Las Cazuelas Mexican Restaurant Reviews

It must not be easy to distinguish one's Mexican restaurant in a town that has over 500 of them, but Las Cazuelas manages to do it with great food and an ambience that - from the great conjunto jukebox to the colorful, slightly chaotic decor - is more Mex than Tex. I hate to think how many years I drove past this place without giving it a chance, but better late than never. My family has now sampled the menu widely over the past several months, with no disappointments. I'm hooked on the fish tacos and excellent salsas. Portions are large, prices are low, ingredients are fresh, and service has always been friendly.

Fun little place for live music and character watching. The dance floor was small, but well used. Good drinks and excellent selection of beer.

I have no idea why other reviewers found the place so bad. Our dinner was simply wonderful, the service was unimpeachable, and I am left with nothing but happy memories. Okay, it was January 6 and for some unfathomable reason there was hideous traffic everywhere around Austin from about 4 pm onward. Are the roads always this congested? Anyway, we were headed to Franklin BBQ and arrived to find it looking largely defunct. In fact, it opens at 11 and closes as soon as they are out of food--generally before 3. So then we went to Juan in a Million on Cesar Chavez. Also closed. Another breakfast-lunch place. I had noticed a restaurant nearby that was open so we went back down Cesar Chavez--now a little desperate for food. It looked funky, ordinary, very local. We went in and were greeted with smiles. We pulled a couple of beers from the cooler and a server appeared nearly instantly. His name was Jesus and he whisked the bottles away to be opened, and set a slice of lime in the neck of each bottle. Our chips were white corn, true, but the three dips (salsa, beans, and a green sauce) were hot, mild, and blazing. We chose the chili rellenos con carne and the chicken mole specials and both were more than we could handle and absolutely delicious. My was the chicken mole and the mole was all dense flavor and earthy richness. The chicken was fall off the bone tender and actually tasted like chicken. Loved the refried beans and rice, too. If I lived in Austin I'd eat here at least once a week to work my way through the menu. Again, I have no idea why this plain, well-worn, dingy but very clean restaurant got such lousy reviews. I suggest they go back and try again. Yikes.

Delicious late night tacos! Quick delivery via uber eats. Chicken and elpastro were the best tacos. Will order again and recommend

Excellent service even better food. Try any of the specials or dinner plates. The salsa is actually spicy, but not over powering. For breakfast the Mexicano Omelet is pretty darn good. Any of the tacos are off the charts tasty. You just cannot go wrong with this place. It is open late.

I visited with 5 friends on a Saturday night, and both the food and service were great. Food was cheap, as well! Sizzling beef fajitas were 11 bucks and plentiful. I had three custom tacos, 2 bucks each, and they were excellent. Meat was tender and flavorful. Tortillas were clearly homemade, and they have a custom salsa bar. Several different types of salsa, plus fresh pico de gallo, cilantrio, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, etc. We also ordered beef quesadillas for an appetizer--I'm a native Texan, so I've had LOTS of Mexican/Tex-Mex food, and I've never tasted quesadillas that were so good. Tons of cheese and tender beef, those homemade tortillas, topped with fresh tomatoes, with fresh guac and sour cream. Buckets of Mexican beer held 5 for 16 bucks, which I thought was reasonable. It's not fancy, a hole in the wall if you will, but we will be back and would highly recommend this place.

The food here is delicious. They serve in abundant amount and they have affordable prices. The place has very friendly servers, Maria was the best, she's so friendly. Delicious Consome de Borrego.

We were a little desperate, being Christmas day, having trouble finding something open. That could account for the place not being all that great. It took a really long time for the waiter to take our order, even longer for the food to arrive and that was really mediocre. The plus would be the salsa bar where they have a variety of salsas and sauces.

