El Papagayo

The first time I ate here the food was excellent. I ordered the bistec fajitas and it was spot on. It was so good that I came back and ordered the same thing two more times, but unfortunately the last two times it wasn’t as good as the first time. I must add though the service was good and the dining area was nice and clean. I’ll try something different next time.

Not authentic Mexican food. Michelada was well not a michelada. Rice is dry and tasted old. Beans don’t get me started. Camarones al mojo — had a hint of garlic but not true Camarones all mojo. Tables were crazy dirty. Bathroom is clean though. Margarita was served in a drinking cup not appropriate for a Margarita. Lol Mexican taco was not Mexican. THE place was packed THOUGH. Flan was messy and I make it at home too. I use the little royal box! I’m serious though.
One more thing was a little different … there was a child sitting amongst adults probably his family in the bar. Haven’t’t seen that before not in the states at least.

My wife and I drove up car shopping and dropped in. I ordered the Corona Shrimp Tacos and it was served to perfection. Huge impact of flavor in each bite. The salads bar was clean and full of delicious flavors. I enjoyed a lime margarita with my meal and it was refreshing and yummy. I will be coming back for sure!

Don’t be put off by the exterior — the moment you walk through the doors you are in a colorful, welcoming world where everything smells, tastes, looks absolutely delicious! This would be my go-​to place if we lived nearby. Everyone at our table had something different, and we were all completely happy — fish tacos, albondigas (amazing), cochinita tacos, and the one vegetarian at the table was thrilled with the array of choices. Everything was really fresh, beautifully presented, and the woman who greeted and took our orders and served us made us feel like family. Viva El Papagayo!

First off; I’m a vegetarian. I’m not one of those peta ones, I respect others’ choices, whatever. The point is, Vegetarians and vegans alike know how hard it is to find genuinely veg chow. Generally, Mexican cuisine can use animal products like lard, chicken stock, etc etc, and unless you ask, you’ll never know. These guys are legit. I go with my family who are seasoned omnivores, and they love the place as much as I do. Not only are all of the staff extremely friendly and catering, but the food is out of this world. If you’re a vegetarian: Go here. If you’re a vegan: Go here. If you’re a meat.a.tarian. Go here.
For the most part, I stick with what I know. The veg section which is on the first page of the menu! That’s pretty rare. I’m used to where’s waldo-​ing it for the house salad in the backs of menus. This section allows you combos, a la carte, or just your average meal with rice, beans and the like. But let me tell you, the meals are anything but average. portion sizes are huge, and I generally can only eat half of what I ordered and save the rest for dinner or the next day. The food is always fresh, guac always that beautiful creamy green, salsa is on point. You get burn your face off hot (the deep red), a cool and creamy medium (the green, my personal favourite), and the baby stuff mild (light red), which is not hot at all and actually sort of sweet and refreshing in it’s own right. There are also other options, my fam is really fond of the diced mango salsa. If you like sweet stuff with a kick, try that with your chips. :)
I do love the super burrito and the super quesadilla. I tend to stuff it with mushrooms, nopales or chayote. There are many options for vegetarians or vegans, including vegan cheese if that floats your boat. And I dunno what the whiny dude was talking about with his one star blaming this place for food poisoning. Considering all the 5 star reviews, he probably got it from mcdonalds earlier in the day. I’ve had friends and family alike who’ve eaten on the shrimp, meat, and other fishy quesadilla, and nothing bad has ever come of it. Maybe the dude just ate too much of the burn your face off salsa. poor guy. Anyway. The food is always piping hot, everything is cooked just right. My food has never been greasy, which is a notorious problem for other places (nobody likes a drippy burrito :(.) I can’t speak for the liquor menu, but they have a beautifully renovated sort of bar area that is just beautiful. The ambience is nice, I love the paintings on the wall and the charm and character of the brightly coloured tables and chairs. Not to mention; indoor fountains rock! Generally you get variety on television if you like to watch it while chowing down, normally it’s sports on one side and nature docs on the other. Pretty neat and good for calming rowdy kids. Kids like watching fishies, not watching basketball. :P
The food is beautiful and delicious, the staff is warm and welcoming, the restaurant itself is decorated nicely with a very authentic vibe, the prices are quite reasonable, and it’s local. Seriously, what more could you want? Long live El Papagayo!

The food! The people!
I absolutely LOVE going here. The family that owns and runs it are lovely people. They have the best vegan Mexican food ever. And every year they have a vegan spread and the game on big tv’s. It’s a really fun place to watch the super bowl.
If you are anywhere hear Sacramento looking for fantastic vegan Mexican good, you cannot beat it!

I can’t believe it has taken me 16 years to come here. A friend and I randomly met here for happy hour. The drinks were amazing — GREAT selection and the BEST whiskey sour I have ever had!!! The food was authentic and tasted fabulous!!! Not to mention the staff– VERY nice, salt of the earth people!!! I can’t wait to go back! Awesome place!

With so many Mexican Restaurants in Sacramento it’s easy to get jaded or caught up with gimmicks. So when we visited we had moderate expectations. Boy were we wrong. The reviews are spot on. This is a unique Mexican restaurant with very friendly and attentive service. We tried 5 of the vegan street tacos — all very good. Also tried the tamale filled with chile Verde and an enchilada. The horchata here was very good as well — the waitress said they make it with coconut water instead of milk.
You can tell that this place arrived for a healthy image and it succeeds. It has a vast vegan menu as well as meat entrees.
Oh, Wednesday is still all you can eat vegan tacos!

