I love that I saw some Mexican workers leaving the parking lot when we pulled up, they still had their fluorescent work shirts on. Meaning they came straight to eat after work, that was a good sign. As soon as we walked in, strong local-Latina customer presence, which is also an even better sign. I take the same note when I eat at Pho or oriental restaurants. If I see Asians present and eating at a predominantly Asian cuisine location, it's a very good sign. Anyways, I Wish we had photos to share but no time was wasted on that, we loved our food, this is our new spot. My husband & I both had the Lengua tacos, rice on the side, & my nephew had the carne asada tacos & raved about them. We wish we could try more items based on our positive experience with what we ordered. Next time! Can't wait! Also, we're from Arizona, sooo we think we kinda know good Mexican cuisine. read more

yummy food, nice space. got takeout from here and it was delicious! great spot, well-priced, would go again

This was probably one of the best Mexican restaurants I've had since bring in Virginia. Super nice wait staff, great food (though the chili sauce the serve with the tacos will make your mouth numb for a while) and the other customers, all who seem to be local regulars, will make you feel as welcome as Norm in Cheers. 10/10 would recommend. read more

Restaurante El Deportista - Mexican Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

I happened to be out running errands while Sandy approached, so I figured I'd stop somewhere to grab a crazy amount of food to go. The menu covered Mexican, Guatemalan, Honduran, and El Savadoranian so I ordered a little from everywhere, and while I waited was given complimentary chips (kept in a toaster) and salsa. Service was friendly and fast. The surprise hit was the pastellitos. I had never had Guatemalan before and while many of the ingredients were familiar, it was put together in a fun and very tasty way. The pupusas were legit, and everything was fresh down to the house made flour tortilla (make sure to request 'hecho de mano'). Only miss was that the whole fried fish was a touch dry. I will definitely hit this place up again. I think it's major selling point is that it can make foods from a variety of Central American countries very well. Make this your one stop shop for authentic Latin American cuisine. read more

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It's a little hole in the wall place but the pupusas are the best. The servers are friendly and any questions you have, they'll gladly answer. read more

The food was okay,but wasn't the best sadly. There was I hair in my food and I couldn't continue eating after seeing it. The waiter kept on asking me some personal questions which I think she shouldn't do because it's not part of her job. Btw this was the other day. read more

Restaurante El Deportista - Tacos Fritos Guatemaltecos Tacos Fritos Guatemaltecos - Mexican Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

It means "The Sportsman" in Spanish. Its not a place you avoid if you have a questionable immigration status. I gave this place a try for lunch today. I tried the pupusas and they were delicious. Stuffed with cheesy, porky goodness. However, I was disappointed that they do not offer a lunch menu. They have plenty of items such as tacos, pupusas, and the Honduran pastellitos (similar to empenadas). They could easily cobble together a lunch menu from their existing dishes. Slap together some combo's at affordable prices and Bingo was his Name-O! The need for a lunch menu was obvious as I was the only customer there at the height of lunch hour. SInce they were open I assume they want the business afterall. Plus I am never in this neighborhood at dinner time so my chances of trying the full sized entrees are pretty minimal. Also, the chips and salsa were free but the salsa was out of a jar. Frowny face... read more

Restaurante El Deportista - Mexican Near Me - Norfolk, Virginia

This place is tucked away in a shopping center. Passed by it for years! I finally went one day and I can't believe I've been passing up this place this whole time! I ordered horchata, pupusas and a tamale. Both were very delicious. The tamale is very different from other tamales I've had before. Not in a bad way, because the flavor was all there. It was fluffier, moist, and flavorful vs other tamales that are dense and sometimes dry even with sauce. Only thing is the waitress did not speak English at all so I had to use what little Spanish I could remember from high school to order, lol. With that being said, instead of getting 3 pupusas that normally come with an order I got 2 and still paid for the regular price. I think we got lost in translation when I said I wanted two pork pupusas and one cheese. I ended up with just 2. Which was fine. She was a sweet lady and I enjoyed the food. Definitely will be making another visit soon. read more

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This place is okay, the tables are just small and you feel very bunched up. Waitresses are rude and a female waitress is dressed inappropriately. Very small space, the only thing I found good was the pupusas. Wylin'. read more

Excellent lunch. Had the chicken burrito and a side order of guacamole with chips, delivered by GrubHub. Portion sizes were big and the burrito was amazing, had leftovers that DID NOT go to waste! Highly recommended. read more

Pupusas are delicious. Chips were freshly made, the salsa isn't spicy at all but okay. Employees are friendly. The place isn't fancy but overall I enjoyed it. read more

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Me and my boyfriend both ordered pupusas, and they were amazing!!! The staff was very friendly and we got our food quickly. They also have a bar. They have different pupusas that you can order, from mixed(pork and cheese), to cheese with herbs, and just plain cheese. read more

Was worried when I moved from Texas to Virginia that I wouldn't be able to find good authentic pupusas. I've ordered twice now and each time they have been delicious. I'm so happy to have found such a great restaurant-highly recommend! read more

This restaurant it went from bad to worse food , okay , service bad. Now food steel okay service is worse. As a family of 3 we whent there to eat Central American food food I will say was okay, but service was bad, bad, bad . We were there for 45 min waiting for the server to give my husband another drink and the server . This server was focused on serving a group of people that just want to drink beers. Waitress tents to forget that every customers count . Then later complain way they don't receive any tips. I agree that bad service NO TIPS AT ALL. read more

There isn't very many places in this area to get authentic Hispanic food. But this place makes you feel like your mom is cooking for you. Their pupusas are amazing!! They are always so sweet and greet you as soon as you come through the door. read more

The missing star is for missing HEAT meaning if you don't have heat and it's 28 out put a note on the door!! The decor eh kinda odd and I can not tell you what i ate but damn it was good and fresh and that made up for a lot not sure if any english is really spoken here and only one other customer as the other reviewer stated a lunch menu would have been nice but then again so would have heat LOL! I will go back once it's warmer prices were reasonable and place looked clean read more

Excellent service, fresh made to order dishes... the green and red sauces served with the meal add that heat that makes the meal that much more enjoyable! read more

Friendly owner! Chatted about Zumba, salsa other dancing classes as well as possibly offering lunch combos and a "happy hour"! All this as I waited on my take out order my only gripe is I didn't get offered any complimentary chips and salsa as I waited! I guess I'll live lol.food was definitely fresh and made to order, who can complain about that! read more