Great Mexican restaurant located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Seattle…read more Freshly made chips that come with a salsa roja that has a kick to it. Not bland like in other places. The ceviche was fresh and loved that they added shredded carrots for extra crunchiness. Tacos de carne were delicious, with the meat properly seasoned. Will definitely come back for more the next time we are in Seattle. Service was prompt and courteous.

I shared the mole enchiladas and lengua en salsa verde from this Mexican place…read more Of these, the lengua en salsa verde was my favorite. The beef tongue was cooked pretty well. Although it's naturally very fatty, the flavor and juiciness was retained after cooking - so they didn't screw it up. The salsa verde was a very nice accompaniment, as it tasted light, fresh, and a good complement to the fat of the meat. The mole enchiladas were less good. The mole sauce used leaned way too heavily on a sweet flavor - having little to no nuttiness whatsoever. It didn't taste anywhere close to some of the best moles I've had. The enchilada underneath was fine - nothing special. Both dishes came with beans and rice. Both were slightly above average, but nothing to write home about. I would say the portions were well sized in terms of overall amount, but the enchiladas were quite small compared to the beans and rice. With these two dishes we ended up around 28 per person. Overall, it's average Mexican food. 6.5/10

Came here on a Friday around 5pm and it's not busy at all. They have the great courteous service…read morethat you come to expect from Cactus and of course delicious food. Carne Asada (5/5) The skirt steak is ordered medium rare and it's as expected soft, tender and absolutely delicious. Everything else that came with it like the corn fajitas, black beans and corn is just a wonderful and complements the steak very well. My only gripe is that the " spicy" sauce is not spicy at all. Not even mild lol. If they as you if you want chips and guac always say yes! The chips are light and crispy and guac tastes amazing.

Came back to Cactus for happy hour (ends at 5p) and ordered Tex mex queso, chips and salsa, and the…read morespicy ahi tacos. The Tex Mex Queso was amazing. It has chorizo on top, taking it to another level. Will definitely get it again. The chips and salsa were refilled for us which was great. The margarita was good too. Will definitely come again - solid happy hour. However, the service was pretty slow despite not being too busy. No worries as we weren't in a rush.

BEST chips and salsa! Service is always great and they have outdoor tables, so you can enjoy the…read moresun when it is actually out!

I love Laredo's been coming here for years! Love the avocado margaritas! Also a great happy hour,…read morelively, ambience great service and the food is excellent! They have continuity in the kitchen that extends back to when they first opened. If you're looking for Tex Max in Seattle, this is really one of the top spots for me.

This has been bookmarked for a while and the only regret I have is that I didn't get here sooner…read more This food is terrific, the vibe is hilarious, the servers are downright fantastic. Andrew (our server) introduced us to his sidekick, who was in training. Love that personal, hands on approach for a mew team member, and Sidekick did a great job in monitoring our table and replenishing water. Have to stop here and express my appreciation for Andrew and how he took the time to explain the philosophy and genuine team vibe of the restaurant. Oftentimes when a restaurant adds a flat 20% gratuity, you get the feeling this is not passed on to the servers. Not so here. He explained that it's shared among the servers, bar, and other staff, with only a bit retained by management, but even that finds its way into their wages. Terrific work environment and happy to see it. It definitely shows in the level of service. But we're here to eat. Didn't take a picture, but one of my dining companions ordered the burrito with red chili sauce and it was very good. Just the right amount of heat in the sauce. The Cantina celebrates Taco Tuesday, so I took advantage of this. You get the opportunity to try 5 different street tacos for the low price of $15. For another $4 you order it fully loaded which is a steal (guac, pickled onions, lettuce, giardano, crema, and another lovely sauce). Each of the tacos were really delicious and packed full of flavor. I especially enjoyed the cauliflower and the beef. Was surprised how much I liked the popcorn chicken - still juicy and not greasy in the least. Andrew treated us to a round of the hatch green chili. I was delighted because it was a dish I wanted to try. He described it perfectly: a little kick, but you can't stop eating it. He was right. A bowl of this in the winter with their cornbread (which I'm confident will be delicious) will preempt a winter cold. The sauces on the table are not to be ignored either. The green chili sauce was fruity with a little heat, the scorpion chili brings the heat, but their homemade chili oil is phenomenal. I could put this on everything. In short, the Cantina delivers. Excellent food, knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and fun staff, and a cool vibe. I'll bet the cocktails will also be good. Definitely adding to the regular rotation!

