Teocalli Tamale

Unfortunately, it’s closed. There’s a big «For Lease» sign in the window…
:-(

Let me say, I really wanted to love Teocalli Tamale. I’m constantly on the lookout for a more diverse rival to Chipotle (ie, simple and tasty Mexican food), but outside of DC’s Surfside, I haven’t yet found it. This place had real potential, but didn’t deliver. The atmosphere was «meh»… trash cans were over stuffed, they were temporarily out of chicken when I got up to order, the queso dip was very unimpressive. They only had one cook, and she seemed gone for part of the time. This was at 12:30, peak time. It just didn’t give you the vibe that the owner was really striving to make this place great.
I should note, this was on CINCO DE MAYO. The day when everybody is trying to find some kind of Mexican place to eat at. So a reasonably impressive experience would have made me a regular… but as is, I’ll probably check it out again in a few months.

For whatever reason, this section of Herndon has some pretty good ethnic options interspersed with all your chain places. It’s nice to know that I can grab a bowl of phở to wash down some tacos which served as dessert following Indian buffet.
I went with the plato tipico which was eggs with bell peppers served with a side of beans, plantains, cheese, and a chunk of avocado. It also came with two plain papusas. This is a hearty stick to your ribs meal. The eggs were good but could have used some hot sauce. I also went with a steak burrito just to see what it would be like compared to Chipotle. The steak burrito here was alright. The steak was good, not dried out. I definitely liked their corn salsa and mild salsa more than Chipotle’s versions. I can’t say that there’s a clear cut winner just yet, and this will require more research. I also picked up a steak quesadilla for my brother and because he’s essentially useless for the purposes of food review… he has no comment. If you eat here, you’re probably going to spend around 10 bucks for entrée and drink, unless you get beer which I’m sure is more. I would probably advise you to stick with the tacos and the options on the board with pictures… the stuff that you probably wouldn’t ordinarily order. I thought the plato tipico was better than the burrito.
You order up at the counter and if you’re eating there, they bring the food to you. The lady behind the counter was pretty nice and you can watch them make your food for you. The place looks like a hole in the wall… not much to look at. This place is located directly behind the McDonalds. I’ll definitely be back to try some of the other things on the menu, especially some of the soups.

Finally something that reminded me of home. Tapatio hot sauce at all the tables!!! Man was that a refreshing experience walking in. I walked up and asked for 3 tacos. She replied with «chicken or beef» and I immediately got puzzled. «no no. One lengua one mixed and one asada please». «oh and a pork
Tamale». She looked at me confused like «does this white boy know he just ordered tongue?».
Probably the best lengua taco I’ve had. Nice and crisp pieces not the mushy spreadable meat I’m used to. This was absolutely phenominal and had me craving more. The tamale was also outstanding. I’ll definately be back
Now. It’s not home. But you are close. Where’s the al pastor? Birria? Hell, no carnitas?
And it got worse somehow 3 tacos, 1 tamale, 1 drink was $ 17??? I questioned if she overcharged me and she said no but something just didn’t add up right. That said the menu is pricey, $ 8 for a burrito? Wow!!!
however, right now I’ll pay anything for some good home style Mexican food and this is the closest I’ve come!
And to Dave P. This isn’t a sexual reference but I love fish tacos and had been craving one and did a Unilocal search and thank you for helping me find this gem. Fish tacos specialty spots are more common then taco bells back in so cal. Take a fishing trip down in baja mexico and it’s all you’ll eat for days. Bring the fish in the boat. Cut it up throw on some citrus juice and veggies on a tortilla and you are in heaven! Man why did I ever move away!
And also good to see other reviews for people who know what Mexican food is. It is NOT chipotle, baja fresh, rio grande or any of the other «Mexican «places I hav gone to out here.

good stuff. The salsa verde is worth the trip and I love the tacos.

As a native Texan, I am a regular at this little burrito bar. The shredded beef (Mike’s Mexolina) is always outstanding and perfect in burritos or tacos. Not a big fan of their guacamole though. .

If you’re looking for a quick sit down, tasty lunch, and a staple Mexican place that’s not a chain, Teocalli does the job. Is this THE place to go? No. I repeat, it gets the job done and done well.

