El Taquito — Restaurant in Austin

We specifically stopped here for their famous margaritas de mango & tamarindo. I had the mango and my friend had the other. I can't honestly tell you which is best, but I can say that these are amongst the best ritas I have ever tried. We didn't eat here so I can't comment on the food~next time. The reason I only gave 3 stars is because of thier ordering method. You have to stand in line similar to that of a convenient store and the line forms around the tables where others are eating. I didn't care for that. On the plus side the line moves rather quickly. When your order is ready just find a seat. In other words, they don't serve you. The inside seating doesn't seat many, but they do offer and outside seating section. Just be sure to bundle up on chilli nights as they do not provide any heat outside. Apart from the method of ordering, which isn't a deal breaker. This is a good spot to share on a date or just hanging with friends.

Update:

Things are pretty much the same. The Rita's are amongst the best. The food is very delicious. They can cook! The seating is self service. Which means you have to find the cleanest table. Practically all the tables looked used. We found the table that was least dirtiest. I then went to find a napkin dispenser from the inner seating. It's kinda like, to each their own. My lady friend & I love the Rita's so we deal with it. The food is definitely enjoyable. We stayed and enjoyed the outdoors over a nice conversation.

I would...

El Taquito (Feb. 25, 2023)

Came here for a late lunch around 2 p.m. for touring Austin for a bit. Decide on this place because of some very good reviews as well as my being able to get some extra miles from a dining plan. No regrets whatsoever.

The restaurant is not easily spotted if you are traveling on the main road as it is on a side road with a little incline. There is no clear signage easily visible. I was using public transportation to get to this place, so I discovered the place after a little effort. The order taker at the counter was new and spoke little to no English. Somehow the food order was placed, and it was their special consisting of 6 taquitos.

Expecting the dish to be rolled up and fried, was surprised to see 6 small tacos on the plate instead. Did some further research and found out the word “taquito” literally means “small tacos”. It was none-the-less a pleasant surprise when I bit into them and experiencing some very good tasting grub. The huge plus is the salsa bar, consisting of various different types of salsas ranging from mild to a very impressive spicy ones. You’ve never lived till you experience the heat from the spiciest offering - a literal taste of heavenly hell. Adding squeezed lime juice on the heat only makes the item even tastier. The restaurant environment is older, but serves a very comfortable environment.

Overall, a very impressive meal, and will not hesitate to return if I travel to Austin...

I keep going back because their margaritas are some of the best I've had and they are cheap, BUT..... The customer service is the worst I have ever experienced. The cashier walks around doing 5 things at once as slow as possible without a care in the world and will keep you waiting forever before actually taking your order, which is why the lines are always so long. Like just have a cashier that is just the cashier so that things get done in a timely fashion please! And once I finally got my order taken all she had to do was give me my change and receipt, instead she walks away again with my change and does stuff in the kitchen making me wait for my change another 5 min. So after that I wait for my food going back inside from time to time to check and see if it's ready because my Spanish is so-so and they only call out the order numbers in Spanish so I have no idea if they are calling my number or not. When I ask if my order is ready they say no but I tell them it has to be it was a cup of soup and it was over 20 min, after I tell them my order number 6 times and even give them the numbers using my fingers to spell out the number they finally find it sitting on the counter in the kitchen and hand it to me. Extremely annoying to deal with their incompetence but really...