El Faro 2 Mexican Restaurant

Love this place! Best el pastor tacos.

Prices are never the same when ordering. Only constant is its expensive. 2 taco dinners and 2 drinks just cost us $ 45. After asking why it was so high this time he said that cheese on each taco was $ 1.25 extra. Still didn’t add up. Never had to pay for the toppings before. Always thought it was just included. This last time we got burnt chips, there was a hole in the cup and leaked all over the car. Most expensive order of tacos. Last time we come here.

The best Pork «El Pastor» tacos in Chicago!!! Love love love them!!! Absolutely addicting!

Food was delicious. Combo 21, the steak Taco meat was perfect. Chili relleno was giant. Green salsa was the bomb

The service is good. The tacos are delicious and they give you a little more meat than they should. I had caldo de camarrron and it was delicious. It was piping hot when I got it; just like I like it. They have a pretty big menu. This place is a gem in a suburban oasis. I would definitely come back. BTW, the salsa are made in house. Big plus!

This review is for the two times i came here…
Most recent: walk in around 3 on the afternoon on a Saturday very slow only two customers. Two servers. 3 dirty tables. Ye ye ye we’re that type of customer that likes the light so we wanted to seat by the window booth which was one of the dirty tables (the other booth was being used by the other 2 customers). We waited and waited and waited around 3 – 4 mins before the waitress came to clean the table. She brought chips and a very delicious salsa and a very very old pico de gallo. She asked us what we wanted to drink and brought the drinks right away. We were ready when she came back!
My husb ordered 4 tacos my daughter an enchilada and i got the tampiquena. When the we were done ordering the waitress said OK and snatched the menu out of my husb hands… OK! The food came super fast :) couldn’t expect less because we were only 3 tables by now.
All the food was very good. I had only gotten water and i really wanted pop. waitress never came back in the whole meal though.
We finished and stacked the plates. She looked at us numerous times. Never came to pick them up or offer a box. Nothing. nada. By now my husb was getting mad he got up and requested a box. Came back with it and you would expect the waitress would come with the tab.(judging that we did see that the other booth got their tab taken to them) No she didn’t. I was so mad i left .my husb went up front and asked for tab. I hated their service.
First time: came here on a Saturday because my husband was very hungry. Place very dark and no one acknowledges you at all. The waitress comes 2 minutes later with menus and chips asking you what you want to drink. My husband ordered 5 tacos. And i ordered a milanesa for my daughter… Nothing for my self since i had already ate. After about 6 minutes food comes. Very large tacos. Humongous tacos. The waitress made a Comment about how large the kids milanesa was and said i was probably going to eat out of her. No lady I’m not hungry i ate at work! My husb looooooved his tacos he was very pleased by them. My daughter and her Milanese. Well i guess she wasn’t hungry… We paid around $ 20 for the huge 5 tacos. The kids Milanesa and a coke. Not bad… Rude service though.
Really loved your food. But the service kills it.

This place is awefull. My wife order enchiladas, they came cold. I asked the waiter for a combination plate with chicken, add jalapeño, cilantro and onions. He came back with my plate and forgot the jalapeño. I thought okay, as I started my meal, i realized he didn’t put onions and cilantro either. When I told him he said I only said jalapeño which he forgot. If he had the common sense to write down the order maybe he wouldn’t have made a mistake. There so many restaurants out there. Service is key! !!! I wouldn’t recommend this place to any of my friends.

This place is absolutely terrible! The service was awful and the place is just dirty! I ordered food, picked it up, and it was ripped to shreds. It was very clearly thrown together and not put together well at all. I got home and started to feed my children. I opened the food and the cheese was all over the place and the tortillas were all split down the center. Four quesadillas and each one was identically messy and even tasted bad. I called to ask for a refund because I paid with my debit card, but they would not give it to me unless I BROUGHT THE FOOD BACK! Mind you, I spent less than $ 15 and my children were still hungry. I had to drive back there, bring the food in, then pick up more food for my children for dinner. I ended up going to Emily’s. Their food was amazing and I will never come back here. On top of everything else, one of the manager’s employees felt it was ok for her to voice her opinion when I walked in there talking to another customer about the awful service. She literally started yelling at me with an attitude like she was going to take me outside. EXTREMELY GHETTO! The manager was the only one who was understanding because after she opened the food, she noticed why I was upset. However, she should have told her lap dog that the food WAS prepared in a terrible manner and held her in check. I suggest any other place but here for anything because they only seem to hire children and people that can’t cook or clean.

Good authentic Mexican food. Very large menu. Nice selection of Mexican beers. Home made empanadas for dessert top off a great dinner!

