Reviews of Taqueria Nacional (Restaurant)

Michael Rand

Great summer place for tacos. Been here a few times. Chorizo is very good and their pico de gallo is excellent. Prices are reasonable for DC.

Mark Porter

Excellent taco selection, close to authentic street tacos. Albeit a street in DC with corresponding prices...

Brittany Ferreras

This is a very authentic restaurant with a great food selection. I usually get the chicken tacos and a quesadilla. They also participate in the Five Stars rewards program which is awesome. I was able to receive a reward of buy two tacos, get one free. The food is made quickly with fresh ingredients. They also have a cool outdoor seating area.

Steve Levy

Fun atmosphere and excellent authentic Mexican food. Can get a bit noisy when crowded

Josh Franklin

Great tacos. so so horchata. food tends to get cold quickly here, so eat fast. The salsa swings from really hot to mild in a matter of days.

Antoun Issa

The value for what you pay is shockingly low. Taqueria Nacional gives tacos a fast food makeover, and the quality of the food is certainly fast food trash material - except at a high cost. There’s nothing good I can really say about this place. In a city filled with taco options, I’d avoid this one.

Patricia Coleman

Ok

Joseph Sosa

Needs a little upgrade like bigger tortillas these miniature midget tacos don't really fill up besides the rest of stuff y'all good..

Laura Fries

Tasty and fun with a friendly staff. Everything is very fresh.

Walt P

Pretty good tacos, but a bit pricey for what you're getting. My girlfriend and I both agreed that Bartaco back in FL is better and cheaper while being just as trendy. Still, it was a good meal.

Henry McCants

Great spot for late night fare or if you aren't in the mood to wait for a 14th street restaurant table. Can be crowded with likeminded folks. The fish tacos are rather amazing. They have a variety of toppings. My advice is less is more. Disclaimer: I haven't met a fish taco, I disliked.

Scotty James

Not bad, not the best, but they do have good taco deals

Steven A Rodriguez

Good bites when we visited.

Borys Pierov

It's like an island of Mexican paradise in concrete jungles! Try Carnitas or Shrimp taco, be sure to get a margarita and sit outside next to a fountain. BTW, it's located in old USPS building.

Ali Cherry

Probably the best gourmet taco spot in DC - fast, cheap, tons of choices, fresh and delicious. Highly recommend!

Kenneth Davis

This is my favorite place in the area to go at night. Their tacos are so freaking good, and I'm always excited to see what the new special is going to be. Even on weekends their happy hour goes super late, so it's a great place for late night munchies and drinks without spending much money.

Caze _Shark_11

Everything good except the drinks too small

Aparna Miano

Little bites of deliciousness. The flavors are as good as Oyamel but cheaper. The fish tacos are superb. Cool decor. Yucca fries are awesome. And they have horchata! Takes me back to good LA food.

Melissa Chiou

Fish tacos and quesadillas are pretty good. Try the yuca fries.

Lindsey Casella

Yum! Quick service and delicious! Ordered ahead 4 tacos and chips with pico de gallo / guac for my partner and I. They told us the tacos would be ready in five minutes and surely enough when we arrived our order was prepared for pickup. Enjoyed adding the sides (guac and pico) to my premium tacos. While I typically only order two tacos, these were on the smaller side so I wish I had ordered three. Would definitely plan to go back, but next time stay for drinks as there’s a great outdoor patio space!!

John Allison

A fantastic, well-priced, taco joint in Dupont Circle-ish neighborhood. Their fried yucca fries are really good and so is their egg taco (seriously).

Morgane Renoir

Pretty good Mexican food! I grew up in California, so I'm very picky about my tacos. They have a nice selection, and cheap drinks during happy hour. It's nice if you are in a rush. They are very fast. I also like their brunches. it's nice and simple food!

Eric Rosenthal

Myself and everyone I ate with got food poisoning 3 hours after dining here. Travis were mediocre and overpriced

Thalian Rojas

Nice ambient and delicious food!

Shelbi Svoboda

Prepped in double corn street taco shells, the $3.50 - $4.25 are consistently good while unremarkable. There are no specials but they have decent margaritas, ample seating, and nice staff.