Food and presentation is meh. The neighborhood is absolutely…read moredreadful, and they tack on an automatic 20% "service charge" with or without good service giving you no choice to decide whether or not the service warrants the charge. I own an e-commerce company, just like Amazon, and could you imagine your Amazon order having a 20% "service charge" to help offset labor costs. This is becoming a trend and I'm avoiding eateries that do this.

Came here on a Friday night and it was the perfect dinner! Their tacos are amazing- the corn…read moretortillas, chopped meat, onions, cilantro, and salsa all combine beautifully. Sometimes I just crave authentic tacos and these meet the mark with the pork and pineapple al pastor. Our server was prompt, and overall we had a very nice time hanging out for a couple of hours while sipping on some ballena sized beers. It was busy and a cozy on a rainy and cold Seattle night.

My margarita was very good. California tacos were good with overflowing meat, that's a plus. My…read moredaughter enjoyed her Gorditas. If i was rating the food it would be a 4.5 but the comfort level was low. I felt like we didn't belong. There's a sign for no public bathrooms, but as a customer it didn't exist either!!! There's an employee only sign on it. A mexican restaurant that is not upscale....and i have to pay $11 for chips n salsa is a no go for me. Also, automatically charged for the credit card fee ...so we had to ask for that to be changed since we actually still use cash. I was a bit disappointed, but food was good!

Great food and service as always! From the appetizer to the main course everything is as advertised!read more

This is the perfect spot in Ballard for a date night. I got a wagyu steak served on a hot stone and…read moreit was one of the best steaks of my life. The chimichurri sauce paired perfectly. If you get steak served on a hot plate, I recommend you go on the rarer side as the steak will cook on the stone. I got medium rare and I normally would get medium at a steakhouse. We sat at the bar and the service was wonderful. I can't wait to come back!

First time here. We sought it out on Cinco de Mayo. This gem is hidden in "the alley" on the second…read morefloor in the back . You won't see it from the street. This oddly adds to its charm and authenticity. There is a limited menu and everything is excellent and affordable.. This is Mexican street food , think street tacos and hand helds like burritos, tortas, erc. The tacos are delicious.. we had the carne asada and the pollo asada taco deal ( 3 tacos bursting with flavor snd topped with sauce and a bottled soft drink ( including Mexican sodas in so many flavors) . They have several meat choices and prickly pear. You order at the counter or the digital pad off to the right. Bring cash for tip! It's not a big alcohol scene although they offer 16 Oz beer in 4 Mexican varieties. Modela, Tecate, and a couple others It is easily accessible by Capitol Hill station stop just one stop from downtown. We went before a show with ease.

Stopped by for a quick bite. First visit. Ordered a Asada and a Adobada taco (x2)…read more Cool little Cap Hill restaurant. 2nd floor with enough seating. Either order at counter (which I prefer) or a kiosk. Grab a number and they deliver your food. Tacos were good street food. Asada was flavorful and the Abobada had a good chunk of pineapple. Staff was friendly and overall a good experience.

Happy hour is where it's at... you can't beat a giant plate of nachos for $7 , guacamole and salsa…read morefor $7, etc. in general the staff are friendly enough and food is enjoyable. The drinks lack though. Not worth the price tag and margaritas taste watery. This place can get crowded so come early or be prepared to wait a bit.

Update June 2026: I've been a customer of Matador for 8 years, celebrating special occasions here…read moreand recommending this restaurant to countless friends. We recently had a bad experience with Assistant General Manager Mark being unprofessional and mishandling our payment. We escalated the issue to management by email, and received what sounded like a generic templated response from General Manager Carly, which didn't directly address our specific concerns. I'm disappointed by the lack of care or concern for service for longtime, loyal customers and feel completely unheard by what I considered my favorite restaurant in Ballard. We've noticed service has gone downhill overall lately, but the response from management fell short. I hope things change soon at this location as we'd like to give them another chance.