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Mexican food restaurant est. 2013 in the New Monterey area. Casual, colorful decor. Order at the counter, and food is served in to-go style (disposable ware). Menu is all-vegan and uses some faux meats. Dishes offered include crispy potato tacos, fajitas with side of rice and beans, tortilla chips, taquitos, tamales, and combination platters. Horchata and cake available. Open Mon-Thu 11:00am-8:30pm, Fri 11:00am-3:30pm, Sun 11:00am-8:30pm.
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791 Foam St, Monterey, California, USA, 93940
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- Wheelchair accessible
- Accepts credit cards
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Last update on 17 Jun 2024 by Guest
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365 Reviews
First Review by magickbaby
foon
Points +1521
An excellent Mexican restaurant that happens to be vegan! - Edit
Amazing full menu. All vegan. It’s so nice to be able to get something other than a veggie burrito, sin queso, sin crema. And this menu is huge. We’ll be coming back as often as we’re in Monterey.
Read moreGuest
walkaboutdave
Points +17
100% Vegan Mexican Food - Edit
Every item is delicious! So many options. This is a very small restaurant with a small indoor seating area and a couple of small tables outside. Parking can be difficult to find, so you may have to walk a couple of blocks. If you have to walk, do it! It is worth it!!!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-04-05
Guest
VeggieHeather
Points +206
Delicious Mexican food - Edit
Loved everything we ate. The fish taco was the best. Your restaurant is the best restaurant I’ve ever gone to. well, it’s one of my favorites.😃🐢🐶🐦⬛🦮 (The last part was by my six-year-old)😅
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-03-26
Cons: Jesus music
Guest
Nicknselena
Points +354
Vegan Tameles! - Edit
This place has so many choices it was impossible to choose. Multiple kinds of tamales, chile rellenos, tons of burritos, tacos, enchiladas, and more. It’s also all organic!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-03-25
Guest
sheiner
Points +128
Delicious tacos and burritos - Edit
Flavors of their tacos and the staff was really nice
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-03-18
Pros: Large menu, Variety of tacos , Courteous staff
Guest
emmalovesanimals
Points +763
Incredible! - Edit
Loooove this spot! First visited ten years ago or so and returned recently when visiting the area. Everything is delicious and service is fast. Kind people, delicious food. Cannot go wrong! Love the enchiladas and burritos especially. Yum!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-03-07
Pros: Quality, Flavor, Variety
Guest
KaylenPowers
Points +35
PHENOMENAL! - Edit
I loved every bite! I got combination #3. So much food for a reasonable price. Fast service and exactly the kind of “mom and pop Mexican” food you’d expect! I wish I lived closer, but id be broke! Give them a try. Even if you aren’t vegan it won’t disappoint! ♥️🌮
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-02-20
Pros: Portion size, Allllll vegan so I could pick anything! , Quality of food
Cons: I live too far away from them, I can’t go back in time and eat it all over again
Guest
santiagoeb94
Points +334
Must visit - Edit
Every time I come to Monterey I stop here. The staff is friendly, the flavors are authentic, and the portions are generous. My partner and I shared the nachos and ate a taco each one (the nachos were so big that we could actually could have shared only the nachos!).
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-02-16
Pros: Authentic, Savory, Generous
Guest
AllyLo
Points +16
Fantastic meal - Edit
Have had the pleasure of eating at both there Sacramento & Monterey locations. Great food, lovely people, happy times. Can’t go wrong with any combo plate and their pozole is delicious. 10’s all around 💚🍀
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-01-26
KaylenPowers
They are in Sacramento!?!?! This is the best news. We are relocating to the area!
Read moreGuest
afootman
Points +22
Awesome affordable Mexican - Edit
Nice fast service with big menu, all of it vegan.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2026-01-09
Pros: Burrito, Enchilada, Taco
Guest
CaleyBear
Points +132
Won't be back - Edit
Food was decent, staff was friendly, but I really don't want to listen to religious evangelism at a restaurant
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2025-11-21
juneau_andrea
Were they preaching or something? Or something on the tv? I know it’s run by seventh day adventists but I’ve never heard them speak about it.
Read moreTheSecondAmigo
I agree with @juneau_andrea. I've been to this restaurant several times and I've never noticed any religious promotion. Was this on their TV monitor? (If it was on their TV, I would've found it easy to ignore it since the sound is usually muted).
Read moreGuest
dynam!te
Points +735
Best mexican food ever - Edit
It‘s simply the best mexican food I ever had. The lady took her time to explain everything, location was clean with about 30 inside seats. 10/10, would go back! Everything seems to be organic, non gmo etc.
Read moreDessert was also nice!
Pros: Very tasty, Organic, non gmo
Guest
mightymonica
Points +379
Great Mexican food - Edit
We door dashed this twice and tried a lot of the menu. Standouts as excellent: mole, tortilla soup, potato tacos and empanadas.
Read morePros: High quality ingredients , Fresh even door dashed, Lots of options
Guest
jake96
Points +34
Amazing mexican food! - Edit
Amazing mexican food! I will be back next time im in town.
