El Borracho: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

El Borracho is a fully vegan Mexican restaurant tucked into Pike Place Market at 1521 1st Ave in Seattle. Every single item on the menu is plant-based, so you don’t have to ask about substitutions or decode fine print. The spot has been around since 2012 and went fully plant-based in 2021, swapping beef for Impossible crumbles, carne asada for seitan, and dairy for house-made vegan queso and chipotle sour cream. If you’re visiting Seattle and want vegetarian Mexican food with a real dive bar vibe, this is your place.

What’s vegan and vegetarian at El Borracho

Everything. El Borracho is 100% plant-based, which means the entire menu is vegetarian and vegan by default. You’ll find tacos on handmade corn or flour tortillas, burritos, nachos loaded with house queso, and hot dogs (yes, really) all built around proteins like seitan barbacoa, jackfruit, Impossible beefy crumbles, blackened vegan salmon, and chipotle Yukon gold potatoes. There’s also a salsa bar with house-made salsas you can pile on. Even the queso fresco is soy-free and plant-based. The nachos run $12 and come with cheese, pico de gallo, guacamole, chipotle sour cream, pickled jalapeño, black olives, and refried beans, which is a strong value for Seattle.

Signature dishes to order

Start with the nachos ($12) if you’re sharing. They’re genuinely good and often mentioned in reviews as a must-order. From there, the seitan barbacoa taco ($8.75) and the jackfruit cochinita taco are the most popular proteins. The Impossible beefy crumbles taco ($8.50) is the closest thing to a classic ground-beef taco, and it’s gluten-free on a corn tortilla. Hot dogs get their own section on the menu, and the Barbacoa Dog ($16.50) is worth trying if you want something different. For drinks, the house margaritas are a reason people come back, with seasonal flavors like habanero, hibiscus, pineapple-jalapeño, and tamarindo rotating through. Non-drinkers can get horchata or agua fresca for $4.95.

How to order

El Borracho uses a QR code ordering system at the tables, so you’ll scan, order, and pay on your phone. No waiter comes to take your order. The restaurant doesn’t take reservations, so show up and grab a table when you can. If you’re going after 5pm, bring your ID because the restaurant becomes 21+ only at that point and turns into more of a bar scene. You can also order delivery through DoorDash if you’d rather eat at your hotel. Takeout is available too. Parking near Pike Place is tough, so plan on walking or using transit.

What to watch out for

Reviews are mixed on the service, and that’s mainly a function of the minimal-staff, QR-order model. Some people find it refreshingly fast. Others find it impersonal or frustrating if the app gives them trouble. The 21+ rule after 5pm rules out families with kids for evening visits, so plan a lunch if you’re traveling with anyone under 21. Prices are reasonable for Seattle, but they’re not cheap for tacos ($8.50 to $8.75 each). The Ballard location closed in 2022, and the Tacoma location closed as well, so the Pike Place spot is the only one left. One more thing: the Yelp rating sits at 3.5 stars (189 reviews), which is lower than TripAdvisor’s 4.0 (254 reviews). The gap mostly comes down to service expectations rather than the food itself.

Is El Borracho worth it?

If you’re looking for fully vegetarian Mexican food in Seattle, yes. The location is unbeatable, right in Pike Place Market between Pine and Pike streets. The menu is genuinely creative for plant-based Mexican, the proteins are varied enough to keep things interesting across visits, and the margaritas are good. You’re not getting table service or a fancy experience, but you’re getting honest, flavorful vegan tacos in one of the city’s best people-watching spots. For vegetarians and vegans who want to skip the detective work of parsing a regular menu, El Borracho removes all the guesswork.