Otto’s Tacos

This one will be short, their carnitas tacos are the best. Every ingredient just creates the most harmonious balance of flavors that will literally have you craving them for days to come. If you’re looking for delicious genuine tacos this will be your new bff.

Location: Once there’s guy called Otto, he told me that his taco is fantastic and I tried. And after that, I knew I could never have another taco that is more delicious.
Otto’s taco has three branches now. This one is in Hell’s Kitchen. I am lucky enough to finally try their tacos. Inside, the decoration is minimum. And seats are pretty limited. I have not been there during rush hour … so I cannot comment on that. The whole process is fast. By the time I paid my money, I was shouted out by their staff saying that my tacos and guac and chips are both ready. OMG, the fast service made me worried that the taco would not be as good as i would expected. But no, I was wrong.
Taco: the taco I had is the only vegetarian. I would say the size is pretty big so I only ate one. I love it. It was juicy and the taco is not stuffy. Their Guac becomes my new fav. Flavorful and balanced. And with chips, it’s only 4 dollars. WHAT A DEAL!
Overall: I would love to come back baby.
4 stars.

I am giving this place 4 stars purely for the carnitas and the churros. The meat for the carnitas was pretty darn juicy in my opinion. And I couldn’t stop eating the churros. I’ve had churros everywhere and I would probably say this tops every place I have had it. Second place would go to six flags stands maybe… it seems like restaurants usually just don’t get churros right.
The carne asada is pretty good, but can’t beat Los Tacos no 1. I think I could’ve done without the masa fries. The shrimp tacos I could’ve done without too.
But all in all, this is definitely one of the better tacos I have had in the city. I think the tortilla is a bit dry and they definitely could’ve put more variety into the toppings, but I think I could come back to Otto’s if it was convenient and it was tacos day (which is usually taco tuesday).

Love this place! Got the chicken, mushroom and shrimp tacos. Out of the three I enjoyed the mushroom and shrimp tacos the most. The mushroom taco was pretty spicy. And the masa fries (made of corn flour) were sooo good with the sauce they come with

Hands down one of the best tacos I’ve had. The décor of the place is really nice. Small place with a decent size seating area. I got the carnitas taco, chicken taco and shrimp taco. All three were excellent. The shrimp taco was by far my favorite. The masa fries were very good. I like that they were crunchy and the sauce that came with it went perfect with the fries.

I never made it to their EV location but since they opened up on 9^th Ave, I was determined to check it out. I got one chicken taco, masa fries, and boyfriend had the mushroom taco. Also got an horchata to wash it all down. Taco was delicious, the perfect amount of spice (for me; boyfriend wasn’t too crazy about that) and flavor. Masa fries were yummy, especially with the crack sauce (also spicy) and horchata was great. The food was just a tad saltier than I prefer but overall, it was still a solid meal. I’ll definitely be back here again!

Been to their East Village location before, so was hyped when they opened up a location near my apartment. Decent size with plenty of tables and simple menu.
Got three tacos: mushroom ($ 3), mushroom with guac ($ 3.75), and chicken ($ 3)…with a side of masa fries ($ 3) and a horchata ($ 2.75). Gotta love the fresh tortilla they use and the well seasoned ingredients — no additional sauce necessary. Masa fries were a bit dry but the crack sauce that comes with it is quite addicting. Horchata was standard fare.
Perfect spot for a quick taco, and reasonable prices. A few more options on the menu would be nice, though sticking with what you do well isn’t the worst thing.

Ok here’s the deal. If you want some bomb ass Cali style tacos FAST this is your place. 3 doll hairs for carnita taco. Mmmmm, could be a little cheaper cause they are small. For me I need to buy 3 to get full. So let’s say a 9 dollar meal. The tortillas are good, taste homemade. Grab a beer for $ 5
Overall a good fast food style taco place that could be cheaper.

Came here for the lunch this week for the first time and was pleasantly surprised.
The tacos are a bit smaller than customary but they are quite good and taste fresh. I ordered two and probably could have eaten another. The side of guac and chips is a nice sized portion; so make sure you pick up an order of that!
Good place for weekday lunch– would return.

