The West Side holds District del Sol, the Mexican corridor anchored on Cesar Chavez Street, but the ward around it runs wider: Kurdish, Venezuelan, and the neighborhood taverns that have fed this stretch of St. Paul for decades. This list moves counter to dining room, taqueria to sports bar, without losing the thread of what makes the West Side its own place.
№ 01
Boca Chica | Restaurante Mexicano y Cantina
St. Paul $$
11 Cesar Chavez St, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16512228499
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The chile relleno anchors the menu at this longtime West Side room, and the weekday lunch buffet is the move for anyone testing the water. Enchiladas and tacos round out a Tex-Mex leaning menu built for repeat visits rather than novelty. The room hosts family gatherings easily, and the pace stays unhurried even at capacity.
What to orderchile relleno, enchiladas, tacos
№ 02
Holman's Table
St. Paul $$
644 Bayfield St, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16128005298
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Brunch here comes with a view most St. Paul rooms cannot offer: private planes taxiing past the patio next to the airport. Cocktails and seasonal specials fill out the menu, but the draw is sitting outside in patio season and watching the runway. Reservations move fast on busy weekends, so calling ahead pays off.
What to orderbrunch items, cocktails, seasonal specials
№ 03
Joseph's Grill
St. Paul $$
140 Wabasha St S, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16512222435
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Happy hour cocktails and a burger built for a pre-game crowd define this St. Paul sports bar. Steak and fish and chips round out a menu suited to groups heading to a Wild game or a hockey tournament, with shuttles run on busy nights. Lunch on a slower weekday shows the kitchen's range beyond the bar snacks.
What to orderBurger, Steak, Fish and Chips
№ 04
Babani's
St. Paul $$
32 Fillmore Ave E, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16516029964
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Chicken Sawa and lentil soup carry this Kurdish room, the first of its kind in Minnesota, and the lamb kebab backs them up. The interior rewards a slow look around the room. This is a distinct cuisine from the West Side's Mexican corridor and deserves to be named on its own terms, not folded into a broader Middle Eastern label.
What to orderChicken Sawa, lentil soup, lamb kebab
№ 05
La Costa Mexican Sports Bar & Grill
St. Paul $$
194 Cesar Chavez St, St Paul, MN 55107 · +16513308743
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Barbacoa tostadas packed to the edge are the reason to walk in, with guacamole made fresh enough to notice. The patio, more a stretch of outdoor seating than a formal terrace, fills through the summer months. Attentive service and a sports bar pace make this a reliable choice for a casual meal on St. Paul's West Side.
What to orderbarbacoa tostadas, guacamole, chicken tostadas
№ 06
Taco'n Madre Taqueria Y Cevicheria
St. Paul
63 Winifred St W, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16513404614
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Flautas are the standout at this counter-service taqueria, with menudo and ceviche giving the menu real depth beyond the standard taco lineup. Tripe shows up on repeat orders from regulars who know the menu runs larger than the small room suggests. Takeout holds up as well as eating on site, which says something about the kitchen.
What to orderflautas, menudo, ceviche
№ 07
Crasqui Restaurant
St. Paul
84 Wabasha St, Ste 3, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +19526005578
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Arepitas, yuca, and an arugula salad build a Venezuelan menu with real ambition, and the fixed-price dinner puts three courses at a set cost for a date night out. The dining room leans upscale for the neighborhood, a deliberate choice on a stretch of St. Paul more associated with counter service than tasting menus.
What to orderarepitas, yuca, arugula salad
№ 08
EL CHARRITO TAQUERÍA
St. Paul
168 Cesar Chavez St, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16513131052
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Steak tacos move fast at this taqueria across the street from a market that draws its own crowd. Carnitas and carne asada round out a short, focused menu built for speed rather than ceremony. Service moves quickly enough that a lunch stop rarely runs long, and the tacos are the reason regulars keep skipping the market across the way.
What to ordersteak tacos, carnitas tacos, carne asada tacos
№ 09
Michael's Pizza
St. Paul $
441 Robert St S, Saint Paul, MN 55107 · +16512225252
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The burger gets mentioned as often as the pizza at this strip-mall room, a rare split loyalty for a place with pizza in its name. The dining room carries decades of neighborhood history on its walls, newspaper clippings included, and the crowd leans toward coworkers grabbing a casual lunch rather than a destination pizza order.
What to orderburger, pizza, cheese pizza
Frequently asked
What is the best Mexican restaurant near me on St. Paul's West Side?
District del Sol holds several strong options at different price points: Boca Chica for a longtime family-style room, La Costa for patio seating and barbacoa tostadas, Taco'n Madre for counter-service flautas and menudo, and El Charrito for fast steak tacos. Each ranks by its Insider Score, which reflects the review record and nothing else. No restaurant pays to be listed.
Is the West Side the same as District del Sol?
District del Sol is the name for the commercial corridor along Cesar Chavez Street on St. Paul's West Side, anchored by Mexican-owned businesses and restaurants. The West Side is the broader neighborhood, which also includes Kurdish, Venezuelan, and American rooms outside that corridor.
Where can I get Kurdish food in St. Paul?
Babani's, on the West Side, is identified as the first Kurdish restaurant in Minnesota. Its Insider Score is based on the review record alone, not on any payment or partnership, and reflects consistent praise for the Chicken Sawa and lentil soup.
What is the highest rated restaurant on this list?
Rankings are set by each restaurant's Insider Score, a measure built from the review record rather than staff opinion or advertising. Check the score listed next to each name above; no restaurant on this list paid for its placement.
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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.
