El Tio

Great spot for dinner. They have outdoors too, so you can sit outside if the weather is nice. The guacamole was delicious and they make it right in front of you. For appetizer i tried the ceviche which was delicious. For main course all the Different types of Fajitas was really good and i loved the enchilada and also the seafood platter !!! We were a group of people and i like trying a little bit of everything :) and for drinks !!! I do recommend the frozen margaritas !! Very tasty and strong too !!

Love this place! Great happy hour, atmosphere, and service. Margarita pitchers are the best. Selections I’ve gone with have been tasty so far. Definitely recommend checking it out!

Couple nights ago some friends and I came here for drinks and munchies. We’ve all been here several times prior. I ordered the guacamole prepared table side. So the guy brought it out and prepared it by the bar. Unfortunately it didn’t come with chips (who brings guacamole with NOTHING to put it on?) so I had to ask for a basket of chips (which were so frail they broke as soon as I put them in the dip! I took one taste of the guac & so did my friend. It was BLAND! It tasted like straight avocado. We tried to explain it to the bartender but he barely spoke decent English nor understood. So it went back to the kitchen. Good guac is NOT supposed to taste like straight avocado… it’s supposed to have flavors of lime juice, salt, tomatoes AND avocado

Totally a bad place. My friends and I went for happy hours. So we went straight to the bar to get our drinks you know. So the ladies brought us chips and salsa and it was everything cool. So the bartender wasn’t so friendly at all, took us like ten minutes to get notices at the end of the bar. Which the bar was with only two guys at he bar so my friends and I were talking, and he never ask us till I told him that we were there for long time. So we ordered or drinks and he never took the time to ask if everything was ok? I’m the kinda of person so likes to go new places. Which this place used to be Alero, so I thought it was gonna be good but I got so disappointed. Because our services was totally bad. I’m not the kinda of person who goes around and gives a bad review. I normally do 5 stars and good reviews about places, I totally can say that if a place got unfriendly bartenders or perhaps homophobic? They shouldn’t be working in this kinda of industry. Totally not happy with that way we were treated but I’m willing to give it an other try in the future!

Best fajitas I’ve had in a while, they really taste like my moms cooking.
Wish portions were a bit more filling, but this location is in Columbia heights so it is somewhat understandable.
* groupons are available for fajitas.
The swirl margarita (strawberry & lemonade) looked extremely tasty and delicious but it really didn’t taste that great. I believed cheap alcohol was used for the frozen margarita, Reason for 4 stars and the portions.

I mostly come to this place to eat and I leave happy not to say very! I have a lot to say about this place but I don’t have the time. Word of advice stick with the female servers! The rest just tend to play trick games!

I came here with a huge group on a Monday with no reservation so receiving drinks and food took a while but was understandable I guess.
The waitresses do not seem to know English too well so that can be frustrating. One waitress will have to get another worker who does understand English to come speak with you if you do not speak Spanish.
I really liked their tortilla chips – super light and thin. Wish the waitresses were faster on bringing us chip refills though.
I ordered a chicken enchilada and steak taco combo. It tasted good! If the portion were a little bigger, I would have loved it. Definitely a decent price for food especially since it’s in DC where most restaurants are highly overpriced and give little portions.
I do not drink much so I thought the alcohol drink I bought would have at least got me tipsy, but it did not. My friends also consumed many alcoholic beverages but did not feel any alcohol effects. It makes me wonder if there was really alcohol in our drinks or if the alcohol is diluted and the restaurant it making money off this scheming way… Or maybe our alcohol tolerance is higher than we think.

This place is really close to my apartment so I was going to end up going here eventually. I went for brunch with my friends David and Terence on a Sunday and sat outside which was chill. It was a nice day. I ordered the brunchy tacos which were subpar. The chorizo, which was extra did not even taste like chorizo and it was not spicy. To compensate for this missing element, i asked for some hot sauce which was actually very good. They should have brought it out in the beginning. The potatoes that came with the dish were also underwhelming and was not how I pictured them when I ordered. Fortunately, David gave me a piece of his steak which was actually pretty good. It was tender and crispy on the outside. So I guess the take away is, don’t go to a Mexican restaurant for brunch ya know? I mean El Chuchos is down the street and their breakfast burritos are dank city.

