With so many authentic Latino food items to choose from between cheeses, meats, candies, breads you couldn't run out of things to try but I go for one reason. The attached restaurant where they made ready to order tacos, tostadas and whatever else you want including great salsa and chips. The tostada and tacos are incredible and came out in less than three minutes. It's truly one of the gems in the city and must try! read more

El Rey Foods - Loaded tostada and al carne tacos - Grocery Near Me - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Stopped in here for some late breakfast after a long morning of doctors appointments. This place is pretty awesome as it can be a one stop for everything you need. First off, they have a small cafe style restaurant inside. First off, they start you off with the chips and salsas. The salsas are a rojo (red) which is pretty hot. They also have the verde (green) which I prefer. It is a little more mild. I had the migas, which is scrambled eggs topped with crispy tortilla strips and cotija cheese, served with beans and rice. My husband had the cueritos, which is basically pork skins in a spicy sauce, served with beans and rice and a side of tortillas. Don't speak Spanish, no problem. All the servers speak and understand both. Portions are huge and prices are reasonable. In addition to the cafe, this is a full service market with a wonderful hot and regular deli. The fruit and vegetable section is amazing and as others have mentioned the bakery is really the star of this show. read more

See all

I've come here often, mainly for fresh Carmel churros, Mango Everfresh that has no health bennafits but tastes like heaven and is extremely smooth. They also have a restaurant at this location if you're wanting to bring home a nice meal ready to eat. Their selection of marinated meat is probably the most impressive thing, I recommend the chicken fajita! read more

Bought an assortment of tamales and churros for our New Year celebration. The store has an impressive selection of meats and Hispanic products. read more

I shopped here years ago when I lived in Milwaukee, she's baaaack! I'm glad not much has changed. Great vegetables! Fresh, and huge selection. I rarely buy preseasoned meats, I do here. Preseasoned, split buffalo drummies were great, I liked the heat. Thanks El Rey, for restocking my spices, also, at a great price. read more

First time visiting this place. Good hot food. Clean in the restaurant and grocery store. Staff members were friendly. Fast service. All the check outs were open. The produce looked amazing. Fresh meat. Will come again. read more

El Rey Foods - Peppers - Grocery Near Me - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

See all

Favorite Mexican food in the city! The restaurant near the deli has many great food options- with huge portions and very reasonable prices. Food always comes out fast and fresh. read more

El Rey Foods - Chicken milanesa - Grocery Near Me - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Great food for a low price and wonderful service the lady was so sweet and quick! The beans tasted

I live and work in the neighborhood and go to el Rey frequently, as I love their tamales and they have some items (like tamarind) that can be difficult to find at big chain grocery stores. The last time I went in on my lunch break to get some tamales, I was charged almost twice what they costed and when I pointed that out, there was no accountability or apology whatsoever (I speak both English and Spanish). I would love to think this was just a mistake, but truly think this happened because I'm a white woman. I've always had good service/interactions there previously, so I am pretty bummed about this. I would recommend double checking your receipts and prices when checking out if you decide to stop in. read more

¡Increíble supermercado! El Rey es un lugar excelente para encontrar todos los ingredientes para recetas y platillos mexicanos/latinos. Gran selección, tienda muy limpia y un servicio al cliente excelente. ¡Muy recomendable! read more

Ordered chicken and pork tamales along with 1/2 pound Mexican rice and tamarind Salsa. Everything was delivered hot and well packaged. Rice was so flavorfully delicious! Tamarind Salsa was well done with the right amount of tangy tamarind sauce. I had better tamales before, nonetheless, their tamales were a great value for the money. They tasted fresh with good amounts of meat. read more

See all

If you find yourself in Milwaukee, looking for a cool ethnic adventure this is a good spot to add to your itinerary. Restaurant, hot and cold prepared food section, affordable prices. If nothing else, try the decadently stuffed amazing churros. If you've never been to Milwaukee, it's a diamond in the rough. Always a good time. read more

