El Torazo — Restaurant in Huntington Beach

My girlfriend and I don't usually stray from our usual places to eat but we're glad we did in this instance. We both ordered the carne asada soft tacos with rice and beans. The carne asada was tender and flavorful. The pieces of meat were a bit "over chopped." I like bite sized pieces but these chunks were pretty small. The tacos were topped with cilantro and grilled onions. I liked that they kept it simple and didn't put a bunch of toppings on the tacos. This way you actually get to taste the star of the taco which is the carne asada. You also get unlimited cups of salsa with a spicy option (red) and a mild option (green). The salsa adds a nice touch to the tacos. The rice was flaky and tasty with a few peppers mixed in. The refried beans were just okay and this is where I deducted a few points and thus, the four stars not five. I don't care for refried beans where the beans are whole and not mashed. The dining room is clean and they play culture-appropriate music over the ceiling speakers which makes you feel that you came to the right place. Our cashier informed us that the restaurant is family owned with several other locations. The prices for the food are fair and with 2 drinks our total was under $30 dollars. Good food, good atmosphere, pleasant service = we'll be...

The tacos Al pastor and shrimp tacos are excellent. Al pastor is missing a bit if char pineapple to make it authentic Al Pastor Taco but they are good. Service, well the delivery or presentation of your food can be hit and miss. I don't eat much I'm diabetic I order one (1) Al Pastor Taco with 4oz Cup with half rice half beans. Often times, I get the rice & beans first.....minutes later the one or two tacos. If when it's one taco I get it in a small paper plate other times in a black plastic plate as it should be...some times one (1) quarter slice radish other times two (2) quarters slice of one (1) radish. Yes, with a quarter slice lemon. Perhaps, service the taco on a paper plate identifies it self as a formal restaurant plate...I don't know. To the owners whoever they are food presentation is very important for returning clients. Make the patrons feel we are at least feeling comfortable with price simply by better food presentation not as we are in a Los Angeles street eating tacos in the middle of the night while drunk. Anyhow, the tamarindo drink keeps me returning.

In closing, fix yourself or you will loose your...

We had mixed reviews about this location. Liked some of the food items but had issues with cashier.

Very busy, very loud and we were blessed with a very untrained cashier. Several items that we ordered were deleted off our ticket and had to enter the line and order a second time... It was busy but both cashiers noticed and recognized that we were in line again and neither asked if there was a problem. The electronic menu is a little difficult to read if you have vision problems. The restaurant is quite pretty for a counter service location. It is very loud and hard for you to communicate with the cashier. The barbacoa was delicious. The beef crunchy taco was delicious. The chili relleno was excellent. The asada was okay. We were not fans of the al pastor or the fried fish taco, the shrimp taco was received with mixed reviews. Sadly, the french fries were cold and tough and the refried beans a little bland. Both the green and red salsa were excellent

Will definitely give this place a second try, hopefully without any of the...