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    Valerie's Taqueria

    4.7 (29 reviews)
    InexpensiveMexican
    Closed 10:00 am - 7:00 pm

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    VALERIE'S TAQUERIA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Tacos!!!
    Shawn H.

    We got chorizo, Barbacoa and carne asada tacos,, the Barbacoa was not bad, but the chorizo was the best! Only reason we gave it 4 was because we have tasted better tacos but highly recommend!

    Jonathan T.

    Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start. Remember Contra on NES, where you frantically -yet carefully- mashed these buttons at the title screen in order to get 30 lives? (Yes?) Well, today, I wish I entered some sort of life code, so I could've eaten more of Valerie Taqueria's tacos. The space is small, painted with some bright colors, and has a a simple (yet robust) menu hanging to the left chillin' next to a large statue of Mother Mary. No tables exist, so if you're not taking your food to go, you'll have to put your rump at the counter seating by the windows. Okay, that's nice. What about the food? For my late lunch, I ordered four tacos total (two al pastor and two carnitas) and a horchata: Al pastor: Slightly overcooked (and not as juicy) than other places that make great al pastor; however, it's still delicious, and it's packed with a lot of chili powder. (Just how I like it.) Carnitas: Unlike other places that slow cook and pull apart the pork shoulder, Valerie's lightly grills it. Even though it's a bit chewier, it has a tasty slight char and still plenty succulent. *Note: They'll ask if you want green or red sauce with your meal. I haven't had the red, but the green provides that extra kick for those that like their food spicy. (I'm looking at you, BK. J.) Horchata: Sweet, cold, and refreshing - pretty standard. And that's a good thing. Price: More affordable than other taquerias without compromising taste. Service: Although very nice, it was incredibly slow. Even though I was the third customer there, I didn't get my food for about fifteen or twenty minutes later. One person that came after me even got his food before mine. I didn't put in a huge order, so I don't think that's acceptable. Nonetheless, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and not count it against them. Overall, I would definitely return. Great food for a great price.

    Valerie's Taqueria storefront on 32nd just East of Nicollet.  Taken 8/21/13

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    1 month ago

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    3 months ago

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    1 year ago

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    5 months ago

    Great food amazing people will definitely be back to try the rest of the menu. Thanks

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    2 years ago

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    1 year ago

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    7 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Always great asada street tacos! Service is also great every time. Have been going there for over 8 years consistently!

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    12 years ago

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    4 years ago

    Yes. Authentic Mexica. As a former LA-resident it really hard to find this outside of LA. This is the best i've had in Minneapoli.

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    7 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    7 years ago

    Awesome authentic tacos. The sauces are crazy good and the staff are super friendly! Definitely coming back!

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    13 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    10 years ago

    Clean small family run place. Excellent al pastor. Open for lunch. Tacos far better than Ocampo. Go for it!

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    12 years ago

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    Maya Cuisine - Torta (left) Maya Burrito (right) Quesabirrias (bottom)

    Maya Cuisine

    4.2(470 reviews)
    4.6 miNortheast
    $$

    The best Mexican food I have ever had in my life, It was truly so good. Phone did not eat first…read more Food and Drink - We started with the chips and guac and the guacamole was outstanding. The onions and tomato that were chopped up in it were so satifyingly chopped I really enjoyed, it was nice and cold too. I got the quesabirria tacos for my meal and they were out of this world, I seriously think I inhaled them and have been thinking about them ever since. We were drinking Pina Coloadas and it made me feel like I was on the beaches of Mexico. Service - There was one server working on a busy Friday night and she killed it; she was attentive and remembered everything whilst also being the bartender too!!! Ambience - it is colorful and bright in there and just almost nostalgic. There is a chipotle style line at the front if you want to just grab something quick and full service in the back of the building, cannot wait to go back.

