Wahaca

Great reasonably priced Mexican for London. The location is very casual, the food solid and the beers cold ;) Excellent view and location on SouthBank.
Tip from our waiter Jose, Steak from the grill, as I am Canadian wasn’t expecting much for that price in London, 5 stars, excellent rub, cooked perfectly medium rare! Yum!

This is my favourite Wahaca. The food is as excellent as in any other Wahaca, the views across the river Thames are beautiful and the restaurant itself is made of containers — can’t beat that! However, you will have an hour wait for a table so just one if you are not really hungry and have time to spare.

Having had a Great first experience at Wahaca in Angel I was happy to try the one in South bank tonight only to find myself disappointed.
We waited 30 minutes for a table despite seeing many empty tables dotted around.
The walk to the bar proved a waste of time as it was quicker to get a table than it was to get a drink. We waited a long time after ordering and when the food did eventually come my order was wrong. I had to refuse the fish tacos twice before anyone realised it wasn’t what I ordered. I was left in the dark for a while before I was told what was happening and I’m sad to say that when the Grilled Haddock did arrive it was not worth the wait as the rice was overcooked and quite hard.
Overall I was very disappointed with the service I received and don’t think I’ll be going back to a Wahaca again.

We came to Wahaca expecting a decent attempt at Mexican food in London, but they absolutely exceeded our expectations. Each location seems to produce the same quality of food, which is a huge nod to the chefs. We went to the Southbank location last night and the Soho location tonight. We ordered some of the same items at both locations and the dishes were so similar in flavor, I forgot we were at a different restaurant.
The Vampiro juice is really refreshing, despite its dark color. The Classic Margarita is excellent and leaves you wanting anything round. The Twisted Mojito DF is good, but I prefer mojitos with rum instead of tequila as they use here.
The standout items were the Pork Pibil Tacos; the Plantain Tacos; the Tender, Marinated Chicken Taquitos; the Broccoli with Green Goddess dressing; and the Sweet Potato side. The pork tacos are so amazing I swear you could drink the juice by itself. The chipotle sauce used on the taquitos is a perfect blend of smoky and sweet, with a hint of spice. The potatoes are perfectly cooked and seasoned, I just wish you got more with your order.
Overall, I love this place. I just wish we had it in the U.S.

Superb Mexican street food. We arrived at about 2:30 PM, so we were seated immediately. We ordered pork tacos and sweet potatoes, and my youngest daughter got a kids meal. All of the food was wonderful. Our server was not very attentive, but the delicious food and the fact that were not in a hurry made up for that. We sat outside overlooking the Snog Frozen Yogurt bus and the Thames. I wish that we would have found wahaca earlier in our trip!

I love Wahaca, we arrived at 9 and were told it was a 30 minute wait. After 10 minutes we were offered a table with another couple — only downside really as an Englishman I found this a tad awkward.
Our waitress was lovely and attentive if a bit rushed off her feet and the open windows really allowed a lot of air to circulate through the restaurant on a mild summers evening.
The food itself was very good, I can only imagine some of the margins they have on the products though. The broccoli dish was delicious of course but quite overpriced. My favourite dish of the evening was the Sweet Potato Taquitos (we decided to be a fat and ordered it again). Oh and the cocktails were glorious as well. I would recommend the Gin Sling (our waitresses favourite). We didn’t go for dessert as we had already stuffed ourselves full so I can’t comment on that but I plan to in the future…
Overall very good food, lovely service and a cool, relaxed atmosphere for a Saturday Summer evening on Southbank.
I will definitely be returning.

Average Mexican food overall, but better than other Mexican food I’ve tried in London. They have a nice selection of stereotypical Mexican food, such as burritos, tacos, and quesadillas.
I ordered the chicken quesadilla (4 quid) from the ‘street food’ section, which came with two slices of cheesy, spicy shredded chicken goodness. A few other friends ordered burritos (7 quid) from the ‘bigger food’ section, which were pretty large and came with some tortilla crisps on the side. We had the guac as an appetizer, and it was pretty standard fare.
Tl;dr — standard Mexican fare in London.