Read moreGuest
Cchurko
Points +165
Yummm!! - Edit
I had the BBQ chickn burrito and added the wet option...so good!
Read moreGuest
mountain_vegan
Points +188
Muy delicioso! - Edit
Fast friendly service. Had Ranchero taco and Crispy Potato taco. Both excellent!
Read morePros: All vegan!, Tons of choices , Delicious
Cons: Hard to find parking
Guest
HaikuReview
Points +1202
Haiku Review - Edit
Nopales yes please
Read moreHard to choose from huge menu
No spicy salsa
Pros: Huge menu many types of options , Nice textures
Cons: Nothing spicy even when asked for
Guest
Zurv
Points +2337
Best Mexican in Monterey - Edit
Amazing food. All the tacos were good but the ranchero and the potato are my favorite. The beans and rice were flavored great.
Read moreI really liked the Mexican hot chocolate and the plantain ice cream with strawberry and chocolate sauce. Service could be nicer but overall great food at a decent price.
Guest
mallgoth_mallgrab
Points +98
Bomb ass Mexican - Edit
2023-08-21
Read moreI’ve had the steak tacos, carne asada tacos and spinach enchiladas. They are all so good.
Was very happy to see they had chiles en nogada which I have never seen vegan or even on a menu since my childhood in Mexico
8/13/25
I am in Monterey about once a year for a job and always make time to hit El Cantaro. Delicious. Today tried the fish and ranchero tacos and were also good.
They were playing some weird Christian radio station but I had headphones so problem solved. Other than that the vibes were good
Updated from previous review on 2025-08-13
Pros: Authentic Mexican food , Delicious , Lots of options
Cons: Closed Saturday , Closes early Friday , Lots of options ;)
Guest
DavidKWinslow
Points +188
Excellent - Edit
The flavor is fantastic! Ordered the Carne Asada tacos and horchata. Price is great and food is even better. Not disappointed.
Read morePros: Flavor , Price , Friendly
Cons: No cons
Guest
FartGang
Points +100
Vegan Mexican food < 3 - Edit
Came around 4:30pm and avoided the dinner rush around 5:30pm!
Read moreOverall, I am thankful Monterey had a nearby vegan restaurant (with so many options too) but the flavors could be improved.
Nachos 3/5 nothing special.
Fish tacos 2/5 not that flavorful even with the mango topping
Chicken taco 3/5 ok
Potato taco 5/5 best taco imo! The outer crispy layer was done nicely and the potato was nice and warm inside :)
Spinach salad 5/5 simple yet so delicious! Strawberries, jicama?, and pumpkin seeds were a nice touch. Great contrast to the rest of the meal (light feeling). Special shoutout to the salad dressing (a sweet, applesauce like taste 😋)
Guest
MonicaJane
Points +489
Must visit! - Edit
This place was incredible and I loved it so much. I had the baja fish taco, crispy potato taco and soy meat taco and they were all delicious. Crispy potato was my favourite
Read moreHorchata is also yummy
Guest
Vegemarija
Points +33
Delicious! - Edit
I ordered plate #1 that consists of tamale, enchilada, rice, beans and salad. It was really good and filling. I also had flan for dessert, super yummy.
Read moreGuest
JackVegan20
Points +58
Highly recommended - Edit
Absolutely loved El Cantaro in Monterey! 🌮✨ Everything I tried was bursting with flavour and totally satisfying. The mushroom taco was juicy and full of umami goodness, while the “chicken” and “steak” tostadas were perfectly crisp, hearty, and so well-seasoned I had to double-check they were vegan (they are!). Great portions, lovely staff, and a 100% plant-based menu that made choosing hard in the best way. Can’t wait to go back — this place is a must-visit for any vegan or veg-curious foodie in town! 💚
Read morePros: The staff, The food
Cons: Nothing
Guest
pjh13
Points +208
Delicious Beans and tortillas - Edit
Simple bean and cheese burrito was exactly what I was looking for. The steak tacos were also really good but I think it might have just been beyond steak
Read moreGuest
sidneylbanks
Points +290
Great vegan Mexican - Edit
So many options, all vegan!! Delicious food & horchata.
Read moreGuest
mtwdmn
Points +67
Great food with lots of options - Edit
Huge selection of fully vegan Mexican food. We had the vegetable enchiladas, tacos, - kids burrito (with side of fries?), nachos, and the flan. They were out of chocolate cake. Everything was amazing. The red sauce on the enchiladas was pretty spicy but not painfully so (they also offer a mild green sauce as an option). The nachos were really good too: no fake meat but a solid cream and cheese alternative that worked well.
Read moreThe food was served on to-go style dishes with plastic cutlery, likely to save on dishwashing/water? There’s some outdoor seating but only two-tops. Food came out relatively quickly, but it’s also a very small kitchen so it looked like folks behind us had to wait.
Went here around 5pm on Monday and it was empty, with 6 parking spaces in their “lot” free. By the time we left, about 40 minutes later, it was packed. They have two high chairs. Bus your own tables.
Pros: Selection, Quality, Price
Cons: Dishware, Parking, Possibly speed
Guest
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