Came here twice now.
I like this place. Very colorful.
Beers were nice and cold. Food serviced well. Condiments were always refilled.
Thank you Blanca… Good job!
IBB

This was a disappointment. There are so many Mexican restaurants in this area that are comparable or superior to this one. I went in and briefly looked at the menu, I knew I wanted chile rellenos and was happy to see them on the menu. I also ordered chips and guacamole, all items to go. The wait time was reasonable, the service friendly. Prices were a little high ($ 12.99 chile relleno/​$ 7.50 for guac and chips). The overall atmosphere was dingy and musty. The chile rellenos were okay, covered in sauce (which I like), egg batter was a little thick. Overall decent, but the rice and beans were a little on the dry side. The guacamole was a huge portion but it was a little on the dark side, like the avocados were old, and it lacked flavor overall. Definitely needed some lime, cilantro, jalapeños or salt or a combination of these things. The portion was huge however. I’d rather have a small amount of fresh, delicious guac than this pile of mediocrity (if that). Now. two stars may seem stingy, and I’d probably give a generous three… BUT, as I was eating the guacamole, I noticed something yellow in the guac. and I fished out the sticker from the avocado. I’m sorry but that totally grossed me out because I just feel that careless preparation like that makes me wonder what else is overlooked or halfassed. Especially for $ 7.50, I shouldn’t be fishing garbage out of guacamole made with avocados of questionable freshness. I will not return.

I have been going here since about 2003. It has always been the same. Very authentic and traditional. I think it is the best authentic mexican food around. The fajitas and enchilidas are my favorite

My wife and I come here at least 2 – 3 times a month. If you are expecting anything upscale, you will be dissappointed but you should not be. This is a low scale, mid priced Mexican restaurant with good quality food.
The place is starting to get run down, but to me it gives it a greasy spoon type of feel and I don’t mind that for Mexican food which should never be anything more than pedestrian fare IMO.
Good value for the money.

We eat here about 3 times a month. We have been going here for almost 5 years.
Great for a carry out, a girls night, a date night, a place for friends to gather.
They serve chips and homemade salsa at the table. Each night the salsa is a little different depending on the cook in the kitchen. Some nights green chili, some nights a smokey red that burns my lips off. Our server knows us well enough at this point to also bring us the mild sauce.
Along with the chips is a homemade escabeche that is probably my favorite thing in the entire place. Again the recipes vary depending on season and who is making the batch that day. But it is always crammed full of spicy jalapenos, carrots and onions, with heaping roasted garlic gloves. Sometimes there are big chunks of cauliflower tucked inside that we fight over!
I have had the tortas (awesome), the tacos (amazing), the enchiladas el faro and suizo, and the combinacion el faro, and the make your own combinacion.
My husband gets the spinach wrap with chicken. It is like a burrito but with a fancy tortilla covered with a mole sauce. He always cleans his plate so it must be delicious too.
Anyhow, the service is good, the price is terrific, the art is lovely, and the food is always delicious and more than enough to make two meals out of.
Love it!

omg el faros u really fell off, u guys used to b great but now the food is not good at all, somethings gotta change!!!

Something happened with this place. It used to be SO GOOD and now its SO NOT!
Went for lunch on a Saturday-​not very crowded at all. Ordered a steak tostada and cheese enchilada combo plate. Every single piece of meat was fatty-​grizzly-​chewy and had absolutely no flavor. And the salsa they give you w/​chips-​we love hot and it was hot but it almost tasted like the hot sauce had gone bad. Sort of a hot stale taste if that makes sense. And the bathrooms were nasty-​dirty-​gross. Not sure if I will ever go back.

I love Mexican food, and the food here is excellent. It is genuine; not like Taco bell. Knowing a little bit of spanish can be helpful, because all of the employees are spanish-​speaking and their English isn’t the best. But their customers service is very good, the waitresses are cheerful and personable, and the cooks produce food orders very fast.
They usually have the TV on and it’s pretty loud and in spanish.
I’ve never seen large groups here, usually couples or small families having breakfast lunch or dinner.
They could improve the lighting in this place. The booths are comfortable, and separated by high supports so you can’t see over your both into another booth. The wood is dark.
The restaurant is in a strip mall, but there is ample parking.

I used to LOVE this place. My husband and I would eat at El Faro every weekend after church. We’re now down to once a month, and after our visit last week I don’t know when we’ll be back.
Basic sanitation is really lacking. Spit balls are hanging off the ceiling murals. It’s the middle of summer and the a/​c in the washrooms didn’t work. The ladies’ room wall tile is falling off — they have it in place with duct tape. During the car ride home, my husband reported there were no paper towels in the men’s room and the available hand soap was a diluted bottle of dish soap. When he told me this I wanted to shove a finger down my throat. Is this the same washroom the line cooks use?
I agree with another reviewer — spend a couple extra bucks and go to JC’s, which is just a few blocks away. They are clean, friendly, and I can honestly eat there with no fear of contracting a foodborne illness.

Not great. Typical cheap TexMex. Meat lacked any seasoning (literally), the fajitas were a mess rolled in paper, service is occasionally sloppy and slow, and to top it we were each given a single paper napkin. Really? We all know that TexMex is rather sloppy food. Save your money and head to JC’s Mexican restaurant a couple miles away in downtown Bartlett. There were seven of us dining today and disappointment is what we experienced today. Stay away!

Great place to get a Torta to go
I stopped her on my way to work in Elgin, and ordered a Pastor Torta, the service was friendly and fast, and the Torta was was damn good too
the bread was nice and soft but firm enough to not fall apart as you were eating it, there was more than enough meat on it and the flavor of the Tender Pastor (Spicy pork) was delish and oh so filling my tummy was very happy with my choice
and they gave me some pickled Jalapenos on the side yummy