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    Tacos Rojas

    4.5 (171 reviews)
    InexpensiveMexican, Burgers
    Open 10:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Tacos Rojas Photos

    Business Info

    TACOS ROJAS ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Tacos Rojas

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    The ordering counter for Take Out orders and one of the booths of the dining area.
    Manuel M.

    Tacos Rojas is one of the major family-owned chain Mexican Restaurants here in Roanoke, Virginia. I have visited several of them, and they have gotten mixed reviews. Today while I was driving down 13th Street looking for a place to have lunch, I drove by this tiny Mexican restaurant that at first seemed like a run down shack, or a hole in the wall eatery, with only two cars parked in its small parking lot. I missed seeing the restaurant's sign with its name. But for one reason or another, I decided I had to turn back to try it out. After being awarded the NC Triad Yelp Squad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last year, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, celebrating their contributions and accomplishments throughout the year, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and businesses, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to uncover those found in hidden paths that for one reason or another have not reached the public in its totality. And this what I first thought was a no name Mexican Restaurant in Roanoke, Virginia, is a perfect example. When I turned around and drove back, as I got closer and closer to the restaurant's sign, I saw it was pretty new, and had a Mexican Hat, a Guitar, and some maracas, and read: "Tacos Rojas Mexican Grill Authentic Mexican Cuisine." Little did I imagine that this place was where it all started. Afterwards, after doing my research I found out the whole story about this place. Primary, that it was that it was the first Taco Rojas Restaurant, and where it all started. How appropriate that to conclude Hispanic Heritage Month, I ended up eating and reviewing this Hispanic Historic Restaurant in the history of Taco Rojas. Tacos Rojas was founded by Octavio Rojas, who moved to America from Pueblo, Mexico, 20 years ago. He opened this first restaurant on 13th Street, 12 years ago which had been a convenience store, and has since then expanded to six locations in the Roanoke Valley, including a location in Salem, which features a party room.The family-run business serves authentic Mexican food and has seen growth, including during the pandemic, partly due to its popularity for takeout. The business is family operated, with Octavio's wife, daughter, brother, and other relatives all involved in the restaurants. As I went inside, even though you can tell the place was once a convenience store because it still contained a wide display refrigerator with bottles of bottled drinks, it was clean and well-maintained, painted with lively colors, and different posters on the wall.The small dining area contained a combination of tables and chairs and some booths.The ambiance was warm and relaxed. One that made you feel at home. A young lady came out to greet me and gave me a warm welcome. I took a seat in the first booth and she handed me the menu and took my drink order. I ordered an Horchata. Afterwards I ordered a Carnitas Burrito as my main entrée. While I waited my server brought a basket of Chips and Salsa. Even though in the menu it was listed as an appetizer, it seemed like the first one was complementary. When the food arrived it was amazingly delicious. The shredded pork inside the burrito was seasoned and cooked to perfection, it was nice and hot, and the sauces on top were very tasty without being too spicy. Now I better understood how the humble beginning of Taco Rojas in this place had taken off and grown so quickly. Octavio's mother's recipes for the food were not only authentic Mexican food but delicious. They gave the cuisine here that special magical touch of satisfaction the first time you came, that made you want to come back and tell your family and friends about it. Sometimes it is in places like these that one can have the most extraordinary dining experiences.

    Loaded nachos
    Reagan T.

    Our party of 10 went here for Lunch on a Saturday in mid June. While it is a very small dining area, they were able to pull the tables together for us. Overall, the wide selection of Mexican dishes met with our approval. And, the food was hot, good, and tasty. The negative was the service, as they were slow in bringing out the initial supply of chips and salsa. And, while serving the salsa, the server poured an entire bowl of salsa on one person in our party and onto another in our party. The clothes were ruined and soaked with salsa from head to toe. While the server did help us clean up the huge mess, there was no offer of apologies or any offer of making up for the malady.

    Horchata
    John B.

    This is a small place, without a ton of ambiance (unless you like Central American music as much as the people who work here do). It did have something to offer, though. Notably, the vegetarian menu is significant. Upon ordering a diablo veggie burrito, I saw them freshly cooking some vegetables and wondered if it was for someone else because it looked like so much. But when I actually received my order, it was a gigantic burrito that I had zero chance of finishing and took as leftovers. There was a bit of refried beans and rice in there, but there was a ton of actual vegetables, which is good, and this was dairy-free as far as I could tell. The diablo sauce was for real, and that is, as they say, one spicy burrito. A horchata was texturally on the thinner side and had a bubblegum-like flavor and a strange aftertaste that I assume is some distinctive seed or herb. It was interesting. It was clear that this place uses some quality ingredients and produces fresh flavors.