Now, listen up mijo, I’m a Mexicano, an ese, if you will. Now, when i spot mi gente’s food, I always welcome the chance to try it. So bae and I walk in (it’s our second date if y’all been counting) around 11pm. We were feeling the music, ambience was chill. We get some overpriced tacos (I’m Mexican so I ‘preciate a good cheap street taco) and the meat was really yummy. The tortilla (Mexican accent) was really tiesa which means stale and hard, though warm! It came straight off the grill, but you would have thought these were microwaved.
The store was so hip, iPads as cash registers and iPad minis used as order viewers. The horchata was from their own recipe, but it was bottled, thicker than it should be but whatevs. Pero like…

Amazing, simple carne asada taco. Fresh tortillas, good ingredients and quick service.
Tacos are a bit small ~four tacos would be equivalent to an entrée or chipotle order.

A perfect and quick addition to the Hells Kitchen fast casual scene. Walk in, place your order for a $ 3 – 4 taco, wait a few minutes, and eat. Couldn’t be more simple than that. They have the range of tacos you’d be expecting (fish, chicken, pork, beef) at reasonable prices and are quick to whip them out. While I wasn’t a huge fan of all the onion they add to their salsa, I’d still go back.

The masa is the draw here, not the fillings, far as I can tell on my visit to each location (this being their third, and the «flagship»). Missed their Caviar opening promo, and they didn’t have the (then-​off-​menu*) Gorgon on my first visit, but returned for a mushroom gorgon for $ 8.71, and enjoyed the indulgent messuva meal, even if it broke apart on first bite and left me looking foolish with no plasticware.
*It’s now prominently on the menu @ $ 8, including a sign on the counter doesn’t specify it’s a CHOICE of filling, nor that the tortilla is deep-​fried (and when I asked they even denied it was deep-​fried, then explained it was???).
On October 28^th, you earned:
Otto’s Tacos Points
8 11
New Total
You’re 89 points away from a 15% Cash Back reward!

Otto Tacos
NY Manhattan Theater District/​Hella Kitchen
9pm Friday 16^th October 2015
Four Stars
This Mexican food chain with a palindromic name serves up some decent LA style street tacos. I ordered the try at your risk Taco Gorgon. It’s basically a big taco named after the dreadful creature Medusa. It consists of an extra large fresh Masa tortilla which is then deep fried and filled with mouth watering carnitas, avocado, Serrano Crema, onions, and cilantro and the. Pressed into a chalupa shape. The masa was crispy yet delightfully chewy. It was not nearly big enough to hold its heaping contents. The pork was tender, moist, and well-​seasoned. The avocado tasted like a plain fresh guacamole. The Crema had a nice flavor without being spicy. It’s a pretty big taco. I also had rice and beans. The rice was old, and hard from too many reheats or from just sitting in the steam table too long. The beans were better but a bit runny. They don’t have spoons so you have eat it with a fork. The chips and Guacamole was quite good. Lastly I had a sol $ 4.5 it’s amazing how expensive imports Mexican beer can cost when you are so far away from the border.
I

My team is obsessed with this place but I’m not really sure why.
Definitely come before 12 on a weekday becaues the line goes out the door
People here are very friendly. The best taco by far is the carne asada.
Guac is v good, chips are okay
CURROS… the star of the show. They come with a few and come with dolce de leche

I was so excited for this to arrive to the hood. I finally hurried by Friday night during prime dinner time, worried the place would be popping and it would be a pain to order. However, I arrived to a totally empty restaurant. Great, I thought, since then they could make me a Gorgon, that delicious deep fried taco that is usually available during slower hours. Unfortunately, I was told no dice. Fine, I get it since the place is fairly new, so I just went ahead and ordered one of every other taco on the menu, just to take my time and enjoy the empty restaurant…
…but unfortunately, what I was served was utterly disappointing. All of the meat tasted like it has been cooked in the morning and was sitting in warming dishes all day. The tacos weren’t even assembled according to the menu descriptions — that carne asada should have red sauce? Great, enjoy some green. Shrimp should have some crema? Green it is. You ordered some guac on it? Eh, forget it and just enjoy some green salsa instead. In fact, every taco was simply meat with some green salsa on top. Not even with cilantro, onion, or anything else. Even though I caught the error in time, the employees were rather unhelpful, so rather than fight it, I simply had a few bites and gave up.
Honestly, given the poor quality of the meat and some fairly nasty tortillas, even the correct toppings wouldn’t have saved these tacos. At first I was shocked with how bad it was, but really the empty store front on an otherwise packed 9^th Avenue should have tempered my expectations. I guess I just didn’t get the memo yet. Hell’s Kitchen has some of the best Mexican food in the city – they should have just stayed away from the big boys.
It was so bad that I had to consume better tacos a few blocks away this evening just to expunge the bad taco taste from my palate.

