Chronic Tacos

now some type of bar-​like that serves wings, though not to be confused with the real Wings near Davie.

Stale taco bowl, need I say more?
Go to the Chronic Taco in Kits, they are much better. This place is as dodgy as Granville st lol.

Oh wow. So the whole experience started poorly. There were 5 workers and it was clearly the very first day for two of them, two more couldn’t have worked there for more than a week, and the last was clearly disinterested in teaching or serving customers. It took about 20 minutes for us to order, and another ten for the crew to figure out how to make a quesadilla (we had to tell the girl that no, you don’t use the small tortillas, you use a big one…). We walked out with our food remarking that it was the least competent service we had ever encountered.
Despite the service experience, we tried to remain optimistic. However, it was clear that our quesadillas were not grilled, but rather steamed (wtf???). It was reminiscent of a microwaveable burrito. You know the frozen kind with beans and cheese… Except that would have been cheaper.
We really did want to like this place. Sad.

I came to Chronic Tacos expecting awesome tacos and that was exactly what I got. I ordered the Al Pastor Taco and the Beer Battered Fish Taco. The guy prepping our tacos was awesome, suggesting what fixings went best with each taco. I would suggest the Al Pastor to anyone. Just the right amount of spice (for me at least) and whatever they marinate the pork in is amazing. Overall a good experience!

Only came here because I saw an online coupon deal and bought it… can’t remember if it was Groupon, Social Shopper or Living Social. One of those. Anyway, it was for a burrito meal for 2 people. I expect a deal like this to have a goal of showcasing their very best to gain customers. The meal came with 2 burritos of our choice, a side of rice, beans, tortilla chips and salsa, and 2 drinks. Definitely more than enough food for 2 people and it was great that it was quick take-​out food.
However, the food didn’t impress. Too much tortilla wrap folded over where I had bites of just flour wrap. I ordered the carne asada so was expecting some delicious slices of grilled steak but the meat was overcooked shriveled pieces of dry beef. The mild salsa was pretty tasteless, perhaps I should’ve ordered the spicy one but I seriously couldn’t taste it at all. Trying not to be picky here but even the way they wrapped it was really weird. Looked like a big ball of food… I was expecting the usual cylindrical shape which would’ve made eating it a whole lot easier. This sphere of food got messy quickly.
Getting to the chips and salsa… the chips were super dark and burnt so obviously not store bought. Props for house-​made chips but why do that if you can’t do them right? The salsa also had too many chunks of raw onions for my liking. We also ended up ordering a side of guac and for the tiny little plastic container we got, it didn’t do the price justice.
Good location but will not be returning.

This comment is related solely to the Granville St. location.
We live a block away and have been eating there with moderate frequency for the last 8 months. At first I was thrown by the casual nature of the employees, but we enjoyed the food so we came back again and again. Over the last couple months we”ve seen a steady decline in the quality of the food and the customer service.
The food is consistently prepared hap-​hazardly, with toppings often thrown onto the tortilla with utter indifference. The pre-​prepared taco fillings are also declining in quality. Three times now we’ve seen cabbage slices wider than a finger, and biting these massive shards of cabbage was uncomfortable.
When placing your order with the uninterested staffers behind the glass, you’re made to feel as if you’ve somehow interrupted their lunch break. During a recent visit we even saw a cashier use the large container of guacamole as her personal dipping bowl, blatantly scooping her chip while customers look on.
It’s really a shame, as we feel this place has a lot of potential. Some good management and proper adherence to food-​safe standard are in dire need. We’ve decided not to return to this location.

Not a bad place at all for fast tacos/​burritos etc.
Definitely much, much better than true fast food places, of which I’m sure you know I’m speaking.
They gave me extra sour cream and guacamole for free, which I really appreciated– hopefully the manager doesn’t read this and freak out on the employees! I did pay for those additional condiments– they just gave me extra.
I’ve been here three times now and haven’t been disappointed, but if you want real Mexican food, obviously go to a Mexican restaurant.
The convenience of the location on Granville, the speedy service, and kickin’ music are what brings me in here. Not to mention the burritos!

The staff is very friendly and outgoing here. I had the quesadilla and i didnt really like the seasoning, it tasted a bit too salty. The atmosphere is relaxed and good music was playing.
There are a variety of tacos, ill have to go back and try some instead of the quesadilla.

