This is the spot for some delicious burritos! It's super close to all the bus stops, and maybe about a mile down from the Elizabeth train station? Parking is a bit tough, but there are other shopping lots where you may be able to use. Service was so professional, what a kind waiter we had. The burritos itself was so filling, you could tell all of the ingredients are fresh. Fun fact: both hot sauces were hot :) lol read more

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The portal Restaurant offers Delicious food, Great service, and nice Ambiance. If you like spicy you are going to love the sauce, you are going to fall in love with the steak and nachos but please get some shrimp. The waiters were very attentive, they make sure we have everything we ordered. Great music, quiet ambience to have a nice dinner and lunch. Lastly I loved the Valentines decorations 100% recommending you this place. Restaurante El Portal ofrece comida deliciosa, buen servicio, y un ambiente agradable. Si les gusta lo picante les van a encantar las salsa. Se van a enamorar de la carne azada y los nachos pero ordenense unos camarones están súper ricos. Los meseros fueron muy atentos, asegurándose que tuviésemos todo lo que ordenamos. Buena música, un ambiente tranquilo ideal para una cena o almuerzo. Y por último la decoración de San Valentín estaba muy bonita 100% les recomiendo este lugar! read more

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The worst service ever!! I ordered white rice which was very hard when I call to return the food manager said he cannot refund my money!! Do Not order here the will not give your mom back!!! You will not get your money back. Bad service read more

This is an update on their menu. Thought I should share since prices and other things have changed . Food is still great though ! read more

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I like to get steak tacos and fries here. I take the meat, onion and cilantro off the corn tortilla and over my fries to make "taco fries" and it is delicious. I spread sour cream, cheese and hot sauce in top. DELICIOUS. I always get a pineapple jarrito (soda) to accompany my taco fries. #OffMenuHack read more

El Portal - it ain't even Tuesday - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Everything here is fresh and tasty! The tacos have generous portions of meat. The guacamole is the best I've ever had and my favorite the tostadas, are out of this world and 3 come in one order. This is my new go-to for Mexican. My teacher co-workers and I love this place for lunch! read more

Good food, nice atmosphere, decor is clean and modern. Our server was pleasant. We were full with just appetizers. The guacamole & chips were made fresh. The rice was bland. This place is an authentic family style restaurant. We will definitely be returning. read more

Just amazing!! Great customer service and very tasty food. That's what business should be all about definitely returning to your establishment. My recommendation: order tacos al pastor delicious!!!! read more

Probably the best Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. It's a casual spot and they offer a multitude of traditional drinks and fresh juices. You can't go wrong with anything on the menu, though I always go for the tacos. Chorizo is my favorite but..... I've tried them all. The chorizo has a little kick to it.... just right. read more

I came here with my family and I absolutely loveddd the food! The servers are attentive and very kind. I have ordered burritos from here before and they are always great. This time I went , I ordered something different- and greatly enjoyed that as well! The portions are great for the price and the outdoor seating for COVID is not bad at all. My only issue was with the wait for the appetizers and food. read more

El Portal - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Everything was fresh and good! Looking forward to trying other stuff. Mango shake was awesome too!!! read more

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I don't like giving bad reviews but I had to in this case. I just ordered shrimp tacos, first they are overpriced second they had no flavor and third they wanted to charge me over 20 dollars for toppings ? Your average toppings non the less. Lettuce, tomatoes and avocado were all extra me and my friend order 2 orders of tacos and the bill was 51.00 when we asked why he stated it was the toppings, WHAT! The sour cream was runny and smelled bad the parsley was green! I can go on and on and I'm all for small business but this place is a joke. I will never ever eat there! I want to put no stars but it won't let me so I had to add one read more

Excellent place to get your Mexican food fix in Elizabeth. Great prices for the amount of food your receive and excellent service. I tried the Tacos al Pastor and Agua de Jamaica. Tacos are well cook and include pineapple! Yes please! and the aguas are fresh. You can also order fresh squeezed juices (orange, carrot, pineapple, etc) You can easily miss this place since the decor inside and outside it's not that much to notice in a busy street. But once you find it your will not want to miss it anymore. Only thing it's the street parking that you have to be careful with since there are meters and it's a busy street. Great place, awesome food and excellent service. read more