Overall I liked this place. Good service, good food, good HH prices. El Chucho down the street does have better options though but I like to try new places.

Bottomless mimosas and bloody Mary’s for brunch? Of course my SO and I are going to try this place out! Brunch runs from 11 am-​3 pm with essentially no wait. Brunch entrées are about $ 11−13/plate with bottomless drinks costing $ 15/​person (but we had a Groupon for brunch + bottomless drinks for two for $ 30).
The brunch menu itself is somewhat limited, but I suppose you can only incorporate eggs into so many Tex-​Mex dishes. The burrito was an average portion, but the cheese and Ranchero sauce made it gooey and delicious. The fajitas do not come with sour cream, guac, or salsa (strange), but combining the steak with the yolky over-​easy egg, their house-​made hot sauce, and salsa (which was actually for the bottomless chips) really made the meal. The bloody Mary’s were a tad on the saltier side, but regardless, the bottomless drinks definitely made the meal worth it. No qualms with the service here either; server was attentive and drinks were always refilled or topped off right away.
I wouldn’t necessarily go out of my way to come back, but I think it’s worth checking out. And if I’m ever around for brunch or happy hour, I’d definitely swing by again.

Came here on Sunday for brunch, the place was pretty empty except for one other table. Our waitress was very attentive and when asked she told us we could switch out different flavors of unlimited mimosa for just $ 2. We ordered the strawberry mimosa, passion fruit mimosa, pineapple mimosa, steak brunch and the fajitas. The mimosa were made with fruit purée well at least my strawberry and the passion fruit one was. I love the strawberry mimosa once you mix the purée. The steak brunch wasn’t much of a steak, the meat used was a thin carnae asada meat but the food was very good either way. The rice and potatoes was a bit on the cold side i would’ve liked it warmer but other than that no complaints.

As I stood in front of the flickering neon sign that read «El Tio,» I found that my hope for good Mexican food was already quelled by the yellow and black letters of the sign. A red would have befitted the rich history of Washington, DC Mexican restaurants, using the stately burgundy color. Diminished, yet not perturbed, I folded my ascot, swallowed hard, and entered the establishment.
I approach the host stand and hand them my jacket. With a befuddled furrowing of his brow the host informed me that there is no coat check. I expel a heavy sigh, and trudge towards my candle lit table. I acquiesce, and steal myself to judge solely on the sumptuous meal that awaits me. I notice immediately that the candle on my table is fake. To the untrained serf level gastro enthusiast, this may be acceptable, but as a trained arbiter of taste, my sensibilities are disgraced. The opaque falsity mirrors that which brought about this solitary culinary expedition.
I turn to the menu, and after belabored rumination, order the «Sonoran Chicken Taco.» My attention flits back to the pain inducing sign above the entrance. I don’t need any more pain; hell, does anyone? The taco arrives, and is truly magnificent. The succulent cheese brings me wistfully back to the pages of «Infinite Jest.» The chicken is a moist play on a Mexican classic that ushers in nothing short of nostalgia for a more pastoral era.
I leave with a heavy heart and an even heavier stomach. 5-​stars.

I have been sitting here for more than 30mins for my lunch order. It’s a long wait, first of all… And the waitress just asked me:” did you order?”… «what did you order»? There are not even many people dining now. Imagine my hunger and frustration, whatever the taste is like.

Went on a Sunday around noon for brunch and bottomless mimosas. The mimosas were perfect. For brunch I ordered the steak which came with any style eggs and gravy (I chose scrambled w/​cheese), Spanish rice, fried potatoes, and fruit. Everything was great. My son ordered chicken strips and fries instead of strips he received dried out nuggets. He ate the fries. Our waitress (I forget her name) was very attentive and the prices are good. I will return again when the weather breaks for patio seating.

The food was good and the service was great. The food was fresh, fast and tasted good. I am not a big Mexican food fan, and that is why I cannot give it 5 stars. We did not have to wait for refills on drinks (soda and water). It was truly a pleasurable experience. I will definitely by coming back.
FYI…wife was having cravings and we have visited on more than one occasion and the experience has been consistent.