    Marley C.

    The food was great but the price was outrageous, especially for being a small mom n pop, hole in the wall, type of restaurant. My girlfriend and I didn't eat anything crazy and our total was $55. She had a coke and the chimichanga dinner, and I had a bottled water and 3 chicken tacos (no rice or beans). We did have chips, salsa and cheese dip, but that's it. After leaving a tip, my total was over $60! No complaints on the food, the service was good, the bathroom was skank, and the prices were insane.

    horchata
    VyVy V.

    Authentic tacos in Roanoke! This place is a bit hard to find at first because it's actually located inside a convenience store. They have weekday lunch specials that last until 3pm. We got two different orders of tacos at 3/$10.99. The hot sauces that are provided are definitely spicy! I liked the al pastor tacos more because they tasted more flavorful. The asada was good but it was a bit dry and chewy. The horchata comes in a huge glass!

    Shrimp Taco (left) and Fish Taco (right)
    Steve A.

    Tacos Rojas is definitely the type of taco joint I like to go to, a hole-in-the wall with authentic food. The place is small, but has a cool south-of-the border vibe. The service was great and they take pride in the presentation of the food. I looked at alot of the food going to other tables and it all looked delicious. I had a fish taco and a shrimp taco - both were flavorful, but I guess I was expecting a Baja-style fish taco - where the fish is fried. Both the red and green salsas were delicious. If I were in the area again, I would probably try Rojas again. I think everything was good, but nothing blew me away. Notes: There is plenty of parking in front of the building. The restroom is outside and around the corner - and definitely looks like an old gas station restroom. Be prepared.

    Georgia B.

    Over rated, authentic middle of the road Mexican fare. =. Ambiance is a hole in the wall gas station turned into a make do cafe? You order at the counter and they'll bring the food out to your table. You help your self to ordered beverage from the coolers. =. Food iwas authentic but on the greasy side. We tried al pastor and asada tacos. They came out on 2 corn tortillas (off the shelf) dressed with cilantro, chopped onions, 1 red and 1 tomatillos salsas. NO salsa bar or typical condiments. Al pastor was flavorful but very greasy! Asada was very tough and gave my jaws a workout. Tortillas were thick and not exactly soft. Both salsas were on the spicy side. For me, the tacos were middle of the road at best. We did see huge burritos that we considered. Other guests we spoke with, definitely enjoyed their food. Maybe quantity over quality? +. Service was friendly and informative by Mexican staff. Fluent English spoken and plenty of pictures of the menu. =. Price was high for meh food...low value. Our 6 tacos were $22+. +. ~6 spots in front of the resto and free street parking MY RATINGS - - - Inhumane - - Disgusted - Don't bother = Missed the Mark + Good ++ Better +++ Edible...where have you been all my life!

    Chilaquiles, Green Chile with chorizo and eggs over chips and beens
    Howard K.

    Excellent Mexican food! All Day Breakfast is what I was looking for. Chilaquiles, green chilies, chorizo and eggs with Beens over "nacho" chips. I was not aware of the nacho chips when I ordered but it was great. A little messy to pick up because they became perfectly soft from the green chilies sauce. All the other food I saw looked just as good. I would highly recommend. As if a white guy from New England would have any idea, but I would say this is pretty authentic.

    Carnitas Tacos and Asada Tacos.

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    10 months ago

    A cool hole in the wall with dive vibes and decent food. Burritos are BIG so you can split one.

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    2 years ago

    This is really good I would recommend it and the Casadias are really good and it's for kids also

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    8 years ago

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    2 years ago

    10/10 Highly recommended love the food and the service is great. Been going for a few years now and it has been consistently great.

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    3 years ago

    Delicious, authentic Mexican food in Roanoke, Virginia. Served quickly and with a smile.

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    4 years ago

    Hands down, the most authentic tacos we have found in Roanoke. Flavor profiles were perfection!

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    7 years ago

    Some of the best and fresh made to order authentic Mexican food in Roanoke!