    This place is a gem in Northeast. I finally got a chance to try this out and loved it. I've always…read moreheard great things about it. They offer a lot of daily specials, but the one that caught my eye most was the BOGO burritos on Wednesdays. Everything that we tried was delicious and fairly priced. You can choose to eat in the self seating dining area, or if you'd like service they have the full bar and restaurant in the back. I was blown away with how it tasted and I felt like I was back in Mexico enjoying their cuisine. I wish I would've went here a lot sooner, but I plan to be back in the future. The staff were friendly.

    Photos
    Maya Cuisine
    Maya Cuisine - Burritos with chicken

    Burritos with chicken

    Maya Cuisine

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    Orale Mexican Eats - Fish taco

    Orale Mexican Eats

    4.5(205 reviews)
    2.8 miSouthwest
    $$

    I haven't updated this since the last time I lived in Minnesota!…read more When we moved back, Orale was one of the first places we went back to. I love this place, and the food is on par with a lot of Mexican food in California. Most recently, we went to celebrate a birthday. We go here because they are veggie friendly. We ordered the veggie enchiladas and I got a veggie wet burrito. Everything was delicious. My only complaint would be that things could be a bit saucier...but that's a preference thing and we get salsa on the side for it. We also got chips and guac -- delicious as well! I will say that the portions, especially the burrito are VERY generous. I think I should have shared it! It was pretty buzzy, which was great to see given the depths of winter we were in. Go here!!

    The food is pretty decent. I lived in Querétaro, Mexico, and spent 8 years in Phoenix, so I know…read morethe difference between authentic and Americanized Mexican food; this is firmly the latter. It's a bit whitewashed and leans more Cal-Mex than anything you'd find in Mexico, but I'm not complaining. I love a good California burrito and asada fries, so this style has its place (especially in Minnesota). Service can be slow. It took us about an hour to get two burritos yesterday and the restaurant didn't look busy. Maybe they were just short staffed. My main issue is the salsa. They limit you to one packet per person, and it's not the slightest bit spicy. And where are the limes? This place desperately needs a salsa bar with real options and some heat. Bump up the salsa selection and stop rationing it, and this would be a solid spot. For now, I'll keep getting this to go and buying my own salsa and limes.

    Photos
    Orale Mexican Eats - Bar at far end.

    Bar at far end.

    Orale Mexican Eats - Choriqueso, carne asada fries, and a margarita.

    Choriqueso, carne asada fries, and a margarita.

    Orale Mexican Eats

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    El Sazon Cocina & Tragos - Asada Taco (1)

    El Sazon Cocina & Tragos

    4.6(78 reviews)
    2.7 miSouthwest
    $$

    Everything!!!! The owners, the ambiance, the FOOD!!! I had the enchiladas with 3 of them with…read morechicken, covered in a Suiza sauce. Also on the plate were their delicious beans and rice. When I took that first bite, I was completely amazed!!! I hadn't really had good Mexican food until I ate this!! For $17, I got 3 meals out of it! We also had the chips with amazing salsas and that was delicious too!! My husband got the Short Rib Birria and that was just also really delicious!! We had a great conversation with one of the owners, Zoilo Ruacho, and he was so gracious and such a wonderful person! I have found my new favorite restaurant!!! I recommend El Sazon to everyone!

    The patio is a fun place to sit, especially during the summer, and the menu has a lot more variety…read morethan your typical Mexican restaurant. They are not serving alcohol anymore which is unfortunate to not be able to enjoy a margarita but they had a large mocktail list. We tried three different tacos (chicken, carne asada, and carnitas) and I loved being able to mix and match. The carne asada was probably my favorite but they all were swimming in oil. The skirt steak enchiladas were a standout and easily my favorite dish of the meal. The steak was tender, the portions were generous, and everything came together really well. The queso was rich and creamy, and the fresh guacamole was a great starter while we waited for our food. Service was friendly and attentive throughout our meal, and the overall atmosphere made it a really enjoyable place to spend the evening.

