Social Profile: 
![]()
✔️Breakfast ✔️Brunch ✔️Lunch ✔️Dinner ✔️Dine in ✔️Take out ✔️Delivery
… View more
Casual Mexican counter-serve eatery serving tacos & burritos with various house salsas.
Address and Contact Information
Address: 300 W 26th St, Chicago, IL 60616
Phone: (312) 225-3200
Website: https://carbonmex.com/
Menu Photos
Order and Reservations
Order: Order online
Related Web Results
Carbon Live Fire – Chicago
Casual, Mexican, counter-serve eatery serving tacos & burritos with various house salsas.
Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill (300 W) – Chicago – Grubhub
Order delivery or pickup from Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill (300 W) in Chicago! View Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill (300 W)’s March 2026 deals and menus.
Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill (@carbonlivefiremexican) – Instagram
TACOS & BURRITOS Carbón Live Fire Mexican Grill is located 810 N Marshfield Avenue in Chicago, IL. And they specialize in authentic Mexican street food.
Last Updates
Reviews
Chicago IL
Disappointed!!! Long wait for tacos!
This was our first time here and trying their DINE IN only promotional Tuesday tacos. It was extremely busy. But we were seated immediately. It was almost max capacity because when we sat down there was only one table left open.
Our female server had a little bit of an attitude I don’t know if it’s because she was overwhelmed or what. We waited an hour to get our order. And we didn’t get chips or salsa like everybody else had on their table until 45 minutes after sitting down. And then we got our tacos about 10 minutes after that. Which is absolutely ridiculous!!! We should not have to wait 45 minutes from the time we’ve been seated to get chips and salsa.
I came here because I saw a promotional flyer on social media promoting the $2.50 tacos. Nowhere on the flyer does it say that the original toppings that are listed on their menu do not come with the tacos and you can only get onion and cilantro. When we ordered the female server said we can only get onion and cilantro for the promo. And the shrimp and steak tacos are excluded for that promotional value. And on top of that 15% gratuity is automatically included. I don’t mind paying tip, I always leave tip, but I don’t like that it’s not explicitly stated until you get in the restaurant! Sneaky!
Not one of these three things was noted on their promotional flyer / social media listing. I greatly dislike it when businesses play the bait and switch on you. I think it is extremely misleading in terms of their marketing and I find it just unprofessional.
It does not list on their flyer/social media page that you can only get cilantro and onion toppings for the $2.50 tacos, for example, the birria taco comes with pineapple and we weren’t able to have it, it also doesn’t say that 15% tip will automatically be applied, and although it does say on the flyer that it’s only “select tacos” they do not specifically state on there that shrimp and steak are those excluded ones. And on top of all that given an attitude when seated and asking questions about the promo when ordering. It was a first time dining in here let alone trying the promo so of course I’m going to have questions.
Although the tacos are a good value for $2.50 because they stuff them well, given everything that I described above, in addition to the flavor being off for the tacos (except carnitas) I don’t think it’s worth it to come back.
I’d rather pay the extra $2-3 per taco to get the toppings of my choice and not wait over an hour!!! You can just go to Pilsen which is 5 minutes away and get your order right away with the toppings you desire and no attitude for asking questions.
They don’t have enough servers to accommodate the amount of people that they are servicing. They only have one bartender making drinks and two servers. One of the female servers was helping to make drinks while the second female server was doing most of the orders and delivering food to the table.
They really need to hire more servers as well as more cooks or they need to reduce the capacity for how much people they allow in their restaurant. There’s no reason why somebody should wait 45 min for chips n salsa and over an hour for tacos!
Here are the tacos we ordered ranked in order from favorite to least:
Carnitas-very tender and juicy, good with or without salsa (my favorite)
Al pastor-tender, but very salty (maybe would have better with the pineapple??)
Birria- tender, lacks flavor (needs a bit of consume or should be soaked in the consume longer to absorb the flavor)
Chicken-tender, but no flavor at all (needs to be seasoned or add salsa for flavor like we did)
The light green/yellow dressing they give on the side in the small tin container to drizzle on the tacos wasn’t appetizing, it was very watery and didn’t really have a flavor. I wish they had more of the traditional Mexican salsas not Americanized one. The chunky salsa that comes with the tortilla chips was actually very good and I used that for the plain chicken tacos.
FYI, parking is almost impossible to find.
… moreThis was our first time here and trying their DINE IN only promotional Tuesday tacos. It was extremely busy. But we were seated immediately. It was almost max capacity because when we sat down there was only one table left open.
Our female server had a little bit of an attitude I don’t know if it’s because she was overwhelmed or what. We waited an hour to get our order. And we didn’t get chips or salsa like everybody else had on their table until 45 minutes after sitting down. And then we got our tacos about 10 minutes after that. Which is absolutely ridiculous!!! We should not have to wait 45 minutes from the time we’ve been seated to get chips and salsa.
I came here because I saw a promotional flyer on social media promoting the $2.50 tacos. Nowhere on the flyer does it say that the original toppings that are listed on their menu do not come with the tacos and you can only get onion and cilantro. When we ordered the female server said we can only get onion and cilantro for the promo. And the shrimp and steak tacos are excluded for that promotional value. And on top of that 15% gratuity is automatically included. I don’t mind paying tip, I always leave tip, but I don’t like that it’s not explicitly stated until you get in the restaurant! Sneaky!