This place was an accidental find just a block down from the hostel. I felt like I walked into a Mexican cantina in Mexico! Ordered a shot of patron with a beer. Perused the menu and asked what was good, the girl told me the Fajitas Ranchera. Stocked up on some salsas from the extensive collection...several hit the higher end of my chilihead sensitivities and I was in a happy place. The fajitas were served with Texas sized portions and the steak slices were tender and moist. All in a a great belly busting breakfast to start the day exploring Austin.

In a convenient location in East Austin Cesar Chavez area, my order, mariscos fajitas, was a good portion for 1 and enough to share too. The plate is served on an iron skillet, the right way to do so. A mango margariita was just good, low in tequila and no lime flavor- but the decorative wedge was on it. Our server was very nice and she mentioned she was new. Well, poor thing, the bills are pretty spicy for a somewhat run-down corner restaurant.The patio area was unkept and there are no fans to cool any side. In addition, it is on a busy street so taking a seat outside is like seating at the bus-stop on Cesar Chavez. Yet, you can bring a dog- the only reason we picked a table outside. Last, my bill came to 29 dls for 1 drink and fajitas for 1. To that, they added charges for tortillas- mind you I order fajitas- and a fee for using ccard. This fee is really upsetting- and I suspect not within the Texas Tax Code regs. First,they add the fee as a sold item. Then, they open it up as Tax 1 and Tax 2 on the sale ticket- which I kept because these things affect your waiters, I feel. When patrons get charges at 35 cents for tortillas, and have 'to pay a fee' to pay the establishment, it is likely they get upset and tip less. That is unfair to your staff and to your patrons- if you have returning ones. I kept my receipt and I will consult on the fee and tier tax system they have going. I will not return.

I can't believe I was charged $12 for a plate of half cooked cheese enchiladas. They didn't serve chips and salsa which sucked considering the enchiladas were drab. My visit eas made worse by the waitress arguing with another customer about a hair in her food. There is a fine line between trash and charm. The name of this place should be La Basura. Done with this place.

I was looking for a place that was open late and had Mexican food that was somewhat in the downtown area. My 3 friends and I found this place and decided why not? Well it is a crazy looking place inside- rather grimy and filled with "character" let's just say. The food was excellent- we all ordered Tex-Mex and were all very happy with our choices. I had the pork with verde sauce- just delicious. The plates here HUGE and reasonably priced. There a sweet little patio with picnic benches and banana plants. They also serve alcohol.

Came in for the breakfast taco buffet on the way home from the airport. Crushed some super affordable tacos and left! Welcome home :)

I spent a few weeks in Mexico City several years ago and have had trouble finding really authentic Mexican food in the States. That being said, Las Cazuelas was some of the most authentic and flavorful I've had in a long time. The tacos I had were fresh and the salsa verde they brought out with the chips was incredibly spicy (which in my case is a good thing). The atmosphere leaves quite a bit to be desired, unless you want to feel like you're actually in Mexico while you eat. I'd go back, though.

This place was a surprise! Attentive waitstaff, unpretentious atmosphere and good, fresh, cheap, Mexican food 24 hours a day. The salsa bar contains choices for almost every taste. My favorite is the spicy chicken tacos. At 2 bucks each, with free chips and trips to the salsa bar, this is a delicious alternative to the expensive, stale, stuck-up establishments I have been subjected to in Austin. Step out of your "comfort zone" and give this place a try...!

A longstanding location. Still serves tasty Mexican Food at reasonable prices. Open 24 hours. We tried Huevos Rancheros, Cheese Quesadillas, and Beef Tacos. All Spicy and flavorful. The Green and Red Salsas hit the spot. Just the right amount of heat. Very reasonable pricing. Good Service. Restrooms could use better cleaning and some sprucing up. Parking Available.

Great food. Friendly service. The salsa verde is my favorite salsa of all time. The Higado is my go to since they are the only place in town that serves it. The are open to 3am most nights so perfect for some late night eats. Full bar as well. Been going here for years and they never disappoint.

Best Tex-Mex/Mexican food in Austin is a real Mexican restaurant that is inviting and delicious. Absolutely highly recommended.