This is an illustration of how people are supposed to be treated. Whether perceived or literally illustrated, we must treat each other with the respect we all deserve. Please allow me to explain: This morning I went to this el Rey's store location for my daughter. I had a previous negative experience with el Rey's ( expired dates on the chicken, so they were spoiled... new labels had been placed for old ones... we opened one package and the odor almost made us sick... ), so I had really no enthusiasm to patronage this establishment again. But I went for my daughter, who loves their tamales, and since she was nursing a broken ankle, I wasn't going to disappoint. I entered the location near 18/National Avenue. Found the counter where the hot foods were, a nice girl came to help me and I began to order. When I asked for salsa verde sauce the girl acted like she didn't understand English, even though I witnessed her speaking English not a few minutes before. There was a couple who respectfully pointed out that the sauce was right behind me. It was then time to pay. I found a register and waited my turn. When my turn came the older lady behind the register directed me to the registers at the front of the store. When I turned around, she was helping the person who was once behind me. I reached a register at the front of the store and found a young lady available to check me out. SHE DIDN'T SAY A WORD TO ME. She didn't even TELL me what my grocery amount was so I could pay. When I paid my bill, she simply dropped the receipt onto my bag, not looking at me, starting to help the next person in line. Now... the food was good. But El Rey's served their food on a "garbage can lid" because of the way their employees treat their BLACK customers who pay attention to how they are treated. There is no other reason than that. The whole building was foul. Tell me what else it could be. It took everything in my being to keep my anger in check. I take my wife, my kids, my upbringing, EVERYTHING! This is simply unacceptable. ZERO stars for El Rey's.... ZERO!!! read more

Lots of great and cheap products from produce to meats. Service was fast and friendly. The ambience is what you expect from a Hispanic market. read more

Love this place! The wife and I went to check it out last week and we bought some tamales and michoacana. Such a great authentic atmosphere and I really enjoyed my time shopping there. Will definitely stop in again! read more

So much to say about this great super market. Bakery has nice selections of breads and sweets. Great prices for deli foods and produce. This was my first chance to stop into the new El Rey. Prices have definitely gone up for beer and hot deli items. Limes are still the best price in town but they are 10% smaller. 15 for a buck. The weekday shopping was less busy but it was busy nonetheless. Parking was tight at this location. Security with armed guard was nice. Deli staff and clerks were attentive. Loaded up on corn tortillas 3 bags for a buck. Menudo, three bundles of tamales, carnitas, chicharones chico are delicious. A nice trip to our version of Mexico North of the border. And I can still drink the water. read more

See all

This store is open all the time, even on most holidays! From the start you will see lots of pastries & sweets like churros and coconut, berry, tres leches, cakes. This is also a great place for fresh produce that you'll see near the front of the store. The middle are inside features in-store dining, as well from a selection of meats, rice, beans, etc. and table to sit. Next is the deli counter and a meat deli counter next to that. This store is very traditional and has those uncommon needs like tripe for making home cooked latin style meals such as menudo. You will not see a huge selection of brands like "Kraft" at El Rey. But mostly El Rey branded foods and some of the other popular Hispanic brands (e.g La Preferida, Goya, BIMBO, etc.) One of the things I like to get from El Rey is fresh sofrito. It can be the base of many meals (Hispanic or not!) and the jarred stuff/premade usually contains MSG. With this being fresh, it's much easier and all you have to do is take the container home from the deli cooler and fill an ice cube tray. When they freeze, viola! The sofrito cubes can be stored in a plastic bag in the fridge and is better than the jarred or premade frozen stuff with all of the unnecessary additives :) You would not come here for a huge selection of alcoholic beverages. They do have a small area near the front back corner of the store but it's limited and very cramped. Overall, it doesn't have everything but is a great convenience for certain ingredients. read more

El Rey Foods - Fantastic sweets! - Grocery Near Me - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

