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    La Carnita

    2.7 (201 reviews)
    ModerateMexican
    Open 12:00 pm - 11:00 PM

    Order La Carnita Takeout or Delivery

    La Carnita Photos

    Business Info

    LA CARNITA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Happy hour specials
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - La Carnita

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    Fish taco
    Pinar A.

    I give this place a 5 star rating. Firstly i ordered guac and chips along with a fish taco. WOW it was so delicious. The fish was juicy and well battered. The guac was fresh and they made it in front of me. The server was so sweet and friendly. It felt like i was talking with a friend. I came with around 8 people and we split the bill at the end so it was less than 5 dollars per person. The prices were amazing and i recommend you to go for taco tuesdays as they have the best deals and only 3$ per taco. The environment was cultural and the pillows were comfortable. I highly recommend you to try it out if you get the chance. Thank you for a great experience.

    Elotes
    Dilys C.

    We were seated at the bar, so we had decent service even though it was really busy. The Food came out slow, but the drinks are good. The food was underwhelming. Small portion, pricey for what it is, and lacks flavour. Very mediocre food. Overall, overhyped, better taco places elsewhere (or down the street)

    Jenelle C.

    La Carnita hands down has the best tacos in the city! Each location I've been to, the food NEVER disappoints. One thing I really have to shout out is their nachos! Wow! I would consider myself a bit of a nacho snob lol as I've had my fair share of ordering nachos from pretty much every restaurant I've ever been to that sells nachos. And I must say, these were literally the best tasting nachos I've ever had! The carne asada tacos were probably my favourite, but again, literally everything I had was delicious. While the staff were all friendly and great overall, we didn't like the way our tacos came out. Instead of giving everyone a platter of what they ordered, all tacos were grouped together so we were left to figure out who got what, which, in a large group became a bit chaotic. Because of this, four people realized they were missing at least 2 tacos each. To get those missing tacos now, was over an hour wait. This could've all been avoided if, like what normally happens at a restaurant, you are served individually what you ordered, on your own plate. The missing tacos were comp'd which was appreciated, but again, it's such a quick fix so it can be avoided in the future. Apart from that hiccup, everything was great and I'd definitely return!

    Daniel A.

    La Carnita is easily one of the most overrated restaurants in Toronto. It's overpriced and mediocre, living off of it's Instagrammability (yup, I made that word up). The rose and red sangria's tasted the same; both were watered down. The nachos - while not horrible - left much to be desired. The tacos - supposedly a standout - were a huge disappointment. At $6-7 a pop, you'd expect much more. A warm tortilla at the very least...mine was cold. Service is also spotty. You'll see your waitress once every 30 minutes if you're lucky. Hell, even the TTC streetcars pass by more often. A definite pass next time.

    (L) Tuna Ceviche Tostadas (R) Rockfish Tacos
    Erika R.

    Came here at opening time with a friend and were seated by a young gentlemen. Been wanting to try this place out for some time and was excited to finally try it especially after looking at the menu the day before. What I'd like to first say is that I would've given 5 stars if it weren't for the service by our waiter. He was nice however he really didn't provide much details on the items we had asked about. For a minute I thought, is he a busboy and just covering for someone until they come because it seemed like he didn't care to be there at all. Will give him the benefit of a doubt as we got there right at opening, but opening is at 4pm. Also, it was a scorcher out so I would recommend to at least offer some ice or serve cold water to those dining in the patio. As for ambience, as nice as the patio is, if you want to have enjoyable conversations with your party without having to yell over traffic, I'd recommend eating inside. But now for the good stuff!! Tuna Ceviche Tostada - This was delicious!! Haven't had ceviche in a minute so I was looking forward to this. I could eat at least 3 of these. 5/5. Rockfish Tacos - It was Happy Hour so fish tacos were $5/each. Thankfully they had more than just cod fish (not a big fan) and the rockfish was excellent. Nice and flaky, perfectly battered and fried. Garnishing were also nice and fresh. Flavour was however lacking a bit. 4/5.

    Carne Assad, Pork Belly, and Tuna Ceviche Tacos
    Christina B.

    Had a great time at La Carnita on Saturday evening! The patio was comfy for our table of 5 people. The food was so good but the nachos in particular deserve a special shout out because they were AMAZING!! The staff was super attentive the entire night, made great recommendations and were an overall delight. Would definitely come back to this location!

    Naz K.

