Zavala's Market & Taqueria — Restaurant in Madison

I’ve been going here probably the last 4 months when we stumbled upon it.. the Nacho Deluxe WAS perfect for two people to share. We’ve gone here so much that the employees know us by face and know that we order the nacho deluxe. AT FIRST, the food (our norm) included Nachos deluxe & Steak Tacos- it was perfect. The portions were great, price was affordable, and most importantly it was delicious! However, over the course of the last two months or so our food has been horrible. We keep going back because the Nacho Deluxe is just the right size for the right price. The size of the nachos has gone down dramatically, chips are stale and most importantly…. The cooks do NOT READ what you request. They make things how they normally would make them. If you specify that you don’t want something- they need to make sure to honor that because it could have something to do with religion, dietary needs or be life threatening. They do not honor that, and don’t look at what you request. That has gotten worse in the last month or so. Most recently today, we placed an order and asked for rice on the side. They forgot our rice on the side so we went to get it .. the container had a hole in the plastic top and there was PIECES OF PLASTIC IN THE RICE. There ended up being rice on the nacho.

The Staff who work at the register are usually pretty responsive and great. They tend to make it right by doing what they can. Photos are included on the beginning nachos to what we’ve been getting lately.

Great atmosphere and they have a wide variety of options at the...

Really good food, definitely one of Madison's top Mexican restaurants. It's a grocery store and restaurant, and the whole place is well-kept and roomy.

🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌗🌑 We got a shrimp tostada (tostada de camarón), they were as good as homemade, perfectly balanced.

🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌑🌑 We also got the quesapizza, which was cheesy, gooey, crispy, juicy, and perfectly seasoned. A classic and well-exectuted quesabirria.

🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌕🌕.🌑🌑 Lastly, we got the pork pozole. The soup was pretty standard, good, and a bit spicy- we really don't think it needed to be spicy though. They loaded in tons of pork, which was so tender. Load the pork and hominy onto a tortilla chip with crema, dip in the soup, and it serves, truly, as a delicacy. This pozole is unmatched by any chicken pozole in Madison, because of the meat.

Overall, I definitely recommend this place to anyone who loves...

Tried Zavala's after googling "tamales madison" and seeing all the positive reviews on here.

Tamales are Sat/Sun only, are already made and available at the front counter, still warm. They are VERY GOOD. Surprisingly, a little spicy. And thats a good thing.

We also got the enchiladas dinner. OMFG so good. Pretty spicy, white folks will prob complain about it. Absolutely delicious. Have to mention the beans, obv home made (not from a can). Great mixture of spices. Also spicy and so delicious.

Wrapping up, we got the tacos. Carne asada, onion and cilantro. Pretty good. Better than most of the other places in town for sure. Not legendary taco truck level, but pretty good.

Excited to try the tortas next time. The menu picture looked amazing. Given how good the enchiladas and beans were, I bet the torta is gonna be...