Melany xo
The menu is a diverse fiesta of options, providing something for everyone. Personally, the Birria tacos stole the show for me. While they could use a bit more flavor, the array of sauces offered managed to elevate the experience.
Now, let's talk about the elote (the street corn) – absolute delight! The combination of flavors and that street-style flair really hit the spot. Service, thankfully, was on point during this visit, a noticeable improvement from some lackluster past encounters. An added bonus is the bar setup, perfect for those looking to unwind with a drink.
Overall, it's a delightful and immersive experience. The vibrant Mexican theme, coupled with tasty dishes, makes this place a charming spot to enjoy a flavorful meal and a good time.
Leonard Mason
Amazing vibes,great food and great margaritas. Came here for lunch before work and had a great meal with my wife. The elote was very flavorful and had that chargrilled taste, the tacos were crunchy and vibrant, the nachos were well balance and the ceviche was light and spicy. We had the red bull watermelon margarita and we were definitely feeling it by the time we left.
ROSIE
Absolutely LOVED this establishment! By far one of the BEST Nachos we’ve ever had! We went with the Nacho Carne and the meat was to die for! The seasoning, tenderness, it was overall mouth watering deliciousness. We also had the Chicken Empanadas, and while I was not a fan, my daughter loved them. She really enjoyed it with the salsa that comes with it. I had the Elote and have no complaints whatsoever it is what it is, yummy corn! Lastly we had the Quesabirria it was good, but I will say after having those nachos, nothings can compare to that meat on the nachos! Overall, a great experience with some yummy food! No complaints what so ever. So get on over to Lucha Cartel for some good eats!!!
Karen Melo Ticas, CFP
(Note: I write these reviews in part for my own nationwide business clients, for travel inspiration! I’m a financial planner - CFP®️practitioner - with a focus on retirement wealth strategies, primarily serving business women and LGBTQ individuals. #VirtualPlanningCraftedWithCare)
If you ever find yourself in Philly, and you like Mexican food, this is an entertaining spot! First, I must be pointed out that this is Mexican-American fusion vs what I consider authentic Mexican cuisine. I’m ok with that. We caught them at happy hour which had a decent selection of foods and drinks. We had some of that and also regular menu items. All of it was fresh and tasty!
If you have a gluten allergy, the options are limited but there is enough to work with and the menu is labeled. Our server was also on top of confirming what was safe for me. In fact, the service is spot on! We got checked on often and the food came out hot and fast. In full disclosure, we came at slow time because it was raining out, but I feel great service is the norm.
This is a fun place in terms of decore and ambiance. It’s absolutely LGBTQ friendly, as evident by their Drag Brunch. (I would have loved this!) I’d say it’s a great place for couples and seniors. Given it’s a bar, I can’t say it’s kid appropriate.
Prices were fair for the food quality and location. We liked it here. Check them out and enjoy!
Oz Sultan
A pretty metal taco spot with amazing Lucia art adorning the entire establishment.
There's a great selection of both carnivore and vegetarian/vegan taco options.
Also they have salsa instruction - some evenings which is really kind of ridiculously fun, if you're up for it.
Minh Hua
This is a great Mexican restaurant/ bar. The decor is artsy Mexican. There are mask on the ledge by the ceiling that you might miss. The facilities is large but not too big. There's a large bar and a large dance floor in the evenings when they remove the tables. Pricing is very reasonable. Beers start at $5. On Tuesdays there's Latin dance night and it brought a good size crowd
Nubian Goddess
My family and I had dinner here celebrating my dad’s birthday and the Host and server were really welcoming! I like the ambiance snd I liked the way the set of the restaurant. Very comfy and homey vibe. I had the vegan mushroom and sweet potato tacos and they were delicious! There was really no cons! Loved it and so did my family!
Wanderlust Wanderer
This Mexican cuisine is located in a popular area and is great for family and friends. Price was reasonable considering I have a family dinner of 5 people here.
Patty Aguinaga
We are from out of town and visited this place twice within the five days we were there. First time we had the Blue Demon margarita (amazing!), the infused tequila (definitely has a kick!), the elote, and some beers. The second time we had the carne asada tacos (some of the softest meat I've had at a restaurant!!), the shrimp tacos (to die for!!! soooo cheesy!!!) refried beans, chips and green salsa. Everything was so tasty and the employees are soo nice!!!
Cynthia J. Roman-Cabrera
Here for the cheap margaritas, Latino top hits and excellent attentive service. Always my go to for that $6 happy hour pick me up. The chicken empanada was bomb too.
Lifestylista
Me and my friend first time here was yesterday. I enjoy the atmosphere and service was fast. Our server was nice and quick with bringing our food. I only wished the tortilla chips were hot and that the queso was melted and hot. Overall I enjoyed coming here and the decor is nicely done.
Tiffany Choice
Taco Tuesday in Philly was phenomenal. The last stop on my "Made in America" 4th of July tour and it was worth the wait opening at 3 pm. Lucha Cartel is nestled in Old City/The Historic District on Chestnut. It appears to be yet another "designer taco" bar with basic watered down drinks to accompany tasteless tacos. ¡Que Sorpresa!
I opted for sangria anticipating a lightweight beverage to be able to cap off the holiday on a mellow note. Was I wrong. It packed a punch.
My favorite taco, the Philly Cheesteak taco, I swapped the steak for chicken and voila, it was still good. It's the classic Philly cheesesteak combo, encompassing all the classic flavors, melded well together without all of the bread.