Decided to check this place out after buying a groupon for brunch (bottomless mimosa or bloody mary’s and a brunch entrée item for 2 people, $ 30). The mimosa are normally $ 5.95 each but are serviced in a large wine glass (see picture) rather than your usual champagne flute, the mimosas also come in various flavors. Bottomless mimosas are $ 15…brunch entrée (its French) choices range $ 10-​$ 15. The breakfast burrito I had was a little light on the eggs and ham but was good overall for the price, the special sauce on top is what made this burrito so delicious. The outdoor seating is great on a sunny day
I would come back to this restaurant for happy hour in the evenings (see picture for specials).

Service was great, but the food was mediocre. I went here with a Brunch groupon and ordered the steak. I mean… I hope that was steak. (Yikes) The mimosas were tasty — Pineapple was my favorite. Our waitress, Rosa, was a doll. If I go back, it’d only be to see Rosa!

Two of my good friends and I came here for brunch Sunday morning. The crowd was thin, so we had a choice to sit anywhere that we wanted. The patio was open, as the weather permitted. Our Groupon came with bottomless mimosas or bloody marys. We chose the mimosa. They were very strong and tasty! A+ for that. The staff was exceptionally friendly and the food came quickly. Overall I had a decent experience there. My friends ordered the Brunchy Steak. I had the El Tipico. Of course they kept the nachos and salsa coming. I noticed their brunch their happy hour menu looked decent, the prices are great. Also worth noting, they have happy hour 7 days a week from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Muy delicioso!
Shrimp tacos= yum :)
Mojitos= double yum
Discounted mojitos on their Mojito Mondays= yum to the infinite power
In English, their food is very good and their drinks are even better! One mojito and I felt like I was on a beach in Mexico.

This review is more a comment on the El Tio Groupon: «Bottomless brunch for two: includes bottomless mimosas and bloody marys and choice of brunch entrée for each person.» You may want to AVOID it IF you are thinking of having brunch in a group of more then two.
After a friend-​couple purchased a Groupon for El Tio, the site encourchaed them to tell their friends to purchase additional El Tio Groupons at a discount. The friends let me know they would be going and we purchased a Groupon as well thinking we could all go and have a nice bottomless brunch!
Heres the catch: YOU CAN ONLY USE ONE GROUPON PER GROUP/​TABLE! This would seem to negate the point of a GROUPON…
This was gearing up to be a massive fail, ending in frustration. However, due to a kind waitress she, bent the rules and seated us at two separate tables next to each other. She wouldn’t let us push them together since she’d get slammed by her manager, apparently, but she at least was accommodating in letting us move them with in a reasonable distance of each other — 6 – 8 inches… so not inconvenient for conversation.
So. Recap. Don’t use Groupon here if you’ve got a group.

Fat Ass Score: 5
Cheap Ass Score: 4
Perfect Tex-​Mex.
Well, it could be cheaper. But it was delicious. Emphasis on «Tex-​Mex” — if you seek authentic cuisine from outside of the U-​S-​of-​A, this ain’t your jam.
Salsa: Spicy
Service: Attentive
VEGETARIAN CHIMICHANGA: EXISTED AND WAS DELICIOUS.
Beans: Tasty, if salty.
Ambiance: Great. Ate outside. They had candles. Not bad for a chick with a kindle or couples alike.

I’ve been here once for lunch and once for brunch. Both times have been nothing but good food, good service, and good atmosphere. I have no complaints what so ever. I really like the patio and their drinks. Might I mention that the salsa here is amazing and probably house made fresh daily.
For me the overall rating on Unilocal didn’t seem to reflect in my own personal experiences.

Me and my friends enjoyed ourselves until the manager approached my party about someone smoking outside in the outdoor area…
First of all we weren’t smoking and even if we were it seems to me that soon you will have to leave the planet if you smoke…
Second the manager approached us and instead of him using his words to communicate as an intelligent human being he pointed to the no smoking signs as if we were dogs and responded to such gestures…
If I could leave my comment without giving this business ANY stars I would…
I will never EVER patronize this business EVER AGAIN!!!

