El Gordo is a friendly and welcoming neighbourhood taqueria where simplicity rhymes with savoury. Come try one of our delicious tacos, offered at a very affordable price. There is something for everyone; meat, fish or vegetables. Our Mexican-inspired cuisine is bursting with flavour and goes well with one of our exotic cocktails such as margaritas or mojitos! In addition to tacos, you will also find Latin cuisine classics such as quesadillas, burritos and fajitas plates to share. If you want to bring the Mexican Fiesta home, our catering service will delight you!
Overall, diners describe El Gordo as a warm, welcoming Mexican spot with a relaxed vibe, where attentive service, a friendly staff and solid value set the tone. The menu is praised for variety and notes of vegetarian options, with many praising generous portions and flavors on staples like tacos, burritos, fajitas and quesadillas, plus standout desserts such as churros. The atmosphere, including a cozy interior and a pleasant terrace, earns consistent compliments, and live music or jazz nights are often described as a bonus, though some guests find the volume a bit high on busy evenings. While the food is repeatedly highlighted for freshness and quality, a few visits mention occasional delays, uneven timing between courses, or items arriving cooler than expected, and there are occasional comments about seasoning being too salty by some diners. Overall, El Gordo emerges as a reliable favorite for gatherings with friends or family, good value for money, and a welcoming environment that many say they would return to again and again.
An unforgettable evening! The jazz trio's talent & chemistry created music that flowed back & forth between them, like a magical conversation. If you get the chance to see them, go!
Great food, relaxing ambiance, wonderful service! My only suggestion (which applies to all the times we have been there) is to turn down the music volume. Especially when the restaurant is full, it becomes hard to have a normal conversation. Last night we were there late with few people near by, but still the music was too loud. A softer music genre would probably also be a better fit.
Oct 3, 2025
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This place was excellent!! The quesadillas were genuinely some of the best I've had. The cheese was rich & perfectly melted, the meat was seasoned with real depth, & the guacamole was fresh, balanced, & full of flavor. Everything tasted like it was made with care & intention.
The music created an amazing atmosphere without being too loud. The staff were incredibly kind.
Portions were generous & the pricing was more than fair for the quality. It is rare to find a restaurant that gets food, service, & vibe right at the same time. This one is absolutely perfect.
We reserved a table for 2 on a night when a Cuban band was performing. I honestly didn't realize how load it would be. My mistake. We asked to sit outside. Even though the terrasse was closed, the owner turned on the heater for us & serviced our table outside. We listened to the music through the window! Very accommodating, professional & warm ambiance.
The noise level was just too much. Bustling & busy is just fine, & the noise level was very high as it was, but then the music was turned UP. Could not hear my friend speaking.
I visit this restaurant every time I'm in Montreal (30 times so far?) Simply put, the food is great but the service isn't good, especially this time. We waited 20 minutes for the waitress to take our order, she didn't check to see if the food was fine or if we needed anything (didn't have napkins so I had to take them from another table because she wouldn't even look at us when she walked by at the other end of the bar), didn't ask to refill our drinks... basically didn't see her until we stood up to pay because we wanted to leave (waiting 15 minutes with not even a glance to see that we were completely done our food). Whoever owns this place knows exactly how to make Mexican food... delicious, great music & location. Just don't expect the service to be great. It might be because I go during the day (12-4)/not prime time, but I shouldn't see the waitress only at ordering & paying time.
Went there for a late lunch & the place was quiet, not crowded (perfect for us with a baby & stroller), music not too loud & service was very nice & friendly. The cocktails & food (we had the margaritas & burrito bowls) were 10/10. Wilk return to try their tacos for sure.
Came here with my girl & we got cocktails, an appetizer & two types of tacos.
Our appetizer was good we had the fried calamari nothing special but good.
Atmosphere was nice music was good, you can see the inside of the kitchen sitting down which is not smth I personally liked, a curtain or smth would be nice.
My girls cocktail was nice & strong mine too but my margarita came in a small mug that was weird didnt think margarita glasses were hard to get for a restaurant?
Ok so the food, my tacos were sadly cold. Not sure if they’re supposed to be but don’t think so, tasty, but cold. My girl got the birria tacos & they were amazing, hence the 3 stars, hot, had cheese & tasted great.
Sep 29, 2023
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Great food. Service is okay - the personnel is friendly but there’s a shortage of people as the place was crowded. One tiny toilet that was occupied all the time. The music is too loud - if you want to talk, choose the outdoor tables.
the margarita was perfect though it was served to me in a mug like that was weird i want to be holding a cup bigger than my face but still so good. the arrachera tacos were so good like omg but just 2 tacos didn't feel like enough. the music was perfect too i felt like i was at my tios place. thank you!
Authentic Mexican food in a chill environment. It's a very small restaurant so do reserve. The things to improve are the Pastor tacos - they were terrible. The winners were the fish & the shrimp & chorizo tacos (delish!). The only thing that is a real annoyance is the music, it is very loud. Couple that with the extremely high ceiling & it's virtually impossible to hear what others are saying. That's enough to make me rethink going back.
Although, we had reservations at El Gordo, we decided to return another time...music was a little too loud & the place was quite packed.
We were welcomed by a lovely staff member who did her utmost to accommodate us but our group wanted to talk & found that it would be difficult to do so...particularly on a busy Saturday evening. I would still recommend this venue to friends.
