Abi Azteca Grill & Bar

My mouth waters thinking about the delicious dishes at this place. It is practically an addiction! Besides their amazing array of foods, their platanos fritos are really really good. I always get them, along with chips and guacamole. Definitely a must!

This is labeled as Mexican, but I would say the food is more Central American style. The tortillas were definitely Central American style.
I was looking for a quick place to grab breakfast — only 3 other customers were there while I was there, but it seemed like they were regulars. I really appreciated how friendly the staff was. Can’t say what it’s like when they’re busier.

Took over 90 minutes to deliver.

Omg can’t believe this best happy hour in town, come and get happy Hr ask for Stephanie she is the best!!! Food it’s good and ridiculous pieces for hr !! Check it out!

I’ve been coming to this restaurant for over 15yrs. But during the last two to four years, the food quality has been going down. This location also lacks good customer service. Sometimes I’ve had to wait at least 20 – 25 minutes just to have someone greet us at the table. But not always. The pupusas are usually drained in oil and lacks flavor. Sometimes their steak is a bit too salty and not due to the condiments but simply salty. A few years back they had a bit more of a kick to them. I do appreciate the chips though. The horchata is amazing. Their food is a hit or miss which is why I gave it 2 stars.

My wife and I ate here this afternoon for the first time and LOVED it! We had the Tres Enchiladas which were perfectly cooked and very filling. Ambiance was just right for this little restaurant with a quaint feel and Mexican music playing in the background.
Service was a little slower than I would prefer, but the employees were all very pleasant which I appreciated.
Definitely will be going back!

The best happy hour on the Pike! The specials are great, the service is friendly, and the food is delicious. This place is awesome because it’s got a great bar scene, but it’s also family-​friendly. They have a great jukebox and they’re always showing international sports on TV. I like to go to Abi during the World Cup because it’s not as crowded as the other bars or restaurants on the Pike, but it’s got plenty of fans. Abi has a welcoming, casual vibe that will keep you coming back.

Only ever gotten take-​out but the food is surprisingly good. I always get the chicken chimichanga — it’s not really a chimichanga since it’s not actually fried, they just brown the tortilla. However, it’s amazingly delicious with all flavorful fillings so I don’t care about that very much. Give this place a shot!

This place is good I go there all the time

Great place to have Mexican food. Nice seating
Great price beers. The food is always in huge portions. They def give you a lot of food. Also they have very creative dishes

I love Abi. It’s a hole in the wall Salvadorian restaurant with simple décor but the food are amazing. I’ve been here a number of times and have gotten different dishes each time and was never disappointed. Food are priced well and the drinks are cheap. As soon as you sit down they serve you chips and salsa. I love to spike my salsa with the El Yucateco hot sauce that they have on the table to make it spicy.
The best dish here in my opinion is not an entrée. It’s the re fried beans. It’s the best, it’s beans on crack ! Must try when you are here. I can definitely sit there and finish an entire giant bowl by myself. Not sure if anyone else would like to sit next to me for the rest of the night as my stomach processes the beans after that though.
Must try here are the paella. It’s now one my top favorites in the area. They go crazy on the meat and seafood on this dish. It comes with chicken, steak, clams, mussels, sausage, shrimp and a dash of rice. LOL. It’s a huge portion that you can probably share but or pig out like I do and fall into food coma right after that.
Other dishes that I enjoyed are the steak carnitas and fried red snapper. The fried fish may not be for everyone since it’s bone in.
Staff are always friendly and attentive the few times that I’ve been here. For dessert go for the flan. The pupusas are always been rave by the people that we been here with but I’ve never been a fan of pupusas in general so I can’t comment on it.

This place is disgusting!!! My wife & I did to go order a couple of months ago, we ordered Milanesa de pollo & Carne asada. The eggs that comes with the Milanesa was literally black like spoiled, chicken & steak was dry & no flavor. Beans, salad looked old & tasted not fresh. So after few bites we decided to go back & return everything. The manager by the name Israel apologized, refunded back our money & also invited us back with a 50% discount. So after a while we happened to be in the area today & why not let’s give them a try. Went around 5 pm sat at the bar for happy hour drinks & also had the Abi sampler. My wife’s margarita glass smelled very bad, he admitted it & changed her glass. Right after we ate the Sampler my wife headed to the bathroom to vomit, soon after that I had to follow her to do diarrhea. We were sick & uncomfortable that we just wanted to leave. So it gets better, when we asked him for the check he had the audacity to tell us that he can’t give us the 50% discount that he promised us in our previous visit cause we were doing happy hour after I called him 2 days ago to confirm & that we might consider going there soon. Really? Are u serious? After all this experience we r having? We didn’t say anything to him, we thanked him, left him a decent tip & left. But we said never to go back there again & regretted our second visit! Another thing that I forgot to mention is that the cooks are not wearing gloves. Please do not waste your money in this place. Go somewhere else!!!

