Taqueria 501 Tacos & Burgers — Restaurant in McAllen

Headed out today to grab tacos for dinner. It was a toss-up between a couple of places, but we decided on Taqueria 501 Tacos & Burgers on 10th Street, McAllen. This was our second visit, and let me start by saying the second time was even better than the first! The lemonade is freshly squeezed, and our guacamole appetizer was amazingly great. Super fresh avocados! Chips on point. Their complementary serving of pico de gallo was perfect. Our entrees were just as good.

I love tacos de trompo, and most recently, my go-to place on 83 began serving them a little on the greasy side. Not at 501. They were perfect. The pineapple was well-balanced. The serving of my papa was fitting for the dish. Overall, my dish was amazing. 501 served up some of the best tacos de trompo I've had.

My wife, this time around, chose the Hamburguesa Mexicana. This burger was no joke. Well-served, rich flavor, and no 1/4 lb patty or less. It was closer to 1/2 lb, maybe a little more than 1/2 lb. She allowed me to take a few bites, and it was oh so good. The fries were served hot and crispy. Definitely a well-served dish. My son's gringas were well-served and tasted great. No sides to this dish. He did, however, only eat half. :)

The restaurant's overall cleanliness is superb. Shiny floors, clean tables, and well-lit. The mood overall feels positive. The restaurant staff is attentive and well-mannered. Bathrooms are just as clean.

I highly recommend this place to anyone looking for some good hamburguesas and some great-tasting tacos de trompo. Do not...

I preface this review by saying 3 stars isn't a bad review...an eatery can have some shining stars but certain flaws that bring it down.

The food here was tasty...the service was great. But the atmosphere just wasn't helping. By chance I took my family here on Cinco de Mayo...just a coincidence. The place is quite large, but feels largely empty. They have wooden benches for seats which is fine. But the place felt fairly empty...it had the feel of an Adult Day Care with benches inside.

As far as the atmosphere goes...they had traditional Mariachi songs playing during the entire time we were there. I get it was Cinco de Mayo...but really? Do we need to listen to Jarabe Tapatío while eating our tacos? It also felt like you could overhear the conversation of others...or your conversation was heard by others. There were no "sound barriers" to cut the sound...so it felt like everything was hushed.

On to the food...my wife had the espadas and I had the mini-trompo. The espadas were good...and the mini-Tromp was the definite winner here. It looked small at first, but you can definitely make 5-6 tacos from it.

Fill out the place a little more..give it more atmosphere...maybe install some booths...and play something else for music...and then this place can easily...

My husband and I decided to try this place, thinking it would have good Mexican dishes. Besides the extreme disappointment of how badly the food was made: half assed, lack of cooking skills and the food was not authentic as promised. We got violently ill less than an hour after eating there. Such a horrible experience and we really wanted to give it a chance.

Edit: First of All don't come after my "manners" simply for being honest. As for my other Review on a completely different Restaurant, you can't speak for them or know enough about the situation. However, on my Review about your Restaurant, I was never rude to your Staff and Paid because we weren't looking for a free meal and have the Respect enough to understand an exchange of services. Yes, I did not like your food but my cause to leave such a Review was because we got Food Poisoning and that isn't because of Taste but of Food...