El Loco Gringo

Slight hiccup was thankfully overcome!
The first time we came, it was very early in the evening, a waitress asked if we had reserved which we hadn’t and she turned us away saying it was all reserved. I was pretty disappointed as the resto was only about ¼ — ¹⁄₃ full. Two male chefs were working hard in the open kitchen and one took notice of my frustrated look (it’s not naturally like that tbh).
He spoke to the waitress and instantly gave us a table. Turns out that he and the other chef actually run the place.
We had a selection of lovely Mexican food and spoke to both the chefs afterwards.
About a month or so later we’ve now come back with friends. The chef made a point of welcoming us back and we were served well with great drinks and even better food.
If you want a Mexican dinner in a lively and fun environment & atmosphere, this should be you default choice.

I went here on Saturday night as part of a group of 4 girls. We arrived at 10:30pm and the place was very lively with music and dancing. We were ready to have fun and dance. We ordered two rounds of margaritas and maybe 2 rounds of tequila shots. Within one hour (around 11:30pm), 3 out of 4 of us were completely blacked out and did not regain consciousness or memory until around 7am the following morning. One of my friends woke up in the hospital. I woke up injured with a gash on my leg and severe bruising on my head, face, and left side of my body and a mild ankle sprain — evidently I collapsed at some point during the night but had no recollection of how or where; thankfully I had somehow managed to make it home (I live within 5 mins walking distance from el loco gringo). The third girl couldn’t remember anything from the night either and got extremely sick less than an hour after we arrived at el loco gringo and started vomiting profusely.
I believe my 2 friends and I were drugged with GHB (also known as «the date rape drug»). I reported my suspicion to the executive chef the day after I regained consciousness, and he dealt with the situation completely unprofessionally and seemed unconcerned about the security/​safety issue that my experience presented. So, beware and be careful if you go there for drinks; always keep them on your person… or just don’t go there at all. I certainly won’t.

Sadly my second visit was not nearly as good as our first and left our friends questioning our choice for dinner.
The salsa was so watery that nothing outside of the few chunks of tomato stayed on the chips. The corn didn’t have the seasoning outside the cheese that I could see in my previous photo. The nachos all had a «sweet» flavor noticed by all four members of our party. Tacos were ok but uneventful and nothing worth mentioning.
Disappointing compared to our first experience. Still giving a 3^rd star in hopes this was somehow due to the 7s wknd even though it was early and the restaurant was more than half empty.

Ok. decently good beef tacos. pretty good guac.
I kind of have a low bar for mexican/​tex-​mex food in Hong Kong, having done college in California. So the 4 stars really isnt about the food.
It’s the atmosphere, baby. They have rows and rows of random (and hilarious!) articles of clothing strung up on the ceilings (including a suspiciously brown pair of granny panties), great lights and décor on the wall, and the community feel of the large middle benches n wood tables really make for a great night out.
Not to mention the tequila chair. Yes, you sit there, and they pour tequila down your throat. Its right next to a neon sign that says «lick sip suck». thats right.

Food was decent, especially for HK. However the menu seems a bit limited in terms of regular sized orders. It seems to be focused on a tapas style. The tacos range from 30hkd to 80 a piece.
They do have a cool bar area. It almost felt like I was back in NY lower east side.

Opened a year ago and recommended by Bern for awhile, I finally got my chance to come here for a taste of their tacos.
Bloody busy night on a Tuesday with no taco tuesday deals, so you can tell how popular it is by just that. The cocktails were great, and Essays Mule was particular eye-​catchy. Now a slight miscalculation here — the Mexi-​slider burger was actually a proper-​size burger, came with a massive slice of beef already. Sharing it with my girlfriend already made us half-​full.
But the tacos didn’t disappoint us. We had a lobster taco, a prawn taco, a chicken taco and a black cod taco. The fancy kind of taco in the taco-​genre, to make it simple. They were all amazing. We ended up ordering another lobster and black cod taco again. The kitchen was kinda closed without us actually being told the time of the last order, but the staff was nice enough to get the kitchen to prepare the last 2 tacos for us.
All-​in-​all, very cozy and hipsterish place hiding in the basement. The bar area (vs the restaurant area) was pretty nice too. The opening of the new MTR stations have definitely brought more options to SYP (shame I got virtually no options 10 years ago when I studied at HKU), and the prices are getting more competitive as well. (Remember those $ 140 g&t at Ping Pong or $ 90 taco at Chino? I don’t.)

