El Comal - Burnaby

El Comal is one of the best manufacturers of Maistortillas. White, smooth, well made and tasty, no spot full grain in sight. A fabulous lunch counter with real Mexican dishes and shelves full of delicious food recommendations. The only problem is that they are... never open. I visited 4 times last year during the week and they were only open once. As good as it is, that's it, I'm done.

This food here is very good, but it is a wholesaler with a small retail restaurant. This makes the service slow and the portions are quite small. The spices and aromas are good. You have the best chips in town and you can buy them in many places in the lower mainland. It's in a strip and a little hard to find. Parking can also be a challenge.

We heard that this place had good food.... best Mexican food around....we drive through it every day to work. You will really miss it as it is in an industrial area and in a strip storage area. We're dipped there on a Saturday... some other people were there when you order at a switch and they give you a number. We ordered a chicken Burrito that was good and a nice size for a meal for my husband. I ordered the Chile Relleno, who had great flavors but was not very filled.... It would never have put a dent in my men's appetite! I wanted more... and it was $8,50. Both came with rice and fried beans, but I could have used more rice to add the sauce with the Chile Relleno. The seating area was cold, we ate with our coats....no heat and the food was just warm....not hot....not cold. We both agreed if the food was actually hot. The food tasted fresh and made at home the decor is typical of Mexico-saving and worn looking, it could have used some Mexican music in the background. The staff did their job, but I wouldn't say they were friendly..... they didn't welcome us and while they didn't ask how the things were and if they didn't invite us back, wish us a good day or thank us for stopping. Maybe try them again, but there are so many places that get it right for the first time!

Excellent always fresh, tasty and healthy Mexican cuisine. The corn chips are made in the house and honestly the best we've ever eaten! Love the enchiladas and the delicious sauces they come with. Salsas are full of taste and spices. It's a...bit out of the way to get there in an industrial part of Burnaby, but well worth the ride, the cafe is a large space that is convenient to sit in lunch. It has to do at noon, so maybe a bit earlier or after when you're in a hurry. Friendly and patient service.

We went for an early lunch recently, arrived about 10:20am, and dined in. The floor in the main dining in area was being damp mopped as we walked in, but was dry and accessible after ordering (with our ordering being a touch delayed, as the woman mopping, was...the same woman taking orders at the deli counter). After ordering, we chose to sit at one the larger round tables it provided a nice 360 view of the rather cute and colourful surroundings. The table and place mats were a touch dirty though we had to provide some cleaning before settling in. And then after waiting for what we thought was more than sufficient time for some service of water, napkins, knives, and forks, etc., to our table, once again, we provided our own service. So far, not so good, in the service department! But heh, we did get a small bowls of tortilla chips and salsa brought to our table before any of our food order arrived. Subsequent food service to our table was consistently delayed by customers coming in and ordering take out. There was just the one person doing everything taking orders, serving, cleaning floors, and etc. A heads up to those who have not dined there you pay at ordering, and no 'official ' receipt (listing what was ordered) was provided. I mention this because we had what bordered on an argument later, while dining, over what had been ordered, and what had been received. I knew what I had ordered and paid (had written it down), but it took a good while to convince the server that she was in error, and we had not received one of the dishes ordered and that was why we had come back to the deli counter asking asking where the dish might be, after waiting a good long while wondering. She eventually acknowledged fault when she found the plate sitting in the microwave oven where she had forgotten it! We ordered three of their dishes: two tamale plate (wanted three tamales, but they only had two, they came with rice and re fried beans) three enchilada plate (which came with rice and re fried beans) three soft tacos plate (chorizo sausage, pork, chicken). The tamales: were served without any banana leaves (as shown on the plate in the picture) in place (thought this a bit strange, had never been served a tamale without the banana or other leaves in place), no separate meat or other filling, just a thick, dry, and quite spicy hot masa everything on the plate only mildly warm! The tacos: the corn tortillas (one per taco) were thin, damp, cool, and flavourless, and the fillings inside a few tiny pieces of the meat, tomato, chopped lettuce, and 'sauce ' soggy so eating with one hand, 'the ' appropriate Mexican way, was next to impossible!! The enchiladas: thin, flavourless, and rather cold and the pictures on the wall looked so good, the tortillas filled, and plump!! The rice was 'ok ', but rather tasteless. The re fried beans, tasted and looked like a canned product, without any real texture or flavour. In summary half decent presentations, but mostly cool, flavourless, and poorly prepared foods. We were very disappointed with our dining experience at El Comal, we had so hoped for more!