Great food..great service..let me in for a drink before they were open..thanks for a great afternoon!!
Love the food the atmosphere got to get there early or be prepared to wait...always a great time!
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Mount Pleasant is probably the most hip part of town, so of course that’s where you’ll find a hip Latin American street food joint called El Camino's. They were featured on season 2 of You Gotta Eat Here! and were named as the #1 Best South American 2017 in Westender’s Best of the City Dining issue.
We visited on a Friday night and it’s good to note that they don’t take reservations. You’ll know that you’re in the right place when you see their logo, which is, of course of an El Camino. It can be a busy and happening place, so if you don’t want to wait getting there early might be useful. The vibe of the room is very cool, with cinder block walls and spray painted lettering across them. The lights are dim and the bar is busy. We were seated at a booth and began to peruse their clipboard menu. We were also given a bowl of lime-seasoned popcorn to munch on as we did so, which always scores incredibly high in my book! Who isn’t happy when they see that popcorn is coming their way?
But first, I excitedly noticed their special drink feature on the chalkboard near the front: Hot Buttered Rum ($10.00). My all-time favourite cold weather beverage! I asked for one of those. This was absolutely perfect and exactly the way that I like it, cinnamon stick and all! Hot, sweet, and butterscotchy, it’s the perfect thing to enjoy on a cold day. It’s like a comforting hug in beverage form. Maybe not the most Latin American of choices like all of their fun margaritas, but I didn’t care.
I like that they specify that their food has been crafted to be enjoyed as is. They do not allow any substitutions, which is a policy that I can appreciate. We began with a sharing dish, and while several sounded very good (Atun, Pao de Queijo) we went with the Bolinho de Bacalao (Four salt cod croquettes with dill lime yoghurt aioli, dressed cabbage - $12.00). These were nice. The salt cod was prepared very well and was fried to a crispy perfection. Inside each golden orb, the fish was flavourful and delicious. I liked the aioli a lot and it acted as a great cooling dip. The dill matched the cod very well. The cabbage was supposedly “dressed,” but I couldn’t discern any type of dressing. That being said, I enjoyed the crunchy cabbage strands because they tasted very fresh. The cabbage tasted great in the dill lime aioli as well.
For my main dish, I decided to order an Arepa; a grilled & stuffed corn pocket, garnished with cilantro & onion, served with house salsas. I chose the Gambas (Prawns sautéed with coconut & chipotle, cabbage - $8.00) from the seven types available. While this was supposed to be served with housemade salsas, and the menu lists six different salsa types, we were never offered any of these. There was one bottle of housemade hot sauce on our table and that was it. I added cheese to my arepa for $1. I also got a side dish of Mexican Corn ($5.00) expecting that it would be Elote (Mexican corn on the cob), but it was not. So a few disappointments there. The arepa was very good though, packed full of delicious goodness. I especially loved the plump and juicy shrimp which were super flavourful. Spicy and sweet from the chipolte and coconut, such a wonderful combo. The corn pocket itself was very toothsome and provided a great texture. The cheese was the right choice.
While the corn wasn’t exactly what I had hoped for, it was actually very tasty. It was super juicy and there were other vegetables and even some cheese mixed in. I was pleasantly surprised with this.
We had to have dessert because they serve one of our favourites! Pastel de Tres Leches (Spongecake drenched with three milks, maple chantilly, dulce de leche, crushed pecan praline - $8.00). This was an excellent version of this delicious cake!! So creamy and soft and amazing! Tres Leches is kind of like a South American version of an Italian tiramisu, except I think that it’s the better of the two. The pecans were extra good. The whole thing was incredible and you should order it. Order it now.
Overall, the food at El Camino’s was very good, albeit a bit expensive for what you get (isn’t street food supposed to be cheap?). Their flavours are expertly created and if you want great South American food this is a solid bet. They also offer weekend brunch, which sounds like something worth going to try.
My first time having Pisco Sour, it was deeeelish. There's eggwhites, does this mean I will be buff? only time will tell . Vegetarian tacos w poblano peppers. Greaaat with sauces. Rly enjoyed them. Other vegetarian one w black beans. Also very good, more hearty. Again, good w sauces.
If you're into easy parking, service with a personal touch, handcrafted margs with a shot of fresh green zap-juice that you won't find anywhere else, and snacking on tacos that taste like the person who made them actually cared that you got a little bit of everything delicious in each bite - then go here. The best people already do.
After our epic Cuban meal at Pambiche in Portland, we immediately came back to Vancouver and looked for restaurants that served Cuban food only to be disappointed… why are there no Cuban restaurants in Vancouver (and I don’t count Havana on Commercial)?. The closest I could find was El Camino’s on Main Street which serves up Latin American food. Despite not satiating my desire for Cuban food, I was very impressed with the food at this hipsterish locale. They have the phrase “Nada como una revolución para curar la sed y el hambre” (nothing like a revolution to cure thirst and hunger) graffitied on their cinder block wall.
