El Zarape

Killer Mexican food. Consistently putting out amazing food. The staff is super nice and restaurant always busy. We come here at least once a week. Weekly specials and everyday favorites like burritos and nachos. This place rocks.

First time eating here found it on the car navagation and it was really good food. Little hole in the wall but worth the drive. Will definitely be back.

Don’t come here unless you are ready for an authentic Mexican experience! There are several options to choose, for those who want something original, or something traditional. The Caldo de Res is amazing. Please be warned: The (habanero) salsas are PICANTE and SABOROSO. (They’ll «bite» you with fantastic flavors!)

I have only gone there once but their caldo de res is very good when they ease up on the salt. I still recommend it if looking for a restaurant that carries a variety of Mexican dishes… It’s right next to a small bar too!

This place is pretty good. I got the shrimp burrito and it was pretty damn delicious. Will probably be me and my wife’s place to go to when we make the trip up to Santa Barbara.

Yeah… it’s some of the best Mexican food in town.
Tortas, alambres, menudo… all freshly made and served with a smile.

Everything I’ve had here is fantastic! It’s standard taqueria pricing. I usually get a burrito or a torta, both of which are great. The adobada is spicy and delicious. And they GRILL THEIR BURRITOS. This is icing on the cake for me when it comes to burritos. The rajas burritos are also fantastic with the melted cheese. I recommend making your burrito a California Burrito and it comes with lettuce, tomato, guac, sour cream, and cheese.
My friend swears by the lengua torta. I haven’t tried it yet. Added bonus… everyone that works here is very friendly! And they will deliver your order to the bar next door, Bo Henry’s.

I had their catered food and it’s not the same as in the restaurant.
Restaurant: delicious, professional, non-​greasy, and true to size.
This is mostly a review for the catering service they offer.
Catering: plain, very greasy, very unprofessional, not friendly.
It’s almost as if they didn’t want to be there. They are expensive for the service they offer. Didn’t meet expectations presentation wise. The meats and tortillas are cooked/​sized different than inside restaurant. Witnessed minor fiascos that could have been prevented if they had been prepared.
Save yourself a headache and a stomachache hire a more experienced restaurant that is true to catering.
El Zarape restaurant GOOD.
El Zarape catering TERRIBLE.

A beloved staple in the Westside, and there’s a good reason. They make up 4 daily special concoctions, and these are delicious! I tried the Puerco Costillo, with nopales. Excellent! The owner is a great guy that knows food and what sits well on your taste buds. I really enjoyed his que mada salsa!

Dive looking, but good food and a clean kitchen. They have the best chicken tacos made with 2 homemade corn tortillas, onion and cilantro, you add the salsa from the fresh salsa bar (really good). The chicken burritos and chicken nachos are also very good. The best chicken enchildas verde (4) made with homemade corn tortillas and served with rice and beans. They also serve burgers and fries. The people are friendly (bring Lucy back, please). It’s out of the way, but worth it, and the owner appreciates your business.

Hands down the best and most authentic Mexican food in the entire area… And this is from somebody that knows good Mexican food.

Great Mexican food and, surprise — a killer deal on a tasty burger and fries!

Damn good. They were out of all the really good stuff (lengua, buche, birria de chivo etc) at 8pm, but the asada and choriqueso were tasty and unusually chunky-​good — this is not an amorphous chorizo slurry but chunks of a more spanish-​style sausage. Carnitas was meh — but I’m not a carnitas guy, generally.
«Hot» salsas were very tasty, but not very hot. Just right in my book. The habanero was slightly less hot than typical strong jalapeño salsas in SF. That’s a good thing.
House made tortillas are a standout, at least for me with my crappy industrial-​tortilla joints in SF.
Clientele is legit and the specials all look extremely tasty, too.

Great mexican food on the westside! I ordered a Lomito burrito and it was about the size of a large football for $ 8. They take axxess too, which makes it an even better deal.
Great looking weekly specials and menudo on the weekends. I’m going to have to come back for Posole Thursday.
Word of caution: Habanero salsa here is not kidding around. It will bite your face off. It’s delicious.

I’ve lived in Santa Barbara for 35 years and spent a lot of time South of the border…
Hot chips, homemade tortillas, extensive free salsa bar, authentic fresh food, cheap prices… the best Mexican food in town!
Qué Rico!

Soooooo good. Love the Mexican food and burgers! Don’t be confused by the «burger express» sign haha. I haven’t had one bad thing here and they accept the axxess card too. Love it.

Awesome food!
I came here for the first time because of the Axxess card. I can’t wait to go back. It was so good, I bought an extra meal to take home for later.
I’ve been searching for a great Torta for a while and they have it. Their Bolillo bread is awesome and the sandwiches are great. I can’t wait to try more of their food.
The prices are good, staff is nice and place is clean. It’s definitely more of a take-​out or very casual spot for eating which is nice when you aren’t feeling super social.
It’s also Burger Express or something like that which is odd but apparently those are well received too. The order area and kitchen is a separate room from the eating area. Plenty of spots and like others have said, the salsa is great.
It’s definitely a place I’ll be going back to for lunch or quick dinners/​pick-​up.
Plenty of parking on the street out front too.
Axxess card has a 2-​for-​1 discount and 10% off thereafter.
Happy I found this place!

I found this place by accident… I thought I was grabbing a burger at Burger Express.
We were renting a house for the weekend around the corner, and were on a mission to find some burgers. We turned the corner onto San Andreas, and lo and behold (what we thought) burgers!
As I walked up to the door I was a bit confused. The specials listed Mexican dishes. The place is a little walk-​up and order, but they have ample seating in the next room.
They DO sell burgers, but with the food on display and what I could smell cooking I opted for El Zarape’s Mexican food (same establishment/​building as Burger Express).
I ordered a sope because I can never pass one up. A carne asada one, with everything on it.
Delicious.
I added their habanero salsa.
Delicious.
The food here is legit, has tons of flavor and meat is cooked perfectly. Food is fresh and definitely hand/​homemade.

And my 400^th review goes to… El Zarape! Really delicious, legit Mexican food. The tortillas are made in-​house, the salsa bar is amazing, and their carne asada beats the much hyped El Chato truck in LA (in my humble opinion).
They accept credit card and there is plenty of seating in the adjacent dining area. Service is friendly. I ordered the carne asada tacos, which were flavorful and juicy, but not too greasy. The carne asada goes especially well with one of their salsas — can’t describe it really, but just try them out; they’re all good.
Overall, El Zarape is my go-​to spot for Mexican food in SB. Highly recommended!

The food here is delicious. I had a torta with chorizo. The salsa that I had from the salsa bar was one of the best that I’ve ever had.
Viva El Zarape!