Otto. Thank you for expanding your business into the wheelhouse of my lunch zone. Your E Village location had already put you at the top of my NYC Taco list.
How do I love thy foodstuffs? Let me ramble the ways. Freshly made tortillas in the house. Juicy pork, beef, chicken and others I haven’t tried yet. Simple preparation like I had in Ensenada and other parts of Baja. Meat, onions, cilantro. All killer. No filler. Small tacos but not over-​priced. Excellent guac.
I’ll be a regular here. It won’t mean you’ll lose my business at your other locations either. You’re the taco bomb!

I went to the new location on 9^th street. The guys was patient, answered all my questions, and this was defiantly the spot. Because of the guy at the counter alone and how he was with me made me get a taco. Mind you I was already on my way home to eat my tacos I made last night. He sold me. I made it happen and had one chicken taco.
I had to have ONE taco to finally taste this deliciousness… Oh my this was tasty. 3.50 for one taco. Two tacos and you are golden for the evening. No adult beverages, but I’m ok with this.
The carry out box was a delight. I got to NJ and it was perfectly in the box with NO damages. I even tipped the box and it was FINE…
I was sooo happy I did. I feel in love with the tortilla. It’s a little thicker than most and it was sooo fresh and good. I highly recommend you stop by for some cheap eats, tasty treats, and great buys.

I’m in love with this place.
Amazingly affordable tacos, served on fresh tortillas made right in front of you, and loaded with your selection of meats. The carne asada and carnitas tacos are chuck full of meat, topped with either a red or green salsa, onion and cilantro. They get a bit messy to eat as the juice rolls out, but they are worth the extra napkins. Everything tastes fresh and made to order.
The chips and salsa are equally fresh and the chips aren’t overly greasy or salty. The space is large, super clean, and offers plenty of seating (both inside and out).
Easily one of the better fast food type places in HK, which HK desperately needs.
They also serve $ 4 – 5 beers as well, a nice little touch.

I really like Otto’s Tacos and the new location especially needs a good rating to offset all of the people that are for some reason or another very angry about something and unfairly leaving 1 star reviews.
This 3^rd location is being billed as their flagship, as it is much bigger than the first two. Most importantly they also have scenery from Star Wars painted on the back wall, which you will see in almost of the Instagram photos posted here.
They have the same simple menu as at the other spots: 5 kinds of tacos covering all the options you might want (except fish, which they will hopefully bring back like they had as a special at the other ones): Carne Asada, Carnitas, Chicken, Mushroom and Shrimp, all for about $ 3 (guac is extra). I am allergic to shellfish and didn’t bother with mushroom since there were plenty of meat options, and the other three were great. Everything was hot and the fresh made masa tortillas here used for the tacos are some of the best in the city.
They also have a bunch of good sides: Chips & Salsa ($ 2), Chips & Guac ($ 3.75), Rice & Beans ($ 2.75), and most importantly, the amazing Masa Fries ($ 3). These are definitely my favorite thing here. Sure, they were a little overly salty this time, but they were still addictive as ever and are an absolute must try.
They also have Churros, which are perfectly fine if you are into those ($ 2.75 for 3 with some dulce de leche sauce).
Finally, don’t forget to try to get your hands on the Gorgon, their off-​menu deep fried puffy taco. It’s a bit of a mystery when exactly it is available, so just ask for it whenever you stop by, as it is incredible.
This is an excellent new option in an otherwise not so great stretch of 9^th Ave. in Hell’s Kitchen. Grab a couple tacos and Masa Fries for a satisfying $ 10 meal and go a few blocks south to Schmackary’s for dessert, and you will be happy.