Classic Mexican dishes in Sai Ying Pun for under US$12 at El Macho

Fiesta vibes are going strong at new Mexican restaurant El Macho in Sai Ying Pun. Calavera-inspired murals and decorative sombreros plaster the walls and ceilings, Gipsy Kings blare from a speaker, and the small kitchen serves up a curated selection of popular Mexican dishes.

Tucked into a quiet street corner, the small restaurant has high-table seating indoors, and a few tables and chairs outside as well – good for a group to settle into and lending the spot a cosy, relaxed atmosphere.

The place was lively but not loud on a recent weekend night, and we had no trouble getting a table.

The simple menu is broken down into the popular Mexican cuisine food groups: nachos, quesadillas, burritos, tacos and fajitas. They also offer French fries – plain and with some Mexican-inspired toppings (HK$58), chicken wings (HK$78), and ceviche (HK$138) for sharing.

The nachos were a different take on the usual bowl of tortilla chips sprinkled and baked with cheese. In our “Guapo” nachos (HK$98), no chip went cheese-less as 12 handmade corn tortilla chips were evenly topped with guacamole, melted cheddar, sour cream, salsa and jalapeño.

We could have added meaty toppings of US pulled pork, beef con carne or free range chicken (HK$98 each). The same three meats are a foundation for the menu, found in burrito and taco options as well.

For our mains we tried the classic El Carnisada (beef chilli con carne tacos, HK$78) and the “Green Queen” vegetarian burrito (HK$85).

The duo of hard corn tortillas tacos were loaded with juicy and flavourful chilli con carne, with fresh salsa, guacamole, sour cream and lettuce toppings. Each bite was a nice crunchy, meaty mouthful, but we were still a little hungry after we finished.

The burrito was not the (often sloppy) brick of rice and refried beans variety, but rather a slimmer, grill-pressed soft tortilla. The “Green Queen” had a blend of peppers, nicely roasted vegetables, fried beans, ample cheese, lettuce tomato, salsa and guacamole. The grill press gave the tortilla a bit of texture while compressing the ingredients slightly, making the burrito one of the least messy we had ever encountered.

Both of our main dishes were served on decorative trays with a trio of sides (guacamole, seemingly home-made salsa and sour cream) that we could add to our taste. We also appreciated that the tables were stocked with multiple bottles of Tapatio hot sauce and ghost pepper chilli flakes for some fire.

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Most of the menu items come close to HK$100. A bit pricier than the burritos and tacos are the whole tortilla quesadillas (HK$98), while the fajitas, with fish, steak and pork tenderloin options, were HK$118.

El Macho, 1 Third Street, Sai Ying Pun, tel: 2523 2488. Open: Monday to Friday 5pm-11pm; Saturday and Sunday noon-11pm