Matador West Seattle

The food is not that great. Go on Tuesday of you like top shelf tequila. It's half off.

Final Update (6/5): I finally received a response from management, and although the initial reply lacked concrete follow-through, it opened the door for me to reach out directly.

After I followed up again, they acknowledged that the original resolution had fallen short and offered to send gift cards, along with a refund to the original payment method — a gesture I genuinely appreciate. It felt far more aligned with the situation and showed a sincere effort to make things right.

Although the process took more time and persistence than I would have liked, I’m grateful the issue was ultimately handled with professionalism and care.

I’m updating my rating from 1 to 4 stars to reflect how management ultimately responded.

Update (6/3): I emailed them on March 19 and followed up on April 4 after not receiving a response. I finally heard back on April 9, but the reply just asked which location my review referred to—even though that information was clearly stated in the original post. I responded with the same details and, unsurprisingly, never heard back again.

If you’re thinking of reaching out to them for help or a resolution, don’t waste your time. The invitation to “contact us directly” is just for show, they clearly aren’t interested in actually addressing customer concerns.

Original review (3/16):
I rarely write reviews, and even more rarely do I write negative ones, but our experience at Matador West Seattle was so frustrating that I feel compelled to share.

We came in on a Sunday night for a simple meal—two orders of three tacos. The restaurant wasn’t busy, so we expected a reasonable wait. What we got instead was over an hour of sitting there, wondering if our food had been forgotten. Meanwhile, the table behind us, who arrived after we did, ordered both tacos and full entrees and received their meals almost immediately.

Our server never offered an explanation for the delay. In fact, they only acknowledged the situation with an apology once we were visibly annoyed.

When our food finally arrived, not only was it late, but it was also incorrect—we specifically asked for corn tortillas and received flour instead. After waiting that long, we weren’t about to send it back and wait even longer.

The restaurant’s attempt at making it right? They took $6.50 off the bill for a drink and handed us a $10 gift card—one that we couldn’t even use for that meal.

At that point, it wasn’t about the money; it was about the complete lack of care for our experience. If we had been told upfront about a delay, or if the server had checked in and communicated with us, it would have gone a long way. Instead, we were left feeling ignored and undervalued.

Needless to say, we won’t be coming back.

Excellent Mexican food at reasonable prices.

The mango steak tacos were fine, the queso con chorizo was disappointing and looked more like cheese wiz than actual queso. Lastly the salsa was very sweet & just lacking.

Matador always has great atmosphere so that aside, the food was good but not as tasty as some other Mexican restaurants. Service was excellent, even tho it was crowded I still got my food in a timely manner.

Decided to try Matador out for dinner tonight, and I’m so happy that I did! I did a takeout order and it was a quick turnaround time. The staff was also extremely kind. To top it all off, the food was amazing!

This is all that we got never again!

This place is lovely! Service was prompt and friendly. The ambience is so cool: lots of metal and thick fabrics. Moody vibes. Food is pretty tasty and it is nice that they have vegan options. Great date spot. Awesome tequila list.

Their habanero sauce is in house and it is to die for!

The waitress was pleasant and the food was tasty. But the man didn’t want to sit us because “you need to be over 21” which we are. He kept repeating we need be 21 or over. Tried to show him our IDs and he ignored us and walked away. He was not very pleasant and we felt rather uncomfortable but decided to stay anyways.

Dry food, watery marg, slow service, hard bench.

Great happy hour.

Great selection of tasty food and drinks. If you are hungry, this place will leave you satisfied. If you want something lite, or to just graze on, there's plenty to choose from too.

I am always happy with my dining experience here

Great service and delicious food