Ariel Fernandez

Ok service

B A

Honestly, these might be the worst tacos I have had in my life. Not only that, also tortillas were very small (makes the tacos look big), and they charge $4.25 for a taco... Just drive up to 14th and find a restaurant with better quality and price. 2 stars goes to the atmosphere only

Alice Wang

Taqueria Nacional was once named one of the five best new Mexican restaurants in the US by Bon Appetit in 2007 and is known for their organic, vegetarian, and gluten-free options. It is owned by John Fulchino James Beard Award winner Ann Cashion who also own Cashion's Eat Place. My friend recommended that we try this spot, and I being a huge taco lover, couldn't say no. I ordered three tacos - two steak and one carnitas. Each taco was $3.50, typical DC prices. When ordering, it's a bit like Chipotle. They make the tacos and then ask if you want cilantro, onions, sauces, etc. Luckily, I didn't experience a long wait time. They are fairly unique in that they offer eggplant, cactus, egg-and-green-chili, and even acorn squash tacos. The tacos were good. Both the steak and carnitas were very chewy and tender. Taqueria Nacional also offers quesadillas and some other specials. The restaurant is a former Post Office and you can still see remnants left behind. For example, an old rusty mailbox has been repurposed to serve as where you stack your trays. Overall, the restaurant is clean and has plenty of seats. While good, I still prefer Tacos El Costalilla and La Mexicana Bakery in Alexandria for my taco needs. Also, I'm not a big fan of their wire racks. Toppings fell through the holes and onto the table. A lot messier than just using a closed serving plate or dish.

Brendan Quinn

Great, affordable food - nice happy hour too!

Kevin Jeter

The tacos are excellent and the margaritas are strong. Atmosphere is laid-back with a certain Mediterranean charm. Best to go in the summer months and enjoy a taco in the garden.

Amar Bhat

Great tacos and salsa, but a little over priced when you consider that the tacos are very small. I would have expected maybe 4 tacos that size for 8 dollars, but instead they are each 2.75.

Katie Curiel

Great food, including a variety of vegan and vegetarian options. Nice looking and relaxed atmosphere. But service was lacking...messed up my order six times with no apologies and seemed like they didn't care. No smiles. No happy greetings. No thank yous. 12 PM on Friday. All three of them. Menu is on several boards. It would be easier to have one menu where you actually order. Music is nice and positive but it would be nice if there was actually Mexican and Latin pop music.

Angus Kathage

Good food, nice decor but service is average.

Carissa Lawlor

Being from AZ, I am very picky about my tacos. These are definitely on my to go to list. Full flavors, multiple taco options, great guac, and a bar to round up your experience.

Rodrigo Fernandez

The tacos are OK, nothing great. The staff is not so friendly and the bar tender is more interested in chatting with girls than pouring drinks for others.

Peter Bepler

This place has slipped since it first opened a few years ago (would give it 3 stars then but only 2 now). The food is just okay, nothing special. The service is sub par. The lackadaisical attitude is getting old. Lots of standing around by the staff at times. Why have 6 people working behind the counter when only 2 seem to be actually working? They obviously get by on their location but would really benefit from tightening up their operation and improving the customer experience even just a little bit. This is based on multiple visits so not a one off review; I live close by so it's convenient for me but not on my list of favs by any means.

Stephen Pirpiris

Food tastes amazing, fresh and came out fast.

Shoshanna Jiang

Love this place!! Great atmosphere, great tacos and yucca fries.

Daniel McDonald

Great food, great service and they serve beer !!

Jake Grover

Crazy good authentic tacos, prices keep creeping up though....

Johan Lopez

Food is ok, but overpriced , the decor is nice but roasted is everywhere and It doesn't make. Any sanitary eating environment ...

Jack Gregori

Very solid taco spot

Steve Edwards

Food was good, no burritos, and they could leave the attitude at home!

Lucia Orejarena

Delicious, reasonably priced food

Brett Ettinger

Great Street style tacos

Ryan Lingo

Great tasting food and friendly service.

Leonardo Sempértegui

Good place but they close at 10 pm on Thursdays, not 11 pm. So be aware!

Pierre Gomez

Tacos were okay, so some roaches.

Aman AtPeace

A little pricey for what you get, and the cheaper options tasted best.

