Mexican food that deserves the line out the door

The crab enchiladas ($10.50) — three large tortillas filled with crab meat, onions, and tomatoes, topped with melted cheese — arrived at the table still steaming. The cheese was tasty but did not overwhelm the crab. It was served on a bed of Spanish rice with lettuce, tomato, guacamole, and a dollop of sour cream.

We also tried the tacos al pastor — or shepherd style ($12) — three soft tacos stuffed with spicy grilled steak strips marinated in a pineapple and pepper sauce, served with refried beans and onions, tomatoes, and cilantro. The bean dish is a little different at El Tapatio than at many Mexican restaurants, and we mean that in a good way. The beans are more a puree, almost creamy, with the melted cheese on top keeping it all together.

The arroz con pollos ($12.50) was a generous serving of spicy grilled chicken strips with Spanish rice and guacamole salad with flour tortillas on the side for rolling all or as many of the ingredients as desired.

We also enjoyed the shrimp fajitas ($14.50), a half-dozen marinated shrimp, peppers, and onions and tortillas served with Spanish rice, refried beans, guacamole, salad, and sour cream. The fajitas themselves were very tasty and satisfying, but the rice was a tad anemic and lacked seasoning.

There were plenty of items for children on the menu, too. Kids’ meals ($5) include combos of a cheese quesadilla and french fries.

El Tapatio also has a nice vegetarian section of the menu, including a veggie taco salad ($7); burrito loco ($9.50) with mushrooms, zucchini, squash, onions, and tomatoes, with melted cheese and served with Spanish rice, guacamole salad and sour cream; and veggie enchirito ($9.50), an enchilada and burrito with spinach, cheese, onions, and tomatoes covered with melted cheese and served with Spanish rice, lettuce, tomato, and sour cream.

For meat lovers, the carnitas Tapatias ($12) is a sautéed pork dish with Spanish rice, fried beans, pico de gallo, a jalapeño pepper, and three tortillas.

We also tried a soft beef taco ($2.75) and a tamale ($3). The taco was excellent and the tamale was out of this world, made with masa, a kind of corn meal.It’s hard to even find a tamale in the Northeast, never mind one that tastes this homemade.

We couldn’t leave without satisfying our sweet tooth, so we shared an order of churros ($3) — twists of fried dough with sugar, cinnamon, and a drizzle of honey. They were great. No wonder diners are lining up at the front door.

TOM LONG