    Photos
    El Sazon Cocina & Tragos - Design on their wall

    Design on their wall

    El Sazon Cocina & Tragos - Birria croquette

    Birria croquette

    El Sazon Cocina & Tragos - Store front

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    Store front

    Hola Arepa - Dolphin banana drink

    Hola Arepa

    4.3(1.2k reviews)
    0.4 mi
    $$

    If you're looking for a fun spot with great food and drinks, Hola Arepa delivers. The Prickly…read morePaloma (Tequila, Aperol, Prickly Pear, Grapefruit, Lime) is phenomenal and at just $8 during happy hour, it's an absolute steal. For anyone with celiac disease, this place is great, the entire menu is gluten free, so you can order with complete peace of mind. The slow roasted pork arepa was a standout. The pork was incredibly tender with excellent flavor. One minor note: the yuca fries were a little light on portion size. That said, we left pleasantly full and very satisfied overall. The restaurant also has a small parking lot which in Minneapolis is amazing.

    We were excited to eat here for dinner as we are a family of several vegetarian and latin fusion…read morefood lovers. I wanted to really love this place but unfortunately the flavors just weren't there. The restaurant is fun decor and service is friendly and efficient; they do an excellent job. Our granddaughters ordered mango, passionfruit, citrus, rhubarb drinks, soda. The drinks were thick and overwhelmingly sweet. Adding some sparkling water to it did help. As far as food; The food came promptly, but the flavors were not there. The Brussel sprouts came with a caramelized onion jam which was way too sweet and overpowered all the other flavors. Very disappointing. The shrimp aguachile was extremely soupy with overpowered spice, making it unable to taste the shrimp. The plantain chips were thick and hard, rather tasteless. The arepas were a little more flavorful but really wouldn't recommend any particular one that we tried. The only hit was the black bean empanadas, extremely great flavor, just a hint of spice served with pickle cabbage. Yum. We should just have had four orders of those.

    Photos
    Hola Arepa
    Hola Arepa - Slow Roasted Pork Arepa

    Slow Roasted Pork Arepa

    Hola Arepa - Fizzy festives cocktail

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    Fizzy festives cocktail

    Colita - Seared Scallops with carrot puree, salsa macha, peanut, and fresno

    Colita

    4.4(620 reviews)
    3.2 miSouthwest
    $$$

    We booked reservations for this place for a work dinner and I was eagerly waiting to try it out…read more We ended up getting here a bit early and tried some amazing cocktails. I tried a cocktail that the bartender recommended and wow did it pack some flavor. We wanted to try all the tostadas and flavor, so we ordered the watermelon salad, beef toungue tostada, the scallops and the Cacio e Pepe tacos and man were we buzzing from all the flavors. We were all very full, but we had to try the churro dessert. I will say this place is very much captivating with decor, the flavors and the service. It's a must try if you're a foodie.

    I was disappointed with Colita. Of all the Del Prado dining establishments, Colita was the biggest…read moreletdown. We know Mexican food, having traveled extensively throughout Mexico since the 1980s. Mexico City is a frequent destination now that we're older, and hopping around the country isn't as easy. The many dishes we tasted at Colita were bland and lacked the explosion of flavors of authentic Mexican regional cuisine. Go to Oaxaca, and your taste buds will be blown away. Service was cold and perfunctory. We sat at the bar on this Sunday evening in August, and the female server was decidedly corporate, casting humanity aside for a robotic affect, half listening and half uninterested. Fun was vacuumed out of the room. Colita was not designed for laughter and frivolity. The place was crowded, but this was a restrained crowd on a Sunday night. Colita was more Linden Hills than Kingfield, if you know what I mean. Our favorite dish was the carnitas tacos. They had the flavors of Mexico. Our check was Minneapolis high, usually worth it, but maybe not at Colita. It was our last night living in the lakes area before we move to the North Loop. Colita was a good choice to remind us why we're moving. However, it was the wrong choice for a celebratory evening.

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    Colita - Interior

    Interior

    Colita - Beef Tartare - roasted fresno, honey yogurt burnt onion, pickled mustard seed (8/10)

    Beef Tartare - roasted fresno, honey yogurt burnt onion, pickled mustard seed (8/10)

    Colita - Fun cocktail and delicious mocktail!

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    Fun cocktail and delicious mocktail!

    Valerie's Taqueria - mexican - Updated September 2026

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