WA-​HA-​CA
Is a good ‘Mexican’ staple for a quick dining out option. I’ve spent a lot of time in the States and been to Mexico and hear the cries constantly of Mexican restaurants that it’s not authentic or traditional etc. etc. This isn’t really what Wahaca is about. They have some ingredients and ideas taken from Mexican cooking and have put their own twist and style to them.
It’s nothing groundbreaking but i’ve been several times and everyone i know likes coming here as it has a fun and relaxed atmosphere and everyone likes small plates so there’s plenty to share. Well not everyone likes this as people get very VERY precious about their food but sharing is caring folks.
They have a good selection of tacos, empanadas, taquitos, quesadillas and more. All are tasty, but not groundbreaking. They also have larger plates and plenty of salad options. These aren’t fantastic real Mexican flavour dishes, they are good but this is a meal where 2 people can easy be full and have a couple of drinks for £30 or less so don’t expect a quinceañera in your mouth. However, if you want an option that doesn’t break the bank, is tasty, fun and where you’ll get to try a few new things then absolutely give Wahaca a go. You can’t book a table in advance though so every one i have been to come stocked with a bar area where you can try some standard Mexican beers and cocktails.
I’ve been to this location a couple of times now and in terms of service the second was absolutely great, an attentive waiter who didn’t come over anymore than he needed to, and when we did need him, he was over right away. The first time however we had a near constant bombardment of asking are we SURE we don’t want to order anything else as she was placing dishes on our table. The pushiness and annoyance of being asked how everything is every few minutes each time with a full mouth got old quickly. Other than that though don your metaphorical sombrero and get your taco on.

It’s exotic food adapted to a local audience, sold in a nice setting.
Wahaca has nothing to do with true Oaxaca-​style mexican cooking, which would be different kinds of mole, loads of black beans, chapulines on cream and excellent mezcal. I’ve been to Oaxaca recently and I loved the food, so to me this was a bit of a dissapointment, as I expected something different.
The food was ok, especially the meaty tacos and tostadas where nice, we had a seasonal special which was spicy beef — this was clearly my favourite. Taquitos and quesadillas were not memorable, neither was the guacamole. But hey — Mexico is far away, I get it.
If anybody reading this knows a truly traditional mexican place, feel free to tell me! I’d be very glad!

I was traveling alone and decided to stop here for dinner what a great place! It was a Friday night — lots of energy — totally full of people having a great time. The only downside is it’s a bit loud but it’s a fun space to end your week.
I had a dinner of «street food» which equates to small plates so that you can have a variety of different experiences. I enjoyed them (2 — 3 as suggested is the right amount) but I have to comment expressly on the taquitos — specifically the sweet potato & feta taquito was an unexpected treat. I generally stray away from anything described as deep fried but they were truly wonderful!

I visited Wahaca Southbank on Sunday evening, around 6pm. It was busier than I expected! Was given a buzzer and told there’d be an 45 minute wait, which I wasn’t keen on. Waited 10 minutes at the bar (only 1 barman serving), 15 minutes later a table was available. Glad I stayed :)
Service was friendly and the food came quite quickly. I had ordered steak tacos, sweet potato taquitos and black bean quesadillas. The steak was tender, quesadillas were made tastier with some of the hot and fruity sauce. There was a mix up with the order and I got the sweet potato side (looked very small, maybe 4 pieces). I asked for the taquitos instead and the waitress was swift and pleasant in rectifying this. I found the taquitos quite strange in texture (blue corn tortillas were chewy in places and crispy in others) but the taste of the sweet potato filling was delicious, and the fresh lettuce and tomato topping was fresh and perfectly complementary.
Reasonably priced with small dishes and most drinks averaging at about £4 each. Service was warm and efficient. I left feeling full and satisfied but not heavy or stuffed. Would definitely recommend.

