El Camino

If I could I d give no stars.

Bad slow service, took ages to gives a table and there were only two people eating in the whole restaurant at the time. The menu is confusing and the waiter did not help at all. Then they put very loud music, I was with a friend I had not seen for 15 years! When I asked, the waiter mock me by saying that they would put the music even louder. I ve got so angry I left before ordering. Waste of time, I was starving and I had to look for another place. I am glad I did, the place looked depressing and I am sure the food would have been too. Do not go… if you want a good environment and Mex food go to el Chiquito Leicester Square. Good food and excellent service!

The most horrible £14 steak I ever had. It was burnt from the outside and you had to chew it for 30 minutes or swallow it as it is because that meat was horse or something! Not only that, it was highly recommended by the waitress. When I complaint (about the recommendation) the waitress said let me see what I can do and did not return to the table. Not to mention that the place smells of toilet. Highly unrecommended

Tequila – it makes you happy!

If you like Tequila then this is your place!

Tequila cocktail, an extensive list of Tequila’s and a burrito restaurant upstairs means you can eat with your drinks.

I loved the day of the dead Mexican decor with stag heads, fairy lights and intimate booths.

El Camino is a new addition to the growing tex-mex scene in London. I have to say, it is distinctly average. It's mainly let down by it's sloppy service - and some of the dishes are so-so.

I always get grumpy with paying more than a couple of quid for a tiny pot of guacamole, and El Camino are guilty of this crime. It's so cheap to make - why are you fleecing people for it? The tortilla chips and salsa are also a bit pricey, for what is probably the easiest starter in the world to serve up.

Cocktails - we only tried the classic Margarita - but it was well mixed and they certainly did not skimp on the tequila. However, it got served up in the dullest tall glass - where's my Margarita glass with the salted rim? No show-manship on that front....

The corn tacos come in a minuscule sized portion - my friend had to order some more food just to get close to feeling full!

The Burritos however are a different story - very tasty fillings, and the portion sizes are just right. I thought the mix of ingredients was well balanced too - and I've eaten my way round a lot of Burritos in London....

What we really did enjoy was the relaxed atmosphere, the kitsch tablecloths and the excellent display of spicy sauces from around the world! What we liked the least was the over-priciness of some items and the slightly lazy service.

El Camino will not blow you away from a culinary point of view , but it is a lot of fun. It's definitley a place for friends, cocktails and good times.

El Camino is a great place to drink, and a pretty mediocre place to eat. Rob, Andrew - maybe you caught it on a good night, but I was taken aback by the miniscule size of the guacamole portion - susanacri; if you had half your portion, then a teaspoonful would be what you'd have eaten it with.

In total, we waited an hour for food - half for the starters, half for the main. This was probably because the manager was entertaining his mates that night, and pitchers ('no, sorry, they're for the boss only') were being rushed to his table while customers waited to eat. And waited.

In spite of this, we managed to wear the staff down so much with our nagging that we were given two free margaritas each - so our £75 bill for poppers, chips, two enchilladas and four superb margaritas was, supplemented by four more of the same, not such bad value.

However, if I'd have had to pay for them, I'd have been livid. The food, as pointed out on Urbanspoon, is d.o.d.g.y. I commented to the waiter that had it come in a box that said 'remove wrapping, pierce film and microwave for two minutes' I'd have been relieved that nobody had wasted ten minutes of their life wrapping it. Think LIDL.

Have a margarita here, then head up to Benito's hat on Goodge Street for some great Mexican food.

Pretty decent Mexican - at least the tortilla chips are fresh (and are NOT Doritos - why do places here even consider using Doritos in their nachos?!) Serving of guacamole was measly but pork nachos were generous and tasty. The pork burrito is ok - there are better places in London to get burritos - but it was a nice place to go with friends and chat for an evening, so the atmosphere makes up for a bit. Service was friendly, if slow - don't go here if you're looking for something quick.

A solid four stars for this new Soho Mexican joint.

We are spoilt for Mexican places in London now, and the less restauranty, more lunchtime places have got the burrito market pretty much sewn up.

My guess is El Camino is pitching itself more at the evening crowd, with the shiny interior, longish menu, and an after hours bar downstairs.

We popped by for lunch and I sampled the beef tacos (no jokes please), which were pretty good, not too heavy that you feel like you need to go and lie down afterwards, and tasty (although a bugger to eat tidily, this is not a first date meal).