See all

Get the fajitas! Apart from the grocery store having great produce and meat section...the restaurant was phenomenal. The two salsas are great, salsa verde not too spicy and the red one is pretty heated. I got an a la carte tamal with tomatoes and a taco al pastor. all were great. The tamal is pretty small, if I went again I would get two. Generally about half the size tamales normally are. The real winner was the fajitas a friend got. I am normally not a big fan of fajitas because I don't like peppers, but the meat was SO perfectly seasoned, the tortillas are great, and it was a huuuge portion! Maybe a good way to get rid of your hungry eyes before you end up buying everything in the store! read more

I love the meat! It's hard to find good beef sometimes but they have it all! Always my first stop for ground beef or taco meat. The stew meat is tender. Also, churros!! Theirs are to die for, not hard or too crunchy and they have some yummy fillings. All their desserts are good. Only issue with this particular location is space... they have everything really crammed in there, some aisles there is no room to turn around, so hope no one else needs something while you're in the way. I do wish they had a few more bilingual employees, I can't speak a lick of Spanish and had a confusing Google Translated conversation with the girl at the dessert counter. read more

We stopped here to pick up a few ethnic holiday needs but were sooo hungry we had to eat! And we are glad we did! My companions both chose mixed tacos and I being a bit more daring ordered the Chimichanga platter! Oh, boy!!! From what I heard over the Uhm! Good! The tacos were superb! However my order was amazing! Huge!!! I have never seen a Chimichanga as big as this! Divided it into 3 and still was too much!! The carnitas were tasty, moist and tender with pieces of chicharron to die for! We chugged all this down with freshly made orange, pinnaple juice.. Another delight! After our great lunch we did some serious shopping, fresh fruits and veggies, meats, etc... All reasonable priced and fresh! This place is absolutely a must stop in Milkwakee! read more

See all

Love it here, fresh food and great atmosphere. Good employees and very helpful, going back weekly

I have been going to El Rey since I was a kid. From its original location on S. 16th before it became Cesar Chavez, I remember eating at the little taqueria or picking up fajita meat from the butcher to cook at my dad's friends house under the shadow of the Allen-Bradley clock. There is just something about El Rey that links me to my hometown. When people visit me, or when I bring a friend to Milwaukee, I always take them here for tacos unless they are vegan. An ex GF ordered the fish tacos and ever since then I have been ordering one of these when I have tacos. When I was much younger I would come here for my "morning after" breakfast. I still love to come here for breakfast - even though it can be crazy busy on the weekends after church or when people are stopping in to get meat to cook out. Got a grill? Want to make some home-made fajitas? You must come here! If you are looking to cook prepared Mexican style on the grill this is the place to come. They have a good selection of marinated meats, fresh avocado, and ready made items to go. I am not a fan of the guacamole here, but other than that everything is great. The small bakery usually has a good supply of sweets - although not a real panderia. I do like the hard rolls here - in fact a friend from Italy outside of Rome prefers these rolls to the - in his words - "junk" they pawn off as Italian bread. The restaurant has a fairly large space and the servers are often very busy. So, depending on the time you get here, there may be a table to clear, or a bit of a wait for things to show up, but there are usually just one or two servers working. The hot sauce - green - is super freaking hot. Overall, this place is more than a trip down memory lane for a guy who first came into El Rey in the 1970s as a kid, but a place I would stay stacks up to any Mexican grocery in the USA, and with a bonus cafe where you can get great fresh food! read more

Great place to get produce. Good deals on limes, lemons and avocados. I love going to the carts outside of the grocery store. They have the best Elotes around town, I crave it often. Don't pass the slushy cart up, a great summer treat. I've eaten inside of the cafe and have gotten juice and smoothies from the juice bar. Always good customer service there (cafe snd carts) read more