Decent Mexican food with a large selection of Central/​South American food as well. The quality of the food can vary, some of the stuff I’ve had is really good, other stuff is just OK. Their menus are a little strange and overwhelming. There are a bunch of chalkboards to the right of the counter with the mexican food listed. Then there is a huge pictureboard like some Chinese restaurants have with lots of other food, some of which I’m not sure what it actually is. If you’re here for Mexican don’t even look a the pictureboard.
The Mexican food consists of regular and a few special burritos (like the Thai burrito), with your choice of several meats and salsa. You can also get tacos with your choice of meat. The Mex-​o-​lina meat is the best, it’s beef brisket sort like the barbacoa at Chipotle but better. I’d skip the tamale burrito, the tamale combined with rice and the tortilla is just a little too much starch. Get the Mex-​o-​lina burrito. They also have fish tacos and burritos with mahi mahi, I haven’t tried this but I don’t know of many other places in the area that have fish tacos.
I tried the tamales by themselves, and the pork tamale was awesome, but the cheese tamale was really bland. I haven’t been brave enough to try some of the other things on the menu like tripe soup.
Once you get a drink, the price is just a little too high in my opinion for what you get. Not too crazy priced, but a burrito or taco plate and soda will run you in the $ 9.50 range.

Their tacos and burritos are below average when compared to Chipotle or Baja Fresh. Their chicken was «wet» but flavorless like a wet piece of rubber. The only thing I really liked was their fish tacos. Topped with the carrot mix, it was pretty awesome. I’d probably stay away from the tacos/​burritos. They do serve a bunch of other stuff, but it didn’t look too appetizing.

This place changed management a few months back, I hadn’t been back since the change over but not for any reason, just hadn’t been in the area. I was pleased to see the menu being the same and really the same setup inside as well. They have expanded the menu quite a bit.
I decided on my 1^st trip to try the mahi fish taco, this would see if the ingredients or quality has slipped because this was my go to lunch back in the day. Verdict, still great mahi tacos !
I returned a few days later to try something new and boy was I glad I did, chicken chimichanga was prepared fresh and was very tasty.
This is back in the rotation and I actually like it more with the new management.

Fish tacos? Are you fucking kidding me? When was the last time you EVER heard someone say, «Man, I could really go for a fish taco right about now»…and not be referring to sex.
This place is smack in the middle of restaurant central, right on Elden St, in Herndon. It’s between the Kmart shopping center and the Milwalkies Custard place, across from the new-​ish Safeway. I don’t think this place is a chain, and it sort of shows in the chalkboard menu’s that live on the wall.
So far, I am a huge fan of anything with Mikes Mexolina brisket in it. Too bad its kept in some sort of Aujus that makes anything made with it kinda watery… but you can ask the person behind the counter to dry it out a bit, and they’ll squeeze some of the liquid out of it.
They’ve got a medium spicey sauce tht is just excellent, and I found I want it on everything, be it taco, burrito, fajita or «other».
Like most mexican places, it’s standard fare: taco, fajita, burrito, enchilada for the style, then add beef, chicken, steak, mikes mexolina brisket, fish *uuuuggggghhhhh*, or go veggie (you crawled up to the top of the food chain, why are you scavenging at the bottom?) Sauce and toppings round out the choices.
While it is pseudo buffet style, the peeps behind the counter assemble your order in front of you, so it’s mostly fresh. I haven’t had anything here that’s made me ill, so, ya know, that’s a good sign.
They have a small choice of bottled hot sauces available up on the wall, just in case you need a little extra heat and didn’t bring along your bottle of «Things That Burn My Ass Include Fire And This Sauce».
In the past few months, they’ved moved the fountain drink machine behind the counter, but have left the iced tea in front. Not sure what to make of that, but it doesn’t bode well for their overall profits if they are starting to get chincy with the drink refils.
It’s not the best mexican you’ll find, but it isn’t the worst either. Try it two times, get something different each time, then decide if you like it or not.

The food is okay, I do miss green chile (NM style) but sadly the place does not live up to some of the hype it receives. Its a decent fast food mexican place. Its very low-​key and kind of hole in the wall. You walk up order your food pay and then sit with your food. The décor looks cheap, and the food is cheap.
Essentially alright food, not fancy, good for a fast meal when the mood strikes you. I do like their greenchile and cheese tamales.

Not only will I not be going back, but I highly recommend you drive right past this place. The food is pretty horrific.
I’m not sure that the same food had been sitting in the service trays all day, but it sure tasted like it. I ordered tacos with «brisket», and the beef tasted old and had the texture of something that had been sitting still all day. The salsas were extremely watery, the tortillas were stale. .. I don’t know, it doesn’t get much worse than that. The corn salsa was definitely made using canned corn, it was milky looking and swimming in liquid. The cheese is definitely the same bagged crap they use at Taco Bell. Nothing on my tacos was even warm.
My wife ordered the fried plantains. The oil used for cooking the plantains was not hot enough, so instead of being fried, they were just soaked in hot oil. They were blistering hot, but not fried. The key to frying is temperature: if the correct temperature is maintained, the food item itself doesn’t soak up all the cooking oil. These were completely soaked in oil, limp, and just not very good at all. I wouldn’t have guessed my wife would ever leave anything plantain related on her plate, but alas, these were not worth finishing.
I so wanted to like this place. I was thinking Los Amigos (Baltimore), and instead I got Chipotle’s anemic cousin. So disappointing

