Taqueria El Charrito — Restaurant in Calgary

I tried this spot out of curiosity and the craving for Mexican food. The place was small but enough to seat several guests. The menu looked ok and the prices were comparable to the current price points.

There were about tables (groups of 2) ahead of us (seemed like they all arrived recently as they had menus in front of them). There were 3 employees behind the counter including 1 older gentleman cooking. The other 2 were finishing off orders. I placed my order and was told the wait time would be approx 15-20 mins for my takeout order. I went outside to make a call, which took about 10-15 mins. I returned to the restaurant with my mouth salivating and my stomach growling. I was excited about trying their food. I politely asked how much longer would my order be? I was told not much longer. I waited patiently and observed my surroundings: the menu (did I make the best choices?), the decor and how, (based on my perception) they all fit with each other, seeing how the staff "flowed" as they work and most importantly how was.my order coming along. After 45 mins in total of wait time my takeout was ready. Again I was patient and tolerant but disappointed they didn't acknowledge 'Their Expectations Were NOT Met'. I paid, left and walked home replaying the scenario in my head and hoped this food was good and I got value for my hard earned money. At home I opened the bag and started going through to make sure it was all there as the package was stapled. Where's my guacamole??? I was charged a few dollars for it and want it to be found. Man, now I have to call them back to address this. I wasn't looking forward to having to deal with this. I'm hungry and don't need to have hangry vibes right now. I called and advised them what's going on. He said that it's in the bag. I looked again and went through all containers and tin foil wrapped items. Nada. I informed him of this he said just come back and I can pick one up. I told him I walked there and didn't feel like getting up to walk the 10-12 mins to fix their error. On top of that there was no empathy, apology or ownership being demonstrated in the least on their part At this point I'm frustrated but still keeping it together. I let him know how I felt about the situation, why I chose their establishment and nudged him a little to find an acceptable resolution. He hesitated for a few seconds then asks me "Well what would you do to resolve it?" I'm flabbergasted at this point. He didn't even try to come up with something. At this point I confirmed he didn't care and/or wasn't trained how to handle this type of negative customer experience.

So in the end they got my money for my order + money for phantom guacamole + this review and me telling everyone I know about this. No, I won't...

The interior was dull, dingy, and had the vibe of being on an episode of Kitchen Nightmres. The menu was mounted on corrugated plastic and looked like it hadn't been updated in 15 years.

We had high hopes that it would be fresh, vibrant, and flavorful as one would expect from Mexican cuisine. On top of that, they boasted a best restaurant award from 2012; sadly, that may have been the last time their food was not of a standard worthy of peoples money.

We had the chorizo torta, and it was more bread than anything. The chorizo was dry and mealy, and the sandwich lacked any sort of flavor.

We had never had tamales before, but I refuse to believe they are supposed to be flavorless. The masa was doughy and yet hard and chewy. The pork inside was bland and very dry. Its like they were premade, frozen, and then heated in a microwave. There was very little sauce on top and the sauce that was tasted like canned tomato sauce. The refried beans that accompanied lacked texture, the color was that of mud, and again, the common theme, bland. They lacked any flavor.

We wanted it to be a great experience, but it was not. I hope they read these reviews and take them to heart to improve their cuisine. With so many great restaurants in such a small area, being sub-par is not going to keep...

I wish I could rate El Charrito better but they have seemed to have really fallen off their game recently. This used to be a totally decent, affordable, "hole in the wall" spot but last night when I went the entire meal was altogether bad. They have raised their prices since my last visit but the quality of food appears to have declined.

None of the tacos we ordered had any flavour aside from the salsa and the portions were NOT generous. We ordered the beef soup and it came over-salted to the point of being difficult to eat. Even the quesadilla came out terrible... Hardly any cheese and chunks of cold iceberg lettuce inside. The only saving grace is their Barbacoa tacos which get's the deep fry treatment and is delicious... I suspect primarily for that reason.

I really hope whatever issues they are having they fix because we have very few (if any) good cheap taco places in this city and there is a lot of opportunity in this culinary niche if they can gain back some quality control. The family that owns/runs the place is very nice and I truly hope things turn back around for them but I will have to take at least a 2-3 month break after this...