El Fogón Taqueria — Restaurant in Phoenix

The food at El Fogón Taqueria is far superior to most Mexican food places nearby, as is their service. Their food is as close to legit “street fare” as you can get. The food is simple, but the flavors are not. Their Al Pastor, is just one example of how they take time and care of how they marinade and season their proteins. When I’m really “hangry” I'll order their Street Burrito, which is loaded with everything but the kitchen sink. I particularly enjoy their spicy salsa they serve with the burrito. It not only has a severe kick, but they pack it with flavor to balance the kick. My wife orders the shrimp tacos every time, so they must be pretty special. She's never complained about an insufficiency of shrimp. I have tried about seven different things on the menu and none of them have disappointed me. The place is very clean; tables are quickly bussed. As a retired chef, one thing I appreciate is that you can see into the hot-line and see the staff cooking and preparing the food. They have nothing to hide. I appreciate that transparency. The ARE proud of what they do, and they are good at it. The staff always serves the food with a smile, whether it’s in-house or takeout. Given that El Fogón has a relatively poor location way at the end of Ahwatukee and the restaurant is typically packed and very busy, even midweek, says a lot about the quality of their food and service. I hope, unlike most restaurants in the industry, that they remain in business for generations. They are good hard-working folks, doing a great job in the...

Came here for lunch on a Tuesday. My first time here. It’s not a full service restaurant as you order at the counter; pay; and take a seat where the server brings your meal to your table. Beverages are self-service; and range from various fountain drinks, to teas, and flavored water. They do serve beer and other alcoholic beverages. For lunch I had the beef enchiladas with a green mole sauce, refried beans and rice (extra/side of sour cream). The entree was $12.99; the fountain drink $2.90; and the extra side $.75. The food was quite good. The portion size left me feeling somewhere between satisfied and wishing I had more — especially the rice and refried beans. They put a small dollop of sour cream on the enchiladas, but I’m glad to have ordered the extra side of sour cream. It’s very clean in the dining room, and bathroom. Plenty of seating. Going back to when I was ordering… there’s only one menu on the counter. It would have helped having a menu mounted on the wall to check while others are ordering at the register. I’d like to see what breakfast is like; and to try other entrees on their lunch menu. No chimichangas. That’s disappointing to see. My total tab came to $18.07. Funny thing about my receipt. At the bottom it reads “Don’t let anybody treat you like free salsa. You are guac, baby, you are guac.” They don’t offer chips and salsa like some other Mexican...

I may be a little biased toward the positive on this place, mainly because there are really no good restaurants in the foothills area of Ahwatukee. There have been countless attempts, but restaurants never seem to be able to make it in this area. El Fogon, thankfully, seems to be an exception to that. The food is really well done and the service and atmosphere are good. The prices are a little high, especially for an 'order at the counter' type place, but prices are high everywhere these days.

The ceviche tostada was very good, the govenador shrimp taco is amazing. My wife loves the quesadilla, both the traditional style and the birria style. Tacos are great and this past visit I had the shrimp diabla, which is a spicy red sauce dish. The sauce was a little sweeter than I prefer, but it was still tasty.

If you live in the foothills area, check this place out! Maybe we can keep it in business and attract more good food options...