El Rey

I came to try their 3 for $10 tacos and a drink and I really enjoyed the vibe and atmosphere! The service was great and the decorations are super fun. The only thing is they do drape in front of almost every TV which kind of sucks when you're trying to watch the game but aside from that my boyfriend and I really loved the tacos. We did the chicken and al pastor tacos and I loved the chicken ones!! So good. We ended parking in the exchange garage since it's right underneath and has a door once you get inside the main building that leads to El Rey! Super convenient to beat the cold.

This is a fun spot for Mexican in the Ballston area! There is a lot of outdoor seating and the vibes are great. I had the summer smash drink and the grilled chicken tacos. Both were great! Service was quick and you order from your phone.

This place was so good and prices were reasonable! Located in a nice area in Ballston Quarter right next to Hawkers, indoor and outdoor seating.Birria tacos were really yummy and cheesy. It was my friend's first time trying them and she would give it 5 stars. I enjoyed the shrimp taco. Elote was also delicious, $6 may be a lot for an elote but not outrageous. Nachos are very very filling. Not too spicy and flavorful. The jalapenos are not strong at all, for someone who doesn't really like jalapenos.Service is quick, great place to grab a quick bite to eat and drink with friends. There's sports playing on the TVs. Vibe is very casual. I cannot speak to how authentic this place is, but with my low standards for Mexican food in VA, this was a great find!

Cute place in a good location in the Ballston neighborhood :) Both indoor and outdoor seating options were cute. The food was delicious and the margaritas were decently strong. My friend and i split the mango margarita pitcher and it lasted us about 4 drinks each which I'd say is a very good deal! We also split the nachos and got 3 tacos each. The tacos were a pretty good size and were all flavorful :) I'm knocking off 1 star though because the service was pretty slow. They had QR codes to scan to look at the menu, but then we had to wait for someone to take our orders. The restaurant wasn't that busy and yet it still took us a while to order and then we had to wait a bit to get the check. Aside from that, the food and drinks were worth it and I'd come back.

El Rey Arlington has really stepped up their game lately! Went for happy hour and almost got knocked out by two perfectly strong frozen margaritas. The food was pretty standard bar fare, but I was pleasantly surprised at how big the food portions were. You can expect a good number of pretty big shrimp in the quesadilla. FYI the nachos in the photo is the regular portion and not the thursday special, but I don't know if there's a difference.If you can grab a table in the outdoor patio area, it's a great spot with plenty of shade on a hot day. Ordering with the QR codes was a breeze and service is pretty quick.Next time I go back, I'll need to try getting an entire pitcher of margarita.... but I'll need to bring a team to back me up~

Stopped by El Ray this past weekend for lunch and loved it! Super fast service with self seating and a QR code menu which you order directly from. Staff was still easy to grab is needed. Nice outdoor seating in a pretty area. Very vibrant with lots of people out, dogs, etc. I would definitely recommend for a nice day!I got the chicken burrito which was excellent and a great deal for the price given how large it was.

The food has gotten better since the last time I was here but the service had gotten exceptionally worse. Food: 4/5. The tacos have definitely gotten bigger which I'm a big fan of. The birria is delicious, and so is the chorizo. The carne asada is pretty dry, and the DC taco is meh. When they say crispy fried on the taco I expected fries, not shoestring potatoes. Service: 1/5. Absolutely horrible. We saw our waitress once, 5 minutes after we sat down. When we wanted more water we had to go get it ourselves from the waiter cart. Half of us got birria tacos, and only half of those orders came with the consume which is one of the most important parts. We would've asked for it... but no one came by to check on us the entire dinner. Who am I even tipping at this point?TLDR: Food was good but not better than Bar Taco, and service was way worse. Only reason I'd come back is if my friends wanted to.

Solid Mexican, nothing to write home about. A bit over salted. I would likely only come back for the drinks.

As a 1st timer my El ray's @ballston experience was GREAT! definitely coming back soon! beautiful establishment & my bartenders Heidi & Damion went above and beyond to accommodate my every need. Their warm service & energy was phenomenal! I'm requesting their services next visit :)

Chicken nachos and quesadilla 10/10 very delicious. Spicy margarita is also a favorite.