The fajitas as still good but the service is just so so awful. They are not accommodating at all to changing anything on the menu. Being a pescaterian I asked for veggies and shrimp for my fajitas and it’s always such a big ordeal, despite me telling them that Im not asking for extra shrimp, I just don’t want the meat. Eventually they accommodate but only after waiting for the manager to come to the table to talk.
My boyfriend and I would go here pretty often because of the good groupon deal. But I’m over the awful service and have no intention of going back.

I have been deprived of bottomless brunch since I moved out East, so this was quite the treat when I visited DC.
There was a great groupon deal for bottomless brunch where you get an entrée and mimosas for two. There were five different mimosa flavors: passion fruit, mango, strawberry, pineapple, and classic orange. I had to get one of each while I had the chance. They were all great, but my friend and I decided that some of the flavors masked (passion fruit) the champagne while others enhanced (pineapple) it. All of their mimosas come with pretty healthy pours, so be prepared to fill up on mimosas before your food even comes.
I got the brunch steak and the molcajete guac – both were to die for. This guacamole has inspired me to add a little more kick (jalepenos) to my guacamole, and my life is infinitely better for it.
I’m sure this isn’t the best brunch spot in DC (as it wasn’t crowded at all), but it’s definitely worth the visit for a Mexican-​inspired meal and bottomless mimosas.

This is a great happy hour spot. The house chips with the queso are yummy and the margaritas are perfect.
I’m pretty sure I was intoxicated while writing this so if that’s any indication of the margaritas I suggest you go. NOW. Lol

Groupon had a great deal for $ 25 that included two entrees and two orders of bottomless mimosas. I was a little hesitant to purchase it because the amount of good reviews were equally as much as the bad ones. I guess the bottomless mimosas made me give in. The serving size from the pictures I saw looked worth it.
I came on a Sunday and it wasn’t crowded at all which gave my friend and I a chance to pick a good seat outside in their patio area. The sun came out and even before we had a chance to ask someone to open our umbrella, the staff took initiative and made sure we were all set. Our waitress was pleasant, she was busy, but she was attentive. So far so good.
Their chips and salsa are delicious. The chips are served warm and their salsa has cilantro with a kick spice to it. I ordered their brunch steak, which came with a decent size piece of steak, cooked just as I wanted (medium) and very juicy, your choice style eggs, potato hash, rice and a bowl of fruits. I honestly say I enjoyed my meal and my drinks.
I recommend this place if you’re in the neighborhood or if you want to have an inexpensive bottomless brunch. It’s also very close to the metro station. It’s definitely somewhere I’ll come back to.

Their customer service is good but the chef is bad. I order nachos and beside the portion control, the flavor is all wrong. They gave me a plate with sour cream, pico, guac and jalapeños dead center. While; 8 machines with two bits of steak say drenched in cheese.
The complimentary chips and salsa tasted better. I kept eating that.

Definitely would have gotten a 5 star if it wasnt for the obsolete service.
Came here on a Saturday afternoon and luckily it was happy hour (happy hour is everyday! Huge plus)
We were started off with a basket of hot chips and salsa. Best ever. Chips were crispy and not too greasy, the salsa had flavor and was still fresh without being too watery.
We shared the happy hour guacamole and calamari. Oh my goodness the guac was incredible. So creamy and rich and they are served with chewy fried flour pita/​tortilla things. The calamari was delicious too — it was crispy and not too heavily greasy or battered.
I just got a house salad as my meal and bf got the happy hour steak quesadilla. I love how this place is so liberal with their avocados. They were in both our meals. It was great.
They have good margaritas and frozen margs are surprisingly strong.
The service was the only thing that was terrible. Our waiter kept forgetting our waters, never checked on us once, and i had to search for him to close our our tab because he never came by to bring it to us. Our table would have been littered with plates if it wasn’t for the support staff to help clean it off.
I normally wouldnt come back but the food was so damn good i will definitely be giving them another chance.