The empanadas were full of meat/mushrooms and flavor. I tried the shredded chicken and mushroom as well. The green sauce was a great accompaniment.
Ceviche can go all the way left if done in a rush and the leche de tigre isn't prepared right. LC covered all bases with this recipe. The right amount of flaky bass drenched in Leche de tigre juices with hints of fresh jalapeños, lime, salt and garnishment made this dish a star of Taco Tuesday for me. A lot of restaurants in America have yet to come close to this flavor.
Of course the standard staple of homemade chips and guac were enjoyable. The heaping serving of guac was enough to have on the go as well.
To boot, the service was outstanding and rapid. I'm not sure if that is because I was the first to arrive or if that is the usual standard. All in all, Lucha Cartel is worth the 5-star rating. I would not hesitate to take a Taco Tuesday roadtrip to Philly just to repeat this experience.
Jeewantha Bandara
We haven’t had authentic Mexican food before. We were in old city and decided to try this place on a whim. We ordered the Nachos, soft tacos with pork, and soft tacos with wild mushrooms.
First of all, the star of the show was the Nachos. It was a huge platter. Enough for four people (seriously!!). And it was delicious. So cheesy and had generous helpings of beans, yuca, tomato, and onions. Just amazing.
The mains were great as well. I got my tacos with no pineapple. The pork was succulent and had just the right bite. The tacos went great with the house guacamole.
All in all definitely a 4.5 star experience. Unfortunately Google doesn’t let me rank a place at 4.5 stars. So I’m going to give it 4 stars. Definitely recommend it. The interior decoration (heavily inspired by Lucha Libre) is also eclectic and eye catching. The servers were friendly and were quick to change our plates when we noticed that they weren’t washed and wiped properly.
Total cost came out to around $50.
Nazmun Nahar
THESE NACHOS ARE SO GOOD. I literally go there for their nachos and it definitely can fill 2-3 people. Their elote is actually a whole corn on a stick and heavily seasoned. So yummy! Doesn’t get more authentic than that. They have day of the dead Mexican theme all year long and they’re a club/bar after 9. Go for lunch and have a great time. Never had a bad experience here!
Roberta Tepper
Awesome happy hour… it is 3pm until 6pm and the food and drinks are great!! Friendly staff, my waitress suggested the Philly cheese steak taco and it was so good and so filling. This is such a cool place and everyone is so nice.
Brent Reece
The food here was fantastic! Even the cheese quesadilla was great.
Sharron Vaughn
The food, atmosphere and drinks were excellent here! We came at the end of happy hour and got $5 house margaritas and 2/$5 chicken empanadas and they were so delicious, fresh and surprisingly authentic. For the main course we ordered the Mexican Mixed Grill for 2 and it was so much food and the steak and all the meats were cooked perfectly. We will definitely be back and our server was absolutely amazing! Such an awesome experience!
Maureen Stanley
Do NOT eat here if you have Celiac Disease or gluten intolerance! My daughter and I (both have Celiac) recently dined at Lucha Cartel as their menu has gluten-free marked clearly on menu with a GF symbol. We ordered the guacamole and chips (marked gluten-free) and began eating them. When we went to order our main meal, I let our server know we had Celiac Disease. She immediately said that we can't eat the chips as they were fried in a non-dedicated fryer. We asked why they were marked gluten-free and she said she didn't know. My daughter and I had already eaten most of the guacamole and chips at this point. I'm extremely sensitive to gluten and expressed my concern that their menu was misleading and potentially dangerous health-wise for diners. I asked to speak to the manager and he essentially didn't acknowledge that their menu was incorrect (several of the menu items that were marked gluten-free were actually cross contaminated). I am so disappointed that I was mislead, ending up eating gluten, AND was charged full price for meals that made us both sick. We always research where to safely eat gluten-free (Philadelphia has some wonderful options). Lucha Cartel is not one of them. Their lack of service, poor attitude, and contaminated food is unacceptable.
Sonja Long
The worst most bland tortilla soup and tacos I've ever tasted! The only thing good was the coco-rita! Expensive and not worth the money! Chipotle is better than this place the service was so bad I never saw my waitress again after I ordered and when I.asked the other waitress she asked who my waitress was? I had to go get my check they never came back to my table
David Polidoro
love this place. the best Mexican food in Philly... love the imagery and vibe of the place, and the people there are great... our waitress Callie was wonderful... I will keep coming back.
Dominique J. Chavous
So I hadn’t eaten here but the dance scene vibe was on point !!! I didn’t think that it was going to be full of people!! Everyone was friendly! It was sooo much fun!!
Ronaldo Francelino
A very nice place to come drink a couple of beers and taste some starters. Very nice and friendly staff. Sure This is a place to return more times.
Ashley Atwood
Firstly, the ambiance is rad. I love the juxtaposition of Luchador and Judeo-Christian icons. I didn't know where to let my eyes settle.
The food went beyond my expectations. The chips seemed made in house, the salsa nice and spicy (I dislike going to Mexican restaurants and finding their salsa has absolutely no heat). I am vegan and there were plenty of options for me which was of course wonderful! I had there sweet potato tacos (sans cheese) and I highly recommend them.
I noticed people complained about the service. We were served promptly, waters were always filled, and chips and salsa were always filled.
I hope they open a location here in Reno!
Michael Shafer
Really good food, attentive and friendly staff. Gluten free enchiladas! Amazing! Thanks y’all! Michael from Harrisburg
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