El Barrio Cantina & Tequila Bar

This place is amazing! In addition to eating here regularly, my boyfriend and I take our friends visiting from the city here to convince them to visit more often. El Barrio has an awesome beer list with new and unique choices that seem to switch up every week. Their food is fantastic. I recommend the mushroom and goat cheese empanadas and fish tacos, but if you swing by on Tuesdays, their tacos are 2 bucks a piece (just as big as the regular-​priced portions), so you may as well try all of them. As for service, I’ve always had a great experience. Definitely the best kept secret in Holland!

I came here for dinner and drinks with friends. We didn’t wait long for a table at the bar on a Saturday night. The place had a great vibe to it. The food and drinks were delicious and the service was terrific as well.

I wouldn’t recommend take out. While the food tasted ok, the portion size was very, very small. We ordered fish taco’s and they gave us enough fish for one taco — two of the taco shells went unused!

It must say something about a place when every year and half there is a new restaurant occupying this space. My family lives down the street from this plaza so we’ve tried all the restaurants that have occupied this space over the years and El Barrio pretty much measures up to all the rest… mediocre at best. I will say that they did a good job with the décor, even though the layout is a little odd. I’ve come here for drinks several times and it’s always been a good experience, mostly because they have a lot of space so my friends and I can grab a long table and catch up.
The other night my friend and I decided to try it out for dinner… big mistake. We decided to be adventurous and started out with the jalapeño-​pineapple wings. Literally inedible. Nothing but skin and the sauce tasted like week-​old pineapple juice. Then, I ordered the blackened tilapia, which was also inedible. The tilapia was tough, overcooked, and WAY too salty. It came with asparagus (overcooked) and rice and beans. However, unfortunately the rice and beans were served under the over-​salted tilapia, which made them salty too. My friend ordered the chicken quesadilla, which looked like straight up cheese. I didn’t bother trying it.
Since it’s the only place in the area, I would say El Barrio is a fine place to grab a drink. But I would avoid it if you’re trying to enjoy a meal.

Meh. I wanted to love this place. The décor is awesome! Very laid back and very nice. But the food lacked a bit. We started with this weeks empanadas, they were chicken and bacon. They were just ok, a little dry and a bit burnt. They were edible but not as good as hoped. We also had the veggie quesadilla, not very good at all. It was literally cut up veggies covered in cheese. There wasn’t much flavor to them. My wife had the wild mushroom tacos with goat cheese. The tortillas were charred but defiantly too much. She also said there wasn’t much goat cheese. As for me I had the fish tacos. They were not very good. First again the tortillas were charred too long. The fish was beer battered but saturated in oil, they were very greasy. The service was okay, it wasn’t very busy but the waiter was running around like a madman. He was just ok, took a while to get refills. There wasn’t much about this place that makes me want to go back. Sadly I was let down.

What a great addition the the Newtown/​Holland area. This space has seen a lot of restaurant turn the years. But this restaurant is great. It has a bottle shop connected where you can make your own 6 packs. They have a great stock of craft beers.
The restaurant is a gem also! I’ve been here for drinks a few times. They have also a great selection of beers. The margaritas are average. The food is delicious! First off, I love their chips and salsa. They seem more authentic then you’d get at other restaurants. I had he chicken fajitas for my meal and I highly recommend them! They come in a black stone bowl and is a very generous serving size. It comes with beans, rice, guacamole, pico, cheese, sour cream and tortillas. I couldn’t finish mine. All for about $ 14. Such a steal! Only downside is they don’t take reservations for less than 7 people. Also at least in the one room, the acoustics are terrible. There happened to be some children one evening who were quite loud so we could barely talk or hear each other at our table. Overall though I highly recommend the restaurant.

Love this place. Food is excellent. Great craft beer bar and store right next door for take out. Very friendly owner. Try it and you will go back. Try the quesadillas.

Tonight was our first visit at this amazing a=establishment. The décor was beautiful and tasteful. The food was to die for the portion was huge I had enough to share and bring home. the staff was helpful polite and friendly. everyone there was working their tail off. Mango margarita was delish. def going again.

Really Good Food and I love the portion size as well… Drinks are amazing and the food is of good quality…
They are fun… The server was nice and sweet explained us about the vegetarian options and suggested the chicken tacos to me which were amazing !!! I love those chicken tacos

Love his place! The food is not traditional Mexican, it has a fusion flare to it, but it’s always FRESH and tasteful. We like the different flatbreads. The wild mushroom tacos are a favorite. The menu isn’t huge, but they have happy hour appetizers even at the tables in addition to drinks. This place is great for a casual meet up or a date night out.
The décor is so creative with the Des Los muertos skulls and refurbished church pews for booths. Rustic and inviting. Plus they have a takeout beer shop!
Go try this — you won’t regret it!

Where do I even start?! Had high hopes for this establishment after seeing it go through 5 different restaurants. The décor and vibe — 5 stars! Love what they did with the place, both inside and outside so was that much more surprised when the food and drink were not up to my expectations.
Met up some girlfriends on a random Thursday night and was surprised to see the place packed. Some sort of a happy hour. They do not take reservations and we had to wait 40 minutes, no biggie.
Had a table outside but under patio, very nice.
All of us ordered margaritas from their specials menu, they were simply not good. I knew the taste would be lacking after receiving a margarita that was the color of a birth green highlighter. It tasted just as unnatural and sweet.
The description of food on the menu was fantastic, but was not the case when it came out. I had fish tacos and they were heavily doused in some mayo based sauce. One of my friends had fajitas, they were served in a large stone guacamole bowl and swam in oil. In fact there was so much oil that you could probably pour it off and fill a quarter of a cup. Chipotle has better food.
The highlight of the evening was the mouse that for 20 minutes entertained us by running around the floor while one of my friends had her feet up in terror. It might have been a field mouse that was trapped on the patio, surprisingly none of the staff have noticed.