El Portal - Tacos al Pastor con todo! - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

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Fantastic Mexican food. Very casual and no-frills place but the food speaks for itself. The menu is substantial, and the prices are just right read more

El Portal - Al pastor tacos - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

I don't see why this place has high reviews. Well I recently visited this place with my gf and ordered a torta and a semita and they were not good at alll. first of all a Mexican restaurant you think would have Cafe de olla. Well no . The waitress didn't even know what that was. Like really ? On top of that we ordered some chicken nachos and we never received it. Upon checking out at the front counter the waitresses looked dumbfounded that I did not receive my chicken nachos when my gf and I clearly ordered it. Also the waitresses need to clean up the tables and pay attention to the customers. This place needs a little help read more

Faced with the usual dinning dilemma (I just can't seem to figure out what I'm really in the mood for, ever), I decided to be my cousin's tag along since she was craving tacos. Wise decision on my part, she is, after all, a local of the area. This restaurant is really easy to miss. There's no fancy signage and the same goes for the decor inside. None is needed, however, as their tacos are great. Simplicity at its best. One order of tacos allows you to indulge on four little flour tacos. I split my order into two chicken and two chorizo and added cheese for two dollars. Together with diced onions and fresh cilanto, I squeezed some lime juice, added a dollop of (a similar to sour) cream, threw in their green hot sauce and devoured them. Major plus, the chorizo wasn't too greasy and the chicken was white meat. Another bonus, they offer squeezed OJ ($4 a pop). After three tacos I was starting to feel full but couldn't let a bite go to waste. Definitely willing to try to this place out again when in the area. read more

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Hands down, best tacos al pastor in town! It's always a good experience, the fold and the service is great

Nice brightly lit taqueria that serves the standard fare but also shrimp tacos. Worth a visit if the area. read more

El Portal - Shrimp tacos - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Dined in once and ordered delivery and both times, the quality and flavor have been there. What's great about their delivery service is that it's FREE! So far, I haven't been able to stray from tacos al pastor but I can't imagine any of their tacos are bad. The meat is tender and the flavor is bursting. The fresh pineapple on top is the perfect addition. Not to mention for $8 you get 4 tacos and it's a lot of food! I'm always making two tacos out of one because of the generous helping. There's nothing better than a taco with fresh onions and cilantro EXCEPT for maybe adding a little pineapple. The guacamole on the other hand is a little pricey, $7.50, but it is GOOD. Unbelievably fresh with lots of cilantro, onion and tomato plus I added jalapeño. I'm not sure how they get the best avocados with the perfect texture and consistency but it's been flavorful and fresh every time. Very much worth the money. Not much of an ambiance when you dine in just your normal taco joint but now that I know they delivery, it will be a regular thing for me. I could eat at El Portal every day. read more

El Portal - Fresh chips and guacamole with jalapeño - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

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Super authentic Mexican food. Love the al pastor tacos and the pineapple topper. Food is always done correctly, done fast, and extremely delicious. read more

Really liked my tacos pastor. I had not had good tacos for a while and this place is what i was looking for in the area. Restaurant looked pretty neat and the servers were friendly. Will be going back for sure. read more

So glad we found this place on our drive back from New York City I think I would have been satisfied with just the nacho chips with their house made guacamole and pico de gallo....wow! We had tacos the night before in New York City so relatively speaking I took one star off because the shrimp are used here were small little salad shrimp versus the nice medium-size ones we had there and also the waitress, despite being super nice did not seem to have a good understanding of what all the items were on the menu, but again she was still very sweet and helpful You can tell this place is using fresh that body ingredients and we will definitely come again if we were in the area! read more

El Portal - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

Wow the guac is super amazing!!! Super fresh and the chip are good too. Had chicken and shrimp tacos and they were very tasty! Natural juices are fresh...great customer service and clean place. read more

A party I went to Catered the Chicken and Steak tacos, let me tell you, the food was fantastic, great flavor and they are not Skimpy on the meat, as the Kids say these days "It's Lit" read more

Sooo good and authentic tacos with excellent service. Just wished they provided salsa and chips.

la verdad esperaba una buena comida pero quedsron a deber los tacos estan desabridos al igual que sus salsas sin sabor y dulces , no recomiendo este lugar aparte de caro muy mal la comida read more

Amazing Hospitality, the food was fresh, and the taste was great. The restaurant is clean and decorative. I would recommend going here if you're looking for a quick bite to sit down or for take out. read more

Hands down BEST spot in Elizabeth! Tacos are awesome food always fresh. Please don't ever change.