They have great food
Im really big fan of the carnitas burritos there :)

Chronic Tacos is delicious. Their tacos are well made and well priced. This location has the best staff and the best food in my opinion.
It’s a great business set up; it’s «subway style» in that you can customize your order. You can choose from yummy things like guac, sour cream, 3 types of salsa, cheese, cabbage/​lettuce, cilantro, and more!
The tacos al pastor (pulled pork) are my favourite, followed by the grilled fish tacos done baja style.
I’ve heard their tortilla soup is good too. I’ve had a burrito and it was HUGE and yummy. Not as satisfying as the tacos, but that may be personal preference.
Seriously, if you haven’t been, get yourself to Chronic Tacos.

I read reviews on Unilocal that said the staff was rude/​unfriendly. I found quite the opposite: almost as soon as we arrived, the bar tender greeted us, asked if we’d been been before, and explained how to order. We did feel a little rushed when the cook tried to ask us how we wanted our nachos (whilst we were talking to/​paying the cashier).
The nachos were so-​so: decently generous in size, but a bit lacking in substance (not enough cheese and sour cream), but that may have been because we were distracted with paying when the cook was asking how we wanted it. There were plenty of chips though.
The décor was unexpected – very Día de los Muertos.
I would go back if I was nearby and The Mexican was not open. But I would be more assertive with my order.

Someday, when I get bored of the sloganeer lifestyle and some type of Canadian citizenship, I’m going to open a real California Mission style burrito shop in Vancouver and bring in the real Loonies. Until then, this was the best one I found in my month of wandering the streets of the great white North. It wasn’t a great burrito, but it was edible. The al-​pastor was decently cooked. The rest of the burrito was a little sloppy though, with the salsa sort of a watery mess and the rice being sub-​Rice-​A-​Roni Spanish Box Meal in quality.
Looking around the table at what my friends ordered, I’d say definitely stay away from the enchillladas, which much like the word itself had a chill on the inside. They try to make them fresh, but don’t let them cook nearly long enough.
Oh Canadian-​Mexican food, why do you fail me so?

The best big burrito place in town. Mucho and steamrollers are a joke comparatively. Their fish tacos are quite famous, but I haven’t tried them.
These guys care about the individual flavors and textures of the components they build your burrito with, a rare trait here. The chicken is quite good. I also like that they have super thin slices of cabbage available-​better flavor and texture than the wilt-​happy iceberg that’s more common. Another indication that they ‘get it’-El Yucateco hot habanero sauce. That stuff is fantastic.
I usually stick to burritos here, so I can’t comment on the rest of their fairly expansive menu. My friend really liked his torta. Their beer isn’t a bad price, but it’s cheap lager, which is disappointing, but I guess stays true to N. Mexican traditions…
I didn’t get great service at their gastown cantina place, but the flavors were predictably good.

MEXICAN FOOD!
*Drool*
HOT CASHIER CHICK!
*Drool*
Seeing as I’ve mentioned several times that I am a fat ugly man in the body of a pretty tiny lady, I enjoyed stuffing my face with a huge burrito while oggling the hot tattooed cashier in this place.
The seats were comfy and they offered self-​serve pop (which is great. Free refills!)
They didnt skimp out on the fillings or make me feel as though I was a bother.
Sort of had a tex-​mex punk atmosphere to it, which is great in my books.
Very laid back, which Vancouver needs more of!

3.5 stars (4 stars for food, 3 stars for ambiance/​dining experience)
I am not very adventurous when it comes to Mexican food, so I probably wouldn’t have come here if it weren’t for Groupon even though I pass by all the time.
Since it was recently renovated, the interior seemed very clean and modern. There were pitchers of water with lime slices you could help yourself to at the bar, which I thought was a nice touch, but otherwise I thought the whole environment felt slightly lacking in personality. Chronic tacos boasts using «third generation family recipes» but it didn’t seem like any of the people working there were related, and most of them seemed fairly unenthusiastic. Especially after passing by the locations in Kits and Gastown, this one just seems less impressive.
However, the tortilla was SO good. It was fresh, soft, tasted homemade, and unlike anything you can buy packaged. All the ingredients and toppings were very fresh, although the «steak» filling was kind of disappointing. I was expecting something like slow-​cooked shredded sirloin, but it was almost no different than pan-​fried ground beef you’d make with an Old El Paso kit at home. The carnitas (sweet and spicy pulled pork) taco was much better. That being said, I could barely taste the meat at all because the salsa and guac were so good.
Another minor disappointment: guacamole was extra for $ 2. A little steep for my favourite taco topping!
Chronic Tacos didn’t disappoint, but I think the other locations look much nicer than this one (gastown in particular — maybe i’ll try it out sometime soon for comparison).