I love my El Rey on 35th but this location....it pains me to say it...is better. It's the best El Rey, hands down. *In house taqueria. You aren't supposed to shop on an empty stomach, right? You can get a tasty, cheap meal here and do all of your shopping after. *Produce area is VERY large, well stocked/organized and priced reasonably. *Extensive selection of staples, both Hispanic and not. *Great deli. It's my favorite part of any El Rey. Carnitas, tamales, rice, beans or more. This location stocks barbacoa and birra too. *This particular store is big & clean, with vibrant murals on the walls. It still manages to be crowded and chaotic as aisles are pretty narrow. *Big butcher counter where you can get anything (and I mean anything) cut to order. *They sell beer and a limited selection of liquor here, the other locations don't I've said it before and I'll say it again...I love you El Rey. read more

Always end up doing this when i go here... picking up extra thing i dont need however I might need it a few days from now. There's always a lot of options and they also have green plantain which has been hard for me to find, I also like there cheese selection because I find the kind im looking for to make Baleada. And it also helps that you can pick up some tacos for the road :) read more

El Rey Foods - Grocery Near Me - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

See all

Teetering on a three star, but four stars because of helpful staff. I stumbled upon this grocery store during lunch. I used to work in the area, and it was either this, McDs, or Popeyes. I worked with some people that vouched for El Rey's, and told me they had okay Mexican food! This is a Mexican grocery store that has a mini restaurant in it. It's to the far right upon entering the store. Not the best Mexican food in Milwaukee; by far not the worst! It's great for ordering lunches. Call ahead or order at a table. I usually ordered tacos, burritos, or nachos. Although, the nachos cheese started to make me sick after a while. Large portions aligned with cost. I think I kept going there because of the lunch location convenience. All the same, the staff is nice and patient with you. Tip: If you want something sweet and spicy, order the fruit from the outside vendor and get cayenne with it! Yum! read more

Wow! Thank you for the awesome authentic Mexican food. We eat at home and feel as if we are eating our tasty food in riveria Maya, except for the weather and view...Thank you El Rey! read more

El Rey is a very beautiful thing. It's almost like going on vacation while your only minutes away from where you live. The selection overwhelms me as I'm not up to speed with cooking most of the things I enjoy eating. I honestly think finding a recipe or two before going to El Rey the next time would make for a more enlightening experience. This trip I left with only guacamole, pico de gallo, and a Limon Jarritos. That was enough to put a smile on my face though. Didn't get to experience the maggots and rude customer service others reported though. I'll smoke more crack before pulling in the lot next time? read more

If I could give El Rey 10 stars, I would. - I've only eaten tacos and burritos from the taqueria, so my food review is based on those. The tacos are amazing - just as good as almost all the roach coaches and dives I frequent in LA and SF. All the meats have just the right amount of fat in them to give the tacos the best flavor. My favorite, by far, is the barbacoa, which is offered only on the weekends (pastor comes in second). Make sure you get in early if you want the barbacoa Order them with just cilantro and onions, squeeze some lime juice on them, pour a little salsa roja/verde on them, and you've got $1.89 worth of perfection! And you can't eat a meal without a horchata or one of their several agua frescas (pineapple, lemon and cantaloup are the offerings now). - Bakery - The doughnuts are good here, but it's the cake rolls what I go for! Their two cake rolls are strawberry and a coconut cream. The servings are big, and for only $0.75 each, it's one of the biggest steals around!!!!! I'm looking forward to getting a full cake from here one of these days. -Grocery - El Rey has a huge selection of fresh produce, meat, and other Mexican and Latin American goodies. I've purchased pre-marinated chicken and asada from the butcher in the past. The meat's always been marinated well.......once cooked and served with cilantro and onions, it's the closets thing I can get to the taqueria! The prices are great too! ~$2.50/lb for pre-marinated chicken breast pieces. Another plus of the place is that they have every flavor of Jarritos sodas! Sometimes you can get lucky and get them on sale for $0.69 per bottle! All in all, it's obvious that I think this place is pretty awesome!!!!! if you're a good eater, definitely check El Rey out! read more