An unassuming taco and Mexican food destination that will surprise you in terms of quality and value. Amenities include: 24/7 waiter service, hearty portions, a large menu that offers a wide variety of Mexican and Tex-Mex classics, breakfast service all day, enormous pina colada's and margaritas, outdoor seating, and an authentic East Side ambiance. This Austin classic offers bona fide Mexican food in a hole-in-the-wall setting that feels culturally unique and one-of-a-kind. Definitely worth a visit!

This place is no bueno... unless you were out drinking and there is nothing but nothing else open and you are in starvation stage!!! Do not recommend it.

Copying this from my Yelp review. Out of towners should get to experience tacos al pastor done this well: have been coming here for years. From my experience you can get amazing food at an unbelievably cheap price or you can be pretty disappointed and this is largely dependent on what you order. 1st Rule of thumb: Order Mexican dishes and stay away from more Americanized/Texanized Tex-Mex fare. I pretty much always order tacos a la carte and get the carne asada, pastor, barbacoa or carnitas. They are simple, delicious and they cost about half of what you will pay for tacos at Torchy's or Taco Deli. Every order comes with chips and they have a salsa bar with about 10 homemade salsas. Most are delicious. Many have serious heat. Like other reviewers have said, the queso is not worth ordering. If your idea of Mexican food is cheese stuffed in something and then covered in more cheese (and there is absolutely a time and place for that kind of tex-mex) then go to Chuy's. Be open-minded about the atmosphere. It's not a "concept", it's a restaurant and a pretty basic one at that. I'm personally glad that they haven't made their entire dining room stainless steel with chic minimalism just to turn around and double the price of their tacos.

This has been my go to spot for little over a year now. The breakfast tacos are the bestttt! It is always a good morning when I can get my tacos.

Man did I love this place. Stopped here quickly on my way to the airport but I wish I had found it earlier. Cheap breakfast tacos with great quality ingredients and an amazingly huge and diverse salsa bar. People working there are incredibly nice and the prices were unbeatable. Wish I had eaten more things on the menu!

excellent dinner, great cocktails, the best salsa de tomatillos I have ever eaten, great choice, good prices, daily deals, large portions, superb staff, open 24 hours a day at the weekend ("early closing" 2 am mid-week, but they re-open at 5 am!), great takeout... I can't wait to be in Austin again to eat at Las Cazuelas again. Highly recommended indeed.

***DO NOT EVER GO TO THIS PLACE***** I have never received service this bad at any restaurant in my entire life. It was horrendously bad service. I went with 3 other people, so 4 people total. Tables were dirty, several had previous customers’ plates still on them, with no one even attempting to clean them up. We pick a table and sit down, crumbs and bottle cap on the table, waitress comes over sets down our menus and napkins and walks away and we call her back and ask if we can get the table wiped down. She returns with our chips in one hand and a dirty towel, as well as our salsa in the other hand and wipes down the table. She basically just wipes all the crumbs and bottle cap onto the floor (and onto my jeans) and leaves it there. She takes our drink order and after a ridiculous amount of time, she returns with our drinks, at which time we also request more chips. We have to remind her about the chips and then she finally comes to take our order. Remember there is 4 people in our party, she writes down and takes 3 peoples order and forgets to take one persons order, puts her pen away and is about to walk off, when the 4th person places their order, she reaches back in her apron to get her pen out with an annoyed look on her face, takes the order and then leaves. An exorbitant amount of time passes and we are slowly one by one finishing off our drinks. We finally end up calling over a different waiter and ask for some waters. After another ridiculous amount of time passes she comes by to check on us and the other people in the group request beverages. Another ridiculous amount of time passes and 3 of the 4 orders come out, with 1 order being wrong and her telling me that 1 order (my order) is almost ready and will be out shortly. well, apparently she forgot to place the order so it takes 30 minutes before they bring it out, all I ordered was 3 crispy ground beef tacos….nothing fancy, which they got the order wrong btw. At this point we tell the waitress we are not happy with the service and want to speak to a manger, she is in complete and utter shock and says ok and leaves (to get the manager we assumed). Another exorbitant amount of time passes before I go and find the manager myself. After getting ignored and asking several people to speak to the manager, we find out that there is no manager. After arguing with them and them not producing a manager or someone in charge, we find out the cashier that was initially ignoring me, is the owners son, yet he can’t get a manager and he doesn't know how to contact one. Anyways, after arguing we ended up getting 50% off of our bill and we left.