My friend and I tried this place out, and we were not disappointed!
We ordered the street tacos to share, I ordered a steak chimichanga, and she ordered the guacamole tacos. The street tacos were probably my favorite. They were sooooo flavorful, and with just the right amount of spiciness.
Their salsa bar is also on point, and had a wide variety of salsas that were unique and delicious.
I will absolutely be going back.

This place is soooooooo good! We have been a few times and the staff is always so friendly and the food? AMAZING! Definitely a place to visit… Always!

I decided to try this for the first time after moving two minutes away and seeing it for years. My father-​in-​law is in town, and we would have liked to try a restaurant at the Milagro Center, but that seems like it will NEVER EVER open. Which is incredibly upsetting.
We stopped by on a Friday, which is a rarity for my wife and I. We are pretty worn out from the week and usually stay in with our daughter. If anything, we will grab some pizza. We were very pleasantly surprised. My wife even said, ‘that place wasn’t bad.’ Which is pretty much her highest compliment of any restaurant we’ve been to.
PROS
Price — We ordered three adult meals, one children’s meal (all big servings — we had to take some home), and three cocktails. We walked out right at $ 50. This same meal at Zocalo or a higher end Mexican restaurant might be upwards of $ 90.
Food — We all enjoyed our meals. The portions were more than enough, the meat was tasty, and overall very solid.
Crowd — Although we went somewhat early, it wasn’t too crowded.
Service — Our waitress was a little inattentive and slow even with a limited crowd. However, she was very nice, and that is all I ask. I was very happy with her attitude.
CONS
The only major con is that this place isn’t a little nicer. We’re not snobs, but we usually like a little bit more put together restaurants with a better vibe. With the prices we paid, we really can’t complain and will be back.

Friendly staff, tasty specials with good quality ingredients, reasonable prices, and good portions. The halibut and fajitas are excellent !
What’s there not to like?

I can’t believe we have not been here before. We live so close.
The atmosphere is very comforting and service was great. Rayanna was awesome, great advice and personable service-​Thank you.
The Bartender, Alex, recommended awesome tequila for the price and the food was great and look like it was ready for a picture shoot.
You may as well get to know us as will likely want our own table.

I love this place. It’s so bright and colorful and the service is great. There are so much vegan options, too! I usually order the vegan tacos with mango, no vegan cheese and substitute the tofu with mushrooms. I also order the raw vegano salad. It is so light and fresh. It’s the perfect ending to any meal.

Love this place.
My lady turned me on to this place as it has a split menu (vegan/​carnivore). It’s great because most vegan places do not have meat options and vice versa, therefore forcing the other person to either not eat, or the vegan/​vegetarian to order something less than desirable (salad). Plenty of options on both menus. The highlights are the Vegan pozole and the chicken mole. Both are excellent. They also have a pretty good full bar with nice Mexican cocktails. The Jalisco mule is great. Nice family staff provide great and friendly service. The space is large with plenty of tables and some TVs with sporting events on. Their annual Vegan Superbowl Party is a great event. All around great Mexican restaurant.

Love this place! As soon as you walk in your eyes are drawn to the water fountain and then the bar. We came here on a Wednesday night and it was pretty busy. they were very attentive to our group.
I had the veggie soup, ceviche, shrimp and crab cocktail and shrimp tacos. All were delish. This resturant also had a salsa bar which has a nice variety of salsa. My favorite would be the mango salsa. Will definitely return.

Just came back for like the 100^th time and they just kicked their game up! They now have VEGAN POZOLE and it is AMAZING! I need to come back for more!

Loved the staff in every way.
The vegetarian items were just as good as the meat.
They were so sweet. We changed the order after we made it and they didn’t blink.
The salsa bar was very good. Six red and green choices and pickled veggies as well as a nice mango cucumber.
We had Colorado vegan burrito (amazing), verde vegan enchilada (very very good), and both Mexican and American chicken tacos (fantastic).
Really quite good, the red beans were unlike any beans we’ve had, more like lentils or some other legume.
If you love authentic Mexican but want something different or vegetarian/​vegan then you will love El Papagayo.

Have you ever ate Catus? You should definitely try them here.
El Papagayo is a unique Mexican restaurant which serves vegan and non-​vegan specialties. They have tons of choices for your tacos, fajitas, burritos, tamales, mole, and whatever! You definitely need to try their specially seasoned tofu (crisp outside and soft inside) and their grilled cactus of course! Have you ever tried to cook it by yourself? Then you would know how difficult it is to work with. Save yourself the hassle and get it here.
Love chips and salsa but hate waiting for someone to come refill it? Your chip cravings will be satisfied here. They have a open and unlimited chip and salsa bar for your enjoyment. The salsas include a classic mild salsa, chunky salsa, cilantro based green salsa, mango-​cucumber salsa (favorite!), extra spicy salsa, and pickled jalapenos.
Amazing food, wonderful service, and affordable prices. Definitely my favorite Mexican in town!

Pretty great Mexican joint located in Carmichael. I had the beer battered shrimp tacos which were tasty. They have a self-​serve chip and salsa bar. The tortillas are good, and there is a great variety of salsas. Service was prompt and friendly. Prices seemed a just bit higher than other similar places, but given our experience that wasn’t a deal breaker.
They also have vegan menu offerings, which means we can visit with our vegan friends. Great find!