and Chimichangas, it's all here, and it's all pretty good -- unlike at a lot of similarly themed places in greater Seattle. Take the Chile Verde combo, it's got some nice heat on it but stays balanced -- not too spicy (yeah, there is such a thing), not too sour from the tomatillos and not too rich from the pork. The rice is tender and flavorful and the beans taste like they might just be made with real lard (I haven't confirmed this but I can dream). Good chips and salsa, too. Haven't had a bad experience with the food, and I've eaten here a bunch of times. Service-wise, it's a different story. The folks there are very nice but expect a wait before the aforementioned chips and salsa show up on your table and another wait before your order is taken. Once you're order is in, it's usually not too long before your food arrives but then odds are that you're in for a sizable gap of time between finishing your meal and getting your bill. Last time I was there the front end staff seemed pretty together, so here's to hoping that they'll get their act together consistently. There's another star in it for them if they do. read more

Place is great! Food is tasty, good sized portions and the waiter was really friendly. Also, didn't have to wait long between ordering and the food arriving. It is definitely not like being in Mexico, but you get an authentic feel and flavor! read more

Some of the worst Mexican food I have ever had. Poor quality (tastes like it's fresh from the can) and EXTREMELY overpriced. Avoid.