Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    El Torito

    4.2 (43 reviews)
    ModerateMexican, Bars
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Order El Torito Takeout or Delivery

    El Torito Photos

    Business Info

    EL TORITO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Good for groups

    You might also consider

    More like El Torito

    Recommended Reviews - El Torito

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    Reviews With Photos

    menu
    Krista C.

    First time checking out El Torito. It's pretty close tot the airport which is not bad. The food is not great but it did serve its purpose. The drinks were huge and the flavor was pretty good. Nothing bad to say about the service. It was pretty quiet and restaurant was clean. Not my favorite choice for Mexican in the area. But the positives are it's close to the airport and no wait. Plenty of parking as it's in its own area and near a ton of hotels.

    Ryli C.

    Was in town for work and had some time to kill before heading back to the airport so I went here for lunch. Such friendly staff and awesome food / margs. And who doesn't love free chips and salsa for the table!

    Drink menu
    Laura W.

    Amazing restaurant right across from the airport. On a street of sketch, you will not want to pass this gem up. We had amazing fresh chips and salsa. And our delicious food in like 5 min, To the table. (Way to hot to eat For those that love it hot). We were served by like 3/4 people and wanted for nothing. A totally GEM!!! Can't wait to make this a regular. !

    El Torito Mexican Restaurant & Grill / Sandston VA: Store exterior

    See all

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Rudy P.
    102
    26
    35

    4 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    5 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 1
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    3 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    9 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    10 months ago

    Service was good and food was excellent. Authentic. Clean and soft Mexican music playing. Waitress was very attentive.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 1

    5 years ago

    Helpful 5
    Thanks 0
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Wow, the Mexican food was legit 5...and the new owners are amazing. Drinks, apps, & entrees are all AMAZING

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Nathan S.
    56
    154
    130

    3 years ago

    Friendly staff and quick service. Great salsa and bottomless chips. Group of 7 enjoyed all our food. Tasty margaritas!

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0
    Photo of D N.
    0
    37
    5

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    3 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    5 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    5 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    By far Best of the mex near airport. Super clean, newly renovated. Great food, drinks and service.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    3 years ago

    Nice quiet little place, service was very quick and professional. Food was delicious. Definitely recommend if you are in the area.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    4 years ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Ted Z.
    0
    13
    8

    5 years ago

    Great food! Nicely remodeled interior. Great margarita! Too bad don't live around here so I could come more often.

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - El Torito

    You might also consider

    Verify this business for free

    People searched for Mexican 7,088 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

    Verify this business

    The Patron Mexican Restaurant & Cantina - Taco Salad with chicken

    The Patron Mexican Restaurant & Cantina

    3.6(234 reviews)
    0.6 mi
    $$

    Ambiance isn't at the top of my list, but I rate The Patron highly in this regard. Too many…read moreMexican restaurants rely on tacky decor to sell the product. The Patron doesn't. From the moment we walke in, we recognized it for a warm, friendly, welcoming place. Our server was prompt and attentive, and while the food may not have been highly flavored, it was not bland as some other reviewers suggest. They should stick with Taco Bell if they think The Patron was poor. We each ordered burritos: mine was the carnitas. Unlike some places, it was filled with nothing but meat. Many places I've been to cram beans and rice into a burrito, and skimp on the meat. Eating here is as close to a religious experience as dining can get.

    Food: If you're looking for decent tex-mex, then this place will get the job done. I can't complain…read moreabout chips and salsa, and if you like spicy, ask for the spicy salsa, which is not that spicy, but at least a little more heat than the regular one. I ordered the steak fajitas and the meat was tough and overdone. I also felt like they were not very generous with the sour cream and guac. It was unusual that I got slices of tomato instead of pico de gallo. Others seemed pretty content with their meals. Service/Ambiance: I was pleasantly surprised that our server allowed our group of 20+ to do separate checks. We were also seated in a separate area so it was only our group in the room, which was nice, otherwise the restaurant itself can get quite loud. Unfortunately, we ran into some issues with our orders, extra tortillas were missed, and they brought out beef burritos instead of bean burritos for one of the orders. Would I come again? Only if I had a large group since the side room was nice, otherwise, I'd probably check out another place in the area.

    Photos
    The Patron Mexican Restaurant & Cantina - Decor

    Decor

    The Patron Mexican Restaurant & Cantina - Texas Fajitas

    Texas Fajitas

    The Patron Mexican Restaurant & Cantina - Very well decorated Tex-Mex spot.

    See all

    Very well decorated Tex-Mex spot.

    Kahlo’s Taqueria and Bar

    Kahlo’s Taqueria and Bar

    4.1(163 reviews)
    4.6 miChurch Hill
    $$

    Really good. Fast service when ordering ahead. A little messy but that expected with a burrito and…read moreit's HUGE! Friendly staff. Did not dine in but would love to come back and try some other options and drinks. 4 STARS!

