Right on Main Road in the buzzy Green Point strip, El Burro sits in the upstairs of a pastel-hued Victorian era building. It has a big breezy patio and a bright and funky interior where the magenta walls are hung with folk art crosses and mirrors.

As one of the only relatively authentic Mexican restaurants in Cape Town – El Burro gets many of the flavors surprisingly right – it fills early, especially on summer evenings, and you may find yourself waiting at the bar for a seat. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing since they have an impressive tequila menu as well as craft beers (a movement just starting to take off in South Africa).

Seats are either inside at a mix of banquet and regular tables or outside on a long patio fronting the buzzing Main Road. The patio is refreshingly non-smoking, which is rare for Cape Town. Inside you’ll find a funky folk-art style with magenta walls hung with crosses and mirrors and the long wooden bar.

The margarita list is long and relatively impressive, although if you are used to an authentic margarita you need to order the “Cointreau Margarita” as it is the only of the dozen or so options that has this key ingredient (or any other alcohol variant, like Grand Mariner, of it). All the other margarita options use agave syrup as a substitute, which frankly didn’t taste quite the same. That said, I had the chili margarita and it was spicy enough for me not to care.

If you have been reading a bunch of my reviews, by this point you’ll know that I have a thing for calamari. Especially fresh calamari that is grilled the way they do it around Cape Town. The calamari appetizer at El Burro did not disappoint in this area. It was spicy, but cooked perfectly.

The tacos here are what most people order and they come with a choice of either soft corn or wheat tortillas topped with a choice of goat, beef brisket, pulled pork or chicken mole poblano and come with sides of salsa, guacamole, sour cream and beans. And while they don’t quite taste like tacos in the Americas, they also don’t taste terribly off. El Burro also does enchiladas and quesadillas, but anyone used to eating authentic Mexican fare might want to stick with the more South African style entrees like the line fish marinated in a chipotle and lime rub and served on a bed of cauliflower mash and topped with avocado and mango salsa. It has a South of the Border flavor, but should it not taste like the food back home, won’t ruin the dining experience either.

There are four homemade chili sauces on the tables, ranging from mild to hot. Beyond the Mexican style mains, there are some creative salad options as well as lots of choices for vegetarians including aubergine and butternut quesadillas.

All in all this is a vibey spot, serving a better than expected Mexican fare in the heart of Green Point.