El Diablo's Mexican Restaurant In Bangkok

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Considering all the comment that Mexican restaurants in BKK get here on ThaiVisa, I thought that the El Diablo's Burritos outlet on Sukhumvit Soi 22 deserved its own thread. And I stopped by there the other day to try their food for the first time, even though they're already been open in that somewhat obscure location for between 1 and 2 years already.

From what I can gather, the BKK outlet is a sister venture to the somewhat larger and longer established El Diablo's Burritos restaurant in Chiang Mai. It's a father and son Americans operation, with the father running the Chiang Mai location and a new barbeque restaurant they've opened there, and the son running the BKK location. Similar menus between the two, although there are variations in both locales.

Unfortunately, it seems the BKK El Diablo's doesn't have its own website, but it does have a Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/El-Diablos-Burritos/188009641258603

And here are a couple of review write-ups on the place:

http://www.kohspot.com/bangkok/eats/el-diablo%E2%80%99s-a-new-contender-on-the-mexican-scene/

http://bk.asia-city.com/restaurants/bangkok-restaurant-reviews/el-diablo%E2%80%99s-burritos

Beware: One thing about the Facebook page and some of the other references is wrong/out-of-date operating hours. For the BKK El Diablo's the correct hours at present are Monday to Friday, dinner and evening hours only, but Friday and Saturday open for lunch and through the afternoon into the evenings. In addition to the food menu, they serve margaritas and a small selection of beers.

The restaurant is just a single level, single width shophouse style place in a non-descript area nearby the upscale Davis Hotel. Inside are just two rows of wood tables and benches running along each wall, about eight in total.

The restaurant is very close to Rama IV road, and to get there from Rama IV, you turn onto Soi 24 and then take the first left turn onto the intersection it makes with Soi 22. The restaurant then is a block or two up Soi 22 on the left hand side of the street.

Phrom Phong at Suk Soi 24 is the closest BTS station. But to get off there, it's quite a long walk down Suk 24 to get to El Diablo's. I took that route on the way home the other day, but I was in no hurry. Perhaps a bit closer would be to take the MRT to the Queen Sirikit Center station, take exit 1 toward the Klong Toey Market, and then walk down Rama IV until you reach Soi 24. Or take a motorcycle taxi from either transit station.

From talking with the son proprietor, it sounds like they have at least a year remaining on their current lease, so El Diablo's Burritos BKK is likely to remain in that current location for awhile yet.

Here's a map from their Facebook page generally showing their location and some of their advertised specials, though I didn't get a chance to ask whether the specials listed on their Facebook page are still valid.

Again, the operating hours listed on the map are wrong. Monday to Fridays is dinner-only, no lunch except Saturdays and Sundays.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Some of the comments about El Diablo's Burritos elsewhere basically have said it's no La Monita... And I'll agree with that. It isn't. But I kind of liked El Diablo's anyway.

Here's what their menu looks like:

So as you can see, the prices are pretty reasonable. And the size of their burritos is quite large, especially for the price. It also was nice to have a wide range of fillings, including the chorizo burrito I had for 195 baht.

Here's what my burrito looked like:

And here's what a burrito from their Facebook page looked like:

That's pretty much truth in advertising, so they deserve a point for that.

Some nice things about their burrito are the homemade flour tortillas they use, which are pretty light and pleasant to eat, not thick and starchy. And the burritos itself, despite having rice and beans on the inside, wasn't dry or starchy. Instead, the addition of pico de gallo, sliced jalapenos, cheese and salsa gave it a nice flavor and mouth texture.

Apart from the menu, at present, they're also offering regular specials of batter-fried fish taco and homemade tamales, the latter can be ordered individually or 3 for 150 baht. I'm personally not a big fan of tamales, but the ones they served up were well done. And AFAIK, freshly prepared tamales aren't too common around these parts.

Another nice touch is the restaurant offers a complimentary basket of fried tortilla chips and a mild salsa, which they'll offer to refill. On each table, then, they also have a jar of chili paste (which almost looks like mustard) that can be added to the salsa to give it a bit more bit for those desiring it, as I did. Unfortunately, in one of the few negatives I had about their food, the tortilla chips I had were far too oily, and that's a complaint I've seen raised elsewhere.

For an extra 60 baht, also, you can turn any of their entrees into a combination platter with the addition of rice and beans. For any Mexican restaurant, one way I always judge them is by the flavor and consistency of the frijoles and Mexican rice they turn out. On this occasion, I found the rice to be pretty bland and the beans to have a watery, bland kind of taste. So I'd probably skip those next time.

But, especially given the homemade tortillas and the prices and range of available fillings, I'd defintely go back for more of El Diablo's burritos, and would be willing to give their tacos and quesadillas a try as well. As I was eating the burrito, the thought that kept running through my head was that it tasted like something a Tex-Mex mother would fix at home. And that's not too bad...

[rgs2001uk]

Have heard of the place, only problem for me, its location, there are alternatives easier to access.

Never visited as mentioned above.

This concerns me,

"and we appreciate the Beerlao Dark (145 baht)"

Sorry if that price is still in place, its taking the piss.

Will carry on using T&S.

[mixolydian]

Its an excellent place with great drink specials and good food. Good times there

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

When I was there the other day, the manager specifically mentioned that they were having a hard time finding a distributor for Beer Lao, and thus didn't have any in stock. Thus I wasn't paying attention to the menu price for it. For non Thai beers, I believe they also list Corona, but I'm assuming it's even less cheap.

That said, 145b for a Beer Lao Dark served by a restaurant isn't out of line with the prevailing restaurant prices for that beer... assuming you can find it in most restaurants, which is pretty rare.

I would say, the current location is problematic. They might well be able to call themselves "the best kept secret for Mexican food in Bangkok."

[mixolydian]

There was a bkk wide shortage that lasted a few weeks not too long ago. It seems that its quite available again now though.

I agree the location isn't ideal as its not on sukh but it isn't so hard to get there ... Plus there is a nice practice space close by. Its nice to get a beer and burrito after band practice !

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I got the impression they'll likely be looking to move to a more central, easily accessible location once their current lease runs...

But that's more than a year away, and not very relevant for the time being. So who knows what will happen in the future.

For now, I'd certainly say their burritos are worth a short trip off the beaten path.

[phuturatica]

I didn't even know it existed! I will give it a go seeing as Mexican is my new favourite non-Thai cuisine!

[lomatopo]

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/517869-el-diablos-mexican-rest-suk-soi-22/

https://www.google.com/search?q=el+diablo+site%3Athaivisa.com&aq=f&oq=el+diablo+site%3Athaivisa.com&aqs=chrome.0.57.6594&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8