Wicked little hipster Mexican joint on Main. The arepa was the glowing highlight if the meal and are an absolute must have, however the muscles were also unreal. They were cooked to perfection and the broth was drinkable. Fish tacos were crunchy, but not to greasy. I also love how they give you popcorn to start, and there house made hot sauce is dope! Service was really lacking. The waiter walked away with my credit card agree saying goodbye. This was after having to flag someone down to actually pay after 10 minutes.
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Don't know why we haven't been here for dinner before. The restaurant has a great vibe to it, though a tad loud for me personally. But it was not a big issue. We arrived at 5:55pm tonight and were pleasantly surprised to see that it was also taco Tuesday, bonus. All tacos are $5. Plus I squeaked in my drink order before happy hour wrapped up at 6pm, double bonus! A nice cold bottle of Pacifico for $4!
We ordered 4 different tacos: carne asada (beef), pescado (fish), al pastor (pulled pork), and pollo (fried chicken). Each serving came with 2 tacos and all were delicious. I would recommend the carne, pollo and the pescado. I wasn't a fan of the pulled pork, it was too runny. We also ordered a Moqueca (Brazilian seafood rice bowl). At first taste, I thought that it was a Thai dish. It tasted so similiar to a coconut curry. It was delicious regardless of whether or not the flavours were authentic Brazilian. All the seafood were perfectly cooked, not overcooked at all.
Everything arrived FAST despite a full house! We were in and out in 40 minutes. All the staff we came in contact with tonight were friendly. Great execution on food & service. We'll definitely be back!
Unique and tasty Latin American style food. Crepioca is a must try! So is Paso de Queijo. I don't like the steak stir fry as much. Seems like everyone likes the arepas here too. Besides good food, it's a good-but noisy- place for a late drink.
William G. Hernandez
+3.5
I've been wanting to try this place out for a while now but never got around to it. This time though, I was in the neighborhood delivering some things to a friend and we decided to head out to grab something to eat.
El Camino's was pretty packed for a Wednesday at 7 pm, but taking to the waitress she told us the wait was never too long. True, since we only had to wait about 20 mins to get a seat. Pretty good.
The ambiance was what you would expect from a place that tries to sell their Mexican or Latin American look in my opinion. While the drinks were great, I was a little bit let down by the meat. While I was expecting traditional Mexican with good carnitas, I ended up getting something more Tex-Mex. The vibe and service was great though, so I'd def come back for the ambiance and drinks.
Got some takeout from this place yesterday. Be warned it is a bit of a wait for takeout so I'd call it in first next time.
The vibe of the restaurant having waited there for quite some time is pretty cool and I'd love to try their cocktails. The bartender really looked like he made a mean drink.
So we got the fish , chorizo and steak tacos, Pao de Queijo, Gambas and guacamole and chips.
My absolute favorite dish was the Pao (Brazilian cheese bread with stir fired veg on top) this was amazing and I could have eaten like 2 of them. Just such well blended flavors. Then I loved the Gambas, the shrimp really worked well with the paprika aioli. The tacos were decent, steak was the best in my opinion. Guacamole was okay not a traditional gauc but good and the chips were crisp.
All in all I will for sure be giving this place another go. I'd love to try breakfast here and have many cocktails as i think this place could be a blast.
Tara Lopez PG Radio Prince George
+5
Super delicious!!! One of the best Mexican restaurants I`ve eaten at IN THE WORLD. Must tries are: The Crepioca (prawn crepe) and The Vegetarian Bocadillo (warm veggie sub). Prices are very reasonable (not expensive). Highly Recommend this place! Try to make reservations in advance, as it gets packed quickly. I was pleasantly surprised, and will be back for sure! :)
Great place for cocktails and has a solid food menu that has many items you wouldn’t see everyday. Staff is always on point and very friendly. Worth a visit if you’re in the area. For the five star, you’d expect either, a bigger cocktail/food menu or a bigger special board. As a local it’s easy to loose it’s wow factor
This is an excellent joint for Mexican cuisine, focusing on street style dishes. If going here, the “Pan de Maize” or cornbread is a MUST. It will melt in your mouth, too good!! Following which the rest of the entrees are just as good, so really has to do with preference. But if you are feeling sandwiches then the butter milk fried chicken sandwich is excellent! From the tacos I really liked the shrimp tacos. Service was excellent, quick and accommodating. Our server had good recommendations. Great drink options as well!
El Camino serves some of the best drinks on Main. Their Pina Colada is the best. Their corn bread is second to none. Calamari delicious. I tried the Brazilian Style Shepherd’s pie for the first time today and it was yummy too. Good service and yummy food here. Highly recommend!
Came for drinks and we had Micheladas, pina colada, calamari. The calamari is fresh and soft. Must try. Pleasant atmosphere, awesome customer service and attentive.
WOW. The service was fantastic; warm and attentive without being overbearing. The flavours we're delish and the vibe was hip.
The cornbread with the side of burnt onion butter is delicious. I don’t go out of my way to add corn to my meals, however, based on reading the reviews here, I ordered the cornbread and paired it with a Main St Pilsner, it was good.
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