Tempe City Tacos

Reviews

• Justie L.

  star star star star star 28 May 2026

  Tempe City Tacos is absolutely my new go-to taco joint; I don't know how I lived down the street for a couple years before finding it. The most important thing you need to know: every Tuesday they feature a different, special taco for $1.50 a pop. Doesn't get much better than that, folks. They're always a taco that isn't on their regular menu--both a blessing and a curse!
  
  I almost exclusively eat here in Tuesday's (usually takeout, which seems to be what accounts for most of their clientele), because I'm a real sucker for a deal. I like to try whatever they have going on for the special, and then get a couple of their normals too. The carne asada here is great, wonderfully marinated, and not at all tough. The smoked chicken is also fantastic, as is their al pastor. I want to love the shrimp and battered fish, but I'm just way too big of a spicy-food wimp for the arbol salsa that they put on it... and it's just not the same without. Oh, the plight! But for spicy food fans, I'd definitely recommend.
  
  I love their avocado jalapeño salsa, and always love a good tomatillo salsa. The roasted red is also a really good standard mild base salsa. I love their guacamole; it's always super fresh and delicious, with a good amount of lime in there. They boyf and I almost always get the chips, salsa, and guac to start, because we love both dips and the homemade chips are great too.
  
  A super low key hole in the wall joint, don't expect anything too fancy. But DO expect impeccable food and ultra friendly service. Every employee has always been super nice and helpful with any questions or in my case, my inability to make food decisions.
  
  I've very quickly become a regular, and definitely don't see that stopping any time soon!

• Omari D.

  star star star star star_border 23 May 2026

  BYOB is all I saw when I walked in and given that it's across the way from a drive-thru liquor store I couldn't be happier. So I really came here for the Tacos as I'm always on the hunt for classic street tacos.
  
  I hear Taco Tuesday's are the day to come when it's only $1.50 each so I know where a future Tuesday dinner will be. We came in on a Saturday night and it was pretty quiet. The TV was on with Sports Center and plenty of art on the walls to make sure you didn't have any awkward silence
  
  I decided to go with the 3 Taco Dinner that comes with Rice & Beans. Got a Carne Asada, Al Pastor, and fried Fish. My buddy got 2 Carne Asada and the fish, but grilled. The Al Pastor through my taste buds for a double-take as it has Pineapple in its. Very good. Asada was on point with Cilantro & onions and we made sure to get Avocado Jalapeno, tomatillo, and 1 Salsa Roja (HOT) salsas. They come in a little to-go container but you get 2 (no extra charge).
  
  The only thing preventing the 5-star rating was the wait. It wasn't busy, and I get that it's cooked to order, but it took way longer than expected on a not so busy evening. We did order chips, guac and salsa (a bit $$, for the portion, but really good... and chunky) and the chips we were told were being made fresh (no complaints)
  
  Great food and overall good value. Used a Yelp Checkin for the free Horchata and the double bonus of Groupon cashback show up so a win-win.

• Amanda M.

  star star star star_border star_border 23 May 2026

  I'll start with the good part: the tacos really are delicious and you can tell they're made with care. Most of the salsas are flavorful and make a great addition to the food. Beans and rice are bland but tolerable with tasty salsa!
  
  I've had the pleasure of going once when it was nearly empty inside and received attentive, helpful, and timely service. It was a fantastic experience!
  
  Today, not so fantastic. There was one big table and a few parties of two. The staff were so clearly overwhelmed as evidenced by their behaviors and statements. I can't judge what's difficult and what's not since I've never worked in food service, but I KNOW when you work in a taco restaurant you know the difference between your salsas if you have any experience there. I have no idea what I got and neither did the staff. The other tables around me were asking multiple times for the parts of their orders that were missing.
  
  The icing on the cake was listening to the woman at the counter yell at someone on the phone who called to ask what the special of the day was. That is not an ok way to talk to people, especially in front of others! Sooo cringey....
  
  I give TC Taco three stars cause at their best they're amazing! But under any bit of pressure the whole operation appears to crumble and that doesn't make for a great dining experience.

• Ajay C.

  star star star star star_border 20 May 2026

  Tiny taco place. Limited menu options, makes your life little easy.
  
  Ordered -
  Vegetarian tacos : ordered 3 of those. Surprisingly tacos tasted better than any other taco places I have been to in past few weeks. Mild salsa was really good.
  
  Order took little longer but was worth the wait

• Haneen O.

  star star star star_border star_border 18 May 2026

  I'd recently noticed this place in the same plaza as Venezia's and they also had a Groupon deal so I came for Taco Tuesday. Each Tuesday, they have a Chef's special for $1.50 and this week it was a green chile chicken. The cashier was welcoming and helpful since it was my first time dining here. I sat in a booth and perused the menu and decided to get one of the chef's specials, shrimp taco and a veggie taco. I also got a horchata but didn't read the fine print that it was free with a $10 purchase, oops.
  
  My food came out fairly quick and they looked good. I made sure to get some salsa and got the spicy red salsa; it was deceiving because it didn't taste hot initially but the more I ate it, the hotter it got. Nice. Out of the three, I really only liked the veggie taco, the shrimp wasn't very grilled and I didn't care for the chicken. The horchata was too sweet and didn't have the traditional flavors I anticipate, like cinnamon, nutmeg. I did like the vibe of this place and there was a good amount of folks dining in. Service was excellent and personable. I wasn't sure if it was the drink or the tacos, but my stomach became upset later that evening so I will give it time before I come back.