It’s really a shame. After having been really disappointed in Alero, I figured we’d give the new iteration El Tio a chance. They have a beautiful setup, quite an extensive tequila collection, and a huge amount of space in the restaurant. Their brunch menu looks good on paper and they have a good deal on bottomless mimosas of multiple flavors. But that’s about where the positives end. In the end, I actually felt badly about having made reservations to go here for brunch after my fiancé’s graduation.
From the start, we could tell our server wasn’t exactly on the ball that day. We didn’t even order anything complicated — a few mimosas, a lemonade, and guacamole. We had to repeat the lemonade three or four times before he actually processed it, but in the end, those first few items did come out correctly. The service was quite slow considering how few people were there, so luckily we weren’t in any rush. The woman who made our table-​side guacamole was relatively friendly and helpful. The dip was good and the chips were fine.
Then things completely fell apart. In terms of entrees, all our waiter had to remember was to bring two plates of steak & eggs and two plates of El Tio Eggs, which are vegetarian. That (apparently complicated) order somehow led to us getting four plates of steak & eggs. When we commented that the order was completely wrong, he gave us a blank stare and did not even seem to understand what had gone wrong. Not wanting to see the entire plate get thrown in the trash and fairly confident it wouldn’t be fixed anyway, we said we would just keep it and give the steak to the meat-​eaters at the table. However, we asked to get the refried beans that should have come with our dish because that was one of the things we really wanted. Those never came, so we asked other wait staff to bring them for us a second time… and then a third… they never came.
Our waiter was pretty clearly avoiding our table and by the time he showed up, we had already eaten what we were going to eat of our food. Nothing about it was particularly good and the eggs were way undercooked. They were far from just being runny — a better description would be slimy. We mentioned to him that we had still never gotten the beans, and he said that he would comp the two meals that he had messed up. I’m not confident that even at this point he understood what had gone wrong, even though we said more times than I can count that we had ordered the El Tio Eggs, not the steak.
Comping the meals would have been good service and would have made things somewhat forgiven. But of course, when the check came, he didn’t comp them. I didn’t see the bill until after others had paid the remainder, because my fiancé and I were covered by a Groupon, but then I noticed that they had failed to comp our meals. I have honestly never seen such inept service in my life. There was no manager to be found so we cut our losses and just decided to leave, since there was clearly no hope of getting any of this rectified.
Needless to say, we won’t be giving this place another try, and would not recommend it on any level to anyone. I cannot think of a better example of why sometimes service is the single most important element of running any restaurant.

Came here on monday night and ordered a burrito and nachos. The nachos were just ok… its the individual nachos, with each chip laid out and not a heaping mess. The burrito was actually really tiny for a tex mex place and only OK. I’d say half the size of a chipotle.
For a place like this i was expecting a ginormous burrito and a heap of nachos.
on monday night, it’s also a buck off all appetizers all night which i was pleasantly surprised to see.
Our waitress was mediocre. It was not crowded and she gave attitude the whole night especially when we needed an extra minute to order and she had to come back. It could have been because her english wasn’t very good because i had to repeat myself several times and i’m pretty sure i saw some eye rolling.
I distinctly asked if the nacho’s counted for a buck off. I was assured yes, but of course when the check came around after waiting about 10 minutes for her to come over with the check, it was still normal price.
I wasnt about to wait another 10 minutes for her to come back so I paid it and bounced without making a fuss but I hate it when establishments mess the bill up.
There are better more authentic mexican places at a cheaper price point around the corner. Go to one of those. This place is probably pretty good for HH drinks and food specials but this review is for dinner.

Pretty average Mexican food, but the service was friendly and fast and the prices were relatively low considering the neighborhood.
My party of 7 were looking for a reasonably priced place to eat with a patio in CoHi and El Tio delivered.
Our server was polite and easy to understand. We were all a-​ok with our food. I had the chile relleno ($ 10.95). Fairly large portion with two stuffed and heavily breaded (perhaps a little too much breading) served with guacamole, spanish rice and refried beans. The fish tacos looked like the best choice of our crew.
The complimentary chips didn’t taste particularly fresh, but the salsa sure did and packed a spicy punch. Our chip bowl was never left empty. 5 of us split a margarita pitcher, which was decently strong, but a tad pricey compared to the food at $ 35.
Most importantly for us we had a table outside on 14^th Street on a beautiful evening. I never went to Alero to compare, but all in all I think El Tio is a nice addition to the neighborhood.