Absolutely adore this place! We accidentally stumbled onto it a few months ago and it has definitely become a favorite.
This location in particular is really good. The prices are reasonable as well and the food is amazing!
The only issue I have is that sometimes it is ridiculously packed and you need to wait for 30 – 40 minutes, at which stage the bar area is full as well so you just end up having to wait outside

Adorei esse restaurante mexicano (que faz parte de uma rede), que conheci por recomendação de um amigo local. Chegamos em um grupo grande, de seis pessoas, e o lugar estava cheio. Mas o funcionário que estava na porta foi bem gentil e solícito e explicou que poderíamos esperar no bar, que fica no último andar, enquanto a mesa não vagava.
Foi o que fizemos, e eu adorei o ambiente lá em cima, bem aconchegante e descolado. A fila pra pegar o drink é que não curti tanto, mas acontece nas melhores famílias! Pedimos uma garrafa de vinho, que tinha preço razoável, e em pouco tempo fomos chamados à mesa lá embaixo para dar início à nossa orgia gastronômica. A ideia é pedir mini-​porções compartilháveis de diversos quitutes mexicanos e mandar ver com os amigos. Cada pessoa é orientada a escolher entre dois e três itens, já que eles não são grandes.
O cardápio é tão extenso que não me lembro o que pedi, mas gostei muito de tudo que provei, e olha que foi bastante coisa! Ambiente bacana, comida gostosa e rápida e ótima localização (a área é uma das mais turísticas de Londres). O preço não é lá essas coisas (mas se você está em Londres já deve ter sacado que a cidade é tudo menos barata né?). Valeu a pena a visita e eu recomendo para quem passeou o dia todo e quer descansar tomando uma bela margarita acompanhada de uma comidinha mexicana delícia!

I went to Wahaca on a Thursday evening with my friends and we were greeted at the door very politely and informed that it would be an up to 45 min wait for a table (to my understanding they don’t take reservations at all). This was fine for us and we went in. They gave us a device that rings /​flashes lights when the table is ready and after about 15 – 20 minutes it was already ringing. This made us very happy :) We were seated and we went trough the menu. For a vegan the options were pretty minimal, but I managed to find some cactus tacos, sweet potatoes and corn — all absolutely delicious! The food came to the table incredibly fast and the service was superb all night! Also as an added plus the venue is quite cool with being constructed from different coloured industrial containers — I loved that! Even though it’s a chain, I really enjoyed my visit and will definitely be going again!

I would give this place four stars for providing London with decent Mexican food but the service here was very slow so they deserve these three stars. I tried this place the last time I visited London because my friend had a huge craving for burritos, as it’s difficult to find decent Mexican food in the UK, and I was interested in tasting what this place had to offer, coming from California.
I got a chicken burrito and it was pretty small and was pressed (new experience for me). It was just OK, I’m sure if this was your only source of Mexican food it would be a pretty good experience for you. It was pretty crowded so I assume it’s popular with the local folk: P Maybe I should have gone with some of their small plates instead of what I was acquainted with from back home, but whaatever!
Their bar was pretty crowded so I’m guessing they have good drinks here, come here if you’re craving mexican food and are looking for a social night :)

Ate here with the family on Saturday.
quick tips: the food is very good value;
Street food is done very innovatively using their British sourced ingredients, especially the meat based tacos. Bursting with flavor.
The tequila sampler for £10 is excellent although the blanco was underwhelming and rather unrefined.
The fish main course with green rice was a little underwhelming too.
Sit towards the wall: the ropes are extremely comfy to lean against

Love this restaurant! Great view of the river if you get a table upstairs, and they never rush you out despite usually having a line at peak hours. The sampler is great — tacos are very well crafted, and quesadillas are perfect. Their guac is great, but not the best. Avocado and corn salad is fantastic. They don’t have the mini burritos that are so great at their other locations and the prices are a bit higher here than their others due to what I imagine is a costlier spot to run a restaurant. Typically a great atmosphere and the food is worth the money. Only 4 instead of 5 stars because of price and the fact that it’s not quite as good as their other locations.

