Tocayo Taqueria & Tequila

My friend and I stopped in on Sunday around 12:30 and ordered huevos rancheros and the brunch burrito from the lunch menu offered until 3:00. We enjoyed the welcoming atmosphere, good quality fresh food, and reasonable prices.

Tocayo needs no introduction: Shadyside's favorite Mexican eatery! A full on menu featuring tacos, burritos, chimichangas, soups, salads, and deserts to name a few. The drinks menu is quite extensive. And don't forget the lunch and happy hour specials! Full disclosure: yes it's shadyside, but at this price point for Mexican food(one of the more affordable cuisines), It's only fair that I must be ultra critical in judgement. The restaurant itself is absolutely stunning. The space is Beautifully dressed out, from the eclectic bar, to the colorful wall decor, to the cozy dining room....there is clear intentionality everywhere you look. Food: the chips and salsa are awesome. Delivered tableside warm! The chips are thicker and crispier than 9/10 others you've probably had...and I like it! The tomatillo feels every bit as fresh as it should be while the queso....I mean, can you really mess up queso? It's hot, gooey, melty cheese. Fish tacos: this isnt just a battered peice of fish thrown on a taco. There are so many layers to this dish....cod, slaw, pico and avocado cream. The fish itself is flavorful but the batter was not at all crispy. And unfortunately, as complex as the other ingredients were, none of those flavors came through. octopus tacos: a lot bit of the same story here, a nicely prepared octopus in a well dressed taco, but overall lacking any depth of flavor. Tacoya, despite some of the taco technical shortcomings, has too much good going for it to be ignored. Overall a good experience, worth another go. Even the vibe alone is worth the trip!

We brought a group of friends here one Sunday for dinner when Shady Grove was full. They LOVED it! Not only did the bartender make an actual Manhattan, but I had the spicy pineapple cocktail this time. I remembered how much I like their salad dressing. And everybody enjoyed their tacos; I preferred the cauliflower to the beet one. Great service. We'll be back.

The chicken chorizo taco was our favorite here. It's pretty worth it to go for $5 Taco Tuesday. We also ordered a plate of some sort of steak. It was good but I preferred the tacos a lot more. Chips get one refill before you get charged for more. They come with queso and I think tomatillo. The queso was sooo good and a favorite among my whole group. Will definitely be back for another Taco Tuesday.

Service and food were good. The different margarita options were unique.Food was good as well and the ambiance was very nice. A bit of a trendy, fancy vibe. Don't forget to look up at the ceiling

I stopped by with a couple of friends yesterday evening at 5:30 and was happy to find out they have happy hour specials from 4-6pm. We got quesadillas which were huge and my friends got mojitos. The inside was super cute and I really liked the vibe. The service was pretty speedy and we were able to get our food, drinks, and checks pretty quickly. They were able to do separate checks with no issues.

Had another great dinner at Tocayo last night! The food is always super filling & delicious. The guacamole is a huge portion & a great sharing appetizer. I got the shrimp & carnitas tacos, both of which were really flavorful & quite different from each other. The shrimp were huge & crispy, served with a bean paste & sweet plantains, while the carnitas were shredded & served with pickled spicy veggies. To drink, I had the spicy pineapple margarita & it was perfectly balanced (with a tajin rim too - yum!). Service was a little slow, but the place was also super busy. The ambiance, as I noted in my previous review, is really cool & funky. I love this spot!Food: ADrinks: AService: B-Ambiance: B+

Fantastic tacos and delicious cocktails. You cannot go wrong with this place! They have a great selection of tequilas.

Wow!I can tell you this is Mexican food like you never had before!I don't know where in Mexico they have food like this, but wherever it is, tear the wall down so we can get over there!!We started with the Chicken Nachos, then chicken chili soup and salad.Everything is really fresh!We tried 4 different tacos (Tocayo)The shrimp The Cauliflower and Portabella (awesome)ChickenChicken and Chorizo.Without a doubt, the shrimp was our favorite Herminic was our server and did an awesome job!Great Job Guys we'll be back soon!

I am so happy I found this place! The tacos are amazing and the server/bartender makes the best drinks. One of my favorite places.