El Taco

El Taco Mexican restaurant was the auspicious venue for our 3 week old daughter's first dinner out. We'd eaten at El Taco about 5 or so years ago, but hadn't been back since. Seeing as it's just down the road, it was a good candidate for the 2-3 hour dinner window we had.

We knew the main courses were very filling, so we took it easy on the starters - we just ordered one serve of guacamole with corn chips, thinking that should be a safe bet in a Mexican restaurant. Unfortunately, while the guacamole was obviously fresh, it really didn't have much flavour. In fact we had to put a giant blob of it on the corn chips even to get a taste of avocado. Although the corn chips were thick and crunchy, we found the guacamole underwhelming.

If you're not a fan of guacamole, other entrees on the menu at El Taco include chilli dip, frijole dip (savoury mashed beans topped with chilli sauce) and a variety of nachos & tacos.

When it came to mains I ordered the chilli con carne (ground beef with whole beans, tomatoes, onions and chilli). After we had ordered, the waiter came out and told us that they had run out of rice for the night. It was only about 7.30pm at the time, so I was a bit surprised to find out that a Mexican restaurant had run out of rice. It was even more surprising considering that there was an IGA open about 50 metres up the road.

The waiter then seemed a bit taken aback when I said I'd like to change my order - I wasn't particularly keen to have chilli beef served with green salad. So instead I ordered one chicken enchilada and one beef enchilada. The menu described the enchiladas as "cheese with seasoned beef or chicken wrapped in a soft tortilla, covered with spicy chilli sauce, topped with more cheese and shallots and baked to mouth watering perfection". Although it was a very generous serving, the enchiladas were a disappointing because they didn't really have any distinctive flavour - more of a chilli kick in the sauce would have been welcome.

My wife ordered an enrollada with beans (an enrollada is an enchilada topped with sour cream). Again the enrollada was a filling, generous serve, but it didn't pack much punch in the way of flavour.

Overall I'd have to say that on this visit we found the food disappointing. Each of the dishes we ordered was just a bit bland for my liking. One of the main reasons I enjoy eating out is to eat food that we don't usually cook at home. Unfortunately, based on the dishes we ate on this visit, we cook tastier Mexican food at home. El Taco was fairly busy the night we were there, so it certainly has its share of supporters.

Other than the bizarre rice episode, service was friendly throughout the night. El Taco is BYO, and there is a handy bottle shop on Blackwood Street, if you find yourself thirsty.

What does all this mean? Generous servings of Mexican food at reasonable prices, but the meals could do with a bit more punch and variety of flavour.

food bling ratings

Food - OK
Service - Good
Ambience - Casual family surroundings with Mexican ornaments
Vegetarian - OK
Wine - BYO
Value for Money - Good

El Taco

50 Blackwood Street

Mitchelton 4053

P - 07 3355 9723

OzyMex

I know there are loads of great places to eat in Byron Bay. But everytime I go there, I can't go past the fantastic nachos at OzyMex.

OzyMex is a hole in the wall type place serving nachos, burritos, tacos & enchiladas. It has been set up by the Byron Bay Chilli Co, which is probably why the salsas and other sauces taste so good.

On this trip, I had the small nachos with shredded beef ($6.50) which are served with pinto beans, cheese, sour cream and guacamole (which I ordered as extra). You also get a choice of the Byron Bay Chilli Co salsas to top off the dish. Since I've been buying nachos from OzyMex, I've never been disappointed, and this was no exception. The nachos were fresh, tasty and filling. On this day, it was the perfect lunch.

We also ordered one of the flour burritos ($7) with pinto beans, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and salsa. It was an enormous serving, wrapped up like a kebab. Again, the burrito was delicious but very filling.

Extra toppings are a bit regimented, and are all charged extra. But the food is so good, you quickly forget about paying an extra dollar or so for a few more toppings.

There are only a couple of seats inside, so unless you time your visit well, this is a takeaway option. If you're looking for a quick, tasty cheap lunch or snack next time you're at Byron Bay, then give OzyMex a try.

food bling ratings
Food - Great
Service - It's take away
Ambience - Hole in the wall
Value for Money - Great
Vegetarian - Great
Gluten Free - OK

OzyMex
Lawson Street/Jonson Street roundabout
Byron Bay NSW 2481
P - 02 6685 7157