Allison Guarino

This place is great for big groups that want to eat and drink before a night out on 14th street. You order at the counter individually so separate checks are easy. The dining area is casual and can accommodate your tables as you arrange them. I ordered shrimp and beef tacos one time and quesadilla another. Both were good and I would get again. Tortilla soup was great too. I like the combo option where you get rice and beans as well. They have a great little selection of beers and frozen margs so it's a great one stop shop for a Mexican food with drinks.

Paul Baldwin

Absolutely do not order from this restaurant via any food delivery app. Consistently, this place has been out of certain items and INSISTED on preparing and delivering the rest of my order. Had I known that 33% - 50% of what I ordered from the menu would end up being unavailable, I would have made another choice. As a consumer, I should be allowed to make my own food decision myself. I should not be forced to pay for a partial order on the insistence of an ill prepared restaurant. And the reason I am leaving this as a review for the restaurant is because the when the restaurant called to tell me they were out of half of my order, I was unable to cancel. I then had to call the food delivery app who then called the restaurant. I was then told that it was too late because the restaurant already prepared (partial) my order.

Andrew MacDonald

My absolute favorite Mexican place in DC! Very casual, authentic take out restaurant serving tacos, quesadillas, etc. They also have beers and margartias to top it off. I'm hesitant to even write this review because I don't want it to get any busier.

Diego Vapore

Bad food

Phil Oswald Christano

Nothing fancy, but good food.

Allison Toupin

Thought the steak taco tasted a little like fish. I thought maybe it was just because it was sitting near seafood earlier. An hour later I realized that was not the case, and has had me sick for hours.

Dustizle Hansome

The food I had here was fresh, simple and delicious, within a standard taqueria menu that included some tasteful innovations (like bison tongue tacos). Not a chain restaurant!

A. Thomas Grunley

Taqueria Nacional is a good, quick option for what I believe to be very underrated Authentic Mexican Fare. I found all of the menu options to be cooked almost perfectly. Their carnitas were rivaled only by their fabulously-done steak. Taqueria Nacional is a very good (and very fairly priced) option, though it is far from the best taqueria in town.

Jim Emlet

Good tacos

Val B.

Pretty decent tacos. A bit pricey, but they do pile it on

Jonny Newburgh

I love their quesadillas. Everything else is fine. They have a good happy hour deal at the bar.

Ashlie Williams

Great tacos! Good vegetarian options...gotta try the squash taco...unlike anything I've had before. Delicious!

J

Basic hipster trap. Over priced. You pay for the "extra" flare they put on a traditional taco.

Rhonda Watson

Great pork tacos

MusiqueLuver

I had the carnitas, steak, chicken, fish, lamb, and egg & green chile tacos. The soft shell for their tacos tastes nasty. The meat for all of their tacos except for the carnitas taco were cold, making them taste uncooked. It tasted so horrible, paired with the nasty soft taco shell, that I spit it out. It left such a bad taste in my mouth, it made me feel nauseous. One good thing that this place has going for them is their egg & green chile taco. It's really good, and in my opinion, tastes the best with the soft shell. The carnitas taco is decent, but nothing to speak much about. The fish taco isn't the best, but compared to the cold and uncooked lamb, steak, and chicken tacos, it was decent. I gave one star for the egg and green chile taco, and a 2nd star for the great customer service I received from everyone in the assembly line down to the person at the register. If I go back to this place again, it'll only be for their egg & green chile taco.

Nick T

Good happy hour specials and flavorful tacos.

Linith Paltrow

Very cool concept and delicious tacos. There was a line up of meats, beans, salsas, cheeses, onions and cilantro that you could choose from. There were seats inside and an area that was out front outside.

Dan Barrie

Marinated steak is delicious. Lamb preparation with pickled vegetables has great flavor combination. Faux distressed interior.

Kyle Pool

Amazing tacos at a great price and the atmosphere is perfect for a casual /fun affair.

Manuel Colón

Kind of an uppity taco shop. Be prepared for over priced, tiny tacos. The flavor was all right, but not exactly sure why you're paying so much here.

Graham Campbell

This place has great atmosphere, but service is a little lacking. We put in an order for yucca fries and paid for them, but they never got put in, with no apologies or offer to cover the cost. Also the prices here are high. For my money, Chillango on V St is the way to go.

