El Mariachi — Restaurant in Edmonton

DO NOT GO HERE! It was my first time trying this place and I was very disappointed and appalled by their customer service. If you want staff to gaslight you and not take your concerns seriously this is your place and I will let the pictures and video speak for itself.

Firstly, We decided to order on taco tuesday and we had a few different orders for pick up. We made sure to double check with the restaurant to confirm each persons order which they were ok with. When we arrived there were tacos missing in one of our orders, not a big deal but it was almost like we were inconveniencing them just by asking to correct their mistake. Lastly, while some of our party had no issues with their order and the food was ok, we found a long piece of hair embedded in one of the tacos. When we called the restaurant to give them the heads up, they immediately went on the defence and decided to put the blame on our party, saying that once a pick up order is fulfilled and its left their restaurant that's it that they would not be able to do anything. We weren't asking for anything and we offered to bring said piece of taco back because it was found midbite in the most disgusting way possible. So basically the restaurant is insinuating that we would somehow tamper with a $2 taco! The person we were speaking to even went as far to say, "maybe you don't understand". And I do understand that when you order food and there's a problem with said food you shouldn't gaslight the customer! Maybe take what we have to say seriously and double check your kitchen and kitchen staff. Like is this a restaurant that needs to be inspected by Alberta Health Services? Because nobody and i mean nobody wants to eat long pieces of hair embedded in their food.

SAVE YOUR MONEY! This place isn't worth your $2 per taco if it means the risk of...

We had been here a few times before today and service has always been ok, usually a bit of a wait for the food but nothing too bad and we liked the food. Today however, we arrived at 5:15pm and no one even bothered to greet us, since they seem to be short staffed. Waited standing up a few minutes to get seated, then we ordered food 10 mins later. A family came after us at around 5:40pm and they also waited about 5-10mins just to get seated. They had already ran out of a few items from the menu. At 6:20pm, I asked the lady at the cashier if our food was coming soon, since the waiter and waitress were nowhere to be found. She went to the back to check, then came out a few mins later, and told us that there was still a table ahead of us to be served, and only after that our food would be prepared, she said "20 more mins". By that time we had already been waiting for over an hour, they had only served us water by then. Funny enough, the family that arrived after us was being served their tacos right at that time when I asked. We decided to leave and just paid for the jamaica water. I asked the waiter why the people that came after us were already getting their food, and he said that maybe there had been a confusion from the kitchen. Really sad since we used to order food from here quite often as well, but lately our evening orders via uber eats and skip the dishes are just randomly cancelled by the restaurant as well. Sad to say they have lost us as customers. We are from Mexico and wanted to support this restaurant and eat some food from back home, but now our opinion about this place has drastically changed. There are way better options for mexican food in Edmonton, both in service and...

Okay so I have lived in Edmonton for almost 10 years (consecutively now) and I haven't been here till recently... slightly embarrassed.. I feel like El Mariachi's is one of those local secrets and there is, honestly, a part of me that doesn't want to tell you all about. #jokingnotjoking

El Mariachi's is located on 124st and has a super authentic vibe and atmosphere to it, even incorporating it's own little Mexican grocery store in the back. The establishment isn't fancy and it doesn't tote a lot of gimmicks or anything like that but it's got a fair bit of space and they can accommodate larger groups. The food really speaks for itself.

Here's the secret part I don't really want everyone to know because it means it'll get busier.... every Tuesday, they have $2 Taco Tuesdays. The tacos are authentic and delicious... they have a variety of chicken, beef and pork for taco Tuesday. Tacos, and food, are served with 6 different types of hot sauce ranging from mild to extra hot - they are all delicious by the way. Food can take a little bit to come out and service can be a little bit slow due but just go when you have some time to spare, enjoy a drink and appreciate the complimentary chips and dip.

I haven't had the opportunity to try out their expansive menu yet, since I usually go and take advantage of the tacos, but I have had their tortilla soup (also yum) and I have noticed a decent variety of vegetarian options.

So there you have it, a little amazing taco secret. Enjoy! You can also check out their instagram page for the taco choices and to get a feel of...