The best Mexican restaurants in London

A slice of Echo Park in Stoke Newington, this LA-style taco joint offers three short menus; one for breakfast burritos, and one each for grill and guisado (braised) tacos. Most are pork and beef-based, though there’s a cactus leaf nopales offering for vegetarians and faux chorizo for vegans. A sensible diner would order three tacos, but you’d be within your rights to order four, even five. Prices are an extremely reasonable £3.50 to £5, and though they look petite, Sonora’s paper-thin tortillas come packed to the floury brim. Truly excellent stuff. 

A seasonal Mexican restaurant and the first permanent venture from 'Nomadic chef' Santiago Lastra, Kol was the highest placed UK joint in the World's 50 Best Restaurants for 2023 list. Not bad going. Inside this modern Marylebone restaurant you'll find super seasonal British produce and 'wild food'. You will, of course, have to book pretty far in advance to secure a hallowed table. 

A deliriously fun dining experience. Yes, Mestizo’s food is way better than the majority of Mexican restaurants in London. Yes, the drinks menu is overflowing with tequila-based beverages that ensure no one goes home sober. But it’s also got something else: a hilarious, endearing fun energy that turns every meal here into a party. Whether you like it or not. Tamales, tacos, enchiladas, all things you expect to see on a Mexican menu, but in London what you don’t necessarily expect is quality this high. The chocolate-y house mole consists of 25 ingredients and you can basically taste all of them. This is also one of the only places in London to serve drinks made with delicious raicilla, the third Mexican spirit, which tastes a little bit like tennis balls, but in a good way.

Zapote serves punchy meat and elegant seafood dishes from the mind of chef Yahir Gonzalez. It’s something he does extremely well, serving up duck quesadillas with a gooey smoked chipotle jelly, scallop ceviche, beef tartare taco with roasted bone marrow and charred octopus. The ‘save room for dessert’ trope is total a cliche, but at Zapote you would be a fool not to, especially if the pistachio doughnut with morello cherry jam is on.

Fun, lively and totally vegan, this branch of Club Mexicana is the biggest yet. Enjoy chef and founder Meriel Armitage's unique plant-based take on tacos, nachos and burritos – as well as a giant mirror ball and iconic frozen margs. Read our review of the Kingly Court location here. 

Breddos keep things casual to suit what is ultimately still street food. A custom-made wood grill adds rustic charm. Tacos remain its strong suit, but try the seafood tostadas too, which team the crunch of tortilla shells with punchy cross-continental flavours.

Growing up between Mexico City and a small village in the Mexican state of Tlaxcala, chef Adriana Cavita is at the helm, bringing with her an impressive resumé that includes stints at Mexico City’s much-lauded Pujol, often called the best restaurant in the city, and Spain’s mythical El Bulli by superstar chef Ferran Adrià. At Cavita, the vibe is decidedly more laidback. There’s more focus on winning over a local crowd with a damn good time than winning over critics and scoring Michelin stars, but the dishes are anything but simple.

Taquiza has a bit of a ramshackle feel to it, but this is down to the fact that the DIY Peckham space doubles up as The Carpet Shop, one of London’s best clubs, opened by the people behind the always-excellent Corsica Studios. Here pisco sours and spicy margs are flowing and you'll feast on big portions of smoky refried black beans with gooey queso fundido and grilled elote. There are also wonderful tuna tostadas, goat shoulder tacos, king prawn tacos and halloumi al pastor and coconut fried enoki mushroom tacos for the veggies.

Simply brilliant. Low-lit, inviting and spread over two floors, it seduces punters with easy-listening Latin grooves, flickering tea lights, and some inspired food – guacamole sprinkled with tiny grasshoppers, hibiscus flower quesadillas and enchiladas and 12-hour slow-cooked smoky beef tacos. There are punishing shots of mezcal too.

If you need cheering up, head down to this Mexican hideaway beneath the arches by Borough Market. Owned by the Hart brothers (of Barrafina fame), Pastor is a taco joint with pedigree and a rollicking fiesta vibe. Order the mighty Pastor pork taco, the DIY short rib or the gringa quesadillas with fresh salsas and a blast of loud Latin music. 

If tacos are your thing, look no further than Casa P, – part of the El Pastor family. Punters can expect fresh tortillas made in house daily, plated up alongside a bevy of aguachiles and tostadas. You’ll find a selection of fillings to pile into your shells, from chipotle chicken (our fave) to baja fish (battered goujons, slaw and salsa) and veggie options.

Billed as a ‘kick-ass Mexican grill’, one-time street stall Daddy Donkey has morphed into a permanent behemoth among Leather Lane’s cheap handbags, shoes and CDs. Try a naked burrito (sans tortilla) or the signature Daddy D with a choice of five fillings.

Del74’s Dalston outpost prides itself on its no-fuss Mexican fare that ‘keeps it simple, keeps it real’. It sports kitschy ’70s-inspired decor and the menu’s modest but appealing. Go for the tangy guacamole, which comes with a hearty helping of homemade tortilla chips, or try the cochinita pibil, a braised leg of pork topped with fresh avo and red pickled onions that’s a fiesta in your mouth.

DF stands for Mexico City’s Distrito Federal, but this affordable, mass-market pleaser couldn’t be more London – and fashion-conscious with it. All the trademarks are here: strikingly modern design, cheery staff and Mexican fast food with a hipster spin. Open tacos hit the spot, as do the pork pibil tortas – a trendy Mex riff on the burger.