El Chicos Mexican Cantina & Cocktail Bar

the two of us went out for a birthday dinner and were pleasantly suprised. I've been in london for almost two years and had yet to find a good mexican restaurant, but El Chicos was pleasantly kitsch, the wait staff was attentive and our food was spicy and quite delicious.

definitely a place to try out!!
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Jen and Dave
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Monday, September 01, 2008

Went here again for a girly-only dinner. There were three of us and we arrived at quarter to seven and left at about half nine. When we arrived we were the first people there but it had filled up a bit when we left. To start we shared a starter of margarita calamari with chilli mayonnaise - the mayonnaise was lovely, really spicy but the calamari was a bit of a disappointment - certainly not freshly made and the batter was a bit too thick and there wasn't a hint of the margarita flavour.

Only two of us had main meals - my friend had the beef tacos which she said was really good and i had the vege burritos. It was really nice, just the right amount of spicyness, and the portion was massive! It came with rice which I didn't like but was too full anyway to eat as well as sour cream and the guacamole - the guacamole was certainly not authentic and didn't really taste of much!

The service was ok, although one waitress certainly had a bit of an attitude problem, but we all have bad days sometimes! All in all, for one starter, two main meals, one non-alcholic cocktail, a diet coke, and five cocktails the bill came to £43 which wasn't bad at all! I would recommend it but not for a romantic couples night!
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- View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 9
Friday, June 20, 2008

My friends took me here for my birthday and it was really good! The food was spicy and tasted authentic to me, and the cocktails were delicious! Definitely worth a visit. I actually thought it was good value for money (or maybe I'm too used to London prices!) as it was £80 for five main meals, three soft drinks and five cocktails and a tip.....

and they also embarressed me greatly after the meal with a birthday song....
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D - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Not a lot of places to go in london for mexican, but this place more than makes up for it. I live quite locally so more than enjoy going down streatham high road - yes it is getting much better, though needs a starbucks! - than going to el chicos to have a great night out with my friends. Everything here seems to be well packaged, though probably not 100% authentically mexican (but could we brits handle it?). The food, service, atmosphere and cocktails are faboulous though not exactly cheap, but i guess you do get alot for the money hence sometimes the long..long..long wait for a table. Try it and see for yourself.
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Claire
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Sunday, November 19, 2006

Late 2004 El Chico's was our Tuesday Ladies Night link up. Until they changed management it all began to get very slack. A Woo woo tasted like cranberry juice ONLY, the next few weeks the Nachos tasted stale. The reason why the food comes so quickly is because the are not making ANYTHING from stratch..and they have the cheek to charge that amount of money.

One Tuesday night which is half price drinks. We ordered our starter course and our drinks without main meals (they are big enough) a waitress then came over to informed us that we would be charged full price (which is flase advertising as it does not state this in their advert) We had been doing this for months before hand no complaints then. Us girls are very upset with El Chicos and we would like the old management back (I was told he has gone back to Mexico)

El Chicos buck up your ideas!! Lovely scenary, great music and on occasions dodgy food and drink. Especially when packed. You've been warned
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Rena - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 3
Monday, November 06, 2006

Based on the reviews from this very site we took some guests from abroad to this little restaurant in Streatham - it is small but our party of 7 were adequately seated, but next time we'll ask for seats not close to the front door on a cold Autumn evening as it was open all night "because it can get quite stuffy otherwise" according to the staff.

There certainly is no shortage of staff - the service was very good and prompt as could be expected with apologies made for a minor delay in one main course arriving.

Most importantly, the food was excellent. The meats were tender and tasty and cooked to perfection although it must be said that serving a very rare steak on a sizzingly plate will inevitably continue to cook the meat and therefore it's not the same by the time it's finished! That aside, all starters and main courses were a delight and without exception we all very pleased with an excellent meal.

The atmosphere is pleasant once you get used to the loud music but the toilets were a bit of a let down - not dirty as such but in desperate need of refurbishment.

The staff were very attentive and the manager in particular (in the knowledge that a reviewer here was disappointed by him) was excellent without being overbearing.

In all our meal for 7 cost £140 including service, 2 bottles of wine and 4 or 5 beers so I would suggest that the average cost per head is less than suggested here.

The best compliment I can I can offer is that we will return quite happily in the future - for the great service and excellent food. The best advice I can offer is to book in advance because it's certainly a busy place on a Friday night - and ask for a table away from the front door on chilly evenings.

Highly recommended.
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Joseph
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Saturday, October 14, 2006

All I can say is: yuck! My husband & I read these reviews and were very excited as I (native Californian who's spend considerable) and he (native Texan) have been jonesing for some good authentic Mexican food. First of all: the Dorito's are from a bag...ARRGH! The salsa is from the same aisle they bought the Dorito's from at Tesco and the food uses the seasoning from the little bags...ewww! Not only that, we don't do fake lime juice in our margarita's, honey...also, rice and beans are a staple in Mexican food...where were they? Needless to say, we were bummed and I promptly went shopping the next day and make delicious margarita's made the way God mean them to be made: Petron tequila, FRESH limes, & Gran Marnier. Buy some tomatoes, jalepenos, avocados, cilantro, onions, and dump the Old El Paso flavor packets you got in bulk at Cost Co. Oh, and maybe book a trip to So. Cal or better yet, a lovely town in Mexico and taste the real deal...until then, don't bother to go...
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Karen
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, September 24, 2006

I adore this place. I have been visiting since it opened in 1998 and it is still as great as it was then. The food is Mexican in origin but they have managed to diversify the food into a kind of "mexican new cuisine", with all the old favourites but updated. An example is the sumptious honey duck fajita (i guarantee you won't find that anywere else!) which comes sizzling on the plate with a whole host of accompaniments- fresh gaucamole, salsa etc... As many others also say, it isn't only the food that is fantastic - it's the whole package. The atmosphere is phenomenal with the music gradually getting louder and louder past 8:30pm, until some people can't help but get up and dance - even on the bar! The service is far better then i have experienced than in even some of London's top restaurants - even when packed. They make you feel comfortable with your surroundings, don't push you to hurry up, are prompt and efficient and always with a smile.

I will go as far as to say that this place is one of only a few factors that is putting Streatham back on it's feet and becoming what it was 20 years ago - a wonderful, cosmopolitan area that is to be cherished.
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S.A
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, May 14, 2006

Oh dear!... What would have been a good meal for four was completley ruined by the incompetance of The Manager who completely failed to deal with what should have been a trivial but valid complaint regarding the soft drinks dispenser. Whilst the food and Cocktails wre adequate 3 spirit/mixer orders were flat and un-drinkable due to a problem with the mixer gun. Rather than offer a refund or even exchange for the vodka/lemonade the manager refused to accept the problem and instead stood his ground and argued with us or patronised us. We won't be returning which is a shame really because the food was rather nice.
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Alan Arscott
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 5
Saturday, April 15, 2006

El Chicos has been the setting for several fantastic nights with the girls, and also with the guys. Very generous portions, wide range of strong, fuity cocktails and lively waiters!

The music is loud and cheesy, and there are enough sombreros to go around! The food is tasty, simple and arrives quickly too.

The staff are all good fun, and certainly good looking...

A perfect place for a fun-filled night in the South!
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Jessica
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 7
Wednesday, February 22, 2006