Amazing atmosphere, food is delicious food, and great service. Wasn’t aware you needed a reservation for a table, but the staff kindly accommodated my group at the bar. So excited to find true Mexican food in China. The al pastor (pork and pineapple) are spot on and drinks are great as well. Would recommend if you are looking for a great meal out and a cool environment to catch up with friends.

What I ate: Mushroom ceviche, each taco variety except the fish (they were out of fish) and El Loco’s brew on tap
Price I Paid: Dinner for two, HKD 473 including service charge
Décor: Usual Mexican stylings, Instagram worthy neon lit sign and your ‘dirty’ laundry hanging on the roof (why?). Very loud interior, not a place for quiet conversations.
Service: Good and attentive
Verdict: Finally, a good quality Mexican restaurant after all the bad and overpriced Mexican that Calimex is promoting and opening… Avoid the mushroom ceviche (yes, there is such a thing) and stick to the tacos; having tremendously enjoyed the prawn tacos. Would recommend to order a side of salsa/​chilli as the salsa that came with the tacos weren’t enough to satisfy me. Oh and please avoid their home brew of beer and stick to a bottled beer.

Great ambience in a hidden basement and quality Mexican food to match!
Tried a sampling of starters (grilled corn on the cob, jalapeño poppers stuffed with cheese, honey tequila chicken wings) and tacos (Mega Mex bean, Baja lobster, blackened prawns) — overall was pretty pleased.
The grilled corn on the cob was completely covered in mayonnaise/​manchego cheese. The cheese had a good sharp flavor, but overall I think it was a bit much sauce as that’s all you can taste and not the grilled smokey flavor of the corn itself.
The tacos were all pretty tasty, but next time would go for the more traditional meat fillings (and fish if they have it) for a better assessment. I’d avoid the Baja Lobster as its tempura fried and completely masks the taste of the lobster which is a waste of lobster and money (80hkd for 1).
Definitely a fun and lively/​loud environment and good for enjoying with groups of friends (if you can get a reservation early enough in advance) and good addition to the HK dining scene.

El Loco Gringo is Castelo Group’s (of Jaspas fame) answer to Brickhouse. Obscure, stylish, hip and happening. It’s located on Bonham road, where eateries are scarce and the entrance is a barely noticeable black sign. The only hint is the matador mask hung above.
There’s a small chill out/​smoking area, which is a nice instagram spot, before you head down to the surprisingly large dining area downstairs. Decorated like a ghetto area, with laundry lines hanging high over your head and tequila themed posters everywhere; the tables are long and the vibe is loud and boisterous — think German beer hall except of course, it’s Mexican.
Food is amazing, we had the tangy corn on the cob, nachos and fried pork rind served with some excellent homemade salsa and guac. And of course, the tacos, oh yes the tacos. Just look at the picture, I cannot explain well enough except by telling you our party of four ordered 8, then another 8 more right after having the first bite. I’m not a fan of tequila so went with a michelada which was decent and pretty refreshing.
Fun place to come in groups for a pre-​night out dinner, or for an actual night out too.

Well I’ve been waiting for El Loco Gringo to open for a while now and after reading that it had I wandered down to try the food and drink. The place was pretty full and I was given a seat near the bar. The music was quite funky and the staff were very friendly.
So for starters I wanted a beer. 2 were not on the menu but the Dos Equis was. I also ordered 2 tacos the Spit Roast pork with Pineapple and the beef short ribs. I waited about 30 mins for the food and drank my beer listening to strains of Marvin Gaye.
Having finished the beer and still no food I opted for an El Classico cocktail called the Paloma. Cassmigos Tequila with Grapefruit, lime and salt around the rim. Delicious.
The tacos arrived on a nice wooden block. The Pork was delicious with a little bit of heat and the sweetness of the pineapple cutting through the fat. The slow cooked beef rib taco with coleslaw was also very good but needed a bit more seasoning.
I then ordered the Sea bass taco with mayonnaise, apricots and salad. It was delicious. This was recommended by my waiter, Alex (really friendly) and it was a dish that I would return for again.
Finally I ordered the Jalapeño beef and cheese poppers with blue cheese ranch dressing and another Paloma to wash it down. The poppers were spicy but the ranch dressing cut through the heat
All in all a really authentic Mexican restaurant /​bar that I would thoroughly recommend. Not too expensive and great if you have a large group. The best part is that it’s literally a 5 minute walk from home.
Will come again. Definitely!