Alex Adaro

We ate at this resto on Fodor's recommendation. I was largely disappointed. It is overpriced for what you get. The quality of the food is average and the service perfunctory. The refried beans are the wateriest i've ever had. This place would not survive in Toronto.

Michael Barboza

Large selection of tacos to choose from. The eggs and cilantro taco is delicious.

Andrew Sanders

Excellent and very interesting tacos. They use ingredients like cactus, tongue, lamb, squash, etc. So there are lots of funky options, but plenty of normal ones too. The portions are pretty small, though, so prepare to get 3-4 tacos ($3-4 each)

Ernie Haffner

Overpriced and mediocre

Mihret Redda

The yuca fries are the best. I would recommend quesedillas if you're hungry though. The tacos are a bit too small.

Derrick W

The food is decent, and less anglicized than what you usually find in DC's trendy neighborhoods. Carne asada and carnitas were relatively well executed, though the latter was somewhat lacking in flavor. The price point was 20% higher than what I expected for steam tables and counter service, even when accounting for the local rents. Fine by me if the staff are paid a living wage; definitely not cool if they are not.

Alexander Dornstauder

The national taqueria is a nice spot. The atmosphere is very friendly and the food is great. Everything except the quesadilla and the fried fish is gluten free. It's like a better, but more expensive, Chipotle for small tacos. Located right off U street it's not a bad spot. I'll probably go again. tl;dr - good location. Good food. Would go again.

dirk wallace

Get the carnitas tacos!

Arlene L'Heureux

Aren't very friendly, make you feel like maybe you're a bit of a bother. But foods, drinks good.

Colette Gabrielle

This place is nothing special. I got criticized by the bartender on May 30 for asking for a "Cuba Libre" and he condescendingly asked me if I "even know what I was ordering." Like si mi amor, I know what I'm ordering, this is how I am accustomed to saying. Their music selection for dancing is pretty bad in my opinion (but at least there is no cover charge.) The food is decent but over-stylized and over-priced (that is the norm in DC so meh.)

Heidi Friedrich

Love these tacos.

fanu chavez

Great flavor, but be ready to be robbed, 15 bucks for 2 mini tacos and small drink

jason w

Very busy, quick turnaround. Good quick bite

James Garren

Just so-so, in my experience.

A O

I have been searching for legit Mexican food like the kind I grew up eating in El Paso. Not Tex-Mex, I'm talking real authentic Mexican food. :) Finally found a place after too many years in DC! I thought I'd never find the one!

Renan Lopes

Great tacos and great prices

Brent ODea

Delicious!

Enqk02

Awesome!

Austin Graff

When most other U Street NW area restaurants offer hour-long waits on a weekend dinner slot, Taqueria Nacional usually has seating for groups. Does that mean the food isn't as good? Not necessarily. If you like tacos, you'll enjoy these. They have a simple menu and have their straight up tacos and their specialty tacos. If taste is what you're going for, get the carnitas taco. The flavors are simple, but really pop. All their tacos come on two corn tortillas. If you're hungry, don't order less than 3 tacos. Their queso is a little soupy, but still tasty. They have frozen margs for cheap. The space itself is huge with outdoor seating as well.

Akshat Vishal

My fav taco place in the town

Al G Nau

Delicious tongue tacos, corn tortillas, all kinds of toppings,

J. Jack Lopez

Good tacos for the price

Wayne Lin

I found Tacqueria Nacional while on a walk down 14th street to discover and try new places that had opened up. I like that it's on a side street and quieter than the hustle and bustle on 14th directly. My overall experience here was just okay though. I had a bison tongue and fish taco. The bison tongue was very tender and delicious. I also had a gazpacho, which was okay. The horchata I had wasn't very good. Skip it. Finally, the service could use some improvement. Seems like the team here is still trying to find their groove. They missed half of our order and the guy putting toppings on my tacos didn't hear me clearly and put things on I didn't ask for. Onwards to checking out other 14th joints. I probably won't be back to this one.

Jéri Ogden

Delicious.

Scott Annis

Nice patio out front. Awesome reverse happy hour. $3 DC Brau.