Nice little neighborhood restaurant - nothing fancy, but good food

Just on the other side of I-35 of downtown Austin on Cesar Chavez Street...No other authentic Austin Mexican restaurant matches Las Cazuelas. It isn't 'sexy' but, damn, do they make a delicious taco ~ as well as other wonderfully good Mexican dishes (with huge portions, as well). Las Cazuelas is rather unique in design. The available meals & menus are sort of "scattered all over" the restaurant, so as to encourage the customers to not settle on just one item? Even more of a train wreck is the actual 6-page paper menu. LOL. Its fresh "Fresco Mexican" hot sauce & salsa bar is self-service/help-yourself in the middle of the restaurant, as a large white handmade sign says. It's chilled and loaded with very good quality salsa (chopped onions, fresh cilantro, and a variety of salsas that range from mild to extra hot!).This East Austin spot has character; great, friendly service; and prices you cannot beat...Para libres ~ chips, tacos y salsas roja y verde... The green salsa is so hot but so delicious ~Try it! Also, Las Cazuelas Restaurant's serves a version of the Michelada: Beer & Hot Sauce Nirvana ~ a tantalizing drink that looks lovely (or rather really orange and dirty?). We ordered the Texas queso dip with 'condiments' of chopped cilantro, white onions, & red chopped tomatoes and a pile of grilled hamburger meat. Bowlful of HOT! salsa verde also served with it. For the editor, journalist, or keen speller, around the restaurant, there's humorous misspellings galore ~ "Beens, beens,and 'more' beens" ~ Las Cazuelas' spelling of those mushy Mexican re-fried beans ( frijoles refritos). One of our family member's ordered the flautas, a delicoius Mexican dinner plate of a plump green jalapeno pepper covered with flour tortillas, grated melted cheese, skirt steak strips, onions, and cayenne pepper. Warm and yummy! Another ordered the crunchy cheese quesadillas, smothered in grated parmesan cheese; juicy, red, sliced tomatoes; chunky guacamole; creamy white sour cream; and crispy lettuce strips. One of our sons and his girlfriend ordered a sizzling Mexican plate full of aromatic food ~ the steaming beef "Fajitas for Two"! Grilled skirt-steak with flour tortillas, white onions, green pepper strips, and several plump jalapeno peppers to 'pop'!Accompanying the beef fajitas (optional) was a plateful of Mexican rice, guacamole, picante sauce, chopped tomatoes, & sour cream. And if your dinner meal isn't spicy enough for you, then there's always a nice little collection of Mexican hot sauces and red pepper flakes on the table to "heat up" your meal even further! At the restaurant's checkout counter, there's a red bowl filled with sweet treats for Austin's Mexico and US residents ~ Mexican Flag coconut candies, lollipops, and coconut rolls. .

Our food was still cold when it was served. The salsa bar is a nice touch but it smelled a bit like cigarette smoke. There are other good options for tacos in the immediate area. The redeeming factor here is that it is open 24/7.

Excellent local out of the way place. Do not expect any frills except for the excellent authentic food. Our friends who grew up in Austin during 1970s took us here for breakfast the morning after an evening at a concert and a few late night drinks. Prices are excellent. We ll had different breakfast dishes and everyone was pleased with the food and service. Wait staff is not "chummy," but they are efficient.