I could see why so many people like this place, but it was just not on today. Maybe the place is inconsistent in their application of greatness?
Compared to Chipotle (our corporate local standard) the food was less and more expensive. As much as I’d like not to admit it, the shredded beef wasn’t really all that better either. The beans were amazing, but if I didn’t get them I wouldn’t really feel like I got anything different than Chipotle.
So I’m all anti-​corporate and everything but I really felt as if Teocallie was going for a chipotle look-​alike in local restaurant clothes. The line setup was exaclty like chipotle. Perhaps someone who’s been around for a while can say that’s the way they’ve done it since before Chipotle, but to me it felt like a copy.
I felt cheated.
I brought some intrepid coworkers and the group consensus is not to go back. So sorry to see such a good prospect go.

I craved Mexi yesterday, so I decided to re-​visit Teocalli Tamale — I had been here once before about 2 years ago on a cool rainy day. Weird that yesterday was cool and rainy as well.
I ordered the #30, with beef for the Burritto. It comes with a side of black beans, and chips with some queso sauce ladled over them, and a bit of salsa. I threw in a bottle of water for a refreshing, quenching libation.
The food was as before — excellent! Another thing I like about this place — is that they have a wide variety of hot sauces to choose from to add to your food. They also sell many of these same hot sauces. I ended up buying four bottles of hot sauce that I was out of — from the Iguana line of hot sauces from the Half Moon Bay Trading Company. I probably paid a little more for the hot sauce buying it here — but I needed a quick restock. I’ll buy in larger quantity online direct from Half Moon later on.
I ate the whole thing!

I do not recommend this place. The food is pretty gross. I have not found any good Mexican or Latin American places yet in this area.

Just get the Mike Mexolina burriot combo, sit back, relax anf enjoy the show. Although the original owner has sold the restaurant, he let them keep the recipies, and the food is still great.
Casual atmosphere, great for lunch. No table service.

Today will forever be a momentous day in my life, as today is the day in which I have finally freed myself from the chain that is Chipotle and instead devoted myself to the much more delicious, authentic, and locally owned Teocalli Tamale.
[a re-​enactment of the beautiful ceremony many of you missed out on…]
Unilocal MINISTER: «Dearly beloved… we are gathered here today in the sign of Unilocal to join together this restaurant and this Unilocaler in foodie matrimony, which is commended to be honorable among all Unilocalers; and therefore is not by any to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly; but reverently, discreetly, advisedly and solemnly. Into this foodie estate these two persons present now come to be joined. If any Unilocaler can show just cause why they may not be joined together, let them speak now or forever hold their peace.»
: you Unilocalers remain silent now, you hear?! :
LEILA: «Teocalli Tamale, I take you to be my absolute favorite Mexican restaurant. Before these Unilocalers I vow to love you and care for you as long as we both shall live. I take you with your only fault (that you will make my ass fat) and strengths (Mike’s Mex-​o-​Lina burrito and barbacoa tacos), as I offer myself to you with my faults and strengths. I will devour you when the craving hits, and will never again praise Chipotle. I choose you as the Mexican restaurant with whom I will spend my life.»
TEOCALLI: «Ditto, baby.»
Unilocal MINISTER: «May you always share with each other the gifts of love — be one in heart and in appetite — may you always create a home together that puts in your stomachs hot pupusas, hot tamales, and an insane variety of tacos and burritos for super cheap prices (a mere $ 6 – 9 per meal). And so, by the power vested in me by the State of Unilocal,I now pronounce you best Mexican restaurant and devoted Unilocaler, and may your days be good and long upon this earth. You may now celebrate with refreshingly cool agua frescas!»
It was beautiful… and life will truly never be the same.

What I love about living in Herndon is that you never know when you are going to stumble upon a little ethnic place that you didn’t know about but that ends up being really good.
Since I moved here from Nevada, I have been on the quest for really good LOCAL Mexican food establishment. Why did I not find this place earlier? The owners apparently owned the original version of this restaurant in Colorado somewhere and now brought it east to the DC-​area. It still retains a lot of what you might expect in a Western/​Southwestern restaurant, down to the nice decorations on the walls and the bountiful selection of hot sauces.
Food is good and flavorful, other reviewers have said it all. I have found a new fav.

An awesome place for tacos & burritos. Way better than some of the chains out there. One of my favorites is the naked fish burrito. This is a tortilla-​less fish burrito made with delish mahi mahi and whatever else you want to add. SO GOOD! My husbands favorite is the pulled beef tacos.
After ordering your made-​to-​order item, brave their massive selection of hot sauces. Be careful, some of them are really, really hot :)
They also serve margaritas and beers. Great place for lunch any day!