They should change their open times because i went there with 20 minutes to closing and was refused service. If your not going to serve someone then your closed. The place Looked like crap the anyway. Probably did me a favor by not eating there. read more

Decent tacos if your looking for a quick meal. The red sauce is the bomb though, definitely a great lunch pick up option

Ordered from here by mistake and the tacos were very good. Not a bad decision. A little pricey though.

I used to order this place almost every night when I lived in Jersey! The food is very authentic, fresh, and delicious! My all time favorite was the steak tostadas. I've tried to find a better place in NY where they make tostadas the same but there isn't anything like it! Hope I come across eating here again. read more

This was an awful experience. We sat down and waited for 5-7 minutes just for the staff to notice us and get our drink order. We then had to wait another 5-7 minutes to get them, At this time we were one of 3 tables, not busy at all. We ordered beef and chicken tacos. They bring out stale chips and no salsa! Really, no salsa! I asked our waitress if she was going to bring out any salsa, no she said they don't do that here! Wow, should have ran out then. The food arrives and it looks okay but as soon as I took a bite, yuck!!! the meat was dry and it barely passed for ground beef, definitely not steak tacos. My girlfriend has the exact response to her chicken tacos...YUCK!! Also, I specifically asked if the tacos come with rice and beans on the side, the waitress replies yes! Guess what, yep no rice and beans when they arrive. It was just one problem after another. We take a few bites and just ask for the check. To our surprise, the check is much more than expected. We were charged extra for cheese on the tacos. What place charges extra for cheese???? We didn't even ask for cheese. This was just a total nightmare of a meal. They also charged us for a slice of avocado on each taco as well. We never asked for that either, UGH! Please please please do not waste your time and money at this place! read more

Cute little place if your looking for authentic Mexican food ! Quiet little restaurant Very clean modern and fun decor . The girls are very sweet and the food was great. I had shrimp tacos, comes 4 double corn tortillas well seasoned shrimp topped with onions and cilantro. The homemade hot sauce is delish ! Very fresh and spicy . read more

El Portal - Shrimp tacos - Mexican Near Me - Elizabeth, New Jersey

The tacos al pastor there are the best The place nice and clean Stuff friendly Peace are ok read more

We ate the food so fast we forgot to take a picture. It was really good and you get alot for the money. I will definately order from them again. We got the steak enchiladas platter and the chicken flautas platter- it was enough for 2ppl both came with rice, beans & a salad with avocado. The orchata drink is worth trying. Delicious! read more

Absolutely delicious tacos !! I had 2 chicken and 2 steak with cheese and the works, def hit the spot! Service is good too so that is a plus! Will be back!! read more

I'm going to give them 2 stars because tacos were awful!! I'm sorry but those are not tacos!! The flavor of the meat was really bad!! I got carnitas and al pastor.. none of the were good! But I have to say everything else was really good!! Horchata was delicious, my husband got a huitlacoche quesadilla and it was amazing!! Service was good too!! I'm just disappointed about the tacos, it's a Mexican restaurant they must have good tacos!!! read more

Best Mexican food I ever had outside of Cali. Al Pastor is delicious and everything was fresh. I will definitely have to dine in next time and try the other menu items. read more

Me and my family were craving some real authentic Mexican food while traveling in the area. We found this place and hesitated because it was such a small restaurant, but it was a great choice!!! The food was amazingly delicious, fresh and AUTHENTIC. The staff was vert welcoming and the atmosphere of the restaurant is just great. I recommend this one 110% read more