Why do I love El Ray? 1. It's close to downtown, but still feels like you're getting away. 2. The new store is super nice (wayyyyyy better than the old location), clean, and the employees are helpful. 3. Their brand of tortilla chips 4. Meat and produce prices are super low. Limes 20/$1? Sure. 5. Taquería is a great place to grab a quick snack 6. Hot tamales - right by the registers read more

This place is a feast for the senses. I recently stopped in just to buy some leeks and avocados ( which were an incredible deal at .50 a pop.) I was impressed with the wide selection of very fresh produce, its artful display and the friendly people who work there. Most of the prices are quite fair, as well. A few months prior, I saw an ad in the window announcing .99 Barbacoa tacos. I had never tried them, honestly not really knowing what they were. I found out what they are and proceeded to get medieval on a plate of three. Ooh, my. Ooh my.. For those of you who don't know, here is your Barbacoa lesson. Traditionally, the head of a cow was wrapped in banana leaves ( if I'm remembering this correctly ) and grilled/ cooked in the ground. Now a days, it's still the cow's head but I don't think it's buried in the ground. It's charcoal grilled, I'd assume. So the tender meat of the cheeks and skull are culled and served like chopped steak. But the flavor and texture are beyond compare. The melted fat and collagen give the meat a delightfully silky texture that is surprisingly not greasy ( at least the stuff at el rey wasn't.) With all of the truth in my heart, these were the best tacos I've ever had. Check this place out! Beware if you try to do all of your shopping there, though. I saw $6 boxes of cereal... Say whaaat?? Maybe that's normal but I shop at ALDI for that stuff. read more

What's not to love about El Rey? If you don't love El Rey I do. The heritage and culture is evident from the door. I never focus on the price a because I usually go to get things not offered in typical supermarkets like churros and chihuahua cheese. I don't go often but I love El rey. Don't be intimidated by the Spanish everyone is helpful. The bakery is bannanas! The produce is equally impressive along with the cafe Inside. I'll continue to shop here. read more

I'm telling you...... BUY your fruit and veggies here. You will save money like crazy. Also, BUY your bulk meat here. You will save money like whoa. For example, limes 20 for $1 or avocados for $0.39. PicknSave will rape you compared to El Rey. Preferably go to the El Rey on 35th and Burnham for the freshest meats and produce. read more

Get my tamales there every week for GB games. Always good and have never let me down. Do a little shopping while I'm there

Ok...right up front I will mention that my fiance's parents work at El Rey and have for years. But I won't let that keep me from telling the truth about this wonderful place. The lunch counter serves the best chicken tacos in Milwaukee. The flavors of the sour cream (heavenly and I don't normally like sour cream) and the salsa (chile rojo) blend so perfectly with the seasoned chicken, grilled peppers and onions, and the two corn tortillas (the way tacos are served in Mexico). I have a hard time having anything else they are so delicious. But almost as good are the many other things they serve: quesadillas, tortas, soups, a huge variety of Mexican food for reasonable prices. 16th and National is where the "newish" bigger market location is and it is worth a visit if you have never been there. read more

El Rey has three free-standing locations on the south side of the city, as well as a stand at the Milwaukee Public Market. Their stores feature a lunch counter serving up the best Mexican lunch in Milwaukee, period. Pull up a chair to this friendly diner and enjoy authentic, reasonably priced standards like tacos, burritos, etc, as well as a variety of specials including soups and stews. Their San Diego fish tacos and tongue tacos (tacos de lengua) are to die for. When you eat lunch at El Rey you rub elbows with the diversity that is Milwaukee's Latino community. Construction workers wearing dusty work boots and hard hats dine next to businessmen in suits. It's a mostly Spanish-speaking environment, but the servers are all conversent en ingles. Only once was I left to resort to my weak Spanish and exaggerated hand gestures to get a point across about an order. While you're there check out the grocery store. The new location on Cesar Chavez Drive is the Whole Foods of Latin grocery. It's bright, expansive and comprehensive. A full service bakery, meat counter, and a knock-out produce selection. read more