    I came here with friends for dinner and really enjoyed the environment and the food. I liked being able to snack on different tacos. The waiter was also friendly from beginning. Here's what we had: 1. Mexican chorizo taco 9/10 - I really liked this taco. All the flavours blended very well, not making it too spicy or bland. 2. Carne Asada taco 7/10 - this one was good, but not great. I think it could use a little bit more spice. 3. Pollo frito taco 7/10 - my friend had this and enjoyed the peanut sauce they used but d'audit could have been more spicy. 4. Mexican style corn 3/10 - I love Mexican corn on the cob and had great expectations when I ordered it. However the corn wasn't up to par with other restaurants or even the simple recipes I've used to make it at home. It was burnt, was very small and with very little sour cream and tajin for the price we paid, and it had a sort of fishy taste as if it got into contact with either other food somehow.

    mushroom
    Hetal M.

    I've been to their location on King street as well, I'm a fan of this establishment. Popped in here as we were looking for a quick bite and were happy that the kitchen was open. We were seated right away and conveniently away from door as it was one of the coldest days of Jan. (it was really busy for a cold -30 night). I ordered the mushroom empenada and a chicken taco and both were extremely flavourful and delicious. the place was clean, service was friendly, we weren't there long enough to really give it a wholesome thought, but definitely a place i would return again if i was to be in this area.

    Jelena P.

    La Carnita has a cool patio, its fun and exciting with the lights and colours, very enjoyable for a summer day. As another yelp member said I think that La Carnita does so well because of their "instagramability" it's not that special of a place to be over charging, tacos are the smallest size you can get them in the city. They should realistically be 2$ because they are a bite size, however they change 6-8$. The drinks are well made but they are $14+ is a bit much. I went with my girlfriend one day and we got appetizers ie. the corn + drinks and we we enjoyed it. But you can easily spend like 200$ per person to be satisfied and full. Service is good, every time I have came.

    Guac and chips to start
    Sam G.

    This rating is ridiculous! We went to this location yesterday and it was such a lovely experience. The place looked gorgeous. Good for going on dates or hanging out with friends. Servers were attentive and funny. We ordered the sangria which was deceivingly strong! But it was soooo good. And the food... Omg the food. The flavours were explosive and there were so many layers to the flavour. I could eat the tostada de ceviche forever. The pollo fritto and carne asade were really good too. Good enough for a repeat order. The only con I can think of is the price. Prepare to pay a little more for the food and drink. I would have given this place 5 stars if it was a little cheaper. But hey, I will for sure come back!

    Tostadas
    Rose W.

    They sell tacos, tostadas, quesadillas, and more here. There's quite a number of choices for tacos, but their serving sizes for tacos and salads and appetizers are very small compared to the price. It's about $6 per taco. I like their Baja shrimp taco.

    Mike H.

    Cool atmosphere, the service was pretty good too. Just like the location downtown, there's a Sweet Jesus combined. Decent draft selection that rotates every month. I ordered the chips and guac as well as one of the chicken tacos and the cod one. Guac was good, it didn't blow me away but pretty good. I think the seasoning on the tortilla chips were a bit too overpowering taking away from the guac. The fish taco was great, pretty hard to mess that up. However the chicken taco I got seemed like the same type of meat from subway... The mechanically separated chicken breast. Wasn't warm enough and the sauces were underwhelming. My friend got the chorizo taco (loved it) and the classic margarita (liked it). It's a bit expensive for what it is, so I didn't get much value here. I would give it another shot I noticed there's a 3 course type of lunch special you can get. Overall 2.5/5.

    Prices have increased :(

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    5 months ago

    Tacos are tiny. I ate here awhile ago and they were double the size. Ridiculous for the price. Place is dead.

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    Playa Cabana

    Playa Cabana

    3.9
    (502 reviews)
    3.6 km
    $$

    Visited this spot as its close to the museum and Casa Loma. The strong reviews looked promising so…read moreI decided to book a reservation here. The place is a bit small so it can be a bit tight so I would highly recommend having reservations if you have a large group. Tacos: The soft and the crispy tacos were both delicious. The tinga chicken and the beef barbacoa were juicy and full of flavour. The portions was fair, the quality was a standout and tasted quite authentic. Overall, I really had a great experience at Playa Cabana, totally would come here again to try out their other dishes.

    A great experience here for my friend's birthday. We made a reservation, which is likely necessary…read moregiven the small size of the restaurant. Parking was a challenge, but there is a Green P that is about 5-8 minutes away that isn't too bad if the weather is good. The atmosphere is quite intimate and I did find myself bumping into other people / staff when going to and from the washroom, etc. The food was pretty good - the tacos were full of flavour and I got to try a variety by sharing with the group. I think my favourite was the beef barbacoa. The prices are definitely a bit up there for a Mexican restaurant, I believe the tacos were around $7 each. The quality made it worth it, but there's definitely other places in Toronto that serve up a great taco for nearly half the price. We also tried a couple of appetizers, including the nachos, guac and ceviche. The nachos were something special - it was a bit of a nacho pizza. I didn't expect that from Playa Cabana, given everything else was very authentic. The taste was good, but it was a bit of a challenge to share! The highlight of the night was definitely the desserts - we ordered the tres leches cake, and the churros. Definitely the best churro I've ever had.