This canteen style Wahaca has an excellent location on the South Bank which means it is usually incredibly crowded. We arrived early and not in a major hurry so put our names down and headed upstairs to the bar (you can put your group down even if not everybody has arrived, but you won’t be seated until everyone arrives, although if by that point you’re the top of the queue you will be seated next, if that makes sense…). Service at the bar is slow which is a bit annoying but the drinks are good (I recommend the hibiscus mojito over the margarita, the margarita is a very short drink and by the time you have panted your way to the bar and back you will have finished it). It’s ideal at this stage to get some guac and chips as the guac is good and it will stave of hunger irritability.
I’ve found before at Wahaca that the food comes out somewhat randomly and they tend to make mistakes e.g. bringing double the order or missing part of it and bringing it later or not at all. So keep an eye on it if you’re in a group — the server made no fuss at all when we mentioned something hadn’t arrived.
So as for the food — our gluten free friend was delighted to find she could eat most of what was on the menu (tacos, taquitos although not quesadillas or burritos). Tacos were overall pretty good (we tried chicken, pork, steak and cactus and all went down well, the steak probs my fave) although in fact I was more of a fan of the quesadillas especially with the house sauce (the brown one). I particularly loved the sweet potato side which combined 2 of my favourite food qualities: sugar and garlic.
The seating area we had was cosy and seated 6 easily, it was great for a group. Downside of the bar area is that there isn’t much seating for a larger group.
Would definitely recommend as long as you are not starving or in a hurry.

Came here from my friend recommending to try their Michelada, which is indeed not too bad itself matching with a Corona. Guacamole was made fresh, and the tortilla chips were fried to just the right amount, leaning towards more of a thick cut.
The wait is quite long, so a cocktail drink or two is kind of an expected move.
For their dishes, I would definitely recommend Sweet potato & feta taquito. MM The feta cheese was soooo good, the mix of sweet and salty was just to the right amount. Portions were alright as well. Pork taco and winter vegetable tacos were mediocre, my friends would recommend the pork one, which was said to be marinated quite well. Be aware that the wrapping is corn tortilla, so the texture of the wrapper is softer and chewier. Huitlacoche was also quite good, two of these cheese and mushroom quasadillas, though nothing specially really. The MSC Fish burrito wasn’t the best, not sure if the fish wasn’t fresh enough or what not, but in my opinion not worth the £7. all in all, 5 dishes between the 3 of us were just quite enough with a happy and fair tap to split among us. Oh, the dishes also came fairly quick.
Lastly, their hotcake dessert is a must get. God! The combination of dulce de leche and sprinkled with caramelised peanuts is heavenlyyyyyy! Also, do try the plantain corn tortilla dessert thingy! Glazed with honey mmmM!
Not sure if I’d come again, but do drop by if you’re around southbank for a nice social night!

Delicious bites perfect to fill the gap between a late breakfast and an early dinner. Definitely could serve as more than a stopgap too, as the sizes of plates vary and this could be a nice place for dinner or lunch as well.
Cool architecture fit within eight shipping containers fits well with the Southbank ethos. The place feels like a combination pop-​up and Shoreditch box park.
Nice work on the chorizo quesadilla (£4.10), salsa and chips (£2.95), pork tacos — a.k.a. cochinita pibil (£3.95), and the side of jalapeños I requested :) Salsa was delicious but not spicy, and pork tacos were mouthwatering — definitely recommended.
I should mention that I’m from California, so I’m a bit judgmental on Mexican, but nothing about this place raised my hackles.
There’s also an even more temporary taco truck parked outside with a few benches if you want to-​go.

Relatively speaking, Wahaca’s street food stand serves up a decent burrito. It’s no Freebird, but I’d go so far to say that it’s at least as good as Chilango, and the ladies behind the counter can at least wrap the things appropriate (unlike the ones that work at Chipotle).
Unlike your typical street food vendor, this Wahaca actually has tables and seating, which makes immediately tearing through the foil and stuffing your face full of tortilla-​wrapped goodness extra convenient. There’s nothing like instant gratification to satisfy the soul when your tummy’s rumbling.
Whilst I wouldn’t recommend going massively out of your way for a lunch here, if you happen to be in the area and looking for a quick meal, this stand will set you back £6−8 for a substantial portion, and you won’t be going hungry anytime before dinner!