Taqueria Chapala — Restaurant in Austin

One of the remaining AUTHENTIC Tex-Mex eateries in gentrified East Austin. The fresh-made food comes plentiful and hot. Enchilada platters include three enchiladas of your choice, Mexican rice (soft, fluffy, no vegitables), and refried beans made with real PORK FAT (yes!) unlike eateries catering to Anglos who demand vegan approved vegetable oil (or other exotic foodie unsaturated oil). These beans are done CORRECT! Chips, hot sauce and tortillas included. Beveridges include Mexican Coke, flavored latin sodas, lemonade, frozen margaritas (mango!) and a selection of Mexican beers.

Service was friendly and prompt (English understood/Spanish appreciated) with frequent table visits to refill drinks and chips. The atmosphere was welcoming and polite.

The dinning area is compact with rows of thick wooden tables and heavy carved wood chairs. Saltillo tile underlies the entire restaurant and there is a Juke box in the corner. While quiet with few patrons at 6pm on a weeknight, one can imagine the place filling with workers for happy hour on Fridays and tables being pushed to the sides for late night dancing. The place just feels like it can crank a weekend party every weekend. The kitchen is in full view of the dinning area and is no-frills, steamy and sizzles (animal fat does that). Uncomplicated, hearty and real is what Taqueria Chapala gives customers-- something no marketing department can manufacture.

Note: no electrical outlets or USB ports at each table. There is ONE televison monitor playing a Spanish language station. Perfect atmosphere for socializing with those around the...

Loved coming here! Been coming here for years since i was a kid. Good food great staff. Well now they're forcing people who pay with cards a fee.... Idk how many people know about this but they just started doing this. Just so everyone knows its illegal to charge someone using a card a fee. They pay for merchant sevices to have a credit card terminal a monthly bill. So the fact is they're charging people this extra money on top of the patrons bill. So they make more money in the long term.. Im sorry but being from service industry been a bar manager. This is illegal and they should stop cause it could cause for bigger legal actions down the road. I cant be the only person who has noticed the change. Btw my bill was 60 so if there was a minimum on cards I was completely over the limit. But even then its illegal to have card minimums cause bars and restaurants pay for a monthly service to have...

It's unfortunate that so many people visit Juan in a Million every weekend brunch when there is a slap-your-face-good authentic Mexican restaurant just across the street that is tastier and cheaper in price. But then, maybe that's the problem. Taqueria Chapala is the real deal. Their table salsa for their chips is HOT, not meant for the faint of heart. And their entrees are all made as if you were visiting your Latin friend's mother's house in the interior of Mexico. This isn't just another Tex-Mex joint. This place features menudo soup like said mother would make: rich and brothy with lots of onions and cilantro and spice. Their tampiquena plate is mouth-wateringly good. How many places serve nopal cactus with their Mexican entrees? Chapala does. If you're ready to transcend the bland, cookie-cutter Tex-Mex that's out there, do yourself a favor and go to...