Although this supermarket primarily serves Mexican, Mexican-American, and Puerto Rican customers, I highly recommend this grocery for all foodies. The produce selection is excellent, fresh, accessible, stuff you can't get at supermarkets for White people. They have an amazing selection of peppers and chillies, cactus, tropical fruit, beans, salsas, tortillas, Mexican cheese, fish and meat (great butchers), beverages, and cleaning products aimed at Mexican consumers. If you haven't tried Mexican style laundry soap and conditioner, you need to. They have a great little bakery, a hot fast food counter (try the empanadas, the rice and beans, the pork, the fried shrimp, and anything that doesn't have an English translation), and a lunch counter (best coffee, always fresh, with a touch of cinnamon). The hot prepared food here is much better than pseudo-Latino American fast food restaurants, and very cheap. They roast pumpkin and other seeds and sell them in generous portions, very tasty. They sell some cooking utensils and pots and such for Mexican and Central American cooking, they also have Jesus candles, and Mexican-Catholic icons. They sell different seasonal items, I got a couple of soccer balls here last season, a team Argentina Olympic soccer jersey once, Dia des Difuntos decorations, shopping here is always fun for me. The service is truly excellent, not the forced saccharine sweetness of scripted customer service in the mainstream chains, the employees here are very sincere, hard workers; they seem to be proud to work there. Don't be deterred by the fact that Spanish is the primary language here, they'll find a way to help you. Many of the workers speak English, all of them intuitively know what you need or want. There's usually a fresh corn vendor in the parking lot, ask her to take the corn off the cob for you and add "everything." The only drawback to the place is that the parking lot is a little inadequate, so sometimes there's a short wait for a spot. read more

Visiting El Rey is like stepping into a completely different world. Packed with people, you don't have much time to awe before you need to get to where you're going, and I was making a beeline for the lunch counter. The tacqueria occupies a significant portion of the store, and during lunch it's probably the busiest section in the place. Taking a seat at the counter and finally grabbing the attention of the one woman who was getting drinks, taking orders, and working the register, I didn't bother asking for a menu in fear of having to wait until she gained a free second again. Instead, I sat in clear view of the checks, which conveniently listed everything they sold. I rattled off my typical smattering of meats (something like carne asada, carnitas, pollo, and al pastor), and watched as two guys maintained a zen-like approach to the constant stream of orders that kept getting attached to their spinning wheel thingy. Judging by the number of bowls of caldo de res I saw passing in front of me, I thought I may had made a mistake, but the tacos were equally exemplary. I eventually got some salsas to play around with, and along with the simple double-wrapped-cilantro-onion presentation that makes for real tacos, I was plenty happy. Sometime near the middle of my visit a man of equally Caucasian persuasion sat down next to me and I watched as he asked for a menu, ended up ordering a plain beef taco, then tried to screw it up first by asking for sour cream and then by asking for salsa that wasn't so hot. This is not a guy who gets it. But at least he made the effort of visiting, which can admittedly be intimidating. Luckily, this isn't the type of place that capitulates to someone who can't handle a spicy salsa. I looked around on the way out and noticed in the bakery section they had little single-serving cups of tres leche cake - aka the Best Dessert Ever - for a few bucks. Even better, one of the leches was strawberry milk. Yes, El Rey, you get five stars from me. read more

I went here on a sunday at what looked like the newest store and it was packed. This store is my favorite of the chain. The prices are very good compared to the big chain stores. The deli and produce was cheaper than the sales at the other stores. The meat department had some good prices but you couldn't get to it because it was packed. The restraunt had many people enjoying lunch. I couldn't get into the lot so I parked on the street. This place is very cool. read more

Everything you need for Latin American cooking is here. Affordable prices and great pastry selection, especially the conchas. I also had a great enchilada lunch the other day while there. On the 14 bus line. read more