El Toreo

Working down the street, I stumbled upon El Toreo. Feeling adventurous, I decided to try this hole-in-the-wall establishment, and was blown away. The burritos here are HUGE and filled with meat. The staff is always fast, and the salsa is spicy and flavorful. Even though I no longer work in the area, we still stop by about once a month for a great meal.

Booyah! Make sure you order plenty of water cause you are going to need it. Do you feel the chilli burning at first, but it creeps up on ya. You should see foos come in to this joint enjoying the mea, and then get worked by the chilli. The foos I've seen usally all red faced. This place is dope. I love it when I can cry during and after a good meal. The food comes strong and the service is friendly.

this place rocks. the food is most excellent. the taquitos dinner is my personal favorite. wash down with an horchata.

what really earns this place its high rating is their dedication to and selection of hot sauces. the green and red sauce they bring for your chips is deceptively hot. i can handle the hottest of hot foods, and even i was taken by surprise by these salsas. eyes watering, ears pounding type of surprise. if you're really adventurous, go for one of the many bottled hot sauces littered on the table. on another occcasion i opted for a dab of some super-duper hot habanero sauce and i got absolutely demolished -- that's what i call fine dining.

Now this is Mexican food! The place is a dive, but the food is to die for. It is the best and most authentic Mexican food I have ever had outside of my mom's kitchen. The hearty, delicious portions make this affordable restaurant the best value anywhere!

Tucked in on Fair Oaks so that you'd practically miss it, El Toreo's front door sits right at the bus stop. Appropriate, because you can imagine a Sam Shepard character chowing down on huevos here before boarding the Greyhound to Rancho Desolado. El Toreo is as close as I've gotten to real Tex-Mex in SoCal--go for the enchiladas, they won't disappoint.