I’ve been hearing about Chronic Tacos for a while and finally came to try it out one night after a hockey game. When we walked in, we sat ourselves and a server quickly came to our table with menus and nachos and salsa.
We ordered a Taco Platter and the Baja Cerviche to share. The cerviche was a mix of fish, mangos, pear and some other ingredients that I don’t remember now and it came with fried plantain chips to dip it with. I thought the dish was okay, a bit too sour and nothing special. The taco platter came with 2 meat tacos (of our choice), refried beans and rice. Again, nothing really to right about. We saw someone else ordering a burrito and that thing was huge.
There are alot of TVs all around and I think this would e a neat place to go to for catching the game. The drinks are also decently priced.

I’ve been to the Gastown location. This is a good joint if you want a hefty burrito or just classic tacos. Overall, it was nothing to write home about.
The service was okay. The décor is pretty punk-​ish, and I went there right after work so I felt a awkward in my work-​clothes. The staff was friendly but not over-​the-​top amazing.
I ordered the quesedilla and my boyfriend ordered a burrito. His burrito was SO BIG, I couldn’t believe how big it was! He said it tasted alright.
I have to give them kudos though. After our meal we were reminded of our favourite mexican joint in Edmonton, Julios Barrio. There, we would always order deep-​fried icecream for dessert. We asked to server if she knew where we might be able to get deep-​fried ice cream. To our surprise, she told us we could get it there! It wasn’t quite the same as the kind you can get at Julios (there, they serve it in a large glass, and the deep-​fried tortilla shell is insdie the ice cream, with strawberry sauce, whipped cream, and a cherry on top), and it was served as ice cream inside a deep-​fried tortilla bowl. We kinda smashed it all together to curb the craving and it tasted almost the same. I’m not sure if there is anything else for dessert, because the desserts were not listed on the menu at the tables and the server did not mention another dessert menu.
We eat out a lot, and usually if we really like a place, we’ll go back often. It’s been about a month and we haven’t been back yet. With that said, we might go back another time just out of convenience, or to kick our mexican craving.

S L O w .
Holy merde. My friend ordered some Tacos, the server put them on plates, topped them with the rice and beans, then goes away and has a conversation with someone in the kitchen while we wait– apparently for the food to cool off.
I mean seriously what the eff?
Dudes— NO, just no.
My Chicken tacos were nothing to write home about and not nearly as yummy as the ones I had previously at the W. Broadway location twice before.
However, the Guacamole was super tasty with the fresh corn chips, and they comped us the guac in place of Salsa that they had run out of… (but again, how does a taqueria run out of Salsa?!) Then there was the 4 minute wait for a fork.
Just NO.
The only thing to their credit is ONE of the ‘cooks’ actually knew what ‘gluten free’ means and this was helpful.

I used a Groupon here which got my friend and I one taco, chips and salsa, and a fountain drink each. My friend ordered the steak taco (and what timing, she got a fresh batch of steak), and I ordered the beer battered fish taco.
They make your taco Subway-​style, asking which toppings you would like in your taco. Upon seeing the battered fish lying on the tortilla, I felt I was about to be ripped off because the piece of fish is pretty small, whereas my friend got a healthy serving of steak pieces in her taco. Nevertheless, I was very satisfied with the taco. The tacos were loaded with toppings and sauces, and made for a very messy but delicious meal. I could hardly taste the fish, however, and I would probably opt for the grilled fish next time I try this place.
If you have a much bigger appetite than I do, go for the burritos: they are absolutely massive and stuffed to the point of bursting.

We finally caved and checked out the Chronic Tacos after standing outside longingly while waiting for all the Granville buses. The place is large, but there’s not a lot of seating, which I find a bit strange. Staff are super nice, they were patient with me while I asked a ton of questions about the toppings and explained how the process worked. And the food is very fresh — nachos are made from scratch and deep fried to order, fish tacos are grilled to order as well. Soft drinks are bottomless, which make up for the $ 4 pricetag.
The spicy pulled pork has a great kick to it. They were all out of the regular one, but I’m glad I gave this one a try instead. Husband got the fish taco, which he claimed was the best one he’s ever had. Overall a great casual date night, until the hockey game started and the volume got too loud for us to hear ourselves talk.
The place is clean, and easy to get to via transit (a 5 minute walk from Granville skytrain station, or catch any bus on Granville).