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    Beamer's 25

    Beamer's 25

    3.9(291 reviews)
    1.0 mi
    $$

    After being awarded the Triad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last…read moreyear, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, I decided that it would be appropriate this year to go back to this restaurant and write a follow-up review, since my initial review was one of my reviews that contributed to me obtaining this highly esteemed Award. Consistency in the dining experience of a restaurant is something very important. It is something that the restaurant has to earn every time a customer enters through its door. As easily as a restaurant can win a customer over, it can also lose him and his loyalty to the restaurant. Sadly, this is what happened to me during this visit. I had missed having lunch, that day, so I arrived at around 4:30pm to have an early dinner. A gentleman greeted me and had me take a seat at a table of my choice. I went and sat at a booth facing the kitchen. I think it was the same place I sat the first time I ate here with a friend. The same gentleman performed as my server. He came by and asked me what I wanted to drink. I asked him if they had any Mocktails. He answered me that Mocktails are not the drinks that people usually drink there, but that he can have them make one for me at the bar. I described the one I would like to have and right after give him my food order. I ordered a Hunter's Burger, with a fried egg, smoked bacon, and American cheese, among other ingredients. And tater tots to accompany it. After putting in my food order he goes to the bar and comes back with my Mocktail, which was extremely acidic, but he had already walked away before I could tell him. So I stirred it hoping that this would fix it. But as the acidic liquid reached my throat it made me caught and gave me an unpleasant sensation. The server brings me the Hunter's Burger, my main course, with the tater tots. The tater tots are not cooked well. When I try to hook one up with my fork, it just splits in half. The Hunter's Burger bun was not big at all, and the patty was extremely small that you could hardly see it without opening the buns up, and that is what I did and discovered that the egg was not fried evenly but the yolk had been broken while being fried and was not soft. I tried to make the best of the situation and ate the burger with a fork. If all this wasn't enough, the server approached me with something in his hand that I think was my bill and asked me if I wanted something else. I told him that I wanted the Fried Oreo Cookies with the Vanilla Ice-cream. He brings me them with so little ice-cream that it had melted in the middle of the Fried Oreo Cookies. What an awful dining experience this has been compared to last time, which I still remember today. And today's experience, I just want to forget. I hope the owner of this restaurant reads this review and takes a look at my photographs that accompany it, and takes action to remedy it so that this doesn't happen again and tarnish the Image of what I once thought was a great restaurant.

    Attentive service and pretty good food. Nothing to write home about but I enjoyed the burger and…read morefries. Good spot for some typical American food.

    Photos
    Beamer's 25 - Open-faced oyster sandwich. One of the specials on Sunday.

    Open-faced oyster sandwich. One of the specials on Sunday.

    Beamer's 25
    Beamer's 25

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    The Laughing Bull - Fries in a basket.

    The Laughing Bull

    4.5(11 reviews)
    1.4 mi

    Tucked away inside the historic city market building the Laughing Bull has a variety of menu…read moreoptions and the staff was friendly and the food came out hot and quick. There are tables inside a spacious hall decorated with greenery and interesting architecture. I'm not sure I ordered the best thing on the menu, the Teriyaki chicken panini was lightly sauced teriyaki chicken and Swiss cheese on thick Texas toast type bread. It could have been better honestly, it had a weak flavor and was pretty messy and hard to eat. The French fries were good, maybe a little overly salted but good. I would give it another try.

    In a word, OK. In the Market Building food court in downtown Roanoke, Va. comfortable common-area…read moreseating, staff brought the food to us after ordering at the window. Very nice staff, answered our questions, and were quite friendly. Ordered two gourmet burgers and a 'cheese steak' panini. All three came with fries and were visually appealing. The burgers were stacked, had nice veggies but the meat was rather tasteless, a real disappointment. The panini was inedible. The "steak" was strips of very tough and chewy meat that pulled right out of the bread, and the peppers overrode all other tastes. A real disappointment. The staff came and checked on us twice, very attentive. I would try it again, just to try another of their very creative dishes, but I am not running back. Good for a stop if you are downtown.

    Photos
    The Laughing Bull - The Hangry Bulldog and the Laughing Bull Restaurant's.

    The Hangry Bulldog and the Laughing Bull Restaurant's.

    The Laughing Bull - The Ramen Burger with extra bacon and egg, and fries.

    The Ramen Burger with extra bacon and egg, and fries.

    The Laughing Bull - Kids Little Bull Hot Dog

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    Kids Little Bull Hot Dog

    The Front Row - My BBQ Burger.