    Kahlo's has gone downhill enough since my 2021 review to warrant an update, unfortunately. I was…read morereally excited for a girl's night last weekend and thought Kahlo's would be the perfect spot to kick it off. Not so much. We made a reservation and due to rideshare surges/wait times after work, we were all a touch late. I arrived first about 10 minutes late and asked if they happened to have any seats inside instead, as we had reserved the patio with higher hopes of warm weather. The woman who greeted me was sweet and friendly, and she quickly brought me back to a table indoors. I really appreciated her accommodating us when we were late and at the very last-minute on a Friday night. That's sadly where the good part of this review ends. Our server wasn't the most pleasant and she clearly had too many tables, which likely led to the first point of her being not the most pleasant. The meal took way longer than it should have to arrive. The menus on their website show incorrect pricing and offerings, so they should update that. I was excited to retry the pink lemonade margarita, but they took it off. Instead, I had the passion fruit, which was good but tasted like straight juice, I'm not convinced it had tequila in it. My friends reported similar with their margs. For my meal, I went with three of the American tacos (listed as $3 for 8) on their menu based on my last review. I interpreted the $3 for 8 to mean that the selection was $8 instead of the three taco special at $16, so when I ordered, I said, "Can I do all rice instead of rice and beans?" and was told sure. *This would've been the time for the server to explain that by adding rice, I was doubling my cost, to be clear. The tacos were okay, not the best, go to any of the Lalo's restaurants for better. I did enjoy the cheese again though. When our bills arrived, mine had the tacos listed as $16. It took a long time to flag down our waitress, as I was super confused about it. She told me in not the nicest tone that by adding the rice, I made it a $16 special like the mix and match options (all of which were way higher priced than 3 for $8). Like ma'am, why is rice $8? Unless it's like 10 pounds of rice?? (Which, it was not.) She said she'd "make an exception"/essentially do me a favor by reducing the rate. The last time I heard that condscending tone from a server was at another restaurant in town that I have never visited again despite rave reviews. It's commentary like that that will steer me away from a restaurant permanently. I like to believe that I am extra kind to restaurant staff, as someone in customer service myself, so to receive that energy just sucks. All told, service wasn't great, the food wasn't worth the price, and also their bathrooms were extremely dirty. I really do judge a restaurant's cleanliness by their bathrooms, and they could use some work. Later in the night, folks working at nearby spots mentioned that Kahlo's has seen a LOT of turnover recently, and they don't think their food is that good. I hate to agree with them.

    Photos
    Kahlo’s Taqueria and Bar - Bar view + chips & salsa, Cheese Dip, Mango & Strawberry Fresa

    Bar view + chips & salsa, Cheese Dip, Mango & Strawberry Fresa

    Kahlo’s Taqueria and Bar - Taco time!!!!

    Taco time!!!!

    Kahlo’s Taqueria and Bar - "Texas" Margarita

    See all

    "Texas" Margarita

    Lulu's - Chorizo Frittata

    Lulu's

    3.9(1.1k reviews)
    5.2 miShockoe Bottom
    $$

    I was meeting a couple friends for brunch, and so we didn't all get there at the same time. The…read morehost was kind enough to still seat me at a table good for 3 while I wait for my friends even though they actually had quite a full house. So I really appreciated that. Our waiter was also actually quite patient (there was a bit of a wait until my friends got there; I'm sorry!). They had a dj the morning I was there, and I really liked the vibe. Their menu have more than enough options for brunch and drinks. I hope they extend their menu for more lunch items than brunch/breakfast items though! Once everyone was there, we finally ordered! I ordered a bacon cheeseburger with the side of Lulu's house potatoes and a pomegranate mule. The pomegranate mule was quite strong, and I enjoyed it so much I ordered another one. LOL. The bacon cheeseburger was exactly as I requested. I have no notes. Overall, wonderful experience and would definitely recommend.

    Food: -Try their style of potatoes! It is very flavorful…read moreand uses onions and peppers -I would consider this my #1 breakfast food location and has a unique way of making staple breakfast items -French Toast was extremely satisfying. They offer a cinnamon butter, strawberry topping, and syrup that prompts an array of tastes. -The pecan cream cheese icing that was with the red velvet waffle was amazing! Service: Josh was our server and did NOT miss a beat. He took our order by memory, everything came out perfect, kept my party's glasses full, and did everything with genuine joy. Ambiance: It is a laid back, relaxed, dine in experience. They provide outside seating, normal dining, and bar seats. The decorations are an independent/modern/expressive look that is not "down your throat". I felt comfortable to sit and chat at my leisure

    Photos
    Lulu's - Inside

    Inside

    Lulu's - French Toast Bacon

    French Toast Bacon

    Lulu's - Bloody Mary

    See all

    Bloody Mary

    Club level Grille - Burger

    Club level Grille

    3.0(166 reviews)
    0.8 mi
    $$

    Definitely above average for an airport restaurant. Service was great, my Aperol Spritz was…read moreperfectly made, and I absolutely loved the shrimp sandwich and chips that came with it. The entire menu looked really good as well.

    This review is for service only. This was my third visit today, but my first visit with the blonde…read morewaitress. It was a very busy weekday with no tables seemingly open or already cleaned, so I sat at a table with dirty dishes. No big deal; she was busy hustling from table to table to kitchen. I sat there for about five minutes, again no big deal. But with the dirty dishes in front me of, I didn't want her to think I was the previous customer, so I made eye contact with her as she walked by. I didn't say one word, I didn't make any hand gestures - I just looked at her; all I was expecting in return was a head nod or a "be right with you"...the normal acknowledgement. Instead, she responds in frustration saying kinda loudly, "You're gonna have to give me a few minutes ma'am." Her tone told me she was annoyed and stressed. I said, "Um, ok." The patron next to me gave me a raised eyebrow and later told me she has been a certain kind of way. It was embarrassing, completely rude and uncalled for, as the patrons on this side of the restaurant definitely heard. I got up and left. I get she's stressed, but I did nothing to her but sit at a dirty table and look at her. I've had three trips to the area recently, and I anticipate more. I will not be coming back to this establishment nor will I recommend this place to my coworkers who also travel here.

    Photos
    Club level Grille
    Club level Grille - Chicken quesadilla-- also comes with guacamole not pictured

    Chicken quesadilla-- also comes with guacamole not pictured

    Club level Grille - One of Derrick's Margaritas

    See all

    One of Derrick's Margaritas

    El Torito - mexican - Updated July 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...