Make no mistake, this restaurant looks about as authentic as you can get inside and out. And the restaurant is owned and run by Mexican immigrants. The food, however, will have you thinking otherwise. The customary complimentary chips and salsa - the chips were white corn chips that looked like they came out a bag from a store and the salsa had no kick to it and was extremely salty. The breakfast omelette had little flavor and the beans were well below what I have enjoyed at other authentic Mexican restaurants. That being said, the food prices were very reasonable so I guess you are getting what you paid for. If you are looking for a place with some nice Mexican decor and don't mind average food with little flavor at a decent price then this is the place for you.

hands down best Mexican restaurant in Austin.

This place is a few blocks away from the wildly popular Juan in a Million. If you like your washrooms to be even mildly clean then I would not advise this place. If you want your service to be even mildly attentive I would not advise this place. If you want your food to sparkle with freshness, I would not advise this place. If you want food that tastes fine, comes in hearty portions at a good price with an incredible variety of options and you don’t want to line up somewhere else then this place will work for you.

Acting on a recommendation from a local, we went to Las Cazuelas expecting excellent Mexican food, and we found it. No Tex-Mex here. Located just outside the downtown area, this restaurant features a friendly staff which provides great service. We loved the food! Excellent entrees with a load of sides. We would definitely recommend this to everyone.

Great Potosino style food. A hometown favorite. Comfort food. Yummy.

One of my longtime favorite places. It is spiffed up from a few years back when I was a regular customer. The place has changed and is cleaner and has less of that deep Mexico atmosphere. No crazy lady doing karaoke in the corner this time. But the food is still as good as it can get for a Tex-Mex eatery. The BBQ chicken is really great and the prices are right.

The food here is awesome and authentic. I'm definitely biased, though, since I spent a summer in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. The people that founded and run this place are from San Luis de Potosi, which is a town in Guanajuato. The food is tasty and still amazingly affordable, especially considering the rapidly gentrifying East Austin. Be forewarned that the restaurant is no frills; you may be greeted with an overall grimy aura. But the lack of ambience is more than made up for with the food!

Stopped in after a day of traveling . We chose this establishment because we could walk there. First , I had to greet the waiter. Ordered a margarita , asked for it on the rocks . When I asked what kind of tequila they used he looked at me like I had a third eyeball and said “ the kind I am supposed to use “. I let it pass and asked what kind of white tequila they had. He was clueless and had to ask another server . So, 15 minutes later I get my margarita on the rocks . Completely clear with a maraschino cherry ???!! No lime taste at all. I could barely taste tequilas. Pretty much simple syrup with a dash of tequila. I had to ask for a lime so I could squeeze some juice into my drink. For some odd reason I decided to give them another chance and ordered queso fundido with chorizo . Seriously , 20 minutes later got a bowl of shredded cheese that was melted in microwave with a little chorizo seasoning in it . Cold when I got it . Lifted the whole thing out of the bowl with my fork. Basically a seasoned cheese puck. Pass this place up.

HORRIBLE FOOD! By far the worst, my food looked old, chicken breast was old & hard, chips were stale, green sausage was extremely salty, poor service, none of the plates our friends ordered were good, nothing had taste. And ohh not to mention the horrible neighborhood, crackheads/druggies walking in/out. Don't ever go here!

After reading reviews on 24 hour restaurants in Austin, I decided to try this authentic Mexican diner. The service was slow and you had to pay for butter for your tortillas that didn't taste homemade as they claim. My enchilada was overly seasoned, taco was ok, and the flauta was dry. Good for a late night go to, but not really the experience I was hoping for.

My boyfriend and I came here on a sunday evening after traveling all day. We were pretty hungry and wanted something cheap and in walking distance to where we were staying. It was pretty empty, maybe 3 other tables besides us but our waitress was very attentive and friendly. The food was amazing but very spicy which i loved but my boyfriend was a little overwhelmed by. We ordered beef nachos and gorditas and it was all delicious and inexpensive. We also got tequila shots and our waitress was nice enough to help us pick out the best brand of tequila because they have at least 20 different ones. My boyfriend did start to feel sick after eating here but i felt fine and would recommend checking it out if you're in the area and craving mexican food.