Ben Fields

gr8 tacos as well as margaritas - the strawberry is on POINT!!

Colleen Grant

I'm surprised to see so many 2 and 3 star reviews of this place. Taqueria Nacional is one of my go to places in the summer when I want a quick, cheap dinner and a delicious frozen margarita. The decor and architecture of the restaurant is really cool and it's neat that they have maintained some aspects of the original structure--it's in an old post office building. I really like the tostadas and the frozen margaritas are only $5.95! Pretty hard to beat that.

jason wang

Can be really busy but fast turnover.

Chime Nwankwo

Delicious!

Lacy D

Super low key but really good food. Kind of hidden on a side road but their chicken and steak tacos were superb. You get 2 tiny corn tortillas with each taco order plus add all the toppings you like. The chicken quesadilla was really good too but a little pricey for the size.

A. A.小丹

Bison tongue taco + cactus taco. Mic drop.

Ilsy Marilyn

Great taste but portions are SMALL! Quit being stingy. Life isn't just about money. How about making people happy by satisfying their hunger and not having to leave to get more food out there bc your portions are extra small..

Tom Reiter

Great tacos, informal atmosphere

Brionne Griffin

My time living in Texas taught me one thing–there is no greater snack than a taco. I came here one afternoon when I was running errands in the area and needed an energy boost. Boy did I get one. I ordered the Egg and Green Chile taco and what a treat it was. Everything was fresh, the salsa was spicy, and the imported seltzer water was extra bubbly. Prices are fantastic for what you get, and the service is great.

Brian Rowe

Tacos are small but tasty. Quesadilla was soggy within 30 seconds

nicole foster

Worst tacos. Tasteless and blah. Better tacos...um anywhere...even Bartaco. I thought my chef husband was being supercritical, but no. Not worth a dime.

Kyla Sabado

For Mexican food in DC, you're not going to get much better. Put this place in the southwest and the stars would go down, but very thankful to have something in the area that actually tastes Mexican. Walking in there's a haze of smoke coming off the grill from the carne asada, and I'm a sucker for the (seasonal) stuffed squash blossoms. The corn tortillas are better than you'll get in most places, and the tacos have appropriate taco toppings (aka not shredded cheddar and lettuce). Alambre is on the menu, which is rare to find in general, and it's not half bad. Also the aguas frescas are refreshing and delicious.

Erik Herchek

Tasty, flavorful, authentic steak tacos. Guacamole and pico de gallo were great sides with the chips and also as additions on top of the steak tacos. Ordered as carry out via phone and they were ready in less than 5 minutes. Would try dining on the outside patio for the next trip.

Ilhan Tanir

Good ambiance. Relax place. Only thing that ı ordered lamb taco and it was ice cold.. idn't that supposed to be somewhat warm serving? Still good place to hang out.

James Mcgregor

Something a little different, very tasty. Would eat there again.

Trey Johnson

My favorite Quesadillas in DC I get chicken and shrimp. Personally I request they remove the jalepeno peppers from the Quesadilla.

Andrew Miglino

Awesome guac and fried yucca. Fairly small, and therefore expensive, margaritas. But they were real tasty

monique kerr

Just like I remembered! I was disappointed when Johnny on the half shell & taqueria nacional moved. So happy I googled the new location and was able to stop by today. I love their chorizo tostadas!

Adrian Toro

Overpriced, cold, pointless tacos.

Asad Bandealy

Taco was good, not great. But the atmosphere is tops. Located in a historic building (used to be a post office) with exposed wood ceiling, 90s throwbacks on the speakers, and a cool little patio. Also, self-serve water from a huge brass cistern with faucet.. it's an experience.

Mari Ramos

good.. !!

Zerline Hughes

Quick, delicious and several options. Can't wait to return

Baird Wallace

Maybe a little pricey for what it is, but good food, friendly staff, and the neighborhood is expensive too.

Sunil bhalla

Bit overpriced Tacos are small but flavors are on point I had a fish taco, lamb taco and the salad/bean special

Holly Madison

The best fresh food...

Alseta Gholston

The lamb taco was delicious!

Dorian Kantor

Best lamb tacos, fish is great too! Refried beans kind of hard to eat lol. Amazing decor.

