Minneapolis Mexican runs from Lake Street taquerias to a Kingfield tasting room with a James Beard pedigree, and the distance between them is the point. This guide covers the counters, the family dining rooms, and the chef-driven kitchens, all inside the city limits, all worth naming by their own corner.
5400 Penn Ave S, Minneapolis, MN, 55419 · +16128861606
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Colita anchors the del Prado group's coastal Mexican lane in Minneapolis, built around seafood and a wood-fired grill rather than the taco-counter model most of this list runs on. It sits at the higher end of the city's Mexican rooms, closer to a chef-driven dinner destination than a quick stop, and it holds its place in the North Loop dining conversation.
What to ordertacos, octopus, burgers
№ 02
Pineda Tacos
$
60 Nathan Ln N, Plymouth, MN 55441 · +17635451977
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Pineda Tacos keeps its footprint small and its focus narrow: tacos, fast, at a price that makes a second order easy. It is a counter-service stop built for a quick lunch rather than a sit-down meal, and that narrowness is the strength. Minneapolis has no shortage of taco counters, but few keep the menu this tight.
№ 03
Taquería y Birriería las Cuatro Milpas | Mexican
$$
1526 East Lake St, Minneapolis, MN 55407 · +16128348814
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Taquería y Birriería las Cuatro Milpas built its name on birria and a carne asada taco that regulars have followed for years, the kind of place families return to across decades rather than discover once. The quesadilla rounds out a casual, family-friendly room. Execution has been inconsistent on the carne asada lately, so the birria is the safer order.
What to ordercarne asada taco, birria, quesadilla
№ 04
Nico's Taco and Tequila Bar
$$
2516 Hennepin Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55405 · +16123457688
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Nico's Taco and Tequila Bar operates out of a renovated house in Minneapolis with a patio that carries the room's appeal as much as the kitchen does. Tacos, churros, and strong margaritas make up the core menu, portions run smaller than the price suggests, and the room's charm does some of the work the plate should.
What to ordertacos, churros, margaritas
1222 NE 2nd St, Minneapolis, MN, 55413 · +16122008087
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Oro by Nixta runs the tortilleria line out of Northeast Minneapolis, built around masa made in house rather than a standard taco-counter menu. It is part of the city's chef-driven Mexican tier, focused and small in scope, and it treats the tortilla itself as the dish worth building a kitchen around.
What to ordertres leches, tasting menu
№ 06
Jefe Urban Cocina
$$
219 SE Main St, Minneapolis, MN 55414 · +16122552000
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Jefe Urban Cocina pairs a vegan chorizo taco with more traditional carnitas and chile relleno on a menu built for groups and patio afternoons in Minneapolis. Happy hour extends to the vegan tacos, a detail worth checking before ordering, and the room's pub energy makes it as much a pre-event stop as a dinner destination.
What to ordervegan chorizo tacos, carnitas, chile relleno
№ 07
Listo! Fresh Mexican Grill
$
1730 New Brighton Blvd, Minneapolis, MN 55413 · +16122163909
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Listo! Fresh Mexican Grill runs a counter-service menu of burritos, tacos, and quesadillas built for speed over seating, with locations reaching well beyond the city limits. The Minneapolis room keeps the same limited, grab-and-go format as its siblings, and the burrito is the order regulars name first.
What to orderburritos, tacos, quesadillas
№ 08
Dominguez Family Restaurant | Mexican
$$
3313 E 50th St, Minneapolis, MN 55417 · +16127248493
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Dominguez Family Restaurant has run as a locally owned Minneapolis dining room where the chicken chimichanga and the number eight enchiladas are the standing family order. Beans and rice pull praise even from diners who usually skip the side. Quality reports have been uneven lately, but the enchilada plate remains the reason regulars keep coming back.
What to orderchicken chimichanga, enchiladas, beans and rice
№ 09
Abi's Restaurant
$
2828 Lyndale Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55408 · +16127210013
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Abi's Restaurant serves a pupusa alongside a tamale with eggs, a breakfast-for-dinner plate that stands out on a menu otherwise built around quesadillas and casual weeknight plates. The pupusa filling draws praise, though salsa and hot sauce come only on request. It operates out of a strip-mall storefront in Minneapolis, the kind of low-frills room worth seeking out on its own terms.
What to orderpupusa, tamale with eggs, quesadilla
№ 10
Centro
$$
1414 Quincy St NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413 · +16123455527
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Centro pairs a taco menu with soft serve margaritas on a Northeast Minneapolis patio built for groups and afternoon gatherings rather than a quiet dinner. The music and staff energy get as much notice as the food, and the soft serve margarita in particular has become the order people specifically come back for.
What to ordersoft serve margaritas, tacos, margaritas
№ 11
El Taco Riendo
$
2412 Central Ave NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418 · +16127813000
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El Taco Riendo on Central Avenue serves sopes as its calling card: a thick, fried masa disc built up with a choice of filling, ordered three to a plate. Tacos and enchiladas round out a no-frills, strip-mall room. Service reports have varied sharply, but the sopes are the dish that keeps loyal customers ordering them specifically.
What to ordersopes, tacos, enchiladas
Frequently asked
What is the best Mexican restaurant near me in Minneapolis?
It depends on which part of the city. Central Avenue in Northeast holds El Taco Riendo and Oro by Nixta, Lake Street holds Midtown Global Market and its counters, and Kingfield and the North Loop hold Colita. Each entry here lists its own neighborhood and Insider Score so a reader can match location to craving.
Which restaurants on this list are chef-driven rather than casual?
Colita and Oro by Nixta sit at the higher end, built around a wood-fired grill and a house-made tortilla line rather than a fast-casual counter. The rest of the list runs from strip-mall storefronts to family dining rooms, and price and format are noted for each entry.
Does paying get a restaurant onto this list?
No restaurant pays to be listed. Every entry carries an Insider Score built from the public review record, and placement reflects that record, not advertising.
Are any of these restaurants actually in St. Paul or a suburb instead of Minneapolis?
No. Every restaurant on this list sits inside the city of Minneapolis. Some Mexican rooms worth knowing, like El Burrito Mercado, are across the river in St. Paul and belong on a separate list for that city.
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The data first, then the verdict
We start with the review record, not a press release. Every room here is a real kitchen with a strong rating across a meaningful number of reviews, ranked on our 10-point Insider Score. We weight consistency over time and the rooms locals return to, not the ones tourists pass through once. The list updates as the data does. How we work →
Kou Thao
Staff Writer · Top of Minneapolis
Kou Thao is the St. Paul & Corridors Editor at Top of Minneapolis. Born in St. Paul and raised in Frogtown, he grew up working the family egg-roll stand at Hmongtown Marketplace. He covers the marketplaces, University Avenue, the East Side and West Side, and every corridor counter worth the trip across the river.