Not one of these three things was noted on their promotional flyer / social media listing. I greatly dislike it when businesses play the bait and switch on you. I think it is extremely misleading in terms of their marketing and I find it just unprofessional.
It does not list on their flyer/social media page that you can only get cilantro and onion toppings for the $2.50 tacos, for example, the birria taco comes with pineapple and we weren’t able to have it, it also doesn’t say that 15% tip will automatically be applied, and although it does say on the flyer that it’s only “select tacos” they do not specifically state on there that shrimp and steak are those excluded ones. And on top of all that given an attitude when seated and asking questions about the promo when ordering. It was a first time dining in here let alone trying the promo so of course I’m going to have questions.
Although the tacos are a good value for $2.50 because they stuff them well, given everything that I described above, in addition to the flavor being off for the tacos (except carnitas) I don’t think it’s worth it to come back.
I’d rather pay the extra $2-3 per taco to get the toppings of my choice and not wait over an hour!!! You can just go to Pilsen which is 5 minutes away and get your order right away with the toppings you desire and no attitude for asking questions.
They don’t have enough servers to accommodate the amount of people that they are servicing. They only have one bartender making drinks and two servers. One of the female servers was helping to make drinks while the second female server was doing most of the orders and delivering food to the table.
They really need to hire more servers as well as more cooks or they need to reduce the capacity for how much people they allow in their restaurant. There’s no reason why somebody should wait 45 min for chips n salsa and over an hour for tacos!
Here are the tacos we ordered ranked in order from favorite to least:
Carnitas-very tender and juicy, good with or without salsa (my favorite)
Al pastor-tender, but very salty (maybe would have better with the pineapple??)
Birria- tender, lacks flavor (needs a bit of consume or should be soaked in the consume longer to absorb the flavor)
Chicken-tender, but no flavor at all (needs to be seasoned or add salsa for flavor like we did)
The light green/yellow dressing they give on the side in the small tin container to drizzle on the tacos wasn’t appetizing, it was very watery and didn’t really have a flavor. I wish they had more of the traditional Mexican salsas not Americanized one. The chunky salsa that comes with the tortilla chips was actually very good and I used that for the plain chicken tacos.
FYI, parking is almost impossible to find.
Luwie A.
First time at this place but came highly recommended so I had to try for myself. We did three tacos (2 steak 1 barbacoa) and a steak and shrimp burrito. Everything was well seasoned and delicious. The red salsa was the perfect kick of heat and flavor to add. They also have a full bar so we ordered the lime and strawberry margarita- both were delicious. The place was busy but didn’t have too long of wait to get our food. Witnessing the amount to traffic at the restaurant told me everything I needed to know. Carbon will be seeing me again in the near future.
… moreIsha W
Great spot if you are looking for a quick bite to eat but want a fancy restaurant atmosphere! Staff very friendly and so was the owner!
… moreDavid Alfaro
I ordered the Mother Clucker and it was burrito with just char-grilled pieces of chicken and tequila lime sauce. The sauce is on the sweet side, so Inwont be getting it next time, but the chicken is delicious and plenty. I’m satisfied as a first timer with my $20 lunch w drink. I recommend it and will be returning.
… moreScottee D
First time here, loved the full strips of steak on the tacos and they were loaded right! The server was very attentive! Shocked at how good the special Margs were. For the great price usually places don’t make them that good but this place does!!! So happy we stopped in!!!
… moreMrWelch 551
Stopped in 8-6-2025 and the experience was everything. I did not get a chance to try the main course of food but I did the black beans and the potatoes. I wish the potatoes were cooked a lot longer they were probably flash cooked with some sort of tomato sauce on them, herbs and spices. The black beans were seasoned very well. I really came here for the margaritas and upon arrival I found out that they were $7 from open to close. Very flavor I had was pretty good. The lime is definitely made fresh and in house everything else was a prepackaged bottle flavor but still good margaritas. You will not be disappointed with the side or the margs at least. I will definitely be back. Jessica was very attentive bar tender, I had the chance to meet Sal, I think he is the owner/manager. All the staff were very friendly.
… moreAngela Bex
I typically order delivery from Carbon Live but since I was in the area I decided to stop in for lunch recently and was not disappointed. The food is always fresh and really good. The service was fast and friendly. There are only a couple tables and a counter, definitely a no frills spot, but definitely some of the best food I’ve had in the city.
… moreJANIE CHAMBERS
Food was ok! To me it lacked flavor. The guacamole was ok. The steak and fish tacos were ok. However the chicken burrito and tacos were for sure the best thing we had. Their salsa could’ve packed more of a punch. Small eating area. Dimly lit. We’ll probably pass on it next time.
… moreY Chen
They have new tortas on the menu, really good! Comes with side of rice and beans for under $14
… morejose torres
The first time at this place, the meat was succulent and flavorful. I didn’t like that my torta was served over some type of melted cheese, which made the bread soggy. I want to come back to try the tacos!
… more