Douglas

Food is fairly standard taqueria fare but well made. Space is inviting, with out-door seating if the weather is nice. Not worth a trip but if you are in the area well worth trying.

Matthew Panton

Really good tacos and a nice late-night happy hour makes this DC fast-casual staple. Slightly more expensive then you expect.

Kris Rivas

Good authentic tacos

Ian Morrison

Great tacos

Virginia Lawson

Low key, good food ,reasonable prices.

Dylan Bramblett

Conveniently located a few doors down from where my girlfriend and I were staying. Food was good and prepared quickly. Cost seemed a little high for the portion sizes. We ordered 4 tacos, a quesadilla, an order of yuca fries, and some iced teas. Came out to about $30. I could have easily put down another 2 or 3 tacos and I wouldn't say I eat copious amounts of food.

Hari Subhash

Great food but expensive. You can go up to c heights and get similar quality and morr legit stuff for way cheaper.

Troy Gonsalves

Delicious food, the yucca fries is a good addition to any taco combination. Margaritas are legit!

Amanda Berger

Was excited to have this open near my office and finally had a chance to try it for lunch today. Sadly I was pretty underwhelmed. Decor is nice and very welcoming. The menu is very basic: tacos ($2.50), premium tacos ($3.50), quesadillas, salads, tostadas (they also have breakfast). We were the only 4 people in line, and it seemed like they were really trying to hurry us along. I was asked if my order was 'for here or to go' before I even finished ordering what I wanted. I ordered the chorizo taco, squash blossom taco (special), and yuca fries. To their embarrassment they have spelled it "yucca" on everything- no one wants to eat a tropical plant, thank you very much. My order was wrong when presented to me, and when asked what toppings I wanted the woman didn't even listen- she just put on whatever she wanted. It was really frustrating. The tacos were ok- each comes in 2 corn tortillas- both my tacos were only overlapping a little so that when you try to pick them up they just fall apart. They need to overlap almost entirely to make it possible to eat, so I ended up eating both with a fork- discarding one of the tortillas on each because they were a soggy mess. The yuca fries were good (a bit oversalted) and came with a (runny) garlicky sauce on the side. My coworkers got quesadillas- which you have to order on a separate piece of paper & they take 10 minutes. Nothing to write home about, but really- it's a quesadilla. Overall I'll give it another chance at some point since it is close to work (perhaps breakfast), but for now there are much better places in the area for lunch & dinner. El Centro is right down the street & offers much better food & friendlier service.

Kate Bigam Kaput

I'm torn on Taqueria. I love this eloquently designed space - a converted Post Office with lofty ceilings & an open front, bright colors, & a beautiful outdoor seating space with a fountain. I love how casual it is, that you can stroll in in yoga pants & not feel weird drinking a peach margarita from the bar, as one Foursquare user crowed. I love that it's fast-casual with more style than usual. But I don't always love the food. The yucca fries, for example, are sometimes delicious - crispy on the outside, mushy on the inside, the way they ought to be. Other times, they're disgusting, hardened & stringy on the inside & barely edible. The carnitas remain my favorite of their taco options, flavorful & juicy without feeling heavy, as carnitas sometimes are. But the chorizo & potato tacos, which I love in theory, are usually disappointing in practice, too greasy to be enjoyable. And don't dream of getting them to go - they'll be soggy & soaked through with grease by the time you get home, falling apart as you try to consume them in their foil wrappers. Like I'm said, I'm torn. Taqueria is an adorable, unique space, & when their food is good, it's great. I'm afraid they're going to go out of business for being mediocre, but what I really want is for them to get better so that I WANT to keep going back instead of wondering, every time I choose to walk through the doors, what sort of meal I'm getting myself into.

Jackal Lair Studio

This place was good pricing was good. I would like to go back there again

Mikhala McMasters-Moran

Really delicious quesadillas, tacos, guac, and queso. Everything was fresh and flavorful!

Ron Costigan

It's good.

ADDI Lopez

good...!!!!

Ben

My egg and chorizo breakfast tacos had no chorizo. And the request for no salsa or onions was ignored. So what I got was eggs covered in salsa with no chorizo. I won't be ordering here anymore.

Tom Kumar

Not Recommended! Very bad customer service and spurious food.