    Photos
    Inside of restaurant
    Inside of restaurant
    Playa Cabana
    Tacos

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    Tacos
    Quetzal

    Quetzal

    4.3
    (148 reviews)
    5.8 km
    $$$$

    I've been wanting to try Quetzal for years because my brother has raved about it nonstop, and it…read moreabsolutely lived up to the hype. We got lucky and they were able to squeeze us into seats at the bar area, which ended up being the best possible spot because we had a front-row view of the live fire cooking the entire night. The ambiance was lively and hip, with a great energy that made the whole experience feel exciting. This was my first time watching each main courses get cooked over live fire in real time, which added to our amazement given that all the dishes came out cooked to the right doneness. Every bite of meat and seafood was perfectly kissed with flame -- the char, the subtle smoke, the texture. Beyond the fire element, you can really taste how fresh everything is. Nothing felt heavy or muddled. Each dish was well thought out with balanced flavors, but the ingredients and that fire/smoke magic were always the main event. Service was also superb. All the staff were attentive and high-energy. Different servers checked up on us throughout the meal, our water was always kept full, and dishes were cleared in a timely manner. Only drawback: the heat. Sitting by the fire is incredible for the show, but it definitely started to feel like a sauna at times. Still, I'd do it again and choose to sit at the bar without hesitation. If you're in Toronto and you love a tasting menu, this is a must. Just make sure you book at least a month in advance - it's popular for a reason.

    Pricy but totally worth it. $145/person curated menu, but you can request certain items from the…read moremenu if you'd like it included. Quetzal was recommend by our server when we were dining at a Vancouver Michelin restaurant (Barbara), as our server was originally from Ontario. So of course we saved it on our list for when we visited Toronto. Very very accommodating staff and attentive. All the tables next to us seemed to really enjoy their meals as well. Every dish was amazingly flavoured and presentation was on point. Atmosphere was lovely too, laid back but chic. Comfortable yet elevated. Highlight was the scallops, we asked for it to be included on our set menu, and they delivered. Can't wait to go back!

    Photos
    Quetzal
    Bone marrow & wild Argentinian shrimp
    Bone marrow & wild Argentinian shrimp
    Coconut Nicuatole

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    Coconut Nicuatole
    La Carnita

    La Carnita

    3.3
    (497 reviews)
    6.7 km
    $$

    I came here for a last min dinner on a Thursday and it exceeded my expectations…read more There were a few empty seats when we got there at around 6:30 but it started to fill up shortly after. The inside was nice, it was dark with ambient lighting and decorated with a modern and Mexican theme. The waitress was super nice, and the staff were fairly attentive. We got the chips and guac to start. I do wish they gave a little bit more walk because it came in this really small cup so we had to go light on the guac to chip ratio. But overall the guac was yummy and the chips were very crunchy with a nice seasoning. They have a special every day of the week and Thursdays are there crunch tacos, which are hard shell tacos, wrapped in a soft shell taco with some sauce in between, and you can choose between their chorizo or chicken. We got one of each. I liked the chicken more but my partner liked the Chorizo. And all the toppings the perfect Fixin's. They only had three washroom stalls, which were gender neutral, and I thought they were relatively clean.

    I've been checking out Mexican restaurants lately and I feel like La Carnita is the best that I've…read morehad in downtown Toronto! First, La Carnita isn't perfect. You enter the restaurant from a set of stairs outside and the restaurant doesn't look too appealing from outside. Also, the restaurant always seems busy and/or small, so it's always loud and service is slow. With the negatives out of the way, let me explain why I love La Carnita! The food is amazing! Their tacos are on point, and with so many to choose from I can go back multiple times can never get bored. Each of their tacos has something different to offer and each has relatively good balance to them. The balance of freshness and savory (and sometimes sweet) toppings is well done, making me come back for more. The one item that pushes La Carnita over the top is their nachos! Homemade nacho chips with gooey cheese and a generous amount of toppings makes them my favorite nachos in Toronto! One last observation is that the service is always friendly. They may be (very) slow at times but they seem like they always try their best and are always quite pleasant. Overall, I love La Carnita and when I get a craving for tacos and nachos, I'm heading straight here!

    Photos
    La Carnita
    Nachos with guacamole, corn, and tomatillo salsa
    Nachos with guacamole, corn, and tomatillo salsa
    Daily Specials Menu | August 2022

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    Daily Specials Menu | August 2022

    La Carnita - mexican - Updated June 2026

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