Root beer and Mountain Dew on the menu is a nice touch, as is the entire wall of ridiculously named hot sauces (some of which we sampled... they're all really pretty hot, unsurprisingly).

I think to get the most out of El Camino you need to go for dinner, then descend into the bar downstairs for tequila and cocktails. I'll make a note to myself to get that done and report back for the good of the Qype Community (you can thank me later).

I kind of feel like Mexican spots in London have realised the sombrero's at the doors and big fake cacti aren't quite the draw they used to be, and instead are going for the more laid back, basics cantina vibe. For me El Camino sort of drops back to the latter - good I suppose for the prime Soho spot to catch the tourist trade, but not quite up to date with all the new Burrito joints popping up.

I went for the pork burrito and while it was actually pretty damn tasty, it was £1-2 more than most other London Mexican eateries and on par with taste and flavour. We've also become a bit used to the ordering process - pick your fillings, your casing and your sauce and other 'stuff' - here it's back to menu basics and you're ultimately not too sure of what will arrive. The burritos do not come with rice/salad in them - if you want this you need to request it 'specially.

I think as everyone's said a big draw card is the shelves of fun spicy sauces with silly names that turns any group of guys into a playground gang daring each other to try another. I wouldn't rush back but I hear the bar is open late (though not sure about the food part) so good to remember if you're part of the midnight central London exodus and looking to carry on the party.

A tasty burrito is an easy way to win my heart, and the food here was just that. But the place seemed a little soulless to me; as one of of my colleagues pointed out, they really very heavily on their epic library of novelty hot sauces ('Hot Biker Bitch Sauce' being a personal favourite) lining one wall. It's a novel idea, and an easy way to keep diners entertained whilst waiting for their food, and guaranteed to cause a few casualties when the boys inevitably start daring each other to sample sauces with names like 100% Pain. But whether the place has enough charm to win people back time and time again, I'm not sure yet, though I'd be tempted to return and try the margaritas and dessert menu, just to make sure.

El Camino is a 4 stars place that serves 3 stars food.

The place:
Everything in there looks very "arriba!" and colourful, I have nothing to complain about the service and the 200 chilli sauces on the shelf are a clever gimmick.

The food:
I didn't have a burrito but a prawn salad, which looked absolutely decent - about 6 or 7 grilled prawns, a well seasoned green salad and really a lot of guacamole - but the taste was nothing to write home about. I'm a sucker for guacamole, but today I only had half of my portion.
Still a nice place though, I could go back there for cocktails, maybe.
Oh! And for the deep fried jalapeño with a cream cheese filling. That was good.

Mmm. Burrito hey? Looking at this place from the outside I first thought: strip joint? I guess it's suffering from the location, but still, they picked the slightly dodgy facade.

When I got in there I was pleasantly surprised - quite clean and friendly! (Strip joints are so unclean and unfriendly these days.) There was plenty of seating, pretty decent service, and as Andrew points out, a vast array of amusing hot sauces on the wall. I didn't partake in the Qype staff face off but the 100% pain looked fairly viscious!

As for the burrito - this is what only warrants 3 stars. Seemed fairly ordinary to me. None of the wonderful flavour and spice you get in some places. All a little neat and tidy too. A burrito is a dirty feed - there should be sauce splashing all over the plate. And ... £7 odd. Bit pricey for a lunchtime burrito.

If I want burrito I'll be going elsewhere, although I'm sure this place will do well being on the south side of Soho, el touristo trappo.

A cracking new Mexican restaurant on brewer street. Burritos are good, but not excellent. The best thing about this place is the 200 or so bottles of chilli sauce!

names include:

"eat shit and die"
"alien anal probe"
"100% pain"
"smack my ass and call me sally"
"trailer trash"
"ass woopin' redneck sauce"
"acid rain"
"who gives a rats ass"
"dick head"

I'll be back for another hot sauce face off between the Qype UK staff

I went to their downstairs bar a few nights ago and, whilst I wasn't blown away, it is a fairly pleasant place for a late night drink. The bar was serving a good range of mexican beers and cockails, as well offering a fairly wide menu for anyone after a late night snack. The bar staff were friendly but the atmosphere was slightly subdued, something which wasn't helped by the slightly-too-loud level of music being played by a bored-looking DJ. On a busy night the bar might have a great vibe, otherwise it's a decent enough option if you're in the area after hours.