El Paso Tacos and Tequila Set to Open This Week in Hendersonville!

Family owned and operated El Paso Tacos and Tequila plans to open at 117 South Main Street in Hendersonville, NC this Thursday or Friday, April 3rd or 4th. Fingers crossed. After spending time with second-generation owners on-site today, getting the grand tour and talking with them about their history and plans, I’m will tell you that you’re going to love this new Main Street Tex-Mex eatery!

They’re a family owned and operated business that looks to be in expansion mode. Their original Florida location was opened in 1995. Nine locations are currently open and another three are “Coming Soon”, including the one in Hendersonville.

Owners explained they’ll be serving up “authentic Tex-Mex, including family recipes”, and a variety of handcrafted Margaritas and other cocktails from their full bar. Things like:

Birria Tacos, a type of flavorful meat stew from Mexico, traditionally made with goat but also made with beef, lamb, mutton, or chicken. The chili pepper broth that the goat or beef is braised and stewed in, is the central component of this dish.
Traditional Carnitas are made in-house with beer-braised pork.
Their enchelada and burrito sauces are also made in-house.

For reference, here’s their Spartanburg, SC Menu.

They did a LOT of the build-out themselves, including a shiny brand new kitchen in back and lots of rewiring and tiling. Interesting to note, they discovered original exterior windows under drywall in the rear dining area. They couldn’t be saved, so the spaces were tiled over. Murals on the walls were hand-painted by a guy they know and brought in from Texas.

A note about the bar top. Did my best, but I couldn’t get a good shot of all the work they did setting bottle tops in clear resin without reflections, because there are so many fun light fixtures.

Decor’s super fun, colorful, and energetic. It’s very similar, if not identical in many ways, to their Spartanburg restaurant. Not sure about their other locations. Lighting felt magical during the day. It’ll be even more so at night. Save me a seat at the bar!

I might be off by a seat or two, but there’s plenty of seating inside and out. About 126 total, including 23 at the bar and 34 outside. Tables outside look a little beaten up, because they are. They’re actual tables from cantinas that have seen their fair share of action.