Tacuba

Good take on what I'd imagine Mexican street food is like. Portions are small, but that means you can treat it like tapas and try more!

When we went, they'd just done a Groupon deal, so it was super busy and a bit slow.

Their margaritas were very large, but had too much ice for my liking. Smaller and less ice please!

All in all, a good local place.

Pretty nice place. It was packed on Sunday and the poor bartender was the only one there. He must have lost a stone running from table to table.

I had a couple of passionfruit daquiri's which were nice.

We got the sharing platter. The taco's were nice. I really enjoyed the taqitos and the choritzo on the quesadilla's. It was all good... nothing amazing though.

The best bit was the churro's MMM!!! they were delish. the ducle du leche sauce was thick and the ice cream nicely cut through the thickness of the sauce. I'd skip all the food and go straight for the churros.

In all fairness the food here is good. I've dined here about four times and found the quality of food to be quite satisfactory. They also deliver which is a nice bonus as well. My "beef" with the place is they often burn incense which is disgusting!!! We walked in for dinner on a Thursday night and the smell of incense blew our sombreros off it was so strong. Nothing could have made me stay and eat with that smell in the air. My opinion is your food should be the only aroma in your restaurant. I'll certainly hesitate before dining there again. Sorry amigos this American Southerner in London isn't a fan until you clear the air.

You cannot get good Mexican food in England. Once you've accepted this fact, life goes on, and the odd soggy taco and cheese-fest nachos keep me happy really, until I next get to go the States and stuff my face with enchiladas and proper guacamole.

Tacuba serves pretty tasty versions of the above. I liked it because the tacos were corn ones, which you often can't find. There is a good selection, though it's all quite mix and match - and the appetizers are snacks not starters really. If you order a starter and a main, you will ingest a lot of tortilla.

The cocktails were nice - I'll admit we were on a Groupon deal so we didn't pay for the first one but did stay for a second since we were in the mood. The chilli martini has a real kick.

Personally I thought it was just a tad over-priced for where it is and what's on offer, but if I was really craving the mexican pulled pork (carnitas?) I'd pop down here. Not one to travel for.

I like the one-room cosy feel to it. It's a small place, but the atmosphere is just right and it's a great place to meet up with friends.

Good selection of beers for me and they make some impressive cocktails. The drinks aren't cheap mind you.

Didn't try the food myself, but saw some of it brought out for others - it looked like decent snack food and I'm told it's reasonably priced. I'll try it next time.

This is more a bar that serves mexican-ish (emphasis on the "ish") food. Came here on a groupon that offered four drinks and a mexican platter for two to share.

I got a ho-hum mojito that my husband ordered for me, along with a beer for himself, before I arrived. Annoyingly, they would not count those drinks toward the deal, and couldn't really explain why either.

The platter was pretty small, and it definitely would not constitute a meal for two. I scanned menu for some sort of side item to fill it out, but was found lacking.

Service was ok, we came on a Tuesday night, so not busy at all. There's better Mexican out there; if you're craving keep looking. And definitely better mojitos to be found elsewhere as well.

The food from Tacuba was alright, and perhaps they might earn a 3 had things arrived in a better state, but the insanely slow delivery and cold food mean I have to give them a 2.

I ordered our food for delivery and was told it would be about 75 minutes for delivery. We were already a bit hungry, but the restaurant is a fair distance from us, so didn't mind. But then we waited. And waited. And waaaaaited. After 90 minutes I had a phone call from the delivery driver. He wasn't quite sure about where my building was. As it happens, he was in the drive for the building. So I figured it would be just as long as it took to hop up the lift to my floor.

And then I waited 10 more minutes! At least the delivery driver was very polite and apologised. But still - any time delivery passes the hour and a half mark, it's not a good thing.

The food was cold. The nachos had barely any cheese - and it had never been melted. (Thankfully I had some extra cheese in my fridge that I could put on before I stuck them under the grill). THe tacos were tasty and more than enough filling was included. The burrito was alright, but very full of rice. The tortilla chips and the soft corn tortillas (for the tacos) were the highlights of the meal.

So, the food was alright, but arriving cold and late doesn't earn high marks.

This is a cool place with a great atmosphere, friendly jokester staff, and pretty decently priced drinks. Essentially, it's a bit of an upscale attempting mexican joint tucked away just off Balham High Street.

The nachos were tasty and properly loaded with meat, guac, and sour cream. We could have used a bit more cheese though...then again you can always use more cheese!

For my main, I ordered the mole burritos (honestly can't remember if I had duck or chicken in them) which again was good but nothing special. The mole sauce was a bit bitter in the way mole usually is but also had a slightly sweet aftertaste which was interesting. Interesting in a good way though.

My main gripe with Tacuba is that for the price I expect more. Again, I should caveat this with the fact my formative Mexican experiences were in the US where portions are bigger but honestly we did consider Macca's afterwards because we were quite hungry.

Overall, worth going for a drink (Mojitos and margaritas are done well here) and perhaps a snack but not really suitable for a proper dinner.

Tacuba has to be one of the best bars in Balham - they just get everything right


There's an excellent selection of cocktails, (with huge Margaritas being something of a speciality, the food is great, (try the Quesadillas), and there are some interesting beers to try.


However, the best thing about this place is the atmosphere - the bar staff are always friendly, and at the weekend there is usually a DJ and / or live musician in the corner


Highly recommended!

If you fancy a great Mojito in London, forget the likes of Floridita, Tacuba served me the tastiest I have had yet before going on to wow us with some simple yet delicious Mexican food.


It's a small place with only a few tables. We were squeezed into what little space was available, sharing a table with another group who echoed our opinions of the drinks, and reassured us that our imminent meal would be just as enjoyable.


My fajitas came do-it-yourself with a bowl filled with chicken, peppers, onions, guacamole, refried beans, and the tortillas to wrap them all in. My friends thoroughly enjoyed their Tacos and Enchiladas.


Completely delicious, pretty easy on the wallet (two mojitos and a main-course came to about £20 each), and friendly staff who were of course happy to have a chat and listen to our praise.


I had a leaflet through the door a few days after our visit advertising 50% off Margaritas and Tacos Sundays to Wednesdays, I'd have been more than happy to go back, but that's just an even better reason!