    The Front Row

    4.2(9 reviews)
    1.0 mi

    I've oftentimes have driven by this establishment and wondered what's inside. So today I decided to…read morego and explore it. After all, I've often liked to sit in the front row when attending live events. What I found was a bit disappointing. More than a restaurant this is a place to drink beer and cocktails while watching a game on a large screen TV. It has a very limited food menu and when I went the place seemed deserted. While I was there only one other customer came in, drank two beers while watching the big screen TV, talked.over the phone, and left. My server was very nice and friendly, but the food left much to be desired. I ordered a BBQ Burger that was listed on the menu as a 1/3 lb Angus burger with onion rings, bacon, cheddar cheese, and BBQ sauce. Sounded great but I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review. The beef patty was small and dry and the one onion ring looked beaten. Even though it has a pool table in the back and signs up that seemed to have activities going on throughout the week, this is not a place that I would like to be in the front row, especially for the poor quality of their food and questionable ambiance.

    I don't get the positive reviews. We went for lunch on a weekday and the place was dead. The…read morewaitress was inside watching TV and the cook was outside smoking. The ambience of the place left much to be desired. I won't eat at a restaurant that is empty at a time it should be full. I figure others know what I don't. Not recommended.

    Photos
    The Front Row - The bar.

    The bar.

    The Front Row - My Coke.

    My Coke.

    The Front Row - Nothing fancy from the outside.

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    Nothing fancy from the outside.

    Bernard's - A fork holding a piece of Filet and Scallop from the Filet & Scallops Special of the Day.

    Bernard's

    4.6(350 reviews)
    1.3 mi
    $$

    Stopped at this place on a road trip and it was amazing. The fried pickles were the best i've had,…read morethe shrimp and grits were the best I had, and the banana butterscotch pudding was the best banana pudding i've ever had. My boyfriend got the steak burger and said the A1 aioli was so flavorful and unique. The atmosphere is cozy and staff is very friendly. 10/10 experience.

    I have eaten at some of the best restaurants in the world, but in none have I had such a wonderful…read moredining experience like I always do at Bernard's Gastropub & Eatery. After having been selected as number 4 of Yelp's Top 50 most prolific Elites of 2025, a year when I also was awarded the Yelp Triad Squad Photographer of the Year Award at their Yelpies 2025 Award Ceremony, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, and where last year I was awarded the Yelp Triad Squad Yelper of the Year Award, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to return to those special ones, that have made a difference in my life and highlight them, for the benefit of the public, so they too can have an opportunity to appreciate the qualities of a one-of-a-kind fine dining experience. And Bernard's Gastropub & Eatery in Downtown Roanoke, is a perfect example. Bernard's was born out of the love of two culinary aficionados turned professionals that in someway have managed to create a restaurant with an environment that transmits this intimate love to the hearts of their customers through the attention to detail in its extraordinary customer service and amazing culinary masterpieces. Today, I felt like dining at this restaurant, which I admire for its consistency in always far exceeding my high expectations of what a fine-dining restaurant should be all about. Not knowing if they would have a table for me at this late time on a Saturday early evening, I drove in my pearl white Lexus to the nearest private parking lot and gave them a call to inquire as if they could give me a reservation for the next ten minutes. A gentleman, who later I found out was named Matthew, and would be my server, answered the phone with a very polite and welcoming voice; answering my question of what was the special dish of the day and to come on down, that my reservation was assured. As soon as I arrived to the small, very elegant foyer in front of the Host's station, he came out to greet me and instantly recognized who I was. My only request was that he give me a low table because at my age seating at a high table was a bit uncomfortable. He went back to see what he could find and ended setting me up with what I consider one of the best tables of the house, and I was so appreciative of his last minute accommodation. The menu was already setup on my table. He poured water from a special bottle into my water glass and asked if I wanted something else to drink. I asked for a Mocktail and since he also was a bartender, he prepared me one of the best mocktails I've ever had. To dine, I started out with their Mussels Carbonara appetizer, which came in a bacon parmesan cream sauce that was simply amazing, and served with toast points. As my main entrée I had the Dinner Special of the Night, the Seafood Trio. It had a delicious, giant size crab cake in the middle, scallops, and shrimps, with parmesan risotto sautéed heirloom tomato, spinach, and nice size asparagus, with a burre blanc sauce. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the high-quality of their food and magnificent ambiance of the place. Everything was so delicious that only one word could ever describe them: priceless! For dessert I had their very famous Butterscotch Banana Pudding, which the chef makes at the moment ordered. It looked spectacular and tasted amazingly delicious: a culinary work of art. What a great way for the Gran Finale of an extraordinary dining experience!

    Photos
    Bernard's - The Host's station.

    The Host's station.

    Bernard's - Close-up of the Filet & Scallops Special of the Day.

    Close-up of the Filet & Scallops Special of the Day.

    Bernard's - Poached pear martini

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    Poached pear martini

    Tacos Rojas - mexican - Updated May 2026

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