Oh the beers, oh the food…
Basically it is a great watering spot, not fancy, not crappy, but great for a meetup.

El Barrio, owned by the same proprietors of Iron Abbey and Na Brasa, is serving fantastic craft beer and Mexican food in a very unassuming and maze-​like strip mall in the middle of nowhere. Location isnt everything and this place is a perfect example.
The interior is a beautiful new combination of rustic/​industrial with a contemporary Mexican/​Day of the Dead twist. Every detail of this place is honely crafted, with multiple art installments sprinkled in.
I suggest grabbing a seat at the bar in the shadow of their impressive chalk board of craft beer options and ordering some chips and salsa to gorge on while you wait for some perfect tacos, fajitas, etc. Both bartenders ive experienced so far have been friendly and attentive.
When you first walk in, quickly look to your right or you might miss their stand alone craft beer bottle shop. That’d be a shame because it really is top notch!
The only thing keeping this place from being 5 stars is the fact that their menu could use a few more creative dishes. Otherwise, I love this place and will definitely be back. Las Margaritas is no longer the only worthy Mexican bar/​restaurant in NE Philly/​Bucks County!

I came here with happy hour with my family while visiting in the area and I can definitely say that the happy hour is worth it!
The drinks were delicious, both the sangria and margaritas. As far as food, we tried the guacamole, which I would give 3 stars. It was a little weak on flavor. Tacos come in small plates of two and the mushroom tacos were great! These are a must get. We also got some sort of chili cheese dip and this was just ok. Good for a party but something you don’t go to a restaurant for.
If I could make one change, it would be the service. Our waiter was hard to come by and it wasn’t very busy. Definitely worth making a happy hour stop for!

Just a good time… Great beer list, knowledgeable staff and tony alosi on sun afternoon… Feels like friday!
…very good enchilada…

The only good part of the restaurant is the beer store, which has a great selection of craft and specialty brews, and the modern Mexican décor. The food is absolutely terrible… even the guacamole is sub-​par… I could make it better myself. The only item on the menu that is half decent are the wings and they are very inconsistent. I live nearby and have given this place several tries, but each time nothing has changed or improved.
As far as their alcoholic beverages go:
The skinny margarita is simply so sour you can not drink it… I thought the bartender made it wrong at first and sent it back only to get the exact same thing over again. The regular margarita is ok, nothing great.
The only reason this restaurant may survive is due to the bar scene, which is mediocre at best… and because there are not many options in the area.

Very slim pickins in Holland PA so can’t be too diva. For what this place used to be, I think it looks amazing! The bar is beautiful, I love all the skull decorations. I came for Cinco de Mayo /​Happy Hour so it was pretty crowded but I was still able to get a drink within 15 minutes in the bar. The strawberry basil margarita didn’t seem very strong, but the mango one was delicious and the perfect amount of sour.
The chips and salsa were very good but as for the carne taco, the meat was very tough and hard to eat. The beer battered fish taco was good and crispy. I am intrigued to come again to try the crab avocado and the ceviche. I’m a little scared to try ceviche in Village Shires but maybe once I hear good reviews I will be open

It’s obvious that the good reviews are from people that do NOT get out much. This place is average at best. Not nearly as good as even some chain Mexican restaurants. The margaritas are basic and taste like classic margarita mix. I ordered empanadas which were dry and lacked flavor. My friends ordered tacos, nachos and a quesadilla– all average and nothing I couldn’t make at home.
I’ve been to many excellent Mexican restaurants — most of them in Philadelphia and this place fails in comparison. Save yourself the time. If this restaurant wasn’t in the burns with no other restaurants around it, it would fail.

If I could give it 3.5 I would. The new restaurant is beautiful, the bar is big and spacious, the take out variety of craft beer is very cool, the food is good.
The chips have good flavor and the salsa is nice too. The guacamole was a little too smooth for my taste but had good flavor.
I had the wild mushroom tacos with retried beans. The carrot slaw in the taco was a little too sweet and overpowered the great heartiness of the mushrooms and tang of the goat cheese. The refried beans had a great concentration of flavor but we a little too dry.
Over a good experience and I will be back. The brunch menu looked great, I hope this place stays for a while.

First I want to address what was good. The place is large, and there is a nice liquor store adjacent that stocks lots of hard to find items. The service is good, and the décor is whimsical. The house chips are fantastic, though the salsa could use a little heat.
The unfortunate matter is that this place doesn’t execute good Mexican food. The quesadilla had far too much cheese, and was woefully unbalanced. The «hot chorizo» was not very hot at all, I would have called that mild. That was after I requested my dish to be spicy, and the waitress confirmed I would get the «hot chorizo.» The cerviche was not quite fresh, and lacked the amount of citrus that was needed to bring the acid up enough to work on the fish. It was not a good dish. Being that it has a very convenient location with lots of parking, I will probably try it again, in hopes that this was just an off night, but I am very disappointed with the food.