Mixed Pupusas were so great, that I came back to take some home and share with the whole family.
The flavors are just perfect on the Enchildas too and you can’t ask for better Queso Fresco.
Don’t forget to try the Refried Beans, 5 stars.
Prices are very reasonable compared to the portions, they fill you up.
It’s a small restaurant and the staff are nice and friendly.
I’m sure I’ll be back to try more from their menu.

I came here for dinner.
The place itself is not super nice, but what Mexican place is. We got a table right away, there were a few tables taken.
We got cheese dip for an appetizer. I was not a fan. It was just melted American cheese with jalapenos thrown in. Tostitos has better cheese dip.
The chips are good, the salsa is ok. It reminds me of a runny pico de gallo, it was ok. They never refilled our chips and salsa.
I got a combination dinner. It had refried beans, ride, shredded chicken taco and beef enchilada. The beans and rice were tasty. I was not impressed with the chicken. It tasted like crockpot chicken with a seasoning packet thrown on it. It was not genuine Mexican chicken. The beef was good; the cheese was standard store bought cheese. They need to get the good white Mexican cheese.
I was in the mood for genuine, hole in the wall, cheap Mexican food. This place did not live up to its standard.

This has been a gem since I was a little kid. It’s across from the McDonald’s, and you have to drive in to see it because it isn’t facing Columbia Pike. My family used to come here to often when we were little that they knew all of the servers and they knew us.
The food is always quick, tasty, and inexpensive. My husband and I can gorge on their portions and pay less than $ 25 for a good meal. I usually go for their pupusas, but they have good chimichangas too if you ask my hubby. I love their flan if you’re not too full for desert.

Okay, I’ve been to this place at few times.
I was referred to this restaurant by the manager of my favorite restaurant. It’s a little rough around the edges but the food is great the atmosphere is cool and the people are really nice.
I have even called in and had food to go from there. While takeout food is never as good as when you eat it at the restaurant it’s still really good

I have lived in Arlington for many years and have always seen Restaurante Abi but thought to myself «I wonder what goes on in that sketchy looking place». Well, now I know. Good food goes on there.
I have only ordered food for delivery from here, have not been in person, but the food that I’ve ordered is so good that I think I will put aside my concerns about eating at a place wedged behind a 7 – 11 and next to a McDonalds in a shady looking area on Columbia Pike. The food is that good. We’ve gotten the lomo saltado and the carne asada. I’m not a huge fan of the rice. Seemed a bit undercooked or maybe stale? Rice shouldn’t be crunchy.
I look forward to going trying the food freshly made in person one day soon.

I’m a big fan of Abi. I thank two friends for their constant encouragement to try Abi and am glad that I finally did. This Salvadoran restaurant offers friendly staff, a large bar with TVs, and reasonably priced (strong) drinks and delicious food.
I’ve tried the pupusas, yucca, enchiladas, rice and beans, and sweet corn tamal. Chips and salsa are placed immediately on the table and no complaints there. I love the pupusas. The dough is not too thick, and they are perfectly browned with well-​melted cheese and plenty of curtido. Fried yucca is fine, but the sauce was bland, plain tomato sauce that I did not care for. I’m usually not a fan of yucca in restaurants, anyway. I’ve had the cheese and chicken enchiladas and both have been full of flavorful ingredients and topped with plenty of cheese and rojo sauce. Rice and pinto beans are good, as well. The sweet corn tamal is delicious – it’s huge and after a pupusa and enchilada, I couldn’t finish it, even though I wanted to.
Drinks are delicious. I’ve had both the regular and strawberry mojito and they are strong. I was fairly tipsy after two. And, the Monday-​Friday happy hour is great, with $ 3.50 drinks and selection of noshes, as well.
I’m happy I can walk here, as I will obviously need to walk after those drinks.

The Good
— Great authentic food.
— Use ScoutMob for 50% discount off total table bill (not individual)
— Large portions
— Amazing mojitos
— Muy caliente looking soccer players on the over-​sized televisions showing the latest soccer game
— Decent service
Not So Good
— The bathroom scares me. It didn’t look like it had been cleaned or had a touch up of paint since the building was constructed in the 1960s. Beware! IF this is how the bathroom looks, I am scared of how the kitchen looks. I guess if I want to continue liking the food — the kitchen should be out of sight and out of mind.

First, I would say that the food is really Salvadorean and not so much Mexican. And my rating is more 3.5 stars than 3.
We were looking for a place to eat before heading over to the Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse for a movie presentation and this place fit the bill.
You walk in and it’s not much to look at inside at all, but they have photos of the food posted on the windows which is how we were lured in. We sat down and I would say, overall, the service is good, but beware to go during a soccer game. It gets packed and the waitstaff is attentive most to their drinking customers watching the game than to the restaurant patrons there to eat. We got there just as a game was finishing so it was all good. I got the Plato Typico ($ 14.50) which was pretty good. Nothing to write home to momma about, as I wasn’t a fan of the rice, but the avocado and ripe plantanos really put it over the top for me. It’s a good amount of food and I left full and taking the rest home for lunch the next day.
I think it’s a good choice for dining options in the area and want something comforting and yummy and don’t want to eat the rough food at Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse. Safe bet.